Monthly Archives

May 26 2016

While the signup page doesn’t mention the bonus, Club Carlson is going to award 500 points to people who sign up for their free ‘Club Carlson for Travel Arrangers’ program by May 31. Points are supposed to post within 14 days of enrollment.

The idea of the program is you’re booking hotels for other people, they’ll reward you for booking Club Carlson hotels. I’ve often wondered why more programs don’t directly reward travel arrangers (as opposed to companies) in the mold of the 1970s-era Southwest Secretaries Program.

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May 26 2016

Star Alliance member Avianca has a business class fare between several US cities and Peru from $407 roundtrip.

You can fly from Chicago, Houston, Miami, Fort Lauderdale, Los Angeles, or Washington Dulles. Travel is either to Lima or Cusco. It’s possible to fly into one and back from another as an open jaw. Cusco will be your base to visit Machu Picchu.

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May 25 2016

Regular readers of the blog know that I use Award Wallet to track my miles and points.

The free version of the service suffices for most. You enter your frequent flyer account numbers and passwords. Then you can update most of your account balances with a single click and see them on one page. You can log into your accounts with a single click.

When I first signed up I realized quickly I was happy to pay the minimum required for their premium membership that included expiration date tracking for many of my accounts.

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May 25 2016

A roundup of the most important stories of the day. I keep you up to date on the most interesting writings I find on other sites – the latest news and tips.

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May 25 2016

I really like Silvercar. They have an all-Audi fleet and their all-inclusive model comes with free GPS, wifi, and satellite radio. You pay only actual tolls (no administrative charges) and can pay a flat $5 and they’ll refuel your car at market rate.

It doesn’t work for them everywhere, however. They used to have a Houston Hobby location but that’s closed. Now they’re closing down Dallas-Fort Worth.

Their website and app will not reserve cars past July 1 at DFW, and customer service confirms it’s because they are shutting down the location.

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May 25 2016

Russia is criticizing the US military for a spy plane over the Sea of Japan near Russia which came too close to two civilian jetliners.

The US military plane was reportedly flying at 36,000 feet and non-responsive to air traffic control. A KLM Boeing 777 “had to immediately change the flight path” and a Swiss aircraft reported “visual contact with a large four-engine aircraft, which was in direct proximity to their plane” leading to a change in altitude.

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May 25 2016

New York, Atlanta, Boston, Miami, Philadelphia, Toronto, or Washington DC – Tel Aviv roundtrip on British Airways “for about $2,000 round-trip in business class” which stacks with a $400 off and a 10% discount to get to an amazing fare for travel this summer — and that’s eligible for 25,000 bonus miles on top!

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May 25 2016

The TSA has literally only fired one executive in 5 years. It’s easier to get fired as a teacher in the New York City Public Schools system.

Of all the TSA executives who have left the agency in the last 5 years, only one was fired. That’s the same number of executives who died while still employed by the agency.

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May 24 2016

Delta introduced ‘basic economy’ fares to compete against Spirit Airlines where Spirit is offering super low fares on non-stop routes Delta is flying. They introduced fares that stripped out things like advance seat assignments and used those fares when matching Spirit’s prices. Customers could spend more to get more, or spend less and get something akin to Spirit but still with better legroom and free carry on bags.

United and American will follow suit this year while Delta spreads use of the fares beyond routes where they compete with ultra low cost carriers and into international markets even.

The Economist calls this “a class below economy and tries to tie it into issues of class divide. But there’s a ton of misinformation out there about these fares.

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May 24 2016

A roundup of the most important stories of the day. I keep you up to date on the most interesting writings I find on other sites – the latest news and tips.

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