News and notes from around the interweb:
- Interesting: DiploTours “educational travel to places where U.S. diplomacy has made a difference”
- 45,000 point signup bonus returns for Wyndham Visa and while Wyndham doesn’t have a ton of high end properties, this is 3 nights at any Wyndham.
More importantly they’re in the timeshare and vacation rental business, so they have properties where no one else does, you can use your points at those for 15,000 per bedroom per night.
Firestone Estate Vacation Rental Palm Springs, credit: Wyndham - Aer Lingus’ CEO knows their new frequent flyer program kind of blows, says it’s great anyway
- Not new, but new to me: Citi ThankYou Rewards transfer partner EVA Air MileageLands (a Star Alliance program) offers discounted redemptions for specific routes and also upgrade discounts.
- Houstonites: I’ll be speaking at Nomadic Matt’s meet up on July 5 so if you’re a reader of that excellent travel blog I look forward to meeting you.
- All the single ladies… stay away from the Hotel Deccan Erragadda in Hyderabad. (HT: Alan H.)
- Airlines — most importantly United — oppose Denver airport’s renovation plan. (HT: Sam K.)
- Shame on the TSA for taking selfies with passenger belongings like the giant viral lobster
I understand they have to go through some things to make sure everything is kosher, and everything is good to go. But to pull your luggage out and take a photo of it, and then post it online?” [giant lobster owner] Christopher Stracuzza told the Boston Globe.
…“Yes it was a huge lobster, and yes it is a novelty that we all don’t see very often, but really the bigger picture was this is a TSA agent that is going through our personal property and taking selfies,” Atlantic Seafood owner Lisa Feinman [who sold the man the lobster] told News 8.
I had assumed that the lobster photo was taken with the owners permission (I imagined them having a fun chat while the TSA agent looked through his belongings). But I assumed wrong – they just take passenger items and take photos. What is wrong….
If he expected his box of lobsters to be kosher then I’m afraid he’ll be sorely disappointed.
@ Gary – the meetup in Houston is on July 5 (not February 5). Look forward to seeing you there!
@Gary, it’s HOUSTONIANS
Your headline suggested you had found a way to use points for the pricey Diplotours. Apparently I misunderstood… but why did you mention them if you had nothing at all to say about them?
“travel to places where U.S. diplomacy has made a difference” or what Foreign Service Officers refer to to as PCS and TDY travel.