About Gary Leff

Gary Leff is one of the foremost experts in the field of miles, points, and frequent business travel - a topic he has covered since 2002. Co-founder of frequent flyer community InsideFlyer.com, emcee of the Freddie Awards, and named one of the "World's Top Travel Experts" by Conde' Nast Traveler (2010-Present) Gary has been a guest on most major news media, profiled in several top print publications, and published broadly on the topic of consumer loyalty. More About Gary »

More articles by Gary Leff »

Did You Know You Need to Print a Boarding Pass to Go Through Security and Get on a Plane?

by Gary Leff

Mar 18 2016

Did you know that if you check in using American’s mobile app, and wish to use a mobile boarding pass, you have to pull it up prior to the start of boarding? That’s apparently “The infuriating rule American Airlines won’t tell you about until it’s too late” according to a columnist for the Washington Post.

It’s likely no one is surprised that there’s a cutoff time for check-in. It’s a reasonable rule, in my opinion, so that seats assigned to people who aren’t going to show up for their flight may be given to others that are standing by and want to fly.

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Review: Park Hyatt Vendome Paris

by Gary Leff

Mar 17 2016

I first stayed at the Park Hyatt Vendome in December 2012 and then again in December 2014.

Since the hotel hasn’t changed much since my previous two stays, and I’ve reviewed it before, I won’t be as detailed this time around. Instead I will just hit the most relevant pieces of the stay.

In some ways the hotel may be overrated (I’ve seen some pretty amazing superlatives thrown at the property). But I choose to stay here because it’s about the (1) nicest hotel that is (2) also a reasonable value on points. And because it offers (3) an even better value for Hyatt Gold Passport Diamond members.

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Testing the Fastest Inflight Internet: How’d You Like to Download Movies With No Delay?

by Gary Leff

Mar 17 2016

Like Zach Honig I flew gogo’s Boeing 737 test plane on Monday. I had flown the aircraft to test their new satellite internet speeds back in November, but since I was home in Austin and they were in town for Southby I made my way to the airport for a 90 minute flight with a few other bloggers and journalists.

We had 51 devices connected on our flight which is 3 times as many on a typical flight and which matches or exceeds the highest volume use flights like San Francisco – Boston. And there was really no latency to speak of, I was using the internet like I was on a typical wifi connection on the ground.

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How Donald Trump Got Taken to the Cleaners Buying Trump Shuttle and The Plaza Hotel

by Gary Leff

trump on letterman
Mar 17 2016

Donald Trump’s sine qua non is dealmaking. He declares he doesn’t just make deals, he’s the authority on making deals because he literally wrote “the Art of the Deal.”

Here’s a bit on the inartful deal making that went into Trump’s purchases of an airline and The Plaza — both of which came within 12 months of “literally writing The Art of the Deal.”

He paid more than anyone else ever had for a hotel, and too much cover his debts. Ultimately Trump lost much more than his original investment in the airline: he forfeited over $100 million he had personally guaranteed.

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Loyalty is More Important than Ever: McDonalds Launching a Rewards Program

by Gary Leff

Mar 17 2016

Even as US airline programs are devaluing their points and restructuring the (relatively small) portion of earning that derives from flights, loyalty programs are expanding.

Loyalty marketing is increasing in importance as companies are better able to: track consumer behavior through technology and communicate effectively with consumers electronically.

The crux of loyalty programs is that consumer behavior can be driven through recognition and reward.

Loyalty programs aren’t going anywhere.

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American Tightens Premium Cabin Free Baggage Allowance

by Gary Leff

Mar 16 2016

The narrative about air travel has been that basic economy fares get less and less, and pay for more and more things. About 8 years ago the trend began charging for checked bags in economy.

On the other hand, it’s usually expected that premium cabins get more. There’s more perks for people who pay more.

That’s not always true. And continuing the trend of taking away from premium passengers, American shared with me today that they’re eliminating the 3rd free checked bag from domestic first class and international business class.

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