Category Archives for Trip Reports.
After deciding we’d visit Venice before my daughter started back to school, my wife decided that we ought to travel to the South of France next. After all, they’re pretty close! But only one airline with a published schedule flies Venice – Nice, and only two days a week. That’s why I wound up flying Volotea, and it was the segment I was most excited about on this trip – a new airline, with an interesting business model!
I figured if I showed up in Venice during the week, rather than a weekend; after true peak of peak dates (when the city stopped imposing its transient tourist tax); and stayed in a more residential area, away from the tourist sites (Piazza San Marco and St. Mark’s Basilica, the Doge’s Palace, Rialto Bridge) I wouldn’t mind so much.
Overall value across the Atlantic was fantastic. The seats are mostly fine, though the new suites are better. Food was below average for American, and service was pretty ordinary, but a good way to cross the Pond. Getting any of American’s other seats would have been better, food is usually better, and many crews are too. So I don’t hesitate to fly them, I just feel like they can do better than they did here – but I did get my points worth as it were.
The hotel became part of Marriott when Starwood was acquired, and then moved over to Hyatt in early 2023. That was a boon to elite members, because the breakfast benefit was upgraded to Hyatt standard and suites became confirmable at the time of booking. Late checkout is proactively offered, not just honored.
There’s no question that the Westin Denver Airport is a top 5 airport hotel in the United States, behind probably the Grand Hyatts at San Francisco and Dallas-Fort Worth airports and perhaps alongside or even a little bit ahead of the Westin Detroit.
American Airlines is eliminating Flagship First Class in favor of more business and premium economy seats on its fleet of Boeing 777-300ER aircraft. The end of first class on the last U.S. carrier to offer it internationally is sad to me, but the project has been pushed back. As American has planned to wind down the offering, they’ve really let the product slide.
The Chicago Athletic Association building, a Venetian‑Gothic landmark, dates to 1893. It was a private men’s athletic club for the city’s Gilded‑Age elite. The building sat vacant for years, and narrowly escaped demolition.
The best airport hotels in the United States are the Grand Hyatt SFO, Grand Hyatt DFW, Westin Denver and Hyatt Regency Orlando Airport. Other notables include the Westin Detroit, Intercontinental Minneapolis, Hilton O’Hare and Hilton Boston Logan.
There’s not a single American or European carrier amongst the world’s top business class offerings. However if we were to pick one to include it would have to be Air France? And their best business class is onboard Airbus A350s with their newest seat.
I’ve stayed at the Park Hyatt Vendome Paris about a dozen times over the past dozen years, taking a couple of years off during the pandemic. It’s an absolutely lovely hotel, but also a bit of a controversial one amongst frequent travelers.
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 »
