Nov
17
2024
How good is a staff that really goes out of their way?
Trip Reports
Category Archives for Trip Reports.
I Stayed At Hyatt Centric Waikiki, The Hotel That Punishes Loyal Hyatt Members: Here’s What Happened
Aug
17
2024
Ultimately I’d say that I got my money’s worth for the stay, if I simply pretended it wasn’t a Hyatt and accepted that service and program benefits just aren’t part of this hotel’s DNA. It’s a nice enough room in the heart of Waikiki easily walkable to the beach, and they have fish to lend you.
How Kempinski Cancun Turned A Typical Trip Into A Luxe Experience
Jun
08
2024
I had a great and fascinating experience at Kempinski Cancun, a hotel I wouldn’t normally have chosen. And I realized that somehow I’d never stayed at a Kempinski outside of Germany before. All of a sudden the brand is much more on my radar.
From Disappointment To Dream: How Alila Marea Transformed My Walked Booking Into An Ocean Suite Stay
Mar
24
2024
After being unexpectedly walked from Alila Marea Encinitas due to a buyout, my return stay transformed a booking mishap into a lovely experience, complete with an ocean suite upgrade and amazing free breakfast.
How Park Hyatt St. Kitts Delivered and Disappointed: A Candid Review
Mar
10
2024
I’ve been meaning to visit the Park Hyatt St. Kitts for years. I’ve made bookings in the past but never made the trip happen. So I was excited to finally visit over Presidents’ Day weekend.
I booked a standard room on points and confirmed a suite upgrade. Then I was fortunate to have a further upgrade to a Deluxe Pool Suite.
Beyond The Red Light District: Review Of KLM Business Class, Amsterdam – Austin
Feb
24
2024
After flying from Austin to Amsterdam for the last week of holiday break and spending six nights at the Hyatt Regency Amsterdam last month, it was time to head home.
Beyond The Red Light District: Hyatt Regency Amsterdam With Our 5 Year Old Daughter
Feb
04
2024
The Hyatt Regency Amsterdam isn’t as flash as the Andaz, and I would normally prefer the Andaz aesthetic, but standard suites at the Regency are larger and staying with my wife and daughter I prefer the extra room so we picked the Hyatt Regency. Both had availability when I booked.
Beyond the Red Light District: KLM Business Class From Austin To Amsterdam With Our 5 Year Old
Jan
28
2024
You may not think of the start of the year as the right time to travel to Europe, but I’ve always loved Paris in December and Amsterdam in January is nice as well. The weather may not be, but it’s cold in the States too! People are home from work and the streets aren’t busy. The place isn’t overrun with American teenagers!
And Amsterdam seems like an odd place to go with a five year old, but the city is a lot more than the red light district. There are great museums for kids, there’s great food, and it was something different. Plus there’s a non-stop flight from Austin, and there were three business class saver award seats on our preferred dates. The perfect trip!
The Hotel Prank That Fooled A Town: My Debate Geek Sign Swap Sparked Outrage And Laughter
Jan
05
2024
There was a double wedding at the hotel, ‘congratulations Kim and Don, Barry and whomever’ After about 10 minutes we had our master stroke, or at least what seemed like genius to a bunch of 17 year olds away from home, out of state, and full of themselves.
We went back downstairs, stood on each others’ shoulders, and changed the sign.
British Airways Is Its Own Worst Enemy: Flying Business Class, London – Austin
Dec
13
2023
The last segment of our trip was a flight home from London Heathrow to Austin on British Airways in business class. They use an Airbus A350 on the route, with no first class but with the airline’s Club Suites – essentially a bespoke version of the current American Airlines seat with doors added. It is a very good but not great seat.
This was the flight I already told one story off of: being refused water as a predeparture beverage, with the crewmember snapping that I already had a bottle at my seat.
