Taking Narita Express to and from the Tokyo Airport

by Gary Leff

narita airport
May 27 2018

The first time I visited Tokyo many years ago I wanted simplicity. I took the Airport Limousine Bus, which drops off at hotels. By the time I had gotten out of the airport I was on a bus departure after 5 p.m. and we got stuck in terrible traffic. The ride took almost three hours, and the bus seats weren’t particularly comfortable. I never did that again.

Taxis just aren’t an option from the airport in my view, they’re just too expensive, the idea of spending hundreds of dollars for a car and getting stuck in traffic doesn’t appeal to me either.

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I Want a New Laptop and I Need Your Help

by Gary Leff

bag
May 27 2018

It’s only been two years since I bought my last laptop. It’s a Lenovo T460s, and I hate it. It has an Intel i7-6600u processor and a 1 terrabyte hard drive. But battery life is awful.

Here’s my criteria in a new machine and I could really use suggestions about what will work best.

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Review: ANA First Class, Houston – Tokyo

by Gary Leff

first class cabin
May 27 2018

I’m just back from Tokyo and Shanghai. My wife and I flew to Asia on a Virgin Atlantic 120,000 mile roundtrip ANA first class award. It’s one of the better value redemptions in all of travel — United would charge 220,000 miles roundtrip for the same thing, Aeroplan 210,000 miles, and Avianca LifeMiles 204,000. ANA itself charges 150,000 miles roundtrip.

And it turns out the deal is even better than that because most of the points for these two tickets came from American Express Membership Rewards transfers — when there was a transfer bonus. I called up Virgin Atlantic, put the award on a 24 hour hold, and then transferred the points. Not bad for a roundtrip ticket that was pricing at $22,907 apiece.

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It’s Raining Engine Parts in Japan

by Gary Leff

japan airlines plane
May 27 2018

Ten engine parts fell out of a Japan Airlines Boeing 767 hitting a car and a medical clinic. The plane was headed from Kumamoto airport to Tokyo Haneda as flight JL632.

A left engine blade sustained significant damage. The parts falling from the sky “cracked a clinic window in Mashiki, Kumamoto Prefecture, and damaged a car on the premises.”

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Puppies Born at Gate 80 of Tampa Airport Just Before Boarding American Airlines Flight

by Gary Leff

dog with puppies
May 26 2018

A yellow lab named Eleanor Rigby (like the Beatles song) gave birth at Tampa airport’s gate 80 just prior to boarding a flight to Philadelphia. She had eight puppies. The airport’s fire and rescue team was called to the scene to assist with the delivery.

This is absolutely adorable. But even people can expect to take some time off in the days leading up to giving birth, and certainly shouldn’t be flying. This dog almost gave birth on the plane. And why isn’t this service animal fixed..?

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I Don’t Get It, Why Are People Still Collecting SkyMiles?

by Gary Leff

delta program
May 26 2018

When a loyalty program becomes less rewarding, it moves the needle with consumers less. That’s a fairly basic proposition.

It’s not any different than the idea that if you raise prices consumers buy less of your product. There are exceptions of course, where some goods become more desirable because they’re expensive, but those are real outliers. This works fairly consistently and reliably.

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