Emirates, in search of revenue in the challenging Gulf economic environment with low energy prices, has started offering paid access to their business and first class lounges in Dubai.
You do need to be a member of the Emirates program in order to pay for lounge access, which of course is free to join online.
A year ago Accor Hotels bought Fairmont, and there was no world in which that would be a good thing for Fairmont Presidents Club members (just as over time the IHG purchase of Kimpton wouldn’t be a net plus for Kimpton members).
Years ago Avis rose to prominence with the slogan “We’re number 2. We Try Harder.” Eventually they dropped the “We’re number 2” part and then in 2012 they even dropped the claim that they try harder.
When Delta and Northwest merged, the combined Delta became the largest airline leapfrogging United and American. Then United and Continental merged and took over the number one spot. And of course American and US Airways merged, to become the biggest single airline.
Except that Delta continued to grow organically, and surpassed United. So it’s actually the second largest airline. But maybe not for long.
I avoid Cancun. My mental model is spring break and disappointing resorts. You can use it as a jumping off point to explore the Yucatan but I’d rather fly into Merida for that. It’s super close since I live in Texas and Southwest offers daily non-stops for the 2.5 hour flight (United has seasonal weekend non-stops as well) so if only I could find a wonderful escape there…
I avoid all-inclusives. I don’t drink a lot and when I do drink I have strong preferences for what I’m drinking. Do I really want to be locked into staying on property since eating there comes at no marginal cost? Even though each generally has at least one ‘nice’ restaurant the food seems to most often disappoint.
I used to think the dumbest lawsuit ever against an airline was the woman who sued Singapore because they offer footrests in economy and a flight attendant spilled a drink on her husband (plus, the Zapruder film).
Then I learned about the passenger suing Qantas for $75 because their inflight entertainment system didn’t work on a flight to Hong Kong.
A roundup of the most important stories of the day. I keep you up to date on the most interesting writings I find on other sites – the latest news and tips.
A roundup of the most important stories of the day. I keep you up to date on the most interesting writings I find on other sites – the latest news and tips.
One of the best benefits in all of travel is the Citi Prestige Card‘s fourth night free benefit for hotels. It can be used to top off towards hotel elite status that programs award based on annual spend, and to goose qualifying for status based on nights, too.
United is accelerating the retirement of its Boeing 747 fleet. Instead of flying the Queen of the Sky through the end of 2018, they’ll fly their last 747 during the last quarter of this year.
Chase has introduced a new Amazon Prime Rewards Visa Signature Card and made some changes to their existing Amazon Rewards Card.
The Amazon Rewards Card is one of the biggest portfolios that Chase has — because it’s marketed to everyone checking out at Amazon. And it will no longer add foreign transaction fees.
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 »
