Important or interesting news from the travel world this week: Alaska Airlines/Hawaiian Airlines Merger: By now, you’ve probably heard that Alaska Airlines is trying to buy Hawaiian Airlines. It’s hard for me to get excited about this because it may not get approved, and even if it does, it’s still 12-18 months in the future. […]

I recently posted about how I booked two business class award tickets to Hong Kong using Air France/KLM Flying Blue miles on China Airlines along with the Chase 25% transfer bonus (see this post). Now, I’ve booked our return flights back to the USA in business class using Lufthansa miles. Yay! Is Lufthansa Underrated for […]

If I’m being honest, I usually skip deals that offer extra miles for booking hotels. In my experience, the rates are almost always higher than what you could get  on your own. Plus, you usually give up cash back. I’m just not that interested in getting an extra 800 miles in an airline program I […]

I always put travel-related items on my wish list, and over the years I’ve received many gifts that complement my love of travel. If you need inspiration on what to get your favorite travel-lover, here are some of my favorite items I’ve received. Note: None of these are affiliate links. Disney Hardshell Suitcase I love […]

It’s a new month, and that means potentially more transfer bonuses from bank points/miles to airlines and hotels. Sometimes, these bonuses can help make expensive awards more reasonable (like my flight to Asia I booked last month with the help of a Chase 25% transfer bonus to Flying Blue). December Transfer Bonuses American Express: 30% […]

In 2017, my kids and I traveled on the Amtrak California Zephyr train from San Francisco to Denver in a sleeper car (see my post here). Since then, my kids have repeatedly asked for another overnight train trip. We finally made that happen when we traveled on the Amtrak Texas Eagle from Chicago to Dallas […]