Congratulations! You’ve decided to take the plunge into miles credit card land. It’s a nice plunge. I promise. There are gourmet meals on airplanes, luxury hotel rooms with private Jacuzzis, and lounges with sleeping cabanas and massages in your future.
Before I discovered the world of points and miles collecting, planning a weekend trip with a friend required some serious budgeting. I needed to start saving months in advance, and even then I was always shocked by the final cost. Back then, more often than not, my trips were short and local—and far from luxurious.
Want to do some serious diving on Fiji and see New Zealand? It’s possible in one trip because you can use fewer miles flying to Fiji via New Zealand than just flying straight there.
British Airways Avios is one of my favorite frequent flyer programs. The bargains that you can get with Avios are incredible if you use them to fly short hops as directly as possible.
When you think of Japan, budget travel is not what comes to mind. It may not be cheap to visit, but it is not extravagantly expensive either. And you only have to pay the taxes to fly to Japan if you are using miles. Here is how you do it.
Boeing’s 787 Dreamliner was one of the most anticipated new planes when it was being developed in the early 2000s. The company was looking to replace its 767 aircraft with a more fuel-efficient midsize, long-range wide-body jet with twin engines.
Many travelers to Iceland feel that no trip there is complete without marveling at the spectacular Aurora Borealis. You can see the Northern Lights in the city Reykjavik, but in order to increase your odds of witnessing the spectacle, you should rent a car or join a tour of lights seekers.
American Express is one of the leading companies offering reward credit and charge cards. Some cards are branded and offer loyalty currency from airlines such as Delta and JetBlue or hotel chains like Starwood or Hilton.
Do you ever make it a point to do a bit of plane spotting when you’re at the airport? Most frequent flyers have a healthy respect for the aviation industry and are intrigued by the newest and most technologically advanced aircraft.
When you are trying to juggle a bunch of new credit cards to take advantage of lucrative sign-up bonus offers, there are some risks if you are balancing a few accounts.
Bali is a tropical island in Indonesia with beautiful landscapes. Mountains, beautiful beaches and world-class diving make it a paradise for many travelers.
For three years straight, American Airlines has won two of the top honors among frequent flyer programs: the Freddie Awards for Program of the Year and Best Elite Program.
One of the big disappointments with airline programs these days is that it seems almost impossible to be loyal enough to earn a reward ticket by flying without the benefit of some serious business travel. But it doesn’t mean you should write off traveling using points and miles.
Enough is enough. It’s time to set the record straight.
The credit card industry, especially during the recession, has done too good of a job selling consumers on the value of
There are many ways to get to the Holy Land using miles. Just about all of the major airlines fly there, with the exception of American Airlines. But you can still use your AAdvantage miles to fly to Israel on merger partner US Airways or one of American’s alliance partners.
As far as award bookings with domestic carriers go, United is one of the most straightforward. You have all the options you’d expect one ways, multicity tickets, unlimited less-than-24-hour stopovers and you’re able to make almost all bookings online without any inexplicable system glitches keeping you from seeing the seats you’re entitled to cough, cough, Delta.
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Domestic carriers are courting business travelers on transcontinental routes with flat-bed seats from New York to Los Angeles and San Francisco.
If you’ve always wanted to visit France but have little time or a limited budget, there is an alternative on this side of the Atlantic. Use your miles to fly to the capital of French Canada, where you’ll find a smaller, less crowded Paris.
If you’re going to Munich, Germany, you should consider a stop in Mozart’s hometown of Salzburg, Austria. The travel time between the two European cities by rail is only two hours so it is easy to see both in one trip. You could also rent a car if you want to try the legendary Autobahn, which, contrary to popular belief does have speed limits.
