We arrived on a beautifully sunny day and took a free walking tour. The one we chose met at the dragon fountain in front of City Hall. Copenhagen is a lovely city, very clean and safe. Taxes are quite high, making it an expensive place to live, but those funds go toward helping keep people from being homeless. We did see a few beggars, but not nearly as many as you might see in another world capital. Here are a few of the places we saw during our brief stay.
Copenhagen City Hall
Dragon Fountain
I stayed here for a week while on a business trip. Our office was near the airport and this hotel was just a short cab ride away.
When approaching the hotel, the first thing you notice is the unusual design of the exterior. While there’s a lot of unusual modern-design buildings in Copenhagen not everyone likes them. One night when we were returning from the city center and told our cabby the name of the hotel, he paused and said “Oh, the ugly one”! Whether you like it or not, it is certainly distinctive.
AC Bella Sky Marriott
This hotel shares an airport shuttle with the Intercontinental, which is just on the other side of the highway. It costs 15 DKK (about 2 EUR) and the charge is billed to your room. The shuttle stop is on the first traffic island outside Terminal 2. As my flight landed in T3 I was easily able to follow the Hotel Shuttle signs to T2 but once I reached T2, the signs disappeared. Having arrived on an early morning flight I was fortunate that there was not a lot of traffic and once the shuttle arrived it was easy to spot. As a side note, when reviewing your room charges, be sure you’ve been charged for the *airport* shuttle and not the *cruise* shuttle as there is a significant price difference. Continue reading
On a recent business trip to Copenhagen I had the opportunity to fly SAS (aka Scandinavian) Airlines between Newark and Copenhagen. I would have preferred to have flow from Chicago but apparently the EWR-MEM legs are codeshares while the ORD-MEM legs (both on United) are not and thus the price would have been much higher. I’ve actively avoided Newark in the past but my other choices were two-stop flights on Delta/KLM or American and BA/FinnAir. Since I have Silver (low-level) status with United I wanted to help get that re-established for next year.
SAS Lounge Newark
I don’t have any photos because it was already fairly busy when I arrived. I had a feeling I’d enjoy the decor in most places on this trip as I love Danish Modern design and that was definitely the theme for this lounge. It was light and airy with big windows looking onto the tarmac though you really couldn’t see much outside as there was a walkway from a gate out to the jet bridge in between.
I arrived around 3 PM for my 5:40 PM flight and the only food in evidence at that time was the salad bar. The soft drink fountain was not working but there was a cooler with lots of cans, a full self-serve bar as well as still and sparkling water on tap. Around 3:30 PM lasagna with meat sauce found its way to the food service area. I got just a little snack since I had skipped lunch. It was nothing special but it did take the edge off until dinner.
The lounge could use a kids area as I didn’t see anywhere for them to play and not all of the children were using their inside voices.
As the afternoon progressed the lounge filled up even more. There are three SAS flights each day and the lounge is used by Emirates as well, so I was glad to move on. Continue reading
Hilton has a new promotion that will give you 7500 points after two stays. While Hilton points are usually valued somewhere in the .4 cents range, every little bit certainly counts. And don’t forget that you can pool Hilton points with up to ten friends and family members which help them stretch even farther.
The Scoop
After you register, earn 2500 bonus points after your first stay. After your second stay you’ll earn 5000 bonus points.
Your stays must be completed between the time you register and January 31, 2020. Note that this excludes stays that are otherwise ineligible to accrue Hilton points. That includes some third-party bookings, like many online travel agencies including Priceline, Travelocity, Orbitz, etc. Corporate travel agency bookings are allowed.
Since these are bonus points they won’t count toward your qualification for elite status. But with Hilton, the best way to achieve status is by owning their credit card. Hilton offers three card through American Express and right now all three have great signup offers.
Hilton Honors American Express Card
This no-fee card currently has a signup bonus of 90,000 Hilton points once you spend $2000 on the card within the first three months after approval. This signup bonus ends August 28, 2019. You’ll earn 7x points at hotels in the Hilton portfolio, 5x points at US restaurants, US supermarkets and US gas stations and 3x points everywhere else. This card is one of the few no-fee cards that does not have foreign transaction fees. You’ll get Silver status just for holding the card and you’ll be upgraded to Gold status each year you spend $20,000 on the card.
Hilton Honors American Express Surpass® Card
With a $95 annual fee, this is one of the best deals in travel. Not only does this card have a great signup bonus of 130,000 points after spending $4000 within the first four months after approval, you automatically earn Gold status just for owning the card. Gold status is enough to get you free breakfast and premium internet and is generally considered to be the best mid-level hotel status out there. Last year I scored an upgrade to a 2-room suite in Germany because the hotel was at capacity and having Gold status earned me the bump up. Spend $40,000 on the card and get upgraded to Diamond status through the end of the following calendar year. The signup bonus ends August 28, 2019. With the Surpass card you’ll earn 12x points at Hilton properties, 6x points at US restaurants, US supermarkets and US gas stations and 3x points everywhere else.
Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card
This is a premium card with a $450 annual fee and a signup bonus of 150,000 points after spending $4000 in the first three months after approval. It also gives the cardholder Diamond status, Hilton’s top level. Enjoy one weekend night reward each year after renewal and an additional night for each $60,000 in spend. You also get a $250 statement credit each year of card membership good for eligible purchases at participating Hilton Resorts. With the Aspire card you’ll earn 14x points at Hilton properties, 7x points on purchases made directly with airlines or hotels and US restaurants and 3x points everywhere else.
If one of these cards looks right for you I’ll be happy to refer you. Just drop me a line at 2BTraveling@gmail.com.
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