Citibank Adds Qantas As Transfer Partner

Like other credit card issuers, Citibank offers a card that earn a transferable points currency. I don’t yet have a card that earns Citi Thank You Points (TYPs). TYPs can be transferred to a variety of airline and hotel partners on a 1-to-1 basis, except where noted:

  • Asia Miles (currency for Cathay Pacific and others)
  • EVA Air Infinity Mileage Lands
  • Etihad Guest
  • Air France Flying Blue
  • Garuda Indonesia Frequent Flyer
  • Malaysia Airlines Enrich
  • Qantas Frequent Flyer
  • Qatar Airways Privilege Club
  • Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer
  • Thai Airways Royal Orchid Plus
  • Virgin Atlantic Flying Club
  • Hilton HHonors Worldwide (1:1.5)

All transfers are for a minimum of 1000 points and must be transferred in 1000-point increments.

Recently Qantas was added as a transfer partner, making Citi the first US card issuer to allow direct transfers to Qantas Frequent Flyer (QFF). Several bloggers have pointed out that it’s not particularly a great deal given that Qantas awards are distance-based and international flights will incur fuel surcharges.

What this transferability does offer is flexibility. Qantas is part of the oneworld alliance along with American Airlines, British Airways and others. Qantas (and BA) open their booking schedules approximately three weeks before American opens theirs. This, combined with how few premium cabin seats Qantas makes available, mean that award seats can be booked using QFF (or BA Avios) as soon as they’re released – leaving those with only AA miles to pick up the crumbs that are left.

The downside is that Qantas charges 168K QFF miles and BA charges 150K Avios each way in first class from North America to/from Australia. And both programs incur fuel surcharges of $390 each way to go along with the taxes and fees.

Short-haul flights using QFF miles are cheaper than the US legacy carriers at 8000 miles each way for flights of up to 600 miles but BA only charges 4500 Avios each way.

So would you ever want to transfer your Thank You Points to Qantas? Probably not, but it depends on your situation. If you’ve been saving up TYPs for a trip Down Under this will get you in the door more quickly though you’ll still have to shell out over $400 for first class flight. But it may be worth it to you to lock in a first class flight well in advance. Once the American Airlines calendar opens up, you could cancel your ticket bought with QFF miles and watch for the seat to go back into award inventory and then use your AA miles to pay for it. The question is: is the reward worth the risk of losing your first class seat? For me, the answer is no. I’d rather pay the $400 and lock in my flight than risk losing it. Since a first class ticket goes for $9600-$10,300 (depending on whether you depart from Los Angeles or Dallas) each way, it’s absolutely worth it to me to lock it in and not worry about the $400 – but as always, it’s your call.

HT: The Frequent Miler

Categories: Citibank, Credit Cards, Qantas | Tags: , , | Leave a comment

Ritz-Carlton Istanbul

Turkey Trip Overview
Booking Flights To Turkey
British Airways First Class Lounge IAH
British Airways 777 First Class IAH-LHR
Transiting Heathrow and British Airways A320 Business Class LHR-IST
Marriott Courtyard Istanbul Airport
Pegasus Airlines Istanbul to Izmir and Back
Ephesus, Mary’s House and Basilica of St. John
Swissotel Efes
Pamukkale Bus and Preiene
Ritz-Carlton Istanbul
Major Sites to see in Istanbul
Radisson Blu Bosphorus
Turkish Airlines Lounge Istanbul
Turkish Airlines 777 Business Class IST-IAH

Ritz Carlton Istanbul logo

After returning to Istanbul from Izmir via Pegasus Airlines, the friendly folks at Sea Song had booked us an airport transfer to the Ritz Carlton, where one of my traveling companions and I had used our Marriott points for three free nights. We were not able to combine our points but when making the reservation we’d gotten on a conference call with the Marriott agent and she was able to deduct points for two nights from my friend’s account and one night’s worth of points from mine. While they were two reservation numbers, there were notes in both reservations to point to the other reservation and that way we didn’t have to change rooms after two nights, which was nice.

The van dropped us off at the hotel entrance and, like at the Swissotel, our luggage went through an x-ray machine. But the bellmen took care of that for us so we were able to go straight to the check-in desk.

The lobby was just beautiful. Marble floors, lovely decorations, very calm and luxurious-looking. At certain times they also had pomegranate juice available.RC Lobby

RC Piano

RC FlowersWe were escorted up to our room on the fifth floor. We walked through the entry and past the bathroom and large closet into the main part of the room.
RC EntryIt contained twin beds and they brought up a rollaway for us. It made things a little tight in the bedroom area. We had to rearrange the chair a bit to make things fit.

RC Beds

RC Chair and ViewWe also had a desk with another chair, a combination TV stand/mini-bar and some floor space where we could put some of our luggage.

RC Desk

RC Mini Bar

RC ToiletriesWhile the bed area was a bit cramped, we had no such issue in the bathroom. It was huge! We had a separate tub and shower stall, only one sink but it had lots of counter space and a huge mirror over it and there was a separate toilet room. My only complaint about the bathroom was that the hair dryer was stored in a lower drawer and was somehow connected to the wall via the drawer. I’m a bit above average height for a woman and I got a good biceps workout trying to lift the hair dryer high enough to reach the top of my head because the cord kept pulling it back down. I’d really like to see them have a hair dryer on the counter top – though I suppose that ruins the effect of luxury when looking at the counter. Toiletries were Asprey brand.

RC Sink

RC Tub

RC Shower

RC ToiletThough we didn’t use them, the hotel had a nice gym and a gorgeous indoor pool with hot tubs. There was, of course, also a spa area with Turkish baths. There were also outdoor pools and lounging areas.

RC Gym Cardio

RC Gym

RC Indoor Pool

RC Turkish BathRight next door to the hotel Vodafone Arena is under construction. It will be the home stadium for Beşiktaş J.K., the city’s professional sports club which includes its football (soccer) team. The hotel is on a very steep street but it’s an easy downhill walk to Dolmabahçe Palace, the first European-style residence for Turkey’s rulers, which was completed in the mid-1850s. That’s well worth a visit too.

The staff at the Ritz was fantastic and the concierges gave us some great help with finding places to eat as we were so near to Taksim Square. Unfortunately the walk to Taksim was UP the steep hill but it made it easier coming home at night.

We really enjoyed our stay here and it was so conveniently located that we wouldn’t hesitate to stay here again.

Categories: Hotel, Lodging Review, Ritz Carlton, Turkey | Tags: , , | Leave a comment

Delta’s new 20-minute bag guarantee

2015-02-20 Delta Bag GuaranteeBetween now and the end of March, Delta is guaranteeing that your bags will arrive at baggage claim no later than 20 minutes after your flight arrives – or they’ll give you 2500 SkyMiles.  Note that this applies to domestic US flights and US-Puerto Rico flights only.  (This also includes Delta Connection flights and multi-carrier flights where the last leg is operated by Delta.)  To get the miles, you must fill out this form within three days of your flight’s arrival.  If your bags on multiple flights are late, you must submit multiple forms.  You must be a member of SkyMiles and in good standing both at the time of travel and at the time of the claim.

The official clock will be maintained by Delta’s baggage tracking system.  Oversize, overweight bags (like my skis) and special items are exempt from this claim as are lost, mishandled and damaged bags.

I didn’t put a clock on how long it took me to get my bags on my last Delta flights in January but it would have been nice to have had this guarantee waiting in the wings.

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Hyatt 20% Points Rebate Promo

2015-02-19 Hyatt PromoIf you hold the Hyatt Visa credit card, now is a terrific time to book award stays. Register on the Hyatt site and you’ll get a 20% rebate on your points within 4-6 weeks after your stay.

The great part about that is that if you already have a stay booked during the promotion period (February 17 – July 31, 2015) all you have to do is register – you don’t have to rebook!

The rebate applies to award stays, points + cash awards, suite upgrades and dining and spa activities. Your entire stay must be completed within the promotion period.

Sadly I don’t have any award stays planned during this period – but I’m hoping they’ll run another similar promotion for this fall because I’ll have several stays in October and I’d dearly love to get points back from those stays!

If you don’t have the Hyatt card, now is  a great time to get it.  One of the fantastic benefits is that if you spend $1000 within the first three months after applying, you’ll get two award nights good at any Hyatt anywhere in the world.  Be sure to use those for a special trip, like to the Park Hyatt Sydney or the Park Hyatt Vendome in Paris, where rooms go for well over $500 per night.  You can sign up for the card HERE.

 

(Note: I have no affiliation with Chase and do not receive any compensation from them.)

Categories: Hotel Promos, Hyatt | Tags: | Leave a comment

First Friday Bonus Tomorrow

CSPJust a quick reminder that tomorrow you’ll get 3x Ultimate Rewards points on dining when you use your Chase Sapphire Preferred card at restaurants. Normally the CSP gives two points but once a month gives us this little boost.

Ultimate Rewards points are extremely versatile. They can be transfered to six different airline frequent flyer programs, four different hotel rewards programs and to Amtrak’s program. Or you can use them like cash when buying travel products through the Ultimate Rewards portal. If you choose to redeem this way you’re not limited by award seat/room availability and you’ll earn points on your flight or stay. As an added bonus you’ll get a 20% discount on the number of points required – so a $500 flight would only cost 40,000 points.

If you don’t have an immediate use for Ultimate Rewards points, it’s best to hang on to them and only transfer them when needed. That keeps them flexible, which is one of their greatest assets.

So go out to lunch with your co-workers tomorrow, offer to put the bill on your credit card and have them reimburse you!

Categories: Chase, Sapphire Preferred | Tags: | Leave a comment

Pamukkale Bus and Preiene

Turkey Trip Overview
Booking Flights To Turkey
British Airways First Class Lounge IAH
British Airways 777 First Class IAH-LHR
Transiting Heathrow and British Airways A320 Business Class LHR-IST
Marriott Courtyard Istanbul Airport
Pegasus Airlines Istanbul to Izmir and Back
Ephesus, Mary’s House and Basilica of St. John
Swissotel Efes
Pamukkale Bus and Preiene
Ritz-Carlton Istanbul
Major Sites to see in Istanbul
Radisson Blu Bosphorus
Turkish Airlines Lounge Istanbul
Turkish Airlines 777 Business Class IST-IAH

 

As I mentioned in the first post of this series, the impetus for visiting Turkey was that a friend of mine had rented an apartment there for a couple of months and we wanted to take the opportunity to see the country up close.

Although we spent the first several days in Izmir, my friend was actually staying in the port town of Kuşadası, which was about 45 minutes away. At one point he did try to come to Izmir and have dinner with us but the big city traffic was so nerve-wracking to him and he ended up going back to Kuşadası.

I checked on the web and determined that the Pamukkale (Pam-OO-kuh-lay) Bus could take us to Kuşadası relatively cheaply. I looked at buying tickets online but since the website was in Turkish I didn’t want to agree to anything by accident so I asked the hotel’s front desk staff about buying tickets. They pointed out a Pamukkale office right across the street – perfect! We were able to buy tickets there and then hop on their shuttle bus that would take us to the main bus terminal.Pamukkale logo

Once we were dropped off at the main bus terminal we obviously looked a little lost because we had several people point us to the correct place to board our bus. The bus had wi-fi and individual entertainment screens that featured videos (not sure if they were TV shows or movies, but they were in Turkish) and some games. It made the trip to Kuşadası quite enjoyable.

By this time it was late morning and my friend met us at the bus terminal there. While we’d seen ruins just a couple of days before, he wanted to show us another site nearby that was a bit of a different experience. We stopped at one of the many open-air cafes for lunch and enjoyed fresh Turkish kebabs before heading the rest of the way to Priene.

Priene was an ancient Greek site that was once on the sea coast. But as with Ephesus, time and earthquakes have taken their toll and now it’s now many miles inland. But it must have had a lovely view of the Bay of Miletus, off the Aegean Sea.

Priene once overlooked the Aegean Sea

Priene once overlooked the Aegean Sea

The remains of the agora are recognizable and the theater is still in relatively good shape. We found it interesting that there appeared to be seats for important persons right on the front row.

Theater in Priene

Theater in Priene

The remains of the temple of Athena (funded by Alexander the Great) are in abundance with pieces of pillars all around. Some pillars were reconstructed in the mid-1960s though it’s thought the original pillars were another 3 meters taller. Still, it helps to give us an idea of what the place might have looked like.

These columns were reassembled in the mid-1960s

These columns were reassembled in the mid-1960s

The last word of this inscription is Greek for "Athena"

The last word of this inscription is Greek for “Athena”

Remains of Athena's Temple

Remains of Athena’s Temple

What was nice about this historical site vs. Ephesus was that there were virtually no restrictions as to where we could venture. We could climb on these 2500-year-old ruins and run our hands over the carvings at will. It’s just amazing to think about how old some of these ruins are!

What looks like elephant feet actually represent eggs - and Athena as a fertility goddess

What looks like elephant feet actually represent eggs – and Athena as a fertility goddess

Pieces of columns

Pieces of columns

A throne of sorts for a priest(ess) or other important person

A throne of sorts for a priest(ess) or other important person

After leaving Priene my friend took us on a driving tour of Kuşadası before he took us back to the bus station. Getting back to Izmir was as easy as getting to Kuşadası. Getting from the main bus station back to our hotel was a little more challenging. We asked a couple of different people at the bus station where to catch the local Pamukkale bus. While they told us, we didn’t fully understand the instructions. Eventually we did find the location (right where they told us it would be!) only to find we’d missed the shuttle by about two minutes. So we sat around another half-hour for the next one. Not the end of the world but we were ready to get back to the hotel at that point.

But we’d highly recommend the Pamukkale Bus as a clean, comfortable, affordable way to get around Turkey without having to rent a car. And Priene was a nice contrast to Ephesus – off the beaten path, no crowds and a definite hands-on experience.

Categories: Turkey | Tags: , | Leave a comment

Swissotel Efes

Turkey Trip Overview
Booking Flights To Turkey
British Airways First Class Lounge IAH
British Airways 777 First Class IAH-LHR
Transiting Heathrow and British Airways A320 Business Class LHR-IST
Marriott Courtyard Istanbul Airport
Pegasus Airlines Istanbul to Izmir and Back
Ephesus, Mary’s House and Basilica of St. John
Swissotel Efes
Pamukkale Bus and Preiene
Ritz-Carlton Istanbul
Major Sites to see in Istanbul
Radisson Blu Bosphorus
Turkish Airlines Lounge Istanbul
Turkish Airlines 777 Business Class IST-IAH

At last we had a day to ourselves. While part of me was ready to explore Izmir itself, the reality is that as 40- and 50-somethings, my friends and I just need a day off every now and then. And that’s OK. The good folks at Sea Song had booked us into the Swissotel Grand Efes Izmir and it was definitely worth whatever we paid. This hotel was recently named to the TripAdvisor list of Travelers’ Choice Winners for 2015 in the luxury hotel category, so you know it has to be good.

Our room was slightly larger than standard, which allowed us to add a rollaway along with the king bed. There was a small patio that overlooked the courtyard and the pool. We had a desk where we could set up the laptop and plug in our many electronic devices. A counter ran the whole length of the wall opposite the bed, which was nice for storing our stuff. There were a few drawers under the counter as well.Swissotel TV and Counter Swissotel King Bed and Rollaway Swissotel Desk

The closet was a good size, though we didn’t make a lot of use of it. The safe was large enough to store our tablets.

The bathroom was nice and big with a separate shower stall and bathtub. The sink area had quite a bit of counter space and there were shelves above and below it. Toiletries were Purovel branded.Swissotel Sink and Counter Swissotel Toiletries Swissotel Shower and Toilet Swissotel Tub

Perhaps the highlight of the hotel was the glorious buffet breakfast each morning. Wow! Words really can’t do it justice but if you couldn’t find plenty to eat here, you weren’t trying very hard.Swissotel Buffet 1 Swissotel Buffet 2 Swissotel Buffet 3 Swissotel Buffet 4 Swissotel Buffet 5 Swissotel Buffet 6 Swissotel Buffet 7 Swissotel Buffet 8 Swissotel Buffet 9 Swissotel Buffet 10 Swissotel Buffet 11

We also enjoyed sitting by the pool and just enjoying the warm sun. There are windows in the pool and there’s a restaurant underneath/beside it where diners can see into the pool itself. So, no skinny dipping! An indoor pool is also available year-round.

Swissotel Outdoor Pool

Swissotel Indoor Pool

Swissotel Courtyard

Though I didn’t take advantage of it, the gym facilities were really impressive. Quite a large weight room, a number of bicycles (they even have spinning classes) as well as yoga classes were available for use.Swissotel Gym Treadmills Swissotel Gym Weights 1 Swissotel Gym Weights 2 Swissotel Gym Cycles

Spa and salon facilities are also at the hotel. This hotel also has an entire building of meeting rooms and conference facilities and we saw a number of folks attending.

When we were working with Sea Song we’d been considering another hotel but they said that the Swissotel was the only one they worked with in Izmir, and I see why. We had a fantastic stay and wouldn’t hesitate to return.

Categories: Lodging Review, Swissotel, Turkey | Tags: , , | Leave a comment

Ephesus, Mary’s House and Basilica of St. John

Turkey Trip Overview
Booking Flights To Turkey
British Airways First Class Lounge IAH
British Airways 777 First Class IAH-LHR
Transiting Heathrow and British Airways A320 Business Class LHR-IST
Marriott Courtyard Istanbul Airport
Pegasus Airlines Istanbul to Izmir and Back
Ephesus, Mary’s House and Basilica of St. John
Swissotel Efes
Pamukkale Bus and Preiene
Ritz-Carlton Istanbul
Major Sites to see in Istanbul
Radisson Blu Bosphorus
Turkish Airlines Lounge Istanbul
Turkish Airlines 777 Business Class IST-IAH

I knew that Izmir (the ancient city of Smyrna) was close to the ruins of the ancient city of Ephesus, which I had toured before while on a cruise. I thought it was fantastic and wanted my friends to be able to experience it. Through a travel agent friend I was put in touch with the folks at Sea Song, who are top travel specialists in Turkey and Virtuoso agents. While we probably could have put together some of these details on our own, we were able to concentrate on flights and hotels in Istanbul and we put our ground transportation and tours in their hands.

Our guide and our bus driver, yes we had a small bus even though there were only three of us, picked us up at our hotel and we were on our way. The ruins of Ephesus are about an hour away from Izmir via a modern highway, so it was an easy ride. The ruins are on a hillside and the driver drove us to the entrance at the top of the hill and we wound our way through the town down the hillside.

The book of Ephesians in the Bible is actually a letter written from the Apostle Paul to the city’s inhabitants. He spent a fair amount of time there, preaching and making tents. Shortly before the birth of Christ, Ephesus became both the seat of the regional governor and a major center of commerce – in short, a very prosperous city. Much of the remains we see now are from that time period.

It’s best remembered for its temple to the goddess Artemis, the library of Celsus and its amphitheater, which could seat 25,000.

Amphitheater in Ephesus

Amphitheater in Ephesus

Library of Celsus

Library of Celsus

We also got to tour the Terrace Houses, where excavation is on-going. Here we saw where the wealthier citizens lived. The floors all had mosaics and the walls were intricately painted too. These homes were up a side hill from Curetes Street, the main street of the city. The street itself is made of marble, which made it quite slick with all the dust from the area. The sidewalks, which were roped off, were elaborate mosaics that have held up amazingly well over the centuries – or perhaps just beautifully restored.

Mosaic on the floor of one of the Terrace Houses

Mosaic on the floor of one of the Terrace Houses

Sidewalk Mosaic on Curates Street

Sidewalk Mosaic on Curates Street

After finishing the tour our bus took us to a small restaurant in Selcuk, the town closest to Efes, where we had lunch and enjoyed some time in the shade. Aside from our time at the Terrace Houses, an area that’s covered, the rest of the time in Ephesus is out in the open and there’s very little shade to be found. So it was nice to be able to cool down for a bit.

Our next stop was the House of the Virgin Mary. While it’s not known for sure whether the mother of Jesus spent her final years here, it’s not out of the realm of possibility. There is a whole list of reasons why this might have been her house, but no one knows for sure. Additionally, the structure now on the site was “reconstructed” based on the finding of about a 2-3 foot section of wall. No photos are allowed inside. It’s very small and even though there was a line, it moved reasonably quickly. It was nice to see but if you don’t see this site, you haven’t really missed much.

The final stop was at the Basilica of St. John. It’s believed that the man charged to take care of Mary upon the death of Jesus lived out his final years and was buried in this area. Some 300 years later a small chapel was constructed over his grave and that was expanded into a basilica in the 6th century AD. The building became a mosque in the 14th century when the Turks invaded the area but later that century an earthquake left it unusable.

Ruins of the Basilica of St John

Ruins of the Basilica of St John

Grave of St John

Grave of St John

We enjoyed our tour and our guide, Tilda, was fantastic. She was our point of contact within Izmir, escorting us to and from the airport as well as on this tour. I’d highly recommend her as a guide!

After traveling for three days in a row and then being gone all day on this tour we were definitely ready for some recovery time and looking forward to our day of relaxation.

Categories: Europe, Turkey, UNESCO World Heritage Site | Tags: , | 2 Comments

Review: Torian Plum Condos, Steamboat Resort, Colorado

My first ski trip this year was to Steamboat, Colorado, which is the first place in the western US that I ever skied. I’ve been back a number of times over the last 20+ years and have never stayed at the same place twice. This is my first time staying at a true ski-in/ski-out facility, the Torian Plum Condominiums.

Our club members joke that as the club as a whole has aged, the more important proximity to the slopes is for us. With age typically comes a better income, so we’re now better able to afford better and closer lodging than we did before.

Due to a mechanical issue with my flight from Atlanta, I arrived at the condo about two hours after the rest of the group. I prefer to take pictures before people have gotten unpacked and all their personal belongings strewn around so I don’t have photos, sadly.

Our group had a number of 2BR and 3BR condos. The 2BR condos were in the same tower as the main office and the 3BRs were in the Creekside Tower. We had a number of condos that were identical in that they were all at the same point in the building (318, 418, 518) so that’s the layout I’ll describe here.

At max capacity the condo can sleep 8, but that’s assuming use of the sleeper sofa, which we did not use as a bed. The master bedroom has a king, the 2nd bedroom has a queen and the third bedroom has twin beds.

My friends in the master bedroom did wish for more drawer space. I believe there was one chest for both to use. The closet was large and did have ample shelf space. The ensuite bath had double sinks and a large standalone shower. There was no tub. Bath products in the condo were Aveeno brand. We received shampoo, conditioner, lotion and separate bars of soap for the sink(s) and the shower.

The second bedroom also had its own bathroom. I did not ask my condomates about the shower setup there, nor did they mention a lack of drawers or whether they had ample.

My roommate and I were in the the third bedroom with the twin beds. Our closet was much smaller than the master but still plenty big enough for a week-long trip. We used it to store our suitcases and I still had room on the floor in my half of the closet for my shoes. I used the shelf for some folded items. We had an armoire that was both the entertainment center and had three drawers for clothes. Our nightstand also had three drawers. There was also a rack of hooks on the wall so amongst all these options we had plenty of room for our clothes, with the exception of our ski gear and other coats.

But fortunately the hallway was set up to handle those items! I loved that the large hallway closet could be used by all of us for our ski coats & pants. It was also large enough for me to store my skis bag out of the way. Elsewhere in the hall was a large set of cubbyholes that was perfect for storing our helmets and gloves. Underneath that was another selection of hanging pegs where we could put our coats and scarves, etc. Below that was a wooden bench that was perfect for removing our ski boots at the end of the day. The bench was tall enough that our boots slid in perfectly underneath them, keeping our boots out of the way.

The combo living room/dining room/kitchen was very open, with a low bar counter & stool separating the kitchen from the living and dining areas. The table could seat eight so we were able to spread out a little when dining. Not being a chef, the kitchen had everything I could possibly need, though one condo-mate who cooked for the lot of us wished for more large-scale dishes so she could cook enough for us all at once.

Each condo has a ski locker down on the first floor. From there it’s a short walk down a sidewalk, across a small patio and then you’re on the slopes. That small patio comes out just beside the Slopeside Grill, a long-time fixture in the area. We ate lunch there a couple of days, sitting on the patio, enjoying the sunshine.

The complex has four outdoor hot tubs and a heated pool. Swim towels, which are larger than the bath towels in the room, can be found in the locker rooms by the pool, or at the shower in the small fitness center on the ground floor of the Creekside Tower.

I was pleasantly surprised that we got some form of maid service every day. Loads of fresh towels each day, they made our beds and took out the trash. In my experience, most condos in ski country typically get maid service maybe twice during the week, so this was a nice change of pace.

The condos are part of the Wyndham family of hotels and they have their own shuttle bus to take you into town. Just let the front desk know and they can arrange for the bus to pick up at the condos, drop you off wherever you like and pick you back up later. Very convenient!

In short, I expect we’ll stay here again. You can’t beat the proximity to the slopes and we had a terrific stay.

Categories: Condos, Lodging Review, Steamboat | Tags: , | Leave a comment

Earn AAdvantage Miles with HolidayCheck.com

Yesterday I received an email from Points.com making me aware of a site called HolidayCheck.com. Holiday Check is a website that allows you to review hotels and other lodging and if they post your review you can earn airline miles for each review!  Sounds a bit like Trip Advisor but with the bonus of miles.

2015-01-27 Holiday Check

You can earn 100 Miles & More miles (the currency of Lufthansa and SWISS), 150 TopBonus miles (the currency of airberlin), 150 Ethiad Guest miles or 70 AAdvantage miles (the currency of American Airlines).

I have no experience with this website but plan to post about my recent stays and see if I can’t earn a few miles in the process.

Categories: American Airlines | Tags: | Leave a comment

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