I was lucky enough to recently spend a long weekend in the Beaver Creek Resort area of Colorado. And it was well worth the visit. For those that don’t know, Beaver Creek is a community just south of Avon, CO. It is well known as a winter vacation destination. But, as I recently found out, it is certainly worth visiting during the fall (or summer). My girlfriend, Crystal, and I stayed at the Park Hyatt Beaver Creek for free thanks to my Hyatt Credit Card, which gave me two free nights at any Hyatt hotel in the world. I’ll have a review of the hotel shortly, but to whet your appetite a little bit, upon check-in our room was upgraded to a Park Deluxe Village Slope. Basically, we stayed in a room that costs $895/night, during the winter, for free (roughly $300/night during the offseason).
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It used to be something quite common: bereavement fares for flights. But over the last decade or so, they’ve slowly gone extinct. There are still some airlines that offer a bereavement fare, like Delta and Alaska Airlines, but most airlines have done away with them. And even if you can find a bereavement fare, oftentimes you’ll have to jump through hoops to get them (annoying for someone that didn’t just lose a loved one, let alone someone who is in a grief filled haze).
Everyone has them. And most try to avoid them like the plague. I’m talking about pet peeves. When traveling, people have certain things they want to experience, and don’t want to experience. The question we’ll answer here: are your pet peeves in line with other travelers’?
Thinking of traveling to Cuba now that it’s the “hot” thing to do? I mean, I'd love to learn more about the culture there. I know it used to be a great place to go way back when. My grandma honeymooned there.
Well, believe it or not, you’ll likely find it very difficult to get to the island that sits a mere 90 miles from Florida. Yeah, travel to Cuba may be in the news as the (pronounced: theeeeeee) travel destination right now, but you still won’t see many people booking their next vacations to the island nation.
I’d like to think of myself as a pretty good photographer. Go ahead and check out my Instagram account. That’s where I post many of the pictures I take during my adventures. And I enjoy taking them! In case you’re curious, these days I take most pictures with my iPhone. You can get pretty good photos too! You may be surprised.
That said, pictures are a big part of travel. Whether you take them to post on social media, or for your own enjoyment. Which got me thinking: what are the best Instagram accounts to follow for the traveler in you? Well, here are my top seven: United is currently offering a great deal if you’re in the mood to visit Hawaii. And who wouldn’t be?
Hit the road, and bring your appetite with you! Because you’re about to go on a trip devoted to finding the best pizzas in the nation. Yes, this combines two of my favorite things: travel and pizza! TripAdvisor recently named the top 10 U.S. cities for pizza, and it’s no surprise which city finished in first place.
TripAdvisor based the results on millions of reviews from travelers. So pack up that suitcase, and grab a slice of pie. These are America’s best cities for pizza:
Gone are the days of dressing up to catch a flight. A suit is probably the least likely thing you’ll see in the airport these days, even with all the business travelers. But how people look is the least of our problems when flying. Flight etiquette, like the clothing choices passengers make, seems to be getting worse and worse.
Passengers aren’t the only ones that are taking notice. You can bet airlines are too. Which is probably why JetBlue recently came out with a series of flight etiquette videos. They uploaded a total of five, all of which are quite comical!
I'm pretty excited for my trip to the Beaver Creek area of Colorado later this year. I’ll be staying at the Park Hyatt Beaver Creek, a resort that is said to be one of the best in the U.S. I’ve never been to the area, but the reviews look promising.
“The Park Hyatt is a sweet splurge indeed — its prime location (smack in the middle of the village and at the foot of the Centennial Express), Allegria spa, and ski valet make it Beaver Creek's most favorable option. You can even roast s'mores at the mountainside fire pit,” says Shermans Travel. The best part?
During my recent trip to Austin, TX, I stayed at the InterContinental Stephen F. Austin. The room was free, thanks to my IHG credit card. Along with my bonus for meeting the minimum spend after getting the card, I earned enough points to stay there for two nights.
Rooms can easily reach $240 a night. As for points, a Traditional King costs 50,000 points a night. Not the best value, but not horrible either. You can also combine cash and points, which will typically give the points a slightly better value. Another perk to my IHG card: complimentary upgrades. I was booked in a Traditional King, but when I checked in, they had a King Deluxe room available. So, Crystal and I stayed in that one.
Texas has mountains, hills, plains, forests, deserts, and beaches. Oh yeah, it also has some of the biggest cities in the United States. Yes, there’s Dallas, Fort Worth, Houston, and San Antonio. But the one that may be the most memorable is the state’s capital: Austin. With a population of over 900,000, it’s the second largest capital city in the U.S.
I recently spent a long weekend there and enjoyed every second of it. I stayed at the InterContinental Stephen F. Austin for free, thanks to my IHG Rewards Club MasterCard (I’ll have a review of my stay coming shortly). If you’ve never been to Austin, I highly recommend it. There’s pretty much something for everyone.
Have you ever been on a noisy flight? Whether it was a neighbor that would not stop talking, a baby that didn’t appreciate being forced to fly, or you wanted to get some shut-eye, noise-canceling headphones can be important.
I haven’t had many flights where I’ve been too annoyed by the passengers around me (lucky?), but in general, I like headphones that cover my ears. You see, I’ve been told my ears are small. That may be true. I don’t know. But I wouldn’t be surprised if it is, because not many in-ear headphones are comfortable for me to wear. And I like listening to my favorite podcasts during flights!
Update: I don't know if you noticed, but originally I didn't name the airline we flew. That was on purpose. But the airline, Southwest, finally got back to Crystal and I. And I was very surprised with the response. Yes, it was in the form of a generic email. One that most people would probably get. It basically said they will not assume responsibility for the damaged bag. But it also had something else in it that surprised me. They gave us a $75 voucher to help us restore our confidence in them. It was something they didn't have to do, but did. And that impressed me.
Traveling is fun. But it can also leave you frustrated. And I would guess baggage problems (lost, damaged, delayed, broken items inside, missing items inside) are near the top of that list for many. Problem is, the airlines don’t seem to really care. According to the websites of the top airlines in the country (read: American, United, Delta, and Southwest), their baggage policies are very similar. To sum it up: the policies are heavily written in the airlines’ favor, not yours. I know. Not surprising. I found this out the hard way after one of the bags Crystal and I checked was damaged sometime while it was enroute from Chicago to Dallas. When, exactly, did it happen? We’ll probably never know. Who did it? Was it the TSA, who left a piece of paper in the bag saying they searched it? Or was it the airline? We’ll probably never know the answer to that either.
A few months back I wrote a post on the infamous mile high club, and how only 4% of Americans have admitted to being a part of it.
I’m sure part of the reason is because many are worried they’d get caught. And they’re probably right. But what if I told you there is a way to join the club without getting caught?
Traveling is never cheap. From plane tickets and hotels, to food and booze, there are nearly endless ways to part with your money. And summer is probably the most expensive time to go on vacation.
Let’s face it, that’s why so many people try to take advantage of travel credit cards. Whether it’s an airline branded one, or a hotel branded one, they can save you quite a bit. But there are other ways you can save even more. In fact, there are several ways you can save thousands per vacation. That’s right. Thousands in cold hard cash. |
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