Two pieces of news reminded me that I don’t have the bandwidth to learn every program. AviancaTaca LifeMiles has been the hot program since last fall with an award chart ripe for taking advantage and bonus-laden buy miles opportunities. I doubt anyone felt it would last... Read more

Miami International Airport (MIA) has seen a very high number of bomb scares in recent years but this story caught my attention. Seriously, a shipment of gold valued at $625,000 was received at MIA and no one knows where it went? Wow, talk about a lost luggage problem! Seems the... Read more

The booking site for the Star MegaDO  opens TOMORROW, Monday May 19th at 12pm CST! Many of you are probably asking yourself, “What the heck is the OneWorld MegaDo?” And it is totally understandable. Essentially this is an event partnered with Star Alliance and Marriott... Read more

I’m in the office for the remainder of the month, and that’s making me a little twitchy. I could use a little break to catch up on some things around the office, so I won’t complain…..much. This week, I’ll continue with my cruise line loyalty... Read more

Conde’ Nast Traveler has just posted three videos featuring my advice on a variety of subjects. In this week’s edition of tips from our Top Travel Specialists Collection, we hear from Gary Leff, our specialist when it comes to award tickets and cashing in all manner... Read more

Macau is one of my favorite corners of the world. When I studied in Hong Kong I frequently went there on weekends. People who frown on it are generally those that look no further than the entertainment-less casinos. If they just step over to the pawn shops their eyes would pop.... Read more

While Hyatt and Starwood do a lot to differentiate between mid-tier and top-tier status, Hilton and Marriott are kind of the opposite — they don’t do enough to differentiate between mid-tier and top-tier status. Last year I got the Citi® Hilton HHonors™ Reserve... Read more

“Aside from providing a free transfer service to Moscow’s main attractions, the hotel offers a unique opportunity to learn Russian and become closer to the Russian culture. Every Tuesday at 6:30pm in the 7 Sisters Café, a professional Russian language tutor awaits the... Read more

It’s Sunday again, so it must be time for some more airplane art. This week, to celebrate Denmark’s win the in the Eurovision Song Contest, it’s a Scandinavian Airlines System Airbus A330 parked at Newark International Airport More airplane art (with no... Read more

Streaming music service Spotify recently commissioned psychologist Dr. Rebecca Spelman to create a playlist to calm listener nerves while flying. Spotify notes that Dr. Spellman found that breathing in time to harmonious songs with a low and steady tempo drastically lowers heart... Read more

May 2012: The results were in! I rated how I did packing for my two-week long conference with both clothes and other stuff. I announced some big news, plus gave some tips on how to travel in the first trimester of pregnancy, May 2011: Traveling with someone else? Here are tips... Read more

Google loves to have fun with their maps product, often offering up entertaining instructions like swimming across the Atlantic Ocean, riding a jet-ski between Japan and China or sailing from Seattle to Honolulu. A new feature in the latest update – currently showing only... Read more

Originally, AirTran airways had a promotion where you would receive double credits on every flight you take through May 15th. Similar to the Southwest promotion, AirTran has also decided to extend this promotion to June 12, 2013.  Typically, you earn 1 credit for every one-way... Read more

On a recent cruise with my husband, he heard other passengers talking about spotting a warship at sea. Since this was the territory between mainland China and Japan, the possibilities were numerous. Did they see a North Korean vessel? Was it a warship from China, Korea, or... Read more

I love connecting with others in person at fun frequent flyer events, so in case you feel the same, here is some info on various events that are coming up soon! Star MegaDo 5: I wrote about this event here, but basically it is a chartered Air Canada flight from Toronto to Tuscon... Read more

Anyone who ever calls Delta, when you are done with the call, you get the request about cars and hotels. Also, as you can see from MY DELTA page, we also see the adds on our home page at Delta. Now I am all for earning extra Skymiles and a discount on top of that... Read more

East to west California Highway 120 travels up the steepest gradient of road in the first ten miles gaining 3,000 feet in elevation from U.S. 395 at Mono Lake at around 7,000 feet to the Tioga Pass gate for Yosemite National Park at 9,945 feet. Tioga Pass Road is the highest... Read more

It’s been a quiet week for me, with my days bookended between a trip to Colorado Springs, CO and Rochester, NY. Frustration-Free Award Searches Ladies and gentleman, my dream has come true.  The Wandering Aramean has developed a tool that will search all transatlantic... Read more