Marriott Rewards Unexpected Bonus – Multiple different offers, log in here for your offer, valid for stay May 15th – September 2nd, register by July 31st.

I received the promo for up to two free nights at a category 1-5 hotel

Other potential offers as per Loyalty Traveler:

• 35,000 bonus points: Earn 25,000 points after 15 nights and another 10,000 bonus points after 20 nights
• 35,000 bonus points: Earn 25,000 points after 15 nights and another 2,000 points per night for up to 10 addi­tional nights.
• 45,000 bonus points: Earn 35,000 points after 20 nights and another 10,000 bonus points after 25 nights
• 55,000 bonus points: Earn 35,000 points after 20 nights and another 2,000 points per night for up to 10 addi­tional nights.
• Up to 3 Free nights at Cat­e­gory 1–4 hotels: Earn one free night cer­tifi­cate for a cat­e­gory 1 to 4 hotel after every two stays. Max­i­mum of 3 free nights.
• Up to 2 Free nights at Cat­e­gory 1–5 hotels: Earn one free night cer­tifi­cate for a cat­e­gory 1 to 5 hotel after every two stays. Max­i­mum of 2 free nights.

Club Carlson – 10,000 bonus Gold Points per two-night stay through July 21st. Register here.

Stay two or more consecutive nights anytime between May 13 and July 21, 2013 at any oft the more than 1,000 participating Carlson Rezidor hotels worldwide to earn 10,000 bonus Points for each eligible stay.

Starwood Preferred Guest -Double points on all eligible stays from May 1st through July 31st. Register here.

Like last year, the promo is once again double points on all eligible stays at participating hotels and resorts worldwide from May 1 through July 31, 2013. You can also receive 500 bonus points for each eligible booking made through the spg.com mobile site, the SPG App for iPhone, or the SPG App for Android, even for those properties excluded from the double points promo. Speaking of excluded hotels, the list is smaller than in previous years but still spans the globe.

Hilton HHonors – 1,000 bonus points each week night and 2,000 bonus points each weekend night April 1st – June 30th. Register here.

Registered HHonors members will receive 1,000 bonus points for each week night of their stay and 2,000 bonus points for each weekend night of their stay during the promotion period at participating hotels and resorts.  For the purpose of this offer a weekend night is defined as Friday, Saturday, or Sunday for all regions except for hotels within the Middle East and Africa where a weekend night is defined as Thursday, Friday, or Saturday.

Choice Privileges -Receive a $50 gift card at your choice of multiple retailers after your second stay. Valid May 23rd – August 21st. Register here.

Book at ChoiceHotels.com or 800.4CHOICE and after your second qualifying trip with arrival between May 23 and August 21, 2013 you’ll receive enough Choice Privileges points to redeem for a $50 gift card of your choice for a participating dining, shopping, or gas retailer. Elite Diamond and Elite Platinum members can book directly with a hotel; however, if they book through ChoiceHotels.com these members receive 100 additional Choice Privileges points with every qualifying trip. Trips at Econo Lodge, Rodeway Inn, Suburban Extended Stay Hotel, or MainStay Suites hotels must be a minimum of two consecutive nights.

Best Western Rewards - Stay 3 separate times between April 22 and June 9, 2013 at Best Western branded hotels and earn a $50 USD Best Western Travel Card. Register here.

Register now and stay 3 separate times between April 22 and June 9, 2013 at Best Western branded hotels and earn a $50 USD Best Western Travel Card.

Meliá Rewards – Up to 30% off, 2,000 welcome points, free upgrade. Check out the deal here. 

Loews – Summer Break Sale – Starts in 5 days. Check it out here.

As requested, here’s the monthly reminder. Buy One Get One Friday movie nights has returned and will last through August 2nd. Tickets must be purchased and used on a Friday and there is a limit of one purchase per card per 30 days (though I’m sure you have several Visa Signature cards). I’m sure you have at least one of the following cards which are Visa Signature: Chase Sapphire Preferred, Chase British Airways, Chase Hyatt Card, Chase Marriott Rewards / Marriott Rewards Premier, Chase Southwest Plus, Bank of America Hawaiian Airlines, Citi AAdvantage Visa Signature, Citi Hilton HHonors Reserve, Capital One Venture, Choice Privileges, United Mileage Plus, and Club Carlson cards.

I’m very excited to be attending the grand opening celebration of Delta’s new T4 at JFK tomorrow! Hopefully the forecast for rain is wrong and I can enjoy some drinks on the all new Sky Deck rooftop terrace with The Weekly Flyer. Here’s also hoping that Shake Shack is open for the first day festivities. Full blog updates tomorrow, in the meantime here are the planned activities:

The new T4 is part of a $1.4 billion project at JFK that includes a myriad of customer experience improvements including: nine new and seven renovated international gates; improved and renovated check-in areas, including a dedicated Sky Priority check-in area; an enlarged and centralized security checkpoint; new retail and dining options from some of New York’s most well-known chefs; and a new, 24,000-square-foot flagship Delta Sky Club with the first-ever Sky Deck rooftop terrace.

Please join us for the grand opening festivities on May 24. Details are as follows: Please plan to arrive at the JFK Terminal 4 check-in lobby and follow signs for Media Check In – which will be located in the Sky Priority check-in area. Each attendee will be issued a gate pass to get through security and must bring a valid government issued photo ID (driver’s license or passport). From Sky Priority check in you will begin your guided T4 tour taking you through security and all the way to the end of the 346,000 square foot extension we added to Concourse B. The official grand-opening ceremony will take place near Gate 41 and is scheduled to begin at approximately noon. Following formal remarks DL173 (JFK-NRT) will be T4’s official launch flight and special guests will help in the boarding process.

Of course, the opening of T4 is also brings a sad day for aviation and Pan Am Worldport fans. Check out Flying With Fish for that part of the T4 story.

Related
Peak Behind Delta’s JFK T4 Curtain
Delta’s JFK T2-T4 Airside Connector Axed and Inside Delta’s T4 Construction
Delta – Breaking Away from the Pack – 2013 Flight Plan & Internal Memo

Hilton is offering a special 24 hour promotion, that began today at 11:00 a.m. ET and ends at 10:59 a.m. ET May 24th. To earn the 2,500 bonus points you need to book a stay between May 23 and September 30, 2013 at any hotel within the Hilton HHonors portfolio. You then need to enter your reservation confirmation number, HHonors number, and required information via a special link on the Hilton HHonors Facebook page (you’ll need to like them first). Only the first 4,000 Hilton HHonors members to book and register receive the bonus points.

I wanted that authentic Nordic winter experience, and boy did I get what I asked for during a weekend in Helsinki. This is part seven of an eight part trip report from my recent travels to Estonia and Finland. This report covers multiple walking on ice experiences and Helsinki’s natural winter wonderland.

• KLM Business Class B747-400 JFK – Amsterdam (AMS)
• KLM Crown Lounge AMS & Estonian Air Business CRJ900 Amsterdam (AMS) – Tallinn (TLL)
• Swissôtel Tallinn
• Tour of Tallinn
• Crossing the Frozen Baltic Sea – Ferry from Tallinn – Helsinki / Helsinki – Tallinn
• Radisson Blu Plaza Hotel, Helsinki
• Walking on Ice – Helsinki – Tour of the Winter Wonderland
• Tallinn (TLL) – Las Vegas (LAS) – Estonian Air / KLM / Delta

The Radisson Blu Plaza Hotel had a fantastic location which pretty much allowed me to walk all over the city without having to use any transportation. First up, one of the main ports which I had only seen in complete darkness the night before. The water was completely iced over and had fresh snow on top of the ice, adjacent were several boats docked for winter:

A stop for a fresh salmon lunch @ €12 EUR inclusive of salad and a drink. The salmon was fantastic and who doesn’t love meeting new friends while eating outside in the dead of winter…

More winter scenes on the way over to Sibelius Park…

Arrival at Sibelius Park on the western coastline of the city, rocking chair on skis anyone?

I continued into a more residential area of town and came to another harbor, this one had absolutely no visible moving water.

Even with the weather, tons of locals were still out for their daily jogs!

Ice fishing…

My first walking on ice experience. There were no other tourists and the only locals were several yards out ice fishing. I ducked underneath a rope that restricted entry onto the water and made my way towards the ice. With no experience, I sort of just hoped for the best. Unfortunately, the locals had entered on the other side harbor. Some sections were extremely solid, while others gave way a few inches (pretty scary as your boot sinks down a bit)! I decided that the best route was following some of the older visible footsteps. I set a goal of making it to the center where the seasoned ice fishers had set up camp.

In fact, I walked all the way from the tree you see below to the bridge in this picture! Quite proud of my accomplishment, I was ready to get back to the pavement…a very wet experience for your feet as you climb over the gigantic snow dunes that block access to the water.

As I continued walking and entered another park, I decided it was time for some more exhilarating ice walking.  The dogs seem to be perfectly comfortable with it so why not me…

Locals ice swimming near the Sibelius Monument on the city’s western coastline

Regatta Cafe in Sibelius Park, they surely don’t let the weather dampen their al fresco dining and drinking…

In article published this morning in Bloomberg, American Chief Commercial Officer Virasb Vahidi, discusses the major modification plans for the new A321 jets entering the American fleet this coming November. The jets will replace the current B767-200 equipment on the JFK-LAX route.  The plans aren’t new, though I guess I hadn’t previously focused on the fact that there would be so few economy seats.

“You can tell quickly that this aircraft was not configured for leisure travelers”, they will have 10 mini suites with flat-bed seats, 20 fully flat business-class seats and 36 coach seats with extra legroom. There will be only 36 traditional coach seats.

Why so few economy seats? “Unlike other domestic U.S. routes, there is significant demand from customers who are willing to pay full price to sit in the first-class cabin.” says Vahidi. New York-Los Angeles is both the busiest long-haul U.S. route, at about 3.2 million passengers a year, and the most lucrative, at $1.43 billion in annual sales, according to the Bureau of Transportation Statistics. First-class fares on that trip may be 10 times as much as in coach, based on prices on airline websites.

American’s transcontinental pre-flight perks include curbside greetings, dedicated check-in rooms, private elevators with direct access to the front of the security lines, and American’s Flagship Lounge. The flight itself will have fully lie-flat seats in First and Business Class (all-aisle access from every First Class seat) as well as Main Cabin Extra seating. There will be a total of 20 fully flat business seats with HD touchscreen and 10 first class suites.

Check out the rest of the article for a discussion on future Delta, United, Virgin America, and JetBlue plans for the JFK-LAX route. PS – Who knew that Virgin was #2 in terms of revenue on the route and that DL jumped in front of UA to #3? AA 32%, VX 21 %, DL 19%, UA 16%, and B6 11%.

Other AA Posts-
American Previews Upgraded Fleet Plans & Interiors – Steps It Up A319, A321, B737-800, and B777-300ER
AA Classes It Up – More New Pics of the 777-300ER
AA Further Steps-Up First & Business Class
AA’s New Look Unveiled – 1967 Livery Replaced
AA Livery Changes Possible Post-Merger as per SEC Filing & Doug Parker Comments
New AA Livery No Longer Definite? Plus Delta’s Advice for the New AA

Italian authorities have given the go-ahead for Emirates to proceed with their planned service between Milan Malpensa and JFK effective October 1st 2013. The route, which continues on to Dubai, will be operated using B777-300ER aircraft in addition. The flight will be in addition to the two existing daily A380 non-stops between JFK-DXB. The flight schedule will be as follows:

EK206 JFK-MXP 2220-1215 + 1 77W
EK205 MXP-JFK 1600-1900 77W

Emirates has already sent out an email to Skywards members offering double miles on the route “enough for an immediate reward on our partners, JetBlue and easyJet.”

What about redemptions? As mentioned in my last entry on the new route, the flights are still looking fantastic with great availability in first, business, and economy. This would truly be an easy way to get the entire family to Europe, if not for the lack of current EK JFK-MXP redemption opportunities. I normally recommend Alaska Mileage Plan, JAL Mileage Bank, and Korean Skypass for Emirates redemptions, but currently only one of these options is viable on the route if you’re not looking to continue on to Dubai. Korean does not allow for Emirates redemptions on JFK-MXP, nor does Alaska Mileage Plan (hopefully these will change soon). This leaves JAL as the only option, though the roundtrip pricing is very reasonable – 40K Economy, 65K Business, 100K First and currently no fuel surcharges being imposed on the route! Unfortunately, there’s no great way to accumulate JAL miles except via an SPG transfer. Of course, there’s the 5,000 SPG point bonus for every 20,000 transferred which brings the total SPG requirement down, but still requires quite a bit of SPG points. Most in the community already have an SPG personal and business AMEX, but if you don’t, you can earn enough for a free business ticket on the route (25,000 sign-up bonus for the personal and 25,000 sign-up bonus on the business card, plus the points for the $5,000 required spend on each card).

I’ll continue to update this post on overall award availability as well as any changes to Mileage Plan and Korean Skypass redemptions for this route.

Starwood Preferred Guest® Credit Card from American Express

Starpoints® bonus: earn up to 25,000 bonus points: 10,000 after your first purchase and another 15,000 after you spend $5,000 within the first 6 months of Cardmembership

• That’s enough for a weekend getaway to a Category 4 Hotel like the Westin Savannah Harbor Golf Resort & Spa, or six free nights at a Category 2 Hotel
• Earn up to 5 Starpoints® for each dollar of eligible purchases at participating SPG hotels and resorts – that’s 2 Starpoints for using the Card in addition to the Starpoints you earn as an SPG member. Earn 1 Starpoint for all other purchases.
• Free Hotel Nights: redeem Starpoints at over 1,100 hotels in nearly 100 countries worldwide – with no blackout dates
• Free Flights: redeem Starpoints on over 350 airlines with SPG Flights – with no blackout dates
• Get 5,000 bonus Starpoints after you transfer 20,000 Starpoints to a frequent flyer program with more than 30 airlines
• No limits on the number of Starpoints you can earn
• $0 introductory annual fee for the first year, then $65
• Terms and Restrictions apply.

Starwood Preferred Guest® Business Credit Card from American Express

• Starpoints® bonus: Earn up to 25,000 bonus points: 10,000 after your first purchase and another 15,000 after you spend $5,000 within the first 6 months of Cardmembership
• Redeem Starpoints® at over 1,100 hotels and resorts in nearly 100 countries and for flights on more than 350 airlines with SPG Flights – all with no blackout dates
• Earn up to 5 Starpoints® for each dollar of eligible purchases charged directly with hotels and resorts participating in the Starwood Preferred Guest® program
• Earn 1 Starpoint® for each dollar of eligible purchases
• $0 introductory annual fee for the first year, then $65
• Terms and limitations apply

Microsoft Business has a list of seven things never to say to flight attendants as compiled by Christopher Elliott:

1. Hey, what happened to the food?
2. Am I going to make my connection?
3. No wonder your airline is bankrupt.
4. I have a bad feeling about this flight.
5. If your airline goes out of business, what will happen to my miles?
6. I have a bomb in my bag.
7. Hey, stewardess!

See the full article for details as to why each of the above was included in the list.

Related -Ten Shocking Secrets of Flight Attendants..and other fun posts & pics
Related -What Do Flight Attendants Think of You…and your requests?

This is part six of an eight part trip report from my recent travels to Estonia and Finland. This report covers the recently renovated Radisson Blu Plaza Hotel in Helsinki, Finland.

• KLM Business Class B747-400 JFK – Amsterdam (AMS)
• KLM Crown Lounge AMS & Estonian Air Business CRJ900 Amsterdam (AMS) – Tallinn (TLL)
• Swissôtel Tallinn
• Tour of Tallinn
• Crossing the Frozen Baltic Sea – Ferry from Tallinn – Helsinki / Helsinki – Tallinn
• Radisson Blu Plaza Hotel, Helsinki
• Walking on Ice – Helsinki – Tour of the Winter Wonderland
• Tallinn (TLL) – Las Vegas (LAS) – Estonian Air / KLM / Delta

Booking – I planned this weekend trip from Tallinn last minute and the available rates for a standard room at the Radisson Blu Plaza were: €95.00 EUR non-refundable, €135.00 EUR refundable AAA, 44,000 Club Carlson points, or 10,000 Club Carlson points and €45.00 EUR. I decided to go with the €95.00 EUR rate as I was saving my Club Carlson points for a redemption at the May Fair hotel in London for the 2012 Olympics (50K points per night instead of €595.00 EUR).

Arrival & Check-In – The hotel was a short 10 minute taxi ride from the ferry terminal and was quite empty for a Friday night when I arrived. At just before 9pm, I was the only guest in the newly renovated lobby. As a Club Carlson Gold Elite member, I was told that I had been upgraded to a recently renovated Executive Business Class room. At the time of my visit, about half of the 302 rooms had completed their renovation (currently all rooms are renovated).

The Room – The room literally smelled brand new and everything was in pristine condition. I especially loved the Nordic look of the room and the extremely comfortable bed. The illuminated room numbers on the hallway floor, the ample lighting, mounted speakers, digital light controls, media input panels (by the bed and the desk), and the TV built-in to the bathroom mirror were also nice modern touches.

I was curious to see the standard and business class rooms as well as some of the non upgraded rooms (what a difference). The older rooms had hard beds, dirty carpeting, and just an altogether dingy feel.

The renovated standard and business class rooms were similar to the Executive Business Class room except they were a tad smaller. They too had new bedding and furniture and all the new gadgets including the built-in speakers, multiple media inputs, and built-in bathroom tvs.

Warning – Several of the standard rooms I viewed had NO desks. If you want a desk in your room, make sure you request an Executive or Business Executive room.

Amenities & Location – Location – The hotel has a stellar location, you are literally right in the center of the city, but yet the hotel is extremely quiet and located at the end of a dead-end block overlooking beautiful Kaisaniemi park. The park is gigantic and houses botanical gardens, ponds, sports fields, and in the summer is a major concert venue. Making a right out of the hotel lobby, the park is about a two minute walk away. Going the other way, the central railway station (inspiration for much of Gotham City architecture in the Batman movies) is next to the hotel as is the main bus station, underground, ports, ice skating rink, shopping, and restaurants. The airport is about a 30 minute drive from the hotel.

Amenities – The Radisson Blu includes free and fast internet and breakfast for all hotel guests. The breakfast was one of the best non-Asian property buffets I’ve had. It’s served at Kitzens Restaurant off the lobby and there is a huge selection of fruits, danishes, yogurts, multiple hot items, and made-to-order omelets. They also have multiple global newspapers and champagne which was a very nice touch.

Overall, I really enjoyed my stay at the Radisson Blu Plaza hotel and it was certainly worth the €95.00 EUR. If you plan to get some work done, make sure you request a room with a desk or are comfortable working from your bed or the lobby. Up next, the Helsinki winter experience!

A survey from from the Travel Leaders Group seeks to find “best practices” for airline etiquette as answered by other frequent travelers:

If you are seated in the middle seat on an airplane and the people on either side of you staked out the armrests, what would you do?
Say something directly to your seatmates. 27.9%
Call a flight attendant and let him/her handle the situation. 2.6%
Sit quietly and say nothing. 48.9%
Not sure. 20.6%

If the person in the airline seat in front of you invaded your personal space with an article of clothing and/or their hair so it was directly in front of you, what would you do?
Say something directly to the person. 68.9%
Call a flight attendant and let him/her handle the situation. 9.3%
Sit quietly and say nothing. 13.0%
Not sure. 8.8%

If the person in the airline seat in front of you reclined their seat so much that you were unable to lower you tray table or perhaps unable to open up a laptop, what would you do?
Say something directly to the person. 55.4%
Call a flight attendant and let him/her handle the situation. 21.8%
Sit quietly and say nothing. 15.1%
Not sure. 7.7%

If the person in the airline seat in front of you ignored crew member instructions to have their seat back upright for takeoff and/or landing, what would you do?
Say something directly to the person. 13.4%
Call a flight attendant and let him/her handle the situation. 28.1%
Sit quietly and say nothing. 50.1%
Not sure. 8.4%

If you were on a flight next to a person who insisted on trying to talk to you the entire flight, what would you do?
Use a book or other reading materials to try to limit the conversation. 38.1%
Put on headphones and use a book or other reading materials to limit conversation. 18.9%
Engage them in conversation for the whole flight. 12.2%
Specifically let that person know that you would prefer not to talk. 10.4%
Put on headphones to try to limit the conversation. 8.7%
Pretend to sleep to try to limit the conversation. 7.4%
Put on headphones and pretend to sleep. 4.3%

If you were on a flight with someone who talked so loudly that half the plane could hear them, what would you do?
Say something directly to the person. 14.4%
Call a flight attendant and let him/her handle the situation. 27.9%
Sit quietly and say nothing. 36.0%
Not sure. 21.7%

What would you do if it appeared parents of a screaming child aboard a plane were not making any attempt to comfort/control their child?
Say something directly to the person. 7.9%
Call a flight attendant and let him/her handle the situation. 46.7%
Sit quietly and say nothing. 30.6%
Not sure. 14.8%

Today, United Airlines resumed B787 service for the first time in four months with two flights, Houston (IAH) – Chicago (ORD) on ship 3903 and Houston (IAH) to Newark (EWR) on ship 3901. United plans to use the 787s exclusively on domestic routes before resuming international service on June 10th with the launch of Denver (DEN) – Tokyo (NRT) service. Existing routes will also see 787 service this summer including Houston-London, Los Angeles-Tokyo, Los Angeles-Shanghai and Houston-Lagos. United also reported this morning that four of its six 787s have been fixed, and that the remaining two aircraft will have battery modifications later in the week.

United tweeted along with pics of the relaunch, including one of Boeing CEO W. James McNerney, Jr. and United CEO Jeff Smisek buckled in and ready for take-off on Flight 1.