Traveling For Miles
Five basic bits of advice for people new to miles & points
Everyone starts somewhere. If you're new to the miles and points game and feeling slightly overwhelmed by the sheer number of programs, currencies, and opinions out there, this one's for you.
None of what follows is complicated, but getting these basics right early could well save you a lot of frustration...
Frequent Miler
New Wyndham Rewards Earner Premier card: An unexpected new card that’s hard to make sense of
I don’t think anyone expected a premium Wyndham card to come on the market before a premium Hyatt card, but here we are. Wyndham and Barclays launched a new premium card today called the Wyndham Rewards Earner Premier card. It’s a slightly strange card because it doesn’t seem like there’d...
One Mile at a Time
KLM Airbus A350 Will Soon Enter Service, But Business Class Will Stay Empty
In September 2023, Air France-KLM placed an incremental order for up to 90 Airbus A350s, including 50 firm orders and 40 options. The intent was for these planes to be used for long term fleet renewal across both carriers.
View from the Wing
Chase Made Sapphire Preferred Better, But Ultimate Rewards No Longer Looks As Safe
Chase Sapphire Preferred is better for most cardmembers after its refresh, with stronger earning categories and a larger hotel credit. But the cut to Hyatt transfers raises doubts about Ultimate Rewards as a reserve currency.
Paddle Your Own Kanoo
Emirates Fined €180,000 By Italian Privacy Watchdog Over How it Processes the Personal Data of Passengers With Reduced Mobility
Dubai-based mega airline Emirates has been fined €180,000 (US $208,000) by Italy’s privacy watchdog over the way it handles sensitive personal data about passengers with reduced mobility or other, sometimes highly personal and sensitive, health conditions. The watchdog, known in Italy as the Garante, started its probe into how Emirates...
Live and Let’s Fly
Official: European Union Moves To Strengthen EU261 Flight Compensation, Not Gut It
An agreement to update EU261/2004 has been reached and much to my delight (and contrary to months of rumors), Europe is not gutting passenger compensation. Quite the opposite: the core compensation scheme is set to remain largely intact, while airlines will soon have to make it much easier for passengers...
Economy Class & Beyond
Qantas confirms “Project” Sunrise’s first route – Sydney to London in late 2027
At an event in Toulouse, Qantas confirmed it plans to launch its world-first non-stop services between Sydney and London from October 2027, the first time the Kangaroo Route has ever been flown without stops from Australia’s east coast. Today’s announcement comes as the national carrier unveiled its first Airbus A350-1000ULR...
Traveling For Miles
Surprising results when searching for value from purchased IHG points
This all started with an award search in Manhattan for a single night in February. The results surprised me, so I followed that up with a search for a single night in May (same location, same hotels) to see what that would throw up.
Live and Let’s Fly
Couple Books Aisle And Window On United Airlines, Then Talks Over Passenger Stuck In The Middle
A United Airlines passenger shared a story about a seat swap conversation after ending up between a married couple who had booked the window and aisle hoping the middle would remain empty. I have some sympathy for almost everyone involved here, but there is one part of this strategy that...
View from the Wing
JetBlue CEO’s Commencement Lesson: Why Character Counts More In The Age Of AI
JetBlue’s CEO gave graduates a commencement message about character, reputation, friendship, and not confusing achievement with who you are. In the age of AI, that lesson matters more because capability is becoming abundant while trust, judgment, courage, and human connection become more scarce.
The Gate with Brian Cohen
Save Up to 20% With Marriott Bonvoy
You can save up to 20% with Marriott Bonvoy off of the guest room standard rate when you stay at your choice of participating hotel and resort properties worldwide with its Escapes promotion, which offers exclusive savings every other Thursday through Sunday across select destinations...
...but you must...
Frequent Miler
Paze in a daze: No more gift cards from Newegg or Dunkin’
That didn’t last long. A couple of days ago, the relatively new payment method Paze—brought to you by the company behind Zelle—launched an insanely good promotion that has the potential to be our Deal of the Year for 2026. Paze is giving $10 back when spending $10+ which, in and...
One Mile at a Time
Qantas’ 9,950-Mile, 20-Hour Sydney To London A350 Flights Launch Late 2027
Since 2017, we’ve known about Qantas’ ”Project Sunrise” concept, whereby the airline will fly from Sydney (SYD) and Melbourne (MEL) to New York (JFK) and London (LHR), using special Airbus A350-1000ULR aircraft. These will be the world’s longest flights, and will see passengers spending nearly an entire day on an...
