Paddle Your Own Kanoo
Disabled Flyers Face ‘Agonizing’ Wait for Protections as DOT Pushes Back Wheelchair Passenger Rules Until December 2026
The Department of Transportation (DOT) is further delaying the enforcement of a landmark set of regulations designed to give disabled American air travelers more rights. Under the control of Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, the DOT is also expected to announce a major rewrite of the rules. The regulations, known as Ensuring Safe...
One Mile at a Time
Logical: American Airlines & Porter Airlines Launch Transborder Partnership
In July 2025, we saw a regulatory filing hinting at a new partnership. It’s now official, as the two airlines have announced plans to collaborate. I don’t think this should surprise anyone, and it’s something that many of us have been predicting for a couple of years now… American & Porter...
No Work All Travel
Hotel Review: Meliá Puerto Vallarta
For my first-ever all-inclusive stay, I think Meliá Puerto Vallarta in Mexico did a pretty good job of setting the bar. Following another delicious visit to Mexico City, it was time to wind-down my visit with a brief stop in Puerto Vallarta. I was invited to stay at Meliá Puerto Vallarta this...
Monkey Miles
Don’t Forget! Use your September American Express statement credits
American Express Statement credits Every month, quarter, 6 months, and end of year certain Amex cards have credits that expire, and if you’re like me, a reminder is helpful so you don’t waste them. July is a special month since a ton of semi-annual statement credits, and quarterly credits renew alongside...
TravelUpdate
Flight Review: BermudAir Economy (Bermuda to Westchester)
Background & Booking On my way back to New York from Bermuda, I decided to try a new airline for me, which is BermudAir. It’s a very interesting airline that launched in 2023. They originally started out saying they would be an all-business class airline, then switched, and apparently, it’s in...
Monkey Miles
Ends Tomorrow! Rakuten Referral Spend $50 get $50 back
New Members spend $50 get $50 *The biggest caveats here – you must be in the USA or Canada I’ve written extensively about Rakuten and using how using the Rakuten shopping portal is an easy way to rack up serious amounts of Amex points. I’ve earned over 250k+ Amex Points from Rakuten...
The Gate with Brian Cohen
One Benefit With My Experience of SSSS in Amsterdam
Note: This article pertaining to One Benefit With My Experience of SSSS in Amsterdam was originally published on Saturday, September 29, 2018 at 10:28 in the morning and has been updated. I received my boarding pass from a kiosk at Schiphol Airport in Amsterdam and found the dreaded four letters no...
The Bulkhead Seat
United Launches New International Remote Baggage Screening to Simplify Connections
United Airlines has announced the adoption of a new US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) initiative known International Remote Baggage Screening (IRBS). It’s aimed at making international connections smoother and faster for travelers with checked bags. American has been doing this for some time with its flights between Sydney Kingsford...
Economondo
Riding Gulf Air’s Flagship: Bahrain to London Heathrow on a Dreamliner
You can read about my fantastic flight from Frankfurt to Bahrain onboard one of Gulf Air’s Airbus A321neos here, and my ride from Dubai to Bahrain onboard an Airbus A320neo here. Following a short and pleasant hop over from Dubai onboard one of Gulf Air’s Airbus A320neos, I walked up the...
Monkey Miles
How to replace your Amex Platinum with the mirror finish – step by step guide
Here is exactly, step by step, how you can order your replacement Amex Platinum, or Business Platinum should you want a mirror card!  Mine came within days and I have to say…it’s pretty darn cool. After logging in…go to Account Services Within Account services…go to Card Management You’ll then see a section to...
Frequent Miler
Office Depot/OfficeMax: Buy $300+ Visa Gift Cards, Save $15
Office Depot and OfficeMax stores have returned with their profitable gift card deal on Visa gift cards through 10/4/25. The Deal Buy $300+ Visa gift cards at Office Depot/OfficeMax & get $15 off instantly. Key Terms Valid September 28, 2025 – October 4, 2025. Limit 10 per household/business (different stores may try to impose various...
One Mile at a Time
Malaysia Airlines’ New Safety Video: Predictable Replaces Controversial
Malaysia Airlines is the latest airline to unveil a new safety video, and I don’t think the format will surprise anyone (thanks to Pierre for flagging this)… New Malaysia Airlines safety video celebrates Malaysia Malaysia Airlines has just unveiled its new safety video, “where essential safety meets the essence of Malaysia.”...
Frequent Flyer Bonuses
September 27 Bonus Offer Highlight: Southwest Rapid Rewards – Receive up to a 50% discount when you buy points
Today’s bonus offer highlight is Southwest’s offer of up to a 50% discount when buying Rapid Rewards points. Check out all of the new bonuses added today: The Bonus Offer Highlight: Southwest Rapid Rewards Receive up to a 50% discount when you buy 3,000 or more Rapid Rewards points. Offer valid to Oct...
Live and Let’s Fly
Lufthansa To Retire Iconic Jets, Slash Thousands Of Jobs
A sweeping shake-up is underway at the Lufthansa Group, with major cutbacks to both its fleet and staffing planned for the coming years. Cutbacks to Lufthansa Group Fleet and Workforce Lufthansa Group is preparing for a leaner future, trimming redundant aircraft types and shedding roles, especially in corporate and administrative sectors, as...
Paddle Your Own Kanoo
Alaska Airlines Forced to Scrap New First Class Glassware Days After Debut… Here’s What Passengers Are Reporting
Alaska Airlines has reportedly been forced to withdraw new First Class glassware across its network just days after introducing a bespoke range of serveware. The reason is that the glasses were allegedly breaking in the hands of passengers. The Seattle-based carrier debuted the new serveware collection earlier this month, and...
The Bulkhead Seat
Icelandic Airline PLAY Ceases Operations and Cancels All Flights as Airline Collapses
Icelandic low-cost carrier Fly Play hf., known simply as PLAY, announced today that it will cease all operations immediately while canceling all scheduled flights. The decision comes after months of financial struggles, declining ticket sales, and internal challenges that the company was unable to overcome despite a recent attempt to...
Live from a Lounge
Review: Singapore Airlines Airbus A380 Business Class (Delhi – Singapore)
Earlier this month, I found myself heading out on a trip where I had to be in many places at the same time. The trip first took me to Singapore for a quick weekend. Out of the few options I had for travelling between Delhi and Singapore, I chose Singapore...
The Points of Life
Athens for Nightlife? Not My Pick
Last year, I met my Italian friend and real estate attorney (see “Did TPOL Buy a € 1 Italian Villa?“) in Barcelona for our annual reunion. While Barcelona is not God awful like Miami, it is one of the most overrated cities (see The Worst Cities in the World). This year, despite...
TravelUpdate
Amex Platinum Card design request denied, 250k Amex offer, Miles & Points game getting tougher & more…
I tried requesting the Amex Platinum Card with the new design, but it was denied. That and more as we recap stories from the week gone by. “Sorry Sir, no ‘mirror finish’ Amex Platinum Card for you!” Now, you may be wondering that you can order the new ‘mirror finish’ design on...
One Mile at a Time
Iceland’s PLAY Airlines Cancels All Flights, Ceases Operations
PLAY Airlines has abruptly ceased operations and canceled all flights. I can’t say I’m surprised…PLAY Airlines calls it quits, cancels all flightsIn 2021, we saw the launch of PLAY, an ultra low cost carrier in Iceland that intended to use Keflavik (KEF) to connect points in North America with points...
TravelUpdate
Flight makes emergency landing after two drunk passengers get into a fight
A RyanAir flight on its way to Alicante had to make an emergency landing in France after two passengers on board got into a fight. Eventually, police entered the flight to make sure that the passengers were taken out. Emergency Landing in France After the flight took off, two people on board...
View from the Wing
American’s ‘Premium’ Push Looks Like This: Broken Seats, Duct Tape, And Not Yet Any Coherent Plan [Roundup]
News and notes from around the interweb: The reality of the American Airlines pivot to “premium” in two photos? @AmericanAir I’m a EP Flyer. AA makes $ selling cheap seats meant for loyal flyers. Also credit card debacle. As far as CUSTOMER SATISFACTION, they STINK! Cancelled flights, Maint issues, crews...
Miles For Family
Beijing: Visiting Tiananmen Square, Forbidden City and Temple of Heaven
This is a continuation of my Japan/China trip report. See also Back from China and Japan Trip! 5 Takeaways, Worth it: JAL Premium Economy Award Seats, Better Than Expected: AA Premium Economy Shanghai PVG to DFW, Hits and Misses from our day at Tokyo DisneySea, Take this Line and Shove...
One Mile at a Time
Lufthansa Airbus A350 Allegris Cabin Retrofits Coming In 2027
As we all know, Lufthansa is (very slowly) rolling out its new Allegris passenger experience, which includes an all-new first class and business class experience. The new product is a massive improvement over the old one, though one big challenge has been actually getting onto planes with the new cabins....
Eye of the Flyer
Is Delta Schedule Change Saturday the Best day to Book the Lowest Price SkyMiles Award Tickets?
Anyone who has been reading this blog for years knows that every single Saturday, if you have Delta tickets booked, that you simply must look at all your reservations to see if Delta Air Lines has messed with adjusted your tickets either a little (think a few minutes) or a...
One Mile at a Time
Lufthansa Group’s Plans To Simplify Long Haul Fleet By 2030, Cut Six Plane Types
Lufthansa Group’s fleet is currently undergoing a modernization, and in particular, the long haul fleet of the flagship Lufthansa brand is seeing the most updates. Unfortunately this hasn’t worked out nearly as smoothly as planned, between certification delays with the Boeing 777-9, and delivery delays with the Boeing 787-9.The airline...
Live and Let’s Fly
This Is Not A Delivery Room: Outrageous Passenger Behavior In Delta First Class
Let’s start out the week with a bit of poetry…an ode to the disgusting Delta first class passenger who placed his feet on the bulkhead like he was delivering a baby. Delta First Class Passenger Treats Bulkhead Like A Delivery Room In Delta first class, where champagne freely flows,A Florida man’s feet...
One Mile at a Time
Lufthansa Group’s Plans To Simplify Long Haul Fleet By 2030, Cut Six Plane Types
Lufthansa Group’s fleet is currently undergoing a modernization, and in particular, the long haul fleet of the flagship Lufthansa brand is seeing the most updates. Unfortunately this hasn’t worked out nearly as smoothly as planned, between certification delays with the Boeing 777-9, and delivery delays with the Boeing 787-9.The airline...
One Mile at a Time
Lufthansa Group To Slash 4,000 Jobs By 2030, In Bid to Improve Efficiency
A couple of days ago, we learned how Lufthansa Group planned to announce some job cuts in the coming days. We now have more details as to what that will look like. Lufthansa will cut 20% of administrative jobs by 2030 Lufthansa Group has just announced plans to majorly cut its administrative...
Paddle Your Own Kanoo
Bathroom Breakdown Forces United Airlines Boeing 767 to Dump 33,000 Pounds of Fuel Over England
A United Airlines flight from Paris to Washington Dulles ended up making an emergency diversion and dumping 33,000 pounds of fuel in the process, on Sunday evening, after three of the washrooms stopped working only an hour after the plane took off. Rather than taking the risk of making a transatlantic...
2PAXfly
TAIWAN: Digital arrivals card for Australian visitors
From October 1, Taiwan will become another Asian destination requiring Australians to complete a digital Arrival Card, called the Taiwan Arrival Card (TWAC), before immigration will let you through. Another country, another form Taiwan joins Singapore, Malaysia, and Thailand as part of the growing club of Asian countries scrapping paper arrival slips....
PointsMath
14+ Current IHG Promotions [Oct’25] [Save, Earn or Redeem Promotion]
IHG is one of the world’s largest hotel chains. Several IHG Promotions are running, which you can use to maximise your stay. New Members Sign up Promotion: Earn 3K Bonus Points with 1st Stay Become an IHG member by 31 March 2026 Promotion: Earn 3K Bonus Points after completing a stay within 21 days of...