On my recent trip to Asia, my daughter and I flew to China after spending 10 days in Japan. Shortly after arrival, we were in culture shock because there were so many things that were different between the two countries. One of the biggest differences that I didn’t pay attention...

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...

This is the fourth installment  in my series of posts on our recent trip to South America. See my previous  posts Back from our family trip to Peru and Easter island: Bumpy start, awesome memories  , Flying in LATAM economy to South America and Easter Island and Layovers in airport-adjacent hotels:...

I’ve always been a big fan of Disney theme parks. As a kid, my family visited Disney World several times, and it was my favorite vacation. In my 20s, I had the opportunity to work at a Disney corporate office in California, and that experience only increased my love for...

Brutal: Virgin Atlantic Doubles Fees on Biz Class Awards, Raises Others: Per this post on Thrifty Traveler, taxes and fees on Virgin Atlantic awards are now higher, but not as high as they used to be. Ugh. Bilt Rent Day July 2025: This month, the big offer is 25%-100% gift...

This is a topic that’s getting a lot of attention in the hobby right now, and for a good reason. As of June 30th, Amex Membership Rewards points will no longer transfer to Hawaiian miles, and with that dies an opportunity to easily acquire Alaska currency. So, the question is,...

Yesterday, I wrote about our day at Tokyo DisneySea. Later on our same trip, my daughter and I spent a day at Shanghai Disneyland, my last Disney resort in the world to visit. The two parks could not have been more different. Shanghai Disneyland is more like the traditional Disneyland/Magic...

On my recent trip to Japan and China, I visited the last two Disney theme parks I had on my bucket list. Before I reveal my favorite Disney park, I will review the latest two I visited. Here are the hits and misses from our day at Tokyo DisneySea. Hit:...

This is a third installment  in my series of posts on our recent trip to South America. See my previous  posts Back from our family trip to Peru and Easter island: Bumpy start, awesome memories  and Flying in LATAM economy to South America and Easter Island For the most part,...

Last week, I wrote about the changes coming to the Chase Sapphire Reserve card and the new Chase Sapphire Reserve for Business card (see this post for all the details). Today, applications are live for both of these cards. CSR Welcome Bonuses Revealed As a reminder, the new annual fee...

This is a second installment  in my series of posts on our recent trip to South America. See my intro post Back from our family trip to Peru and Easter island: Bumpy start, awesome memories  As mentioned in my previous post, I ended up redeeming miles on all of our...

Yesterday, Carnival Cruise Line announced some major changes to its loyalty program that will roll out in June 2026. Since I’ve cruised on Carnival twice, I’m in several social media groups related to Carnival cruising. The reaction from cruise passengers to this announcement has been overwhelmingly negative.. New Carnival Rewards...

Yes, I did just come back from a trip to Asia. But, I’m not done exploring the area, and I want to go while I’m still “young” -ish. My daughter and I set our sights on visiting Thailand next year, which is a longer flight than flights to Japan and...