Galveston Revisited: my interview with the head of Galveston Park Board
Back in May, Sam and Robert of the Milenomics Squared podcast (and a slew of other activities in and around the world of travel hacking) invited me to join their
The Manifesto Episode 13: Deep Dive into Galveston, TX with Kelly de Schaun
Earlier this year we launched a podcast network, adding the Manifesto hosted by Gideon the Free-quent Flyer to the Patreon Feed. In this episode Gideon sits down with Kelly de
The spooky effects of age differences on Social Security benefits
Become a Patron!I was skimming one of the interminable posts over at Michael Kitces’s Nerd’s Eye View blog by Jeff Levine and was struck by his description of a very
Modern economic growth (and personal finance)
Become a Patron!I’ve recently started listening to a podcast about economic history called, fittingly, The Economic History Podcast, and the last episode on the “Great Divergence..
Ep. 146 – Signing Up for Some Credit Cards and Planning Some Travel
Episode Description
Trevor and Joe check in about what’s been going on. We’ve been signing up for some new credit cards, taking advantage of AMEX 3X referral opportunities, and e..
Foreign exchange products: TransferWise and Revolut
As long-time readers know, I listen to a lot of podcasts, and so I end up hearing a lot of podcast ads. A few months ago, I started hearing ads
Episode 44: All About Amex (in 10 minutes)
Today we’re doing 10 minutes on the podcast All About Amex. This post is a companion piece to that audio. The goal here is to describe the “quirks and features”
Early Experiences with Amex Three-For-All
Just one week ago Robert broke the news about American Express’ Three-For-All. This enhancement to their current (and very generous) universal referral system is designed to rewa..
Ep. 145 – Hiking and Fishing the National Parks w/ Becky Pokora
Episode Description
We welcome back Becky Pokora from sightDOING who took a trip to Yellowstone and Grand Teton national parks recently. We discuss the long hikes you can take wh..
Amex Referral THREE FOR ALL: 3 Additional Points for 3 Months
Q3 is off to a great start with this new referral offer from Amex. When you refer a friend you’ll get 3 additional points on the card you referred from
Ep. 144 – No More Change Fees and Chase Freedom Flex
Episode Description
We hit up not one, but two guests on this week’s news focused Observation Deck. First, Leslie from Trips with Tykes drops by to discuss which airline’s no cha..
Cheap lessons
Become a Patron!One of my favorite concepts to tell people about is “affordable luxuries,” the things that barely make a dent in your bank account but immediately spark joy: cheap
Ep. 143 – National Parks Road Trip w/ Nick S
Shoutout and thanks to Nick for the great trip report, beautiful pictures, and links to products mentioned (they are pure non-affiliate links, too!) This is one episode you might..
The Chase Freedom family of cards: it's (still) all about quantity
In a case of impeccable timing, at the beginning of this week I was high in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Shenandoah National Park, far from cell service, and so
Non-owner car insurance
Non-owner car insurance is one of the least-understood insurance products because it is needed by so few people: most people who drive own a car, and most people who own
Kings Canyon National Park: An Underrated Gem
I’ll keep this short and let the pictures do most of the talking, but I wholeheartedly enjoyed Kings Canyon National Park on my first Sierra Nevada visit in late July. Kings Can..
Who is the Inspirato Pass ripping off (and who is rich or dumb enough to find out?)
Every 21st century tech scam involves ripping off some combination of three groups of people: customers, service providers, and investors. If you can exploit regulatory loopholes..
More Delta Platinum and refund hijinx
Right now all travelers, but especially travel hackers, are juggling even more decisions than usual. In the before time, we might make speculative bookings far in the future as s..
Ep. 142 – Miraval Berkshires Review w/ Mike D
Episode Description
The miles and points community was all abuzz when Miraval Berkshires’ opened with the BOGO promotion, but the shine has dulled a bit due to MA’s restrictive t..
Virginia's Eastern Shore: our first road trip out of quarantine
The pandemic has caused different kinds of pain for different people. For the very social, the pandemic has meant losing the ability to visit with friends and family in person.
Personal finance during the plague: the lean months
Become a Patron!A stylized fact about the course of the current pandemic is that while the economic impact was swift and severe, the effect on personal finances was muted by
2020 is the Year to Visit Yosemite – Without Crowds
On June 12, I saw a post in one of my hiking groups that Yosemite National Park is basically empty. This was just one day after Yosemite reopened its “doors” to the public. I k..
New Option: West Coast Awards to Hawaii For 12,500 Miles (Aeroplan)
Long time readers to the blog know that one of the destinations which receives an inordinate amount of attention on Milenomics is Hawaii. We’ve covered it as part of East