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CategoryDo this now: register for 2018 1st quarter bonus categories
It’s that time again, your quarterly reminder to activate next quarter’s bonus earning on all your credit cards offering rotating quarterly rewards.Chase FreedomIn the first quar..
Amex Hilton Surpass 75k Upgrade Offer – No Lifetime Clause
I just upgraded my no-fee Amex Hilton card to a Surpass, with 75,000 bonus Hilton points after spending $3,000 in 3 months. Annual fee is $75. My offer did not have a “once in ..
It’s not too late to enroll in health insurance
As an independent businessperson, I’ve been enrolled in health insurance through the Affordable Care Act practically since it went into effect. Due to an unprecedented buildup of..
Best Western: Crappy Website, Good Customer Service
Thanks to the current promotion, I had the chance to dip my toe into the world of Best Western – my first post-hobby experience with them. I just want to report my experience, s..
Survivorship bias everywhere
Survivorship bias is one of those rare ideas that is at once instantly accessible and incredibly powerful. The classic explanation of survivorship bias is when a mutual fund comp..
Don't sleep on the American Airlines holiday bonus miles promotion
I don’t normally find shopping portal promotions to be worth my time, which I assume is how this one slipped past me last month when Frequent Miler wrote about it: through
Table stakes for a decent Marriott credit card reboot
I’ve been traveling all week, but followed with interest the announcement that Marriott will be rebooting their credit card lineup, with “mass consumer,” “premium,” and “super pr..
Barclay Wyndham 45,000 Offer is Back ($2,000 Minimum Spend, $75 AF)
I received an invitation to apply as a general Wyndham Rewards member. I don’t see it in the Barclay credit cards page, so it may not be public. In any cas..
35,000-75,000 Avios OR $600-$750 Air Ticket with HSBC Premier Card
Here’s a credit card opportunity I hadn’t noticed until recent days, when Doctor of Credit exposed a 35% transfer bonus from HSBC to British Airways through Jan 4, 2018. After s..
The Great Paradox of My Travel Aspirations
I have two fundamental travel aspirations:
- See the world.
- Get good value out of miles & points.
The 2 goals were in unison in my early days of the hobby. Seeing the world meant..
Barclay Aviator Red 60k Offer – Generous, (Likely) Churnable
Direct link to offer (NOT an affiliate link, if that wasn’t obvious)
One of the best sign up boni right now is the Barclay Aviator Red card. You get 60,000 AA miles after 1st pur..
The effect of estate tax repeal on the 529 scam
One of the first posts I wrote here was about the 529 scam. I explained that 529 plans are a way for wealthy individuals to permanently shield an almost unlimited
Dead: United Gift Registry / Travelbank for Airline Credit
I’m not sure how widely known this is, but per Flyertalk (see thread wiki), United recently took down the ability to contribute to Gift Registry / Travelbank. You can still use ..
Actually Moviepass is good
Like a lot of people, I signed up for Moviepass when they recently lowered the monthly price to $9.95. Like so many people, in fact, that it took a few
The Importance of Different-Styled Travel Companions
I just got back from a few days in Maui with a group of friends. The variation of travel styles in the group was interesting. Some were super active thrill seekers who hiked in..
Reminder Talk Travel and Bring a Toy on 30 Nov (This Thursday!)
Just a quick reminder on this Cyber Monday, that I’m partnering with Ed from Pizza in Motion and Jeanne from Le Chic Geek to host a frequent traveler happy hour
Lifecycle effects, Thanksgiving car rental edition
I often talk about lifecycle effects when it comes to travel hacking. That’s what I call the phenomenon of people believing that travel hacking has become objectively more diffic..
The real reason arbitrage opportunities last so long
Every once in a while you come across a seemingly insignificant coincidence that gives a different perspective on a question you thought you understood the answer to.I had one of
What is a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage?
The title of this post may sound like a rhetorical question, but I assure you I don’t mean it that way. It’s a question I’ve been pondering for a while
Flying to Hawaii Comfortably – and Expensively (with Miles)
Happy Thanksgiving! I hope you are getting some time off to be with loved ones and/or do some fun travel. For me it’s the latter. I’m onboard a refurbished AA 777-200 business ..
How Ron Johnson’s weird idea for corporate tax reform might work
Senator Ron Johnson of Wisconsin announced last week that he couldn’t support the Senate tax reform bill because it failed to align the treatment of corporate income (which is ta..
$10 for a Flat Bed in Chicago? I’ll Take It
Technically it’s in the suburbs, and admission costs extra, but I was going there anyway so my extra cost was just $10.
I was in Chicago for 2 nights a few weekends ago. I had on..
What’s the optimal amount of home-country (currency) bias?
I have the view, which I consider fairly obvious but not always clearly articulated, that virtually all low-enough-cost, adequately-diversified investments will yield positive no..