It's January 1, which means a new calendar year of airline/travel credits from Amex Platinum, Citi Prestige, etc. I just want to share an interesting experience from December when I was using up my new Hilton Aspire card's $250 airline credit for 2018 (this is my referral link for the 150k, highest ever, offer). I'm using my Aspire card's free weekend night at Grand Wailea … [Read more...]

Sorry for the lack of posts recently. I had significantly less time for this hobby after moving to San Diego, between working more hours and enjoying the sunshine. But here I am, reflecting on what this interesting has been for me! Travel took a backseat If you know me, you know I'm in this hobby for the travel. Last year, 2017, was probably my best year of travel to … [Read more...]

Sonesta is a small but expanding hotel chain primarily in the US.  Recently it opened (or acquired?) quite a few properties in South America, including several in Peru that caught my eye (Sacred Valley, Cusco, Lake Titicaca).  Travel Pass is their loyalty program.  Back in the day, they awarded the equivalent of 10,000 points for each new member … [Read more...]

Earlier today it was possible to cash out Hilton points at Amazon.com at 0.5 cents per point (cpp).  This was a good deal.  I personally think the average redemption value of Hilton points, for Hilton award stays, is around 0.45 cpp.  Being able to redeem it at a slightly higher value for something more universally useful like Amazon is pretty cool.  I … [Read more...]

I was telling someone (not a frequent traveler) about my Romania trip.  She asked if English was widely spoken there.  It wasn't.  She asked: "how do you communicate?"  My response: if you're with good people, things always work out. We live in an age of travel miracles: if you speak English, know how to book cheap tickets, and have a mobile phone, you … [Read more...]

I've written before about my unimpressive Diamond upgrade rate at Hilton. Well, a few weeks ago, I finally scored my 2nd ever great Hilton upgrade - the Royal Suite at Hilton Sibiu in Romania. I had ranked it #1 on my (can't keep up with devaluation) Best Low Category Hilton Redemptions List based on research (10k/night, 5 star hotel, at the time #1 rated hotel in Sibiu on … [Read more...]

This is a continuation of my Romania trip report.  See also: Part 1, which established general expectations of Transylvania. The highlight of this trip is Balea Lake, a glacial lake on the famed Transfaragasan Road.  This fairy tale sits 2,000 meters high, surrounded by the Fagaras Mountain.  As with any high altitude location, the weather is … [Read more...]