It all started with a spark of an idea to meet up with some great friends in Europe in March. That spark and an email turned into an interest to attend TBEX Europe 2020 in Catania, Italy around the same time. Early tickets for the conference were on sale and being that I’ve never been to Italy, it seemed like a great reason to make it happen. I asked my girlfriend, Jackie, if she would mind if I went to a conference while we’re on our trip. She asked, “so, you want me to spend a few days in Italy on my own while you go to a conference – yeah, no worries – I’ll be just fine!” I grabbed the conference ticket and began keeping an eye on flights – that’s when I stumbled across an email from ScottsCheapFlights that would lead us to get tickets from Portland to Rome for less than $250 each!
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Adventure
Coming Soon: Birthdays in Costa Rica & Nicaragua
This Friday, I’m headed out of Portland with my friend Cristina to Liberia, Costa Rica and soon after to the west side of Nicaragua to see my friend Brendan’s property. Brendan has been out there since the middle of January and I figure it is about time to pay a visit and see what this land is all about. I’ve never been to Nicaragua before, so I’m quite excited about seeing a new country. Costa Rica on the other hand happens to be the first trip I ever did solo (2012), which I loved, and am glad to visit once again. Cristina’s birthday is the 17th and my birthday is the 18th, and I’m excited to go to another part of the world to celebrate our birthdays. (more…)
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Mileage Plan Program Changes | Alaska Airlines
Just got a surprising email this morning that Alaska Airlines is changing the number of miles needed domestically for flights. Instead of the normal information I’m seeing about airlines devaluing their mileage plan, Alaska is going the other way and making their miles go further. That’s awesome for those who fly Alaska. Thanks Alaska Airlines! (more…)
Travel Hacking
How To Score 50K On Hawaiian Airlines
I was scanning the interwebs the other day and came across a way to get 50,000 miles from Hawaiian Airlines. Normally they give a reward for 35K miles, but if you go through the process of booking a dummy flight, and before paying for it, you’ll see an offer to get 50,000 Hawaiian Airline miles. Click the link to apply and you’re on your way. I did this myself as I am out of Hawaiian Airline miles and am looking forward to relaxing under some palm trees with a drink in hand. (more…)
Travel Hacking
Southwest Companion Pass: Round 2
UPDATE: It’s been pointed out to me that sometime here in March, Marriott/Southwest (not sure which) is going to stop the rewarding of the Southwest Companion Pass when following the steps below. Hopefully this will still be of use to peoples before they stop.
Today, I’m writing about how I just got another couple years with the beloved Southwest Companion Pass. Unlike before, where I received the pass from using credit cards, this time around, I used a bunch of Marriott points that I acquired. Either way you choose to go about getting the pass, it isn’t too hard. Let’s dive into the details. (more…)
California
PDX-SFO Using Avios
This weekend’s trip to San Francisco was achieved for $11.20 thanks to using 15K Avios points on British Airways to book on Alaska Airlines.
Much better than the 25K it would have taken using Alaska Airline points. This works because BA handles their rewards by distance. Since SFO is less than a certain number of miles, the flight each way is 7.5K (this use to be 4.5K, but those rewards are no more).
So, if you have BA Avios points (not too hard to get with the right card) and you fly out of an Alaska hub, then look into booking with them first before using your valuable Alaska miles. Just remember that you’ll have to call to book this flight as they don’t show up on BA’s website. Check reward availability using another Alaska partner.
Because of nasty weather in Portland, my flight ended up being delayed, but still worth the price.
Here’s to a fun upcoming weekend visiting Paige in San Francisco.
-Jason
Europe
How I Saved Over $3,000 On A Flight!
This Christmas, I decided that I’m going to go to The Netherlands for New Years. I’m not totally sure on my plans, but I knew that I needed to get my flight soon to avoid it getting too expensive. I’m not sure if I’ll be returning from Amsterdam, so rather than booking a round trip (RT) ticket, I just wanted a one way. In doing so, I realized that I saved my self over $3,000 on that one-way direct flight from Portland to Amsterdam. Here’s how I did it. (more…)
Travel Hacking
Save Money Flying KLM-AMS Direct
My friend Melissa pointed this hack out to me and I’m glad she did. Melissa hit me up the other day asking me a way to save some money on getting to Amsterdam from Portland towards the end of May. I told her to consider other directs from places like Seattle or Vancouver, but she was able to make her direct from PDX a lot cheaper. (more…)
California
PDX->SNA (FTU)->SFO (Work)->PDX->SEA->LWS->Home
The title of this post is quite the cluster, but it is what my upcoming week is going to look like. Prior to yesterday, I was going to go to Newport Beach, CA to attend Frequent Travel University (FTU) and then come back to Portland, work here through Thursday, and then fly out to Lewiston, Idaho to visit my grandma. Well, a wrench was throne into the situation and now I’m also going to San Ramon for a four-day deep-dive for my work. Now, I’m hitting the following airports before finally getting back home next Sunday. (more…)
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Billionaire bought $170M painting with his Amex for the points
Using your credit card to buy a multimillion-dollar painting to collect Amex points? Priceless.
Chinese billionaire Liu Yiqian used his American Express card to buy Modigliani’s “Reclining Nude” at auction for $170 million on Nov. 9, according to reports.
He’ll use the points to fly himself and his family around the globe for free, his wife told the New York Times.
Source: Billionaire bought $170M painting with his Amex for the points
Looks like I really need to step up my rewards point game. Anyone have a few hundred million dollars so I can rack up some points?