Bolt on Points

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2020 – stick a fork in it, it’s done!

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What a year it’s been on so many levels. Most of us are breathing a sigh of relief that it’s ending and with vaccines now being distributed, hope of a better 2021 is palpable. 2020 was a year that saw us spend a total of four weeks in quarantine, something I hope to never repeat.

From a travel stand point, it’s been a disaster of a year (more on that later). On a personal level, things took a turn this year that I would’ve never guessed this time last year. On what felt like a whim, Leigh and I uprooted our lives and moved to Maui, and for the most part, it’s been a great decision. As COVID rates have gotten exponentially worse on the mainland – particularly our previous home of California – we feel fortunate to be in our bubble here, where numbers are generally low, the weather is great, and there’s no shortage of outdoor activities to do.

I know it’s been a couple of months since my last post, and it’s not because I haven’t been thinking about travel, but rather because life just got crazy. Between starting a new project with my day job and us buying a condo here (surprise!), we’ve been pretty strapped for time. As any local will tell you, by the time 9pm (or as we say, Maui midnight) rolls around, I’m ready for bed. This blog – which has truly been a passion project – has just fallen by the wayside since frankly, travel is mostly speculative at this point. I’m hopeful for travel in 2021, but again, more on that in a bit.

Some fun things have happened since moving here five months ago (wow!): I’ve managed to get to decent surfer status, become a full-blown a cycling addict, and joined the Maui adult baseball league.

It’s not all a fairytale; among other things, being this far from our families during such an anxious time has also been tough, though I’m thankful we went home to visit them for the first time in a year in October. With both of us having high-risk family members, there’s a constant anxiety in the back of our minds that I can’t wait to subside once they’re vaccinated. I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention the gratitude and amazement at all of the healthcare and frontline workers who’ve sacrificed so much throughout all of this. You all are rockstars. Period.

Finally, the pandemic and moving to Maui has done something for me that was probably much needed. It recalibrated my life to focus on the here and now. While it’s fun to constantly be looking at the next trip or event, it caused me to miss out on some of what’s happening right in front of me. Although I miss having that “thing to look forward to” feeling, living in the moment has been so utterly fulfilling. Thank you for that, 2020.

2020 travel highlights

Now since this is a travel blog after all, I wanted to do a quick review of an abbreviated travel year. Frankly, this was going to be a banner year for us in terms of travel: we cancelled trips to Paris, Japan, Kauai that were schedule between May-October. We’ll try to make some of those up next year, but for the time being, we’re counting our blessings: we’re both still employed, our families are healthy, and we’re in a much better living situation than we could be in San Francisco right now.

My travel stats this year were minuscule compared to other years. 50k butt in seat miles and about 50 hotel nights is the lowest since I started traveling regularly in 2012.

So, without further ado, here’s a look back:

Destinations

South Africa – This was without a doubt our monumental trip of 2020, for multiple reasons. First of all, we left March 3rd, right as the coronavirus was starting to spread globally. We toyed with not going, but decided this was a once in a lifetime kind of trip, so let’s do it, and are we ever glad we did. As I said in March, it was surreal being abroad (and frankly so far away from home) watching the dominos fall around the globe.

As for the trip itself, we’d always wanted to go to South Africa, specifically the Cape Town region. We skipped Johannesburg this trip and we didn’t feel like we had to do a safari this trip since we’d done one on our honeymoon in September of 2018. We ending up spending 4 days in the wine region and five nights in Cape Town itself. This is truly one of the most stunningly beautiful regions of the world with food and culture to match. The drive around the Cape of Good Hope is simply breathtaking.

Mauritius – This was the second half of our African adventure. We stayed five nights on points (with the fifth night free) at the St Regis Mauritius. The country is painfully beautiful and the property is destination worthy itself.

Water skiing in Mauritius was definitely a highlight of 2020

Charleston – We started the year meeting close friends in Charleston in January. It was a blast! We ate and drank way too damn much, plus we got to go to the Low Country Oyster Festival, something Leigh and I hadn’t done since our first year of dating. As a bonus, we drove down to Savannah to visit Leigh’s family.

Clear Lake, CA – By summer, we were all feeling cabin fever, especially those of us in big cities on lockdown. We managed to get away over the July 4th weekend to a much lesser known lake in NorCal and it didn’t disappoint. We had a stunning cabin through Airbnb, rented a boat for a day, and there’s a wine region with more than 20 wineries that holds its own against other, more well-known California regions (and tastings are $10).

Dallas checking out his view of Clear Lake

Moloka’i, HI – We actually just got back yesterday and whoa. Moloka’i is like stepping back in time. There are no fancy hotels, although the Hotel Molokai is lovely, no fancy restaurants, and barely any cell service. All of this in the same county that Leigh and I call home! Moloka’i has a large reef system surrounding it, much like the Caribbean, so the diving is great. Despite what you’ve heard, everyone we encountered was friendly and happy to see us. As they say: Moloka’i Mo Bettah

Halawa Valley in Molokai

Airlines

Turkish Airlines – We flew Turkish for the first time (four total) during our trip to Africa; each experience was excellent. What they lack in their hard product with a dated seat, they more than make up for with their service and food (there’s an onboard chef). We flew both their flagship 777-300ER as well as the A330, the former being a much better plane all around.

Their business class lounge in Istanbul is – or was – an incredible experience. I say was because our outbound flight was an entirely different experience than the return. Food made to order as well as all the mezze items you can imagine on a buffet was the case en route to Africa. Coming home, everything had been put in individual servings and the service significantly cutback. Our planned excursion into Istanbul for a tour was also 86’d thanks to COVID.

United Polaris – Our flight from SFO to Frankfurt was our second taste of United’s flagship product on their 777-300ER and again, it lived up to be a solid business class product. We had great flight attendants, the food was good, and the Saks bedding is always a winner. The lounge at SFO – with it’s al a carte dining and mixology drinks – is always a great experience.

American Flagship business (domestic) – Once Maui reopened to visitors, our flight options to go home and visit family increased and this was by far the best. American runs a 777-200 on Maui to DFW, which has 45 lie-flat business class seats. We managed to snag these at 45k miles/person each way, but for an 8+ hour flight (one a red eye), it was well worth the miles to have comfort and space. Out outbound flight had a laughable 22 passengers on it.

Hotels

Grand Hyatt SFO – I’ve stayed here twice, once pre-COVID and the other the night before we moved to Maui. Either way, this is a fantastic hotel, though pre-COVID much better with a generous lounge. In July, they did comp us a bottle of wine as a Globalist as well as provided free breakfast from their takeout market. Get a room facing the tarmac for the plane spotting using the binoculars and plane guide found in the room. Needless to say, there weren’t a lot of planes to spot in July.

St Regis Mauritius – Stellar in every sense: the beach, the property, the food/drink, and the staff. Although they were sparsely occupied during our stay thanks to – you guessed it – COVID, we were treated like royalty and I don’t think a full hotel would’ve changed that. As Ambassador Elite, we received daily free breakfast and an incredible room upgrade, complete with welcome champagne. The cherries on top was the bartender naming a drink after Leigh and coming back from hiking Le Morne Brabant to find our breakfast had been laid out for us in our spacious suite (because we’d missed the buffet).

AC Hotel Cape Town Waterfront – I know this isn’t Marriott’s fanciest brand, but for 80k Marriott points, we got five nights at this new hotel right in the heart of the waterfront district. We were upgraded to a huge suite with views of the water. Breakfast was included and they have a great bar program, all walking distance from the V&A Waterfront.

Looking to 2021

With vaccines coming, I’m hopeful that travel will start to return in the second half of next year. Airlines are hurting, so there will be deals to be had. The same goes with hotels. While we’re biding our time, it’s not a bad idea to book speculative award bookings since most airlines are offering generous cancellation policies, including reinstating award miles for free.

I miss traveling, but having a lot of time at home has been so rewarding

Thanks to status extensions from pretty much every brand, I’ll keep my statuses through 2021, so if/when we are able to travel, I’ll look forward to using those benefits (among other things, I have 320 United Plus Points to use by January 2022).

I don’t expect my work travel to ever be like it was before March: travel to visit a client for multiple days every week is likely a thing of the past. Companies are struggling to figure out how to get their own employees back in offices where it makes sense, while many are moving to more remote work.

I will do whatever I can within reason to keep and maintain status. For instance, I’m one year away from Lifetime Platinum with Marriott, so I’ll prioritize that next year.

Where to in 2021?

After five months in a place like Maui, Leigh and I are both craving a little hustle and bustle, so it’ll be places like Japan that we’re eyeing for early trips. I would also love to return to Africa. I suspect it’ll be Labor Day or later for these trips (at least for us anyway).

I hope to return to Japan where even the airport lounges have great sushi to order like the JAL First Class Lounge at Narita

As long as we’re on Maui, there are places I want to visit while “in the neighborhood”. French Polynesia is has remained open for US citizens, so I suspect we’ll end up there as soon as Hawaiian Airlines reinstates their Honolulu – Papette flight (which can be booked for only 35k American miles each way). In addition, I’m dying to fly United’s Island Hopper, spending a few days in Guam, then heading onward to Palau and its pristine coral reefs. Rebooking our Kauai trip is also a priority in the first half of 2020.

Final thoughts

While I’m hopeful, I think the reality is that it’ll probably be 2022 when travel starts to look and feel more normal. Governments are wary to let outsiders in; just look at what’s happening with this new strain and UK citizens getting boxed out of countries all over the world (welcome to the club, guys…). I believe a good indicator for travel will be Japan, where they’re still struggling to figure out how to hold the Tokyo Olympics next summer with spectators. If they can make it work, I suspect others will follow (at least that’s my hope). I also suspect that proof of vaccination will almost certainly be required in most countries.

If we’ve learned anything through this pandemic it’s that we need more realistic expectations. Every prediction so far has been too rosy and too conservative from a timing perspective. If 2020 was the year of chaos and uncertainty, 2021 will be the year of *patience is required*.

Where are you hoping to travel next year?

We moved…to Maui!

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The view from our lanai

To say the last few months have been a whirlwind feels like an understatement. We just got here 8 days ago – July 31st – and yes we are quarantining (more on that later). But first, the obvious: how did we end up here? I also briefly detail what our day of travel experience was like.

Over Memorial Day, we drove down to Pismo Beach to get out of the city for a socially distanced weekend. On the way out, we ordered from Philz Coffee (an SF staple) and Leigh was picking it up while I waited in the car. Leigh gets in with the coffees and begins to tell me about a conversation she overheard in line. A couple ran into some friends and begin telling them they were moving out of SF to road trip for the rest of the year. They would move to a new location every month.

Lightbulb!

By Memorial Day, I think most of us were beginning to question the point of life after having been cooped up at home for the better part of 3 months. For us in particular, we started to question why are we living in the most expensive city in the US when we really don’t need to physically be here? We spent the rest of the weekend scheming as to what we wanted to do and where we wanted to go.

With San Francisco being so expensive, we figured we could literally move ANYWHERE for cheaper than what we’re paying now. That and the fact we don’t have anything tying us down to SF left us in an the unusual position of being able to choose our next move.

When we made the list below, we had no idea that the first wave of COVID would actually never end. It was that weekend that the United States hit 100,000 deaths from COVID, while today we stand at more than 160,000 with no signs of abatement.

Our criteria was as follows:

  • Reduction in cost of living (easy)
  • Lots of free outdoor activities, including the winter, when we expected the second to hit
  • A killer view

Tahoe? Sounds awesome, but what about the winter? If the second wave is as bad as scientists are saying, will the ski resorts open? How about a SoCal beach town? Sounds awesome, but the weather isn’t great in the winter, not to mention the “town” part of it could be severely reduced. The Pacific Northwest was also high on our list, but again, winter. The idea of moving monthly also sounded appealing, however my concern was that if things went south, where would we be when the music stopped? What if short term rentals got shut down again like they did in many places in March/April? A lot of risk, we decided.

“What about Hawaii?” one of us asked.

Coincidentally my brother was in quarantine at port when there was an COVID outbreak on his naval ship about this time, allowing us to be able to talk to him regularly. Hawaii is notoriously difficult to move to with a pet because they’re a rabies-free state (the only one in fact). Since he’d done it, we picked his brain and it sounded daunting. We started to look into the requirements and I thought, okay this is a lot of stuff, but it’s manageable. I’ll provide those details in a separate post.

At the same time, I started casually looking at apartments on different islands. Oahu sounded great if things opened back up because there’s so much culture on the island, but traffic sucks, housing is more expensive, and it’s just crowded. I’ve been to the Big Island several times and absolutely love it there, however it’s a little too laid-back. Maui – where we’ve both been exactly once – seemed to split the difference between the two.

After sifting through a lot of scams on Craigslist, we ended up finding a rental from a local realtor who was taking her vacation rentals off the market. At that time, she had a couple from Seattle that had come to Maui for about a week in March and was still there…in June! The location of the unit in Kihei looked perfect, not to mention it was ocean front. The pictures looked incredible; we’ll take it!

And so began the whirlwind that was the last 2 months of dog vaccinations, blood work, and vet check-ups, all the while packing up an apartment we really loved. Leigh’s work quickly approved her move, however mine was a little more complicated but ultimately got approved. During the same time, my work was requiring 60 hours a week, leaving my what feeling perpetually drained.

We left SF, but our stuff is still in storage there

We elected to not tell anyone until we get all of our affairs in order, including the certification from the state of Hawaii that we could bring our dog, Dallas. To think all of our plans could’ve been torpedoed by a dog!

We made it, but how was traveling again?

The last time we were on a plane was March 19, when we flew back from Mauritius. To say it was a surreal experience isn’t really adequate. We’d flown through Istanbul – and the incredible new airport there – in both directions. We started our trip in South Africa, and on our way there on March 4, the airport was mostly bustling; the business-class lounge was a great experience. On the way home was another story. The airport was mostly shutdown; huge swaths of the terminals were barricaded, blocked by police, the lights dimmed. The lounge went from buffet/self-serve, to almost everything being individually portioned, using an insane amount of plastic. We arrived back in the US with no temperature checks or hand sanitizer to be found.

Needless to say, we were both ready to flying again and had some idea of what to expect from great reporting on several of the other blogs. Our expectations were, even in paid first. We certainly didn’t expect a great airport experience so most of SFO – including the Centurion Lounge – was shutdown.

We moved out of our apartment in San Francisco the day before our flight, electing to stay at the new Grand Hyatt that’s connected to SFO. I’d stayed there before and it’s a phenomenal hotel, not to mention being connected to the airport would make our lives much easier the next morning.

The Grand Hyatt SFO
A junior suite at the Grand Hyatt SFO

The hotel amenities were mostly unavailable, including the bar and restaurant. They did have a market/take-away cafe which had decent food, snacks, and plenty of drink options (non-alcoholic and the hard stuff). Prices were steep thought, however as a Globalist, we did get the choice of 2 free coffees + 2 breakfast items, two drinks, or two dinner entrees. Since the dinner food looked weak and the breakfast food was inexpensive, we opted to use it on a severely marked up bottle of wine.

Not much plane spotting to be had these days

The morning of, we walked Dallas several times and took him back out to the parking lot where we were able to throw the ball with him to get him tired. After that, we took our checked bags to the airport to drop off since we had Dallas with us + carry-ons. We had the maximum amount of bags we could get for free with United; since I’m 1K, we each got 3 bags at 70 lbs each, which we used every bit of. The hotel was nice enough to take us in their Sprinter van with our bags rather than try to drag them onto the AirTran: a lifesaver! We went back to the hotel, had a liesurely breakfast, then headed back to the airport, this time on the AirTran.

SFO was a ghost town when we got back to the terminal. Leigh and I both have Clear, however her Pre-Check didn’t print onto her boarding pass, so rather than walk down to get another reprinted, she opted to just go the regular route since there was no one in line. I was through in seconds, however she ended up having some issues I could only laugh about at the time (she definitely didn’t think it was funny).

So as we were packing, we did bring some things out of our panty, including a 2 pound bag of Italian 00 flour. We ran out of space in our checked bags and that bag of flour ended up in her roller board. Well I’ll let you guess how TSA viewed that bag of flour! Hint: TSA is not looking for drugs, so they weren’t concerned that Leigh was Scarface, but rather the Unibomber.

They called an explosives expert who started doing all sorts of tests on the flour and Leigh’s bag, all the while I’m just laughing. Surprisingly, Leigh didn’t find this so funny! We offered to just throw the flour away, which they wouldn’t allow until we sat through a full inspection of her bag. Things did get a little more stressful once we got the boarding notification and her bag was still sprawled out.

He ultimately let said no big deal, have a good flight, but at the point we had to book it to our gate. Getting sweaty before a flight is one of the absolute worst things on the planet and something I try to actively avoid. I failed on this day.

The gate area was empty and we shortly found out the plane was too. We bought first since we had Dallas, and it was completely full, however economy only had 17 people, giving us a total headcount of 33 for our flight!

We weren’t proactively offered anything to drink, which I was expecting, so I went up to the purser and asked for two beers. We were both exhausted and stressed from that little ordeal and the only thing that could resolve it was a cold beer, which she happily provided.

An almost completely empty flight to Maui in August

The blankets were just the standard crap you get on any domestic first class flight. The only available food was the “tapas” snack box from coach, which they just handed out to everyone in first. Alcohol was fully available, however the wine was just the wine from coach, meaning they were in the single serve plastic bottles. There was no glassware, only plastic cups.

Fancy!

Overall the flight attendants were lovely and gave excellent service. It just sucks that United (and other airlines) have used COVID has a means to absolutely gut premium service.

We made it!

Looking ahead

We’re in the second half of our mandatory 14 day quarantine, so at this point, we’re starting to look at what our life as Hawaiian residents will be like. I have some downtime from work in addition to a couple of weeks of PTO that I’m behind excited to use. As someone that’s incredibly active and a thrill-seeker, I’m beside myself on the opportunities that living on Maui will present. Whether it’s waking up to swim in the ocean, surfing, mountain biking, road biking, hiking, or learning how to kite surf, there’s really no end to the activities here (tons that are free). As avid scuba divers, we’re both stoked to be in a world-class diving spot.

I know we’re going to love it here for all the reasons above, as well as the people. Every time I’ve visited Hawaii, the people have been as hospitable as anywhere I’ve been (rivaling the “Southern hospitality” I grew up with in Alabama). We’ve been here a short time and already the people that have helped us through quarantine have been so gracious.

The home stretch of quarantine!

Lastly, I’m looking at this time as a moment to reflect. Living in a city like San Francisco can mean a constant feeling of go, go, go. I think I can speak for Leigh as well in saying that we’re both anxious to reset. Our landlord told us to be prepared to shift our way of thinking, to not expect things at a moment’s notice like we do on the mainland. Being content with where we are and the things we have around us will be a nice change of pace, one that I don’t know that we’ll be ready to abandon after six months. 😉

Looking back on 2019 (and the last decade)

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2019 was a lot of things; a down year in travel it was not. I visited seven new countries as well as some new North American cities. My work travel has been mostly west coast based, which has certainly made life easier. I also had a long stint of time at home, which was much needed considering my flight mileage for the year was close to 150,000 miles.

The decade

The decade was an interesting one for me. The beginning of it I was fresh out of college in the middle of the Great Recession. I dreamt of traveling the world but didn’t have the means to do so, perhaps supercharging my desire. It wasn’t until 2011 that I took a job in Charlotte, North Carolina that I got the opportunity to start traveling for work. My job took me to Los Angeles every week, while my new girlfriend Leigh of 3 weeks (and now wife) stayed home. I was home so infrequently that I gave up my apartment and moved in with Leigh, only to never look back!

We traded Charlotte’s mild weather for Miami’s beaches in 2014. To say this was life-changing would be an understatement. If you’ve visited Miami before, you know that the culture is night and day from anywhere is in the US (I would have plenty of opportunities to practice my Spanish)! After nearly four years in South Florida – and making some lifelong friends – we moved West, to San Francisco. Moving to California was something we’d always wanted to do and two and half years in, we’re having a blast. The Bay Area has a never ending list of things to, so we do find that we drive for more day or weekend trips, versus getting on a plane.

In 2017, I finally (finnnnally) popped the question! We married in early September 2018 in Savannah, which is where Leigh is from. It was the sweatiest day of my life (see early September in Savannah).

I surprised Leigh with her parents being present for the BIG question

It’s been a hell of a ride thus far. On the one hand, we’ve lived the life that both of us always thought we might live: nomadically wandering the world. On the other I’ve been “gone” more than I haven’t been (due to work). As John Mayer put it, I miss the Home Life. In just six years, we’ve been to almost 35 countries and six continents (Antartica in the future?).

In Venice

Through a lot of trial and error, I end this decade much smarter than I started it.

Statuses

Airlines

United 1K

I began the year on a 1K challenge, which I barely hit. After a few months as a 1K, I immediately came to appreciate much of what United offers its elites. I just requalified for 1K and am excited with the the things that United is doing, like the introduction of PointsPlus and its robust international route network. I’m not sure how I feel about the move to a strictly revenue qualification system for 2020. At the end of the day, I live at a fortress hub and United is the best option out of SFO. 1K also comes with Star Alliance Gold status which provides a plethora benefits.

American Platinum

Weird. That’s the first time I’ve written out my soon to be Platinum status on American. After seven straight years as an Executive Platinum, I finally “broke up” with American. Why? First and foremost, they’ve decided to be uncompetitive on the west coast and their route network no longer works for me. Their further degradation of the Alaska relationship was the final nail in the coffin. The other reason I had no problem cutting ties with American is due to its continued downhill slide in just about everything. The leadership at American has provided no vision to their employees and its unclear to consumers whether they want to be a low cost carrier or a premium airline. What’s left is an airline that is good at neither and a new reputation that they no longer care about comfort or on time arrivals. I hit platinum primarily based on an inexpensive partner business class fare that earned me far more qualifying dollars than I actually spent. Platinum keeps me as oneworld Sapphire, which allows me business class lounge access when flying internationally.

Hotels

Marriott Bonvoy Ambassador Elite

I managed to keep my Ambassador status another year which is great, because I really like my ambassador, Alie. While not earth shattering, I do find having an ambassador to be a nice perk. Having a single point of contact for everything is incredibly helpful when you’re busy. Given how big Marriott is now, it’s also the best way to ensure upgrades, special treatment, etc. Being Platinum no longer means much (other than free breakfast), so I’m happy being two levels above. With that said, I’ve become disenchanted with Marriott through the merger process. Communication was minimal and they absolutely did a bait and switch when they moved to peak/off-peak award pricing. The way it was represented to everyone is that it was based on the season, but in reality it’s dynamic pricing based on occupancy levels. Points Advance was effectively killed, and Suite Night Awards seem to be harder to confirm. At the end of the day, Marriott has hotels everywhere and the legacy SPG portfolio has dozens of aspirational properties that make it hard to leave Marriott.

Hyatt Globalist

Park Hyatt Saigon

Hyatt is new for me this year. I completed a challenge using my American Executive Platinum status that got me Globalist status after just 18 nights. Four months in, I’m really impressed with Hyatt overall. Unlike Marriott, where you need a VLOOKUP to figure out where breakfast is complementary, Globalists get free breakfast at every property. Globalists also get suite night awards that are incredibly valuable, allowing suite upgrade confirmation at time of booking. While still small in comparison, Hyatt has also done an excellent at increasing their footprint through some recent acquisitions. Looking to 2020, I’m planning to double down on Hyatt and make them primary hotel chain.

Hilton Diamond

Ah Hilton, my first hotel status. I’ve been Diamond off and on for years, though Hilton hasn’t been my primary hotel brand in 5 years. Why? I moved to SPG and fell in love (RIP) and frankly, Hilton doesn’t have a long list of aspirational properties, though that’s changing. This year I managed to get Diamond through a status challenge that only required 8 stays. Upgrades are hit or miss, though that’s primarily a function of the Hilton Aspire card providing diamond status, so the numbers are much larger. Because Golds get many of the same benefits – including free breakfast – I don’t put a huge price on Diamond status. Hilton has always been my “back pocket” brand and one I always try to keep some points. Remember, no matter where you go, there’s probably a Hampton Inn nearby.

Rental cars

Living in San Francisco – where we don’t own a car – I find rental car status to be valuable, but most probably don’t. I won’t got into a lot of detail, but I ended up with Avis Preferred, National Executive, and Hertz Presidents Circle, all of which give me access to better cars and easier check out.

2019 stand outs

Places

Moorea, French Polynesia

Our trip to French Polynesia was a random booking due to award availability at the Le Meridien there and two, United starting service to Tahiti with incredibly low fares. We spent five nights in Bora Bora but what really stood out was our two day, one night stay on Moorea, a small island just off the coast of Tahiti. Unlike its more famous cousin Bora Bora, Moorea offers visitors with far more things to do than lie on the deck of their overwater bungalow like in Boring Bora (as the locals call it). With plenty of hiking, water sports, and the ability to be self sufficient through renting a car (again, unlike Bora Bora), there’s non-stop things to do and the French Polynesian island that we said we will return. The Hilton Moorea offers a great points option for those visiting.

British Columbia, Canada

Victoria, BC

Another trip that was helpfully dictated by points. I’d purchased a Marriott vacation package using points, which netted some incredible deals. Part of the deal was a seven night stay at a Category 1-4 hotel. Normally a low category hotel is the last place I want to spend a week, but we find a gem in the Vancouver suburb of Burnaby at the Element hotel. As an extended stay hotel, it offered us the ability to cook for ourselves, not to mention it was pet friendly. Even though it wasn’t in the heart of the city, the hotel was less than 10 minute walk to the rail that takes you into downtown Vancouver. It also offered a great jumping off point to explore the region, such as Grouse Mountain and Whistler, where we stayed a night. We went around the July 4th holidays, so the weather was absolutely perfect for being outside. We also took the ferry to Victoria for a night and had a blast. In an effort not to backtrack, we took the ferry straight back to the United States, arriving at the Port Angeles terminal. We spent 10 days hiking, swimming, eating, and exploring the best of British Columbia and can’t of recommend visiting enough.

Lake Como, Italy

Not a bad view from the pool, Hilton Lake Como

Wow. That pretty much sums up how we felt about Lake Como. On the same trip we visited Florence, Cinque Terre, and Venice, but none of them struck us quite like our time on the lake. The scenery is jaw dropping and mixed with the culture and food of Italy, it’s a can’t beat destination. We were initially supposed to rent a boat for our anniversary, but the winds that day had other ideas, so we slummed it by the pool instead. We stayed two nights at the Hilton Lake Como using points. We will return.

Bonus round: Uruguay

Punte del Este

My dad, brother, and I have started a somewhat tradition of taking a trip every year. This year we went to South America, specifically to Buenos Aires and Uruguay. While Buenos Aires needs no introduction, Uruguay is probably not a place that many people have heard of. Getting inspiration from Anthony Bourdain, we added Montevideo to our list (along with some day trips). What we were rewarded with was a country as interesting as any place I’ve been. A socially liberal country – they’ve legalized weed and same sex marriage – with one of the highest per capita incomes in the world, Uruguay sits just across the Rio de la Plata from Buenos Aires. While there are many similarities between Argentinian and Uruguayan culture – and they both love wine, beef, and fútbol – Uruguay has a distinctive flare and plays the part of the “less famous cousin” really well. We made a day trip to the beach town and capitol of the superrich Punte del Este, where we found warm weather and locals frolicking on the beach.

Best flight:

Qatar Q-Suite A350-1000

I almost feel stupid for even including this. Thanks to some dumb luck and a willingness to fly out of the way, we flew in the Q Suites for the second time in September. Honestly the flight was better than the first Q Suite experience, not to mention the new plane factor (spoiler: the A351 is my new favorite plane).

Best hotel:

St Regis Florence

On our trip to Italy, we stayed at two of the premier hotels not only in Marriott’s portfolio, but the world. Although the Gritti Palace was a close runner up, Leigh and I felt like the St Regis in Florence was on another level in terms of service. From coffee being delivered daily to the room, to the sabering of the champagne every night at the bar, to every other little detail in between, the St Regis Florence is a cut above anywhere else that we’ve stayed.

A close runner up: Las Alcobas Napa Valley – you can find my review here.

Did 2019 live up to all your travel ambitions?

United’s New Upgrade system, PlusPoints, is live

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Back in September, United announced changes to how members can request upgrades. Previously, elite members could use certificates to upgrade to the next cabin of service on short or long haul flights. Platinum members got 2 Regional Premier Upgrades (RPU), while 1K and Global Services got an additional 6 Global Premier Upgrades (GPU).

As of this morning, United launch PlusPoints, which does away with the certificate system and instead, installs a points based debit system.

My new home screen, with my updated PlusPoints balance at the bottom right

United’s upgrade changes are one of those rare moves that are actually beneficial to the customer. Key points are:

  • Points won’t be deducted until you actually clear, which in theory means you can request multiple upgrades.
    • The amount of points deducted are only what you clear. This means if you’re flying Atlanta – San Francisco – Hong Kong, and only the Atlanta – SFO portion clears, only 20 points will be deducted, rather than the 40 it would take for the SFO-HKG portion.
  • Platinum members can now request for Polaris upgrades
  • For additional points, you can skip the waitlist on select flights
  • Discount economy fares are finally upgradeable, meaning you no longer have to shell out more money and still not get the upgrade.

As of this morning, elites with current certificates have been converted to the new Points. Moving forward, here is what the earning looks like for Platinum and 1K members:

Status levelCurrentNew
Platinum2 Regional Premier Upgrades40 PlusPoints
1K2 Regional Premier Upgrades and 6 Global Premier Upgrades*280 PlusPoints (plus the 40 you earned with Platinum status)
1K earning additional
upgrades		1 Global Premier Upgrade for every 25,000 PQM or 30 PQSAdditional 40 PlusPoints for every 25,000 PQM or 30 PQS

One of the biggest winners with these changes is that Platinums now have the ability to request upgrades to Polaris Business, something they previously couldn’t. I’m most intrigued by the “Skip the Waitlist” option and how the select flights asterisk affects usability.

What about my current RPU/GPU requests?

Existing requests using GPU’s or RPU’s remain in place. Currently, Leigh and I are awaiting an upgrade from economy (V) to Polaris Business on the 777-300ER. I don’t see an ability online to “skip the waitlist”, so I’ll give the 1K Desk a ring later today to see if that’s possible.

Of course I would be thrilled if our upgrade to Polaris already cleared. With that said, the advantage of it having not cleared means that if we’re only able to get to Premium Plus, then I won’t have to burn all 40 points (per person), where previously it would’ve taken the GPU either way.

Points above are for two people

How Much will upgrades cost?

Flights are broken down into either long haul or short haul.

Short haul is defined as flights without United Polaris business and include flights within the U.S., including Alaska, Hawaii and premium transcontinental service; flights between the U.S. and Canada; Bogota, Colombia; Central America; Caribbean; Mexico and Quito, Ecuador; flights between Guam and Honolulu, including island hopper service; and intra-Asia flights.

Upgrade from:Upgrade to:PlusPoints
United Economy®United First® or United Business®20
United EconomyUnited Premium Plus20
United Premium PlusUnited Business10

Long haul is defined as flights with United Polaris business, including flights between the U.S. and Africa, Asia, Australia, Europe, the Middle East, New Zealand, South America, and Tahiti.

Upgrade from:Upgrade to:PlusPoints
Discounted Economy*United Polaris business80
United EconomyUnited Polaris business40
United Premium PlusUnited Polaris business30
United EconomyUnited Premium Plus20

How to book using PlusPoints

In practice, not much has changed with how to view, request, or confirm upgrades. You’ll still need to use the Advanced Search feature when booking, which takes you to this page. At the bottom, you’ll want to select Points Plus as the Upgrade Type.

Once you get to the search results, you’ll noticed the UI is much cleaner than it was before. Confirmable upgrades are clearly denoted.

Green is good

What I don’t see is the ability to Skip the Waitlist, so at this point, it’s usefulness appears to be TBD. I would expect to learn more as the new program moves into next year. It would also be nice to be able to see the first available date with confirmable space, rather than having to manually search multiple days.

Overall thoughts

Again, it’s nice to see a positive development in the travel world, especially as more and more companies devalue their programs. Upgrades have always been the most valuable rewards for United’s elites, and improving usability is a win for everyone. The only downside I see is for 1Ks and Global Services, because now that Platinums have the ability to go from coach to Polaris, they can take upgrades if there’s availability at the time of booking.

The biggest benefit I see is the flexibility that comes with a point system vs certificates. Depending on your travel patterns, a 1K can potentially upgrade:

  • 16 one-way short haul flights
  • 16 economy to Premium Plus flights
  • 12 Premium Plus to Polaris flights

As a 1K that’s about to re-qualify, I’m personally excited about these changes, though I do wish there was an easier way to search for clearable upgrade space. I’m hoping the Skip the Waitlist ability becomes easier to use, as I would absolutely use more points on my flight in a couple of weeks.

What are your thoughts on United’s upgrade changes?

What’s in my wallet

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Throughout the years, the one question I’ve been asked consistently is how Leigh and travel like we do. Beyond the fact that we’re both lucky to have great jobs that allow for a good amount of flexibility, the primary method is simply using points. It used to be that I earned most (and a lot) of my points through actually traveling for work, but nowadays, that’s not so true…at least with airlines. As loyalty programs have (d)evolved, I’ve found myself relying more and more on credit card sign-up bonuses and spend. The question is: where to start?

My strategy

My view is that you should concentrate enough miles and points in at least two programs and/or in flexible currency. Why two? Because that it provides more opportunities for award space. For example, you may find plenty of award space TO Europe on oneworld via American Airlines, but you literally can’t find anything to get home. If you have United miles, then you’ve just increased your odds of getting home on a Star Alliance carrier

Further, having points in more currencies is great for open jaw itineraries. An open jaw is an itinerary where you go into city A and go out of city B, with no booked connection between the two. Example: you want to fly from Atlanta to London, then a few days later, take the Chunnel to Paris and fly out from there back to Atlanta. In this example, you might be able to find British Airways/oneworld award space there and Air France/Sky Team award space coming home just due to the fact you’re traveling in and out of different airline hubs.

Through spend, travel, and signup bonuses, I always try to keep enough points in each of my frequent flier accounts to cover a one-way business class ticket. Leigh has several of the same cards as me, and that’s her strategy as well. If we find that award space has opened up when we need it, we book it.

Transferrable currency

I used to only hoard American miles because that was who I was loyal to and certainly that’s all I could ever need. The issue I consistently found is that I could never find the award space I needed, when I needed it, on both legs. While I’m no longer solely loyal to American, I’ve also changed my strategy. I still have miles with American, and I have miles with United, and Alaska, and Virgin Atlantic, and a few with Delta. I also have Chase Ultimate Rewards Points and American Express Membership Rewards, both of which transfer to a myriad of partners.

Both Chase and American Express allow you to use points to book flights directly. This is a great option for those who are less flush on cash or just want to save some money. Further, you still earn frequent flyer miles (elite-qualifying too) on the flight itself, which can be a huge boon if you find a great deal!

You can also transfer miles to a myriad of partners for both Chase and American Express:

Current American Express transfer partners:

  • Aer Lingus
  • AeroMexico
  • Aeroplan
  • Air France/KLM 
  • Alitalia
  • ANA
  • Avianca
  • British Airways
  • Cathay Pacific 
  • Delta
  • El Al
  • Emirates
  • Etihad
  • Hawaiian 
  • Iberia
  • JetBlue
  • Qantas
  • Singapore Airlines
  • Virgin Atlantic 
  • IHG Rewards Club
  • Hilton Honors
  • Marriott Bonvoy

Current Chase Ultimate Rewards Transfer partners:

  • Aer Lingus
  • AerClub
  • Air France/KLM Flying Blue
  • British Airways Executive Club
  • Emirates Skywards
  • JetBlue TrueBlue
  • Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer
  • Southwest Airlines Rapid Rewards
  • United MileagePlus
  • Virgin Atlantic Flying Club
  • Iberia Plus
  • World of Hyatt
  • IHG Rewards Club
  • Marriott Bonvoy

Always confirm that the award space is available BEFORE transferring your points to a frequent flyer program. Most transfers are instant, so it’s not like you’ll need to wait any considerable length of time to book.

Going all-in with an airline

If you’re an elite with a particular airline, I certainly think it’s not a bad idea to add to the stash if you can do so through a co-branded credit card. While the Big 3’s domestic airline clubs aren’t the Cathay Pacific The Pier lounge by any means, credit cards that include lounge access can be a good option depending on your travel patterns and home airport. Lounge access can also be a lifesaver when operations go sideways.

Personally, I’m awaiting my renewal date for my American Airlines Executive Card renewal next year to cancel/downgrade before I sign-up for another lounge card (like the United Explorer card). I already have Centurion Lounge Access through my American Express Platinum Card, and I also have Priority Pass through my Chase Sapphire Reserve. The one thing to note about non-airline lounges/dining options is that they can’t help you when your flight is canceled or delayed. I’ve had many instances where the “AAngels” in the Admirals Club saved my ass due to some unforeseen operational issue.

There are some other cards that can be rewarding for those trying to focus points in their program of choice due to status. The Chase Sapphire Reserve Card has better everyday earning than any of the United cards, and United is a transfer partner of Chase. The American Express Gold Card has better earning on dining and grocery stores than any of the Delta cards, and since Membership Rewards are a transfer partner to Delta, this could be a great add-on card. As for American, there are no transferable currencies to the AAdvantage program. The closest you’ll get is British Airways (through any of the major currencies), however American has cracked down in recent years when it comes to using Avios to book, then entering your American frequent flyer number in order to secure benefits.

A couple of points on financial responsibility. First, Leigh and I don’t carry balances and neither should you. The only way these cards work for the consumer is by not paying interest, so pay your balance in full every month, or travel by way of credit card isn’t for you at this point. The other thing I’ll say is around the annual fees. You’ll notice that I have a lot of cards with fees, however many of them offer credits that offset them. For instance, the Chase Sapphire Reserve fee is $450, but it comes with an annual $300 travel credit, effectively brining the fee down to $150, which is a great deal considering the benefits. Each person should weigh the benefits for their own situation and make a call whether it’s worth it. Personally, I keep track of all the annual fees we’re paying, along with a spreadsheet outlining the benefits of each card to ensure we’re getting our money’s worth.

Okay, so enough with the talking, what do I have in my wallet?

  • American Express Platinum Card
  • American Express Gold Card 
  • Chase Sapphire Reserve
  • American Airlines Executive Club World Elite MasterCard
  • Marriott Bonvoy Boundless American Express (formerly SPG Luxury Card)
  • Hilton Surpass Card from American Express

The Amex Platinum and American card I use almost solely for lounge access. The great thing about the


American Express Platinum Card

Centurion Lounge SFO / Image courtesy of American Express

The Platinum Card has become synonymous with luxe travel, and while that’s true, it’s not the most rewarding everyday card. Other than the Centurion Lounge access, this is not a card I use often and don’t see that changing any time soon. You do earn 5x points when booking flights directly with Amex. With SFO being my home airport and United now my primary airline, I get a great deal of benefit from my access, so the card is an overall keep for me. There are other good reasons to keep the card:

  • Centurion Lounge Access
  • $200 annual Uber Credit
  • $200 annual airline credit
  • Priority Pass (restaurants now excluded)
  • TSA Pre Check/Global Entry statement credit

American Express Gold Card

The Gold card changed pretty significantly last year. The annual fee increased from $195 to $250, and with that came 4x earning on restaurants and grocery stores, which was a game changer in my opinion, since no other card offered any bonus at all at grocery stores, and 4x at restaurants is now industry leading. In addition, cardholders can expect to get:

  • $100 annual airline fee credit
  • $120 annual restaurant credit
  • 4x earning at grocery stores and restaurants

Chase Sapphire Reserve

This is my go-to card. It is all around the most solid card on the market. Chase also doesn’t make you jump through hoops to use some of the benefits (like the Amex airline credit). It also comes with an unrestricted Priority Pass membership, meaning that unlike Amex Priority Pass memberships, you can still use them at airport restaurants. The $300 travel credit is broad, meaning that everything from Uber credits, to dining, to flights are included, effectively bringing the annual fee down to $150. Chase Points are some of the most valuable out there, and with the CSR, cardholders get 1.5 cents in value per point, so they go further when booking flights directly in the Chase travel portal.

  • $300 annual “travel” credit
  • Priority Pass membership (includes restaurants)
  • 3x points on all travel and dining spend
  • Trip Insurance up to $10,000 per person or $20,000 per trip

American Airlines Executive World Elite Mastercard

Image courtesy of American Airlines

This was my first premium card; I’ve had it since 2014. The $450 annual fee gets you access to the Admiral’s Club when flying American, onworld, or Alaska Airlines. The fee is also cheaper than buying membership outright, which starts at $575. The other great thing about this card (for now) is that you can add authorized users for free, which also gets them plus 2 into the lounge. For $450, you can get you + 33 additional people into Admirals Clubs (with the above access rules)! I’ve added my parents, brother, and in-laws to my account and it’s absolutely helped steer some business American’s direction.

  • Admirals Club access when flying American, Alaska, or oneworld airlines
  • TSA Pre Check/Global Entry statement credit
  • Waived check bag fees and priority boarding on American flights
  • 25% back on in-flight and Admirals Club purchases

Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant American Express

This is my newest card, as I just upgraded from the Marriott Bonvoy card (formerly SPG card). The old card (which is no longer accepting applications) had a $95 fee and gets you an annual free night certificate at any Category 5 or lower (35k points/night). The Boundless Card (formerly SPG Luxury card), has an annual fee of $450, but gets you a free night at a Category 6 hotel (up to 50k points/night). Other benefits that bring the annual fee way down are:

  • $300 Marriott property credit, including room rates
  • Annual free night certificate, up to 50k points (Category 5)
  • Complementary Gold Status

Hilton Surpass American Express

I got this card a few years ago for the signup bonus and the annual free night, though now it’s not one I use. The Hilton annual free night certificate can be used at any property on a standard room as long as it’s the weekend. With some properties – like the Waldorf Astoria Cabo, which tends to go for over $1,000/120,000 points a night – using the certificate can be a killer deal. The only caveat is the card now requires $15,000 annual spend in order to earn the certificate, which leads me to say that I think the better card is the Hilton Aspire Card.

  • Complementary Gold Status
  • Free weekend night award at any property, after $15k in spend on the card

Leigh’s cards (that are different than mine)

Hilton Aspire American Express

Hilton Cabo

Leigh has the Aspire card and we’ve gotten a lot of benefit out of it. The fee is $450, but the benefits far outweigh the cost, not to mention the card gets you Diamond status. It also earns an annual free weekend night certificate, which you can use at any property in the world. Considering there are some hotels that go for close to $1k/night, you can get some serious value out of it! In addition to the free night, you also earn:

  • $150 Hilton resort credit
  • $250 annual airline credit
  • Diamond status

Chase Ink Business Preferred

At 80k Ultimate Rewards points, the Ink Business preferred card has one of the best sign-up bonuses out there (after $5000 in purchases in the first 90 days). I’d peg Chase Ultimate Rewards as being worth 2.2 cents each, giving you a value of $1760! This card is able to fill some gaps that other cards don’t, such as:

  • 3x points on the first $150,000 in spend on travel and dining
  • 3x points on internet and phone services
  • Complimentary cell phone protection
  • In conjunction with the Sapphire Reserve, those 80k points can go 50% further

Final words

So now that you know what I have in my wallet, you might be wondering what I’m looking to get next. For me, I’m looking to get the Chase Ink Business card, because frankly you can never have enough Ultimate Rewards points. In addition, I’m also targeting the American Airlines Aviator Barclays business card. The American Airlines Barclay card has an excellent sign-up bonus of 65,000 miles after $1000 in spend, plus another 10,000 miles after an authorized employee makes a purchase, giving a total sign-up bonus of 75,000 miles. At 1.2 cents each, that’s $900 worth of points, however there are redemptions that will easily earn you more than that value. For instance, a one-way award to Africa or the Middle East in Qatar’s incredible Q-Suite is 75,000 Aadvantage miles. A great redemption! And because they’re both business cards, they don’t count against you for Chase’s 5/24 rule.

Do you plan on getting any of the cards above?