Smartphone apps have simplified the car rental process, with services like Silvercar taking the hassle out of reserving a ride at an airport or even downtown. Audi’s own version, called on demand, is only available in San Francisco (for now). You can rent one of 10 Audi models for up to 28 days anywhere within 49 miles of the center of the city with a few taps on your smartphone.But don’t worry - your ride won’t vaporize at the border....
Sign up for our daily newsletterEmail addressSign upI would like to subscribe to The Points Guy newsletters and special email promotions. The Points Guy will not share or sell your email. See privacy policy.Several months ago, I had a poll asking where TPG readers wanted me to go on a long weekend. Macchu Pichu ended up winning, but Vieques was second garnering a lot of the vote. Well a couple friends of mine were vacationing in Vieques at the W Retreat and Spa and it dawned on me that I had two more Free Resort Nights from Starwood’s promotion earlier this year that I needed to use before December 21....
The 2018 Comic-Con International festival takes place this week in San Diego, California, and the Transportation Security Administration wants to remind superhero and action figure connoisseurs of a few travel tips.Comic-Con has been around since 1970, and with an exhibit hall occupying more than 460,000 square feet, attracts crowds of tens of thousands of people each year. With fans traveling from all over the world to attend this event, TSA has seen a handful of Comic-Con related items make way through their screening process, and they have a few suggestions....
Faced with increasing competition from international carriers as well as among themselves, US airlines are investing in new premium economy seats, cabins and amenities.While two of the three major legacy airlines — American and Delta — are putting the equivalent of long-haul international premium economy on some of their jets, even smaller carriers have upped their game in the space between economy and first class. Meanwhile, United seems to be trailing the pack, saying that it’s investigating new premium economy options, but sticking with its old-school Economy Plus seating with slightly more legroom for the time being....
Ever notice how travel can make you enthusiastic about activities you’d be unwilling to do at home? Like standing in line for a museum or joining a noisy crowd at a festival? Maybe it’s because diving into the culture of a place is one of the best ways to discover it — and one of the best ways for creating memories that will linger long after the jet lag fades. We know you’re already counting down to Coachella, so we’ve rounded up five other unforgettable experiences taking place around the world this month....
Each month, airlines around the world launch and announce dozens of new flight routes and service changes — and today, TPG Senior Editor Kaeli Conforti shares just a few of the latest flights that will take to the skies this month or in the near future. Keep in mind that exact flight details (e.g., flight schedules, aircraft and more) may change based on travel dates.NEW ROUTES LAUNCHED IN APRIL 2016Doesn’t a trip to Copenhagen sound amazing right about now?...
Sign up for our daily newsletterEmail addressSign upI would like to subscribe to The Points Guy newsletters and special email promotions. The Points Guy will not share or sell your email. See privacy policy.It pains me to think of life before in-flight WiFi. As a full-time blogger, I can get so much done when I’m connected in the air, so I dread those long periods of time I have to fly Stone Age airlines that aren’t equipped with WiFi, essentially leaving all us flying in the dark....
Sign up for our daily newsletterEmail addressSign upI would like to subscribe to The Points Guy newsletters and special email promotions. The Points Guy will not share or sell your email. See privacy policy.Update: Some offers mentioned below are no longer available. View the current offers here - Citi Hilton HHonors Visa Signature CardHilton is offering Gold status to Visa Signature cardholders. Simply register your card here and your account will automatically be updated to Gold Status and if you stay three times by August 31, 2011, they will extend that Gold status until March 2013....
When the Hyatt Place brand started experimenting with charging for breakfast earlier this year, I got pretty nervous about what the future held for the chain and those who use it on their travels. Free hotel breakfast may sound like a trivial topic to some, but to many traveling families where every dollar counts, it is an extremely important inclusion. You can use your points to book the room, start the day with free breakfast, and keep your budget intact for the more memorable parts of the journey....
European airline Primera Air was launched with the intent to make waves in a crowded ultra-low cost carrier US-Europe market. It started by offering $99 one-way flights across the pond at the time it announced its US service. And, the airline was going to be one of the first to launch Airbus A321neo service across the Atlantic.However, as we near its first transatlantic flight on April 19, things aren’t working out so well for the airline....
I love being a flight attendant, but I didn’t realize until I starting reading through some of these questions how much mystery there is surrounding our role on the plane and how we feel about our jobs. Below, I’ve done my best to shed some light on what goes on behind the scenes — or rather, behind the curtain.What are some of the most and least appealing domestic routes to work?...
Sign up for our daily newsletterEmail addressSign upI would like to subscribe to The Points Guy newsletters and special email promotions. The Points Guy will not share or sell your email. See privacy policy.Kenny G, purveyor of smooth jazz that you’ve definitely heard playing in a department store elevator or at your doctor’s office, recently surprised a flight full of Delta passengers with an impromptu in-flight sax show.According to GQ, the musician was seated next to an off-duty flight attendant who had lost a child to cancer and was raising money for Relay for Life....
Over the past few weeks I’ve circled the globe three times, trying out some of the world’s best airline products along the way. But nothing I’ve flown to date comes anywhere close to Emirates’ brand-new first-class suite. It’s simply out-of-this-world incredible.On Friday, I had the privilege of joining the inaugural flight for Emirates’ new suite — our trek from Dubai (DXB) to Brussels (BRU) gave me roughly seven hours to experience the product in the air and on the ground....
Delta launched their iPhone app this week and is running a contest for those who download it and use it to check in for flights. Link to download app.I haven’t been able to use it yet, because I’ve been lazy and haven’t updated my old 3GS phone to the oS4 system (which this app requires), but initial reports seem impressed by the looks, but not so much functionality. I’ll give Delta a pass, since I think they will continue to enhance the app as time goes on....
A Texas man was charged with battery and held on a $10,000 bond for punching a flight attendant in the face onboard an American Airlines flight last week.The 24-year-old passenger, Colby Isaac Hilleary, could still face up to 20 years in prison for the charges of battery and interfering with the duties of a flight attendant, The Tampa Bay Times reports.Shortly after the flight took off from Fort Lauderdale (FLL) to Dallas (DFW), Hilleary began to behave erratically....
Sign up for our daily newsletterEmail addressSign upI would like to subscribe to The Points Guy newsletters and special email promotions. The Points Guy will not share or sell your email. See privacy policy.Passengers on United Airlines Flight 570 from Denver (DEN) to Salt Lake City (SLC) had a bad scare on the tarmac Sunday night when an unidentified fellow passenger suddenly began yelling “Bomba” and started a fight as he climbed over the back of his seat to open the emergency door of the plane....
Last year, Qatar Airways announced a handful of new routes between its hub in Doha and Atlanta, Boston and Los Angeles. The latter two of those flights have already launched, operating on 777 and A350 aircraft, while service to and from Atlanta will start in a little over a month. Like DOH-LAX, this route will be operated by a Boeing 777, but it appears that Qatar’s planning to offer something special (and quite a bit more splashy) for its inaugural flight from Doha on June 1: one-time A380 service....
TPG Contributor Sarah Silbert had quite the experience on a recent American flight in the airline’s new 777-300ER business-class cabin. Read on for the details! (All photos by Zach Honig.)Last week, I flew American Airlines business class from New York-JFK to London Heathrow along with TPG Editor-in-Chief Zach Honig. We were originally slated to fly nonstop from JFK to Paris, where Zach was attending the Paris Air Show, but due to a last-minute aircraft swap that entailed angled-flat beds rather than the new 767 flat-bed seats we had been expecting, we switched to a connecting route so we could try AA’s 777-300ER business class....
By reversing its longtime ban on women drivers this week, the Saudi monarchy won plaudits around the world. But the decree left car-rental, ride-share companies and Middle East experts with more questions than answers about what it really means for businesses and women, both Saudi and foreign.“Look, it’s obviously something we welcome, but the concern is the implication that there could be restrictions on driving that men don’t face,” said Adam Coogle, Jordan-based Middle East researcher for Human Rights Watch....
Sign up for our daily newsletterEmail addressSign upI would like to subscribe to The Points Guy newsletters and special email promotions. The Points Guy will not share or sell your email. See privacy policy.TPG reader Greg just found the following promotion offering double award (not elite) miles in his United.com MileagePlus account under the “My Promotions” tab. My guess is that United is getting ready to announce this, but already loaded it in the system....
