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A Spirit flight out of Chicago O’Hare Airport (ORD) was off to a rough start until a flight attendant took it upon himself to loosen up passengers with a stand-up routine. Though delayed and without air conditioning, the flight took off in good temper.Recorded by a passenger, footage shows the flight attendant going above and beyond safety precautions – extensively showing passengers how to properly use the lavatory, warning against Spirit’s poor customer service standards and even throwing out some tips on getting rest....

TPG reader Chris writes:“My question: When booking an award ticket at what mile to cent ratio makes it a good deal? I recently booked a roundtrip domestic ticket on Delta using 25,000 points (their lowest tier) that would have cost me $420; therefore I got 1.68 cents per mile. Additionally, is it better to use points for upgrades rather than economy seats?“The answer is: it depends on your situation. I know many people who are miles rich and cash poor and would prefer to use miles to book flights that will save them money....

This morning, March 20, TripAdvisor announced the winners of their 2018 Travelers’ Choice Awards. In total, the awards honor 402 outstanding destinations in 42 lists across the globe and this year, Paris snagged the top spot with the highest-rated global city. New York City, for the eighth consecutive year, ranks #1 as top city for travelers in the United States.The top spots are world-class cities recognized as travelers favorite places, determined using an algorithm based on reviews and ratings for hotels, restaurants and attractions in destinations worldwide, gathered over one year, along with traveler booking interest on TripAdvisor....

An Uber driver is being investigated after he kicked two women out of his vehicle after they shared a quick kiss in the backseat during a ride.The couple, Alex Iovine, 26, and Emma Pichl, 24, who live in New York City and have been dating for two years, ordered an Uber after attending a friend’s birthday party in Brooklyn last weekend. They jumped in the car and started the ride, talking during the journey and sharing a quick kiss at one point....

A United Airlines Boeing 737 on approach to Chicago O’Hare on Monday afternoon narrowly avoided a midair collision with what its crew said was a small aircraft, according to a Points Guy reader who was on the flight.While about to complete flight UA246 from Vancouver (YVR) to Chicago O’Hare (ORD), the plane made a sudden evasive turn that had passengers “shrieking.” After safely landing at O’Hare, one of the pilots on UA246 came on the intercom to say it was a “split-second decision” to save the plane....

After all the jetsetting and antics on two continents, Star Megado 4 culminated with a Q&A session with United CEO Jeff Smisek on the 99th floor of Chicago’s Willis Tower. You might recognize him from the promotional spots they screen before the safety videos on all United flights – but it turns out the guy has a good sense of humor, and after a little light ribbing, he answered some pre-screened questions as well as a few live ones....

With boundless cultural offerings, a white-hot food scene, and dazzling architecture, Chicago keeps breaking records as one of the most-visited American cities. Its hotels, however, haven’t kept up. A mix of giant legacy properties and so-so national chains, lodging in the Windy City has been something to tolerate more than celebrate.But that’s all changing, big-time. A boom’s underway, and it’s juicing up the lodging landscape. Leading the trend: Superb adaptive-reuse projects that reimagine some of the city’s most iconic buildings....

Voluntourism offers a unique opportunity to give back while seeing the world, and there are many opportunities available to travelers–some as simple as a click of the mouse and others requiring hands on work. At The Points Guy, we wholeheartedly support good deeds done through travel and we’ve recently aligned with PeaceJam and 1 Billion Acts of Peace to do our part in this arena. TPG contributor Lane Nieset rounded up eight of the many ways you can donate time, money or miles while traveling....

All around the world airports are filled with signs giving directions, illustrating actions, and explaining protocol. You probably quickly glance at these signs as you walk through security, paying little attention to what they’re actually saying. But in some airports, the signs can be more than informational — they can be outright entertaining.Inspired by a post from Joe, one of our TPG Lounge community members, we asked travelers to share the funniest or strangest airport signs they’ve come across....

With the current 40,000-mile sign-up bonus offer on the US Airways Mastercard, now is a great time to think about maximizing your US Airways miles and racking up as many as possible to do so. Now that the American Airlines/US Airways merger is well under way and US Airways has officially become a member of Oneworld while even while retaining some Star Alliance partners, plus most of its award chart sweet spots intact for the time being, US Airways Dividend Miles are looking more and more like a great way to redeem for amazing rewards, many of which were not previously available....

There’s nothing better than going on vacation with friends and family and sharing new memories. But when it comes to splitting the bill at the end of the trip, well, that’s something not everyone loves — except for the organizer who likely helped to foot the bill at the beginning. Airbnb has introduced a new feature to alleviate this; beginning today, you can split the bill with everyone at the time of booking an Airbnb....

Back in June, American Airlines announced that it was switching to a revenue-based mileage program effective August 1. However, the carrier didn’t clarify whether or not this change to earning award miles on AA flights would mean changes to earning award miles on partner airlines as well.At the time, American Airlines’ announcement only mentioned that earning award miles on partner airlines would still be calculated the same way: Flight Miles x Fare Class RateOn most flights marketed by partner airlines, you’ll earn award miles based on a percentage of the flight distance and the fare class of your ticket....

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.This weekend at the Paris Air Show, Boeing unveiled the latest model of its 737 aircraft — the 737 MAX 10. The MAX 10 will maintain the 737’s single-aisle features but will be 66 inches longer than the 737 MAX 9....

Check out the week in travel contests and sweepstakes for your chance to win trips to Texas for the NCAA football playoffs, Mexico, Argentina, Fiji or a five night getaway in Hyatt property.Win a Five Night Getaway Courtesy of Kiwi, Hyatt, Afar and GhurkaWin a five night getaway in a Hyatt propertyEnter the Jetset the World contest by clicking on your dream destination to win a five night getway including:Five night stay at one of 21 Hyatt hotels around the worldVisa gift card for flights or other travel expensesTravel suite from luxury leather goods artisan GhurkaOne year AFAR magazine subscriptionThe contest is open to legal residents of countries where laws do not prohibit individuals from entering such sweepstakes (excluding residents from Quebec, Canada) who have reached the age of 21 at the date of entry....

Update 6/5/17 8:05am: The UAE’s official news agency has said that there will be a “closure of UAE airspace and seaports for all Qataris in 24 hours [from Monday morning] and a banning of all Qatari means of transportation, coming to or leaving the UAE, from crossing, entering or leaving the UAE territories.” This suggests Qatar Airways will be banned from flying in and out of the UAE. Flights to other destinations in the region could be suspended as well....

It’s no secret that one of the best ways to use British Airways Avios is to book short-haul flights starting as low as 4,500 miles. Unfortunately, such a steal is only available in economy — British Airways charges quite a bit more to redeem US domestic flights in first class.Unfortunately for AAdvantage elite members, award tickets are also ineligible to be placed on the upgrade list for a complimentary upgrade. So, if you book an economy flight, expect to fly in economy....

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.The Central American country of Honduras is in a state of crisis. Early results indicate that last Sunday’s election was a close affair between the incumbent president and an opposition candidate. With 75% of the votes counted, the opposition candidate holds a slim lead....

The Points Guy has teamed up with the Make-A-Wish Foundation to help dreams come true for children who are fighting life-threatening medical conditions. Since more than 2.8 billion airline miles are needed to cover travel for every child’s wish this year alone, they need our help to make that happen.We’re sharing the stories of how four carriers — American Airlines, Delta Air Lines, Southwest Airlines and United Airlines — are helping Make-A-Wish to grant travel wishes....

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.So far today, I’ve received emails from Hilton Honors, Best Buy Reward Zone and Chase notifying me that my email address and names were potentially stolen by hackers who breached the systems of their marketing vendor, Epsilon.The emails stress that financial information was not stolen and that the only risk will be an increase in unsolicited emails....

Hotels have gotten in on the Black Friday and Cyber Monday mania in a major way this year, with many brands offering reduced rates across large swaths of their portfolios. But as any parent will tell attest, a discounted room will only get you so far if the property — or destination, for that matter — doesn’t feel especially right for kids.With that in mind, here are the best family-friendly Cyber Monday deals that promise fun for the whole clan....