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Even diehard Detroiters admit the Motor City’s golden age ran out of gas decades ago, leaving a deeply troubled city that’s become a synecdoche for the decline of American manufacturing. But beyond the easy jokes, non-Michiganders are finally starting to realize that there’s a lot to be celebrated in a city that’s never lost its sense of itself; that continually embodies the best American values, like determination and inclusion; and that is finally regaining its well-deserved sense of pride....

In the wake of the 6.7-magnitude earthquake that ripped through the Japanese island of Hokkaido Wednesday, leaving at least three people dead, dozens missing and millions of homes without power, all air traffic out of and into the main airport in Sapporo has been halted.New Chitose Airport (CTS) was closed immediately after the quake struck at 3:08am and remains closed to both outgoing and incoming international and domestic flights while emergency workers deal with the aftermath of the destruction....

On Saturday evening, the United States lost one of its heroes and true patriots: senior Arizona senator John McCain. Shortly after the news of his passing, American Airlines’ CEO Doug Parker released a statement about what John McCain meant to the airline and US aviation.The CEO expressed his condolences to the McCain family “and all Americans on the passing of Senator John McCain,” referring to the senator as a true American hero, a role model and a friend....

Back in October, we alerted you that American Airlines was selling its best business-class seat for the price of the main cabin on certain routes. Given the tremendous interest in that post, we crunched the data to find more examples over the coming months.Update 12/26/16: The price has dropped on flight 64 from MIA-JFK on February 17. An economy class ticket will cost just $68 one-way:As a quick recap: Due to scheduling or positioning needs, AA will periodically fly internationally configured aircraft on domestic routes....

TPG reader Marc tweeted me to ask:@thepointsguy – “Can you blend shopping portals? For example, can I use the Southwest portal to get miles and still use Ebates to get cash back, or must I choose one or the other?“Shopping portals are one of the easiest ways to rack up points and miles for purchases that you’d already be making. I urge you to avoid going directly to a retailer’s website when you can easily use a shopping portal to get a better return....

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.Continental.com is one of the better airline sites for booking awards - it shows a decent amount of partner availability and it can put together some pretty robust, complicated trips. Historically, my three biggest gripes with it were 1) That it will sneakily book you into the wrong cabin of service 2) That international first class is not searchable and 3) Not all Star Alliance partners are shown....

As I wrote about yesterday, it seems like Delta is running three separate promotions to incentivize non-elites up to Gold Medallions to fly more and attain higher status levels. These are targeted, but you might as well try signing up for all three to see if any of them take. Unfortunately, I’m a Diamond Medallion, so Delta didn’t create an offer for me - at least that I know of! FYI These offers are all for SkyMiles- not bonus Medallion Qualifying Miles....

Supporting the veteran travelers’ truism that the earliest flights of the day are the most on time, new numbers prove that, if you were flying between 6:00am and 7:00am this February, your flight almost certainly took off on time.The Air Travel Consumer Report, issued by the Department of Transportation every month, found that, with some minor variation, flights from major US airports took off on time 92.7% of the time in that hour, gradually getting worse hour by hour until reaching a nadir of 73....

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.Is your United MileagePlus account looking a little empty? Check out this promotion through the United MileagePlus Shopping portal, giving you an opportunity to earn an incredible 45 miles per dollar spent on magazines (that’s 2.22 cents per mile)....

One of my very favorite things to do while traveling is eat. Heck, it is one of my favorite activities when we are at home, too, but I really like experiencing different foods around the world. I don’t usually eat fancy or expensive food, but I just like experiencing whatever it is that different destinations have to offer. On our recent trip to Aruba we were excited to try out some foods the island had to offer, but while we had a few things I really liked, it probably was not my favorite trip in terms of cuisine....

On October 11, Singapore Airlines will re-launch the longest flight in the world: Singapore (SIN) to Newark (EWR). The 19-hour flight bests the next-longest flight by more than an hour in duration and 502 miles in distance.But, unlike the Qatar Airways flight from Doha (DOH) to Auckland (AKL) and Qantas’ nonstop from Perth (PER) to London (LHR), this flight won’t offer economy class. Instead, Singapore Airlines is operating with a premium-only 161 seat arrangement (67 business class, 94 premium economy) on its Airbus A350-900ULR [Ultra-Long Range]....

Thanks to all the readers who left me helpful comments on my call out for suggestions of what to do in Seoul. I spent a great few days there, which I’ll be writing about this week, starting with this review of my hotel, the Park Hyatt Seoul.I’ve already made my SPG 75 night Platinum status, so I’m spending the rest of my year trying to requalify for Hyatt Diamond Status (and replenish my Hyatt point stash by maximizing their Q4 promo since I have the Hyatt Visa) and wanted to stay either at the Grand Hyatt or the Park Hyatt....

Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi has been making headlines as of late. On Tuesday, he shared that Uber will put real self-driving cars on the road in less than two years and that flying taxis aren’t actually just a pipe dream.Now, the CEO thinks he knows the key to upping your passenger rating and reaching that coveted five-star status.Khosrowshahi, who’s currently attending the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, spoke to CNBC’s Squawk Box about how the company is planning on improving its driver and passenger rating systems....

After tearing through Puerto Rico and into the eastern Bahamas, Hurricane Maria still isn’t done wreaking havoc yet. Currently over open warm water in the Atlantic, the Category 3 hurricane is redeveloping after losing organization over the mountains of Puerto Rico. Forecasts call for further strengthening… and a westward shift.Originally forecast to stay well off of the US East Coast, this westward shift puts the North Carolina shore in the cone of uncertainty....

Ocean salvage experts have an unconventional solution to potentially help solve the water crisis brewing in Cape Town: icebergs.The South African city is facing a record drought and water shortage, with “day zero,” the day when the city’s taps will run completely dry, looming in the distance. Local officials’ latest (vague) prediction is that Cape Town will run out of water sometime in 2019.In order to help bolster the city’s water reserves, salvage master Nick Sloane is proposing to have the government chop up icebergs from Antartica, float them across the ocean to Africa and melt them down to be used as drinking water....

New to our Insider Series (where travel-industry professionals write about their work under pseudonyms), TPG Contributor “Marty McFly,” a pilot for a major American airline, shares his thoughts on aircraft maintenance in the fleets of domestic carriers.Of all the choice comments I overhear from passengers awaiting delayed flights, the ones that confuse me most are complaints about 1. the weather (airlines still haven’t invented a “weather off” switch), and 2. aircraft maintenance....

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 Waldorf Astoria Hotel, one of New York City’s most iconic and historical hotel landmarks, closed this week for a multi-year renovation that will convert many of the rooms into condominiums by 2020. As a brief homage, we’re taking a look back at the property through the years....

One of my primary approaches to maximizing miles and points for our family’s travels is to plan and book our “big” award trips as far in advance as possible. There is something to be said for pouncing on last minute award availability, but when you have four people in the family, are dealing with peak travel times, and are at the mercy of the school schedule, that last minute approach frequently isn’t viable....

After having a wonderful trip with the TPG team at the PeaceJam conference in Accra, it was finally time to begin the journey home. That journey was to begin in London, where I was going to spend a few days before returning to New York. British Airways provides the only nonstop option between the two cities, and since I was short on time, it was by far the best option for me....

As indulgent as the phrase “me time” may sound to some, it is important to take care of yourself— especially when traveling. Between the inconsistent sleep patterns and unavoidable jetlag, recharging your batteries and relaxing isn’t such a bad idea. Thursday, Qantas announced a new in-flight meditation feature specially designed to help customers unwind in the air.Starting in June, the Australian airline will add a series of meditation videos to its inflight entertainment....