Posts

On February 21, American Airlines started selling Basic Economy fares for flights starting March 1. Now that we’re almost two months into the process, we’re getting our first glance into how it’s going. In its investment filings this morning, American Airlines President Robert Isom focuses on customer choice when announcing how this has gone so far:While it’s still early, the initial results from our new Basic and Premium Economy products are encouraging....

As with all major airlines, Lufthansa’s livery has evolved over the years. But one element has remained more or less unchanged since its inception in 1918: the crane.Graphic designer and architect Otto Firle is credited with designing the carrier’s famous trademark nearly a century ago, and in celebration of the iconic design’s 100th anniversary, Lufthansa is now gearing up to unveil an entirely new livery at an event next month, on Wednesday, February 7....

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.An American Airlines flight was “quarantined” upon arriving at Nashville International Airport on Thursday morning after discovering that passengers may have been exposed to an illness.Former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee was on board American Airlines Flight 1289. The redeye flight traveled from Los Angeles (LAX) to Nashville (BNA), arriving at 5:02am CT....

We often publish stories from readers that illustrate how points and miles can help you get where you want to go. However, it’s important to learn from our mistakes as well as our successes, so I’m calling on you to send us your most epic travel failure stories. Email them to info@thepointsguy.com and put “Reader Mistake Story” in the subject line. Tell us how things went wrong, and (where applicable) how you made them right....

Our first “no kids” trip in over two years just wrapped up, and boy was it worth the wait. Josh and I recently visited the Andaz Papagayo in Costa Rica not only with each other, but we met up with a few friends while we were there, and found the resort to be the perfect backdrop to feel calm, relaxed, rejuvenated, and maybe even a touch inspired before starting a bit of a new chapter in our day to day lives....

Update: Some offers mentioned below are no longer available – IHG Rewards Club Select Credit CardOffering member-exclusive rates is the latest trend in the hotel industry. Recently, Marriott, Hilton and Hyatt all announced their own versions of member-exclusive rates — the discount varies from one chain to the next, but you can expect to save as much as 10%. And now, IHG is the most recent hotel chain to change its terms and conditions to include a member-exclusive rate when booking a stay directly through IHG’s site....

Instagram’s list of the top-10 most-Instagrammed cities of the world has just been released, meaning these global hubs should immediately be added to your travel itinerary. From the US to Asia to Europe to South America, the cities span the globe and are each unique in their own right. Check out the list below and get your ‘gram on at one (or all) of these illustrious cities.1. New York, New YorkThe concrete jungle where dreams are made of is expected to have more visitors in 2017 than ever before — a projected 61....

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.I’m more than honored to make hotelchatter.com’s holiday gift list! If you want to give my professional award booking and program consultation services as a gift, please email me at info@thepointsguy.com. This is the perfect time of year to assess your loyalty and come up with a strategy for 2011!...

Rideau Canal Skateway, a UNESCO World Heritage site and the Guinness Book of World Record’s largest naturally freezing ice rink in the world, has had some problems this year fulfilling its frozen requirement.The canal-turned-rink in Ontario, Canada, was originally constructed as a slack-water canal for the military. Today, it is used for recreational ice-skating. The rink is made up of sections of the Rideau and Cataraqui rivers; it flows south from Ottawa to Lake Ontario and the site got a protected status in 2007....

After nearly a decade in the making, Wonders of Wildlife National Museum & Aquarium opens its doors to the public on Friday, September 22. Located in Springfield, Missouri, the museum and its surrounding campus is hailed as the largest of its kind — larger than the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History. Measuring at 350,000-square-feet, the museum will feature 35,000 live fish, mammals, reptiles, amphibians and birds all representing more than 800 species....

Walking around airports in open-toed shoes can feel a bit, um, gross, not to mention chilly when you’re actually on a plane — there’s a reason airlines give business- and first-class passengers comfy socks. But since we can’t actually travel to our destinations wearing socks and slippers, finding the right pair of shoes is crucial.Enter Allbirds Loungers, which feel (and sort of look) like slippers, but are far more comfortable than the cardboard-soled version offered in hotels....

While the Hilton Honors program does have some valuable perks, especially for elites, that you could take advantage of, its Honors points aren’t the most useful or most rewarding. There are currently two promotions on offer from Hilton, but they’re not all that great, unfortunately.The first promotion is offering is up to an 80% bonus when you purchase points through December 29, 2017. Here’s how the bonus breaks down based on how much you spend:If you purchase 10,000-19,000 points, you’ll get a 60% bonusIf you purchase 20,000-80,000 points, you’ll get an 80% bonusYou must purchase points in increments of 1,000....

In a move to help restore its image after several public relations blunders, United Airlines announced on Thursday that it’s hired former Obama administration press secretary Josh Earnest as its senior vice president and chief communications officer.At United, Earnest will be responsible for developing the company’s global communications strategy, leading a team that will executive the strategy and working closely with the company’s leadership to shape its public image. Earnest will be the company’s chief spokesman....

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’s been just about two weeks now since #BumpGate first made headlines when passenger Dr. David Dao was forcibly removed from a United Airlines flight. And just this weekend, American Airlines made news when a flight attendant allegedly nearly hit a baby with a stroller, causing a chaotic scene on the plane....

“Reader Questions” are answered three days a week — Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays — by TPG Senior Writer Julian Mark Kheel.You found flights that worked for your schedule and a price you liked, so you booked your ticket. Then the airline changed it. That’s the scenario facing TPG reader Jason, who emailed us to ask…[pullquote source=“TPG Reader Jason”]American Airlines changed my flight quite drastically after I booked it — my return trip from Paris (CDG) to Portland (PDX) now gets home 2 1/2 hours later than I had originally booked....

TPG reader @MrMainStreet tweeted me to ask:@thepointsguy– “Are Dividend Miles going away with the US Airways/AA merger? Do we need to spend them before Quarter Two?“People get nervous about airline mergers, as there always seem to be winners and losers. American Airlines recently announced that the AAdvantage and Dividend Miles loyalty programs will merge in the second quarter of 2015, meaning the end of Dividend Miles as we know it. Going forward we’ll just have AAdvantage....

A VIP client of mine called me frantic today from San Francisco airport. His flight to Newark was cancelled due to “Snowmageddon 2010” and the next available flight Continental could reaccomodate him and his wife was for Saturday! They even gave him a hard time because he was on award tickets, which is complete BS.With a mile long line to speak to an agent at the airport and multiple calls to the American Express Centurion (Black card) concierges yielding no results, he decided to call me....

As part of our big miles and points ski trip to Norway my friend and I had one night in Oslo to explore the city before we headed west to the ski resort. By the time I got settled at the hotel it was just about time for dinner, but luckily my friend had arrived earlier in the day and had a chance to get out and explore a little more than I did (jealous!...

Yesterday I wrote about Aeroplan (Air Canada’s frequent flyer program) running a pretty generous temporary sale on awards. You can get business class for the price of coach and first class for the price of business class on many of their awards - including Star Alliance partners. You can check out their award charts here. Aeroplan is an instant 1:1 transfer partner of American Express membership Rewards, so this could make a lot of sense if you have any Star Alliance awards you are looking to book in the near future....

American Airlines recently announced the addition of new daily nonstop flights from Los Angeles International Airport to Atlanta Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport starting on March 5, 2015. This new route will be served by their Boeing 737-800 aircraft three times a day.American Airlines will launch new service between LA and Atlanta on board their 737-800 aircraft.The new Los Angeles-Atlanta flight times are:Depart LAX at 12:15 am PT, Arrive at ATL at 7:40 am ETDepart LAX at 10:30 am PT, Arrive at ATL at 5:55 pm ETDepart LAX at 3:20 pm PT Arrive at ATL at 10:45 pm ETThe return Atlanta-Los Angeles flight times are:Depart ATL at 7 am ET, Arrive at LAX at 8:40 am PTDepart ATL at 12:50 pm ET, Arrive at LAX at 2:30 pm PTDepart ATL at 6:55 pm ET, Arrive at LAX at 8:35 pm PTAmerican is adding new service to Atlanta (Shutterstock)My ThoughtsThis isn’t the first time American seems to be encroaching on Delta’s territory, since they recently announced non-stop Miami-Salt Lake City service as part of their new routes from Miami....