“Reader Questions” are answered three days a week — Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays — by TPG Senior Writer Julian Mark Kheel.International visa rules can be confusing, especially when it comes to traveling in, out and through China, as TPG reader James has been discovering…[pullquote source=“TPG Reader James”]I have a 12 hour layover in Beijing and I’m trying to determine if a visa would be required if I leave the airport to do some sightseeing....
Welcome to the third installment of TPG Editor-at-Large Zach Honig’s coverage of the 2017 Star Alliance MegaDo. This year’s event takes AvGeeks from around the world on the adventure of a lifetime, including stops in Vienna, Brussels and Mallorca. Check back for daily reports, and follow along in real time on Instagram and Twitter.This has easily been one of the most memorable weeks of my life, and there’s still two days to go....
Sitting around and not exercising is bad for your health — that’s not news. But a new study is making waves after finding that people who had long bouts of sedentary behavior were at an increased risk of dying regardless of whether they exercised or not.The study, recently published in the Annals of Internal Medicine, looked at data collected from nearly 8,000 people in the US aged 45 and older. Participants wore accelerometers — think FitBits — on their hips for a week to see how long and how often they were sedentary....
Even if you’re 35,000 feet in the air, Qatar Airways is going to help ensure that you have a warm Thanksgiving meal on your table — rather, your tray table. For two days, the carrier is offering special Thanksgiving menus to both business class and economy passengers traveling on US-bound or originating flights.If you’re traveling with Qatar on November 22 or 23 on a Doha- (DOH)-US or US-DOH route, you’ll be able to get a hot Thanksgiving meal — no matter if you’re in business or 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.So many readers have had success traveling and exploring the world with the tips and tricks we post here every day on The Points Guy. Today, I’m proud and very excited to announce that beginning this week I’ll begin contributing to Travel + Leisure, bringing the world of points and miles to a whole new audience....
A new tier higher than Platinum.The official Starwood rep on Flyertalk, Starwood Lurker a.k.a William, who I had the pleasure of meeting at the Frequent Traveler Awards in Houston, has the current tagline “Guess whats next” in his signature. There’s been tons of rampant speculation, but nothing confirmed yet.I think its a new elite level higher than Platinum. Back in October, I blogged about a very in-depth market research survey commissioned by Starwood about what I’d like to see from a new uber-status....
Every week, the Transportation Security Administration blogs about items (mostly weapons) that agents have confiscated at airports around the country, and the agency posts some of the crazier ones on its Instagram page. To help inform travelers, TSA has created an “Ask TSA” Twitter account where curious travelers can ask if they’re allowed to carry on certain items. Below are the five most ridiculous questions asked this month — at least according to us at Team TPG....
It’s a familiar story: couple goes on honeymoon, couple celebrates with a few too many drinks, couple ends up with a hilarious-but-not-detrimental story to tell their family once they return. Except, this story doesn’t quite fit that mold.Gina Lyons and Mark Lee, from London, set off to Sri Lanka to enjoy a blissful honeymoon after vowing their undying love to each other. During the three-week adventure, they found themselves in quite the pickle after consuming a nontrivial amount of rum....
Jetblue announced they are having a one-day summer sale, with good deals on some of their routes. You must book today, July 2, and travel is valid from July 9-October 3rd. The blackout out dates are August 29 – September 5, 2012 (which is Labor Day weekend).Jetblue one-day sale starting from $49Some of these fares say they are only valid Tuesday and Wednesday, yet when I searched for them, I saw that was not the case and some were available any day of the week....
Last week I decided to go to Iceland last minute by redeeming Delta SkyMiles to fly BusinessElite from JFK to Reykjavik and using a combination of Club Carlson points and cash to check out both Radisson Blu properties in Reykjavik. Since I hadn’t been out of the country since May, I booked the ticket on a whim and threw together some accommodations and activities for the 5 days I would be there....
President Trump’s trade adviser may have just upended the aviation agreement reached earlier this month between the United States and the United Arab Emirates.The Emirati government recently complained to the White House that the adviser, Peter Navarro, was contradicting the terms of the carefully-worded agreement, which ended a long-running spat between the Big Three US airlines — American, Delta, United — and two of the Big Three airlines from the Gulf, Emirates and Etihad....
Rideshare giant Uber will shut down operations in Taiwan after conflicts with the government over the legality of its services. The move, effective February 10, comes just months after Uber pulled out of mainland China due to fierce local competition.Uber currently serves four cities in Taiwan and has provided over 15 million rides since it arrived on the island four years ago. It seems as if the stoppage of service could be temporary, as Uber’s own press release is titled “Pressing Pause in Taiwan,” but it does’t indicate when or if Uber will ever return....
In case you haven’t heard: Uber is not having the greatest year thus far. Between the #DeleteUber movement in January where more than 200,000 Uber users deleted the app, the claims of sexual harassment at the corporate level and more, things could be going a lot more smoothly. Well, it looks like that downward spiral is continuing.The Information is reporting that the company launched a software-based program called “Hell.” The program worked to track down Uber drivers who were also driving for its direct competitor, Lyft....
Uber already offers riders a variety of vehicle options to choose from, but the rideshare giant has more than just ground-based modes of transportation in mind for the future — including getting you to your destination via air.Uber’s head of product Jeff Holden announced on Wednesday that the it has plans to launch its aerial taxi service in Los Angeles by 2020. The new service its called UberAir, and plans are already in the works to launch similar operations in Dallas and Dubai....
I recently wrote about an offer to earn up to 50,000 miles on United or American and another 50,000 Delta miles by opening Fidelity Brokerage accounts, but Fidelity is not the only investment firm offering lucrative mileage bonuses.When the US Airways Grand Slam was going on, I noticed that one of the airline’s partners was TD Ameritrade. Back in September (the deadline was 9/30/2011), TD Ameritrade was offering Dividend Miles members the opportunity to earn up to 25,000 miles by opening and funding a new account....
TPG reader Kabir sent me a message on Facebook to ask about Transatlantic business-class products:“On my next trip from JFK to CDG, I can fly business class in either Air France’s A380 angle-flat seat or the Delta One A330 flat-bed seat. The schedules and other factors are about equal; which one would you recommend?”Transatlantic flights are a good opportunity to spring for a premium cabin, and there are plenty of options to choose from whether you’re booking an award or paying cash....
Yesterday I shared Eight Truths of Traveling with an Eight Month Old, and seven out of the eight truths were centered around challenges of one sort or another. Those challenges are real, don’t let me or anyone else fool you, but I wanted to expand upon the eighth truth a bit. The one that centered around “smiles”, and it deserves a bit more time in the sunshine.Now that we are unpacked, and Baby S finally graced me with a good night of sleep, I find myself starting to dream of the next trip....
For airline elites, there’s no more exhilarating — or frustrating — aspect of flying than upgrades. The elation of getting that upgrade at the gate for the 16 hour Dallas/Fort Worth (DFW) to Hong Kong (HKG) flight. Or, the futility of seeing yourself as #72 on the upgrade list.There might be no worse frustration than being skipped over on the upgrade list — especially when it’s for one of the airline’s longest international flights....
TPG reader Noah saved me a couple minutes and sent me this week’s answers to their Chief Rewards Officer promotion quiz. It’s an easy 100 Southwest points, which is $1.66 in Wanna Get Away Fares. Hey, free is free!1. True (you can close the video right away)2. The Amount and type of fare3. True4. Book a wanna get away fare5. It is impossible to get wrong, you just have to keep flipping over cards until you have matched all the pairs....
United is targeting MileagePlus members to earn bonus miles for taking flights by July 31, 2018. As part of the Runway promotion, United is offering select members the opportunity to earn a varying number of MileagePlus miles, potentially representing some good value to be had.To check to see if you were targeted for this promotion, head to the Runway promotions page on United’s site. Enter your MileagePlus number and click through to view your offer....
