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The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey unanimously voted to raise the minimum wage pay for airport workers on Thursday, from $15/hour to $19/hour. The increase makes the workers’ wages the highest in the nation, including among several cities in the US that raised the minimum wage to $15/hour in recent years. The pay jump will take place in stages, and will go into effect for many New York State workers before the end of 2018, who currently earn $13/hour minimum....

A couple weeks ago, I was thrilled to introduce our Into the Blue: Marathon to a Million contest, celebrating one million likes on Facebook by giving away one million JetBlue TrueBlue points. Now that the submission period has ended, I’m excited to announce our five semifinalists!Each semifinalist and a guest will be flown from their home airport to New York on Friday, May 13, for dinner with me and the TPG team....

Last year, Uber, the popular on-demand car service, was apparently hacked. Didn’t know about it? Well, that’s because they didn’t want you to.Time.com reports the company finally came clean about the cyber attack — and the subsequent cover-up — on Tuesday. Personal information, including email addresses and phone numbers, were stolen from roughly 57 million Uber users. Credit cards and social security numbers were apparently not compromised.Uber customers, however, were not the only ones affected....

Update June 16, 2017: As expected, the President made his announcement Friday confirming the details outlined below. Additionally, there will be no new restrictions on what Americans can bring back from Cuba into the US, including rum and cigars.Tomorrow, President Trump will announce his administration’s plan to restrict travel and business interactions with Cuba. Relations with the island nation had been gradually opened to American travelers and businesses under the Obama administration starting in 2014....

One of the things I love most about being The Points Guy is getting to hear stories from readers about all the positive ways award travel has affected their lives. That being said, while I love hearing about your successes, I think there’s also a lot we can learn by sharing our mistakes, and I’m calling on readers to send in your most egregious and woeful travel failures.From time to time I’ll pick one that catches my eye and post it for everybody to enjoy (and commiserate with)....

Update: Some offers mentioned below are no longer available. View the current offers here – IHG Rewards Club Select Credit Card, Marriott Rewards Premier Credit CardHere’s a roundup of the week’s points, miles and travel industry news you may have missed:Boost your Delta SkyMiles account during your next Starwood stay.Earn 1,000 Delta SkyMiles with SPGStay two nights or longer at any Starwood hotel through January 31, 2016 and you’ll earn 1,000 bonus Delta SkyMiles....

A 6.4-magnitude earthquake struck about 13 miles off Hualien County on the east coast of Taiwan at 11:50 pm on Tuesday, February 6. Hualien City continues to experience a number of strong aftershocks, according to the United States Geological Survey. No tsunami warnings have been issued at this time. Thus far, two deaths have been reported, and more than 140 people have been injured by the earthquake and subsequent damage.Light shaking from the initial earthquake was felt as far north as the capital, Taipei City, about 74 miles northwest of Hualien....

It’s not Thanksgiving in Canada, so I thought I’d post about three Aeroplan promotions that are going on at the moment.The first is called “Tangerine Saturday,” and is one day only this Saturday, November 24. All CIBC Aeroplan cardholders will earn 2x miles on all retail purchases including gas, grocery, drugstores and more. CIBC cards include the Aerogold, Aerogold Infinite, Aerogold for Small Business and Aero Classic.Now, two miles per dollar isn’t a mind-boggling bonus, but the fact that it’s on every retail purchase right when everyone’s gearing up for holiday shopping is a big plus – and the earning ratio really beats the usual rate on some of these cards like the Aero Classic, whose cardholders usually just earn 1 mile per $2 spent – literally you’ve increased your earning by a factor of 4 on that one....

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.Last week, Ferrari Land opened at PortAventura World, a theme park complex located about 90 minutes from Barcelona, boasting Red Force, the tallest and fastest roller coaster in Europe, which launches riders up its 368-foot incline, going from 0 to 112 mph in 5 seconds....

2017 is a big year for Canada — it marks 150th anniversary of the founding of the country and the 80th birthday of Air Canada, the nation’s flag carrier.To celebrate the big 8-0, the airline has unveiled a new livery that “balances national identity with a compelling design that clearly accentuates the features of each aircraft, allowing it to elegantly stand out in the sky and on the runway.” The design was created by Tyler Brûlé, the CEO and Chairman of Winkreative....

American Airlines is rolling out updated Cole Haan amenity kits on its flights this month, and we at TPG got a chance to check them out before they hit the skies. There are four kits that American Airlines provided us to test out, each with a red-and-black motif.Transcontinental Business Class and Premium EconomyThe simplest kit is for transcontinental business class and international premium economy passengers, and includes an eye mask, earplugs, socks, bag of Scope and a “refreshing” travel kit....

As year ends comes and everyone is most concerned about maintaining elite status, it’s always good to cross-reference your hotel loyalty program accounts and make sure that all of your stays were credited appropriately.I almost always find discrepancies and I’ve noticed that phone operators are always more than helpful to make things right, and will often take your word for it (especially if you have elite status) – this is not a suggestion to take advantage of them!...

Etihad Airways is on a roll—but not necessarily in the good way. Following a slew of reported financial troubles, the Abu Dhabi-based mega-airline will be closing its current first- and business-class lounge at London’s Heathrow Airport (LHR) in Terminal 4.UK-based lounge operator No1 will be taking the keys to the space and rebranding it, but won’t be removing the Etihad name entirely. Instead, No1—with an existing collection of lounges at major UK airports like Gatwick (LGW), Edinburgh (EDI), Heathrow and Birmingham (BHM) —will be partnering with Etihad and renaming the lounge as “The House – Home of Etihad Airways and Other Leading Airlines....

Online travel search giant Expedia is launching exciting new features that will allow displaying more details, including photos and videos, when searching for a flight.Routehappy already provided Expedia with the ability to see if a flight has Wi-Fi, if there’s in-flight entertainment and if you’ll be able to plug your electronics into a power outlet.Expedia is expanding this partnership, which will integrate the company’s Universal Product Attributes (UPA) and Universal Ticket Attributes (UTAs) into Expedia plus its other websites, Orbitz and Travelocity....

A couple weeks ago I wrote about Hilton’s easy scavenger hunts in Washington DC, Chicago, London and Istanbul. Scores of TPG readers simply showed up at Hilton properties to claim their free night certificate - which is good at any Hilton property worldwide.This Friday, the contest continues in San Francisco and it looks really easy - simply tweet Hilton and show up at the Hilton Union Square at or before 4pm Pacific Time to claim your free night....

TPG Contributor “Marty McFly” is a pilot for a major US-based airline. In his next few Insider posts, he’ll give you a behind-the-scenes look into what the average day is like for an airline pilot.Imagine you’re waiting at the gate 45 minutes before departure — in spite of the fact that your jet hasn’t even pulled up yet — and you notice your pilots talking to the customer service agent. Depending on where they are in their day or trip, they may look well rested with crisply starched shirts, or they may look like you feel after hustling to make your second connection of an itinerary....

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.JetBlue’s fighting back after losing the recent Virgin America acquisition to Alaska Airlines. The New York-based carrier just launched a new “Calling All JetBlue Virgins” campaign, presumably as an attempt to attract Virgin America fans who haven’t yet flown with JetBlue....

The suspect who drove a pickup truck down a crowded bike path in Lower Manhattan on Tuesday afternoon, killing eight people and injuring 11, was an Uber driver. According to CNN, Sayfullo Habibullaevic Saipov began driving for the popular ride-sharing service Uber in New Jersey just over six months ago.“We are aggressively and quickly reviewing this partner’s history with Uber, and at this time we have not identified any related concerning safety reports,” said an Uber official....

Animal rights activists in Santorini, Greece, are saying that overweight tourists are crippling the island’s donkeys.Santorini, with its iconic white homes and villas lining the hills, attracts millions of tourists each year. But the narrow streets – and areas with more than 600 steps – make it impossible to drive around in some parts. People often resort to riding a donkey or have the animal carry their bags.Activist groups like Help the Santorini Donkeys, which has more than 17,700 followers, and The Donkey Sanctuary are saying enough is enough and are demanding the Municipality of Santorini to do something about it....

How well do you know the TPG story?The fundamentals are fascinating: Brian Kelly, aka The Points Guy, got started in the points and miles game when he was just 10 years old helping out as his dad’s travel agent. Fast forward to his mid-twenties and he found himself working as a buyer at Lord & Taylor. Not happy with the career path and the pay, TPG headed for investment banking — but that still didn’t fulfill him....