Qatar 777-300 Business Qsuites SEA-DOH Back in December, I got in on one of the most amazing points deals. American Airlines and Mastercard was offering 5x miles through the SimplyMiles shopping portal. I was able to earn over 200,000 AAdvantage miles with a $840 donation to Conservation International — a cost … Read more
Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan Explained – 2022 Update A lot has changed since I wrote my first version of this post in 2016. Alaska Airlines purchased Virgin America and increased their network especially in California. The airline joined the oneworld alliance, giving Mileage Plan members access to additional partners … Read more
Kissel Uptown Oakland Signature Suite Review The Kissel Uptown Oakland, which opened just a month prior to my stay in 2022, is part of the Hyatt Unbound Collection. I have had good luck at my previous Unbound properties including the Párisi Udvar in Budapest, The Driskill in Austin, and The … Read more
Which Hyatt in Waikiki: Regency vs. Centric There are three Hyatt hotel properties on the island of Oahu — all three are located in Waikiki. Waikiki is not known as a sprawling resort area, but instead is a cluster of tall hotels with small footprints squeezed into a strip of … Read more
Hyatt Centric Waikiki Beach Review The Hyatt Centric Waikiki opened in 2017. It was a conversion from an office building that cost $30 million and created 230 rooms in the property. The property is Category 4 which means you can use a Hyatt Chase Visa card free night certificate. Cash … Read more
Hyatt Regency Waikiki Beach Resort & Spa Review Hawaii is one of my favorite vacation destinations — I’ve been 19 times. Typically I go to the Big Island. However I recently found a mid-week airfare deal during my Spring Break to Honolulu. I’ve only visited Oahu once before and stayed … Read more
Alila Marea Encinitas Ocean View Suite Review I booked three nights in March, 2022 at the Alila Marea Beach Resort Encinitas, which is a Hyatt property, using points. The room was 25,000 Hyatt points per night and I used a Tier Suite Upgrade to reserve a suite at the time … Read more
I’m Breaking Up With Caesars Rewards When I first started getting interested in Las Vegas loyalty programs in 2013, my default properties were those part of M life, now MGM Rewards. During a five year period from 2013-2018, I had 26 different stays at M life properties. Starting in 2018, … Read more
Hyatt Regency Indian Wells Penthouse Suite Review The Hyatt Regency Indian Wells Resort & Spa, formerly known as the [Hyatt] Grand Champions Resort, opened in 1986 and has been managed by Hyatt since 1987. The branding was changed to a Regency in 2013. The property has undergone various renovations and … Read more
Encore at Wynn Resort Room Review I was able to book a free weekend at the Encore through a double status match. It had been a number of years since I had stayed at either the Wynn or Encore and I was excited to try out the property again. The … Read more
Wynn Rewards Birthday Dinner at Sinatra I rarely write posts about my meals; to be honest I don’t have a lot of fancy high end dinners. However, I was able to get a $150 dinner during my birthday month as a Wynn Rewards Platinum elite, which I earned through a … Read more
Wynn Rewards Status Match Double Dip I just finished up a weekend in Las Vegas at the Encore at Wynn hotel. I was able to combine two status matches that enabled me to enjoy the weekend with some perks I wouldn’t have otherwise been able to enjoy for free. Status … Read more
Hyatt Regency Albuquerque Review After staying two nights at the Hyatt Regency Tamaya, I spent a night at the Hyatt Regency Alburquerque prior to a morning flight out of ABQ. The property is a lowly Category 1 which means free nights are only 5,000 World of Hyatt points. The other … Read more
Details of new MGM Rewards Benefits I cover a lot of info about M life, which is now known as MGM Rewards as of February 1, 2022. To read more about MGM Rewards, visit this page. Additional information about the change from M life to MGM Rewards has been released today … Read more
M life to become MGM Rewards UPDATE: Additional information is now available, including new benefits like waived resort fees. Perhaps due to too much confusion regarding the space and capitalization, the loyalty program of MGM Resorts is changing the name from M life to MGM Rewards. The new program … Read more
