Poo causes flight diversion

Airplane bathrooms can be disgusting.  But I had never heard of a plane diverting due to someone stinking up the lavatory until today.  If this article from the Daily Mail is to believed, this week a British Airways flight from London to Dubai had to turn back because of a terrible smell coming from the toilet.

Upon landing back in London, a politician on the flight tweeted the following:

Apparently what was supposed to be a brief delay turned into having to wait until the next day for a replacement flight.

Read more

Car2Go vs Zipcar: Which service is right for you?

Car2Go vs Zipcar: Which service is right for you? Many millennials find themselves thinking: Car2Go vs Zipcar.  At the age of 30, after having a car since I was 16, I decided to sell my car and not purchase a new one.  I live and work in downtown Seattle.  Financially … Read more

Mileage Run Istanbul

Mileage Run Istanbul

Mileage run Istanbul…via Houston and Paris.

Last night I couldn’t sleep and was checking out some of my favorite people I follow on Twitter.  I came across this tweet:

I was intrigued so I booked.  Here is why:

Read more

HBO for $12

HBO is the best content provider out there, although Netflix is gaining on it with original content like House of Cards, Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, and Orange is the New Black.  HBO has the best original content; past series like The Wire, The Sopranos, Band of Brothers, and new series like Game of Thrones, Veep, Last Week Tonight with John Oliver, and True Detective.  Until today you had to have a cable subscription (read: sell your soul to the evil empire) in order to get HBO.  But today that changed.

Read more

Single City: 24 Hours in Seattle

The “niche” I wanted to focus on with this website was for people who travel alone either by choice or by default.  As I’ve been writing entries, I’ve noticed that traveling along is not fundamentally different from traveling with a friend or group.  Except for the fact that you have a lot more independence to do whatever you want.

However, sometimes there are times were you are alone and unsure what activities would be more comfortable than others as a single traveler.  So I bring you the first installment of Single City; where I focus on activities in one city that are fun for someone to do by her/himself.  This week I start with my hometown (which naturally I know better than any other city):  Seattle.

Seattle Skyline

Read more

Hyatt Regency Santa Clara Review

I stayed at the Hyatt Regency Santa Clara for a weekend in October, 2014.  The hotel is older, my guess it was built in the mid 1980’s, and has a large footprint of 501 rooms.  The closest airport is San Jose (6 miles), a small airport that makes getting in and out easy.

IMG_0139

I assumed it would be quiet on a weekend when business travelers were at home, but was I wrong! This is definitely a conference hotel (it is attached to the Santa Clara Convention Center in the heart of Silicon Valley).  There were two conferences at the hotel (ironically neither were tech conventions); one was quilters the other was high schoolers. As you can imagine, I was disheartened to say the least. Luckily, the check in agent could tell I was not looking forward to a weekend with youngins, so he put me on the 13th floor away from the students. I thought he said he “upgraded” me as I am a Platinum HGP member, but it turned out that the only upgrade was that it was on a higher floor.

Read more

Alaska Airlines Spring Award Sale now live

Readers of my website know that I am a loyal Alaska Air passenger, so I was excited to see the Alaska Airlines Spring Award Sale today.  A big part of my loyalty to AS is not choice but the fact that 51% of all flights in and out of my local airport (SEA) are on Alaska.  Delta is gaining on Alaska, but only accounts for 14% of all flights.

Screen Shot 2015-03-06 at 8.56.39 AM

Alaska just announced their Spring Award Sale for Mileage Plan members.  You can score some great flights for 5,000 miles (+$2.50).  For example, you can fly SEA>SFO roundtrip for 10,000 miles (+$5.00).  

Read more

Gilt Warehouse Sale

Gilt Warehouse Sale

Gilt is a website that presents daily deals of fashionable, designer clothing at discounted prices.  While I am not a fashionista, I have browsed Gilt from time to time as I am a sucker for a good deal.

While planning my recent trip to Vegas, I came across a notice of an upcoming Gilt Warehouse Sale that was going to be in town the same dates I was.  REI has a similar Garage Sale a few times a year that I have been known to camp overnight so I can be one of the first ones in.  So I thought why not check out this sale.  However, I couldn’t find any details about what this sale really was or reports from anyone who had been.  I just had a the dates, times, and location of the sale.

Read more

Aria Las Vegas Review

aria las vegasThis past weekend I spent three nights at Aria Las Vegas, one of the Vegas mega properties located in MGM’s CityCenter.  Other hotels that share the CityCenter location are Vdara and Mandarin Oriental… as well as what is left of the Harmon (it is getting smaller each day as they demolish it).  Aria, with 4,004 rooms, opened in December 2009 and is considered MGM’s top property alongside Bellagio.

I have stayed at the Aria five or six times, it is my go-to hotel in Vegas.  Good location, luxury, and a great spa.  I received a deal through Mlife that got me a rate of ~$200* for Saturday night and ~$130* for Sunday and Monday nights (*I include the mandatory $32 resort fee in this price).  The deal also came with an included $200 resort credit that I could use at onsite restaurants, spa, or show.

Read more

The dishonest resort fee

I believe the most deceptive practice in the travel industry is the resort fee.  It is the complete antithesis to hospitality.  It is a made up revenue stream that serves NO purpose except to increase profits.  There is ZERO benefit to the hotel guest.  At least with an airline baggage fee you have the choice and get a benefit of not having to schlep around your bag.  Or with the prepaid fuel charge you don’t have to worry about filling up your tank before returning your rental car.  But resort fees serve no benefit to the customer.

Note: Resort fee does NOT cover slippers. Sorry.
Note: Resort fee does NOT cover slippers. Sorry.

This weekend I stayed at the Aria in Las Vegas.  Overall it is a great property and one that I’ve stayed at at least five times.  The daily resort fee is $32.48; which is a significant amount.  For my visit this ended up being an extra $100, or the price of one night.  I basically stayed three nights for the price of four.  On the Aria website it lists the amenities included with the resort fee:

Read more

Hyatt Regency Washington DC Review

A friend of mine won a raffle put on by the Washington State Lottery that included airfare, tickets to an NFL Playoff Game, and two nights at the Hyatt Regency Washington on Capitol Hill.

Bright atrium
Bright atrium

We stayed at the hotel Saturday-Monday in January.  The hotel overall was fairly quiet. Great location near the Capitol; but otherwise you will need to plan on a bit of a walk to anything.

On the weekend, prepare to travel a good distance for meals as there are no restaurants besides in the hotel and the hotel across the street. The food in the Hyatt is decent and moderate price, so not a big deal to eat there; but just realize you are eating in the hotel lobby. They have a nice shop that sells all sorts of snacks, water, drinks and even has a small cafe for coffee and pastries. The staff was great, always helpful and cheerful. We enjoyed talking with the doorman especially.

Read more

Alaska Airlines Price Guarantee

Never heard of the Alaska Airlines Price Guarantee?  Here is what you need to know.

IMG_0368

If you read this website with any regularity, you know that Alaska Airlines is my airline of choice.  Partially this is by default (I live in Seattle and SEA is their hub), but also my experience is that Alaska Airlines is the best domestic carrier out there.  Their crews are always professional and friendly, their loyalty program is top notch, and their customer service is wonderful.  But, they are NOT always the cheapest option.

However, I utilize a tool that has saved me hundreds of dollars over the past couple of years.  

Read more

Radisson Fisherman’s Wharf San Francisco Review

View from our room, over looking the courtyard and parking garage to the Bay.
View from the room, over looking the courtyard and parking garage to the Bay.

Today I read that the Radisson Hotel at Fisherman’s Wharf in San Francisco is being transitioned into Hotel Zephyr.  I decided to share here a review I wrote a year ago about my experience at the Radisson.  I was actually very happy with the hotel, mainly because it felt safe and was in a great location on the Wharf.  It also felt modern, so I am not sure how much work they will need to do for the transition.

I stayed for a weekend in November, got in late Friday and left Sunday evening. I booked directly through the Radisson website to get 10% off, however it was still expensive for what you get. But, this is the Wharf, and you are paying for the tourist location.

Read more

Hyatt Best Rate Guarantee can save you money

hyatt best rate guaranteeLearn how to use the Hyatt Best Rate Guarantee to save yourself money on your next hotel booking.

One of my favorite websites is flyertalk.com, particularly their forum section.  It has great reviews, tips on finding deals and guides on how to navigate frequent flyer programs.  One of the threads talks about Hyatt’s Best Rate Guarantee.  Basically the idea is that if you book on hyatt.com and find a cheaper rate on another website, they will match the price AND reduce it by 20%.  It is a great idea to get customers to book direct instead of through other travel websites.  The other benefit of booking direct through Hyatt is that you earn Hyatt Gold Passport points, not so if you book through another source.  I have a number of Hyatt reservations coming up over the next few months, so I decided to see if I could find cheaper rates from other websites.

Read more