Why I Think SPG Points Are Overrated
The SPG Amex card has long been a staple in the travel hacking world. People love their SPG points, as well as their Starwood status. SPG points are one of the hardest points currencies to accrue given...
View ArticleOn Bloggers’ Intentions and the Adversarial Nature of this Space
Apparently, one of my posts has consistently reappeared on the BoardingArea front page over the past couple of months. First, let me say that I have no direct control over what appears on the...
View ArticleOn Transaction Utility or the Benefits of Feeling Like You Got a Good Deal
Let’s take a hypothetical example. Imagine that there’s a hotel that retails for $500 a night. Alternatively, you can pay 15k points a night to cover the cost. These points are flexible points and...
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2015 Year in Review
2015 was a year of big changes for me: I quit my job, moved across the country, and started the next chapter of my life. Because of these changes, my travel patterns changed pretty drastically, but I...
View ArticleHow Much Trouble Should I Endure to Fly a Specific Product?
I’ve got a trip to Southeast Asia planned for later this summer, and I was planning on flying Qatar’s and Etihad’s A380s in first class on the way back. I’d fly BKK-DOH-AUH-JFK, giving me a chance to...
View ArticleWhat Distinguishes Good from Great from Outstanding Customer Service?
I’m currently staying at the Danna Langkawi, a hotel that–at least according to its Trip Advisor reviews–should have outstanding customer service. I haven’t had what I consider an outstanding...
View ArticleNow, even the NYTimes is writing about the CSR…
You know it’s bad when even mainstream media outlets like the New York Times are writing about a credit card and the buzz it’s generating. (In full disclosure, I applied and was approved for a Chase...
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2016 Year in Review
2016 has been a great year, but relatively quieter for me in the travel department. I only flew 106,505 butt-in-seat miles, and I’ve stopped chasing status on airlines. While Alaska maintains an...
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2017 Year in Review
In 2017, I flew 99,238 miles, which is the first time since 2012 that I haven’t crossed the 100k miles mark. Surprisingly, in spite of using miles for many of my long-haul trips, I somehow qualified...
View ArticleCashback Dominates Miles for Most People
Whenever people find out about my involvement in this “hobby”, one of the first questions that comes up is, “what credit card should I get?”, or some variant of that. And really, my advice to almost...
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