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Comprehensive guide on how to get to Asia from the US using URs, MRs, and TYPs

May 17, 2016 / / 2 Comments

I stumbled upon a very nice and comprehensive guide on how to effectively use your Chase UR, Amex MR, and Citi TYP to redeem for flight awards to Asia the other day. Given that I love travelling to Asia, this was perfect.

What Adam at the Jet Set Blog has compiled is a guide on the cost of awards from North America to Asia as well as details on how to book for every single airline transfer partner for each program. I haven’t found a guide this comprehensive before, and certainly not for the 3 major programs (excluding SPG). I personally got a lot of value out of the Membership Rewards part, as I hadn’t yet figured out what to do with the 50k I received for my PRG as well as the upcoming 100k from the Platinum card I just applied for. Continue reading →

FoundersCard Membership Signup Bonus of $100 Amex Gift Card –> How I’m Paying $235 for 2 Years

May 16, 2016 / / 5 Comments

UPDATE: if you used our referral links, could you please let us know? Apparently the referrals are not getting automatically tracked.

Hello everyone!

I’ve been getting bombarded for over a year by FoundersCard (referral link, see end of post for details) to join their program at a lifetime rate of $295/year. That wasn’t very appealing to me at the time, since I couldn’t justify how to get more than $295/year of value from the program. My friends Kenneth and Tonei were telling me about some of the great benefits. I’m going to rank them here as well as a few thoughts: Continue reading →

How to fix T-Mobile international data roaming on Android

May 15, 2016 / / 9 Comments

One of the reasons I switched to T-Mobile is because of the unlimited international data plan. Although the speed is limited to 2G, it’s really taken away the stress about how to get data while travelling. I mostly use it to look up directions, message people, and call taxis, and it has been super useful in situations where there isn’t any free Wi-Fi around.

Previously, my international roaming had been working flawlessly on my Nexus 6P, except for the fact that I had to manually select the T-Mobile compatible network when I arrived into a country. I play around a lot with custom ROMs for my phone though, and I had installed a new update a week or so before I left for Panama. Continue reading →

Some great credit card offers are back! Amex Platinum 100k and Citi AA 50k

May 9, 2016 / / 0 Comments

EDIT: That was fast, as expected. The Amex Platinum link is now down.

Via ChetHazelEyes through reddit r/churning, the American Express Platinum 100k offer is back publicly. It is 100k Membership Rewards points after spending $3k in the first 3 months. I applied, was approved over recon, and confirmed the bonus offer.

You can access the offer through this link:

https://www.americanexpress.com/us/credit-cards/personal-card-application/platinum-charge-card/45680-10-0-9FDBCE6021906661337CD8A012DD6469F630B68437904BAA-200002-?om_rid=NwDghd&om_mid=_BWhgfQB8z9YWiL&om_lid=axp19 Continue reading →

What happens when the Global Entry machines error out on you?

May 8, 2016 / / 0 Comments

Well you certainly don’t get to try again, as I found out. I was in Miami on the way back from Panama, chatting with some new travel hacking friends I met on the flight back. We headed over to scan our documents at the Global Entry kiosks. I was going through the standard answer the questions, take a picture, scan your fingerprints, and got the last screen, where it said “Validating information. Times out in 31 seconds” Continue reading →

Review: Aer Lingus business class SFO-DUB (and getting original mileage credit on AA!)

May 7, 2016 / / 0 Comments

“I wasn’t even originally supposed to be on this flight!” I exclaimed, as I was getting adjusted in my seat, in Aer Lingus business class going from San Francisco to Dublin.

So what had happened was I was originally booked SFO-JFK-DUB in American Airlines business class, leaving San Francisco Sunday at 8:50am and getting into Dublin at around 7:00am Monday. I got to the airport nice and early for my 8:50am departure, got to the gate… and the 8:50am departure slipped to 9:30am due to some mechanical issues. Nearing departure time again, I got called to the counter by the gate agent. Continue reading →

How I Hacked My Trip to Europe

May 6, 2016 / / 1 Comment

It occurred to me as I was writing some blog posts that as much as I talk about various individual hacks, I’ve never actually detailed a real set of redemptions I made, how I constructed a trip, and the final costs. I think it’s because they aren’t the most fun to write (because usually they’re not all that novel), but they can actually be pretty fun to read because they demonstrate what’s really possible with travel hacking. Continue reading →

Driving on the wrong side of the road again – Japan edition!

May 2, 2016 / / 2 Comments

After my first driving adventure on the other side of the road, I went on another trip to a country where you drive on the left side of the road, the land of the rising sun, Japan. Now with some experience, would my next time driving on the left side be as easy?

Before all of that, you might be asking, “Why drive in Japan? Isn’t there a great public transportation system over there?” And the answer is, normally you wouldn’t. The train system in Japan is very extensive, and with options like the JR Pass for tourists, you should be able to get to the majority of tourist areas for free or just with a charge for the last local connection. Plus, driving in Japan is expensive, with pricey car rentals and highway tolls. Continue reading →

Honesty, Revisited

May 2, 2016 / / 1 Comment

A few weeks ago I wrote a post that looked at my travel spending in 2015 with the goal of “keeping myself honest,” and see if I could notice any patterns of spending that I could reduce or eliminate as I progress into the year.

In it, I remarked that, unlike most people, I don’t actually net out my cash back rewards (or equivalents like Capital One Venture ‘Miles’) against my travel expenses, because cash is fungible with all other cash and doesn’t change the fact that I spent the money in the first place. Continue reading →

75,000 Point Sign-up Bonus for Mercedes Benz Amex Platinum

April 28, 2016 / / 0 Comments

This is the highest bonus we’ve ever seen on the card! It comes with all the normal benefits of the Amex Platinum, plus a few Mercedes-specific ones. Most importantly, however, it counts as a separate product under Amex’s once-per-lifetime rule.

The offer is a pretty standard $3,000 of spending within the first three months of opening the card. If you’ve been thinking of getting a Platinum card, I would jump on this, as the Business Platinum card bonuses typically have very high spending requirements, and good bonuses on the personal (non co-branded) card tend to be targeted and far between. Continue reading →

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