Sicily

United Airlines Adding New Routes to Europe and Caribbean, Increasing Frequency

August 22, 2019By Edward Pizzarello0 Comments

Looking for new destinations in the Caribbean? How about exploring Sicily? United rolled out a number of new routes and expanded service this morning, with a focus on heavy business class configurations.

A Recent E-mail Reminds Me Of The Primary Reason I Love Blogging!

May 21, 2018By Edward Pizzarello0 Comments

Hearing from readers is awesome. Hope you like the story!

Wrapping Up Sicily, Salzburg And Vienna

August 28, 2017By Edward Pizzarello4 Comments

Places are sections of a quilt. We make that quilt bigger the more we travel. Some sections, or squares, have vivid pictures. Others, just an abstract of a long-ago memory. They’re all wonderful. My kids’ happiness won’t necessarily be the size of their quilt, but rather the detail. I can’t wait to add some more squares.

A Day In Siracusa, Italy

June 17, 2017By Edward Pizzarello0 Comments

Siracusa has archaeological areas to explore, small beaches, shops and restaurants. It’s an easy day trip from Catania.

Walking And Eating In Downtown Catania, Sicily

June 15, 2017By Edward Pizzarello0 Comments

Catania is a vibrant city center with a busy, urban core. We didn’t spend a ton of time downtown, but here’s a few spots to consider if you’re headed to Catania.

Exploring Mt. Etna, An Active Volcano

June 7, 2017By Edward Pizzarello3 Comments

We’ve never had the opportunity to climb an active volcano. Mount Etna, via Sapienza Refuge turned out to be one of the highlights of our Sicily trip.

Sicily And Salzburg. Our Favorite Part of Taormina

June 5, 2017By Edward Pizzarello0 Comments

We’ve been so lucky in our travels to discover some real gems. Food is a big motivator to me when we travel. I love experiencing the best local cuisine a place has to offer. That’s what makes this experience our favorite part of Taormina.

A Return To Taormina, A Beautiful City On A Hill

June 4, 2017By Edward Pizzarello0 Comments

Taormina is a special place for us. We’ve been before and can’t wait to go back again. While there are plenty of hotels there, we’ve always chosen to stay elsewhere and make Taormina a day trip.

No, Really. This Was An AWESOME McDonald’s. In Sicily.

May 29, 2017By Edward Pizzarello19 Comments

Pastry Case

Fresh-squeezed orange juice, quinoa salad, polite staff who bring our order to your table? This is just a different set of Golden Arches.

Hotel Review: Sheraton Catania, Sicily

May 27, 2017By Edward Pizzarello3 Comments

This was our second time back at the Sheraton Catania. This hotel is a bit of an odd property, but a pretty good value for point redemptions.

My First Travel In 5 Months Shows Why Details Matter Right Now

I boarded a plane in New Zealand in early March, bound for the United States. While I sat on the tarmac the US announced they were closing the borders to pretty much all travelers arriving from Europe. At the time, it seemed surreal. When I landed in the US, I spent a few days working in Las Vegas. While I was there, school was cancelled for two weeks at our home in Virginia. I finished my work and headed home. At the time, I expected to stay home for a […]

WHOA: A Week In A Maldives Overwater Villa For $2,000 (Refundable)

There have been some insane travel deals the past few months, but most of them have been for travel now (or in the near future). Now, my buddy Richard Kerr has found an incredible deal on TravelZoo. For $2,000 you get 7 nights in an overwater villa, including all taxes and fees. It also seems to have pretty generous refund rules. The resort appears to be called You and Me. And, it has a pretty awesome looking underwater restaurant (which you get to dine at once for free). Two things […]

American Express Begins Reopening Centurion Lounges

American Express has been able to boast some of the best airline lounges in the United States since they opened their first Centurion Lounge in 2013 at Las Vegas-McCarran International Airport. When the pandemic began halting most travel in March, American Express closed all 12 of their lounges worldwide. While American, Delta and United Airlines temporarily closed a number of their lounges in the United States, they did keep some open. Additionally, the Big 3 US airlines have slowly been reopening lounges and have also recently announced increases in the […]

Bring Your Kids To School At The Four Seasons And Sneak Away To Disney World

School will take on many different meanings for students across the country this year. If your child’s school is in online learning mode (or you’re home schooling) and you have cash to burn, the Four Seasons in Orlando has a new package you might be interested in. For $50 per day, the Four Seasons will provide a desk in a quiet work environment for your child on school days. They’ll also feed them lunch. Dubbed “schoolcation”, Four Seasons has introduced a variation on the traditional kids club that I don’t […]

What I’m Thinking About On 9/11

The last 5 months have gone by incredibly fast and incredibly slow for me, if that makes sense. So many things continue to change, and at a sustained pace I don’t recall seeing in the past. Amidst that backdrop, I’ve been thinking about 9/11 and what it means to me and to the country as a whole. It seems impossible to me that we’re only one year away from 2 decades since the twin towers fell. Growing up in New York, the towers were an iconic part of the skyline. […]

I Flew Frontier, Saved $400 And Didn’t Die. My Frontier Airlines Review

Those low-cost carriers always have very appetizing fare sales. Who wouldn’t want to pay $20 to fly somewhere? But, what does $20 really buy you? I found out exactly what Frontier does (and doesn’t) offer customers on my first flight with them recently.

How To Use New Metro Silver Line To Get Between Dulles and Reagan National Airports

People talk about how bad the traffic is in places like Los Angeles with plenty of adjectives. And, it is quite bad. But, the traffic in DC is what I refer to as “stealthy bad”. It doesn’t get the same press that LA traffic does, but a trip that normally takes an hour can easily turn into a 3-hour ordeal. With visiting dignitaries, protests and construction as variables, weather can also wreak havoc on a system that consistently backs up during rush hour. For those of us that live in […]

A Summary Of United Airlines Global Services Benefits

As travel has gotten more stressful the benefits of elite status are even more valuable. In some cases, what used to be free for everyone is now only free for those customers that fly most frequently. I value my American Airlines Executive Platinum status more highly than any status I’ve earned, including 1K service with United Airlines. However, Global Services is another matter. For those not aware, Global Services is an invitation-only status level that United bestows on their best customers. What defines a best customer? Well, United doesn’t list […]

Update: American Airlines Variable Choice Plus Pricing A Feature, Not A Bug

I have to admit, I was pretty pleased with the original announcement that American Airlines was creating bundled pricing that included change fees at a lower apparent cost. Things got a little better when American also announced they were expanding the timeframe you could request a same day change to your flight. And, then things started to get a bit screwy. It started with just one flight I couldn’t get to price right with Choice Plus as an add-on. But, then I did a bit more digging and found out […]

Is Foursquare Dead?

Venture Beat doesn’t think so, and I’m not 100% sure they’re wrong. But, before I discuss the article, a little background on why someone allergic to social media like me became a Foursquare nut. A few years ago, a company called TopGuest came up with this concept where you could earn airline miles and hotel points for checking in at various places on Foursquare. I can’t say I thought it was a terribly good business model, but they convinced a bunch of hotel chains to hand out miles for this. […]