Thalys

Taking The Train From Paris To Amsterdam. Athens & Paris For Dollars A Day

June 13, 2016By Edward Pizzarello4 Comments

Welcome to my multi-part review of our summer vacation. We spent 12 days abroad, predominately in Athens and Paris (and a half day in Amsterdam before heading home). Happy to answer questions as I finish up the series. We traveled in mid-July, so right in the middle of the Athens financial crisis. Here’s most of what I expect to cover, including links to posts I’ve already completed: Planning Our Summer Vacation! British Airways First and Business Class Lounges at Philadelphia Airport US Airways Business Class from Philadelphia to Athens […]

Top 10 Cheap Summer Vacation Destinations & 90% Off Hotels

The Best of the Rest is my effort to summarize all the travel/miles and points stories that interested me on a daily basis but didn’t have time to write about in length. Culled from over 100 blogs/authors I follow, some are passed along without comment, while I add my analysis to others. This is your shortcut to find out what’s going on in the travel world without having to read dozens of travel blogs to get all the best info.

Our Kids Fell In Love With Bear Canyon Ranch. We Did, Too.

A root beer challenge, S’mores bar, cowboys, camping and friends. All at 9,000 feet above sea level.

CHEAP $15 Flights Within The USA and New Starwood Credit Card Offers

A quick spin through the travel world with some information you’ll want to see.

Today Only: Why You Should Consider Buying Hertz Gold Rewards Points

These are likely to sell out pretty quickly today. These packages can save you a bunch of money on one-way rentals, SUVS and premium cars.

New Miles to Go Episode! All About Marriott/SPG & Alliance Partner Award Booking

This week Ed is joined by Gary Leff from View from the Wing for a deep dive on the most asked questions about the changes to Marriott and SPG’s new program – there’s so much that we couldn’t get to it all! Summer Hull from Mommy Points is back to talk about how to get to Europe in business class MUCH cheaper.

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. […]

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 […]

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 […]

Clarity On Restriction of American Airlines Ticket Sales in Argentina

There seems to be some clarity on exactly how American Airlines will handle restrictions for ticket sales in Argentina. I received the following information that was sent by American Airlines to ticket agents today: Argentina Point of Sale Restrictions September 26, 2014 American Airlines has implemented sales restrictions for Argentina point-of-sale on our flights to/from Buenos Aires (EZE), Argentina. These sales restrictions do not apply to point-of-sale outside of Argentina. Reservations can still be made or ticketed for travel on American and American codeshare (AA*/OA) flights for departures prior to: […]

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.