Tag Archives: Delta Airlines

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My Alaska Airlines Bump: There’s a First Time for Everything

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There’s a first time for everything, and recently on an Alaska Airlines flight, I volunteered to be bumped. It’s not that I’ve never heard the call for volunteers before. We all have. But something about this time made me ask myself if now was the time and this was the opportunity to do it. After all, can a bona fide travel blogger NOT have a bump experience to talk about? Given the crazy day I ended up having, I’ll never forget my first time!

I was originally on a morning Alaska Airlines nonstop flight from San Diego to Boston. I’ve taken this flight before but always in the winter months. Apparently, since it’s the only nonstop of the day to Boston, it can get crowded. I heard the call for volunteers before we started boarding the flight.

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Great Circle Mapper: San Diego (SAN) to Boston (BOS)

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How are you Feeling about American Express Centurion Lounges these Days?

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Anytime you bring up the topic of American Express’s Centurion Lounges, you will get lots of differing opinions, which will include the good, the bad, and the ugly. And with the seemingly never ending changes to the various versions of the American Express Platinum Charge Card, both personal and business, including higher annual fees and reductions in rebates on Membership Reward Point tickets, there are even more discussions than usual about whether or not the cards are worth keeping.

But I’ve decided to keep mine, and the American Express Centurion Lounges are a big part of that decision. I also use these card benefits:

  • $200 airline fee credit, for incidental charges such as baggage fees, on a single airline of the cardholder’s choosing.
  • Starwood Preferred Guest (SPG) Gold Status and Hilton Honors Gold Status.
  • Airport lounge access through an expansion of the Global Lounge Collection. This includes Delta SkyClubs, Priority Pass lounges, and American Express Centurion Lounges.

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My 4 Favorite Airfare Deal Websites: The Flight Deal, Fare Deal Alert, Exit Fares & GTFO Flights

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Good afternoon everyone.  When I first meet people who love to travel but are not into travel hacking, they usually ask me what website I use to find the best airfare deals.  I usually recommend subscribing to a few airfare deal websites.  These sites find the best airfare deals and send out daily emails to their subscribers.  The 4 airfare deal websites I use are:

Each airfare deal website tracks different departure cities and no website tracks every city.  To begin, find your nearest city in the table to see which website you should use.  If you live near a large international airport, you will have several options.  Unfortunately, if you live near a regional airport or a smaller international airport, your options are limited or nonexistent.

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ICYMI: Travel News Roundup for Saturday, May 13, 2017

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Here’s all the news that caught my eye this week – let me know in the comments if I missed something important or helped you find something new!

Airlines + Miles

Air Canada announced they plan to end their contract with Aimia, the company that runs Aeroplan, and launch their own in-house loyalty program in 2020. Many questions remain, including what happens to existing Aeroplan balances and whether the miles will be worth anything after the transition. Aimia’s stock dropped 57% after the announcement. [Toronto Star]

Alaska Airlines lounges now offer access to Virgin America passengers traveling on paid or award (not upgraded) first class tickets. [Travel Codex]

Alaska also announced that they will extend elite status for a year for Alaska Airlines and Virgin America elite members who take time off of work for a new child. [Skift]

Air India is launching nonstop service from New Delhi to Los Angeles, Dallas-Fort Worth, and Washington Dulles. [Travel Codex]

Delta has partnered with LSTN Sound Co. to offer sleek, socially conscious noise cancelling headphones in its Delta One suites this summer. [Runway Girl Network]

Flying Blue miles can get you from the US to Hawaii on Delta for just 15,000 miles one way. [Travel with Grant]

Seattle-Tacoma International Airport is going to spend $38 million to create temporary bus gates in Terminal D while it works on a permanent airport expansion. [Travel Codex]

United is increasing its domestic presence out of SFO with more flights and bigger planes in response to Alaska’s expansion. [Travel Codex]

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Trip Recommendations for Saint Kitts and Nevis in the Caribbean

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Good morning everyone, happy Friday!  Tonight, I am going on a family vacation with my parents and brother to Saint Kitts and Nevis (which is in the Caribbean).  Here is the routing for my flight (thanks to Great Circle Mapper):

  • San Francisco (SFO) to Atlanta (ATL) to Saint Kitts and Nevis (SKB) on Delta Airlines using 27,500 Delta SkyMiles + $15.60 in taxes/fees
  • I will visit the SFO Centurion Lounge tonight and then visit a Delta Sky Club Lounge in ATL in the morning (both free since I have the American Express Business Platinum Charge Card)
  • Saint Kitts and Nevis (SKB) to Miami (MIA) on American Airlines using 10,000 British Airways Avios + $53.46 in taxes/fees
  • I have a long layover and need to go from MIA to FLL – I think I will stop by the beach for some lunch before going to FLL
  • Fort Lauderdale (FLL) to San Francisco (SFO) on Virgin America using 8,094 Virgin America Elevate Miles + $5.60 in taxes/fees

Unfortunately, I did not write down the flight prices at the time I booked these flights, but I remember getting pretty good value out of my miles when I booked these flights.

SFO-SKB RT Great Circle Mapper

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