Tag Archives: Travel

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The Sites, Smells & Tastes from 3 Days in Prague, Czech Republic

Good evening everyone.  A few weeks ago, my wife and I decided to book a last minute trip to Europe this summer with stops in Prague (PRG), Copenhagen (CPH), and Amsterdam (AMS).  We both had a fantastic time in Prague and I highly recommend visiting for a few days the next time you are in Europe.  Here are some of the highlights from our 3 days in Prague.

To get started, we used 65,000 KLM / Air France Flying Blue Miles + $242 in taxes/fees per person to fly Air France Business Class from San Francisco (SFO) to Paris (CDG) to Prague (PRG).  We then took a $22 Uber from the airport to MGallery Century Old Town Prague Hotel (part of Accor).  I booked 3 nights through the Citi ThankYou Travel Portal and used the $100 Hotel Credit from my Citi Premier Credit Card.  The hotel was a short walk from the Old Town Square and had beautiful charm and an awesome breakfast spread.  The total cost with the $100 Hotel Credit was $476, or $159 / night.  Here are more photos from the hotel website.  During our stay, I realized that MGallery was a brand under the Accor family of hotels and they have 120+ boutique hotels around the world, with the majority spread out around Europe.

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My Mix of Emotions about the Devastating Fires on Maui and Lahaina Town

Good afternoon everyone.  My heart goes out to everyone (residents, businesses, and visitors) affected by the terrible fires on Maui and the devastating images from Lahaina Town.  It is hard to find the right words to describe the terrible scenes from such a beautiful, tropical paradise.  I’ve been lucky enough to visit Maui a few times throughout my life and I have always made sure to spend a day or two walking around Lahaina.  Looking through my photos from Maui, here is the last one I took of Laura and I under the iconic Banyan Tree in the heart of Lahaina.

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Grant & Laura under the Banyan Tree in Lahaina (June 2022).

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2 Buy Hotels Points Promos Ending Soon: Wyndham (35%) & Hyatt (25%)

Good afternoon everyone.  I was working on my Buy Miles & Points Page and found 2 offers that end in the next week.  Always check the math to make sure that buying miles & points makes sense for you.  Do not buy miles & points speculatively unless you have a use in mind.  With that said, here are 2 offers that end soon.

Up first, Wyndham Hotels is offering up to a 35% bonus, depending on the number of Wyndham Rewards Points you purchase. This offer expires today – August 8.

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New Targeted Capital One Travel Discounts (Ex: $30 Off Flights to Montana on Any Airline)

Good afternoon everyone, I hope you had a great weekend.  Last month, I wrote PSA: Check for Targeted Capital One Travel Discounts (Ex: $75 Off Flights to Montana & $30 Off Flights to New Mexico).  In that post, I showed how to search your Capital One Travel portal to see if you had any targeted travel offers (usually discounts on hotels and flights to select states).  I took advantage of both offers ($75 off flights to Montana & $30 off flights to New Mexico) and continued to check daily to see if new offers would appear.

Thankfully, my persistence paid off and I found new offers in my Capital One Travel portal.  I only had 1 flight deal ($30 off flights to Montana), but I decided to take advantage of the offer and booked another flight to Montana.  As you can see, the $30 discount is applied to the total and you can pay the remaining balance with your Capital One Venture X Credit Card or Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card to earn 5x points on flights booked through the travel portal or pay with your existing Capital One points.

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Which Credit & Debit Cards are in my Wallet, ApplePay Wallet, and Travel Wallet? (August 2023)

Good morning everyone.  We all know the classic Capital One line, “What’s in your wallet?” (spoiler alert: no Capital One Credit Cards are currently in my real wallet), but I thought it would be fun to do this type of post monthly or every other month, depending on which credit cards I am currently using.  At last count, I currently have 40+ personal and business credit cards, but I don’t carry or use every credit card every month.  I treat my credit cards like tools in a tool box, each credit card has a specific use and no credit card is perfect for every situation.  I also have 3 “wallets” for my credit cards: the physical cards that I carry with me in my iPhone case, the credit and debit cards in my ApplePay Wallet, and the credit cards in my travel wallet (aka backpack) that I use when I travel.  I will go through my 3 “wallets”, but the cards in my ApplePay Wallet and travel wallet (aka backpack) don’t change very often.

Credit Cards in my iPhone Case / Wallet

Last week, I was approved for the Chase Ink Business Preferred Credit Card that currently offers a sign up bonus of 100,000 Chase Ultimate Rewards Points after spending $8,000 in 3 months.  I am meeting the minimum spend on this credit card by paying for a few home improvement projections, car insurance, and any other large purchase that will get me closer to my $8,000 minimum spending requirement.  I don’t have immediate plans for these 100K Chase Ultimate Rewards Points, but I can always use more Chase Ultimate Rewards Points.

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