Tag Archives: Uber

a sign on a stone wall

Recap: 3 Spring Training Baseball Games in 27 Hours (Dodgers & Angels Stadiums)

Posted on by . 2 Replies

Good morning everyone, happy St. Patrick’s Day!  Even though I am still recovering from my sunburn last weekend, I wanted to share some pics of my quick trip to Phoenix to watch a few Spring Training games.  If you haven’t already, please read my first Spring Training post and the comments: Spring Training Major League Baseball Games – Advice for a Rookie.  After looking at the Spring Training game schedule, I decided to go to 2 Angels games and 1 Dodgers game.

After looking for hotels close to the Angels stadium (Tempe Diablo Stadium), I settled on the Sheraton Phoenix Airport Hotel Tempe.  When I originally booked the stay, the cost was 3,000 SPG points for weekend nights (4,000 SPG points for weekday nights).  The hotel has since increased to 7,000 SPG points per night.  I am an SPG Gold Elite Member and was given access to the Club Lounge on the 4th floor.  The lounge is very small (8-10 small tables) and the food goes fast.  I recommend going to breakfast early before all the breakfast food is gone.

From the hotel, it is about a 25 minute walk to the Tempe Diablo Stadium.  You do need to cross over a freeway and walk through a cemetery, but the walk is nice.  If you have lots of Marriott points available, you could stay at the super conveniently located Phoenix Marriott Tempe at the Buttes for 35,000 Marriott points per night.

Sheraton Phoenix Airport Hotel Tempe to Tempe Diablo Stadium

Continue reading →

a close-up of a logo

Lyft Line Total Price Changes In-App in Real-Time due to Prime Time Rate Changes

Posted on by . 11 Replies

Good morning everyone.  I am not sure how helpful this post will be, but I found it interesting enough to mention (and nothing else exciting is going on in the miles and points blogosphere this week).  As I was returning to San Francisco from Mountain View via CalTrain (from my Mountain View miles and points meetup), I needed to request a Lyft ride home.  In San Francisco (and a few other cities), Lyft Line is the cheapest way to go.  The Lyft Line concept is pretty simple.  The Lyft app will connect you with other passengers heading to the same location or heading the same direction.  By “carpooling/carsharing” with other Lyft riders, you get a much cheaper ride.

This brings me to the point of this post.  All Lyft Line rides have a predetermined price listed in the app when you request a ride.  After I typed in my pickup location (San Francisco CalTrain Station) and my home address, I saw that the price was locked in at $5.34.  Since I was a few minutes away from the station, I didn’t want to request a Lyft Line right away (I didn’t want the driver and other passengers to wait for me).  1 minute later, at 3:40pm, the locked in price jumped up to $6.26.  I decided to wait a little longer and see if the price would go up or go down (preferably down).

Continue reading →

a blue credit card with white text

Chase Freedom + Uber in Europe = 5x Chase Ultimate Reward Points + Foreign Exchange Fees

Posted on by . 10 Replies

Good morning everyone, I’m here in Munich, Germany, today and flying to Venice, Italy, this evening.  I’ve had a few chances to use Uber in Europe (UberX both times) and wanted to share my thoughts.  Unfortunately, Uber is not as widespread as it is in the United States and is only available in a few European cities.  I have only taken UberX rides in Nice, France, and Munich, Germany.

UberX is always cheaper than traditional taxis (excluding surge pricing) and it can sometimes be cheaper than public transportation (buses and trains).  For short trips with multiple people, I would use UberX every chance I can.  Unfortunately, you need WiFi/data to access the Uber app.  I don’t have an international data plan, but I can connect to various free WiFi hotspots in airports, hotels, and cafes.  As long as you can request an Uber pickup, you do not need WiFi/data for the duration of the trip.  Your credit card will automatically be charged when your ride is over and you will receive an emailed receipt, like the one below.

Uber Receipt Munich

Continue reading →

a blue sign with white text

AMEX Offers for Amazon, Uber, Toys R Us, Burberry & More

Posted on by . 19 Replies

And I’m back!  Good morning everyone, I have quite a few new AMEX Offers to share with you this morning.  The best offer (in my opinion) is $15 off $60 at Amazon.  Who doesn’t love Amazon?

Amazon AMEX Offer

The second best offer is $10 off $20 for Uber.

Uber AMEX Offer

The third best offer is $5 off $25 for Toys R Us / Babies R Us.

Toys R Us Babies R Us AMEX Offer

Continue reading →

a close-up of a credit card

Vons/Safeway VGC & AGC $15 Off Coupon, Chime Card Offers for SWA/VA/Uber/Lyft/HotelTonight/Airbnb & BankAmeriDeals

Posted on by . 44 Replies

Good afternoon everyone.  If you can read and understand the title, you are an experienced travel hacker / MSer.  My friend Mike sent me a picture of a current promotion running at his local Von’s (Safeway) grocery store.  Purchase $150 or more in Visa or American Express Gift Cards and you will revive a coupon for $15 off your next $25 grocery purchase.  The promo is running from November 4 to 17 and the coupon must be redeemed within 7 days of your gift card purchase.  Assuming you buy gift cards on the last day of the promo (November 17), you have until November 24 (2 days before Thanksgiving) to redeem the coupon.  This coupon could be great if you have lots of Thanksgiving grocery store purchases to make.  I don’t know if you can redeem more than 1 coupon per transaction, but get creative.

Vons Gift Card Promo 11-7-17-2015

Here are the full terms of the promo:

Vons Gift Card Promo Terms Conditions 11-7-17-2015

Continue reading →