Weekly Review June 20, 2015

Weekly Review June 20, 2015

9

Hello from Salzburg!

I’ve spent the past two weeks in Germany with my family, and we’ve taken a bit of a detour to spend a few days driving through the Alps.

Salzburg

The scenery has been gorgeous, though the weather leaves a bit to be desired (as you can see below, with my mom trying to “enjoy some fresh air” in Bavaria)…

Kempinski


Featured Stories

Which Delta Partner Has The Best Business Class To Europe?

Copenhagen-canal

SkyMiles don’t have the best reputation, but the relative value is certainly increasing, especially for awards to Europe. There are several great partner options for travel to Europe, which combined with the increased sign up bonus on the Delta American Express cards can make for a great deal.


How To Stay In Norway This Summer for $80 Per Night

Norway is an expensive country to visit, particularly in summer. However, there are some great promotions that can reduce your costs to a fraction of what you’d typically pay.


Best No Annual Fee Credit Cards For Everyday Spend

Having no-fee credit cards can help with your credit longterm, and I’m often asked which cards are best for those who want to avoid annual fees. These are my current favorites for those looking for a good “everyday” card.


One Week at a Time Logo

TIPS: Earning Miles & Promos

Selecting My SPG Platinum 50 Night Benefit
Why You Might Not Want To Use The AmEx Premier Rewards Gold For International Purchases
Sheraton Free Weekends Promotion Terms Published
How To Stay In Norway This Summer for $80 Per Night
Earning Starpoints For Multiple Hotel Rooms Per Stay
Delta AmEx Cardholders: Free Shake Shack Today In New York
Why It’s Time To Take Another Look At Citi Prestige & Premier Cards
Get Your KLM Stroopwaffels Stateside Next Weekend!
Free One Day Silvercar Rental With Promo Code (Minimum 2 Day Rental)
Best No Annual Fee Credit Cards For Everyday Spend
5,000 Bonus Hilton Points Per Stay Through July 6, 2015
La Compagnie Introduces MyCompagnie Frequent Flyer Program
Is A 100% Bonus On IHG Points A Good Deal?
Register To Earn 5x Points On Gas & Kohl’s
$25 In Free Uber Credit For All Users – Act Fast!

TRICKS: Redeeming Miles

Redeeming American Miles On Hawaiian Will Get More Restrictive
We’ve Saved Clients $30,000 This Year With One Simple Phrase
AAdvantage Now Allows Routings From Europe To Australia Via Middle East
Which Delta Partner Has The Best Business Class To Europe?
American AAdvantage Increasing Award Costs For Select Peak Travel Dates
Taking Advantage Of JetBlue’s New Member Bonus & Family Pooling
Has Etihad Stopped Making A380 First Class Apartment Awards Available?

TRAVEL With Ben (Lucky)

Do You Leave Your Luggage Unattended In Airline Lounges?
When Hotels Invent Their Own Geography
What’s The Difference Between Airline Hard And Soft Products?
Should Hotel Suites Be Off-Limits To Kids?
My Most Major Minor First Class Annoyance

REVIEWS & Trip Reports

Review: Cathay Pacific Business Class A330-300 Male To Hong Kong
Review: Leeli Lounge Male Airport
Review: Park Hyatt Boat Transfer And Maldivian Dash 8 Kooddoo to Male
Review: Park Hyatt Maldives Resort Overview

NEWS & Updates

Kimpton’s CEO Chimes In On Future Of Kimpton Karma Rewards
Do Emirates, Etihad, and Qatar Serve Alcohol During Ramadan?
Cathay Pacific’s The Pier First Class Lounge Now Open
Tampa Airport Goes Above And Beyond To Make A Kid Smile
Nut Rage Executive May Soon Make Return to Korean Air
El Al Plane Has Engine Failure, Flies Another Five Hours To Save Money
After Winning Battle, Delta Cancels Seattle To Tokyo Haneda Flight
UAE Makes It Illegal To Swear In Text Messages
Americans Can Now Travel To Indonesia Visa Free
Airline Found Guilty Of Sexual Discrimination, CEO Says He Doesn’t Give A Damn
United Pulling Out Of JFK, Moving P.S. Flights To Newark
Qatar Airways CEO Claims Airline Is Profitable (Hah!)
Korean Air Will Fly 747-8 To Frankfurt Instead Of London
Turkish Airlines Starting Atlanta To Istanbul Flight In May 2016
Timeline Of How United Stranded And SLOWLY Rescued Hundreds In Goose Bay Canada
Someone At Qatar Airways Is Getting Fired…
Qatar Airways Is VERY Confused About Their Fleet
Frontier Removes Departure Time From Boarding Passes… And That’s A Good Thing
China Airlines Unveils New Star Trek-Themed Uniforms
United Strands Hundreds In Remote Goose Bay Canada For 20 Hours
This Is How NOT To Evacuate A Plane
I Experienced A Type Of Credit Card Fraud I Didn’t Know Existed


Thanks as always for reading, and hope everyone has a great week!

Conversations (9)
The comments on this page have not been provided, reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any advertiser, and it is not an advertiser's responsibility to ensure posts and/or questions are answered.
Type your response here.

If you'd like to participate in the discussion, please adhere to our commenting guidelines. Anyone can comment, and your email address will not be published. Register to save your unique username and earn special OMAAT reputation perks!

  1. Frank Member

    @Jorgen: the picture you were referring to as being taken in Copenhagen (which it probably is) is the THIRD one and it is related to the post "Which Delta Partner Has The Best Business Class To Europe?". First I got a little confused as well because I am absolutely feeling the unusually cold weather in Germany myself right now, but I thought snow on the roofs might be a bit much - only then to...

    @Jorgen: the picture you were referring to as being taken in Copenhagen (which it probably is) is the THIRD one and it is related to the post "Which Delta Partner Has The Best Business Class To Europe?". First I got a little confused as well because I am absolutely feeling the unusually cold weather in Germany myself right now, but I thought snow on the roofs might be a bit much - only then to realise that this picture could not have been taken in the last few days as the trees do not spot ANY leaves at all...
    @lucky: after having seen your photos on Instagram (the majority of which were obviously taken in Austria during the last week or so), it leaves us indeed wondering if there is some story behind your reluctance to mention the name of our southern neighbor country in this post.

  2. Thomas_888 Member

    With "enjoy some fresh air", you mean smoking a cigarette?
    ...just because in Germany, one sometimes say for fun when going outside for a smoke "Ich geh mal ein bischen frische Luft schappen" :-)

  3. AlexS Diamond

    Ben,
    I was driving down Ulmerton in Clearwater tonight and thought of you. There's a billboard advertising direct TPA-FRH on Lufty. Flights begin in September. Equipment appears to be an A340-300. Typical transcon schedule, depart TPA between 5pm-6pm, arrive FRH between 8am-9am. Looks like the airport paid $1M to Lufty to fly the route.

  4. Jorgen New Member

    Hi Ben,
    Salzburg where the photo is shown is not in GERMANY but Austria and second photo is from COPENHAGEN.
    One Q to aa.com reward with C class from DXB-AMM-LHR-BCN a Seating on RJ to LHR a no trouble but somehow BA want payment on C class reward - is this normal on BA?
    Thanks

    1. lucky OMAAT

      @ Jorgen -- First picture is in Salzburg, second picture is in Berchtesgaden, which I believe is in Germany. :)

      Indeed, BA does charge for seating in advance in business class, which is pretty ridiculous.

  5. Jack New Member

    Hi Lucky!

    I'm sorry that this is totally random and has nothing to do with this post, but do you plan on reviewing Air New Zealand's new 787-9 BusinessPremier class? I am just wondering because I am considering booking an award ticket on it soon, but I wanted to see how you review it (because we are a lot alike and I'm sure other readers would enjoy the post too). Thanks!

    1. lucky OMAAT

      @ Jack -- I'd love to at some point, though haven't yet. I really do want to return to New Zealand. So in all likelihood it won't be soon, but hopefully it happens eventually.

  6. Ismael Guest

    How does the hotel compare as Kempenski vs Intercontinental. I was there right before the transition and absolutely loved it.

    1. lucky OMAAT

      @ Ismael -- Virtually nothing changed. The staff now wear more traditional clothes and they redid the floor in the lobby, but that's all that changed.

Featured Comments Most helpful comments ( as chosen by the OMAAT community ).

The comments on this page have not been provided, reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any advertiser, and it is not an advertiser's responsibility to ensure posts and/or questions are answered.

Frank Member

@Jorgen: the picture you were referring to as being taken in Copenhagen (which it probably is) is the THIRD one and it is related to the post "Which Delta Partner Has The Best Business Class To Europe?". First I got a little confused as well because I am absolutely feeling the unusually cold weather in Germany myself right now, but I thought snow on the roofs might be a bit much - only then to realise that this picture could not have been taken in the last few days as the trees do not spot ANY leaves at all... @lucky: after having seen your photos on Instagram (the majority of which were obviously taken in Austria during the last week or so), it leaves us indeed wondering if there is some story behind your reluctance to mention the name of our southern neighbor country in this post.

0
Thomas_888 Member

With "enjoy some fresh air", you mean smoking a cigarette? ...just because in Germany, one sometimes say for fun when going outside for a smoke "Ich geh mal ein bischen frische Luft schappen" :-)

0
AlexS Diamond

Ben, I was driving down Ulmerton in Clearwater tonight and thought of you. There's a billboard advertising direct TPA-FRH on Lufty. Flights begin in September. Equipment appears to be an A340-300. Typical transcon schedule, depart TPA between 5pm-6pm, arrive FRH between 8am-9am. Looks like the airport paid $1M to Lufty to fly the route.

0
Meet Ben Schlappig, OMAAT Founder
5,163,247 Miles Traveled

32,614,600 Words Written

35,045 Posts Published

Keep Exploring OMAAT