Showing posts with label Bangkok. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Bangkok. Show all posts

May 4, 2014

Suite Trip to Bali: Introduction

Introduction
Planning & Booking
Sheraton JFK
Asiana 777 First Class Suite New York to Seoul
Asiana First Class Lounge Incheon
Asiana 767 Business Class Seoul to Bangkok
Novotel Bangkok Suvarnabhumi Airport
Thai Airways Business Class Lounge Bangkok & Royal Orchard Spa
Thai Airways 777 Business Class Bangkok to Bali
Four Seasons Bali at Sayan
St. Regis Bali Resort
Exploring Bali
Singapore Airlines 777 Business Class Bali to Singapore
Conrad Singapore
Exploring Singapore
Singapore Airlines The Private Room
Singapore Airlines First Class Suite Singapore to Los Angeles

We are rapidly approaching our next big trip to Bali and Singapore and getting pretty pumped.  We originally booked this trip for February of this year but had to move it due to a family commitment.  More on this during the Planning & Booking post.  I'm posting this a bit early to motivate me to write a complete trip report this time for your enjoyment.

The change actually worked out for the best.  We are now taking the trip at the same time as our second wedding anniversary so while it wasn't the original plan, we now have a pretty "suite" anniversary trip booked.  Plus the weather is better in Bali in July vs. February.

Four Seasons Bali at Sayan Pool








Over the past few years, I've put together half a dozen "big" trips for Emily and me and also helped a few others do the same.  But I have to say this is the best I've ever done in terms of destination, itinerary, use of points, etc...

The route to Bali and back - 23,309 miles in the air

We knew we wanted to go to Bali and it was just a question of when to go, how to get there, and where to stay.  I knew that I wanted to fly Singapore Suites First Class (with the famed "double bed") on one leg of the trip but I knew that scoring two tickets would be challenging.  What I didn't know when setting out to book this trip was that we would end up in suites first class (defined as a seat with a closing door) on both legs of the trip - all made possible with miles and points!  We also decided to break up the trip with a couple of nights in Singapore before flying home.

Next, I will cover the specifics of the booking process, miles/points used, and itinerary so you can think about how to take your own trip to Bali!

April 8, 2014

Triple Dipping on Bangkok Hotel Reservation

On our way to Bali this summer, we have an overnight in Bangkok.  Our flight from Seoul lands at 10:30PM and our flight to Bali departs the next morning at 9:00AM.  We thought about heading into Bangkok for the night but decided it would be easier to overnight at the airport, get a good night sleep and enjoy a free massage in the Thai Airways Royal Orchard Spa in the morning.

There is a Novotel hotel connected (5 minute walk) to the Bangkok airport.  Over the weekend I checked rates for the property on the hotel's website and found that it was going for a prepaid AI rate of $138 USD.  I then used evReward to see if I could earn some points on my booking.

A quick overnight here before Bali




Hotels.com was offering 5x Ultimate Rewards points so I checked out the rate for the hotel and found it was exactly the same.  Excellent...time to triple dip:

  • I booked the hotel (for $138) through the Ultimate Rewards mall earning 738 points  
  • I paid with my Chase Sapphire Preferred card earning an additional 296 points including the 7% dividend
  • Hotels.com also has a rewards program where you can earn a free night after booking 10 nights

I value the Ultimate Rewards points at $21 and the hotels.com credit at around $10.  Thus my total "rebate" is $31 on spend of $138 which is a 22% discount.  Well worth the extra ten minutes it took to check a couple of things out before booking the overnight.