All the Right Points

October 9, 2016

The $500 Aloft

I'm working on a November trip to the UAE to head back to Al Maha and spend a bit of time in Dubai. I'll have more on the trip soon but we'll be flying back from Abu Dhabi aboard Etihad's 777 first class.

We needed an overnight in Abu Dhabi and hotel rates are insane. All three Hyatt properties are sold out. Both St. Regis properties are selling for $700 and $1200 respectively. The city is crazy that week due to the Abu Dhabi F1 Grand Prix. I would have loved to return to the Park Hyatt given our stay earlier this year essentially was rained out.

Cash or points?

We settled on the Aloft Abu Dhabi given the proximity to the airport and a couple of sites that we'd like to check out during our overnight. Rates were insane. The Aloft was selling for more than $500 with tax.

And this is why points open up the world. 3,000 SPG points (actually 9,000 Marriott points instantly transferred) scored us a hotel room worth $500. Is it the most aspirational use of points? Definitely not. But we need a hotel room and it should do. Full trip details coming soon.

October 2, 2016

Review: Turkish Airlines CIP Lounge Istanbul

Introduction
Introduction Part Two
Planning & Booking
Sheraton JFK Airport
Lufthansa Business Class Lounge JFK
Turkish Airlines Business Class 777-300ER New York (JFK) to Istanbul
Turkish Airlines Istanbul Arrivals Lounge
St. Regis Istanbul
Turkish Airlines CIP Lounge Istanbul
Turkish Airlines Business Class A330-300 Istanbul to Male
Transfer from Male to Conrad Maldives
Conrad Maldives
Transfer from Conrad Maldives to Male
Singapore Airlines Business Class 777-200 Male to Singapore
Crowne Plaza Changi Airport Singapore
Singapore Airlines SilverKris Business Class Lounge to Singapore
Singapore Airlines Business Class 777-300ER Singapore to Tokyo (HND)
Andaz Tokyo
ANA Suite Lounge Tokyo (NRT)
ANA First Class 777-300ER Tokyo (NRT) to San Francisco

The cab to Ataturk took around 25 minutes until we came to a complete stop in less than a mile from the airport. The cab driver flipped on the lights inside the cab so the police/military security could see our faces. Not the most high tech security measure. There was more security at the airport than I remember the last time (three years ago) but not the overwhelming show of force that I expected.

After another 20 minute of moving slowly, we finally reached the checkpoint were security offices scanned our faces and waved us through. We grabbed our bags and headed into the terminal. First a security checkpoint upon entering the terminal. Once through security, we struggled to find the Turkish Airlines business class check-in row. It was late and we were a bit tired but I don't think that was it. Being in the terminal just a few months after the attack and a month after the coup that halted airport operations was surreal. We both wanted to get through security again as fast as possible.

Turkish Airlines CIP lounge pool table

Check-in was smooth and we were soon on the other side of security making a left and walking maybe 100 yards to the lounge.

The last visit, the lounge was only one level. It's since been expanded and even more amenities added. Upon entering, you simply scan your boarding pass for admittance. No lounge dragons, just a giant lounge to explore and enjoy.

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How Long Do Starwood Household Transfers Take?

The Starwood/Marriott merger opened up a whole new world of possibilities. I've been stockpiling Marriott points for a rainy day (this one) and it definitely paid off. The 3:1 transfer and instant point transfer enabled us to move points into SPG's program in order to take advantage of Starwood's resort sale which is currently offering up many amazing properties at 35% off.

First, I exhausted Emily's Marriott account by moving all of her points into her SPG account at a 3:1 ratio. I then needed to move her Starwood points into my account via the "Household transfer." Starwood will let you consolidate points into another account with the same address (don't abuse this).

Starwood household transfer

Unfortunately, this isn't an instant process. Not sure if it's because they manually review each transaction for fraud or if it's just outdated technology. Either way, the delay is annoying when you are itching to book an award.

It's been awhile since I've made one of these transfer. Reports online mentioned this could take up to 5 business days!

Transfer out

Well I'm happy to report that I submitted the transfer on a Friday afternoon (9/23 - the day I she received the instant Marriott transfer) and the points were in my account on Tuesday morning (9/27). Technically I think that's only 2 business days.

Transfer in

Kudos to Starwood for allowing this and enabling it online (despite the slow process). Marriott offers spouse pooling of accounts but in my experience, it requires paperwork. Hopefully the merged company will improve upon Starwood's online transfer process!

September 25, 2016

Favorite New Hotel Amenity

One of the hardest parts of traveling is navigating. Today, we take our smartphones for granted. At home, we can make a dinner reservation, get directions, call an Uber, or Instagram all while trying not to get hit by a car crossing the street.

Internationally that's a bit more challenging, Yes, there are carriers (T-Mobile) that offer pretty good international cell phone plans but do those phones work as well at home?

I generally add 100MB of data and 100 minutes of voice calling to my Verizon plan each trip. $40 isn't cheap but it's an insurance policy against needing to call home, work, or use some data while out and about.

St. Regis Istanbul complimentary smartphone

The St. Regis Istanbul offers a free smartphone for the duration of your stay. The Samsung phone (first tab using a Samsung and I much prefer my iPhone 6S) was pretty easy to setup although I found the navigation a bit challenging. Regardless, we used the phone for maps, lunch recommendations, and weather.

I know more hotels are offering this as an amenity. Given the (at least locally) cost of cellular data has come down so much, this can't cost the hotel very much and was really a huge benefit for us. Kudos to the St. Regis Istanbul for offering a great amenity to guests!

Review: St. Regis Istanbul

We exited the airport and hopped in a cab for the 30 minute ride to the St. Regis. Our driver spoke broken English but I showed him the hotel address and location on my phone and he seemed to know where he was going. The ride was gorgeous - the sun was still coming up, traffic was light, and we drove along the Sea of Marmara most of the way into town. Istanbul is among our favorite cities in the world and the it felt so good to be back after all that's happened just enjoying the scenery.

St. Regis Istanbul views

We made it to the Nisanti area where the St. Regis is located and guided the driver to the hotel. He was on the phone and blew past the entrance.

St. Regis Istanbul exterior

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September 24, 2016

Using a British Airways Travel Together Ticket One-Way

The British Airways Chase Credit Card offers a 'Travel Together" ticket upon spending $30,000 in a calendar year. This means you can book two people in any class of service for the price of one. There are a couple of catches. First, travel must originate in the US. Second, the ticket is good for two years. Third, the cardmember earning the ticket must be one of the passengers. And the biggest catch is the you must pay the taxes/fuel surcharges on both tickets.

So you're essentially booking an award ticket for two for half the miles. I earned a travel together ticket back in late 2014 which was slated to expire in early December. If you do it right and book a first class ticket, the benefit is worth 200,000+ British Airways Avios. Not a bad deal for putting $30K in spend on one card.

One of the biggest complaints about the ticket is finding roundtrip award availability. I probably would have had no trouble had I booked further out but just started looking for a November trip a couple of weeks ago. While I wasn't able to found roundtrip availability that matched dates we could travel, I was able to find a day that worked for us on the outbound.

I actually had no idea that you could book the travel together ticket as a one-way! I found availability on the direct BA flight from Denver to London (which is great so we don't have to position anywhere) and from London to Dubai. I was able to search, book, and ticket everything online!

The total price for both first class tickets was 153,000 Avios and ~$1,550 in taxes. Even better, American Express is currently running a transfer bonus for Avios. With the bonus, I transferred 90,000 Membership Rewards points which became 108,000 Avios. Combined with my Avios balance, that was enough to book the ticket. So the actual ticket cost 135,000 Avios/MR points - not a bad deal for 2 in the pointy end of a 747 all the way to Dubai.

Especially considering the cash cost is running north of $12,000 per ticket!

Obviously we need to find a way home but with more options and less restrictions, that shouldn't be a problem. Stay tuned as the trip comes together!

Review: Turkish Airlines Istanbul Arrivals Lounge

After a solid flight from New York, we eventually found our way to the Turkish arrivals lounge. After customs, make a right and look for the Starbucks. The lounge is to the left.

Entrance to the Turkish Airlines arrivals lounge

The lounge is relatively new and I didn't find much online in terms of pictures/services. So I wasn't sure what to expect. I had read that the lounge is only open until around 11AM so only open for a handful (TK4 from JFK) of US departures.

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