We’ve almost reached the end of the 2025 flights. We’ve only got 3 more to do, and, interestingly, they’re all Delta flights. I’m not sure exactly how that happened, but they were three separate trips where Delta flights made the most sense (especially in the context of me still having Delta Platinum status). In November,Continue reading “2025 home stretch: JFK-SFO with a free upgrade to DeltaOne!”
Author Archives: Michael
The Bilt Obsidian Card
Now that I’ve introduced the new Bilt ecosystem, it’s time to go through the new cards on offer. The new no annual fee card I covered in the initial post, but they have introduced two additional cards at the $95 and $495 price points, which are intended to compete in the mid-tier and the premiumContinue reading “The Bilt Obsidian Card”
The New Bilt Ecosystem and Cards
Several years ago, I wrote an article about the rent payment startup, Bilt. Their entire premise was to let you earn points on rent, which for many people, is a major expense that has historically been paid by check or ACH and thus has been ineligible to earn rewards points. In creating the new paymentContinue reading “The New Bilt Ecosystem and Cards”
2025’s big trip: India! Part 5B: LHR-SFO in BA First Class on the A380
Now it’s time for the main event. British Airways First Class from London to San Francisco! I got to the plane relatively late in the boarding process because of the amount of time that it took to get from the Concorde Room to the C gates (and wanted to take some additional pictures before headingContinue reading “2025’s big trip: India! Part 5B: LHR-SFO in BA First Class on the A380”
2025’s big trip: India! Part 5A: LHR Concorde Room
It’s finally time to finish up the trip to India! I’ve been in the process of moving locally for the last month and so have been bogged down by that, so these have been coming out a bit more slowly than I would’ve liked, but here we are: British Airways First Class from London toContinue reading “2025’s big trip: India! Part 5A: LHR Concorde Room”
IHG Premier Business Card
The final card in the IHG card review series is the Premier Business Card, which is the business version of the IHG Premier Card and comes with a $99 annual fee. I haven’t yet been convinced to swap over to IHG, but by coincidence, where I’m planning to move next month is beside a HolidayContinue reading “IHG Premier Business Card”
IHG Premier Card
Next up in the IHG card review comes the Premier Card, which is the next step up from the IHG Traveler Card and comes with a $99 annual fee. After a nice stay recently at the Kimpton Marlowe in Cambridge, these cards have been on my mind, but I don’t know if I’ve been convincedContinue reading “IHG Premier Card”
2025’s big trip: India! Part 5: MAA-LHR
After a week in India, it was time to return to Europe. I don’t generally leave reviews of hotels or destinations, and this time is no different. The summary of my trip is that I really enjoyed visiting the granite temples of Mahabalipuram and really did not like the Somerset Greenways Chennai. The Leela PalaceContinue reading “2025’s big trip: India! Part 5: MAA-LHR”
IHG Traveler card (2025 update!)
We’ve covered Hyatt, Marriott, and Hilton’s cards, which are some of the most valuable hotel programs in the world. The next program of note is with IHG. IHG has a wide variety of hotels, including Holiday Inn and Kimpton. Holiday Inns aren’t exciting hotels, but Kimptons often are very nice. I’m not very familiar withContinue reading “IHG Traveler card (2025 update!)”
Guest post from the other Michael: Emirates Business Class from Melbourne to Dubai
The other Michael recently completed a trip to Europe from Australia (he has now moved to Australia), which reminded him that a few years ago, he flew Emirates back from Australia to Europe and got a free operational upgrade from Melbourne to Dubai. He ended up with a (very) expensive economy ticket back from AustraliaContinue reading “Guest post from the other Michael: Emirates Business Class from Melbourne to Dubai”
