Join a thrilling journey to Australia as the host recounts unforgettable travel tales, including a humorous midair encounter and delightful experiences at Qantas lounges. Hear about visits to the world’s largest LEGO store and the iconic Taronga Zoo, alongside tasty food adventures. Dive into the highs and lows of different airlines, as well as tips for navigating Sydney’s public transport. Finally, enjoy reflections on the charming cityscape, memorable gelato, and the breathtaking Sydney Opera House!

Dive into the world of everyday carry essentials for travel! Discover the benefits of carry-on luggage and explore top brands like Briggs & Riley and Tumi. The conversation highlights essential travel accessories, from portable fans to multi-charging cables. Compare travel clothes and everyday attire, with a nod to fan favorites like lululemon. Learn about eSIMs for seamless connectivity abroad and hear tips for parents traveling with toddlers. Packing strategies, luggage durability, and tech solutions make this a must-listen for any traveler!

Joey Redmond, a passionate traveler and co-host of the Travel Bros Podcast, dives into the evolving world of loyalty programs. He shares insights on the partnership between Alaska and American Airlines, discussing its potential impact on traveler perks. Joey also highlights strategies for maximizing hotel rewards, including points arbitrage and leveraging IHG status. He recounts his charming experience in Turks and Caicos, detailing unique hotels and critiques of the local airport. Tune in for practical tips to enhance your travel rewards game!

In this captivating discussion, Ryan Smith, a seasoned travel writer who has visited every country, shares his insights on the world of travel and points. He recounts his exhilarating first experience flying business class and dives into the allure of South America, sharing invaluable tips for savvy travelers. Ryan reflects on unique cultural encounters from his adventures in Nigeria and Bhutan, emphasizing the importance of understanding diverse cultures. The conversation also tackles major shifts in the airline industry, providing an intriguing look into the future of travel.

Dia Adams, a freelance travel advisor, dives into the wild world of loyalty programs and travel points. She shares her pet peeves about inconsistent bank rewards and the fallout from Google altering content visibility. The discussion heats up with takes on the Alaska-Hawaiian merger and surprising airline redemption tales. Listeners will appreciate her insights into Hotels.com’s One Key program and the quirky but valuable travel miracles from the past year, all wrapped in a lighthearted Festivus spirit!

Tom and Trevor delve into their Thanksgiving travels across Europe, sharing delightful anecdotes from Budapest and Vienna. They highlight the enchanting Christmas markets and the luxurious atmospheres of the Park Hyatt and Párisi Udvar. The duo navigates the challenges of family travel during the holidays, sharing laughs about flight mishaps and cultural quirks like European tipping. Their experiences encapsulate the joy and chaos of holiday globetrotting, leaving listeners inspired for their own adventures.

Kyle Potter, the editor of Thrifty Traveler, shares insights into the ever-changing world of airfare trends, emphasizing the rising opportunities for premium travel on a budget. He discusses the evolving landscape of award travel and offers a glimpse into future travel predictions for 2025. Kyle also recounts a touching story from his trip to Hanoi, illustrating the magic of human connections while traveling. Plus, he highlights the benefits of Thrifty Traveler Premium, showcasing how it helps savvy travelers snag the best deals.

Dive into the changing world of airline travel, with Delta's drastic changes in first-class sales creating new strategies for frequent flyers. Discover how co-branded credit cards can complicate loyalty and the diminishing value of elite status. Learn to rethink your travel approach, focusing on flexibility and actual needs rather than chasing elusive rewards. Lastly, explore the power of community in optimizing travel experiences, making informed decisions, and maximizing your mileage.

Episode 45: Show Notes. We’re always looking to try new things, but our recent trip to Colombia and Spain unlocked new levels of exploring the unknown! We centered the trip around 1 single itinerary, and didn’t have our flights home until more than halfway through the trip. Our exploration of two cities begins in the one with higher altitude than we’re used to: Bogotá, Colombia, and we explain how we devised our itinerary and why we insisted on flying LATAM. We assess the Priority Pass restaurant options at Houston Airport, how Bogotá welcomed us (and especially Thomas!) with a feast of local delights, what hotel hopping is like in Colombia, the attractions and activities of Colombia’s sprawling capital, and the exercise one can get traversing the El Dorado airport lounge. Then, we unpack everything that happened on our flight to our second destination, Madrid, with a brief interlude to the recent spate of airline alliance dissolutions. We discuss our first experience of AC Hotels by Marriot, how exploring new areas in Madrid led to a wonderful steak dinner for Trevor’s birthday, why we changed flights multiple times and what these changes cost, and why many hotels are choosing to consistently shuffle their inventories. To end, we detail the trip home via Germany on Lufthansa First Class, why Lufthansa’s onboard lavatory system always leaves us scratching our heads, the joys of Global Entry’s Mobile App, and an important event to look forward to on the 9th of December, 2024.  Key Points From This Episode: [0:00:57] A tale of two cities and a diversity of altitudes. [0:01:41] No holiday left behind.  [0:02:49] How we devised our itinerary for Columbia, and why we insisted on flying LATAM.  [0:05:43] From Bogotá to Madrid, and every other flight in between.  [0:10:34] The Priority Pass restaurants that we visited at the Houston airport before departure. [0:15:16] Arriving in Bogotá, the Grand Hyatt, and a feast of local delights.  [0:19:36] Hotel hopping in South America, and our experience of the JW Marriot. [0:25:09] The Salt Cathedral, Monserrate Hill, and other attractions and activities in Bogotá.  [0:36:28] Why we loved the El Dorado lounge and everything from our flight to Madrid. [0:42:21] How airlines divorce themselves from their alliances.  [0:43:43] Landing in Madrid and trying something different – the Hyatt Madrid Residences.  [0:48:00] Exploring new areas of Madrid, and Trevor’s delightful steakhouse birthday dinner.  [0:51:14] A new hotel brand experience: AC Hotels by Marriot. [0:55:48] Discussing the modern shuffle of hotel inventories.  [0:59:30] The many flight changes from our trip and what they cost.  [1:01:44] Luxury remote stand experiences, Lufthansa First Class, and friendly faces abroad. [1:06:02] Unpacking Lufthansa’s lavatory system and unmatched onboard service  [1:13:30] Why we hope for the return of mobile lounges, and the joys of the DFW Mobile App. [1:22:10] What you can look forward to on the 9th of December in Arlington, Virginia.  Quotes: “[Bogotá] reminded me my of first trip to Bangkok and having pomelo; rose apple, and all these tropical fruits that you don’t find here in North America — that’s part of the joy of traveling; going to other environments; other places and being able to experience the local product.” — @TKtweetsKim [0:18:30] “For better or for worse, I feel like Bogotá is a city of ‘glad I did it once and checked the box.’” — @tmount [0:29:17] “LATAM, for the price of the ticket, I felt like we got very good value, but I don’t see that as a ‘go out of my way to do.’” — @tmount [0:41:10] “The thing that insulates us is we do have this miles and points hobby that helps quite a lot – we can at least utilize other currencies other than dollars or euros to help shoulder some of the burden of that financial cost.” — @TKtweetsKim[0:54:30] “Sometimes, you’ve just got to accept [paying more to change flights] to get the experiences you want.” — @tmount [1:01:37] Links Mentioned in Today’s Episode: LATAM Airlines  Priority Pass  Emirates   Cadillac Mexican Kitchen & Tequila Bar  Landry’s Seafood  United Club  Grand Hyatt  JW Marriott Hotel  Monserrate Hill  El Dorado Lounge  SAS Star Alliance  Qatar  Hyatt Regency Madrid Residences  AC Hotels by Marriot   José Andrés  Lufthansa  DFW’s Mobile App  Coles Thomas Kim on X Trevor Mountcastle on X

Episode 44: Show Notes. Lufthansa’s First Class is revered as one of the more aspirational airline products to flight; Lufthansa’s First Class Terminal (FCT) is among the top 3 airline lounge experiences, and Trevor and Thomas both agree. Miles and Points expert and writer JT Genter joins us to share about himself, and to discuss his first Lufthansa First Class experience. JT and his wife, Katie, are digital nomads, and our conversation begins with a brief look at their recent jam-packed travel schedule. After JT details his approach to living as a digital nomad, he offers some advice, recommendations, and strategies for life on the road. JT's retelling of his LH F experience begins with how he met Trevor at the airport in Frankfurt, Germany, before moving on to his arrival and overall impressions of the Lufthansa FCT. He then describes how he felt about the food, drinks, and service aboard Lufthansa’s Retro livery, and why he can’t wait for his next LH F experience. Somewhere in between, we discuss the degradation of travel apps like ExpertFlyer and why this loss of value is a common industry trend, and to end, JT describes his roles and responsibilities as a travel blogger and as the Editor-In-Chief at AwardWallet, and how he would fix common industry pain points to give miles and points a better future.  Key Points From This Episode: [01:20] JT Genter details his professional history and how he entered travel.  [04:03] A quick look at his recent (and extensive!) travel log.   [05:26] JT’s approach to living as a digital nomad.  [10:03] His experience of traveling to Calala Island, and where Hyatt and Hilton fit in.  [11:05] JT’s advice and recommendations for life as a digital nomad.  [14:42] How Trevor and JT ran into each other in Germany.    [17:02] JT’s first-ever Lufthansa First Class (drinking game trigger word!) experience. [20:50] Why many flight apps like ExpertFlyer are rapidly decreasing in value.   [25:18] Getting back to JT’s first-class experience as he walks us through his airport arrival.   [26:57] His thoughts on the lounge in Frankfurt. [33:25] Lufthansa’s unique first-class terminal adventure.  [36:30] Unpacking JT’s in-flight experience aboard Lufthansa’s Retro livery.   [39:40] How he felt about the food, drinks, and onboard service.   [43:18] His final thoughts on flying Lufthansa First Class for the first time.  [44:33] Shifting gears as JT explains his role and responsibilities at AwardWallet.  [45:42] Our guest shares his perspective on the future of miles and points, with some suggestions for fixing common industry pain points.  [53:02] How to connect with JT.  Quotes: “It’s now been seven years [that] we’ve been full-time digital nomads. – We want to slow down, but we’re not anywhere close to settling down.” — @JTGenter [03:51] “The crew was very welcoming once we got on board. We had an incredible crew, probably some of the nicest flight attendants we’ve ever had, which seems to be par for the course with Lufthansa.” — @JTGenter [37:25] “The whole Park Hyatt motto of ‘luxury is personal’ is so true. Not one size fits all.” — @JTGenter [39:04] “I can’t wait to [fly Lufthansa First Class] again!” — @JTGenter [43:27] Longer Quotes: “The people who are writing about points and miles choose not to write about [the best travel hacks] because they don’t want to kill it off, or they don’t go through the experience themselves. There are a lot of people in the miles and points community who write about it but don’t really live it.” — @JTGenter [47:32] Links Mentioned in Today’s Episode: JT Genter JT Genter on X JT Genter on LinkedIn JT Genter on Instagram  JT Genter on Threads  Katie Genter on X  Adventures of JT and Katie  JT and Katie's Travel Schedule AwardWallet  Lufthansa  ZorkFest  Calala Island Hyatt Hilton ExpertFlyer  SeatGuru AeroLOPA  Chicago Seminars  AwardHacker  ITA Matrix  Seats.aero  EasyPASS  Park Hyatt Thomas Kim on X Trevor Mountcastle on X