A Delayed Honeymoon: Part 6 – Maldives to Dubai
October 12, 2015

Previous Trip Notes:
A Delayed Honeymoon: Part 5 – Park Hyatt, Maldives
A Delayed Honeymoon: Part 4 – Getting to the Park Hyatt Maldives
A Delayed Honeymoon: Part 3 – Hyatt Capital Gate, Abu Dhabi
A Delayed Honeymoon: Part 2 – EY130 First Class
A Delayed Honeymoon: Part 1 – Baltimore > IAD & Etihad Lounge

Our speedboat ride in the late afternoon, while light outside, was a much different experience than the drug-smuggling-esque ride getting to the Maldives. The water was beautiful, and the scenery spectacular (imagine remote islands flying by). We shared the ride with another couple who was heading back to Seattle. On the boat, we struck up a conversation on flights…and sure enough, the two Business Class award space tickets on Etihad from Maldives to Abu Dhabi were not available because this couple had booked them; although I didn’t feel to bad. They had booked them 11 months in advance, and I had just started planning the trip about 6-7 weeks prior.

Speedboat Ride to the Airport

 

We Could Actually See the Islands Passing By This Time

Arriving at Kooddoo Airport

We arrived at the large Kooddoo airport via buggy:

Airport Transportation from Speedboat

Security at Kooddoo Airport

The Entire Airport Gate Area

Our Plane

The airstrip was probably the shortest I’ve ever seen:

Airstrip – Kooddoo Airport, Maldives

Airstrip – Kooddoo Airport, Maldives

Kooddoo Airport, Maldives

Going back, we had a touch-down in Kadhdhoo airport. That added about 45 minutes to the trip. When we made it back to Male, we were greeted by a Hyatt representative who helped us with our bags and took us to the international terminal. We made it through security and customs rather quickly, and then made our way to the Leeli Lounge. Having an AMEX Business Platinum card – and thus Priority Pass access, American Airlines Executive Lounge card, and a dozen lounge passes for a myriad of programs, we never worry about lounge access. Unfortunately, in Male, unless our AMEX was an Asian-issued card, you couldn’t get into this lounge, and thus we were out of luck. The couple that we were on the speedboat with asked if they could bring us in, but guests were not allowed! So we were roughing it. To make matters worse, you had to receive a code via SMS text to gain internet access. Uggg, this was going to be a long hour wait.

We grabbed a bite to eat at one of the only two restaurants, and I ran to the bathroom. On my way, I noticed a free internet terminal. Bingo. With that, you can visit a number of sites to receive text messages. I used: Receives SMS Online. BAM. Internet access on my phone.

The gate area was packed with people flying back to Abu Dhabi:

Gate Area – Male Airport, Maldives

Our Bird Home – Male Airport, Maldives

Air Traffic Control Tower – Male Airport, Maldives

Loading Up

While I had to break the news to NSPwife during the lounge fiasco that we weren’t flying in Business Class to Abu Dhabi, I knew she would be pleasantly surprised with the Economy Product, given my adventures just a few days earlier. Sure enough, we ate, enjoyed entertainment, slept, and 4.5 hours later found our way to a taxi in Abu Dhabi. While we landed at 10:55pm, and had just over an hour ride to Dubai, I was wide awake pulling into the Park Hyatt Dubai.

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Gas Rewards
October 5, 2015

[update] Currently AMEX has suspended cashback on gift card denominations above $200, thus effectively removing any advantage of buying AMEX gift cards. You can still use the Gift Card > Target RedCard > $$ approach and be profitable.

Manufactured spend can be quite financially rewarding: churning through $10K-$20K in AMEX Gift Cards every month, if using a 2% cash back card, can yield just shy of $4,800 annually. Given that you do not have to pay taxes on rebates, depending on your tax bracket, this can be considered almost an $8,000 “raise.” This doesn’t even take into account the hundreds of thousands of miles and points that can be earned by a combination of hitting minimum spends or portal cash back.

But in addition to the simple wash, rinse, repeat methods of buying prepaid AMEX gift cards through TopCashBack once or twice a month (for between 1.5% and 2.25%), purchasing OneVanillas at CVS, loading said Vanillas onto the prepaid Target RedCard, and then either paying mortgages, credit cards or transferring that money to my bank account, there are some other “fun” side games that can be played.

One of which I learned from Doctor of Credit include Gas Rewards. Now, there are a number of different gas rewards programs – from Fuel Network, to Safeway, to Giant. The most lucrative, for me, which means in both dollar bills and time, is from Giant. Over the summer, Giant ran a 2X or 3X gas rewards on Visa Gift Card purchases. What does that mean? Let’s take a 2X promotion as an example.

Giant Gas Rewards
2X Visa Gift Card Promotion:

  1. Every dollar spent on a prepaid gas card gives you $0.002 off of gas
  2. A $500 gift card then gives you $1.00 off of gas
  3. A $500 gift card costs $5.95 in fees
  4. Giant caps at $2.20 off per gallon
  5. Purchasing 2 Visa Gift cards gets you $2.00 off each gallon of gas and costs $11.90
  6. You can pump up to 35 gallons of gas
  7. My car takes 17 gallons when empty
  8. 17 x $2 off per gallon = $34 – $12 in fees = $22
  9. 2% cash back with credit card = ~$20

 

OK – $42. Big deal. Well, if you have two cars, and fill both of them up, you are up to $84. Do this twice a month, and you save $168/month, or $2,016/year. Not bad for roughly 8 minutes of “work” a month.

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Cash Back

A Delayed Honeymoon: Part 5 – Park Hyatt, Maldives
September 19, 2015

Previous Trip Notes:
A Delayed Honeymoon: Part 4 – Getting to the Park Hyatt Maldives
A Delayed Honeymoon: Part 3 – Hyatt Capital Gate, Abu Dhabi
A Delayed Honeymoon: Part 2 – EY130 First Class
A Delayed Honeymoon: Part 1 – Baltimore > IAD, & Etihad Lounge

As we arrived at the hotel around 10pm, both our Diamond host and staff were waiting for us on the jetty as we exited the speedboat. Our luggage was loaded into one golf cart, and we jumped in a second one. Our Diamond Host, Victoria, told us we could check in directly from our villa since we had arrived so late. She pointed things out in the dark, and within two minutes we were pulling up to Villa #7. Score. After completing my Diamond Challenge the year before, I had the pleasure to be upgraded to Diamond status for all of 2015. One of the benefits at the Park Hyatt in the Maldives is an upgrade from a standard villa to a pool villa if there is availability. Pulling up, and walking into the villa, it was apparent that it had its own splash pool. There was also a bottle of champagne waiting for us.

Nice Note from the GM

Victoria explained all of the intricacies of the villa, and also informed us that the Hyatt was actually an hour ahead of Male local time (and thus 2 hours ahead of Dubai local time) in order to maximize daylight – that’s 10 hours ahead of Eastern Standard Time!

Both NSPwife and I were beat. So we briefly unpacked our things and then grabbed some shuteye so we could explore the island the following morning. When we woke up, we enjoyed espresso from the Nespresso machine in our villa, and fired up the laptops. One great thing about the time difference, is that by the time you get through emails in an hour or two, it is late on the East Coast – thus, no worries about receiving emails for the entire day!

Of course, I also had to start my day out with an outside shower. While the shower was great, and the weather fantastic, I wasn’t a huge fan of the shampoo at the hotel. And unfortunately since a beach goes around the island, there’s no shower-to-ocean views similar to those in Koh Samui, Thailand.

We then got dressed and set off to explore the island. It took roughly 12 minutes. To. Explore. The. Entire. Island. For those who know my A.D.D. tendencies, you know that could cause a problem for me. We then headed to breakfast. The best Diamond benefit is that breakfast is included. And, boy, did we take advantage of this while we were there. Breakfast starts out with a 3-tiered tower of food, which changed slightly each day. And then there is the a la carte menu. And you can order anything. We routinely ordered 2-3 dishes each, because, vacation. The western dishes were good, but the Asian dishes were fantastic. This seemed to be a theme throughout the week, and after the first day, I only ordered Asian dishes for the remainder of the trip.

3-Tiered Breakfast Starter – Day 1

The Breakfast Spread – Day 1

So post-breakfast, say around 11am or 12pm, what is there to do? Nothing. Well, snorkel, dive or nothing. Since we don’t dive, we decided to gow snorkeling. There are two jetties on the island, and we decided to go to the one that we arrived at. There is a natural barrier reef around the island with perfectly clear waters, thousands of fish, and snorkel equipment was complimentary. In short, it was amazing. Having snorkeled in islands off of Thailand and in Cozumel, this was in an entirely different league.

Following our snorkeling adventure, we went back to our villa, where we drank more espresso, read books, and of course I smoked a cigar with an accompanying Tiger beer.

Afternoon Beer & Cigar

Dozing off, we woke up around 6:30pm and slowly made our way to the restaurant around 7:30pm. The meal was very good – what one would expect from a 5-star resort.

Park Hyatt Maldives Dinner – Night 1

Park Hyatt Maldives Dinner Cocktails (Alcoholic for one of us!) – Night 1

Park Hyatt Maldives Dinner – Night 1

Park Hyatt Maldives Dinner – Night 1

We then went back to our villa and relaxed. The villa itself is great. There’s the Nespresso machine, small mini-bar, TV, and iPad that is pre-loaded with all of the island information/menus/activities. There are plenty of power outlets, both around the villa and right by the bed, which makes charging your own phones and devices easy. On a quick note – I was worried I would go through the Nespresso pods, since they only give you six. That’s only partially accurate, since they replenish the pods for both the morning/early afternoon cleaning AND the nightly turn-down. Even I can’t go through 18 pods a day…

View into the Villa from the Splash Pool

One of My Faves – Nespresso Machine

One of the Two Closets, and Safe

Mini-Bar

DVD Player and Speakers (where did those beers come from?) 🙂

Informational iPad

Charging Station

Chaise Lounger in the Room

Complimentary Fruit Bowl

The bathroom is almost half of the entire villa, with an inside shower, a toilet room, and then a large area with sinks and counters on both sides of the villa, perfect for couples to not get in one another’s way. Of course there is the outside shower and bathtub.

Inside Shower – Never Used

Separate Toilet Room

Half of the Bathroom

2nd Half of Bathroom

Outside Bath Tub

Outside Shower

And then there is the splash pool. Again, while similar in style to the villas at the Conrad Koh Samui, because the beach goes around the villas, and the villas are only about 10-20 feet away from the ocean, there are two options: a villa with shrubbery blocking the view of the ocean (which we had) but also providing some privacy, or no shrubbery with an open view to the ocean but no privacy from others walking along the beach.

Park Hyatt Maldives – Pool Villa

Park Hyatt Maldives – Pool Villa

The patio area for the pool is nice, with a built-in giant “couch” and table and chairs.

Park Hyatt Maldives – Pool Villa

For our second day there, we again went snorkeling, although this time we checked out the second jetty. It was amazing. The number of fish, the colors, the coral. I didn’t think you could beat the day before’s experience, but this one surely did.

We decided to grab lunch at the same restaurant later in the afternoon.

And then after relaxing in the villa some more made our way back to the bar area. In a rookie-mistake move, we were napping during the previous night’s happy hour. As diamond members, we each receive one complimentary drink and canapes. Next to the bar is the largest area of beach, facing west and looking at the over-water villas. There are a number of cabanas and seats to enjoy the sunset. It was a perfect way to end the day.

Happy Hour Drinks

Happy Hour View

Happy Hour View

Bar-Side Cabanas

Bar-Side Seats

Canapes

Canapes

The sunset was amazing:

Sunset in the Maldives

Sunset in the Maldives

Sunset in the Maldives

Sunset in the Maldives

We again headed back to our villa, and after doing a tour of restaurants, including their up-scale grill, we decided we preferred to just order room service. We stopped by the activity center to borrow a DVD, and had a nice and relaxing evening.

Dinner…or it was

The following morning we decided to wake up early and watch the sunrise. We were out just after 6am, and watched the sunrise around 6:20am.

A Maldives Sunrise

We found ourselves in an awkward position. Again, there is nothing to do on the island. Although I went to the gym on the first day, I was feeling rather lazy.

Park Hyatt Maldives – Gym

We could have done morning yoga – but I’m definitely not a yoga person:

Park Hyatt Maldives – Yoga Studio

We contemplated going back to sleep, but really didn’t think it would be possible. So by 6:45am, we were back in the water snorkeling. There wasn’t a soul in sight when we dropped in. And, Oh. My. God. There are no words to describe the activity going on in the water. It appeared that there were tens of thousands of fish. Every size. Every color. After about twenty minutes of awe – something caught my eye. I grabbed NSPwife, and pointed. And then I made the fastest 50-foot swim in history. Phelps had nothing on me. While not monstrous, a 6-ft(ish) shark was just flying through the water. While probably OK, I don’t do well with simple aquatic life. I had already googled every fish I saw the first day to make sure they weren’t unexpected predators (p.s. I wouldn’t recommend doing that – after googling, I thought roughly 50% of the fish I saw were triggerfish. And when they went flat – I was outta there). So you can imagine my reaction with a shark…

That ended the snorkeling for the trip, but man was it awesome. So we arrived back at the villa around 8am, had our morning espressos, and slowly waited out our final hours in the villa before we had to check out. Depending on availability, often times you can check out of the villa late, or they will actually move you to a standard villa. Unfortunately, the entire island was sold-out, so we had to pack up all of our things and let the hotel hold them for the day.

We finished packing and headed to the restaurant for breakfast. And we ate. And ate. And ate. Such a good meal, we were going to be full until we landed back in Dubai!

Breakfast at the Maldives

Breakfast at the Maldives – No, There Were Only Two of Us

We then went to the bar area, grabbed some drinks, and relaxed again for most of the day. NSPwife hung out at the pool. I mostly hung out on the couches in the shade inside the bar area.

Park Hyatt Maldives – Pool & Bar Area

Park Hyatt Maldives – Pool & Bar Area

Park Hyatt Maldives – Pool & Bar Area

Park Hyatt Maldives – Pool & Bar Area

Park Hyatt Maldives – Pool & Bar Area

As evening neared, we grabbed our things from the hotel, checked out, and then took a golf cart back to the jetty to load up on the speed boat.

Departure Speed Boat Ride

Departure Speed Boat Ride

Overall it was a good trip. We were there for 3 nights and 3 full days. It was perhaps a bit too short to truly unwind and relax; however, given the lack of things to do on the island, much longer would have started giving me an itch to do something more. For the time and distance it took to get to the Maldives, I’m not sure it is worth it. The beaches of the Caribbean are just as nice. The food in most places where everything doesn’t need to be shipped in is just as good. The remoteness may be a positive to some, but to me is not preferred to a location where you can travel a short distance to sight-see, do activities, explore local areas/restaurants/shops. The service was excellent, as you would expect. But I would certainly do any of the islands of Thailand before returning to the Maldives.

While not necessarily looking forward to another speedboat ride, plane hop (this time with a touch-down in Kadhdhoo) and then plane ride back to Abu Dhabi, we were excited for the next adventure on the itinerary.

The Terminal Did Not Look Bigger in Daylight

At least, I was. NSPwife didn’t know the plans for the trip, but we were making our way to Dubai that night. From Park Hyatt in the Maldives to the Park Hyatt in Dubai.

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A Delayed Honeymoon: Part 4 – Getting to the Park Hyatt Maldives
July 14, 2015

Previous Trip Notes:
A Delayed Honeymoon: Part 3 – Hyatt Capital Gate, Abu Dhabi
A Delayed Honeymoon: Part 2 – EY130 First Class
A Delayed Honeymoon: Part 1 – Baltimore > IAD, & Etihad Lounge

I had already taken a 13-hour flight halfway across the world, but my journey to the ultimate destination of the Park Hyatt Maldives had really only just begun. I booked my ticket to the Maldives for a total of 90,000 American Airlines miles (less than the previous years sign-up bonus on the American Airlines Executive Card – which had a $250 fee) and $42. While the flight from Washington D.C. to Abu Dhabi was in first class, the final leg from Abu Dhabi to Male was in economy. I constantly checked for award space to open up in business class, as there were still seats available, but to no avail. I was slumming it in economy.

That first pain and realization comes when you arrive at the airport. Business and First class to the left, with almost no line, or economy to the right, with quite the line. I logged into the free airport wifi to still check if any business class seats had opened while I snaked through the customs and security lines. I had hoped to hear from NSPwife before my plane took off – she was flying from Istanbul directly to Male, and set to land about 15 minutes before I took off.

After making my way through security, I was directed to one of the terminals for my flight. By this time, it was starting to get a little close. However, when looking at the gate numbers, I realized I had been directed to the wrong terminal! After a fast walk, I managed to get back to the correct terminal, and while walking, stumbled across the Etihad Business Class Lounge. I walked in to see if I could talk to an agent about a free upgrade since there was availability and I had voluntarily downgraded on this segment.

While they couldn’t help me, they did offer access to the lounge. Always nice to have a beer at roughly 8:30am while on vacation.

Etihad Lounge – Abu Dhabi

Etihad Lounge Bar – Abu Dhabi

Etihad Lounge – Abu Dhabi

Etihad Lounge – Abu Dhabi

Etihad Lounge – Abu Dhabi

After a couple minutes, I had to head to the gate. Finally resigning the fact that I was about to fly in economy, I stopped checking my phone for available seats and boarded the plane.

Now – this isn’t an economy flight like I’m used to in the United States. In addition to the Asian tradition of handing out warm towels before you take off, the seat had power outlets, usb chargers and a full entertainment system.

Etihad Flight – Economy

Etihad Flight – Economy

Of course, even the airport tower control has to be fancy:

The seats were fairly comfortable, and before I knew it, I was being served a meal.

Etihad Flight – Economy Meal

Etihad Flight – Economy Meal

Overall the flight was quite nice and uneventful. And since we were returning from Male to Abu Dhabi in economy four days later, I was happy that this was the case.

I exited the plane; now I’m at the Hyatt, right?

Male Airport

Nope. I’ve only taken a 13-hour flight, had an 11-hour layover, and another 4-hour flight. Still a ways to go. I collected my baggage from the baggage claim, and then a representative from the Hyatt came up to me to take me to the airport lounge to wait until our next flight. When I got there, I was able to reconnect with NSPwife – who had been there already for four hours – who I had not seen in almost a month!

By this time, it was apparent she wasn’t exactly traveling by herself (note – she would not let me take any “baby pics”).

The lounge was a nice getaway, but more akin to a domestic airport lounge in the U.S., with even less appealing food (is that even possible??). There were sandwiches and non-alcoholic drinks (alcohol is prohibited in the country except for within hotel resorts).

Lounge at Domestic Male Airport

Lounge at Domestic Male Airport

Lounge at Domestic Male Airport

Lounge at Domestic Male Airport

Lounge at Domestic Male Airport

One other word of advice: alcohol cannot be brought into the country. At all. Customs will “hold” your alcohol upon entry to the country, and you can collect it when you leave, but there is no saving money by bringing in duty free alcohol.

There was a “spa” in the lounge, but it was not open when we were there. So NSPwife and I spent some time catching up, read our books, and then took a walk along the beach:

Male Airport Domestic Lounge – Spa

FINALLY, a representative from Hyatt came and took us to our plane. When we boarded, we were still unsure if we were on a flight with a touchdown at Kadhdhoo airport or if we were direct to Kooddoo.

Flight from Male to Park Hyatt Maldives

Flight from Male to Park Hyatt Maldives – Of Course, a Non-Alcoholic Drink

Luckily, it was the latter. So at 20,000 feet, we watched the sun set over the Indian Ocean. It was surreal.

We finally landed in complete darkness. The airport was the size of a gas station – so we were able to collect our bags in about three minutes. Hyatt representatives were there to pick us up. They took our luggage and we all loaded up in a golf cart. A short five-minute ride took us to a pier, where we jumped on a speedboat.

Kooddoo Airport

So…this is something I hadn’t considered. It is pitch-black. Like, you can’t see anything. And we are FLYING through the Indian Ocean, in a boat. A part of me felt like we were drug smugglers. Was the captain wearing night-vision goggles? I think so…how else could they navigate through complete darkness? Every once in awhile we would see some lights of another resort.

Speedboat Ride from Kooddoo Airport to Park Hyatt Maldives

Speedboat Ride from Kooddoo Airport to Park Hyatt Maldives

Speedboat Ride from Kooddoo Airport to Park Hyatt Maldives

Speedboat Ride from Kooddoo Airport to Park Hyatt Maldives

Speedboat Ride from Kooddoo Airport to Park Hyatt Maldives, Complete Darkness

After about 30-45 minutes, we started to slow down. We made our way to the jetty, and got back into a golf cart. Another 3-minute drive and we finally hit our private villa.

A car ride, followed by a plane ride, taxi drive, hotel stay, taxi ride, plane ride, lounge stay, plane ride, golf-cart drive, speed-boat ride, golf-cart drive, and check-in. We were there.

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A Delayed Honeymoon: Part 3 – Hyatt Capital Gate, Abu Dhabi
May 19, 2015

A Delayed Honeymoon: Part 3 – Hyatt Capital Gate, Abu Dhabi

Previous Trip Notes:
A Delayed Honeymoon: Part 2 – EY130 First Class
A Delayed Honeymoon: Part 1 – Baltimore > IAD, & Etihad Lounge

Upon arriving in Abu Dhabi, I opted to bypass the Etihad Arrivals lounge and go straight for a taxi. In hindsight, I should have checked out the lounge. Both to experience my first true “arrivals lounge,” but also to write up a review. In fact, I could have gotten a free shave there. Rookie mistake – I simply wanted to get to the hotel as quickly as possible in order to try and at least explore the city for an hour or two.

I quickly exchanged some U.S. Dollars for Emirati currency and grabbed a taxi right outside. I chose to stay at the Hyatt Capital Gate for two reasons: first, it is a category four hotel, meaning I could use my Hyatt Certificate that comes annually with the Hyatt Credit card (for a $75 annual fee). Second, this hotel is only about a 15 minute taxi ride, about half way between the downtown area of Abu Dhabi and the Airport. As I had a 9:20am flight, I wanted to get at least 6-7 hours of sleep to be refreshed for my full day of traveling to finally get to the Maldives.

As we got closer to the hotel, we drove past The Grand Mosque – an absolutely impressive structure. As is most architecture in the UAE, the hotel was also impressive, with an 18-degree “lean.”

The pictures at night don’t quite do it justice:

Hyatt Capital Gate – Abu Dhabi

Hyatt Capital Gate – Abu Dhabi

Hyatt Capital Gate – Abu Dhabi

The hotel lobby is on the 18th floor. As I checked in, the General Manager was alerted that I was there, and he welcomed me as a Diamond Member. My path to Diamond status was going to pay dividends during this trip. As a Diamond Member, he informed me that they had upgraded my room, breakfast the next morning would be included and I could have a late check-out at 4pm. I was able to take advantage of the first two of those items. The lobby was nice:

Hyatt Capital Gate Lobby – Abu Dhabi

Hyatt Capital Gate Lobby – Abu Dhabi

Hyatt Capital Gate Lobby – Abu Dhabi

Hyatt Capital Gate Entry to Guest Elevators – Abu Dhabi

The room was elegant, and the bathroom extremely nice, with a fantastic rain-shower. I often find the rain-showers to have rather weak water pressure, but this one was great. There was a welcome amenity of a fruit bowl and lots of bottles of water.

Hyatt Capital Gate – Abu Dhabi

Hyatt Capital Gate – Abu Dhabi

Hyatt Capital Gate – Abu Dhabi

Hyatt Capital Gate – Abu Dhabi

Hyatt Capital Gate – Abu Dhabi

It was about 8:30pm, and I wanted to see a little bit of the city. I grabbed a cab to a night souk and walked around for about an hour. The souk was on a river, but was otherwise unimpressive:

Night Souk – Abu Dhabi

I caught a cab back to the hotel and grabbed a meal on the patio of the 18th floor restaurant. While dark, the views were still fairly nice. And the food very good:

Hyatt Capital Gate Dinner – Abu Dhabi

Hyatt Capital Gate Dinner – Abu Dhabi

I was also excited that the restaurant served Almaza beer! I had my first Almaza when I lived in San Diego and a number of my friends were from Syria – and we always joked it was “the Bud Light of the Middle East.”

Almaza!!

After a bowl of pasta and couple Almazas, it was time to hit the bed. I opted for a fairly early wake-up call so that I could enjoy breakfast at the hotel. One issue was that I forgot to charge my devices and sadly there was no business class availability for my four hour flight from Abu Dhabi to the Maldives!

Before this trip, I made two purchases as recommended by Gary at View from the Wing. They were a universal power adapter and compact power outlet. What amazing purchases. While eating breakfast, I was able to use one adapter to charge all of my devices:

Universal Charging Devices

Without a doubt, I’d recommend the purchase of a Kikkerland UL03-A Universal Travel Adapter if traveling abroad. And for any travel, domestic or abroad, I would recommend purchasing a Monster MP OTG400 BK Outlets To Go Power Strip. It’s extremely compact and very light – and provides 4 power outlets. How many times have you been at an airport looking for a power outlet? Imagine asking someone if you could use the plug – and then pull out a power strip that can charge multiple devices for both of you?!

Breakfast was good. There were plenty of choices of breads, cereal, fruits and hot items such as sausage and veal bacon. I had a fairly hearty breakfast, and then took a look at the 18th floor views that I couldn’t see the night before due to it being dark.

Hyatt Capital Gate Breakfast – Abu Dhabi

Hyatt Capital Gate Breakfast – Abu Dhabi

Hyatt Capital Gate Breakfast – Abu Dhabi

Hyatt Capital Gate Breakfast – Abu Dhabi

Hyatt Capital Gate Breakfast – Abu Dhabi

Hyatt Capital Gate Breakfast – Abu Dhabi

Hyatt Capital Gate Breakfast View – Abu Dhabi

Hyatt Capital Gate Breakfast View – Abu Dhabi

Hyatt Capital Gate Breakfast – Abu Dhabi

Hyatt Capital Gate Breakfast – Abu Dhabi. I’m a BIG Fan of Watermelon Juice

Hyatt Capital Gate Breakfast View – Abu Dhabi

The lobby and hotel looked even nicer in the light:

Hyatt Capital Gate Lobby in Daylight – Abu Dhabi

Hyatt Capital Gate – Abu Dhabi

Hyatt Capital Gate – Abu Dhabi

The Grand Mosque looked amazing:

The Grand Mosque, from Taxi – Abu Dhabi

The Grand Mosque, from Taxi – Abu Dhabi

The Grand Mosque, from Taxi (sorry for the blur) – Abu Dhabi

Overall the hotel was perfect for a 14-hour layover – and I was excited to be on my way to the Maldives!

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A Delayed Honeymoon: Part 2 – EY130 First Class
April 20, 2015

A Delayed Honeymoon: Part 2 – EY130 First Class

Previous Trip Notes:
A Delayed Honeymoon: Part 1 – Baltimore > IAD, & Etihad Lounge

Upon walking into Etihad’s first class cabin, one is struck by it’s elegance:

A340 Etihad Cabin – EY130

While eagerly awaiting a view of my “suite” – and the famed black and white pillow that I’ve seen in just about every Etihad flight review, I noticed that the pillows had been changed! It may just be an AVGeek that notices the colors of the pillows…

New Pillows??

I entered my suite and quickly familiarized myself with the features, including a closet (that could barely fit a single hanging suit jacket, an electronics storage area with AC power, USB chargers and the remote for the TV. I quickly plugged in my phone and tablet chargers and then closed it up. There was a magazine holder right next to my seat, a perfect place for me to store my tablet – so I moved the magazines to the closet.

My Suite

Power Controls

At that time the flight attendant came over to take my beverage order, offered me pajamas, and asked if I wanted to change on the ground or in the air. Oh ya, I needed those ASAP – so I opted for the ground. She let me know they would be ready in the lavatory in a few minutes. While she went to find the pajamas, I took a look at the very cool woven amenity kit:

Amenity Kit

Finally, I checked out the personal mini-bar. While it’s nice to have water right at your seat in a “mini-bar” fashion, it seemed like the only reason Etihad put this in their suites was to try and rival Emirate’s mini-bar (it doesn’t compare):

My Personal In-Air Mini-Bar

I then went to the lavatory where my pajamas were set out in a bag, and a garment bag was hanging on the back of the lavatory door for me to put my clothes in to be stored during the flight. The pajamas were nice, but not “Cathay Nice.” They were all-black and fairly soft.

I made my way back to the suite where my champagne and dates were waiting for me:

Pre-Departure Drink

My goal was to eat dinner and then sleep for 4 hours, which would then put me at about 10am Abu Dhabi time – and then stay up for the duration of the flight to try and offset any jet lag.

I watched the take-off on my large TV screen from the camera under the nose – although given the hour of departure it was difficult to see anything:

TV Screen

After take-off, the flight attendant brought over another glass of champagne, accompanied by various snacks and a nice note:

Etihad has an executive chef on all of their flights, and in addition to set meals, offer a “dine all day” option where you can order anything off the menu at any time which will be prepared by the chef. The menu was quite extensive:

The flight attendant then set up my table to dine:

Starting to Setup for Dinner

Prepared for Dinner

I started out with a salmon tasting:

Large Amuse Bouche

Followed by marinated prawns:

Marinated Prawns

Of course a palette cleanser:

Palette Cleanser

While I don’t have a photo of the main course, the dessert – Mascarpone Mousse with Coffee Cream – was one of the best I’ve ever experienced on a flight:

Mascarpone Mousse – A phenomenal dessert!

After dessert, I went to the lavatory, and when I had returned, my seat was made up into a bed:

Bed at 38,000 Feet

Bed at 38,000 Feet

As it turned out, I slept through my alarm and woke up at 11am. That was OK. But meant I only had about 6.5 hours left to enjoy the flight! As I was coming to, I ordered a coffee:

Morning Coffee

And once the world started to focus for me again, I ordered the breakfast basket:

Breakfast

The entertainment selection was quite good, and I wound up watching Gone Girl – a great accompaniment for a beer:

Gone Girl

After the movie, I realized that I was…in a plane…flying over the middle east. I opened my window, only to realize the endless deserts that I had anticipated, were equally as impressive, but in a polar-opposite way:

Somewhere over Saudi Arabia?

Somewhere over Saudi Arabia?

Somewhere over Saudi Arabia?

While not entirely hungry, when the on-board chef came over to ask if I wanted to order anything from the grill, I buckled under the pressure and ordered a steak sandwich:

Steak Sandwich

After some more reading and TV watching, it was sadly time for the descent. The flight attendant handed out Fast Track customs cards:

Fast Track Customs Card

I changed back into my clothes and started packing up my things. The flight was about as comfortable as one could be traveling between The U.S. and the Middle East. I felt great, refreshed and ready to head to the Maldives the following day.

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Luxury Airline Travel  / Miles & Points  / Travel

Inspirato = $25
April 1, 2015

I continue to be in love with AMEX. The great roll started with Small Business Saturday that netted me $240 in Bud Light and wine to last quite some time. Then came the REDcard from Target. Then it was seemingly endless AMEX Sync Offers and AMEX Prepaid cards through TopCashBack.Com. Then two weeks ago I got an email to sign up and learn more about Inspirato to receive a free $25 AMEX gift card. 30 seconds later and the application was complete. I received a nice mailer about their properties – and it actually looks pretty nice. But that was it.

Fast forward two weeks, and this shows up in the mail:

Free $25

Add that to the “rebates and cashback less fees” spreadsheet and in Q1 I’ve netted $1,003. That’s off to a slower start than I had hoped, but have roughly $700+ pending through TopCashBack and Barclays already that is set to hit in the next month or so. I’m not sure I am going to make the $10,000 I had set out to at the beginning of the year, but it will be fun trying!

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Cash Back  / Miles & Points

A Delayed Honeymoon: Part 1 – Baltimore > IAD, & Etihad Lounge
March 30, 2015

A Delayed Honeymoon: Part 1 – Baltimore > IAD, & Etihad Lounge

NSPwife and I got hitched last June; however, due to work had to postpone our honeymoon by almost 7.5 months. While I am typically one to take risks on catching flights – having run through many an airport, catching flights as jetway doors were closing and filing through a high-anxiety line snaking back and forth for what feels like an infinite number of steps, this was a flight I could not miss. Nor my next flight. I was meeting NSPwife for a honeymoon. NSPwife was understanding enough to not have a honeymoon in the summer due to work. She would not have been understanding had I missed a flight that made me miss part of our honeymoon. See, NSPwife had been in Bahrain and Germany for almost a month on work. So if we would have missed a flight, we could have figured something out. If I would have missed a flight, NSPwife would most likely become NSPex-wife. So, I requested the chauffeur service provided by Etihad Airlines to arrive at my house at 4:00pm. For a 9:50pm flight. Yes, a little excessive.

The chauffeur showed up about 10 minutes early at my door, a mere 59.8 miles from Dulles Airport. Luckily, Etihad offers free chauffeur service within 60 miles if you are flying in Business or First Class. Perfect.

Car Service Arriving at My House

Car Service – IAD

I jumped in the backseat, opened up the laptop, and worked for the 90ish minute drive to Dulles. When I arrived, the check-in area had not been opened. Etihad only operates a single flight: 9:50pm from Washington D.C. to Abu Dhabi. One individual was behind the desk cleaning and told me the counter would open at 5:50pm. It was 5:36pm. I could wait.

At 5:50pm I checked in and had my bags checked straight through to Male. I had packed a shirt, shorts and boxers. And of course had my flip flops. Who needs checked luggage for a 14-hour stopover?

I then went through security, much easier than my last time here. And by about 6:15pm I walked into the Etihad Lounge. Upon checking in, the hostess gave me a quick tour. There were two floors, however the top floor was roped off – most likely due to Business & First class not being sold-out.

Etihad Lounge – IAD

Etihad Lounge – IAD

Etihad Lounge – IAD

Etihad Lounge – IAD

I sat down in a lounge chair and immediately an attendant came over to offer dates, tea and a warm refreshing hand towel. I was asked if I wanted any other drink and was told that the kitchen was not yet open, but I could help myself to the buffet.

Etihad Lounge – IAD

Etihad Lounge Buffet – IAD

Etihad Lounge Buffet – IAD

Etihad Lounge Buffet – IAD

I decided to wait for the kitchen. The menu looked appealing:

Etihad Lounge Dinner Menu – IAD

After about an hour on the laptop, I worked my way over to a table and ordered the vegetarian samosas, rack of lamb and bread pudding. The food was good, not great, but well above the United Lounge at Dulles.

Etihad Lounge Dinner – IAD

Etihad Lounge Dinner – IAD

Etihad Lounge Dinner – IAD

After finishing a couple glasses of Bordeaux and Champagne and working through emails, they began to call for boarding. I quickly went to check out the restroom facilities, which of course had a rain-shower. I snapped a couple pictures and then went back to the lounge.

Etihad Lounge Bathroom/Shower Facilities – IAD

Etihad Lounge Bathroom/Shower Facilities – IAD

Etihad Lounge Bathroom/Shower Facilities – IAD

The jetway had direct access from the lounge. Sweet. I didn’t even have to go to the gate area, what a concept!

Etihad Lounge Direct Jetway Access – IAD

While pretty exhausted, I was excited to view the cabin, as I had heard this was one of the top five cabins in the world. More to follow. Next Stop: Abu Dhabi.

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Luxury Airline Travel  / Miles & Points  / Travel

A Weekend Jaunt: Part 8 – Aer Lingus: EDI > DUB > BOS
March 2, 2015

Previous Trip Notes
A Weekend Jaunt:Part 1 – UA950 Business Class: IAD > BRU
A Weekend Jaunt: Part 2 – 5 Hours in Brussels
A Weekend Jaunt: Part 3 – Sheraton Grand & Edinburgh
A Weekend Jaunt: Part 4 – St. Andrews, Old Course
A Weekend Jaunt: Part 5 – The Fairmont, St. Andrews
A Weekend Jaunt: Part 6 – The Castle Course
A Weekend Jaunt: Part 7 – Waldorf Astoria, The Caledonian
A Weekend Jaunt: Part 8 – Aer Lingus: EDI > DUB > BOS

The final day was here. We had a couple great days of golf and sight-seeing, caught up on our sleep, and survived a brutal drive on the wrong side of the road. I often talk about the earning side of miles and points, but only rarely talk about the different ways to use those miles and points. The reality is, there are so many tips and tricks, that tens of thousands, if not hundreds of thousands, of miles can be saved on most trips. This trip was no different.

I booked the initial flight from Dublin to Boston. Considering I was going from Edinburgh, Scotland to Washington, D.C., why would I book this? Looking at the British Airways Award Chart, these two airports fall within the mileage ring where it only costs 12,500 miles in economy or 25,000 miles in business! Compare that to our flight from D.C. to Edinburgh, this makes it more than 50% cheaper! Tack on a cheap Aer Lingus flight from EDI to DUB and cheap Southwest flight from BOS to BWI, and you have yourself a pretty good deal!

We arrived at Edinburgh airport, and I was a little concerned that I would have to pay for checked baggage for the Dublin to Boston segment. I purposefully pre-paid for the baggage on the Edinburgh to Dublin flight, with hopes that I could ask for the bags to be checked through all the way to Boston, even though the two flights were booked separately. Despite mixed experiences on Flyertalk, the agent said it wouldn’t be a problem and checked our bags all the way through.

The airport was relatively small, and the airport lounge was closed due to renovations, but there was a temporary location they turned into a “lounge”:

Temporary Lounge in EDI

Temporary Lounge in EDI

Temporary Lounge in EDI

New Lounge Coming Soon

We made our way to the gate and watched them load the luggage:

Aer Lingus Flight – EDI > DUB

We arrived in Dublin with tons of time until our next flight; however, when reading our boarding passes, it stated we needed to get to the gate at least 2.5 hours early to clear customs IN DUBLIN. Well, we were landing exactly 2.5 hours before our flight. In Dublin you have to re-clear security before even getting to the pre-clearance facility. So we waited in the security line. And waited. 2 hours until our flight: yikes. We were a bit more than a little nervous. We made it to the pre-clearance area 90-minutes before our flight, half expecting to be told we were out of luck. Instead, we breezed through the lines to get to our gate about 80-minutes before the flight. So, what does one do in Dublin for 80 minutes? Why, have a Guinness beer of course!

Drinking Guinness in Ireland

Despite checking with British Airways everyday for about a month, no Business Class seat opened up to book on miles even though the cabin was completely empty! We boarded our Aer Lingus flight – first peering into the completely empty Business Class with a sigh, and then made our way to our seats. The flight was relatively empty, most likely due to it being Easter Sunday. Wireless internet was offered for $25 for the flight, but I opted to read and write part of this trip report – which I managed to publish only a mere ten months later. As it turned out, as it usually always does, economy was just fine, with a couple beers to accompany the mediocre food:

Food in Economy on Aer Lingus DUB > BOS

Irish Stew on Aer Lingus in Economy

We departed the plane to head to the baggage claim. NSPdad went to Delta to catch his final flight, and I had about a 90-minute layover, so I headed to the Air France Lounge (I received access due to it being a Priority Lounge and it coming with my AMEX Business Platinum Card). The lounge was fantastic, one of the best I’ve been to in the United States:

Air France Lounge – Boston Airport

Air France Lounge – Boston Airport

Air France Lounge – Boston Airport

Air France Lounge – Boston Airport

Air France Lounge – Boston Airport

I finished a few drinks and dinner, and then headed to the Southwest gate. An easy hop home, and a golf trip to St. Andrews was in the books.

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Credit Cards  / Miles & Points  / Travel

The Best Flight Deal in the US
February 28, 2015

There are two parts to the points and miles game: earning and burning. The earning is usually easy enough. Sign-up for credit cards, spend on credit cards, and receive hundreds of thousands of miles and points. The earning component, however, can be quite difficult.

I mean, you want to book a ticket on Etihad Airways from D.C. to Abu Dhabi with American Airlines miles? No, you can’t search for it on AA.Com – you have to search for it on British Airways web site and then call American Airlines to book it. That makes sense. You want to book Brussels Airlines with your United Miles? You can now online, but six months ago you had to call to see if any flights were available – they didn’t show up online. Of course!

Even the most simplistic flight, a basic economy trip within the United States, can be complex. Short-haul flights are usually somewhere in the 10,000-12,500 range with “saver” tickets. Although, then you need to throw in any “close-in” award fees that an airline might charge (i.e. United can charge almost half the cost of the ticket if you book an award ticket within two weeks of departure). Oh ya, and Delta is implementing 5 tiers of pricing. Without any published award chart. What?

So you have the major players such as United, US Airways, American, Delta, Southwest, JetBlue, etc…but guess what? There are many other players as well. ANA – the Japanese-based airline? Sure. How about British Airways? Yep. In America? Yes.

The great thing about alliances and partnerships in the airline world is that different programs utilize different methods for charging miles for flights. Looking at United, they will charge 10,000 miles if you fly the 45-minute flight from Detroit to Chicago or 12,500 miles if you fly the 5-hour flight from Detroit to San Diego. Either the 2,500 additional miles seems to be a no-brainer or the short-haul flight is quite the rip-off. Well, that’s the point with region-based award charts. Take advantage of the regions. If you are flying across-country (or across an entire region) on a saver-award, you’re most likely getting a pretty good deal. But other programs don’t utilize a region-based system and opt for a mileage-flown based system. That solves the inequities among regions.

British Airways is one such airline that utilizes a mileage-flown based system. Their current award chart is below (HT to The Points Guy):

British Airways Award Chart

So, what’s the big deal? NSPWife and I just took a short trip to Chicago, flying from Baltimore. The total mileage was 622 miles one-way. After 22.5 months with a companion pass, I dwindled the 110,000+ Southwest points down to 235 – a wonderful value of ~$3,000. So when we booked our flight to Midway Airport – of course utilizing our companion pass, our options to get home would have required transferring Chase Ultimate Rewards points to Southwest. As I am looking into a pretty big Star Alliance trip in the next year, that wasn’t on the top of my to-do list.

So I looked on American Airlines web site to see if there were any non-stop saver-award-level flights from Chicago to Baltimore on the day we were looking to go home. And sure enough, there were! The 622 mile distance is in British Airways lowest mileage range band, meaning it would cost a total of 4,500 British Airways Avios + $5.60 for an award ticket. No close-in fee and about a third of the miles required vs. if we were to use American Airlines, US Airways, Delta or United miles. We booked our flights through BritishAirways.Com for an American Airlines flight:

Booking 2 American Airlines Tickets on British Airways Web Site

Booking 2 American Airlines Tickets with British Airways Miles

The process was extremely easy. The day before our flight, we went to check-in on British Airways web site, and they provided the American Airlines record locator along with our boarding pass. When choosing seats, it appeared we could choose any economy seat on the plane. I thought that was strange, as I was under the assumption American Airlines charged for “premier seats” such as the exit row. When we arrived at the airport and popped open the mobile boarding pass on our phones, it also stated that we had priority access. At an airport like O’Hare, priority access is fantastic. Now, I don’t know if it is always the case, but it appears that booking American Airlines through British Airways resulted in a full-fare economy ticket which is eligible for priority access.

At any rate, British Airways offers a great value for short-haul flights under 650 miles. The quickest, and easiest, way to find out distances between airports is using GCMap.Com. Once at the site, click on the distance button, and then enter the two airports you are looking for the distance between with a dash in the middle (i.e. ORD-BWI) and then click the submit button. The next screen will show you the distance:

GCMap.Com makes checking distances between airports a breeze

Two other items of note. First, we decided to stay at an airport near O’Hare since we had such an early flight. We opted for Candlewood Suites, as it cost only 15,000 IHG points. While you can get much better deals with IHG points utilizing their pointbreaks hotels, this seemed like the best way to get a free night.

We also decided to rent a car for a few hours. We had to visit a few different people, and the taxi or Uber fares would have run around $75. I always check the forums at flyertalk for discount codes for car rentals. I’ve been extremely lucky at finding great deals (although caution that if you try to use a conference code or employee id code the rental car agencies might ask for proof at time of pickup – so it’s always good to check what the rental car code is referred to as on their web site).

Overall, it was a great 3-day trip. Round-trip flights for two cost a total of $22.40 – just the cost of TSA fees/taxes. With only a few days left of the companion pass, NSPwife has to try and qualify and the beginning of 2015. More on that in the future…for another 23 months of 2-for-1 flying on Southwest!

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Credit Cards  / Miles & Points  / Travel