Happy Sunday to all of our travel friends, both near and far! Here are some articles we’ve read from other bloggers (and other sources) that we think you may like, as well, so we’re passing them along.
- Travel Update has a post from The Flight Detective giving the date that Royal Air Maroc will join the Oneworld airline alliance. Back in September, the airline was the biggest buzz in the travel world when it announced flights to Beijing from Casablanca. I wasn’t that excited about the flight because it was still several months away. I was right to be cautiously optimistic; it only took two weeks for Etihad, one of their partners, to do away with the sweet-spot redemption that everyone was raving about. Having the airline join Oneworld will still allow redeeming awards to several new destinations, which is always exciting.
- Gary writes on View From the Wing about why Marriott suite upgrades don’t clear even if there are suites available. Knowing why something happens doesn’t make it any easier to swallow, but at least you can take solace that there’s some system in place instead of the universe aligning against you to keep you in the room you booked. We were fortunate that the only time we received these upgrades that they cleared the first time we tried to use them. Of course, you can always use this trick to get an upgraded room 100% of the time.
- Shawn from Miles to Memories stayed for a night at the brand-new Grand Hyatt at San Francisco Airport and makes the argument that it might be the best airport hotel in the country. As I read his review, I remembered my time sitting in bed at the TWA Hotel at JFK Airport and I disagree with his opinion because that is the best airport hotel in the U.S.
- A post from The Travel Sisters reminds us that Bank of America has extended its free museum days promotion. This allows all cardholders of either a credit or debit card from the bank to get free admission on the first Saturday and Sunday of every month to a large list of museums around the country. Using the benefit at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York could save you $25, and here’s what you can see even if you only have a few hours to visit.
- Gilbert from God Save the Points tells us how he finds a good cup of coffee when he’s traveling. He shares some useful tips, but, sorry, I’m not going to search for “hipster coffee” even it means getting a great cup. I’m just happy for him that he didn’t make the mistake of saying he likes Starbucks and having to feel the wrath of coffee aficionados for doing so.
- On LoyaltyLobby, John writes about how hotels are “managing” their TripAdvisor reviews. In other words, they’re scamming the system by getting unfavorable reviews removed from the properties. We’ve written before about whether or not you can trust TripAdvisor and how to dig through the posts to find ones that are relevant to your stay, but if hotels can just get honest negative posts removed, can you trust their site?
- Nomadic Matt shares some tips on how to pick out the best travel insurance for cruises. I was interested because we’re headed out on our first cruise in a while, and I know it’s a no-brainer to buy travel insurance when going outside of the U.S. I also know when paying for my cruise, I’m not going to use this credit card.
- Greg from Frequent Miler writes about his evolving view on buying points without a plan. I think this is a back and forth that most people who have been collecting points for a while go through. You see points on sale and think, “I can find a use for those points at that rate.” The problem is that you can, but maybe it’s in 2 weeks, or it could be in two years. I bought points from IHG and thought I was getting a great deal until the next sale when the price was lower. I’m now starting to redeem them anytime I can do better than break even because I just want to get rid of them and release the cash I have tied up in the points.
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This post first appeared on Your Mileage May Vary
