Hello and happy Sunday, 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, so we’re passing them along.
- Many travelers find value in the Hotels.com loyalty program. For every 10 nights that you book through the website, you receive a free night worth the average price of your stays. Some even hold the Hotels.com credit card to earn additional night credits. One thing those same people might not know is that Expedia owns Hotels.com. It is one of the branches of the mega-travel brand, which also includes Orbitz, Trivago, Travelocity, Hotwire, and Vrbo. Expedia has a loyalty program called Expedia Rewards which is, by all means, worthless. So it should send a shiver down the spine of Hotels.com loyalists that Expedia announced all of its properties would merge their loyalty programs into a single global platform. No word about what would happen to free nights already earned, but if you have any points in the program, I’d keep a close eye on any future announcements.
- Plans for our Japan trip turned to dust as if Thanos just snapped his fingers. While I was somewhat optimistic for the first part of 2021, I knew what was coming based on Japan’s cautious reopening schedule. The country is releasing plans for how vaccinated people can reenter Japan and the news isn’t great for tourists. They’re easing but not eliminating the quarantine requirement, so you no longer have to stay at a government hotel for the first few days upon reentry. Based on this, we’re now looking at 2023 for our next trip.
- I have a list of things I need to pack when I travel. Sharon endlessly mocks me for this, but it’s better than forgetting my wallet at home when driving to the airport. I have a new thing to add to the list after reading this post. My vaccine card. It’s hard to imagine that a piece of paper is the key needed to unlock travel to many locations worldwide.
- There are many ways to get hotel status without staying at a hotel. Most often, you can get status from having a hotel co-brand credit card. However, this year there’s another way I’m getting hotel status. Choice Privileges is offering status boosts for Cedar Fair amusement parks season passholders. I never imagined hotel status would be a perk of having a Schlitterbahn annual pass.
- If you didn’t know, your local airport is probably owned by your local government. While that sounds like a good idea, it’s a rarity in the world and there’s a case to be made for the privatization of airports while still keeping them under government supervision. There is one major airport in the US that’s privately owned, so the idea isn’t that far-fetched.
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This post first appeared on Your Mileage May Vary
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