travel

Is it better to travel alone or with others?

  Over the past few weeks, I’ve had the great pleasure of being able to travel internationally with two friends of mine. This is a treat, as it’s been almost a decade since I traveled internationally with anyone, and never … Read More … Read More

The mindset you need for traveling

  Greetings from another new country. I’m in Norway right now, on my grand tour of the Great European North. I’m seeing new things, challenging myself, and am generally having a blast. Travel prerequisites After having been on many trips … Read More … Read More

What you never hear about traveling

  The hostel room was approximately seven feet wide by twelve feet long. Somehow, they had managed to wedge three beds in there. Even with two of the three of us being a couple, this was going to be tight. … Read More … Read More

Go, if you can, because you can

  I’m writing this on a plane bound for Europe. I used miles to pay for this flight, so it cost me only around $100 in fees. I’m flying Coach (though I’ll be testing my own advice when I fly Business … Read More … Read More

How to plan for award travel when you’re an infrequent flyer

  While some folks who read this site are avid travelers, zooming around the globe as frequently as a satellite, others may fly infrequently and think that award travel is completely irrelevant to them. Nonsense. Award travel is open to … Read More … Read More

When to let your points expire

  I once wrote to not let your airline miles expire.  But there are always exceptions, and I am starting to think that there are reasons worth discussing. Sacrilege? No, just simplification and efficiency. … Read More

How to get Global Entry for 50% off (and zip through customs and security lines)

  Going through customs can be a drag. You are accosted by a bored-yet-potentially-malevolent customs officer, who volleys questions at you. These questions seem innocuous, but are can be phrased so as to imply subtle accusation (“Why did you leave the … Read More … Read More

Is it possible to be with more than one … airline?

  I never realized that when we met, it would last so long. I remember it well. It was 2001, and I was on my way to Burning Man. I was terribly late in getting to the airport, too late, … Read More … Read More

On financial prudence (or why I’m probably not cut out to be a travel hacker)

  I love talking about travel hacking, which I define as strategies of acquiring travel experiences creatively, for less than than the usual cost. It’s pretty awesome actually. I’ve utilized some tricks that have allowed me to stay in nice … Read More … Read More

Can you trust travel hacking blogs?

  I read travel hacking blogs all the time. Brian, Summer, Gary, and Lucky are my equivalent of The Today Show, blogs I digest with my morning tea. They freely give frankly some invaluable advice and have some engrossing stories, … Read More … Read More