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On a late evening walk around my neighborhood my wife and I glanced up and, against the fading light of a clear sky, saw the above vapor trail. Clearly being an AVgeek I stopped instantly and just looked up and wished I was on the jet above me. Yeah, I am that much of a travel geek. I love flying. I wish I could fly, that is pilot jets, but that was not the best choice for my life (but I can still dream).
This summer is more than about dreams. This summer and fall is about all the things I cannot wait to do and places I cannot wait to visit. The month of June (for the most part) has been a moth off for me and time on the ground. I have enjoyed it and spent more time on the golf course than I have for almost all last year. But I am itching to get back in the air and July I will be flying Delta again almost every week. Good times!
So what I am I looking forward to? First off, I am taking a few days off to enjoy some of the best BBQ on the planet and time with old friends. Oh and I may make time to spend some quality time at Centurion lounges as well. That will not yet include the newest one in Houston Texas, that is, the IAH lounge AMEX has rolled out but without a SPA or an amazing Wine selection like the SFO lounge I am less than in a rush to get to this latest one (they really should have included something special in this one to make it stand out).
What I am also very much looking forward to is the second Escape Lounge in the USA to open in Oakland Airport or OAK. The first one in Minneapolis or MSP is just an impressive lounge. The views are stunning (compared to the main Delta Sky Club with no view). Not only are the food choices but also the complimentary drink choices better than what Delta has to offer but the wifi speeds are blazing fast and the service is very good. It will be so fun to see not just this new lounge to come online but there will be yet one more on the way in New England’s BDL. If I could just talk the Manchester Group folks into building one in Chicago Midway I could die a happy man (kidding, but only a little).
Next we have the PGA on SPG Starpoints. This will be year two for me of enjoying this amazing value. I fully expect Marriott to destroy this incredible perk. I so hope I am wrong but doubt I am. I will even share this experience with another frequent flyer friend and geek and it will be a special day for me. I wish it were tomorrow!
After this I will enjoy one of the best free card perks I have ever enjoyed that is a golf vacation to Bay Harbor Michigan all for free thanks to my Citi BANK Prestige card. Not just that, being the nice guy that I am, the hotel for me and my guests will also be free paid for on Arrival Plus points. My only cost will be food and drinks ( yeah that may still cost a bit).
Next I have some time burning up a number of my Hyatt Diamond suite upgrade certs. I have to say I have been mostly impressed with Hyatt but not enough to push to re-qualify for the next year of status. When it comes to hotels, likely my much respected colleague MJ on Travel has stated when it comes to airline loyalty, I will be solo and part of #TeamRenesPoints rather than pushing for one chain loyalty for 2017. We shall see if this is a smart or stupid choice next year.
After this we have BAcon3 to look forward to. For those new-ish to the blog BAcon stand for BoardingArea Convention and this will be the third of these events held by the HOM or House Of Miles folks to help all the BoardingArea bloggers become better at presenting you with the things you need to travel better. Each time it is a great chance to learn and get to see so many of the absolute best minds in the travel space. Truly this is an amazing event and I cannot wait for version 3.0 this fall.
What else is going on I am stoked about? How about the one top travel education event you should never EVER miss, that is, the Chicago Seminars in October. They have almost sold half of the available tickets already and you are truly missing out if you don’t make time to go. BTW my talks will be focused on Friday night so get there early or you will miss them. Then Saturday you will find me one on one for Q&A as well as Sunday during the airline breakout session. I hope to see you there!
So what travel events are you looking forward to this summer? Going anywhere special on points? I would love to know! – René
Advertiser Disclosure: Eye of the Flyer, a division of Chatterbox Entertainment, Inc., is part of an affiliate sales network and receives compensation for sending traffic to partner sites, such as CreditCards.com. Some or all of the card offers that appear on the website are from advertisers. Compensation may impact how and where card products appear on the site. This site does not include all card companies or all available card offers. Opinions, reviews, analyses & recommendations are the author’s alone, and have not been reviewed, endorsed, or approved by any of these entities. Some of the links on this page are affiliate or referral links. We may receive a commission or referral bonus for purchases or successful applications made during shopping sessions or signups initiated from clicking those links.
Responses are not provided or commissioned by the bank advertiser. Responses have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by the bank advertiser. It is not the bank advertiser's responsibility to ensure all posts and/or questions are answered.
Took advantage of the recent EU business class sale and bought three tickets to Germany for family and I. Looking forward to seeing Fulda, where my dad was posted in the 80s. Also going to Munich and Berchtesgaden.
Figure I better go before Europe falls apart, haha.
Three long-haul international trips for me so far this year. That’s a new record.
I’m looking forward to getting the Citi BANK Prestige card– especially now that the amazing Escape Lounge joined Priority Pass in MSP!