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The Traveling Millenial

American Airlines, The Traveling Millenial December 27, 2015

Stranded in ORD until 3a on Christmas

Since I didn’t know my work schedule over the holidays, I booked a fairly late flight from Washington DC to Detroit.  To American Airlines’s credit, they notified me fairly early in the day that there would be a delay.  The plane flew a round-trip flight between Chicago and San Antonio before it arrived in Detroit.  The flight to San Antonio got a late start so that delayed all subsequent flights.  Unfortunately for me, American drastically underestimated the delay.  I considered Home Alone-ing it by road tripping to Detroit, but I couldn’t find a rental car in Chicago around 10p.  Also my credit card wouldn’t…

Admirals Club, The Traveling Millenial, TSA December 24, 2015

Why I’m Glad That I Have TSA PreCheck

The DCA Terminal C TSA PreCheck line is to the far left and is wide open.  The other security lines had a 30+ minute wait.  This photo was taken from the DCA Admirals Lounge. My Citi Prestige credit card comes with a $100 global entry which posts as a statement credit after you pay the $100 global entry fee with your Citi Prestige card.  Global Entry is a program that reduces that amount of time it takes you to pass through U.S. Customs when you reenter the U.S. and it also comes with TSA PreCheck eligibility: I was impressed with how…

strategy, The Traveling Millenial December 24, 2015

Your 2016 New Year’s Resolution Should Include Travel for These 3 Reasons

As 2015 winds down, this is the perfect time to consider your travel plans for 2016.  Here are 3 reasons that you should include travel in your 2016 New Year’s resolution: 1 – There are significant advantages to planning in advance: I always tell folks (and write about this in my Step 1: Strategy post) to plan their travel for the upcoming year in advance.  Strategic planning will allow you to accumulate redeemable miles toward a fantastic trip and will you give you a shot at reaching elite status with an airline.  Elite status on some airlines comes with free checked…

The Traveling Millenial December 23, 2015

Why does this millennial have an AARP membership card?

Whenever I tell folks that I have an AARP membership card, the first response I usually hear is, “don’t you have to be a senior citizen to sign up?”  The answer is no, young folks can sign up too.  I signed up because I wanted to take advantage of the AARP discount on British Airways flights, which can be a significant discount.  AARP members get tons of other cool discounts, but I’m mainly interested in the cheap flights.  Memberships cost $16 per year (for one year) and the price drops if you sign up for longer memberships. You can sign…

American Airlines, Deal Alert, The Traveling Millenial December 21, 2015

$477 round-trip flights to Dublin, Ireland on American Airlines

This deal is too good to pass up!  [Deals like this tend to expire quickly so this article may be out of date after December 21, 2015] American Airlines is offering round-trip flights to Dublin for around $500, departing from several major US cities, in March and April 2016.  I recommend using credit cards similar to the Citi Prestige (3 ThankYou Points per dollar spent on airfare) or the Chase Sapphire Preferred (2 Ultimate Rewards per dollar spent on airfare) to maximize the points that you’ll receive on the flight purchase.  In addition, you should use Orbitz to book the ticket because you’ll…

Airline, American Airlines, The Traveling Millenial December 20, 2015

American Airlines A319 – in first class

I was thrilled that an A319 operated the BWI-CLT route and that I would not have to fly an MD-80 (which American is slowly putting out to pasture).  The A319 had 12 first-class seats, so I was less likely to receive a complimentary first-class upgrade on this segment than my other three segments.  Three seats were already full and I was number 7 on the wait list.  Thankfully no first class seats were purchased after I checked Google Flight because my upgrade cleared at the gate about ten minutes prior to boarding.  The gate attendant did not call my name to notify…

Admirals Club, lounge, The Traveling Millenial December 19, 2015

CLT Admirals Club Review (it was HUGE)

The Admirals Lounge, at the end of CLT’s C terminal is HUGE!  Upon entering, I checked in with my Citi Prestige Card (provides complimentary Admirals Club access when flying American) and a copy of my boarding pass.  My complimentary first class upgrade hadn’t cleared yet, but my review of Google Flights suggested that my odds of an upgrade were pretty good.  I asked the agent if my upgrade had cleared and he responded with an unfortunate, “you’re number three on the list.”  When I explained that I thought at least 8 of the 16 first class seats were still available, he double…

American Airlines, first class, The Traveling Millenial, upgrade December 18, 2015

My first complimentary first-class upgrades just cleared on American Airlines!!!

My first two complimentary first-class upgrades just cleared on American Airlines!!!  In addition to a larger seat located toward the front of the plane, I’ll also receive a meal and unlimited, complimentary beverages (alcoholic and non-alcoholic).  My flight has a layover en route to and from Michigan, so I’ll take advantage of the Admirals Clubs at those airports (a perk of my Citi Prestige card) which also provide complimentary food and beverages (alcoholic and non-alcoholic).  As a result of the layovers, I’m flying four segments on American metal. Only two segments have cleared (the return trip), so I’m crossing my fingers that the other two…

The Traveling Millenial December 17, 2015

Cheap American Airlines flights to Beijing and Shanghai in early 2016

Disclaimer – these fares won’t last forever; they’ll likely expire by December 18th. If you live near a major US city, you’ll be able to purchase round-trip flights to Shanghai for under $850 and round-trip flights to Beijing for under $800 in early 2016.  It appears that the cheap flights are only available for trips with at least a two night stay in China (see below for examples).  The fares are easy to find by using Google Flights and screen shots are provided below.  These fares are so cheap that it’s definitely worth it to consider flying American over budget carries.  A trip…

Airline, Review, The Traveling Millenial, WOW December 13, 2015

WOW Airlines: What’s it Like to Fly to Europe for $99?

(WOW A321-200 which I flew from BWI to Iceland) I was in the market for a low-cost, round-trip ticket to Europe so I was excited to see WOW Airlines advertise $99* one-way tickets to Europe from select US destinations (Boston and Baltimore).  After verifying that WOW was a legitimate airline, I booked my ticket.  I booked a five-day, $450 round-trip ticket from BWI (Baltimore – Washington DC) to London Gatwick.  My experience on the plane was wonderful given the bargain I received on the plane ticket. WOW Airlines – Ultra-Low Budget Carrier WOW can offer such cheap airfare because it charges…