Next Up: Trinidad and Tobago in January

November 26, 2011 - Rick

It’s strange how things work out. I booked this mileage run to Beijing in hopes of getting the 20,000 miles to meet the Executive Platinum challenge by American for OneWorld MegaDo attendees. I was about 4,000 miles short. My first choices were Aruba or Curacao as I knew the Hyatt hotels and have been to both islands. But the distance came up just short of my required 20,000 miles unless I did a goofy routing and paid a ton more for my airfare. We’re using our multi-night Hyatt certificates that Katy got from the Capital One card.

I’m lamenting at the coffee shop this horrible dilemma in my life and I ask my buddy Harry if he had any ideas. Trinidad and Tobago, he suggested. It was just a few miles further than the A-B-C islands of Aruba, Bonnaire, and Curacao. In fact, it fit just perfectly in my 20,000-mile scheme and did not require an overnight on the way down from Savannah. All looked good. I got home and did the TripAdvisor review of the Hyatt, checked the price (outstanding), and made the booking. In my scattered filing system I found I still had four suite upgrades from the time I got comped to Diamond with Hyatt, so those got applied as well. (I’ll try to use the other three on the MegaDO if they’ll let me.)

So my $900 gift card will get used up with nights and meals (I still have another one), I reached my 20K challenge at a reasonable price, and we see a new island in January.

Any tips and suggested day trips or sights to see in Trinidad and Tobago?

I have to get a better filing system. (Shannon, where are you???)

Increase Delta Skymiles Bonus Now 30,000 Miles for $500 Minimum Spend

Ike

AFAIK, all airlines will put a group into the same (highest) fare class, not just JetBlue and Southwest. Seatcounter.com used to show the number of seats available in each class, which was excellent for determining what was available. The same is true of award booking, see if awards are available for your whole party, on your chosen class of service and flights and if not, you can remove people one-by-one.
IPBrian

Shannon,
I had no idea that prices sometimes modify based on the number of passengers. It of course doesn't surprise me at all given how crazy the airlines price tickets. Thanks to you and Shuji for that tip!
Aaron

Shannon, great tips! I've found tip #6 massively rewarding, the more blogs I follow and read on a daily basis, the more points and miles I'm racking up.

Also, sorry to nitpick but Alaskan Airlines should be Alaska Airlines. I'm anal like that.
Anonymous

Shannon, the prices don't modify, The airline has a set number of seats available in each fare basis, and there are several fare basis' per class of service. If there are only two seats available in the lowest fare, but you have a party of four traveling, the system will show you the lowest fare that is available for all four passengers. This is common with all carriers.
Anonymous

OK, I am a raw rookie.
I am thinking about signing up for a new credit card, and the first year's fee is waived.
Do most people keep the card for the second year when the card company charges the fee?
How does that fee factor into the overall savings?
Love this site!
Unknown

Jonathan H. My rookie tip is to sign up for all the quarterly hotel promotions, even if you don't have travel plans. It's nicer to get a pleasant point surprise if you have a last minute trip, rather than not signing up because you don't have any plans, and missing out. Once you have travel plans use the hotel that gets you the most benefit that quarter. Many offer bonuses after multiple stays, other by number of nights. I rarely get many stays, but for work I tend to go for 2 or more weeks. I was very happy I signed up for Hilton's 4x promo when I stayed at a Homewood Suites for 4 weeks.
The Rookie

Anon read up under the Rookie Tips Tab on the top Blog…
leslie

I'm a rookie too, but I'd like to share a tip. I'm searching for a better word than "complain," but don't be afraid to complain when you are not getting what you are paying for! Many budget-minded travelers often show up to their hotel/motel room and find hairdryers don't work, the tv doesn't work, outlets don't work, the toilet won't stop running, the air conditioning doesn't work, etc. I would guess most people chalk this up to "oh well, this is what I get for looking for the cheapest place to stay." Not true! Just because you aren't paying a ton doesn't mean you are not entitled to have a room with everything working as you expected it to when you booked. For example, I recently stayed at a Travelodge with no air conditioning (on a 90 degree Los Angeles day), broken tv, broken hairdryer, leaking shower, and an outlet that I thought was going to set my laptop on fire. After my disappointing stay, I emailed Travelodge and they not only refunded the price of my room, but offered to let me stay another time for free. Of course, complaining about stupid stuff like "the pillow wasn't fluffed enough" is being ridiculous, not frugal – but, if you have a truly disappointing stay and feel like you are not getting what you paid for, let the company know and give them the opportunity to make it right. – Leslie G.

Next Up: Trinidad and Tobago in January

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