Deal of the Day
Posted by FrugalTravelGuy Tuesday, January 10, 2012, 9 Comments
NOTE: Not to alarm anybody. Not to sell more card referrals. Just the facts. I was asked to add the term “Limited Time Offer” to the Chase Sapphire Preferred card ads as of the 12th of January. You know it now.
NOTE: AA Virus. George sent me a note saying he got an email from AA with an attachment that was deleted by his computer as a virus. A warning here to be careful for AA emails the next coup,e days.
JetBlue has fares from $29 each way
Registration for Starwood’s Better by the Night Q1 promotion is now open!
You can get 10 days of parking with free shuttle service to PHL for only $35. There are also cheaper options for 4 or 7 days of parking as well.
Hilton has another promotion going on for its resort properties. When you stay 5 nights at a resort, you get a free night! Via Deals We Like
Gary has a great post that summarizes the best rental car rewards such as 1,000 Virgin Atlantic miles for a 1-day rental at Avis!
Priority Club also has a promotion going where you will earn double points starting with your second stay at qualifying properties.
You can still get $5 for every person you invite to TripAlertz! You can use my link or one of the links in the comments to join.
Sheraton Keauhou Bay on The Big Island of Hawaii
Posted by Rick Saturday, December 24, 2011, No Comments
This was our first stay at this Sheraton Resort and it neither disappointed nor dazzled us. On my bucket list was fishing for marlin off the coast of Kona. We’ve been to the Big Island before but never stayed at this resort. The last time we stayed closer to the village of Kona at the Kona Resort, a space age looking building on a point overlooking the harbor. It was neither fancy nor awfully run down, but closer to the later. The Sheraton Keauhou is about seven miles south of town by the Kona Golf Club.
We hit the resort on the 13th and stayed through the 17th of December. Occupancy was about 30%. I love Hawaii before Christmas rush. No crowds.
The advertised rate was at $159 per night plus resort fee or 10,000 points per night. I paid the $$$ rate as I value my points considerably higher than 1.6 cents each. Valet parking was $6 per night plus the resort fee. As a Gold member of the Starwood program, high speed Internet was free (although NOT very high speed).
The views from the common areas were nice, the rooms were clean and spacious. We were upgraded to a partial ocean-view room (Gold Status and low occupancy) with a balcony. The room was a good size but nothing special.
Overall the hotel layout was the most confusing I have ever seen. I never got my bearings with our room on the third floor, lobby on second, and pool and restaurants on the first. Seems simple to say but wasn’t in practicality.
There were two large pools and slides and ample places to sit, sun, or enjoy the shade. I love the contrast of the blue water with the black volcanic rocky shoreline. There was no place for ocean swimming on site. In the evening several boats would pull up in front of the resort to view the manta rays feeding on plankton. The resort has two lights directed into the water until 11 p.m., which attracts the plankton and, behind them, the huge manta rays. There were kayaking and snorkeling with the rays excursions as well. The rays on the Big Island are much larger than the stingrays in the Caymans.
The food was resort expensive but good. The morning breakfast buffet was $23 and the lunch menu had sufficient choices at $17 each plus drinks. You are some distances from other eateries so a car is a must if you want to eat offsite. We laid by the pool day one (too cold for me), went to the Greenlawn Coffee Plantation tour, (10 minutes south) on the second day, and went deep sea fishing on day three for marlin, tuna, or whatever. NO fish. It was about $600 for the boat ride including tip for four of us, which included lunch, bait, and tackle for a three-quarter-day trip.
My overall impression of the resort was a B-, but at $159 per night, a good value, I think, and the weather was fantastic. I wonder what I could have gotten it for by using Priceline?
Citi Thank You Premier Card, 50,000 Thank You Points!
Deal of the Day from Restaurant.com and Three Points Forever
Posted by FrugalTravelGuy Friday, September 09, 2011, No Comments
Here is a great deal with Restaurant.com: 80% off with “SAVE” code + 50% cash back + $5 for new users! If you use my link below you get $5 and I get $5. Good until September 14th, but you never know how long it will last!
http://www.shopathome.com/?IAFCG=N4V8FlUPQL7AmDDIhBGdZw==
Once you’ve set up the account at Shopathome.com search for Restaurant.com. Click on the 50% bonus and it will send you to the Restaurant.com website. You will need to enter the code “SAVE” at checkout to get the 80% off. Keep in mind that Restaurant.com coupons never expire and you can trade them in whenever you want. Load up now with a bunch. Then, when you go on a trip, bring two to six with you and use them or not. Also please be aware that you will not get a check from Shopathome until you reach $20 in rewards. But new users get the $5 reward with my link, so $15 net first round. If you buy $30 worth of certs with Restaurant.com to start, you have met the spend with Shopathome and should be good to go with no other buys.
Enjoy the savings!
Rene
Cap One Business Card You Pick the Bonus Category
Look at this one as a gas card possibility. Three points forever.
Kissing the American Toilet
Posted by FTG Contributor Saturday, July 30, 2011, No Comments
Last Friday while I was waiting in Traverse City for my flights to Reno, I ran into Christine, aka TC Fly Girl. We ended up talking about Katy’s experience with the Chinese lavatories in public tourist areas. Christine reminded me of a magazine piece she did previously, re: her experiences with something we take for granted. Here is her article:
Kissing the American Toilet
By Christine Krzyszton
I would venture to say that most of us take our American toilet for granted. We can thank the English for this sacred invention; initially with a crude model back in the late 1500s and the more modern flushable version a couple hundred years later. I just want to thank the English publicly for this indispensable invention.
You see, most people in the world lack the convenience of a modern toilet like ours. I remember the day, the exact day, that I first became aware of this fact and personally experienced this cold reality. I was traveling in Africa in the back of a pickup truck when nature yelled at me, “You need a bathroom FAST!”
The truck pulled over and I was immediately escorted to a strange wooden “room” in the back of a very modest restaurant we might in America refer to as a roadside shack. I’m sure the cuisine was exceptional as the “bathroom” was certainly a room with a view — a 4 ft x 4 ft stall with a hole in the back wall right at eye level where you could see the mountains or, conveniently enough, the mountains could see you. The jagged hole in the wood was strange enough, but as I instantly scanned the micro stall, I could find no suitable, let me rephrase that, no freaking place to sit whatsoever. No time to ponder the circumstances however, I needed to grasp the situation quickly and get down to business.
Now, I’m a fairly limber person but the gyrations needed to navigate this toilet were more than demanding. There were two porcelain foot markers, which I brilliantly determined were where my feet should be placed although, inconveniently, they were not marked as to which foot should be placed where. Continuing to be puzzled, I asked myself: Do I stand facing the mountain-view hole or facing the door? Both positions seemed so very wrong, yet each had its logical and compelling reason for being right. One thing was for sure: Squatting was going to be required, very deep squatting.
There was a lovely, although smelly, hole situated between the two foot markers, dug, I presume, for the very purpose I was there for, and somewhat familiar as I have used an outhouse before. Holding my purse firmly in my teeth and clutching my clothing with both hands, I squatted the best I could and as you can imagine (but I beg you not to), I was soon in need of toilet paper. It didn’t take long to realize there was none to be had. Perhaps there was some in my purse as I pride myself in anticipating these sorts of situations. But it might as well have been on the shelf at Wal-Mart as there was no way I could reach it without something touching the floor, and for many wet, fragrant, and regrettable reasons, it would not be prudent to let that happen.
Scanning my surroundings, I noticed a bucket of water in the corner which I guessed was for “flushing,” but do you use the whole bucket or just a little? Or do you pour a small amount on your hand, I wondered. Yeah, like that’s possible in my current contortionist position. If I used the whole bucket, would people who peed there the rest of the day be without? Would I be the subject of African conversation for weeks to come — “the stupid American used the whole damn bucket of water; what was she thinking?” Is it possible that you would dip your hand in the bucket and then….oh gosh no, that couldn’t be right! And why aren’t there instructions written on the wall in several languages? This isn’t like riding a bike, for gosh sakes. Then I see it — a sliver of tissue sticking out of my pants pocket. But how do I reach it? Let’s just say something got wet. Something always seems to end up getting wet, doesn’t it?
This was my virgin experience with a toilet unlike our American toilet. But whether it was a bidet in Europe (what are those prissy things for anyway?!) or a squat toilet in China, I have realized over the years that we are blessed to have indoor plumbing, a toilet that flushes, and the modern facilities we do. I feel like kissing the American toilet every time I return home.
Rookie Travel Tips With Shannon and A Look At The Starwood Preferred Guest Program
Posted by Shannon Friday, July 29, 2011, 20 Comments
SW Drink Coupons for Our Servicemen and Women
Karen R. C. L. from the city of Brotherly Love has donated 20 Southwest drink coupons for our military service members. I have divided them into five envelopes so drop me a line at ingy104@gmail.com.
Thanks, Karen, for your donation. And thank you for your service to our country.
It’s Rookie Travel Tips Friday!
by Shannon
Our winning tip from last week goes to Nick H. (Next Friday we will announce the July winner of the $100 gift card!)
“My rookie tip relates to credit card bonuses. Make sure you are getting what you think you signed up for. Always look to see that the terms and conditions match the offer link you think you are signing up for. Clicking on a 50,000 mile offer doesn’t always take you to a 50,000 application. Always make sure everything lines up to your expectations. You may have to clear your computer’s cookies, call an agent to confirm, etc. Once you are sure you have the offer you want, make sure you print out your terms and conditions as well as a screen shot or the receipt of your order and any other documentation that shows the offer you want. Sometimes offers don’t go through as planned or they hit snags, so documentation is key. Screen shots, confirmations, agent’s name, and date/time you spoke to him or her can all help get what you are missing.
I am currently fighting Chase/Continental (since February) for my last 15,000 miles from the 25,000 debit card sign up. Somehow Chase has no record of me signing up for a debit card that gives a bonus. If I didn’t have my printout clearly stating that I had signed up for a 25,000 mile offer, I would definitely have no leg to stand on.
Hope this helps others avoid mistakes.”
-Nick H
Hotel Points: Oh, how I need some
Destination picked out, award tickets booked, itinerary planned….now where to stay? And most importantly where to stay for free? After churning a few modest cards over the last year, I have a small chunk of frequent flier miles waiting to be redeemed, but I am seriously lacking in the hotel point division.
As a rookie, I’m just getting my feet wet in this game, I focused a ton on airline miles and really have neglected to collect any real hotel points. The truth is, I’m still learning. Learning about airline programs, card churning, cheap travel deals, and so on has occupied my time. Now I want to start in on some free hotel stays. In all reality, hotel stays can become your greatest expense on a vacation. So why I have neglected to rack up the points? I don’t know. Lesson learned I guess.
Last year, my husband and I got the Starwood Preferred Guest Card with a 25,000 point sign-up bonus with a six-month $15,000 spend, and that’s about it. Sad, I know. So this week I want to focus on that program because, by the looks of it, it is my only option if I want to use hotel points. Rick says its a great program worth being a part of and I know a lot of you use it.
Starwood Preferred Guest
As many of you already know, the Starwood Preferred Guest program acts almost like an airline alliance program. A group of hotels come together under one program offering SPG points and promotions. Members can obtain and redeem points in a variety of ways with many different hotels within the program. It’s free to join. Just go to the website and follow the “join” tab to enroll.
Hotel Partners include: LeMeridien, Sheraton, ALoft, The Luxury Collection, Westin, Four Points, W Hotels, Element, and St. Regis. Total Resorts available: 1000+. Countries accessible: 93.
There are multiple ways to earn and maximize points. Following the basics will earn you some steady points year-round, but stay tuned to the blog for deal alerts and creative ways to earn and use your points for the best possible deals.
The Hotel Stay:
The first and most basic way to earn points is through hotel stays. SPG membership has tiers, or status, just like an airline program. And at the Basic Preferred Guest level, you earn two starpoints for every eligible dollar spent at SPG hotels when booked through their sites, hotels, call centers, or travel agents. Gold and Platinum members earn three points per dollar under the same criteria. You can also earn points on dollars spent on food and beverages within the hotels.
SPG Card Promo available through 8-22-2011
SPG just rolled out two card offers: a personal card and a business card. If you get the personal card, they are offering up to 30,000 bonus points: 10,000 points with your first purchase, then, when you meet a $4500 minimum spend within the first three months, you get the additional 20,000 points. There is no annual membership fee for the first year then it’s $65 after that.
Rick has advised me to use this card for all of our everyday spends. If you get the card for more than one member of the household, such as you and your spouse, that’s 60,000 points with a pretty decent minimum spend requirement. Additionally, they have offered an SPG Business Card with the same 30,000 point bonus with the same spend requirement and annual fees. You may also apply for additional cards for employees.
So what will this card do for me in terms of the SPG program?
- I’ll earn up to 5 Starpoints per dollar spent at hotels and resorts in the SPG program.
- If I stay two nights, booked with my SPG card at participating Sheraton hotels, I’ll get a third night free (good through December 31st 2011). Promo Code ZHA or ZRA.
- I’ll receive credit for five nights and two stays toward SPG elite status each year per account.
- I’ll achieve Gold Status each year through stays or by spending $30,000 on my card. That’s $2500 a month.
Every family is different, but if you can get creative with what you can put on the card, you can easily hit $2500 a month. My advice for getting Gold status for the family is to get the bonus points maxed out on each card then use only one member’s card to earn the status. Then you can book hotel travel under that member’s Gold status.
How do I reach a minimum spend or a monthly number?
- Charge all your everyday expenses on that card
- Pay tuition using the card
- Pay any monthly bills you can on that card, i.e. electricity, car payment, mortgage, phone bills, etc.
For those of you who live in Connecticut, Illinois, Maryland, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, or Texas, you can choose Energy Plus to supply your electricity and earn some extra bonus points:
- 5000 bonus Starpoints after two months as an Energy Plus customer.
- Unlimited year-round Starpoints for paying your bill – two Starpoints for every $1 spent in supply charges.
- 100% wind power at not extra cost-exclusive for SPG members
You’ll have to check out the details at www.energypluscompany.com/spg. I don’t know if it’s worth it, but it is another points opportunity if it works in your favor.
You can transfer Amex Membership Rewards Points to SPG, but it’s a lousy transfer option.
The TD AMERITRADE Account Bonus: You can potentially bank up to 20,000 SPG points by opening and funding an account with TD Ameritrade. If you have some cash you are willing to deposit, the deal goes as follows: The account must be opened and funded by a new client and only one account per client by September 30th 2011. There is no talk of “one per household” in the terms and conditions though, so multiple people in your home may want to take advantage of the deal. A deposit of $2000 will get you 3000 points: $10,000 for 10,000 points and $25,000 for 20,000 points. The account must stay open with the minimum funding required for at least nine months. Six weeks from the account opening date you should receive half of the bonus points. Then for the second half of the bonus, the account must remain open with the minimum funding required for six months from the first bonus points posting date.
If your rent with AVIS, you must be an Avis Preferred member to earn:
- 50 Starpoints per day for every qualifying rental with Avis at participating airport locations.
- Free unlimited mileage with most cars.
Those are the basics for racking up some quick SPG points. If maximized, a couple can accumulate at least 60,000 points and Gold status over the course of one year. If you each have a business, it can easily be 120,000 points if you each get a personal and business credit card. If you also have some money you are willing to move around, say $50,000, you could bank another 40,000 points between two people. If you just happen to have a bunch of extra cash, you could open up a few more TD Ameritrade accounts for your kids and bank some more miles. With a little time invested, you could be looking at a fabulous vacation next year, hotel and all, for free.
A little icing for that cake:
The SPG program allows you to redeem points for airline miles as well. I will dig into those details at a later date, but I do want to mention something brief about their “Nights and Flights” redemption. The deal is that you can redeem 60,000 SPG points for 50,000 airline miles and five free nights at a Category Three hotel or resort or 70,000 SPG points, 70,000 Starpoints, and receive 50,000 airline miles and five free nights at a Category Four hotel or resort. To use this deal you must call the customer care support and book:
U.S. Phone Numbers:
Preferred Guest 1-888-625-4988
Gold 1-888-625-4990
Platinum 1-888-625-4991
Preferred Guest 1-888-625-4988
Gold 1-888-625-4990
Platinum 1-888-625-4991
You can only book on airlines that offer a 1:1 points redemption ration with SPG. The maximum you can redeem is 50,000 points. It is the your responsibility to make the flight arrangement. And the hotel awards are not for sale without the airline transfer. The hotel night award reservations must be confirmed and the “Nights & Flights” award must be ordered on the same day the Starpoint-to-airline-transfer award is ordered. The hotel award can never be less than five nights, and if you want to add additional nights you must do so separately.
This is a great way to get a free vacation out of a few deals’ worth of points. Now I am starting to see how it can be done. But there are lots of terms and conditions, so always read the fine print and print a copy of the deal to keep on hand.
– Shannon, The Rookie
New Starwood 30,000 Point Offer Here Limited Time Offer
Double Continental One Pass Miles for Gas, Groceries, and Dining April 13 til June 13
Posted by Rick Tuesday, April 12, 2011, No Comments
The Nomad reports this on the UnRoadWarrior blog, and I recall Katy getting a snail mail piece on the same promotion. This is a nice bump for all of us with the Continental OnePass card.
The promotion dates are April 13th through June 13th. Registration is not required, according to the Nomad. If someone kept the snail mail piece I’m sure our other readers would be interested in what it says.
These are our three biggest spend categories and for two months I can certainly use a few more UA/CO frequent flier miles.
All my other spending will stay on the good old Starwood Preferred Guest card unless I end up getting another card or two that have minimum spend requirements.
1000 Free American Airlines Miles
Seems simple enough
Sorry About All the Ads Last Week
We were trying different ad placements in relation to the articles, as suggested by the companies providing the links. It did get overcrowded and I have removed the doubled up ads. We also removed about six credit card ads that nobody showed any interest in. You are a savvy group of readers and we will try to limit the cards offered to only those worthy of your attention. Keep me on my toes if it gets out of line.
Switch to WordPress
I am really out of my league here. Howie is doing everything he can to make sure all content is saved from past posts. We will try again next weekend to complete the move. From the test page I saw, I understand why you felt things were looking cluttered. WordPress is a much cleaner format and will allow us to better serve you, the readers.
100,000 Mile British Airways Card Offer. Limited time only.
Sunday Funnies Coming To An End, Which Means Your Chance to Share Your Success
Posted by Rick Tuesday, April 05, 2011, No Comments
After two-plus years of aviation funnies on Sundays, you, the readers, have asked for a change. I’m all for it as I am running out of sources for aviation related jokes and cartoons. Thanks for speaking up and suggesting a change.
Let’s try some Sunday Success Stories. Here is your chance to be a travel blogger and share your best travel redemption, most exhilarating adventure, or a heartwarming travel story. Make it about as long as one of my typical blog posts and include some details on the “deal” part of the story so others can benefit from your success.
Send your entries to ingy104@gmail.com for future publication.
Here is a sample of a Success Story and format from my buddy Texas Yankee
The Planned Switch to WordPress is Now Scheduled for April 9th
If you have us saved as a blogspot.com address, that will change to a straight frugaltravelguy.com address on that date. Let’s hope all goes well and you like the new look. I’m sure Howie can fill us in on what the new RSS feed will be if it is changing. Way over my head.
Platinum Card for the Delta Transfer Bonus, Elite Status, Lounge Access, $200 Incidental Credit and More. Read my February 6th blog post for details.
My wife and I are traveling roundtrip to Singapore in Business Class on Continental Airlines! The added plus is that I am finally doing the status match from Delta to CO and will be Platinum for this trip which means extra bags for free! (We are going to a wedding hence the need to check bags ….) Booking the flights took some maneuvering on my part (and CO customer service) to score the lower fares – we end up traveling home from NRT by way of different flights and cities. The downside is my last 3hr flight is on a regional jet with no Fist Class – but hey, I will be sleeping!
Costs:
CO credit cards $85 x 2 = $170
Opened 4 checking accts at Chase (personal and business acct each) = opportunity cost of lost interest on $10,000 used to maintain free checking.
(These funds are from the “points fund” which is used to cover all points activity and would earn low interest anyway.)
A few meetings with various presidents 
= time in front of the TV drinking wine … (wine cost would happen regardless of activity. Is that a fixed cost?)
= time in front of the TV drinking wine … (wine cost would happen regardless of activity. Is that a fixed cost?)LATE EDIT: This may be “fuzzy” math as the bonuses from the cards and checking were enough for the trip cost! We do have extra CO points remaining …
Taxes for 2 reward tix = $169
Reward miles 125,000 x 2 +250,000
Total Cost = $339 + miles
Total value: $6711 each = $13422 for Business Class.
Actual value might be $2972 which is the cost for roundtrip tickets for 2 in economy class. Frugal travelers would really not pay for Bus Class … 
By the way Delta wanted 480,000 miles/points for the same trip … hence the status match!
And then there is the stay at the Conrad Singapore on Hilton HHonors points thanks to Amex and our Presidents = $50
= $50Here is your chance. Share your story and math, fuzzy or not, on how much you saved. Thanks Dave for the start up.
Sunday Funnies and Fotos
Posted by Rick Sunday, April 03, 2011, No Comments
Here’s a Little More Free Advice
“Cold on the airplane? Tell your flight attendant. We’re in a constant battle with them over the temperature. They’re moving all the time, up and down the aisles, so they are always calling and saying, ‘Turn up the air.’ But most passengers I know are freezing.” -Captain at a major carrier
“I always tell my kids to travel in sturdy shoes. If you have to evacuate and your flip-flops fall off, there you are standing on the hot tarmac or in the weeds in your bare feet.” -Joe D’Eon
“Most people get sick after traveling not because of what they breathe but because of what they touch. Always assume that the tray table and the button to push the seat back have not been wiped down, though we do wipe down the lavatory.” -Patrick Smith
“The general flow of air in any airplane is from front to back. So if you’re really concerned about breathing the freshest possible air or not getting too hot, sit as close to the front as you can. Planes are generally warmest in the back.” -Tech pilot at a regional airline, Texas
“I know pilots who spend a quarter million on their education and training, then that first year as a pilot, they qualify for food stamps.” -Furloughed first officer, Texas
Sunday Funnies Coming to an End
We are revamping the Sunday blog post to include your Success Stories and removing the Funnies. If you have a successful frugal trip story you’d like to share, send it to me at ingy104@gmail.com
Platinum Card for the Delta Transfer Bonus, Elite Status, Lounge Access, $200 Incidental Credit and More. Read my February 6th blog post for details.
Funnies, Fotos, and Tokyo, Japan, and Chicago Seminar DO Registration Open
Posted by Rick Wednesday, March 16, 2011, No Comments
Tokyo’s Rainbow Bridge © Andrew Ingersoll
I wrote this post about my on-the-fly experience in Japan a couple weeks ago. In light of recent events, I encourage those able to support the Japanese to do so in any way you see appropriate.
Tokyo on the fly
by Andrew Ingersoll
by Andrew Ingersoll
Over my few years of frugal flying, you will notice how much I have come to deeply respect and appreciate Asian culture.
My first trip to Asia was on a United Mileage Plus ticket to Singapore via Tokyo.
After a 10-hour flight from Seattle to Tokyo, my heart rate was through the roof, palms sweaty — I was so excited to be somewhere so new. I was scheduled to depart Tokyo Narita in a couple hours. When I climbed down the stairway from the remote gate and saw the Japanese air field workers hustling around and the welcome staff smiling, I said, “Screw my connecting flight. I’m staying the night.”
“Yokoso” — Welcome to Japan! I rearranged my flights to depart the next day, purchased my surprisingly expensive round-trip Narita Express ticket into central Tokyo, and I was off.
The Shinkansen Bullet train was pulling out of Tokyo Station as I was coming in. “Holy crap, this is cool!” I thought.
With carry-on baggage in tow, I began wandering the streets of Tokyo, attempting to find a place to rest my head for the night. What surprised me the most was the lack of English lettering. Second was the lack of Japanese people who spoke English. Thinking back now, what did I expect? I was in Japan. “Get over yourself, Andrew,” I thought. “The world is so much bigger than America.”
I ended up back at the train station hotel, donned my tiny kimono and slippers and dozed off to sleep, excited about my full day of exploring one of the world’s most amazing cities.
Don’t let a language barrier stop you. Embrace and appreciate the difference!
Tokyo can be an expensive city. I’d recommend redeeming hotel points to keep costs down. If you’re looking for an authentic experience, bed and breakfast inns can be reasonably priced and an authentic cultural experience. The opening of Haneda Airport to International commercial travel will significantly reduce the costs of getting into downtown Tokyo as Narita is a good hour outside of the city.
Tokyo Metro Website
Japan Rail East Map (How intense is this map? Both Haneda and Narita Airports are serviced via train)
Andrew’s TripAlertz Referral Link. Thank You.
Chicago Seminar DO Registration Now Open
We have another great line-up of speakers and topics. Come join us in Chicago October 29th and 30th with two sessions on the evening of the 28th.
Platinum Card for the Delta Transfer Bonus, Elite Status, Lounge Access, $200 Incidental Credit and More. Read my February 6th blog post for details.
Rookie Travel Tips with Shannon, and "Yes" on #5 of 6 for Rick
Posted by Shannon Friday, February 25, 2011, No Comments
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| Myazaki Volcano |
Last week’s winning tip goes to Ed Chandler! (Congrats Ed. Please send Rick your email address.) Last week we talked about Rewards Networks. Ed’s tip gave advice on using Rewards Networks to keep miles from expiring. Great tip, Ed. Thank you.
How frugal is too frugal when you’re on the road? I think that’s an individual question only you can answer. Two summers ago, I took a 10-day trip to Kauai on the cheap. The airfare and hotel were college graduation gifts and the rest was on me. I was living on a student’s budget at the time and could not afford to spend a lot while I was there. This was how I did it.
When I packed my bags, I bought a cooler bag that I could lay out on the bottom of my suitcase to use once I got to the island. At the airport, I packed a variety of dry goods, such as cliff bars, trail mix and a few apples. I put all this in my carry-on along with an empty water bottle so I could avoid the high prices for food and drinks in the airport. I had no lounge access and would be spending my layovers with the rest of the world, paying for food and drinks.
Once I got to the island, I went to a grocery store and bought bottled water, sodas, snacks, yogurt and fruit. I filled up the hotel ‘fridge with my items and ate breakfast in the room before I left. I did rent a car while I was there and filled up my cooler bag with food and drinks to bring with me on the road. For lunch I usually found a Subway and bought a $5 foot long . I already had drinks and snacks in the cooler and now I had lunch that cost me less than $10. For dinner I found a Chinese restaurant. They always pile on the food and for about $8 two people could eat plenty. I was traveling with a friend and we split these costs so we both made out pretty well on the deal. We also ordered pizza for dinner. Most pizza places would deliver to our room and we had plenty left over for breakfast the next day (as long as I didn’t get up at 3 a.m. craving pepperoni). We found food where the locals ate by staying away from the touristy places and asking the workers at our hotel where to go for good food on a normal budget. We even went to a liquor store for “adult” beverages and kept them in the hotel room. (On a waitress’ budget just out of college, $ 25 for four pieces of sushi and a $10 strawberry daiquiri in the hotel was a little off budget.) We did have a few nice meals, but not three times a day. I promise we were never deprived!
I bought a great travel guide called The Ultimate Kauai Guide Book: Kauai Revealed by Andrew Daughtry. You can find on Amazon.com today for less than $11. Each day we picked a different area of the island and went off exploring. The great thing about the Hawaiian Islands is they have laws that keep their beaches public so there are endless places to go and it doesn’t cost a thing.
First we drove up Waimea Canyon (which is free), ending at the Kalalau lookout, a must-do on the island. The view of the Napali Coast there is breath taking. At the bottom of the canyon is the best shaved ice shack on the island, “Joe’s.” It is a must and a cup costs less than $5.
On the North part of the Island, we went Ke’e beach and hiked the Kalalau Trail to Hanakapi beach. On the drive back, we stopped at Tunnels beach and also checked out Princeville. We also knew we wanted to see the famous Napali coast and there are three ways to see it: air, foot or water. We nixed the helicopter tours since they’re short and pricey. And we didn’t have permits or the energy for a 20-plus-mile hike. So we ended up catching a boat tour out of Hanalei Bay Beach Park. For around $75 we went on a four-hour, personal guided tour of the coast, stopped at some beautiful reefs for snorkeling (they provided the gear), and enjoyed a box lunch (included) out on the water. This was the best deal around.
On the South Shore, we went to Po’ipu beach, rented boogie boards on the cheap, and took them to Brennecke beach. It was a blast. We boogie-boarded beside tons of giant sea turtles. They were coming up right next to us! It was an amazing experience I will never forget. Even if you can’t boogie board you can use them to get out by the turtles and just float around and enjoy the experience.
If you just want to watch, you can find all the local surfers at Keoniloa Beach, also known as Shipwreck Beach. Adjacent to this beach is a dune walk along some beautiful cliffs where you can catch the locals pole fishing. If you’re feeling brave enough, many locals and a few crazy travelers will be jumping the cliff on the left side of Shipwreck Beach. Try if you dare or you can always set out a towel and watch the free entertainment.
One of my all-time favorite FREE experiences on Kauai was Kipu Falls. Of course, you could pay big money to take some four-wheeler guided tour that may end there and allow you to experience the falls as part of the package. Or you can do as the locals do and drive yourself. The Ultimate Kauai Guide has great directions, but basically you follow Highway 50 and at Mile Marker 3 turn towards the sea onto Kipu road. Then you take the first right to stay on Kipu road and follow in about a half a mile. Park on the side of the road and follow the dirt trail down to the falls. This is a beautiful swimming hole where you get a chance to jump off a 25-foot waterfall and/or use the rope swing for another thrill. It was a blast but I only recommend it for anyone willing to take the risk. If you don’t want to take the plunge, it’s still a great show.
Kauai is a great trip to go on when you’re just starting out in the frugal travel game. It takes roughly 35,000 frequent flier miles to get a round-trip ticket there from the continental US and there are plenty of hotels to chose from within all of the major reward programs. The island activities are virtually all free and the food doesn’t have to be expensive. See you in Kauai!
Question of the week: I have heard some talk about E-miles and Opinion Place, what tips do you have about earning miles through these programs?
Shannon’s TripAlertz.com Referral Link Thank You.
I Got my Fifth Approval of Six Applications
From Rick: I just renegotiated my existing cards with Chase and picked up my approval on the 50,000 frequent flier mile Continental card. They had a business account listed as “inactive from 2002″ with a 10K limit and I had two United Mileage Plus cards, one with a 5K limit. I closed those two and got the approval for the Continental card based on my “perfect credit history” with Chase. Now all I’m waiting on is the Barclay’s US Airways Business card. It has been a very successful churn. I fully expect to go six for six.
By the way: My nickname for Shannon is “Spitfire” — hence today’s photo!
Platinum Card for the Delta Transfer Bonus, Elite Status, Lounge Access, $200 Incidental Credit and More. Read my February 6th Blog Post for Details
