Monthly Archives

Monthly Archives for August 2014.

Trip Report: British Airways OpenSkies Club World Class EWR-ORY

by Harlan 1 Comment

As part of my recent trip to Paris, I got to fly from EWR to ORY on OpenSkies, a subsidiary of British Airways that flies exclusively from NYC-Paris. They have one flight that leaves from EWR and another from JFK. Due to award availability, I dragged myself over to EWR, but was really excited to take this flight.

This is a unique product for British Airways because it’s one of the few routes they fly that don’t involve a connection at LHR, which can add a lot of extra money in dreaded fuel surcharges. I did pay ~$450 + 40,000 Avios for the flight, but in my eyes, it was completely worth it. This flight often retails for over $7,000!

Click here to read about the award redemption for this flight in more detail.

The seat and flight

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Confession: I didn’t love the Park Hyatt Paris-Vendome (A Review)

by Harlan 21 Comments

a building with many windows and plants on the side
park hyatt paris vendome review

Park Hyatt Paris-Vendome Entrance

Yep. I stayed four nights here as part of my free Paris vacation valued at over $20,000. Both my partner and I opened a Chase Hyatt Visa credit card. Both came with two free nights at any Hyatt property in the world. Hyatt now has a handful of properties that are in a new category: aspirational Category 7. I was torn between redeeming the free nights at the Vendome or at one of the two Category 6 properties in Hawaii. It’s obvious which one I picked because I’m now reviewing the Vendome. I was underwhelmed by it. It was “meh.”

The reason I chose the Vendome was mostly because of the hype. In the points-and-miles blog stratosphere, people talk about the Vendome like it’s the holy grail of hotels.

Expectations. I tried not to have very many. I was hoping for a nice room as a Platinum member with Hyatt. Nearly the second I walked into the Vendome, I kinda had this sinking feeling that I’d wasted my precious four free nights.

Arrival and check-in

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Back from Italy/Work is slowing/I missed you!

by Harlan Leave A Comment

Many moons ago, I bought a R/T ticket to Italy when Star Alliance airlines were attacking fares in Skyteam hubs. After playing around with some dates and locations, I decided to go to Italy for my birthday. Now I’m back and have so much catching up to do.

  • I flew there and back on Swiss business class, which offered a phenomenal product and service
  • I stayed (for free!) at the Radisson Blu in Galgiznano Terme, Italy, which was a lovely property
  • I got to see Venice and Florence for the first time – both lovely cities
  • And I earned nearly 14K United miles, nearly enough for a free one-way toward another getaway trip

I’ve also been crazy busy with work, but it’s now slowing down and I’m hoping to turn more attention back into the blog, especially before I return to Europe for Oktoberfest in Germany.

Finally, I’ve missed you guys and am looking forward to getting back in the saddle!