Queer and There

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Tonight: NYC Miles and Points Meetup! 6pm in East Village!

by Harlan 1 Comment

Better than a self-serve beer fridge at an airport lounge!

Better than a self-serve beer fridge at an airport lounge!

I usually say “points and miles” so typing “miles and points” was a bit of a strain for me lol.

In any regard, come grab a drinky poo with your fellow frequent flyers and points addicts hobbyists tonight in the East Village if you’re available. 6-9pm.

Here’s the link to the RSVP.

The 411:

Professor Thom’s, 219 2nd Avenue, New York, NY (between 13 & 14 St)

Thursday, January 29th, 6-9pm

And the upshot:

I was a Nervous Nelly at my first Meetup but over the past few months, I’ve gotten to know a few people here. It’s easy conversation, and you’re bound to hear someone mention something that’ll perk your ears up. Down a liquid courage and hop in.

Plus, there is nothing quite like geeking out about airlines/aircraft/weird routes/award bookings than with people who know exactly what you’re talking about.

Bottom line

Come one, come all. If I don’t post tonight, now you know why. 😉

Anyone been to one of these before, in NYC or another city? If you come tonight, say hello!

Is British Airways planning to eliminate fuel surcharges?

by Harlan 8 Comments

My, my, my. British Airways. Now you’ve gone and done it – changed your award chart again.

I don’t care about the changes they’ve made to mileage earned for the various fare buckets – I mean, it truly sucks if you’re loyal to them as a frequent flyer. My relationship with British Airways is as an earner of Avios and redeemer of short haul flights on partner airlines.

I’ll admit, though, I was enamored of the idea of the Travel Together ticket until I woke up today and tried to get through their mess of an explanation email.

Screenshot 2015-01-28 23.10.11

Wait. What happened?

In the end, I feel relatively unscathed. The only thing I want, as an US-based flyer is those partner short-haul awards. Ooooh, yasss.

But, this does change things

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Thoughts on Visiting the UAE as a Gay Man

by Harlan 71 Comments

a close up of a passport

Thanks for using my links to open a new credit card (US residents only)!

Just wanted to share my impressions.

While writing the previous post, a straightforward review of the Park Inn Yas Island, I wanted to get into the back story of the hotel booking and the overall impression that it left, but then decided it would be better to separate the thoughts into a different post.

When me and boyfriend decided to book the Park Inn for an 18-hour layover, I selected the double bed option without even thinking about it. Force of habit.

Then, he said out of nowhere, “Did you book two beds?” “No, why would I?”

gay in uae

Visiting the UAE

We read the reviews and saw that another gay couple recommended getting two separate beds, because in the UAE being homosexual is illegal. Not “participating in homosexual acts”, but simply being homosexual. For residents, the highest penalty is death. For visitors, it’s deportation, fines, or prison time.

It’s also illegal for unwed couples to share a double bed, for what’s it worth.

So after reading that, I completely canceled the first booking and re-booked for two twin beds instead.

gay in uae

Reserve, oops, rebook

Respecting culture

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It’s On: AAdvantage Platinum Status Challenge 2015

by Harlan 6 Comments

Also see: 

Thanks to FoundersCard, I just enrolled in another American Airlines status challenge.

The T&Cs say I have to accumulate 10,000 EQPs (NOT EQMs) during the time period of February 12th, 2015 through April 12th, 2015:

FoundersCard Status Challenge T&Cs

FoundersCard Status Challenge T&Cs

Why I care

About a month ago, I resigned myself to the fact that I would have no airline status of any kind when the clock struck midnight on February 28th, 2015 – and that was fine.

I’ve given up on Delta, though still find I’m forced an opportunity to fly their metal from time to time.

But unequivocally, American Airlines has the best thing going of all the legacy carriers with their AAdvantage program.

If I lose Platinum status, my rate of earning goes back to 1 mile earned per 1 mile flown – generous these days – but as a Platinum, I’ve been earning a 100% bonus each time (for economy, more miles earned and higher bonus for premium cabins).

I simply like that earning rate and want to keep it – especially if it’s free to get the status. I also only have to earn 10,000 EQPs instead of the usual 50,000 EQMs -or- EQPs. If it’s going to be this (relatively) easy, I’m gonna go for it.

Well, not completely free because now I have to earn 10,000 EQPs on paid fares. But it beats the pants off American’s “Step up your elite status” promo they have going on right now.

What American would charge to keep Platinum Status

What American would charge to keep Platinum Status

You bet your tooshie I’ll be watching The Flight Deal like a hawk for the next month or so. I want a fare that earns 1 EQP per mile flown, but American is notorious (to me at least) for booking economy into N, O, or S (sometimes Q, hardly ever see G) fare buckets. But where there’s a will, there’s a way, they say.

AA fare buckets

AA fare buckets

This will also be a nice jumping off point into Executive Platinum, which I’ve never attained. I’m of the mindset of “if it happens, it happens.” Most of my flying last year was on mistake/ultra-low fares or award redemptions, so we’ll see what shakes out in 2015.

Regarding the second Challenge: you cannot repeat Status Challenges for two consecutive years. So if you did one in 2014, you can’t do another one in 2015. I did my last one in 2013, so I’m eligible to repeat the Challenge. The final say is up to American, of course, but they allowed me to repeat the Challenge this year.

Bottom line

FoundersCard is offering free Platinum Status Challenges to their members, which would otherwise be $200. Here’s a link to the Flyer Guide Wiki about AA Challenges.

I’ve also written extensively about FoundersCard in the past, which I personally find to be a great complement to my travel goals.

Is anyone else doing a Status Challenge this year, on American or another airline? Is having “status” even more it any more?

Hello BoardingArea and Prior2Boarding!

by Harlan 10 Comments

Much blog

Much blog

Hey everyone,

I’m new here so please consider this an introduction to the blog and to me.

Today is my second day on BoardingArea’s Prior2Boarding network and I’m super excited but trying to baby-step into everything, and there is so much to absorb. I’m honored to be here and look forward to interacting with everyone and getting started on this new crazy ride I find myself taking.

About me

At Versailles

At Versailles, selfie game strong

My name is Harlan, and I love to travel. It’s my biggest passion. I’m originally from Mississippi, but found myself sucked into New York at a certain point and now I’m here.

I work in real estate in Manhattan. My favorite places to visit are typically cold places: Iceland, Alaska, Canada are all in my Top 10. But I love South America and Hawaii and lots of other places, too.

I live with my boyfriend and dog in Brooklyn and love my little neighborhood here. It’s an old Italian neighborhood where people still have thick Brooklyn accents and I love coming back to here each evening.

2014-10-03 12.55.53-1

In Vienna

My travel style and award redemptions are very mix-and-match. I like to earn lots of different types of points and use them all to cobble together my trips. Which is another thing: most of my trips tend to start and end in NYC. I prefer JFK, then LGA, then EWR. And my manufactured spend happens here.

In the past, I’ve done marketing and communications, and some public relations, but now I’m mostly doing real estate and, as it happens, blogging.

Connecting with people is what I live for, so always feel free to comment here or to shoot me an email. I love interacting with you guys.

About the blog

Out and Out started in 2013 as an outlet/aside for myself while I worked a 9-5 corporate office job. It was originally intended as an addendum to the other (mostly BoardingArea) blogs, and to this day, I don’t consider myself much of a “news breaker.” I focus on describing how I earn my points, how I redeem them, and impressions of the places I go, with the oddball post thrown in here and there. I don’t know a ton about aircraft or the multitude of premium cabin products, but try to add value where I can. I’m also still learning and like to share what I find.

The wonderful thing about travel, points, and miles is how extremely customizable everything is, and I enjoy reading about how other people put together all the pieces. Out and Out is where I talk about my process, and where I come to express my love and appreciation for the miracle of air travel.

Digging in

Here are my Top 10 posts from this past year, which is a great place to start and gives an overview of the topics I like to write about it. If you like them, there are a few ways to keep up with the blog:

I use Twitter and Instagram as a mini-blog of sorts, so feel free to follow me there if you’d like.

I love RSS readers (Feedly is my favorite) and I also have my posts sent out once per day via email if you’d like to subscribe. There is also a Facebook page to keep track of new posts.

Bottom line

At a ruin bar in Budapest

At a ruin bar in Budapest

I always like to have a “bottom line.” The one today is simply that I’m happy to be here.

Thank you and cheers!

FoundersCard offering free AA Platinum Status Challenge for members

by Harlan Leave A Comment

Also see:

an airplane flying over a runway

New AA perk this quarter from FoundersCard

I’ve written about FoundersCard extensively in the past. They are one of my favorite auxiliary programs for travel, business, and lifestyle benefits.

Many of the travel benefits they offer are the same ones given as perks for holding co-branded premium credit cards (free TripIt Pro [Barclaycard Arrival], Hertz #1 Club Gold membership [American Express Platinum Card], Hilton HHonors Gold status [Hilton credit cards], 10% off British Airways fares [Chase British Airways Visa Signature], free Shoprunner membership [American Express cards] – just to name a few).

And, they’re always switching things up each quarter. The one I watch like a freaking hawk is the American Airlines perk. And this quarter, they’ve really stepped it up.

Free AA Platinum Status Challenge

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The Economics of Quintuple Dipping at Kohl’s

by Harlan 4 Comments

Also see: 

Brrr

Brrr

As I sit here on a cold, windy winter evening, a thought occurred to me that I should get some long johns AKA thermal underwear. I had some Yes2You Rewards that gave me $30 in free Kohl’s Cash to use by the end of January.

So, I headed over to kohls.com, added two pairs of long johns to the cart, and pressed the buy button. Total cost? $3, inclusive of tax and shipping.

Screenshot 2015-01-07 22.12.46

I’ve got a thing for camo

Kohl's Cash

Kohl’s Cash

$3 for two pairs of long johns! Thanks, Kohl's!

$3 for two pairs of long johns! Thanks, Kohl’s!

All the dips

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A Canadian Geography Lesson from US Airways

by Harlan Leave A Comment

Thought this was cute.

We know that US Airways isn’t the best when it comes to geography when booking award flights.

When I fly, I like to flip through and look at the maps in the in-flight magazines, just to see all the routes and codeshares – I find that interesting.

Yellowknife and Whitehorse, Canada are on my list of places I’d like to visit, so I always pinpoint it on the map and imagine getting up there one day. This particular map, published in the US Airways in-flight magazine, made me do a double take:

US Airways map of Canada

US Airways Magazine map of Canada

They managed to squeeze Whitehorse into British Columbia and Yellowknife into Alberta instead of Yukon Territory and Northwest Territories, respectively.

Here are their correct geographical locations:

Whitehorse is in Yukon Territory

Whitehorse is in Yukon Territory

Screenshot 2015-01-08 21.13.47

Yellow Knife is in Northwest Territories

The provinces where the two cities are supposed to be are completely empty. Good to know US Airways threw out the map and made up one of their own!

At least they didn’t try to squeeze Iqaluit above Winnipeg…

Blog news: Out and Out is joining BoardingArea!

by Harlan Leave A Comment

Joining the fam

Joining the fam

I am very excited to announce that Out and Out is set to join the network of bloggers at BoardingArea and Prior2Boarding!

This is an awesome way to start off 2015, as the blog continues to find its focus.

The future

Not a lot will change as far as content on the blog, not any time soon any way. It’s always evolving, and I want to make sure I give it the space it needs to let that happen. This transition won’t interrupt the direction the blog is going in, and if anything, I expect a new network to help it along even more.

I’ve really enjoyed getting to know some of the readers and interacting via email and social media and hope that will happen even more this year.

The look and feel of Out and Out won’t change much besides a banner at the top and maybe a few BoardingArea-related tweaks. I’ve always enjoyed a good thought experiment, so maybe we will throw up some things to see what works and what doesn’t.

Bottom line

All of this has been a few months in the making and the transition is finally about to happen – so be on the lookout for the new site in the coming weeks!

Many, many thanks to my readers, to Randy Petersen, and to the entire crew at BoardingArea. Thank you thank you thank you. 

Review: Tumi T-Tech Continental Carry-on

by Harlan 2 Comments

The new Tumi

The new Tumi

I got a Tumi T-Tech Continental Carry-on as a Christmas present this year. It was a sweet and thoughtful gift, and broke it in on my recent trip to Memphis.

After I opened the box and set up the TSA security lock, I read some comparative reviews, and man, people are really into carry-on bags! Before this, I was using a Herschel duffel bag (this one, actually), which was fine for a while. To carry it to the airport, I put the strap over my head and carried it on one shoulder or the other. The downside to that was obvious – my shoulder would start to ache before I got to the airport. But everything else was great: the size and durability, mostly. I also liked out it was made of nylon – I could always squeeze in one more item.

So now I have a hard-sided rolling carry-on, which is already a world of difference.

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Top 10 Out and Out Posts of 2014

by Harlan 1 Comment

Here we are: 2015. Another year of life and travel.

2014 was a big year for this little blog. I experimented a lot, and threw a lot up on the wall just to see what would stick. The readership from 2013 to 2014 quadrupled (!) and more readers started interacting via email and social media – which was awesome.

The posts that made the Top 10 were the ones that mined some little data point, were compilations of research, or simply anecdotes about an experience. A couple of them were written in 2013, but widely read in 2014. I find the data fascinating. The more I learn about what sticks with readers, the more I realize I can’t calculate what will be a “good post”  – a fact which drives me to keep evolving.

With that spirit, cheers to a new year of life and travel. I hope to keep growing the blog and writing more. Thank you for reading!

The Top 10

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Barclays bumped my US Airways card bonus to 50K miles!

by Harlan 4 Comments

Last week, I finally bit the bullet and got the US Airways MasterCard with 40,000 bonus miles after first purchase and payment of the annual fee.

I made my first purchase, and then the annual fee hit. I paid it. And while waiting for my 40K miles, I saw that a new, better offer had come swimming along: 50,000 bonus miles after first purchase and payment of the annual fee.

Grrr. Hate when that happens.

Now, in the past, Chase has always been so kind about things like this. I wanted to see if Barclays would match me to the new 50K offer.

I spent maybe 2 minutes logging into my account and writing them an email.

Screenshot 2014-12-08 23.34.26

They replied with a few hours and said they would match me! Here is what I wrote them and their reply:

Screenshot 2014-12-08 10.15.38

How cool is that? I wrote on the night of 12/4, got a reply back on 12/5, and guess what happened on 12/6?

Screenshot 2014-12-08 11.31.51

Bottom line

I value all my points and miles at 2 cents each, so this extra 10,000 miles is worth $200 to me. It’s almost enough for a free domestic one-way or 1/3 of a round-trip off-season award ticket to Europe or South America (when they eventually become AAdvantage miles). Not bad for typing a few sentences and asking.

Sometimes the best way to get points and miles is simply to ask for them. If you’ve gotten this card recently (past ~90 days), it’s worth a shot to get an extra 10K miles. Anyone else been able to bump their bonus?