Weekend Blitz

Istanbul is a huge city filled with never-ending passageways to explore. No matter which part of the city you’re in, there’s an intriguing little store just around the corner filled with real-life treasures. The tricky part is just deciding what to take home with you.

If you’re in the market for a rug, good:  there’s no shortage of men trying to cat call you into their shop just to sell you a very expensive rug. Turns out, I didn’t have the #fancy budget for a rug, can you believe it? So, I focused on more attainable souvenirs – and what I could actually pack in my suitcase.

Without further ado, here are my top areas for shopping in [...]

Hurry and book now to take advantage of the Air France/KLM Flying Blue Promo Awards to travel to Europe this summer!

Until June 30, you can book this promo award which will give you 50% off the typical award rate between Houston-IAH and Europe and knock it down to just 25,000 miles per person in Economy.

Head here to book your travel: Flying Blue Promo Awards

So, where will 25,000 miles take you? Basically, any of these cities in Europe are eligible (if you can find award space):

Because the only eligible routes are Air France/KLM routes from Houston-IAH, you’re limited to:

The “SPG Hot Escapes” list is out for the week of July 25, 2014. They offer discounts of 20-50% off of typical rates for a few hundred select properties worldwide. The flash sale lasts for about 3 days and allows you to book the properties for the next 6 weeks:

The Deal

SPG Hot Escapes for the week of July 25, 2014 allow you to book selected Starwood properties for 20-50% off. Some of the highlights include:

Sub-$100 U.S. Properties:

Worldwide deals:

How to Get It

Don’t forget:

A few months ago I wrote about the advantages of getting a credit card or debit card with EMV or “Smart Chip” technology (Great Travel Tool: Get a Credit Card with a Chip). Check out the post for more info on why you need one for traveling. I also included a brief list of U.S. banks and financial institutions that have recently started offering this new technology but now have a more comprehensive list. Check out the list, there’s a good chance that a card that you already have is now offering a chip and all you have to do is call up and ask for one.

Chip-and-PIN

A true Chip-and-PIN card offers the ultimate in security (including in [...]

Florence, Italy was next up on our trip and I was psyched! I studied abroad in Siena, Italy while in college and was so happy to go back to visit the family I lived with while there. But, before heading to Siena (about an hour’s train ride from Florence), we wanted to hit one or two highlights in Tuscany’s most famous city.

With appx. 1.5 million people in the metropolitan area, Florence is also the most populous city in Tuscany and a must-visit on any trip to the area. Most visitors stay in Florence and then day-trip to other Tuscan towns. Not that I would suggest that plan… but, then again, I’m biased:  Florence and Siena were equal in size and power [...]

We made a very last minute, overnight trip to Philadelphia a few weeks ago and needed a place to stay. We were looking for a place in the heart of the city (within walking distance to everything) and decided on Le Méridien Philadelphia.

BOOKING

I made a booking the day before check-in after planning our last minute trip to Philadelphia. When I looked on Monday, literally every hotel in the city was sold out. Nothing at Starwood, Hyatt or Marriott. Worried that our only option was going to be the airport hotels, I kept checking back a few times a day. By Tuesday, some availability opened up at a Hyatt property and I jumped on it using 12,000 Hyatt GP points. [...]

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By lucky

One of the best things about American Express Membership Rewards points is that you can transfer points to any of their roughly two dozen transfer partners, including 18 airlines.

The terms of the [...]