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Thought this would be more appropriate here than the Credit Card Rewards thread. I have 100k American Express Membership points and want to use that for air travel to Korea and Japan in August from NY. I'd like to fly to Korea, spend a week or so there, travel to Japan and then return to NY from Japan after another week. I'm going with friends so I can't adjust the destination or dates by more than a day or two, if I can't use the American Express points I'll just buy a ticket normally. From searching around it seems like ANA is my best option, but I wanted to see if there was anything else I should look at or watch out for.
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Jun 17, 2016 16:16
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Do you have a range of dates for us to look at? Korean Air is generally pretty competitive for inbound flights from the US, but I'd have to check the various trackers. Also your destination airports unless you're just doing Seoul and Tokyo. Also also, which AMEX points are you working with? If you have to book through their travel service for redemption this is all for naught as you'll have to take what they give you. If they're just credits then there's more flexibility. Whip Slagcheek fucked around with this message at 19:04 on Jun 17, 2016 |
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Jun 17, 2016 19:01
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Whip Slagcheek posted:Do you have a range of dates for us to look at? Korean Air is generally pretty competitive for inbound flights from the US, but I'd have to check the various trackers. I'm looking to leave for Seoul July 29th-Aug 1st, preferably on the 29th and leave from Tokyo around the 15th-17th. Was planning on arriving in incheon and departing from one of the Tokyo airports. I have American Express Membership Rewards points which are pretty flexible. I can transfer them 1:1 to ANA and a lot of other partners. I can't transfer them to Korean Air directly but it's possible to transfer them to delta and book a Korean air flight that way.
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Jun 17, 2016 20:31
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8/13-16 is peak travel season in Japan (obon). Expect blackout dates and fully booked hotels the second/third week of August. Otoh, festivals!
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Jun 17, 2016 23:32
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THF13 posted:I have American Express Membership Rewards points which are pretty flexible. I can transfer them 1:1 to ANA and a lot of other partners. I can't transfer them to Korean Air directly but it's possible to transfer them to delta and book a Korean air flight that way. I would suggest transferring your MR to Aeroplan instead. You can fly ANA and Asiana. You'll only have to spend 75,000 MR instead of the 100,000+ if you go with ANA. pig slut lisa fucked around with this message at 03:46 on Jun 18, 2016 |
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Jun 18, 2016 03:39
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Keep in mind Aeroplan charge fuel surcharges on a LOT of flights. A "free" flight can often end up costing $500+
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Jun 19, 2016 00:45
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HookShot posted:Keep in mind Aeroplan charge fuel surcharges on a LOT of flights. A "free" flight can often end up costing $500+ I think that's mainly an issue with European carriers. I just booked 2 ANA first class tickets for $30 each, and I seem to recall that Asiana had similarly low fees. Not sure about EVA or United.
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Jun 19, 2016 01:09
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HookShot posted:Keep in mind Aeroplan charge fuel surcharges on a LOT of flights. A "free" flight can often end up costing $500+ FEES AND TAXES??? *shrieking penguin* https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r9BIsrSPRFY (for any non-Canadian who has no idea what the gently caress I'm talking about)
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Jun 19, 2016 02:51
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I hate that fake loving CGI penguin so much.
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Jun 19, 2016 13:06
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HookShot posted:I hate that fake loving CGI penguin so much. Me too. It's worse than puppymonkeybaby. I hope they all die of penguin AIDS.
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Jun 19, 2016 17:13
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The worst though is that smarmy rear end in a top hat with the RBC credit card who walks through the airport smugly because of no blackout dates or whatever but lol I spent 4 times as much money as anyone else to get that reward flight because RBC is the loving worst 
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Jun 19, 2016 17:19
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My partner and I are finally escaping Asia and want to take 4-6 weeks in Europe before we settle into no-vacation-forever-America. We seem pretty settled on Seattle to Reykjavik as the cheapest option. Flying back to Seattle (home) from a reunion in Nashville first is actually cheaper than flying from Nashville or Atlanta. Our plan was to fly out of Reykjavik to the rest of Europe. Are there common cheap hubs or ones to avoid? Warsaw seems pretty cheap, we'd like to have a few days for our connection is there a way to search for those of do we have to call the airline about it? 18 hours is a bit rushed even if it's for all the day light hours. Trying to go around on a budget, but it still looks like planes are still cheaper and/or safer than trains or automobiles. What are your favorite flight routes? We're looking at Naples/Rome/Venice, Paris, Edinburgh/London, Tirana/Dubrovnik as necessary stops but sort of flexible for the rest.
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Jun 27, 2016 06:35
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DontAskKant posted:Trying to go around on a budget, but it still looks like planes are still cheaper and/or safer than trains or automobiles. Eurostar between London and Paris is great, what do you mean by this? Anything specific you're referring to? Just to to easy jet and see what's cheapest. I just went to Bologna,Italy and had a hell of a time for 2 days.
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Jun 27, 2016 08:24
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So I am planning to fly from Phoenix to Victoria sometime in early November. Looking at prices it looks like either Delta or Alaska is my best bet price-wise. I haven't flown since a DisneyLand trip in 1994 though and have no idea what airlines are decent if anyone can help.
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Jun 27, 2016 12:03
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DontAskKant posted:My partner and I are finally escaping Asia and want to take 4-6 weeks in Europe before we settle into no-vacation-forever-America. We seem pretty settled on Seattle to Reykjavik as the cheapest option. Flying back to Seattle (home) from a reunion in Nashville first is actually cheaper than flying from Nashville or Atlanta. I'm not 100% sure what you want to do here. You say you want to visit Italy, France/England and the Balkans, and yet are trying to fly into Poland, which is near absolutely none of those places? As sellouts says, there's nothing wrong with taking the train in Europe. A lot of the time it is a lot cheaper and a lot less time consuming than flying, and whoever told you it's unsafe in any way is a moron. Pick what cities you want to go to, then figure out the logistics from there. Personally, I'd go Reykjavik -> Edinburgh, fly to London, Eurostar to Paris, from there fly to Naples, train it through Rome and up to Venice, then bus to Croatia, rent a car to Dubrovnik, drop if off there, bus to Tiran (you won't be allowed to drive your rental car in Albania) and then probably fly out of Athens back to Reykjavik for the return flight.
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Jun 27, 2016 14:31
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Wouldn't call trains cheaper than planes per se, especially in western Europe, and *especially* in the UK. Look into buses as well if you want a true budget option. Megabus, Flixbus, Ouibus etc are pretty decent if you're not too tall (190+).
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Jun 27, 2016 14:51
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Jeoh posted:Wouldn't call trains cheaper than planes per se, especially in western Europe, and *especially* in the UK. Eh, by the time you take the gatwick or heathrow express its really quite comparable. At least eurostar. But any train over 2.5-3hrs I'd rather just fly.
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Jun 27, 2016 16:00
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It also has more to do with how far in advance you book. We went Milan -> Paris on the TGV for like $80 a few weeks back because I booked it 2 months early. Flights, including transport to get to/from airports, were definitely more expensive than that. Like with everything, look at all the options, but more importantly keep your mind open.
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Jun 27, 2016 21:38
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Poland was in there because it was a common connection we were seeing on cheap flights. I got the notion of flying being cheaper from people who have been there and confidently relayed such. Same thing with it not being safe, but that comes mostly from female travelers getting groped on buses and trains. I'll look at more trains and transit to and from. Haven't really left east Asia for 5 years. Have my international drivers license though, so I'll keep things open. Let's hope websites have an English option.
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Jun 28, 2016 01:12
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Warsaw is a good hub for cheap flights, but it's kind of out of the way for where you're going.
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Jun 28, 2016 10:28
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DontAskKant posted:I got the notion of flying being cheaper from people who have been there and confidently relayed such. Same thing with it not being safe, but that comes mostly from female travelers getting groped on buses and trains. I've literally never even read or heard a single report of someone getting groped on a bus or train in Europe. Welcome back from Asia
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Jun 28, 2016 18:36
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Yeah I've never heard about groping issues on the European trains. The subways tend to draw drunken youth but that's everywhere and they're generally harmless other than some taunting.
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Jun 28, 2016 20:35
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As a  woman who has travelled extensively in Europe yeah I have never been groped on a train or subway or ever felt unsafe on them.I find usually those stories tend to come from people who get to like Paris and find out there's more black people than they expected and it's scary!!!!!!
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Jun 29, 2016 04:03
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The only issue I've had with gropers in public transportation in Europe is Turkey.
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Jun 29, 2016 04:37
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Rome is the groping capital of Europe.
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Jun 29, 2016 04:49
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People in Rome check you out a lot (my husband and I always tell the story of the checkout dude at our local grocery store who would always openly flirt with me despite my husband always being right there) but I was never groped there at all. And I took a LOT of busses and metros. I've never been to Turkey though.
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Jun 29, 2016 14:38
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The sleazy carpet sellers of Istanbul are an unforgettable part of the experience. I was never groped... they always asked first. All the Kurds and dudes from -stans are chill and nice though. Ataturk Airport is hella nice and a huge travel hub between continents ( ；∀；)
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Jun 30, 2016 00:40
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You're making me jealous, I wanted to add a few days in Istanbul to my trip to the Balkans but didn't have time, had to be back home on a deadline.
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Jun 30, 2016 22:31
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I wouldn't be going anywhere near Turkey at the moment, which is weird for me to say because I was in Paris a month or so after the Bataclan attack.
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Jun 30, 2016 22:59
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So my whole life I've heard of and seen references to people who show up at airports to pick up some kind of last-minute fill-the-seat kind of deal. The sort of thing where you just hop on whatever flight is cheap. Is this a thing anywhere?
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Jul 8, 2016 19:35
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I would also be interested in delivering human eyes to Hong Kong if it could save on airfare.
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Jul 8, 2016 20:45
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VelociBacon posted:So my whole life I've heard of and seen references to people who show up at airports to pick up some kind of last-minute fill-the-seat kind of deal. The sort of thing where you just hop on whatever flight is cheap. Is this a thing anywhere? Generally, no.
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Jul 9, 2016 02:14
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VelociBacon posted:So my whole life I've heard of and seen references to people who show up at airports to pick up some kind of last-minute fill-the-seat kind of deal. The sort of thing where you just hop on whatever flight is cheap. Is this a thing anywhere? what references are these because this is not a thing.
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Jul 9, 2016 18:51
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I blame movies.
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Jul 9, 2016 19:56
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Standby? Deadhead? Standby exists but you have to choose the route in advance (show up early for a flight with multiple departures). I saw Deadhead in "Catch Me If You Can" but it was staff only and probably disappeared after Rules happened on planes. Yes Man took the next flight to wherever but he paid full price.
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Jul 10, 2016 06:38
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Deadheading is very much a thing but it's for on duty crew who are simply flying as a passenger in order to operate a flight from a different airport.
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Jul 10, 2016 16:20
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787 is a huge improvement in flight comfort for overnights. I never thought to look up which planes are used on which routes before, but definitely will consider it in the future. Polish Airlines might serve dog food in economy but at least they have at least a couple nice planes.
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Jul 23, 2016 21:34
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It's probably what people think 'last minute tickets' actually means.
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Jul 23, 2016 21:55
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What sites are there that let you search really flexibly? Like, "let's go on vacation next spring" flexible where you can do any time over multiple months? The only one I found is skyscanner.
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Jul 29, 2016 19:18
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Google Flights is pretty flexible and let's you look at entire months and generic regions. IE: Destination "Europe" month of December 2016 or whatever. Not sure how far in advance you're looking or where you're trying to go, but it's generally not advisable to buy a year out because prices will go down as your desired travel date approaches and you never know when some contingency will come up and cause you to move your plans.
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Jul 29, 2016 19:40
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