GK Do you Teach History?

[WV-FAN]

Renting a car when you get there or was the whole week included?

whole week. the cost of the rental car is included in the total price you posted above.

air fare for 4 a bit under a grand. got a full size rental car for $450 for the week, sat through following sunday. got it when booking airline tix.

 

[goherd73]

whole week. the cost of the rental car is included in the total price you posted above.

air fare for 4 a bit under a grand. got a full size rental car for $450 for the week, sat through following sunday. got it when booking airline tix.

Plus flying Allegiant you'll have a direct flight. No hub time for you=less airport time.

 

[Y.A.G Si Ye Nots]

noticed your search was sat to sat vs. sun to sat,

It's not always the case, but usually the cheapest days to fly are Saturday and Tuesday. Weekend vacationers leave on Friday instead of Saturday, and business travelers leave on Monday instead of Tuesday, so rates are lower the following days.

It amazes me still that people don't pick their seats when booking online. That nuts.

Why do you think that is nuts? On some airlines, you'll pay $19/seat/flight if you select ahead. If I have a connection each way of a round trip, that's $76 extra I am paying. In most cases, especially if you are a mile club member with the airline, you can just ask the person at the baggage counter or at the gate if they have an open window/aisle/whatever your preference is. You save money, and in most cases, get an even better seat than you would have had you paid ahead of time since they keep the better seats open (they rarely sell out since they are priced higher). That's what happened last week with Frontier. I would have paid $38 for one seat on my trip without knowing if somebody would be next to me. Asking at baggage allowed me to not only get my preference (window) for free, but she also made sure to put me in completely empty rows for both legs which I wouldn't have had if I had paid for my seats online.

Getting into ATL and trying to make a 20 minute connection,

No airline will let you book a flight with only a 20 minute connection. Most close the doors 10-15 minutes before takeoff, and giving you only 5 minutes to get off of your plane and get to your other gate is simply a recipe for disaster. If you're booking legs with different airlines and only give yourself 20 minutes, even at the smallest of airports, you're crazy.

I know a lot of high rollers who fly Spirit and Allegiant. And, spend a lot of time worrying about searching for the best deals on them.

Look at the time I posted a response to you, then look at the time I posted the long response to wv-fan. It was a 20 minute difference. In other words, it took me 20 minutes to read his request, look at flights, and type my long response. Without having to read his response and type what I did, assuming even that I didn't take any break to watch TV for a second, get a drink, go the bathroom, etc., it meant 10-15 minutes to look at flights. Again, if you don't think 10 minutes of your time online is worth $800 savings he had, then I need to start selling GPS equipment and start driving around in death mobiles.

Dude, is worried about spending time picking between Spirit and Allegiant, but stay where they charge $25 for a bottle of Deer Park water.

There is a huge difference in service, accommodations, food, location, etc. between a Ritz Carlton/Four Seasons and a Fairfield Inn (and I don't mind most Fairfields).

In economy between Delta (or any major U.S. carrier) and Frontier, I see very little difference.

I have no problem paying a lot more for a Ritz Carlton room than a Fairfield Inn room, because there is a huge discrepancy in what I receive between the two. I have a problem paying $200+ more for a one way ticket on Delta over Frontier, because I don't see much of a difference in service/accommodations between the two.

I have no problem paying more if I get something substantially better out of it. I am an airline whore when flying economy due to the U.S. airlines not having much difference in what they provide.

 

[Dreh_Nagi_HC_IM]

It's a whole lot more impressive to take a big tittied, 19 year old cheerleader back to the Ritz Carlton as opposed to the Red Roof Inn.

 

[TwolfHerdfan]

It's not always the case, but usually the cheapest days to fly are Saturday and Tuesday. Weekend vacationers leave on Friday instead of Saturday, and business travelers leave on Monday instead of Tuesday, so rates are lower the following days.



Why do you think that is nuts? On some airlines, you'll pay $19/seat/flight if you select ahead. If I have a connection each way of a round trip, that's $76 extra I am paying. In most cases, especially if you are a mile club member with the airline, you can just ask the person at the baggage counter or at the gate if they have an open window/aisle/whatever your preference is. You save money, and in most cases, get an even better seat than you would have had you paid ahead of time since they keep the better seats open (they rarely sell out since they are priced higher). That's what happened last week with Frontier. I would have paid $38 for one seat on my trip without knowing if somebody would be next to me. Asking at baggage allowed me to not only get my preference (window) for free, but she also made sure to put me in completely empty rows for both legs which I wouldn't have had if I had paid for my seats online.



No airline will let you book a flight with only a 20 minute connection. Most close the doors 10-15 minutes before takeoff, and giving you only 5 minutes to get off of your plane and get to your other gate is simply a recipe for disaster. If you're booking legs with different airlines and only give yourself 20 minutes, even at the smallest of airports, you're crazy.




Look at the time I posted a response to you, then look at the time I posted the long response to wv-fan. It was a 20 minute difference. In other words, it took me 20 minutes to read his request, look at flights, and type my long response. Without having to read his response and type what I did, assuming even that I didn't take any break to watch TV for a second, get a drink, go the bathroom, etc., it meant 10-15 minutes to look at flights. Again, if you don't think 10 minutes of your time online is worth $800 savings he had, then I need to start selling GPS equipment and start driving around in death mobiles.



There is a huge difference in service, accommodations, food, location, etc. between a Ritz Carlton/Four Seasons and a Fairfield Inn (and I don't mind most Fairfields).

In economy between Delta (or any major U.S. carrier) and Frontier, I see very little difference.

I have no problem paying a lot more for a Ritz Carlton room than a Fairfield Inn room, because there is a huge discrepancy in what I receive between the two. I have a problem paying $200+ more for a one way ticket on Delta over Frontier, because I don't see much of a difference in service/accommodations between the two.

I have no problem paying more if I get something substantially better out of it. I am an airline whore when flying economy due to the U.S. airlines not having much difference in what they provide.

If you book far enough in advance you can find good seats without paying a fee. I fly twice a month at least, and have yet to pay a seat fee.

You can certainly have a close connection. Usually there will be a warning on the site when you pull up the flight schedules but the choice is ultimately up to the passenger. I never book unless I have at least an hour between flights.

 

[Y.A.G Si Ye Nots]

If you book far enough in advance you can find good seats without paying a fee. I fly twice a month at least, and have yet to pay a seat fee.
.

Many airlines, especially all of the economy airlines, charge you for seat selection regardless if two days or two months ahead of time.

You can certainly have a close connection. Usually there will be a warning on the site when you pull up the flight schedules but the choice is ultimately up to the passenger. I never book unless I have at least an hour between flights.

Show me an airline that allows you to book flights with connections 20 minutes or less. Yes, under an hour connection, most airlines will give you a warning before proceeding to book. A connection under 20 minutes? They don’t allow you. Why? Because there are too many missed connections, too many delayed flights if the arriving flight has a number of people trying to make that connection, etc. it isn’t ultimately up to the passenger with connections 20 minutes or tighter. Airlines don’t allow you to book them.

 

[TwolfHerdfan]

Many airlines, especially all of the economy airlines, charge you for seat selection regardless if two days or two months ahead of time.



Show me an airline that allows you to book flights with connections 20 minutes or less. Yes, under an hour connection, most airlines will give you a warning before proceeding to book. A connection under 20 minutes? They don’t allow you. Why? Because there are too many missed connections, too many delayed flights if the arriving flight has a number of people trying to make that connection, etc. it isn’t ultimately up to the passenger with connections 20 minutes or tighter. Airlines don’t allow you to book them.

I don’t need to fly the cheap airlines. You forget, CRW and HTS are only Delta, American or United if you want to travel for business.

Go to the AA site. You can book any flight you want but if the connection is close, you get a warning pop up but you can still book it.

I’ve been doing this for three decades. Not difficult to figure this stuff out.

 

[i am herdman]

I don’t need to fly the cheap airlines. You forget, CRW and HTS are only Delta, American or United if you want to travel for business.

Go to the AA site. You can book any flight you want but if the connection is close, you get a warning pop up but you can still book it.

I’ve been doing this for three decades. Not difficult to figure this stuff out.

That's what I do. If I do fly a cheap airline it is Southwest. For most occasions I try to avoid flying. 10 hours or less, I am driving 100%

 

[Raoul Duke MU]

at the end of the day it's worth it to me to not have to drive 30 hours which would probably entail a stay over on the way down and way back, costing me another 2 nights in a room. 15 hours one way . . . no thanks.

Going to PCB last year, that stretch through bumfvck was horrible.

 

[Raoul Duke MU]

They had a Mercedes to take me anywhere I wanted while staying there.

Honest question from a car geek: did the Benz have cloth or leather seats?

I think it is kind of neat how the options are totally different in Europe.

 

[herdfan06]

I have a habit of never using my points when I travel and just letting them accumulate. Some of the other things (free roundtrip flight, free night stay at a hotel, etc.) have to be used in a calendar year, so I use those. But when you have a shit ton of points and status with these brands, you're treated like royalty. When I was in Berlin a few months ago, the Ritz Carlton upgraded my room without asking, gave me bonus points for staying with them without asking, and gave me free breakfast buffet (probably the best buffet I have ever had) for my room every morning. They had a Mercedes to take me anywhere I wanted while staying there and the desk attendants and servers at the buffet each day knew my name.

They provided you access to a taxi?

 

[Y.A.G Si Ye Nots]

I don’t need to fly the cheap airlines.

Nor do I. But if it saves me $200+ on a two hour one-way flight, I always do it since the major carriers offer me nothing substantially better in service.

You forget, CRW and HTS are only Delta, American or United if you want to travel for business.

What the fvck does that have to do with this discussion? Was this discussion only talking about flights originating from Huntington or Charleston? Hell, did your comment about not understanding why people don't select a seat mention that it was only talking about flights departing from Huntington or Charleston? No.

I'm not the one who "forgot" what airlines fly out of those cities. My response was based on your comment which made no mention of it only being about those flying out of those two small airports. I guess you "forgot" to mention that your generalized comment actually was only specific to two airports.

Go to the AA site. You can book any flight you want but if the connection is close, you get a warning pop up but you can still book it.

No, you are the one who needs to go to the AA site. You simply won't be able to book a flight that has an AA connection 20 minutes or less. They won't give you the option to book those connections. Why? I already went over that, but I will again. Even if your arriving flight is on time, even if it only takes you five minutes to get off of the plane, and even if it only takes you five minutes to get to the next gate, you're still there ten minutes before the next flight departs at the very most. The door is already closed by then. If airlines allow flights with those impossible layovers to be booked, they are responsible for getting you on another flight, warning or not before booking it. On top of that, airlines have to give time for baggage handlers to get all of the luggage off of a plane and onto the other planes. If a plane lands, takes a few minutes to taxi, and the bags have to be on the departing plane 5 minutes later so the next flight can depart on time, they have no shot. Putting extra luggage on a plane that late means the weight/balance has to be measured, reported, and possibly adjusted. It's yet another reason why U.S. airlines don't allow 20 minute or shorter layovers.

That's why you see some morons try to skirt the rules and book two separate legs of a trip individually- they think they can make a 20 minute layover work. When it doesn't happen, the airline isn't responsible for getting them on another flight and/or charges them a rebooking fee for doing it.

If you can find a connection that AA allows you to book on their website/their flights with a 20 minute or shorter layover, I will send you $100 (and I'll make it easy by doing it with PayPal or Venmo, since others on here refuse to make it easy when they lose bets). Hell, since the worthless poster liked your post, I will even offer him the same thing. If you guys can't find flights doing what you claimed, you guys have to send me $100 each. Fair?

And hell, since you said you were only talking about flights departing Huntington and Charleston, go ahead and limit your search to flights departing those cities, so that you won't have to spend hours trying to find one that you can book with a 20 minute or lower layover.

I’ve been doing this for three decades. Not difficult to figure this stuff out.

Clearly, you need to do it for another three decades, because what you're saying is wrong. AA won't allow you to book connecting flights with only a 20 minute layover. 35 minutes? Sure, in some rare cases. 30 minutes? Possibly but even more rare. 20 minutes or less? Nope.

 

[Y.A.G Si Ye Nots]

Honest question from a car geek: did the Benz have cloth or leather seats?

I think it is kind of neat how the options are totally different in Europe.

I didn't use it. The Ritz in Berlin is perfectly centered which allows you to walk to all of the major sites. The couple of times I went outside of the city (concentration camp, airport), I had a local with me, and we took the train.

 

[GK4Herd]

I’m with rifle on this one. Why wouldn’t a person spend the five minutes it takes to use a search engine to instantly give you quotes from all the major carriers? You can save hundreds of dollars on flights. If you are traveling with family, you multiply that savings over four or five people and it’s literally a thousand dollar savings. For what? A few extra minutes? I’d argue that the search engines yield quotes just as quick as the individual airline sites. It’s quicker than dealing with travel agents as well. And since it stores your credit card info, purchasing tickets takes seconds. I don’t care how much money you have or make, you simply don’t throw away hundreds of dollars. And if you think that searching out these flights are tedious, you’ve never used them. They give you hundreds of quotes in seconds and can package hotels and rental cars as well.

I also agree for the most part with the discount airline amenities issue as well. So you don’t get free peanuts...who cares? Bring them with you and carry on a drink. Delta has real nice behind seat screens and a selection of entertainment viewing, but considering you can download movies on your iPad before you board the flight, you really haven’t lost much. AA allows you to stream to your iPad or iPhone, but again...with iPads and phones you have access to music and movies. If the cost is close I’ll take a major carrier over discount.

The only difference for me is with seat assignments, especially if the flight is lengthy. But this is just a personal preference. If I’m traveling by myself, the seat assignment isn’t worth the cost. If I was extremely big or tall I could see value in selecting the aisle. There’s value to not having to crawl over people to hit the restroom too I suppose, but that’s a very minor inconvenience. But when traveling with my family , for a lengthy flight, I want to sit with my wife and seat my girls together. I’ll pay the extra, but again, that’s a personal preference.

Southwest has the cattle call seating and you select your own seats. Rifle can probably attest to the fact that it would be unusual not to get a seat that you wanted without paying extra. That’s a more calculated risk with family.

 

[GK4Herd]

Here’s a question for you...how many of you buy the insurance? I hardly ever purchase insurance for things. But since my mom turns 90 this month and my wife’s father has some health issues, I’ve opted for the insurance my last few trips. I’m taking a family vacation out West this summer and between the airline tickets, rental cars, and hotels I have over three grand tied up. A health issue from our parents would put that in jeopardy. The insurance is $50 per person. I usually don’t get it, but the last few trips I have. I still have mixed emotions though.

 

[herdfan429]

Here’s a question for you...how many of you buy the insurance? I hardly ever purchase insurance for things. But since my mom turns 90 this month and my wife’s father has some health issues, I’ve opted for the insurance my last few trips. I’m taking a family vacation out West this summer and between the airline tickets, rental cars, and hotels I have over three grand tied up. A health issue from our parents would put that in jeopardy. The insurance is $50 per person. I usually don’t get it, but the last few trips I have. I still have mixed emotions though.

I bought it for our last cruise. For the four of us I think it averaged out to like $30/person. Are you buying from a third party company or the trip insurance offered through the airline?

 

[GK4Herd]

I bought it for our last cruise. For the four of us I think it averaged out to like $30/person. Are you buying from a third party company or the trip insurance offered through the airline?

Third party and it covers all aspects of the trip...hotels, flight, and rental car. I got it for my cruise in April too. It was around $30 as well.

 

[TwolfHerdfan]

Nor do I. But if it saves me $200+ on a two hour one-way flight, I always do it since the major carriers offer me nothing substantially better in service.



What the fvck does that have to do with this discussion? Was this discussion only talking about flights originating from Huntington or Charleston? Hell, did your comment about not understanding why people don't select a seat mention that it was only talking about flights departing from Huntington or Charleston? No.

I'm not the one who "forgot" what airlines fly out of those cities. My response was based on your comment which made no mention of it only being about those flying out of those two small airports. I guess you "forgot" to mention that your generalized comment actually was only specific to two airports.



No, you are the one who needs to go to the AA site. You simply won't be able to book a flight that has an AA connection 20 minutes or less. They won't give you the option to book those connections. Why? I already went over that, but I will again. Even if your arriving flight is on time, even if it only takes you five minutes to get off of the plane, and even if it only takes you five minutes to get to the next gate, you're still there ten minutes before the next flight departs at the very most. The door is already closed by then. If airlines allow flights with those impossible layovers to be booked, they are responsible for getting you on another flight, warning or not before booking it. On top of that, airlines have to give time for baggage handlers to get all of the luggage off of a plane and onto the other planes. If a plane lands, takes a few minutes to taxi, and the bags have to be on the departing plane 5 minutes later so the next flight can depart on time, they have no shot. Putting extra luggage on a plane that late means the weight/balance has to be measured, reported, and possibly adjusted. It's yet another reason why U.S. airlines don't allow 20 minute or shorter layovers.

That's why you see some morons try to skirt the rules and book two separate legs of a trip individually- they think they can make a 20 minute layover work. When it doesn't happen, the airline isn't responsible for getting them on another flight and/or charges them a rebooking fee for doing it.

If you can find a connection that AA allows you to book on their website/their flights with a 20 minute or shorter layover, I will send you $100 (and I'll make it easy by doing it with PayPal or Venmo, since others on here refuse to make it easy when they lose bets). Hell, since the worthless poster liked your post, I will even offer him the same thing. If you guys can't find flights doing what you claimed, you guys have to send me $100 each. Fair?

And hell, since you said you were only talking about flights departing Huntington and Charleston, go ahead and limit your search to flights departing those cities, so that you won't have to spend hours trying to find one that you can book with a 20 minute or lower layover.



Clearly, you need to do it for another three decades, because what you're saying is wrong. AA won't allow you to book connecting flights with only a 20 minute layover. 35 minutes? Sure, in some rare cases. 30 minutes? Possibly but even more rare. 20 minutes or less? Nope.

Aw the maturity comes out and promptly ends a decent discussion about airlines.

And BTW, July 24-27 HTS-MCO. One option had a 27 minute layover and I chose it to see what would happen. AA allowed me to choose that option with the caveat of "check connection time". But hey, you're all over it.

 

[i am herdman]

Here’s a question for you...how many of you buy the insurance? I hardly ever purchase insurance for things. But since my mom turns 90 this month and my wife’s father has some health issues, I’ve opted for the insurance my last few trips. I’m taking a family vacation out West this summer and between the airline tickets, rental cars, and hotels I have over three grand tied up. A health issue from our parents would put that in jeopardy. The insurance is $50 per person. I usually don’t get it, but the last few trips I have. I still have mixed emotions though.

We are taking a trip this summer and I think I am going to put insurance on it. For some of the same reasons you mention and we are waiting longer to make the final bookings.

 

[Y.A.G Si Ye Nots]

Aw the maturity comes out and promptly ends a decent discussion about airlines.

And BTW, July 24-27 HTS-MCO. One option had a 27 minute layover and I chose it to see what would happen. AA allowed me to choose that option with the caveat of "check connection time". But hey, you're all over it.

In other words, you couldn’t find one with 20 minutes or less which was the claim you pushed back on that I called you out about.

I get it: you acted like an expert, said something was false while criticizing others (“not difficult to figure this stuff out,” “you forget,” makes no sense not to pick your seat), then when called out for providing bogus info while criticizing others, you blame the other person.

Maybe the worthless poster can find one that supports you claim. But don’t count on it, because AA doesn’t allow it just like any other U.S. carrier.

But let’s make this more fun. I just went through every option AA offers for the cities and dates that you listed. There were approximately 60 of them considering both days of travel. The shortest layover was 39 minutes, not the 20 that you initially claimed or the 27 minute one that you claimed existed 30 minutes ago.

Are you lying trying to make your claim a little more right (yet still wrong)? Is this a lot harder for you than you claimed?

Give the specific flight times and numbers on those dates, and I’m more than happy to screenshot and post what you claim.

 

[Y.A.G Si Ye Nots]

I bought it for our last cruise. For the four of us I think it averaged out to like $30/person. Are you buying from a third party company or the trip insurance offered through the airline?

I’m usually by myself or with just one person, so it’s not much of a concern for me. A couple of airlines that I have certain levels with allow cancelations and/or changes without penalty.

My concern would be actually having the insurance company cover the loss. I’ve read the fine print on them, and they ask for quite a bit of info. Police report if a victim of theft, medical documents somebody becomes sick, etc.

So if you get a flu but don’t need to go to the doctor, you’re screwed.

 

[i am herdman]

I know one thing I hate is when you do business travel and they get someone from corporate to make your travel plans. F that. Some pencil pusher in a cubicle picking my flights, etc? And, you know they are told to go cheap. I always try to get out of that one if they try it.

 

[goherd73]

I usually use travel insurance if I travel overseas and the trip is over 10 days. I never take car rental insurance because I use the United Airlines credit card which offers primary coverage. Most other cards offer secondary so a claim would be a hit to my personal insurance.

 

[Raoul Duke MU]

I know one thing I hate is when you do business travel and they get someone from corporate to make your travel plans. F that. Some pencil pusher in a cubicle picking my flights, etc? And, you know they are told to go cheap. I always try to get out of that one if they try it.

Shit, my employer sent me to a two-day conference in Indianapolis. In the dead of winter. While Indy had a foot of snow and ice on the ground with temps below 0. And expected me to drive up and back both days. Go cheap. I told them I was not going and perhaps one of them could go drive back in forth after a damn blizzard. They then got me a hotel. I-65 was icy from Columbus north. Maybe they were trying to kill me.

 

[i am herdman]

Shit, my employer sent me to a two-day conference in Indianapolis. In the dead of winter. While Indy had a foot of snow and ice on the ground with temps below 0. And expected me to drive up and back both days. Go cheap. I told them I was not going and perhaps one of them could go drive back in forth after a damn blizzard. They then got me a hotel. I-65 was icy from Columbus north. Maybe they were trying to kill me.

Didn't want to spend that $100 on the hotel. Cheap asses. That's when you feel like documenting it and when something happens you leave a note to next of kin: Sue the Bastards for Everything They Have if Something Happens To Me.

 

[herdfan06]

I didn't use it. The Ritz in Berlin is perfectly centered which allows you to walk to all of the major sites. The couple of times I went outside of the city (concentration camp, airport), I had a local with me, and we took the train.

You took the train to the concentration camp?

 

[herdfan06]

Here’s a question for you...how many of you buy the insurance? I hardly ever purchase insurance for things. But since my mom turns 90 this month and my wife’s father has some health issues, I’ve opted for the insurance my last few trips. I’m taking a family vacation out West this summer and between the airline tickets, rental cars, and hotels I have over three grand tied up. A health issue from our parents would put that in jeopardy. The insurance is $50 per person. I usually don’t get it, but the last few trips I have. I still have mixed emotions though.

Does your credit card not provide travel insurance?

 

[herdfan06]

I know one thing I hate is when you do business travel and they get someone from corporate to make your travel plans. F that. Some pencil pusher in a cubicle picking my flights, etc? And, you know they are told to go cheap. I always try to get out of that one if they try it.

They seem to like to put me directly in front of the emergency exit row, which I hate because the seats do not recline.

 

[GK4Herd]

Does your credit card not provide travel insurance?

No clue.

 

[herdfan06]

Why wouldn’t a person spend the five minutes it takes to use a search engine ...? You can save hundreds of dollars on flights. If you are traveling with family, you multiply that savings over four or five people and it’s literally a thousand dollar savings. For what? A few extra minutes?

Here’s a question for you...how many of you buy the insurance? I hardly ever purchase insurance for things. But since my mom turns 90 this month and my wife’s father has some health issues, I’ve opted for the insurance my last few trips. I’m taking a family vacation out West this summer and between the airline tickets, rental cars, and hotels I have over three grand tied up. A health issue from our parents would put that in jeopardy. The insurance is $50 per person. I usually don’t get it, but the last few trips I have. I still have mixed emotions though.

Does your credit card not provide travel insurance?

No clue.

Have you tried spending a few minutes using a search engine?

 

[Y.A.G Si Ye Nots]

And BTW, July 24-27 HTS-MCO. One option had a 27 minute layover and I chose it to see what would happen. AA allowed me to choose that option with the caveat of "check connection time". But hey, you're all over it.

Still waiting for the 20 minute, let alone 27 minute, layover.

Let me guess: the flight 1.5 months away booked within the time you posted it and the 30 minutes I responded?

 

[Bankerreturns]

I know that you are old, so let me help you out.

There are a ton of these easy-to-use websites that allow you to put in your departure region, your arrival region, the dates you want to fly, and it will spit back a bunch of different prices and options for airlines. It takes about 30 seconds to do.

One of the best ones is Google flights. When you input the info, it will show you a calendar of the cheapest price to fly each day for weeks surrounding the day you choose. So you can see that flying a day earlier or two days later than what you had planned can save hundreds of dollars each way. Of if your date(s) is locked, you can see if it is worth it to pay $200 less per ticket to fly Frontier/Allegiant/Spirit for a two hour flight than it is to fly Delta. Again, that takes about 30 seconds to browse.

If taking one minute to save $200-$400 is "putting in a ton of effort" to you, then I'd hate to see your work ethic.

Currently, I have about 400,000 Ritz Carlton points (which is enough for five nights at their very best properties anywhere in the world plus a free sixth night for booking at least four nights - value approximately $4000), about 140,000 Chase travel points (cash value of about $1400 or about $2100 in traveling through any of their dozens of air/hotel partners, a $300 travel credit (any type of travel) from Chase, 102,000 Delta miles (Delta miles suck compared to other airlines), a free roundtrip flight with Delta, 13,000 miles on American, a free night at any level 5 or lower Marriott property, 12,000 miles on Frontier, 11,000 points with Hilton, 38,000 miles on Southwest along with a companion pass through the end of 2020 that allows free travel for anyone with me. And I'm sure I also have some points on airlines I don't fly often (United's Mileage Plus, etc.) and hotels I don't stay at much.

I also have the Priority Pass which gives me free lounge access and free food at just about every major airport. Last week, I flew out of Syracuse. They didn't have a lounge, but the pass allowed me $84 of free food at Johnny Rockets. I bought an early lunch for me and three strangers which was free for me. I flew out of Baltimore the week before that. The pass gave me free lounge access at BWI along with their free buffet, their unlimited bar, tons of snacks, etc. I've flown out of Denver twice in the last month. Each time, the pass gave me $84 to spend at the steakhouse in the airport.

I have a habit of never using my points when I travel and just letting them accumulate. Some of the other things (free roundtrip flight, free night stay at a hotel, etc.) have to be used in a calendar year, so I use those. But when you have a shit ton of points and status with these brands, you're treated like royalty. When I was in Berlin a few months ago, the Ritz Carlton upgraded my room without asking, gave me bonus points for staying with them without asking, and gave me free breakfast buffet (probably the best buffet I have ever had) for my room every morning. They had a Mercedes to take me anywhere I wanted while staying there and the desk attendants and servers at the buffet each day knew my name.

I stayed at a Ritz Carlton property in DC twice during February and March. Each time, they comped my breakfast buffet, gave me a $50 gift card to the connected hotel each time, and gave me a travel tote each time.

You don't have to spend much time doing it. When you sign up the first time you stay at a hotel brand or fly on an airline, simply have your browser save your log-in info. I also keep all of my log-in info in the notes section of my iPhone for everything. Once you do it the first time, you never have to worry about it again.

It takes one minute to see how much cheaper it is to fly on Frontier, Alaska, Allegiant, Spirit, or Southwest compared with Delta/United/U.S./etc. Southwest allows to watch live television. I like that perk and am willing to pay a bit more for it. Delta has a ton of free movies to watch on their app, but that is worthless to me considering I can watch any movie I download on my iPad. So why would I pay $200 more for a one way trip on Delta than on Frontier? Because you think their planes are safer? Pfft.

I have over 147,000 points on my Speedway card.

 

[Y.A.G Si Ye Nots]

I have over 147,000 points on my Speedway card.

That's enough for about 147 Speedy Freezes. I recommend cherry.

I stayed at a Fairfield Inn by Marriott two nights ago. I was tempted to tap into my 400,000 or so Ritz Carlton points (they also are accepted by Marriott properties), but I held out for 1.5 years, so why start using them now? I also saw that I have two one night stay vouchers with them at a maximum of 35,000 points, but the room was only 17,500 points, so I didn't want to leave the other 17,500 on the table, so I paid for the room.

Since I am at the platinum level with Ritz Carlton/Marriott properties, I get an extra 2000 points for that stay, an extra 50% bonus points for my level, get six times as many points for using my Ritz/Marriott credit card, and the hotel gives me an extra 200 points as a welcome gift.

So the stay two nights ago gave me about 9700 points (for a $130 hotel room), and some lower end Marriotts/Sheratons have free rooms starting at 12,000 points. Points add up fast if you maximize how to earn them.

 

[i am herdman]

Have you tried spending few minutes using a search engine?

He was asking for opinions and people's experiences.

 

[herdfan06]

He was asking for opinions and people's experiences.

He stated he buys the insurance separate and does not know if his credit card already offers travel insurance.