TRAVEL
Navagio beach, in the Greek island of Zakynthos is an incredible site. It has also become a famous base jump destination. And no I am not being compensated by the Greek Tourism Ministry. They don’t even have any money left to pay anybody!
Help Point Princess with suggestions on her first time visit to Australia (Brisbane and Cairns). She is currently biking across the US for a good cause so please be…charitable with your tips!
MILES/POINTS
Staples 20% off coupon for one item in store by July 7. Use your Chase Ink and Bold cards (imaginary affiliated links insert here)! (HT to Online Travel Review)
$500 gift cards at Office Depot. Are you finding them? Are you allowed to use a credit card to buy them? I am sensing there is a giant hunt taking place and about to…explode!
The Flight Deal reported that Air France and KLM V fares will now be 100% mileage earning for Delta Skymiles. Typical Delta way of doing business…throw a few bones once in a while while sticking that knife ever so deeper in the back!
BLOG BUZZ
Million Mile Secrets has been developing “Million Mile Secrets Maximizer” with pick2pay.com. This explains the relative quiet in his blog. This is an excellent idea as it is supposed to ” …tell you the best combination of cards and online shopping portals to get the most miles and points for your online purchase” As with all startups, execution will determine its success. Looking forward to see what happens. I predict there will be affiliate links on the credit cards shown:-) It goes to show you that this space is still ripe for innovation!
A reader had a guest post at the Frugal Travel Guy (the blog) as an FTG Contributor. Seriously Dan? This still happens to you after 35 years of marriage? Your wife surprises you with ” I got two new store cards to save 10%” moves, seriously? When this happened years ago with my wife, after almost having a seizure and then sprinting around the neighborhood to control my immeasurable disappointment and anger, I made sure I put an immediate stop to it! NO MORE new credit card attempts without my explicit approval! If this rules is violated, not even a bigger house will stop the inevitable…yeah, this is THAT serious! Can’t mess with our livelihood/reason for living/bread and butter miles!
ON MY MIND
Feels so weird being a work day right after a holiday in the US. And then the weekend. So weird.
Mrs. TBB told me she can not send friends over to my blog to learn about miles/points as they would not understand what I am talking about. She has a point. Hmmm, I don’t want to turn this to a “Get 5x points per dollar at office supply stores” or “you can sign up for Rewards Network to get miles dining out” or “how to do the Bluebird card with Vanilla Reloads cards”. Maybe I can add a “Newbie” section and have some basic advice thrown in there? Will this turn off the regular crowd? Not sure which direction to go…I do NOT want to turn off newbies completely…I guess I will have to decide and make it up as I go along…as I do with everything here at TBB! This is a work in process indeed…
ODDZ & ENDZ
The Llama is in. By New York Times. A wonderful story and video about…llamas. Never really knew much about them but after checking this out makes me want to have one or two!
Hilarious portraits of dogs dressed as their owners. By Francesco Mugnai.
“Pleasure in the job puts perfection in the work” – Aristotle. What a super awesome quote!
I am numero Uno, no doubt!
Dos.
Tres
Quatro!
George, today is a day of rest and you make me view Schlappy’s photograph unnecessarily?? Boo on you! :)-
Cinco?
sorry about dat.
Will Google confuse me with Kim Jong Un as I write about them North Koreans so much? 🙂
2 squared
Plus 1
What? No comment about the ribs I cooked to show you??
George, How did you find The Real Estate Guy? I need full disclaimer for that photo!
Is The Real Estate Guy related to TPG? Any hidden referral link on that billboard? Is that phone number some sort of reconsideration line? Can we pay TREG with credit cards from TCCG?
I have had that photo on hold for a while…was waiting for a nice excuse to post:-)
This is so wrong, blogging malpractice, bad advice coupled with unrelated credit card pimping.
http://boardingarea.com/pointsmilesandmartinis/2013/07/earn-5000-bonus-delta-miles-with-check-card-from-suntrust/
Points Miles Martinis has a blog post where he sort of discovers the Suntrust debit card, says you get 5000 miles for $75 when you sign up. There were better offers before, so don’t get it.
So what was the point of the post then? It wasn’t to share the best way to use this card. It’s a debit card that earns miles for taxes (flat $2.99 per transaction fee). VFTW has written all about this. All PMM had to do was read another BoardingArea blog and copy.
No, the point of the post was… just wait for it… you should use my links to get Delta American Express cards instead.. more than one!!!!!!!!
See, TBB, we’re doing your job for you. And PMM is making tomorrow morning’s post just too easy… This is comical, it’s almost funny, I am laughing and not angry.
It is not the first time PMM leads with a misleading headline that acts as an excuse not to…stay on topic (of the headline).
There are so many blogs to review coming at me….saw the headline, saw the blog name and passed without blinking.
I also saw later that MJ on Travel found this so good he made a blog post…linking to PMM’s blog post. smh
Morning, George.
Three observations:
Someone in comments asked recently if we’ve seen the end of the Daily Getaways. Nah. I expect even heavier traffic in it next week. The hotels coming up are hotel chains that bloggers (read: and anyone who’s been in the hobby more than six months) know allllll about. Expect extra hand-wringing and analysis. Whether you should bother has a pretty easy three sentence summary: Do you have a near-term use for the points? Is the value less than the fair trade value for the points, and better than a prepaid rate or cheaper nearby hotel? Do you not have anything else better to do at 1 PM on a summer weekday? There, all posts summarized.
With regards to the FT discussion of whether blogs will replace IBBs: the difference between MMS and FT, for example, is that FT has hundreds or thousands of eyes looking to happen upon a nugget or a deal. MMS has at most dozens, plus access to corporate PR lines. The juicy deals are going to continue to roll downhill from FT…. until everyone on FT starts their own blog.
The price on the F2B Charleston Sessions looks good. I won’t be attending because I’m a misanthropic forest hermit with body odor problems, but I do have a suggestion for the operators. Is this conference meant to be for beginners or for intermediates/advanced? I ask only because I’m not sure how much “secret” stuff any of the bloggers knows. By contrast, speakers at the other conferences are well-established brands who are known to have tricks up their sleeve. Speaking of which, merely for our amusement, anyone heard from Pickles recently……?
Oh, and since Garuda Indonesia (which means something akin to “phoenix”) is in the news, I should note that we’ve flown them domestically in 2012 and had perhaps the best in-flight coach meal in a long time. Recommended. Also recommended: Indonesia.
What can I say, I agree with your commentary as always. No plans to fly Garuda any time soon but after your review I may not look to avoid them:-)
We had several flights on Garuda in March and I thought they were excellent! Spot on time, good customer service, comfy enough in Y. The routes we flew were DPS-UPG-BIK-DJJ, SUB-DPS. I blogged about my West Papua birding adventure roughly from end March-mid April. Also, we got in on a special with Sriwjaya Airlines that made 2 biz class seats (BOGO) = paying for 2 economy and found them also to be right on time and give excellent service. Even when one aircraft was downsized to one with no biz class, they gave us a row of 3 seats to ourselves and walked us over to the lounge at DJJ to make sure we would still get in. The lounge at UPG is pretty nice and I also covered it in my blog. I haven’t posted links as I am not sure of your policy about that but I do cover some of the more unusual destinations that mainstream bloggers don’t go to. Garuda joining SkyTeam may be the one thing that could get me interested in this alliance.
Links are just fine if they contribute to the discussion.
That’s great stuff about Garuda, I was not familiar with the airline at all! Now I am. Looks like a good pickup by Skyteam!
Cool! Here’s the link that would be of more interest to “normal” travelers as opposed to birders. http://www.milestothewild.com/review-of-sriwijaya-airlines-business-class-and-their-lounges-in-djj-upg/ I didn’t do a post about Garuda, probably because it was only Y class so I didn’t think anyone would be interested.
MMS interview…Oy Vey here we go again…………..If you can type, cut and paste and order credit cards, your an expert, so start a travelblog. Never mind you are too young to shave, and have little travel experience……………………………….boy those ribs look good……………………………How long before the number of bloggers outnumber the number of readers? R.R.
Yeah, I think if you can add the combined experience of all the 2013 MMS interviews I would still beat them:-)
Of course I will have something to say about this in next blog post, patience!
Yeah, my last ribs result was awesome indeed:-) I need to get my butt to the gym, ate too many of them yesterday!
Hey, I was one of those 2013 interviews and I have plenty of experience in traveling all over the world, been collecting airline miles since 1988-9ish and even had one of the first UA credit cards circa 1990! And my blog is only 2 weeks younger than yours but I have been on FT since 2004! :p
And yes, the ribs do look good!
Wait, I thought you were in late 2012:-)
I was just trying to make a point…which it was that there are so many REALLY new bloggers out there who do not really have that much to offer. But hey, give them an A for effort!
Started in late 80s. Not really “got it” until I started working in 1992. Mid 90s really did quite a business travel. I still remember that weird Northwest Silver card that came in the mail. I read the benefit booklet that came with it front to cover:-) Started reading FT in 2000 & lurked for a year or so. It’s been downhill ever since lol.
Yeah I suppose everyone has to start somewhere! I feel sorry for that guy who is taking a beating on his interview, He seems like a niceenthusiastic kid and some people have been so mean to him.
Yeah…some commenters can be really brutal! Hope he has thick skin to last…I can sell him some:-)
I’m one lucky guy. First I get a shout out from Frugal Travel Guy on twitter, and now… the big league itself… TBB. I’m going to enjoy a cold one after work.
George, I had a story idea. At least IBB didn’t insert links! The article was probably the least clicked on links article they ever ran. #OneShotDeal. :>)
Was the shout from FTG the blog or FTG the man? It’s a little confusing lately you know:-)
Who are you referring as the big league, moi? No way senior. My little blog is like a fly and FTG the blog is the elephant;-) I am certain the IB folks are not aware I exist!
If you had allowed them to insert cc links in YOUR article I would be so so…depressed:-)
You need to train your wife better, come on? She still does that after so many years? 🙂
Dan you are a great member of FT and the community. More people should have your demeanor and knowledge.
I’m thinking ” Deals with Dan”
or ” Hammer Away at Travel Prices”
We need a new blog 🙂
That’s how a new blog power house started. So big Chase can’t touch you.
I like the “Hammer Away” theme…
We need a new blog in this space like I need a third testicle (apologies in advance for those who may be offended by my extreme…honesty, lol)
Instead of ‘Deals with Dan’, how about Dans Deals? 😉
The legal department at the other Dans Deals may have an issue with that. I hear they are quite aggressive;-)
A little narcissistic to have a blog roll that lists only your own blog, isn’t it?
The web designer showed me how to add things in the right hand side and have not had time to go back there to play with it. Yes it does look quite narcissistic indeed:-) One of these days I will visit that side again…be patient!
Haven’t been reading too many blogs today – I don’t usually leave that for you but will today 😉 – so I don’t know if there were umteen reminders to use the CSP to go out to dinner since it is 3x First Friday. (This BTW is amusing to me since here in PDX we have First Thursday (all the art galleries stay open in the evening and have receptions in a fun neighborhood) and we used to have Last Thursday in funkier, less upscale neighbor and my little corner of PDX now pushes its new shiny First Friday. But I digress.) I did appreciate Mommy Points’ reminder to go out to dinner and someone else’s suggestion we can buy GCs ar restaurants. I am doing both, my bid to keep the economy percolating along. I also liked Mommy Points pointing out that a B of A credit or debit card can get you into a museum for free this weekend. But maybe I am just in a good mood, after managing to get my husband to call Chase, getting us approved for our first business card! So it has been a points-filled Chase day.
If you want to buy some GCs on your CSP, you have til midnight wherever you are.
Yes there were several blog posts about all you mentioned. I guess there is some benefit in the repetition. Maybe I am too tough on them as I go through different “stages” seeing these harmless poss attack my eye sockets so much. So,to get back to the main point I am trying to make lately, we HAVE TOO MANY BLOGS already! And they keep coming. And most just say the same old same old stuff simply because…there are just so many out there!
I am trying to differentiate my little blog corner here, you won’t see posts like that. But I am sensing I am getting away from the miles/points aspect of it and more to the general travel and just quirky stuff you are likely not going to see elsewhere…
It’s a work in progress that’s for sure!
I have a special for you in my next blog post coming up shortly. Here is a hint: Pan Am!