Another TBB post featuring the most eclectic links around the web such as warnings about points influencers, Hollywood’s biggest Ponzi, forbidden places, American Airlines falters, the invented yield curve indicator, the main reason behind people feeling so negative about the economy, America’s monster in Afghanistan, Madness the band, huge changes in Thailand tourism and much more and of course always all of the most important developments in the crazy world of miles and points. Enjoy the weekend!
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Welcome to my quirky original authentic blog. It all started back in 2012 focusing on my crazy hobby addiction of frequent flyer miles, hotel and bank points. It has since evolved to a curated at least weekly post of the best web content along with my commentary. Here to Educate primarily, sometimes Entertain and if I get to Inspire you, well, that is a bonus.
This blog publishes on Fridays. This is a one man labor of love operation, enjoy it while it lasts. I may post on another day when I find the time. More clicks, more posts.
PERSONAL FINANCE
There are so many of these out there now, be very careful of who you follow and trust: Points influencers are everywhere. Some trips look too good to be true. In the age of affiliate links and sponsored content, some travel influencers are overselling the lifestyle. So much fakery is depressing. When I hear “influencer” I run the opposite direction.
Gen Z and millennials are increasingly reliant on social media apps as a search and recommendation tool. And when it comes to points and miles, there’s often a blurry line between two niches: travel inspiration and personal finance advice. [Yours truly is a Certified Financial Planner and CPA so I think I know what I am talking about, be careful out there.]
Oh, the invented yield curve. The always reliable indicator a recession is imminent. Still waiting for it. Rule No. 1 of analyzing the economy. There is a saying or maybe I came up with it, don’t recall, let me know if you know who came up with: There is a trend. Until there isn’t. I still hear from wanna be Warren Buffetts who come up with techniques after watching a particular stock for a while and just know what it will do when it drops by say x percent, I just shake my head and move on. Or maybe professor Campbell Harvey said it best:
“It is naive to think that you can just forecast the complex U.S. economy with a single measure from the bond market.”
I have been pounding on a rather depressing fact that the economy is doing so great but most people are not happy. And this post I think nails the reason why. This is Why Consumers are so Negative. Yeah, of course it has to do with inflation expectedly.
Here is how hourly earnings have compared to price changes in some core necessities:
- House prices: -9%
- Food CPI: -1.5%
- Used cars CPI: -5.5%
- Gasoline prices: -4.6%
This means that homebuyers today have to be willing to redistribute 12% of their income to shelter alone. That’s 12% less for luxuries, entertainment, etc. Or 12% you have to borrow against to maintain your old living standard. This is a huge number…
And you could argue that if you weighted the CPI by the things that people care about the most then they feel worse off in recent years for a very simple reason – the things we consider core necessities have become more expensive relative to our earnings. And that has made people feel like their living standards are declining. None of this means that things aren’t good. It certainly doesn’t mean we’re not making progress in the right direction. In fact, all of these items are moving in the right direction now. But it also shows that people are frustrated for rational reasons.
SCAMS/CRYPTO
I may have heard of this scammer but did not know much about what he did. After this must read Best of Web quality The New Yorker article I am blown away again by how some people manage to do gigantic frauds like this that go on for years. And how many people fall for it. And there will be movies, Netflix specials too. The Biggest Ponzi Scheme in Hollywood History.
This guy never cooperated with the authorities. And wanted max 18 months. And then boom! FTX executive Ryan Salame sentenced to 7.5 years imprisonment. Also, for some weird reason, every time I see his name I think of salami.
I am sure you have also received emails and/or texts to call Microsoft support: Visualizing the Companies Online Scammers Impersonate the Most. And it is not even close when it comes to Microsoft.
ODDZ & ENDZ
If you ever wondered why the US left Afghanistan without much to show for it, reading this article will definitely help: America’s Monster. How the U.S. Backed Kidnapping, Torture and Murder in Afghanistan.
I have been to these places and more and more is being discovered. Maybe one day northern Greece will parallel the archaeological treasures of Athens? Alexander the Great’s Untold Story. Excavations in northern Greece are revealing the world that shaped the future king. And yeah, all Greeks love Alexander the Great.
Absolutely amazing: Winners of the GDT Nature Photographer of the Year 2024.
Madness was a British ska band in the 1980s I never got to see live. And they were so much fun live, here is them playing One Step Beyond in 1998, a bit older and still fun! I was obsessed by this song way back in the day! And I had no idea they did this: When Madness starred in early 80s Japanese ads for Honda. Here are the ads and they are so in character, lol.
TRAVEL
SAVE $100 FOR 2024 THE EXTRAORDINARY TRAVEL FESTIVAL
Big positive changes coming in Thailand for tourists: Thailand Expands Visa-Free Entry: 93 Nations Now Qualify.
How many of these have you driven on? Seven of the Most Beautiful Roads in the United States. I have done three of them.
I am here in my hometown now and I am trying to control my eating, this video does not help! A Greek Food Tour – Larissa Greece Food Tour.
I must admit I did not know about some of these places, we all learn something new here: 17 Forbidden Places You Can’t Visit.
Looks cool: The Canoe Building in Osaka, Japan.
BUZZING
A section where I go on and on about some stuff that happens in my life and anything else that just does not fit in another section above
This post is written mostly in Greece where I am visiting my mother who now has a new hip. It has been a while since I was back here in the summer and I forgot how hot it gets! Which comes with the sober realization that my mother has a long away ahead to recover which is easier said than done at age 85.
This year in August marks 40 years since I left Greece to come to the US to spend a year as an exchange student in a small village in Onsted, Michigan. Every year I visit Greece I feel less connected to it. And somehow at the same time this is always going to be home and incredibly proud to be Greek. It is a strange feeling. It is what it is.
I got to watch a Greek team win a European title, which has never been done before: Olympiakos triumphs in Conference League final.
And then you get stories like this over in France in a town famous for swingers lol: French town reels from fortune teller scandal. I mean, if you don’t laugh reading this wild story I am not sure about your sense of humor. Wait, speaking of the French, check this out below and those Greeks are at #2.
This blog started with a focus on miles and points and travel. It has evolved since then. Everything below deals with the hobby of collecting frequent flyer miles and points and maximizing your travel experiences. If you are not interested, you can stop here, thank you.
MILES & POINTS NEWS/PROMOS/MY ACTION
It was another week with nothing earth shattering. Unless you consider the big executive changes in American Airlines and wonder if this is the beginning of changes in its loyalty program or the beginning of doubling down on its present scheme.
GENERAL NEWS/PROMOS/NEWBIES/ETC.
These are so nice: The Most Incredible Suites Bookable With World of Hyatt Points. I had no idea about the Hyatt Regency Kuantan Resort in Malaysia and now plotting how to manage a stay there as it is a bit far from Kuala Lumpur we are visiting later this year. Anyone stayed here yet? Always looking out for deals, it is in my DNA. Oh, how about splurging at the Park Hyatt St. Kitts, wow!
You read here that these were not going to stick: American Airlines Cancels Miles Earnings Policy Change. And I am sure I would not ever boast that I am a travel thought leader smh. Anyway, I wonder with so many business travelers pissed off not getting upgraded to passengers who just spend so much on AA credit cards…will this fact lead to changes in the AA Loyalty Points scheme and revert back to normal? Stay tuned!
If you do want to read more on the subject, I recommend reading material from true experts rather than credit card salesmen bloggers masquerading as aviation experts: American Begins the Long and Difficult Task of Fixing the Mess It Created Over the Last Two Years.
REGISTER for the new Choice Privileges promo to earn 8k points after 2 qualifying stays.
In addition, if you earned a signing bonus on a Sapphire card within the past four years/48 months you will not be approved. The clock starts the date you earned the signing bonus points by the way. So, what if you have either card for more than four years? Well, you could cancel it and reapply. But before you do that, make sure you transfer out all of your points! Or, you can downgrade to one of the no annual fee Chase Freedom cards and then reapply for the Sapphire card you want. You should wait at least two weeks before reapplying!
I am not doing this because I run many business expenses in my CSP card. My kids will not do it because they use their own CSP cards a lot and it is their main credit score builder and likely will keep them for a very long time. This leaves my wife’s CSP. I could transfer all the Chase points to my CSP card and then cancel her own CSP. Wait at least two weeks and then reapply for it. Read my blog to find out what I decide. Because, you know, this is an addiction. 🙂
CREDIT CARD CORNER
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We had a flurry of new credit card offers thrown at us in the last few days. Let’s recap:
Amex is back with American Express Marriott Bonvoy Business Five Free Night Signup Bonus (50k Each).
Amex Marriott Bonvoy Business card: Oh, it is back! Up from three five nights again, I told you it is likely going to be back. I may go for it after I return from Greece as I see that it expires 7/10/2024. I am no fan of Marriott Bonvoy but hey, five free nights is five free nights you guys. The annual fee is $125. The minimum spend is $8k in the first six months. Earning structure is 6x on Marriott purchases, 4x on gas stations, cell phone bills, restaurants and shipping and 2x on everything else. You do get 15 elite night credits if you are one of those shooting for worthy Platinum status. You do get Gold elite status AND a Free Night Award cert at each card anniversary. To reiterate, I am only interested for the five free nights, maybe I can time it to go see Machu Picchu in 2025 as it has a great Marriott property to stay there.
Amex is back with American Express Hilton Increased Bonuses (175k Points/130k Points + Free Night Certificate).
Hilton Amex Surpass Card: I have this card because Hilton is my #2 hotel program (and closing in to #1 Hyatt). The annual fee is $150 but every quarter I buy a $50 Hilton gift card and I get it all credited. So, in a way it makes money for me until Amex closes this hole. It also gives me Hilton Gold Elite status which is great, especially overseas. Signing Bonus is 130,000 Hilton Honors points AND a Free Night Award cert. The minimum spend is a surprisingly low $3k in the first six months. These Hilton free night certs can be used in ANY property anytime which makes them much more valuable than all other hotel free night awards. You can earn a second Free Night Award cert after you spend $15k on the card every year. Earning is also very good with 12x on Hilton purchases, 6x on restaurants, groceries and gas stations, 4x on online retail purchases and 3x on everything else.
Hilton Amex Card: This is the basic no annual fee card. The signing bonus is 70,000 Hilton Honors points AND a Free Night Award. The minimum spend is only $2k in the first six months. You also get a pretty useless Silver elite status and the earning on the card is kind of anemic: 7x on Hilton purchases, 5x on restaurants, groceries and gas stations and 3x on everything else. If you like Hiltons and abhor paying annual fees this card could work for you.
Hilton Amex Business Card: The Signing Bonus is 175,000 Hilton Honors points AND a Free Night Award cert. The minimum spend is a higher $8k in the first six months. The annual fee is $195. This card gives you Gold elite status, which as we discussed it is great to have. Great earning structure as well with 12x on Hilton purchases, 6x on restaurants, gas stations, cell phone bills, shipping, car rentals and 3x on everything else.
Hilton Amex Aspire Card: Signing Bonus is 175,000 Hilton Honors points and a Free Night Award cert. This is the premium card with a hefty $550 annual fee. The minimum spend is $6k in the first six months. A Free Night Award cert comes with it at each card anniversary. It also comes with a bunch of statement credits that you have to be very diligent to make sure you take them all; if you did, statement credits could up to $889 per year. You get the highest Diamond elite status with the card. And of course Priority Pass lounger membership and other goodies. I carried this card for several years but I dropped it and settled down with the Capital One Venture X as my premium go to card. You don’t have this card for its earning structure: 14x on Hilton purchases, 7x on restaurants, airfare and car rentals and 3x on everything else.
So, Amex is back juicing the Hilton cards with Free Night Award certs and another trend I noticed is how they now extend the minimum spend period to six from three months, both very welcome. Remember, Amex has the policy to not award the Signing Bonus if you had the card before in the past seven years or so. And it also has onerous card family rules. Which they have not affected the Hilton family of cards…yet?
Another new credit card we have is the Chase Aeroplan Card: Aeroplan is the Air Canada program. The Signing Bonus is now 70,000 Aeroplan miles. The annual fee is $95 and the minimum spend is $3k in the first three months. Earning structure is 3x on airfare, restaurants groceries and 1x on everything else. As you can see below in MY ACTION section, Aeorplan miles can be very valuable. You do get the lowest Air Canada elite status and free bags and other miscellaneous benefits not worth mentioning. Come on Chase, can we get 75k SUB or higher for the same spend?
NEW: I have been asked many times how to get children set up to handle their own financial affairs and, you know, set them up for travel hacking success. Get them on a Chase joint checking account with their name listed first as soon as possible. When they turned 18, I applied for both of my kids for a Discover it credit card. They still have this card by the way and I handle it all still. It is a great starter card and we will keep it open for a very long time. Chase also has its own starter type card, the Freedom Rise card. It should be an instant approval, especially if you have had the Chase checking account. With Chase, the more you have in the bank the higher the chances for instant approvals. Then again, don’t leave too much in the bank while missing out on earning a much higher interest rate in a high yield interest account in an online bank.
NEW: All these starter cards have no annual fee of course. Get them early, teach them the evils of NEVER EVER carrying a balance and hopefully they can handle it all. Watch them though, it is amazing what stupid things youngsters can do with plastic. The Signing Bonus for starter cards are always tiny, if any. Like for the Chase Freedom Rise: Earn a $25 statement credit after signing up for automatic payments within the first three months of opening your account. So, you are not getting it for the Signup Bonus, you are getting the card for the kiddo to start building their own credit history.
NEW: Oh, I forgot the blog post that triggered the above paragraph: Eligible Chase Freedom Rise Cardholders Now Get Automatic Upgrade to Freedom Unlimited. Interesting development. And all I can think of is the implications getting the Signing Bonus for the Freedom Unlimited card lol.
We have had the three Ink Business cards with great signup bonuses for a while. It is the 100k Chase Ink Business Preferred and the no annual fee 75k Chase Ink Cash and the 75k Chase Ink Unlimited. More info on each card is below. But how do you differentiate among these three cards? Choosing Among Three Beasts: Selecting the Best Business Card.
MY ACTION
First, let me say I managed to put together a little trip to Hua Hin, Thailand from our base in Bangkok in late November to check out the place. First night at the Hilton Hua Hin Resort & Spa for 58,000 Hilton Honors points and then three nights at the Hyatt Regency Hua Hin for 36,000 points in a nice Regency Executive suite using one of my Globalist elite confirmed suite upgrade award certs. I am thinking to cut down the stay to two nights at the HR, three nights in Hua Hin should be enough, what do you think?
We also want to do a quick 2 night visit to Pattaya because my wife loves Andaz hotels and wants to check out the property in Jomtien Beach and we probably should stay one night as well at the Hilton Pattaya because our Thai friend stayed there and we fell in love with the views from the lounge. Also thinking to join my wife to see her in laws in Malaysia and knock out a short stay at the Grand Hyatt in Kuala Lumpur #developing. And of course knock out return airfare to Detroit, this time from Kuala Lumpur instead for both of us. Which cuts down award availability options. Again, plenty of time to get this done, Google Flights tracking is in place.
I am nearing 1 million miles/points burned year to date and this year is not even half over yet!
I revived the dormant TravelBloggerBuzz Instagram account and giving it another go, follow me there please. Because I am trying to post all travel related stuff there now, instead of Twitter which continues its descent to oblivion imho. Some posts from my trip to Greece are there, such as:
Detroit Lufthansa Lounge pics before boarding Lufthansa LH 443 to fly to Frankfurt in Business Class and eat the Lufthansa food aboard.
Pics from the Lufthansa Panorama lounge in the Frankfurt airport near Gate 26.
I always enjoy flying the Greek airline Aegean, some pics from the flight taking me to Thessaloniki, Greece from Frankfurt in Business Class.
The Hyatt Regency Thessaloniki Greece is my favorite Hyatt. For many reasons. Here are pics from its Regency Club. For more pics from this Hyatt property follow me on Instagram.
Where am I on qualifying for World of Hyatt Globalist status? I am at 23 elite night credits and with current reservations for the rest of the year I will be at 57. And will easily do three more nights, maybe I hit 70?
My World of Hyatt Globalist assigned Concierge has been excellent so far. But he has vanished in the past week and counting, sad.
ADVANCED
Good reference post: The Best Airline Miles to Use for Booking Business Class Flights. I wonder how many of these will be around a year from now.
I had the same issue with them Hilton gift cards and I would rather not deal with this crap: Buyer Beware! Potential Issues With Hilton Gift Cards.
MILES & POINTS
HOT CREDIT CARD OFFERS: 75k CHASE Ink Business Cash, 75k CHASE Ink Business Unlimited, 75k CAPITAL ONE Venture X, 100k CHASE Ink Business Preferred, 75k CHASE United Business, 75k CAPITAL ONE Venture Rewards, 150k AMEX Business Platinum, 80k CHASE Southwest Performance Business, $1,000 Cash Back CHASE Ink Business Premier, 75k Citi Strata Premier, 75k CITIBusiness AA Platinum Select, 15k AMEX Blue Business Plus and many more!
This section is about my hobby addiction of collecting frequent flyer miles and hotel points since the early 1990’s! SKIP if you are not into it!
As of today, I have burned 881,496 miles/points year to date (1,148,286 in 2023) and have 4,182,111 miles/points in the bank. Some do drugs, I do miles lol!
Thanks to US banks, very lucrative travel rewards credit card offers come and go all the time. This section will act as a reference point on the best CURRENT offers. I will designate new material preceded by NEW.
Remember, you are NOT allowed to ever carry a credit card balance!
Let me leave you with this:
Some of the links are behind a paywall. You can try to read them using Archive.is.
Thank you for reading my blog. If you enjoy it please forward it to a family member or friend. Or Buy Me a Coffee, thank you!
Feel free to contact me anytime at travelbloggerbuzz@gmail.com and tell me what you like and don’t like about my blog and, more importantly, what you would like to see changed and/or what you would add or delete. All feedback is very appreciated.
George
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Wow, I can’t believe I hadn’t heard about that Hollywood ponzi guy. What a schmuck.
I have only been on two of those seven roads. So much more to see!
Good morning!
I just had to read the new Ponzi story. Gracious! Lots to read over the weekend.
Hope your mom is doing ok.
Thanks for the tip on Kuantan as looks really nice. There are actually some real treasures amongst the Malaysian properties if you have time and inclination to poke around. Your upcoming trip – hmm stop moving around so much, you are staying at resorts you are meant to be relaxing not moving hotel to hotel. I know if I did that my husband would be so annoyed, there is only so much he will do to chase points. Interesting on your concierge, we assume husband has one as has been Globalist for past 7 years but no idea who it is or why we would use them. We just ring the regular no status line and get things taken care of.
Hey G,
So what did you do about your Hilton GC situation? Any advice?
Great article of Ponzi scammer…
Before we had “influencers”, what did we have?
SHILLS
Super busy trying to keep it all together, be supportive of my mother and tying loose ends with some affairs and seeing relatives and friends. I will do my best to prepare another post next week but sometimes I feel like pulling a Drew move, as in, just abandoning the TBB ship.
Anyway, some selected replies to your comments:
Yeah, kind of blown away about that Hollywood Ponzi guy. Definitely a Netflix special is coming and yes I will watch it.
On the trip to Thailand/Malaysia in November, and side trips to Hua Hin (booked) and Jomtien/Pattaya (to be planned), I am actually thinking to do a weekend trip to check out Koh Samui as well 🙂
Daughter left Tokyo/Osaka/Kyoto for Seoul and then Busan. Today she is flying to Bangkok, staying one night and then they fly to Koh Samui,it is a small world out there!
I had the same issues using on Hilton gift card in the Dallas ART Hotel property, took for ever. I have another in my hands and kind of dreading to use it next. I am not sure I am going to buy more going forward until all this crap settles down.
I like my Airbnb, so much bigger than the hotel I stay at. But I am falling off the exercise bandwagon and doing my best to control the food intake, which is always hard here.
My mother is doing ok but oh man, trying to get back to normal after hip replacement at age 85 is something that appears to be of a very tall order for her. Kind of sobering seeing a very active strong woman kind of resigned with being very mobile limited at this stage. Take care of your bodies everyone. I should do the same but oh, look at that spinach pie lol.
Pattaya is really seedy, may not be a problem if you stick to just staying in the resorts but there’s a pretty bad well deserved reputation.
Hua Hin should fit you pretty well. It’s more a family type place, lots of local Thai from Bangkok beach there. Also should have the Swedes starting their snowbirding ways there by November.
Also keep in mind traveling via vehicle in Thailand is always a dicey proposition. The amount of road accident deaths per day is staggering. There’s pretty reliable train service to get you to Hua Hin if you want to stay off the roads.
Article is still a bit dated but all the content still holds true:
https://edition.cnn.com/2019/01/03/asia/thailand-road-deaths-new-year-intl/index.html
On Pattaya: Yeah, this is why I am going there with my wife, I would not trust myself going there alone 🙂
Was thinking to get to Hua Hin using a private car service. But now I think we are going to take the train.
Burned more points, ending the Asia trip with 3 nights at the Grand Hyatt Kuala Lumpur in a suite. Also burned more Hyatt points to treat friends to 2 nights at the Thessaloniki Hyatt Regency.
Started drafting the Friday TBB post already.
Interesting, the NYT has come around to the lab leak theory: https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2024/06/03/opinion/covid-lab-leak.html
Another slam dunk!
Yeah, sure…just in time for Fauci to appear in front of Congress, hey?
I read it, interesting indeed. But it is mid 2024 and we will never know for sure. You hear of the lab leak theory less and less as time goes by. Maybe we should focus on the next one? HN51?
Anyway, reviews of the author’s books have been mixed: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Viral:_The_Search_for_the_Origin_of_COVID-19
If you are going to Koh Samui, check out Buri Rasa Village Samui. The problem of having too many points, I feel like, prevents us to experience places in much better locations and service. We had a dinner on the beach with a table on the sand at night (unforgettable) had a similar feeling to the Maldives. Any hotel close to this place is the perfect location in the best part of the beach and many places (markets and restaurants) are walking distance.
I have rented cars in Koh Lanta, Krabi, Phuket, Koh Samui and I think it’s fine as long as you are ok driving on the “other” side of the road. I would think using a reputable private driver should also be fine. I am interested in your opinion comparing places driving distance to Bangkok as opposed to going to some of the islands like Koh Samui. Based on reviews I always just hoped on a short flight and never really stayed long in or around Bangkok.
Daughter just left Koh Samui, she really liked it a lot. I think I am leaning towards leaving Koh Samui to explore in 2026, just too much already crammed in the upcoming 2025 trip.
I drove in Phuket. Other than one dangerous moment turning onto incoming traffic, it was fine and I am glad I did it driving all around the island. Not sure it was a smart move to drive into Patong at night though.
The Friday post is coming together nicely. I may do a “Welcome Dollars and Data readers” post for new readers on Thursday.
Guys, I do NOT have 107 credit cards open. This is the number of accounts I keep track of in Award Wallet!
Carl: Good to see you come back!
Peter: Thanks!
George finally made it big time, congrats.
https://ofdollarsanddata.com/is-maximizing-credit-card-rewards-worth-it/
Super late coming to the party here, just out of the hospital! Had a major internal bleed and we almost lost me and my sock drawer both! Gonna live though it looks like for a while and hope your Mother does OK there, George. Take care!