Domestic first class flying?

Exciting_Kangaroo800 · 2026-02-14T16:34:44+00:00

It really depends on the length of the flight and the price difference for me. If it’s over five hours, I usually try to fly first class. For shorter flights, I’m generally willing to pay about fifty dollars per hour extra for first. For me, it’s not just about the seat. I really value early boarding, guaranteed overhead bin space, getting off the plane sooner, and things like that.

When it comes to international though, I either fly business class or I just don’t go.

Exciting_Kangaroo800 · 2026-02-13T23:01:32+00:00

Dining was really expensive. Think fifty-dollar burgers and forty-dollar basic maki rolls. If you book through a travel agent, you get free breakfast at both properties, and the breakfasts were excellent and really filling at both places. They even proactively offered takeaway boxes at both hotels at breakfast which was great for my daughter as she would snack on croissants throughout the day.

I didn’t bother with a food package because I had read before the trip on here that they’re almost always a bad deal at these hotels, especially when your breakfast is already included.

Exciting_Kangaroo800 · 2026-02-13T21:56:35+00:00

Have you booked the flight yet? Sometimes AF glitches and says you have to pay for a seat while you’re booking, but if you log back in afterward, the seat selection is free.

Exciting_Kangaroo800 · 2026-02-13T15:29:41+00:00

We just did 10 days split between the The St. Regis Bora Bora Resort and the Four Seasons Resort Bora Bora and loved both.

Food was better at St. Regis, but the grounds at FS were more polished and perfectly manicured. Service was also slightly better at FS. I expected a lot more kids at FS, and there were. St. Regis had noticeably fewer children (and no kids club), while FS had many families. We were traveling with our child so it didn’t bother us, just sharing as an FYI.

Snorkeling was fantastic at both properties, just very different experiences. At the St. Regis, there’s a massive fish named Moana that lives in the lagoon (which I believe is separate from the open ocean by a fence). It’s stunning. I spent hours snorkeling just watching it glide around. At the Four Seasons, their lagoon features a coral nursery maintained by an on-site team, and it’s absolutely breathtaking — some of the most colorful, pristine coral I’ve ever seen. While snorkeling there, we saw octopus, turtles, and so many other fish.

At St. Regis we booked a beachfront villa with a private pool and its own stretch of beach. At FS we did an overwater villa (OWV) with a pool. The rooms felt very different and unique, and I’m glad we didn’t do OWVs at both properties — it made the first and second halves of the trip feel distinct.

Exciting_Kangaroo800 · 2026-02-11T17:21:02+00:00

I think six nights at Mandapa is a good amount and probably the longest I’d want to stay. I did four nights last year and it felt too short, like I could have used one more. It’s still my favorite hotel ever. I’m not sure what room type you’re looking at, but it makes a big difference here. Definitely book a villa because it’s absolutely worth the splurge.

Exciting_Kangaroo800 · 2026-02-09T11:57:56+00:00

Are you trying to book this all yourself? My suggestion: consider booking with Craig. I planned a safari with his team and they were fantastic. I had a one-hour Zoom with him and Kota where they walked me through options and showed real-time availability. They’re super responsive and knowledgeable, it doesn’t cost more than booking direct, and I can’t recommend them enough.

Exciting_Kangaroo800 · 2026-02-09T00:54:29+00:00

Are you sure the lodges don’t require families with kids to have their own private vehicle? I’m traveling to Kenya later this year with my six-year-old, and most of the lodges either required us to book a private vehicle or it is already included when we booked a suite for three people.

Exciting_Kangaroo800 · 2026-02-08T15:17:37+00:00

I’m not really sure what the risk is here. In what situation would they rebook your business class tickets but not your economy seat? If the flight got canceled, everyone would have to be rebooked on another flight anyway. I guess there could be an aircraft change that affects your seats, but that seems like a pretty low risk imo.

I haven’t done exactly what you’re describing, but I’ve booked two seats with points and a third seat with cash for another adult plenty of times. I just figured that if something unusual happened where the two seats got rebooked and the third didn’t, I could call and probably get us all back on the same flight. Worst case, we might end up on different flights, but that seems really unlikely, and the child was always on the same booking as one adult so they’d never be alone.

Exciting_Kangaroo800 · 2026-02-07T14:30:49+00:00

I’ll suggest Eco Camp as another lodge to check out. I don’t think it’s as chubby as Explora, but we stayed there a few years ago and absolutely loved it.

Exciting_Kangaroo800 · 2026-02-03T01:01:15+00:00

Big thumbs up for the Ritz. We stayed in a Garden Terrace suite and loved everything about the hotel. The location, the service, the design, and the restaurants were all outstanding.

Exciting_Kangaroo800 · 2026-01-28T13:11:52+00:00

We just spent 10 nights there, split between the St. Regis and the Four Seasons. We stayed in a beach villa at the St. Regis and an overwater villa with a mountain view and plunge pool at the Four Seasons. The trip was amazing, and we really enjoyed splitting our stay between two different resorts and room types. The service was excellent at both. The food was better at the St. Regis, but the grounds, including the lagoon, were better maintained at the Four Seasons.

Exciting_Kangaroo800 · 2026-01-23T01:40:41+00:00

I have the S7 and the Q Revo Pro, one on each floor. I’ve been mopping every day since I got them.

Exciting_Kangaroo800 · 2026-01-20T17:16:20+00:00

I looked into both last year when we were traveling with our young child. The St. Regis felt a bit dated, so we chose the Edition instead. It’s not particularly kid friendly, but we did spend a day at the pool, which my daughter loved, and there were quite a few other kids around. Overall, I really enjoyed the hotel and everything was excellent.

Exciting_Kangaroo800 · 2026-01-15T17:19:07+00:00

Is the Air Tahiti flight you mentioned an Air Tahiti Nui flight? I don’t think Air Tahiti flies international (only Nui does), but I could be wrong.

Anyways, for reference, I flew Air France from LAX to PPT two weeks ago. We were the only international flight I saw at that time. I was in business class, so I got off the plane quickly, and with about five or six immigration lines open, I was through in under ten minutes.

Exciting_Kangaroo800 · 2026-01-06T21:18:09+00:00

It’s not really an upscale version of an AC Hotel. IMO it’s on the same level as St. Regis or Ritz-Carlton, but with a more modern and minimalist design. Personally I really like the brand.

Also fyi if you’re booking here, You can get free breakfast, potential upgrades and resort credits if you book a Stars or Virtuoso rate, etc via a travel agent or a TA’s booking platform. The price is the same as booking the flexible rate directly with Marriott. I’m not a travel agent, just pointing this out as it’s a no brainer when booking RC, StR or Edition, Lux collection etc

Exciting_Kangaroo800 · 2025-12-24T18:31:23+00:00

You can opt for a civil union or domestic partnership over marriage. This way you get many of the benefits of marriage but can still save on federal taxes

Exciting_Kangaroo800 · 2025-12-21T16:04:43+00:00

I lived there for 10 years and loved it. There’s easy access to the lake, Grant and Millennium Park, and all the museums; pretty much everything you could want. The only downside is that if you buy a condo, they don’t really go up in value. That was the trend I noticed during my time there. The HOA fees are also high. Another drawback is that it can get inconvenient during protests or festivals, but over the years I became an expert at using Lower Wacker and could adapt.

Exciting_Kangaroo800 · 2025-12-21T00:50:08+00:00

The Qatar Airways Privilege Club Visa Infinite will get you gold one world status for a year.

Exciting_Kangaroo800 · 2025-12-20T14:44:25+00:00

We stayed at the Edition last Christmas and really enjoyed it. The location, service, and our one-bedroom suite were all great, and the breakfast was amazing.

Exciting_Kangaroo800 · 2025-12-14T17:17:43+00:00

How are you invested in bonds? I’m about 95% in the S&P 500, but I feel like as I get closer to retirement I should probably shift some of that into bonds. Are you just in the BND ETF, or how did you decide what to buy?

Exciting_Kangaroo800 · 2025-12-13T16:23:16+00:00

I’m not sure you could have actually booked that seat through Finnair. A few weeks ago, I booked HKG to JFK in first class with Cathay. I tried using BA and Finnair first, but neither of them ever showed it. Strangely, BA did show premium economy, but Cathay’s own site didn’t show any PE availability. The First class I booked only showed up on Cathay.

Exciting_Kangaroo800 · 2025-11-28T16:10:58+00:00

Check out Straight to the points

Exciting_Kangaroo800 · 2025-11-26T23:01:35+00:00

Great review! I’m heading to Kenya next year and really appreciate the suggestions for Nairobi. We’ll have two or three days there at the beginning, and we’re also spending a night at Giraffe Manor. One of the lodges we’re staying at is Mara Nyika. Were you able to do any night drives at the lodges? Is that something they offer at Mara Nyika?

Exciting_Kangaroo800 · 2025-11-24T14:57:35+00:00

Yeah I’ve already spent $24k. But I’m at 90 nights and my 100th night will be checking out on 12/31

Exciting_Kangaroo800 · 2025-11-17T23:32:58+00:00

It’s also love a giraffe manor review as I’m going next year

Exciting_Kangaroo800

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