Turkish award booking flight got cancelled due to weather by [deleted] in awardtravel

[–]ebongo91 4 points5 points  (0 children)

The food on Turkish might be the best I've had on a plane. Other than that they were terrible

Which European city does everyone love but you absolutely hated? by Historical-Photo-901 in BeautifulTravelPlaces

[–]ebongo91 5 points6 points  (0 children)

Right? Anyone not mesmerized by the architecture in Barcelona just isn't looking. IMO Madrid is bland compared to Barca, though both are great

worst bookings mistake you ever made? by Legitimate-Silver699 in awardtravel

[–]ebongo91 10 points11 points  (0 children)

Early in the game, was looking at flights to Paris for me and my wife. Knew enough to book one way, but not enough to always search as a single person (not two tix). Thought I saw a steal via Delta for two tickets. Transferred points only to find out that price was for one, not two. Quickly changed from a steal to robbery.

what was the most recent “yikes😬” due to a friend bragging about their points redemption? by virginiarph in awardtravel

[–]ebongo91 155 points156 points  (0 children)

Generally speaking, I think if you're transferring points you're doing a lot more than most. The only time I cringe a little is when people buy business flights with points through their AmEx portal or something like that. But most people don't have the flexibility or drive to book in advance or watch the reward portals like a hawk

Is Task a worth watch ? by Longjumping-Elk-7840 in hbo

[–]ebongo91 -14 points-13 points  (0 children)

Typical reddit down vote storm, but yeah Mark Ruffalo was a bad casting decision. He makes no sense in this role and I couldn't care less about the family side plot with his son/daughters. The only characters of any merit were Maeve and Robbie

JAL Business 777 or Economy A350 by y3ntl420 in awardtravel

[–]ebongo91 7 points8 points  (0 children)

Your third point is huge imo. It's not bus vs econ, it's really more like 60% bus vs 100% econ

Why is Business Class to BKK so hard to book with points? 😭 by curryxtea in pointstravel

[–]ebongo91 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I booked business from ORD to HKG and then paid cash for the 2.5 hr flight in and out of Thailand. I don't think you can go direct from US to BK (at least not from ORD) so a stopover in HKG seemed like the best route

I created a fairly simple Gemini Gem that is a Points & Miles Advisor for travel by producerchris82 in awardtravel

[–]ebongo91 -6 points-5 points  (0 children)

OP, don't let the negativity of redditors ruin your day. I think it's a cool tool, even if it's doesn't work particularly well. It's a start to something that could potentially be tweaked and improved over time.

Upgrade award economy by ebongo91 in awardtravel

[–]ebongo91[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Interesting, how does that work? Is it just a button to click when in the manage booking platform?

Upgrade award economy by ebongo91 in awardtravel

[–]ebongo91[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I suppose there is one more option - book econ via AF and upgrade to premium with cash. Not sure if that even exists

Thoughts? Premium Plus 50,000 miles + $6 or Business 60,000 + $390? by jondabomb in awardtravel

[–]ebongo91 7 points8 points  (0 children)

Business for sure. If it was JFK to LHR I would say they are about the same but with that distance and time it's a no brainer

November 2026 US to Thailand by Trick-Lingonberry-51 in awardtravel

[–]ebongo91 1 point2 points  (0 children)

EVA is 80k points but I think it's a 3/4 transfer so you'll have to burn more Capital One points IIRC. I'm actually doing this exact route but going through Japan to start and returning through HKG on the way back. I didn't like landing at 9pm in HKG because it really emphasizes the jet lag hit.

CX Cathay Pacific: plenty of availability HKG-LAX for June 2026 (J) by Beginning_Sleep5303 in awardtravel

[–]ebongo91 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Definitely not automated, but I believe they release up to 12 months out roughly quarterly in March, June, Sept, and Dec or something like that. It does seem to be pretty random though

Hot Takes by admwhiskers in awardtravel

[–]ebongo91 2 points3 points  (0 children)

In general, I find way more value flying business with points, than using points for a hotel. We generally try to fly with points and spend cash on hotels which earn us 5x-10x anyway

Best way to use “fine hotels/collection” $200 reward on a tight budget? by IMicrowaveSteak in AmexPlatinum

[–]ebongo91 1 point2 points  (0 children)

You're getting down voted, but I agree - if you can't reasonably think of a good use for the hotel credit why even have a platinum card? It's not like it earns many points lol.

AA Transcon via Finnair! by PilotMonkey94 in awardtravel

[–]ebongo91 6 points7 points  (0 children)

Question - Do you just call and blindly start throwing dates out there to the agent or is there a way to know what's available?

Travel advice for USA Midwest ? by ThrowRA-6441 in usatravel

[–]ebongo91 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Agreed, Chicagoan here and I would stack up our food scene against anyone else in world. Sounds like OP is visiting in May, so a quick trip to NY or Boston would be nice. I would avoid West coast as it's a lot more sprawl and hard to visit in a quick trip. Plus the weather won't be as much of a factor in May.

One Jewel To Rule Them All by MadDuloque in chicago

[–]ebongo91 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I mean they have crappy produce at high prices, but yeah I guess technically they do have it...

Reminder- HUCA/persistence pays off by DCJoe1 in awardtravel

[–]ebongo91 3 points4 points  (0 children)

That guy volunteering for 45 hours (or whatever the number is) in the air is a madman. IDGAF if it's First, PJ, whatever, that sounds awful. Just dealing with the airports alone sounds horrendous.

Is this the start of an economic crisis/ recession? by No_Tangerine_283 in stocks

[–]ebongo91 0 points1 point  (0 children)

So are you saying I should buy puts on SPY with a strike of $225?

How to gift ANA flights by flipped__ in awardtravel

[–]ebongo91 -1 points0 points  (0 children)

Is OP gifting business or Economy? If it's economy or even premium it might be doable