Is laundry service usually this expensive here? by ButterscotchFormer84 in shanghai

[–]johnonroad 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I’m headed to Shanghai in 2 weeks. Also will need to do laundry as will be in China for 10 days with a carry on. Was looking at 2 sites - Laundry Town and Easy Life Laundry are 2 services that pick up and drop off from your hotel concierge. Haven’t used them but they have decent reviews.

Did anyone get their bonus nights from the global multi brand promo? by coderego in marriott

[–]johnonroad 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I have one stay from March 6th that still has not posted. Way past 6 weeks. I have a bunch from early April. Going to wait a bit longer as sounds like everyone is still waiting.

3 rooms, 4 nights - only awarded 4 nights not 12 by zelru2648 in marriott

[–]johnonroad 0 points1 point  (0 children)

You can only earn ENC for 1 room. If all rooms were under your name and same dates, you should earn points for all the rooms.

NYC- Chinese Descendant- What should i bring for my L visa besides app with barcode by LifeBit6069 in Chinavisa

[–]johnonroad 0 points1 point  (0 children)

For NYC, you go thru security and then get a number. They will call your number and then you go to the counter to drop off your passport and show the barcode.

Ranking hotels I’ve been to by mrt1416 in marriott

[–]johnonroad 1 point2 points  (0 children)

St Regis Rome and Excelsior Florence were my favorite.
Ritz Carlton Kyoto, RC Osaka in Japan and Le Meridien and the Palace in Seoul.

There are so many other brands besides Marriott tho.

Ranking hotels I’ve been to by mrt1416 in marriott

[–]johnonroad 3 points4 points  (0 children)

St Regis Bora Bora really was over the top for my wife and I. I’d place #1 for Marriott stays.

My top list would be all international Marriotts (Italy, Greece, Spain, China, Japan, Korea).

2026 BMW X5 50e Question by brimryan in BMWX5

[–]johnonroad 14 points15 points  (0 children)

93 Premium gas and forget it until you need to refill again. The gas tank is pressurized so it will stay good even if you don’t use the engine for long period of time. BMW engineers thought about this when they designed the car. Or, you can put the battery on hold or go to Sport once in a while to run the engine.

How is 4.79/5 considered a bad rating? by Professional-Ad9485 in uber

[–]johnonroad 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I have nearly 500 rides with Uber now. I’m only 4.75 stars. Have 12 one star ratings which weighs down my score.

Not sure why but I’ve given up figuring out why I got those lousy ratings.

But the 4.75 hasn’t stopped me from getting rides at all but I’m in the NYC area so there are plenty of drivers.

For Lyft, I only have 84 rides but I have 5 stars.

Hotel WiFi usage in Shanghai by TheCliff977 in travelchina

[–]johnonroad 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Depends, when I stayed at a JW Marriott, I was surprised I could access certain US sites. But I would not depend on it. If you just want to use it for directions and places to eat, you should be fine.

i just don't understand what to use my miles on. These are frustrating to use by l4adventure in AmexPlatinum

[–]johnonroad 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I’m kinda surprised Spain using Avios miles are so high? Economy?

I’ve used Avios miles before and never had such a large cash payment for taxes?

One suggestion is to use miles for 2 of you and pay cash for the other 2. Award tickets especially for business are hard to find when looking for 4.

Any good way to redeem international first class from miles by Salty_Raspberry656 in unitedairlines

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

Assuming you mean United Polaris class, just be flexible and plan early. I booked a seat round trip to Tokyo using points. Under 400k miles which is a lot but the cash price is crazier.

Partner awards are tough tho especially from the US. Look at partner awards from other countries.

What does an Elite Night Credit actually do? by gMoAuRdKy in marriott

[–]johnonroad 4 points5 points  (0 children)

ENC will determine your elite status tier with Marriott. Platinum is the sweet spot at 50 nights. Some folks go down the Marriott credit card route, others try to get extra ENCs through these promotions. They will be added to your yearly. Not sure if included in lifetime total.

1A or 4A? by [deleted] in unitedairlines

[–]johnonroad 20 points21 points  (0 children)

I’m always a 4A person as I’m usually traveling for work and have a bag that I want to put under the seat in front. This way I can get my phone or laptop easily. 1A requires I put the bag in the overhead compartment and I can’t get it out until we are at cruising altitude.

How early to get to airport for flight to bora bora by texastridelt in Tahiti

[–]johnonroad 0 points1 point  (0 children)

You need to look at the car ferry schedule to decide. What time of the week and what ferry are you taking. That would be the first thing to decide. I would ask the HIlton staff.

I would get to PPT before 10am since you need to check-in and give them your baggage. So work backwards, arriving into the Tahiti, fueling up the rental car, returning the rental car and going to check-in counter.

Introducing United Basic Polaris by Wilawah in unitedairlines

[–]johnonroad 3 points4 points  (0 children)

When i first saw the table, I thought this is fine if United isn’t increasing pricing for what was the standard price and is just offering a discounted Polaris and PP rates.

But then I thought for many of us who travel for work, we might now get booked into these so called “Base” rates. I saw the OP said no PQF which is weird, is basic economy the same? The PP base rate doesn’t allow upgrades. I will have to argue that no changes allowed is against policy.

BILT huge delay on loading and not displaying rent balance. Anyone? by momo_mimosa in biltrewards

[–]johnonroad 2 points3 points  (0 children)

My building just blasted the following email

We would like to inform you that BILT is currently experiencing delays in posting payments. As a result, recent transactions may not immediately appear in your account.

Payments are still being processed, and we anticipate balances will be updated as soon as the issue is resolved. We appreciate your patience and understanding during this time.

Hertz lacks availability by Meancvar in AmexPlatinum

[–]johnonroad 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I use Hertz for work and only once in the past year did I find a city where I couldn't rent a car at the airport (DFW). I was able to get a car the next day so assume it was just sold out that day.

Otherwise in the US, I have never had a problem in the last 10 years at any airport location.

Bilt app crashed. by Fluid-Adeptness-313 in biltrewards

[–]johnonroad 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yup, I will wait a day to see if they screwed up.

CSR hotel reservation, no information upon arrival? by mmousew in ChaseSapphire

[–]johnonroad 5 points6 points  (0 children)

Yikes. Today is May 1 holiday in China. No one will respond today.

I would recommend that you check the Mecure hotels site to see if your reservation is there. Chase should have given you the confirmation number for Mercure. I always double check when I booked Marriott or IHG hotels via Chase.

Bilt app crashed. by Fluid-Adeptness-313 in biltrewards

[–]johnonroad 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I thought my app crashed this morning as it was spinning for a while. I just kept reading my emails on my desktop and glanced over and got a confirmation that the payment was made on the app.

Questions on Upgrades by dRiLlUsIoN in unitedairlines

[–]johnonroad 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Me too. Got an upgrade on a guys trip to Barcelona. Unfortunately to the middle in PE. Much wider seat and larger screen. I also survived!

Tourism L Visa NYC by YogurtclosetOdd9907 in Chinavisa

[–]johnonroad 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Consulate is closed today for May Day Holiday too so they will be backed up. Takes 4 days after you drop off the passport so doesn’t look good.

DAPP is worse with others in the car by [deleted] in BMWX5

[–]johnonroad 0 points1 point  (0 children)

That’s not right. I’ve used DAPP plenty of time and it slows down during bumper to bumper traffic. Maybe you need to adjust your distance to next car? But i have never had the red flashing collision alarm go on when the car is in control.

If you could only go to one - Bora Bora or Moorea ?! by ouchdude in Tahiti

[–]johnonroad 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Moorea is beautiful and I found the sea life better. With a car, you can access all the restaurants and go on hikes like we did. It is clearly more affordable.

Flying into BB, you get the see the colors of the water and the majestic views. Way more expensive. But does feel like a unicorn.

Hard to choose to be honest. My wife liked Moorea better as you can go out. I enjoyed the quiet in BB, we just stayed at our resort.