Category: Airlines

Buenos Aires, Argentina 0

American Airlines Business Class: DFW-EZE B787-9

My first international trip outside of North America since February 2020 when COVID-19 started was to Argentina. I was able to find “C” class availability using ExpertFlyer on the DFW-EZE segment which allowed me to upgrade my Premium Economy ticket to Business Class for 15,000 AA miles one-way. Flying on American’s...

DPS-SYD 0

Garuda Indonesia Economy Class: DPS-SYD A330-300

I made my way back to the US from a week in Bali via Sydney. The ticket was super cheap from SYD-HNL-SFO so I figured why not spend a few nights in Australia. Booking Garuda Indonesia flights is best direct via their website. The fare was around USD 250, but...

LAX 0

Singapore Airlines Business Class: LAX-NRT B777-300ER

My last international trip prior to COVID-19 originated at LAX headed to Tokyo. This was the 1st segment of my 3 aircraft sampler with Singapore Airlines which included the B777-300ER, A380 & B787-10. Checking in at LAX with Singapore Airlines in TBIT was flawless as usual. I proceeded to the Star...

United Premium Plus B787-9 1

United Airlines Premium Economy Class: IAD-SFO B787-9

United announced Premium Plus back in late 2018, but just rolled out the new seats on their 787-9 Dreamliner’s this year. I was lucky to be able to try it out a few months ago. United downgraded the 777-200 serving this route (IAD-SFO) with a smaller, but more fuel efficient...

Seat 11L 0

United Airlines Polaris Business Class: IAD-SFO B777-200

Flying at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic treated me well by being upgraded on United with just Premier Silver status. United was operating their international configured planes for domestic routes and I got lucky to fly their 777-200 (Layout 5) from IAD to SFO featuring their new Polaris Business Class...

Hawaiian First Class A330-200 4

Hawaiian Airlines First Class: HNL-SFO A330-200

I was able to snag a one-way ticket from Sydney, Australia (SYD) to San Francisco (SFO) via Honolulu (HNL) on Hawaiian Airlines for only $360. Using 25,000 Hawaiian Airlines miles I was able to upgrade my HNL-SFO segment to lie-flat First Class. Upgrade availability is based on a First Class...

Seat 11A B787-10 0

Singapore Airlines Business Class: SIN-DPS B787-10

Staying overnight in Singapore after I landed from Tokyo makes it a great stop on the way to Bali. We had 23 hours to explore this amazing city. It was a warm February night, but we were still able to explore the Marina area including Marina Bay Sands. With COVID-19...

SQ A380 97D 2

Singapore Airlines Business Class: NRT-SIN A380

Singapore Airlines introduced their new Business Class seats on their A380 at the end of 2017 and I was lucky to be able to fly it earlier this year before all A380’s were grounded due to COVID-19. I redeemed 95,000 Singapore Airlines miles plus SGD 50 in taxes for Business...

Apartment 3A & 4A 0

Etihad First Apartment Class: AUH-JFK A380

This was our final long haul flight on the way home from our journey to Africa last year which I booked on miles/points. I was only able to secure 2 First Class seats (3A & 4A) at the time of booking which can be very challenging with Etihad, but you...

Caviar & Champagne 0

Cathay Pacific First Class: SFO-HKG B777-300ER

This was our first flight on our journey to Africa last year which I booked on miles/points. I was only able to secure 1 First Class seat at the time of booking, but I set an ExpertFlyer alert in case they opened up a seat closer to departure. Sure enough,...