This Saturday you can read about Hyatt’s breakfast-cutting experiment at certain US properties, people trying to use their personal Starlinks for inflight wifi, Japan’s own version of the Appalachian Trail (and their interesting connection to the AT’s history), and more.
Hyatt Place Trials Cutting Free Breakfast In US
Hyatt Place is apparently testing out what happens when they cut free breakfast for all World of Hyatt members (something that’s not uncommon overseas). They’re starting with a test of just a few (~40) select Hyatt Place properties in the US. As Ben explains in the article, Hyatt has tried this kind of experiment before – back in 2018 – and this is what led to free breakfast being limited to World of Hyatt members. Check out Ben’s post for more thoughts on what this means in the context of Hyatt’s history with these kinds of trials.
Why Delta Passengers Are Bringing Their Own Starlink Onboard – But Finding It Can’t Beat Free WiFi
In last week’s Saturday Selection, I highlighted a useful review I’d come across of the new, Starlink Mini. It genuinely did not occur to me that anyone would think to bring their own Starlink devices on board a plane for wifi (!!!) but apparently people have indeed been trying to do this, mostly without success. The thing that gets in the way here, according to Gary and others referenced in the article, is that the Starlink plans typically limit you to speeds of 100mph or less or the service will cut off. Mostly I just find it hilarious that people have been attempting to travel with their Starlink satellites.
My 14 destinations on my round-the-world trip to get 1 million points
Since half of the Frequent Miler team is jetting around the world right now on their own missions to score 1 million SAS points, I think it’s fun to compare their journeys with other travel bloggers who didn’t limit themselves to ~2 weeks or a competitive budget to make things harder like we did for our Million Mile Madness challenge. Two destinations that stood out to me in Andrew’s itinerary is Petra and Bali. Neither destination has shown up for our travelers YET, and I would be surprised if either of them do since our travelers have all already transited through Jakarta without detouring to Bali, and have all transited through the Middle East as well. Andrew was also lucky enough to have organically checked off two destinations (and 2 qualifying SkyTeam airlines) through his organic travel plans. That meant his trip only needed 13 more airlines included.
How the Appalachian Trail Inspired One of Japan’s Greatest Long Hikes
Ever since I was young, the Appalachian Trail has been on my bucket list (or perhaps on my pipe-dream list). Every few years I’ll sort of mention the idea to Drew since we both love hiking-centric travel, but he grew up in Appalachia, has already seen many of the hikes that make up the AT or closely resemble it, and has therefore always felt the AT would be a little too close to home to feel like an adventure. This article caught my attention not only because it highlights a possible overseas alternative to my backpacking dream, but it also tells a fascinating history of the connections between the Appalachian Trail and Shinetsu Trail (and shed light on some of the Appalachian Trail history I didn’t know.) I had no idea for example that one of the prominent characters in the foundation of the Great Smoky Mountain National Park was a Japanese Immigrant – George Masa. It’s a lovely read for anyone interested in hiking.
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I love the idea of bringing more backpacking content to the points and miles hobby. Perhaps the next FM challenge could be credit card blazing the Colorado Trail? I know that the bookends in Durango and Denver have points hotels, and there is a Choice property bookable with points right off the trail in Copper Mountain. I don’t think the hot springs resorts are bookable on points, though. Just a thought…
As for your ambitions of the AT, it would be great too. I think the northern part of the trail changes in character (I can say that the New York sections look very different than the footage I’ve seen of the GSMNP).
I will second that I love the content and perspective Carrie brings. More Carrie posts!
My interests tend to be different than most in the points and miles hobby, leaning heavily toward wilderness experiences like hiking, camping, and rock climbing. I’ve spent years trying to figure out how the points and miles hobby can support my interests, and I have to say…it’s complicated.
The biggest conflict for me when it comes to using points and miles for wildness experiences is that most of the focus in the hobby is on luxury travel and luxury lodgings are not usually located where I want to be. And even if they are, the luxury experience is typically about things within the hotel or resort (e.g., restaurants, pools, spas) or on highly structured events outside, neither of which mesh with my interests.
I do get plenty of values in flights (always nice to arrive rested) and in usually mid-priced hotels on the way to and on the way back from where I am going. But I have to be careful about chasing points redemptions for lodging because the places I really want to stay are almost never bookable with points. I am a traveller first and a points and miles hobbyist second, and I want to keep it that way.
I would be fascinated to hear if Carrie has a take on this.
I wrote an article years ago for the trek about travel hacking the AT. People hated on it, oh well! This was actually before I’d qualified to get a credit card (no credit history at that point). Used miles and credits to get to and from the trail. I had a ton of points and credit from the Priceless Surprises IHG promo with the index cards.
I also wrote to a billion sponsors and got much of my trail food for free. Used regional rate boxes (RIP) for a shipping discount. Also got a trail sponsorship from a blog. All-in my hike cost about $600 out of pocket, 4.5 months.
Now that I’ve gotten plenty of cards it’s a lot easier- stay wherever I want, book it through something like booking.com if relevant for those smaller hostels or hotel points when relevant, use Aeroplan to PYB. Miles and/or amtrak to get to/from the trail. I’ve done this with a few trails now.
Y’all should check out tea house trekking in Nepal though, it’s incredible scenery and since you don’t have to schlep so much gear (stay in these little hostels and pass through towns with food every couple miles) it’s a lot more accessible for first timers. Plus plenty cheap. The Annapurna Circuit was my first “long” trail and I’d highly recommend it.
This all sounds pretty cool. While I’m still in my early 60’s and can carry loads I’m hoping to knock out some harder trips I’ve always wanted to do while I am still able. But when I get older the tea house trekking sounds marvelous. I’ve been keeping a list of some similar opportunities for future years, including hikes between mountain inns in Switzerland and via ferrata tours in the Dolomites.