A guide for where you can travel abroad and when, economic theory applied to miles & points, all the ways to save on iTunes gift cards (get them while you can and now use them towards hardware), and more interesting reads form the ‘net in our Week in Review Around the web.Pick up
When Will International Travel Reopen? A Country-by-Country Guide
Those itching to know when and where they can travel abroad may want to bookmark this reference page from Thrifty Traveler, which aims to keep an updated list of the restrictions and requirements for countries around the world in terms of when they will allow foreign visitors and what requirements they’ll need to meet.
IHG Defaulting On Payments – May Lose 103 Hotels In North America
This looks like bad news. There are a number of properties tied up in a situation that has IHG behind on payments. Apparently, if IHG doesn’t pay up soon, it could lose affiliations with some properties. I imagine that something will likely get worked out here, but as the pandemic continues onward, these types of stories are unfortunately likely to continue. Hopefully we get on the other side of this before hotels start losing properties.
Hotel Review: Residence Inn Cincinnati North/West Chester, Ohio
Stephen wrote this very comprehensive hotel review at No Home Just Roam, but I thought it was worth including here to highlight the sections on housekeeping and COVID-related service shortcomings (you’ll have to scroll down a good bit to find these sections). This is the type of stuff that has me content to stay at home for now. I know that mathematically I’ll probably be OK on a trip / in a hotel, but it won’t be quite the enjoyable getaway I’m used to yet.
10+ Ways To Buy Discounted iTunes Gift Cards
I’m including a second post written by Stephen in today’s around-the-web, though in this case at his site GC Galore. Given that iTunes Gift Cards can now be used to buy iPhones, iPads, and other Apple hardware, it might make sense to take a look at opportunities to get these cards at a discount while you can. These opportunities are sure to dry up sooner rather than later, so keep your eye out for the best ones on the list.
What Can Economic Theory Teach Us About Miles & Points?
This enjoyable read from Canadian blog Prince of Travel compares economics concepts to the miles & points world in ways that likely won’t come as a surprise but are nonetheless packaged and explained well here. Perhaps my favorite quote was in the section on optimization and our collective drive towards optimization in the miles & points community: “We’ll chat up the front desk associates at the hotel or spend hours on the phone hanging up and calling again, just to secure the most optimal outcome over the range of all possible outcomes.” How true it is.
That’s it for this week around the web. Check back soon for this week’s last chance deals.
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