In 2017 I qualified for American Airlines AAdvantage Executive Platinum for the first time in my life. I’ve come close in years past, but was never able to cross the finish line. In fact, the only reason I qualified last year is thanks to an insane Qatar Airways mileage run in which I covered 61,000…
While most people spend Black Friday searching for a new TV or appliance, I spend the day searching for airfare. You’d be amazed by some of the fares you’ll find toward the end of the year. Black Friday 2017 wasn’t particularly exciting, but one fare stuck out. Specifically, Cathay Pacific was offering up to 60%…
After two incredible visits to both Cathay Pacific First Class lounges in Hong Kong (The Wing & The Pier) it was finally time to board my flight back to the United States. Although I needed to get back to Chicago, I decided to book a flight home via Los Angeles. I booked through LA because…
After visiting Cathay Pacific’s The Pier First Class Lounge, it was time for the long walk back to my departure gate for my flight back to the United States. However, before I boarded my flight I wanted to visit one last lounge as part of my HKG Over MLK weekend. For my last lounge visit…
After an incredible night’s stay at the Ritz-Carlton Hong Kong I needed to switch hotels. While I loved the Ritz-Carlton I simply couldn’t afford spending two nights on the property. I paid 70,000 Marriott points for a single night stay and cash rates were in excess of $500/night. Instead of burning even more Marriott Rewards…
When I planned my HKG over MLK weekend I booked flights which allowed for a two night stay in Hong Kong. Having never been to Hong Kong I wasn’t exactly sure where to stay. I searched for hotels for a few days trying to figure out the perfect place to book. With each search I…
After the nearly 15 hour Cathay Pacific Premium Economy flight from Chicago I had finally arrived in Hong Kong. I arrived just before 8PM local time. During my short stay in Hong Kong I remained on Chicago time so my body thought it was closer to 6AM. Since I slept for about 8 hours in…
During Cathay Pacific’s Black Friday sale the airline offered 60% off round trip fares. During that sale I was able to purchase a round trip Premium Economy from the United States to Hong Kong for just $1,100. By comparison that same flight today is approximately $2,200. I understand $1,100 is still a lot of money…
As a Chicago based traveler I oddly enough I haven’t spent much time in Chicago O’Hare’s Terminal 5. That’s because only international flights on international carriers depart from this terminal. International flights on all US airlines and some international carriers on the other hand depart from the main concourse. Luckily, the start my HKG over…
On Black Friday 2017 I booked a trip to Hong Kong on Cathay Pacific. The trip I booked was in Premium Economy on Cathay Pacific from Chicago to Hong Kong to Los Angeles and then back to Chicago on American. Typically Premium Economy fares on Cathay cost upwards of $2,000, but I was able…
