Most large airlines are members of an alliance which means you can earn and redeem miles for one airline on any of the other carriers in its group. Star Alliance, Skyteam and oneworld are the main alliance groups. My advice is to pick one in each and only earn on those three airlines. Every time you fly check which group you will be flying with and request to earn miles on your chosen airline. When you accrue enough miles for free travel, you can redeem with your choice or any of its partners.

For example, I choose American as my airline in the oneworld alliance. When I fly Lan, another oneworld member, I tell them I’d like to earn American miles. When I have enough miles for a free ticket, I can redeem them on American, Lan or any of the other oneworld carriers.

Here are the airlines included in each alliance:

Star Alliance:

Adria, Aegean, Air Canada, Air China, Air New Zealand, ANA, Asiana Airlines, Austrian, Blue1, BMI, Brussels Airlines, Croatia Airlines, Egyptair, Ethiopian Airlines, LOT Polish Airlines, Lufthansa, Scandinavian Airlines, Singapore Airlines, South African Airways, Spanair, Swiss, TAM, TAP Portugal, Thai, Turkish Airlines, United, US Airways

Skyteam:

Aeroflot, AeroMexico, Alitalia, Air France, KLM, China Airlines, China Eastern, China Southern, Delta, Korean Air, Czech Airlines, Air Europa, Kenya Airways, TAROM, Vietnam Airlines

oneworld:

American Airlines, British Airways, Lan, Qantas, Royal Jordanian, Finnair, Iberia, Malev, Mexicana, Japan Airlines, Cathay Pacific, S7 Airlines

On our recent trip to Europe, Will and I were fortunate enough to travel in Continental’s BusinessFirst cabin which was complete with their new flat bed seats. This was the first time we experienced a fully flat bed seat and it is so much nicer than the typical angled flat seats. I always slip down the angled seats and they usually leave me with sore knees, but being fully flat actually allows you to sleep comfortably. Currently, all of Continental’s 777s and 757-200s are fitted with the new seats and they will roll them out on their 767-400ERs next year. In addition, all of their new 787s will be built with fully flat seats. I might have to fly Continental more often!

Continental Flat Bed Seats

Next time you stay at a Westin hotel, you may be able to rent workout clothes and New Balance shoes. The program is currently being tested in 10 properties and it’s been so successful that there are plans to roll it out to more locations over the next few months. I’m not sure the germaphobe in me could do this, but it’s an interesting offering. Of course, the clothes are washed after each use and the sneakers come with brand new socks and disposable insoles.

Westin Workout

Last year I added pages to a passport. I just mailed it in and got it back a few weeks later free of charge. Unfortunately, when Will added pages this month, we found out the state is now charging $82 for the service…as much as a brand new passport!! This is crazy to me!! There’s no new printing involved…all they do is tape the extra pages in. I could understand if they charged a small fee, but this seems excessive. If you are a frequent traveler, you can actually request extra pages when you get a new passport for no extra charge. I wish I had done that when I renewed my passport earlier this year, but I didn’t know they were going to start charging to add pages later. I guess the moral is, if there is any chance you might need extra pages, get the bigger passport.

Even though Will and I are not big cruise people, I always wanted to take a trip on one of Cunard’s Queen ships. They seemed so romantic and elegant, the way transatlantic crossings used to be. The Queen Mary 2 typically sails between New York and Southampton, England but occasionally she makes longer or shorter trips. When I heard about the 4th of July cruise, out of New York with stops in Halifax and Boston, I thought it would be the perfect way for us to check out the majestic vessel.

Date: July 2011

Embarking/Disembarking: The QM2 usually sails out of Brooklyn, NY but our special cruise left from the Manhattan port. The pier was crowded and disorganized as there was a Carnival ship boarding at the same time. It took hours to get checked in and we couldn’t find the bag drop so we were stuck dragging our suitcases around. Once we got on the ship, the elevators were messed up and it took quite a long time to get to our room. Disembarking was much easier when we returned. We chose to carry our own bags so we could get right off the ship when it docked. We just listened for an announcement and were off in minutes.

Cabins: Cunard ships are broken up into three classes. First and second class are, in order, the Queens Grill and the Princess Grill. Guests in these classes have suites, separate restaurants and separate decks to lounge on. Everyone else is in the Britannia Class which eats in the two-story Britannia dining room and has access to all the common areas. The Britannia rooms range from tiny, inside staterooms to larger, balcony staterooms. Some of the balconies are in-hull, which means they are enclosed like a sitting room, while others are outdoor. Apparently the in-hull rooms are ideal during a windy, rainy crossing but, since we were just going up the coast of New England, we booked an open balcony room. The room was a bit worn, but spacious and we loved being able to sit outside, especially on the 4th of July when fireworks were going off in every direction. The beds are pretty comfortable although the pillows are flat and horrible. The bathrooms were also spacious for a cruise ship and the shower pressure and temperature was excellent. We were on Deck 8 at the very front of the ship and it was smooth and peaceful, but we could hear our neighbors on their balconies if we were outside at the same time. If someone is out chatting or playing music, you definitely couldn’t do any quiet reading.

The Ship: As I’d imagined, the Queen Mary 2 is very elegant. The common areas are beautiful from the gorgeous grand lobby with its glass elevator, to the stunning Queens Room, the largest ballroom at sea. There is no shortage of things to do and places to explore and because the ship is so large, it never feels crowded. There’s a nice little art gallery, a big fitness center, a spa, a planetarium (tickets are available every morning on a first come, first served basis), many shops and several bars and clubs where you can have a nice drink and just enjoy the ride. There are nightly shows, mostly dancers, which were pretty good and there is a casino with 115 slot machines and 11 gaming tables. Of course, there are also pools and plenty of lounge chairs to relax in outside if the weather permits.

Meals: There are three meals a day served in the dining rooms. In the Queens and Princess Grill Dining Rooms, you can show up within an allotted time frame for your meals or have them served in your suite. In the Britannia, you can do the same for breakfast and lunch, but you are assigned a table at a specific seating time for dinner. There are three courses with several options every night for each. There are vegetarian selections, but there is also a separate vegetarian menu that you can order from in advance, the night before as long as you let them know of your dietary restrictions ahead of time. The quality of the meals varied widely. Some nights they were good and some nights not so much. In my opinion, the food was not gourmet, it was often very heavy and sometimes tasteless. Food is also available, buffet style, in the King’s Court. I didn’t like the food there at all. Afternoon tea is served every day in the Queens Room and this was my favorite eating experience on the ship. White gloved waiters served us cups of tea with sandwiches, tasty little cakes and scones with clotted cream. There is also a Todd English restaurant and special themed dining experiences which you can reserve tables at for an additional fee. We didn’t try any of these so I can’t review them.

NOTE: Although the dress code on the ship is relaxed during the day, there are strict dress codes for eating dinner in the dining rooms. They are formal, semi-formal or elegant, but you are expected to dress for dinner every night and the dress code is enforced. You are never going to see jeans or sneakers at night in any of the dining rooms. If you don’t want to dress up, you have to go to the buffet or order food to your room.

Ports of Call: Our cruise had stops in Halifax, Canada and Boston, MA. Although there were excursions offered for an additional fee we opted to explore the cities on our own. In Halifax, it was an easy walk over to the Citadel, an old, British military fort on a hill. There were actors dressed as soldiers that put on a demonstration with an old cannon. You can take a guided tour or just walk around the stone fortress on your own. From the top, you have an excellent view of the town. We also visited the pretty Public Gardens and the many shops around the cruise port. As I’m from Boston, we had been there many times and seen all the sights. We walked from the ship to the Institute of Contemporary Art and made a stop at Mike’s Pastry in the North End to pick up some amazing cannolis and a lobster tail before reboarding the ship. We didn’t have a great view of the Pops fireworks from the ship, but we could see them.

Overall Impression: While sailing on the QM2 wasn’t exactly luxurious, it was definitely nicer than the average cruise. It was a bit overpriced, but had we not travelled over a holiday, I think I would have found the fares more reasonable. I wouldn’t recommend it for children because it is expensive and not really setup for kids but, for a couple or group of adults, it’s a nice trip.

Grade: B

For more pictures, please visit my Photo Gallery or click on any of the photos posted above.

Queen Mary 2 Official Site

One of the most common questions I get asked is “Where else can I visit when I visit city X?” In other words, where can I take a day trip? As a general rule, I don’t think you should even consider a day trip until you plan out your days in your destination city and are sure you will have sufficient time there. Once that’s established, here are some simple tips to help plan a day trip:

-Keep travel time down to an hour or less each way. Once you start going over that, you are spending most of the day travelling and it’s rarely worth it unless you can spend the night. I say rarely because of course there are exceptions!

-Figure out what you hope to see. Do you want to visit one particular sight or a whole region? Think about this, and be realistic, when you plan out your day.

-Decide if you need a guide. If the transportation situation is simple, you are probably all set but, if it’s complicated and involves many stops or a drive through an unfamiliar area, you might want to look into day trips offered by local tour companies. Sometimes it pays to go with an expert!

I have a friend who is a fellow National Park lover and every year, he and I keep track of all the people who get killed in the parks. We are always struck by how careless people can be, especially around wild animals. I read these tips today in The Week magazine on how to survive a bear encounter and thought it might be helpful to those of you visiting a place with wildlife:

-Be Noisy and Travel in Groups

-Stand Tall and Don’t Run

-Protect Your Face

-Always Carry Bear Spray

As someone with some experience in this subject, my best advice is to be aware of your surroundings, obey all signs and don’t do anything stupid. If something seems dangerous, it probably is. Follow your instincts. When it comes to things like this….you don’t often get a second chance.

I was dreading having to renew my passport this year, so I was really excited to learn that the process is quite simple now and can be done by mail! You can use Form DS-82 to renew by mail if you currently have an undamaged passport that is less than 15 years old, was issued to you when you were 16 or older and you have the same name or documentation to support a name change. Just send the form in with your old passport, a passport photo (available at any CVS for $9.99) and a check for applicable fees. I did the expedited service and got my new passport in just 10 days. My old one was returned about a week later.

Remember that all new passports have an RFID chip embedded in them which holds all your personal data, so it’s wise to buy an RFID blocking case to protect your information.

I love American Express but it’s upsetting that they are about to lose another great partner, Continental Airlines. It’s not a total shock since Continental left the Skyteam alliance but it’s still a blow to those that collect points for free tickets as it leaves us with one less option. September 30, 2011 will be the last day you can transfer Membership Rewards points into your OnePass account, so plan accordingly.

If you collect American Airlines AAdvantage miles, you can grab some quickly with their Mystery Miles promotion on Facebook. Just visit this page, type in your AA number and LIKE American Airlines on Facebook. You’ll earn 100 – 100,000 miles for your trouble which will post to your account in 3-5 days.