Which Airline Should You Travel On Right Now

 

Some of us are staying put, but after 7 months in our homes, lots of us are ready to travel or need to travel to take care of loved ones or to bring loved ones home. So the question is which airline should you fly right now?

Since it changes day by day, I will share my experience flying recently on two different airlines and I'll run through the policies at the other airlines. 

Recently, I flew on Southwest Airlines and American Airlines. My daughter flew on Delta Airlines so I'll run through those experiences first. 

Southwest Airlines is not selling the middle seat through November 30th so that's a huge plus. Since you get to choose your own seat on Southwest, they are boarding the plane just 10 people at a time and making sure passengers know that there is enough room for everyone to have an aisle or window seat. That extra space just made me feel safer and lowered my stress level. Seats in the waiting area were also marked off so people could socially distance. 

On board, the flight attendants handed out a glass of water and a packaged snack. I thought the glass of water was a bit strange, I would rather have had a sealed bottle, but I bring my own water anyway so it wasn't an issue. The airplane felt and looked clean though I bring natural sanitizing wipes to clean my space. Check out my post about some places you want to clean that you wouldn't think about. 

Some people have said they are concerned about direct flights and most flights on Southwest are not direct. I changed planes at Baltimore Washington International and it was pretty empty. 

Another flight I took recently was on American Airlines. Totally different experience. The flight was packed, in fact, as we were boarding, the flight attendants alerted us that every seat would be filled. Argh. 

The flight attendants handed us a bottle of water and snack as we boarded. Once onboard, the plane felt very cramped and small. For me personally, the flight attendants seemed to invade my personal space several times. When we changed planes in Charlotte, North Carolina, the airport was jam-packed with people. Once we exited the American terminal, the crowd dispersed, but yikes. I wish American would think of staggering arrival times and gates. 

My daughter flew Delta Airlines and said it was great. She had a whole row to herself on all the flights. They handed her a snack bag with water and a few packaged goods as she boarded. 

At this point, all airlines require masks on board. If you forget, they some at the gate. The masks must be real masks (no holes, no bandanas, no filters). Right now, Alaska, Hawaiian, Jet Blue, Delta and Southwest are the only airlines blocking the middle seats. 

The bottom line is fly if you feel comfortable. There have been very few reports if any of flight attendants or passengers getting sick. 

Chase Adds New Grocery Benefits Through 2021

 

One of the best ways to earn FREE travel is to use the right credit card on your everyday purchases like groceries. We all buy them so why not maximize the purchase by getting cash back, points or miles?

Chase just helped you with that by announcing today that they are adding a temporary bonus category to the Chase Sapphire Reserve and Preferred credit cards. 

From November 1st through April 30, 2021, Sapphire Reserve card holders will earn 3x points on groceries and Preferred card holders will earn 2x points up to $1,000 per month. 

It's a nice offer, however, if you apply for a FREEDOM FLEX card, you earn 5x points on groceries for the first year up to $12,000. Better deal! Right now, if you spend $500 on the card, you get a $200 bonus. 

The Chase Sapphire Reserve and Preferred also offer the pay yourself back program which you can use to essentially erase home improvement, dining, and grocery purchases at 1.5x points and 1.25x points. 

Now the real sweet spot is if you have the Chase Sapphire Reserve and the FREEDOM Flex card. You can use your Flex card to buy the groceries at 5x points and then transfer the points to your Sapphire Reserve and cash them using the pay yourself back tool at 1.5 points. So you are essentially earning 7.5 points per dollar. 

Chase is also extending the $300 credit for Sapphire Reserve card holders to use towards travel, gas and groceries through June 2021. This credit makes the annual fee of $550 a little bit easier to manage. 

If you spend just a bit of time using the right card to make those everyday purchases, your points, miles or cashback can really add up and help the bottom line. 

What is it like to stay in a hotel right now

 

In the past few months, I have stayed at four different hotels across the country. First, I must tell you that I felt safe at all of them and have not gotten sick. The hotels that I stayed in were three Marriott brands and one Best Western. Some of them I paid for and some I used points and FREE night certificates or a combination. All of them have changed their policies and practices due to Covid. I'll run down some of the changes I saw and how it impacted my travels. 

The first hotel I stayed at was the Courtyard Marriott in Durham, North Carolina. The room appeared clean though I sanitized it myself with a natural disinfectant upon my arrival. There was no daily housekeeping service which was fine with me since I never have my room cleaned in order to be more green. Courtyard Marriotts do not normally include breakfast and to be honest, that's one of the main reasons I don't usually stay there. But this time, the rate was so reasonable and I wasn't sure what hotels that normally include breakfast were doing so I went for it. The cafe in the lobby was also closed, but the front desk was very happy to give me hot water every morning for my french press and they had FREE creamer available. I stopped at a grocery store and bought some fruit and muffins and I was set.  

The pool and fitness rooms were also closed. The lobby had a few tables available, but I hardly saw anyone there. I had a refrigerator in my room and a coffee maker. Only one person was allowed in the elevator at a time. To be honest, it felt like I was the only one in this hotel.

The second hotel I stayed in was the Best Western Plus Bryce Canyon Grand Hotel near the entrance gate of Bryce National Park. This hotel was a lot busier. I often had to wait for the elevator. Even though there were no signs, guests were careful to allow just one or two people into the elevator at a time. Again, the room appeared clean though I sanitized it completely with a natural disinfectant upon arrival. There was also no daily cleaning service. The room had a refrigerator, microwave, and coffee maker. Now, this hotel comes with a daily hot breakfast so I was very curious to see how they would do it. Turns out, they had a full buffet behind plexiglass with servers putting food into take away containers. Picture Chipotle or Subway type line. There were a few tables nearby and most were full. I took my breakfast up to the room. The pool was open at this hotel and though we didn't use it, it seemed to be getting a lot of use. 

The third hotel was the Fairfield Inn and Suites Marriott by Virgin Zion National Park.  Same check-in procedure, front desk clerks were behind plexiglass and wore masks. I cleaned my room with a natural disinfectant. No daily housekeeping. The room included a microwave, refrigerator, and coffee maker. Signs posted at the elevator clearly advising only two people allowed in the elevator at a time. This hotel also included breakfast, but this time it was a takeaway bag with fruit, granola bar, and choice of cereal, bagel, English muffin, or oatmeal. There was a toaster available for customer use and the clerk was handing out cream cheese, jam, and butter upon request. Coffee was also available. The pool and hot tub were open at this hotel and I felt totally fine using them. Though the parking lot was full, the pool was empty. 

The fourth hotel was the Springhill Inn and Suites Durham Chapel Hill . Same check-in procedure as all the others. Again no daily housekeeping and the room came with a refrigerator, coffee maker, and microwave. Signs posted at the elevator reminding guests that only two people allowed in the elevator at a time. Breakfast was a takeaway bag again, but this time it included a fruit, orange juice, muffin, granola bar, and two hard-boiled eggs. By the end of our stay, I had almost a dozen eggs so I picked up bread and mayo and we had a picnic in the park with egg salad sandwiches, yum! The pool and fitness rooms were closed at this hotel. 

So bottom line, most of the hotels are doing what they can and I felt totally fine staying in all of them. I brought my own disinfectant, hand sanitizer, and wipes, washed my hands, wore my mask, and had a great time. 

How To Earn The Most Points/Miles On Amazon Prime Day

 

If you are an Amazon Prime member, then get ready for Amazon Prime Days October 13-14. The days were delayed this year due to Covid. But look for some amazing deals over the next two days. 

So the question is how can you stack deals to get the most points/miles with your purchases? Amazon is not listed on any of the shopping portals. But you do have some options:

• buy gift cards at office supply stores with your Chase Ink card and earn 5x points
• buy gift cards at Walmart with your Chase Freedom or Flex card and earn 5x points since it's a rotating category for Q4. 
• If you have an Amazon Prime credit card, you will receive 20% back instead of the usual 5% if you use it when you make purchases on Amazon. 
• If you have the Discover It Cash Back card, you earn 5% cash back on all Amazon.com purchases for Q4
• buy gift cards at the grocery store if you have the Chase Flex credit card since you earn 5x points on groceries for the first year up to $12,000. 

So there are a lot of ways to max out points on Amazon purchases if you think ahead and think strategically. 

How Can You Get FREE Delivery From GrubHub

 

Lyft and Grubhub just announced a new partnership that will add FREE Grubhub+ and Seamless+ benefits to Lyft Pink, the company's subscription service. 

Awesome, but why do you care?

Well, back in February, Chase added a one-year FREE Lyft Pink subscription as a benefit to the Sapphire Reserve credit card. The Sapphire Reserve is one of my favorite point earning credit cards. It earns Chase Ultimate Reward points which are super flexible and transferable to dozens of airlines and a few hotels. Right now, you can also use them to pay yourself back for purchases on dining and groceries. It does carry a large annual fee $550, but you get a $300 credit for travel. Right now, the travel credit is also applied to groceries. And FREE Doordash Dashpass membership. 

Essentially, Sapphire Reserve card holders now get FREE delivery from two of the largest food delivery services. 

So what does Lyft Pink get you? It gets you a 15% discount on Lyft rides, priority airport pickup, and 3 FREE scooter and bike rides each month. And now, FREE Grubhub delivery. 

You must activate this benefit by March 2022. Enroll in Grubhub+ through the Lyft app. 

How you can attend the Travel Summit 2020 for FREE

 

Want to know the 11 trends in family travel? Want to know what cruising will look like when it comes back? Want to know how to plan the ultimate road trip? I know a lot of us are itching to get traveling again.

AlmostFREEfamilytravel.com partners with national blogger, gototravelgal.com, and she is hosting a FREE Travel Summit this Wednesday and Thursday.

I'm moderating a few of the sessions so you can hang out with me. OR you can attend more than two dozen others with some well-known travel writers and celebrity travel hosts. It's FREE for my followers so check it out and plan to attend. #almostfreefamilytravel

https://www.facebook.com/GotoTravelGal/posts/1649950921836813

How To Visit Zion National Park on Points

 

Zion National Park is stunning! So how do you make it affordable and easy? That's what I'm going to share with you. Zion National Park is located about 2-3 hours northeast of Las Vegas. It's an easy, but sparse drive so pack food and gas. It's well-marked with wide highways. Once you reach the small town of St. George, Utah, you are nearly there. 

If you plan to visit Bryce National Park too, I highly recommend going there first because if you enter Zion through the east gate, you will be in for a treat.

From the east gate, you enter a long and very dark tunnel that opens up into a spectacular view of the canyon. There is a viewpoint where you can stop and take photos like the one above. Drive 5 miles more and you will exit the west gate into the small town of Springdale. In Springdale, you can find dozens of hotels from all the major chains, independent hotels, and smaller bed and breakfasts. 

Most of the hotels are pretty pricey, but here's a major tip, there is a Marriott Fairfield Inn and Suites located about 11 miles west of Springdale where you can get a room for $100 per night. The points for this hotel were listed at 50,000 per night so I opted to pay cash. It's a new hotel about 1.5 years old, in fact, half the hotel wasn't even open yet. The pool is big and includes a hot tub and kiddie pool. Both were open. Now there is nothing and I mean nothing near this hotel so be sure you eat in Springdale. 

There are lots of dining options in Springdale, however, they all stop takeout at 6pm. A friend recommended Whiptail and we ate there both nights. It is Mexican food and quite good with lots of vegetarian options. 

If you want to explore the Narrows or any of the other hikes inside the National Park, you will need to board the shuttle. To get to the shuttle, you will need to drive in the west gate of the park, definitely have your National Park annual pass handy. There is plenty of parking available at the visitor center where the shuttle picks up. 

Here's a tip, if you buy a shuttle ticket in advance, you can cut the line. The day we went on the shuttle, the ticket line was long! Tickets cost $1 so it's really a no-brainer. You can buy the tickets two weeks in advance OR the day before starting at 9am. 

The shuttle makes stops at all the popular hiking spots including the lodge so you can plan your day. We headed straight to the Narrows. It's about a .5 mile walk from the shuttle bus to the start of the Narrows. You should bring along water shoes and there are benches at the start where you change. Hikers also leave walking sticks here that you can borrow. You will get wet! It just depends on how high the water is, but that's part of the fun. 

Look for lots of wildlife including mule deer and California condors and enjoy! 

If you need points for this trip, consider applying for the Chase Sapphire Preferred credit card which is offering an 80,000 point bonus right now or the Marriott Bonvoy family of cards which are offering 50-100 thousand points right now or FREE nights depending on which one you choose.