My Favorite Trips Of 2014

I’m not a trip report guy. Not usually a fan of ’em. But I did do less hoarding this year, so here’s my moment to remember some trips. As usual, the ol’ schedule was crazy, so long weekend domestic travel continues to be the name of the game. As the year comes to a close, here were my Top 10 favorite domestic trips of the year (in order):

  1. Maui –  It was great to discover Kauai, but it was a strangely emotional experience leaving Maui. What can I say? That damn island is my absolute favorite place on the planet. Flying there and staying at the Andaz for free is enough to make anyone feel grateful. And, in Maui, I am so very grateful.
  2. New Orleans – That Maui trip was my 3rd time there. The week in New Orleans was my first. And, man, what a city! There are a couple things I believe to be true about “The Big Easy.” First, it’s the most special city in America. Why? Because if it went away, there’s nothing to replace it with. Second, there is no better food anywhere. Honestly, I don’t know how it’s possible to live there and be in shape. I would happily move to New Orleans. And would soon become a jolly fat guy.
  3. Lake Tahoe – My second time there. I love North Tahoe and like the Hyatt. Never visited in the snow, but really enjoy the “warmer season.” Great hikes, clean air, and the friendliest people in America. This section of Nevada should teach kindness classes to the rest of the country. If you live in any of these first 3 cities, I’m crazy jealous right now.
  4. Park City – Never, ever thought I’d be a fan of Utah. Well, I was wrong. This is one adorable little town. Again, I was there for the warmer off-season. My favorite meal of the year was in Maui at Morimoto’s sushi restaurant. Number 2 was Green Goddess in New Orleans (poached eggs, wild mushroom gravy, grits, sweet potato biscuits, etc). Number 3 was here in Park City at Goldener Hirsch (schnitzel with panna cotta for dessert). Ok, I need some food. Like right now.
  5. Encinitas – San Diego has never been my favorite place. But the beach towns outside of the city (Encinitas, Carlsbad, Cardiff) are incredible. Luckily, this is road trip distance for me, so I plan to do a lot more exploration.
  6. Dana Point – I was here for just one night. Wow, you rich Orange County people sure know how to live. Add some zeroes to my bank account and I’d love to join the fun.
  7. Morgantown – Like all Indian men out there, I was raised in West Virginia. Ok, that might not be true. Anyway, I do love my hometown. Went to my 20th high school reunion in 2014 and got another reminder. I was very lucky to grow up with a great group of people.
  8. Charlotte – This wasn’t my favorite city (no offense to Charlotte readers) but it was a very special group. I spent the weekend with some very close friends and we tore this boring city up. Ok, that was meanish.
  9. Scottsdale/Phoenix – Again, this  was an incredible group of friends in a pretty bland town. These last two are all about the company…not much to be said about the locations.
  10. Las Vegas – Well, someone’s gotta come in last. The good news? I love to gamble. Wait, that might be the bad news. Anyway, the strip isn’t really my scene. Positives? It’s a fun city for a weekend. I loved hanging out in sportsbooks and enjoyed discovering the lake this year…just not sure how much of a Vegas guy I am.

What a year of travel…these American discoveries were made possible by the magic of miles and points!

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Starwood And American Express

  • Get 500 Starwood points for booking a stay through their app with an Amex card.
  • You can get the bonus 3 times, so this is 1,500 points for many of you.
  • Don’t forget your 5,000 points for referring a friend to the Starwood credit card (also available for a bunch of other Amex cards). Look in your account for the offer if you delete these emails.
  • No friends? No cards? No stays? Well, you can still smile. Another 4 days left to grab 500 Starwood points by updating your stay preferences. Just log in at spg.com, click on “My Profile,” then “My Stay Preferences.”

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Reduced Mileage Awards

American’s reduced mileage awards are back. Thanks to reader Joe for the alert. As always, these are a great way to get more bang for your mileage buck.

Edit: Also, grab your $100 off a 2-night hotel stay from Orbitz here.

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Another Look At Silvercar

I like quirky. That’s probably why Silvercar is getting my attention lately. They’re handing out gifts to everyone who starts a reservation between now and Christmas day. Yup, gifts. And, if you refer a friend, you’ll each get $100 through the end of the year. Thanks to reader Brian for reminding me of these guys.

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100,000 Amex Points For Platinum

As you know, I’m not a fan of most people who blog about miles and points. It’s a shady group of weirdos who I try to avoid as much as possible. Because you guys send me great deals every day, I don’t need to spend much time at all reading other blogs. Well, a few of you have sent links to this Doctor Of Credit guy lately and I really, really like his stuff. I’m going to add him right now to my tiny sidebar list of bloggers I like. Here’s his really good post about getting 100,000 points for the American Express Platinum card.

Also, 2014 is quickly coming to a close. Doing this MileNerd thing 5 days a week isn’t exactly “hard,” but I do like to recharge after a full year of “work.” I’ll probably do another couple weeks of posts before taking a little break through January 1st. If you have anything you want me to cover before then, please just let me know.

 

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