txflyer77

I got that response a *lot* about flights in Southeast Asia during a recent trip there given the recent MH and AirAsia disasters.

I may or may not have lied about the parent company of Firefly just to avoid the conversation.

piper28

In fairness, while it might seem like a crazy response to the people here, for a large portion of the public it's probably not as stupid as it sounds. If you're not a frequent enough traveler, there's really little benefit to the frequent flier programs because you just aren't going to earn miles fast enough for it to be worth it. And given that there's some programs where the miles still expire, that makes it even that much less useful. Some people I know haven't been on a plane in years (not that I can completely blame them, when travelling as a family means 5 people, that can get pretty expensive pretty quick). Someone like that isn't really going to derive a lot of benefits from miles.

JMR1223

Got this one when those NBO discount fares were up around Thanksgiving last year. I get that it was all over the media, but some of the culprits were downright shocking.

Still getting this from hubby's extended family. We are considering a safari at some point in the future (maybe 8 months, maybe 3 years) and they are all floored that we would consider such a thing what with ebola. Smh...

Bear4Asian

Here's my favorite question: I haven't flown in years and landing scares me to death. Do you mind holding my hand while we land?

(From a sweet 70-80 year old lady. She was returning from a reunion with a bunch of women who in their youth we're show girls/dancers).

I held her hand and we both survived. One of my favorite landings.

Thunderroad

I wouldn't say this drives me nuts...in fact it's kind of funny and certainly not a bother...but it's a fairly common experience:

When infrequent travelers sometimes ask me how my wife and I go to all of these nice hotels and destinations on these nice F and J flights, I'll say it's on points and miles. Some then ask me to explain how it all works and how I do it. Almost invariably, within two minutes of my starting the explanation, their eyes glaze over.

Now, it could well be that I'm part of the problem here in terms of not explaining the miles/points game well. And there have been a couple of exceptions to this rule. But it's still kind of fun and funny that the general reaction is so reliably consistent.

State of Trance

I agree completely, the biggest investment is in the time it takes to sift through the various offers. I'm barely old enough to buy a drink in the US, yet I've already accumulated close to 250K miles from various CC bonuses. FT has taught me a ton about the CC game, since growing up my parents have always had a ridiculous amount of miles from frequent TATL/TPAC business travel and thus no need for playing with CCs.

I've definitely gotten my share of reactions from people when they find out how often I've traveled in long haul premium cabins, but it's always been on miles. J/F redemptions are an absolute steal in terms of the $/mile value you get out of them.

mikeef

Membership Rewards, the American Express point currency.

Mike

darthbimmer

I agree. Only a few of my relatives fly frequently enough to make bothering with FF programs worthwhile. Most fly less than one roundtrip a year. They'd never come close to earning status and their miles would generally expire long before accumulating to usable levels.

If you're giving even a two-minute explanation as a starter you're going too deep. The standard I use is "Explain it like you're writing it on the back of a postcard." That's usually the right level of detail for responding to a casual question. For a person asking out of politeness it's long enough to provide a little insight and short enough not to bore them. For someone who's genuinely curious it's a good start to a conversation.

carole_d

I made a lot of business trips to Malaysia and I can't believe how many times I was asked if it was safe. I usually responded with the story of the time my parents were at a five-star resort in the US and woke up to a SWAT team helicopter landing on the lawn. The guy they were looking for was found in the room of a friend of my dads, with a knife held at friend's throat. Malaysia seems pretty tame compared to that.

drewp123

I like this! ^

worldiswide

Went to Namibia last year and had t b e same questions, along with how did you know you wanted to go there

That is a common refrain..especially from Americans. Arent there enough places to see in the states. Actually travel isn't as exciting when you see a Starbucks on every corner. Makes you want to continue to find a more authentic experience.

Everyone has hobbies. This is mine ansdthe time and patience i put in provides value for me. Vaue is relative and you get what you pay for. Cheaper isnt better Some places are good for repeat times, some been there done that..


In probably a career limiting move, I once told a manager, not my immediate Mgr I had to decide whether to have a wonderful life or a wonderful job and I chose the former. We get six weeks a year and i take every day. I take it off peak so to speak, generally Nov or Feb through May so sometimes i think its more obvious that im gone, even though im always there in December and all summer when everyone else is gone. Why cant they see that as a good thing. I get lots of comments because I bring my lunch to work everyday because I don't want to waste money on cafeteria spend. We also never wanted to be house poor so we bought less than we could afford knowing where we wanted to spend. We used to say we didn't want to be too comfortable at home so we would want to be there too much. Last of our friends to buy a big flat screen TV. It's all a matter of priority.

Is it safe? Love that one.. what's the most dangerous thing you do everyday? Get in your car..like some othere have noted, spend a fair amount of time in Israel and people are freaked out that there must be dangers at every turn i hink of how many times I was in London with ira bombings and no one says dont go there, We only get to choose how we live.

China Clipper

Well.... UAL isn't helping with "BusinessFirst" class now!

FWIW, the person enquiring isn't from the USA and substantial CC sign-on bonuses are much rarer in Europe.

I simply direct them to one of the top few blogs on the topic. Each of them has a "Start Here" section for noobs. Saves me a lot of explaining, and if they're serious they'll figure it out.

User Name

Except for US-based folks. Possible to earn plenty enough miles without setting foot on a plane. Award availability for 5 on the same flight might be restrictive.

pinniped

Whenever a friend or family member asks me for advice, I generally steer them clear of the major-alliance carriers unless they have status.

UA, AA, and DL will actively make your life miserable as punishment for not having a basic low-tier status.

Non-alliance carriers might recognize their status holders in one way or another, but generally have a more egalitarian airport experience for all.

In the U.S., the obvious example is Southwest. As long as you know when to check in, your travel experience isn't that different from that of an A-lister. In an ironic twist, the *best* travel experience for a non-elite traveler might actually be Spirit's Big Front Seat. For TATL, I've recommended Aer Lingus to friends. I've also heard good things (from a non-elite perspective) about Iceland Air.

But I certainly advise people to accept whatever miles they're paying for with their ticket, and pay enough attention to them to keep the accounts active. Doesn't take much to reach a free cheap segment on WN. Even on a legacy, with a little participation with some partners, you can find yourself with a valuable one-way between the U.S. and Canada.

If I'm talking to someone into this game enough to churn credit cards, then no convincing is really needed.

go_around

When part of the flap mechanism partially detached on an RJ85 taking off from LCY last year, my mother insisted she saw on the news that "the wing fell off". I tried to explain that it might be difficult for a plane to continue flying if that happened but she insisted they said the wing fell off.

She's not even old either!