Originally Posted by
Goodmorning2U
Agreed. The return on investment in purchasing a business class airfare has eluded me, perhaps especially comparing the experiences. If I have to choose between a four night stay at the George V (around 5k) or an 8 hour overnight flight to Paris (around 5k), I will always choose the extra four nights at a spectacular hotel.
Originally Posted by
Dieuwer
I don't really have a travel budget, but tend to plan several trip per year. Some of them are opportunistic. For instance, I might want to visit three different places in September. I start checking airfare 6~ 10 months out until a deal pops up. Then I will visit that destination that is "on sale".
To give you an idea for my travels since November last year: I was in Lisbon flying BA J over Thanksgiving, in Puerto Vallarta for New Years, and in Buenos Aires flying AC J two weeks ago.
In June I will fly DL J to AMS, fly DL J to Rio in September and fly a combination of DL J, KL J, and EK F to and from Cape Town for New Years.
[QUOTE=luxtrvlwrks;24739546]Travel is the largest category of spend in our household budget. I drink drip coffee from the grocery store (the horror!), but I will not scrimp or compromise when it comes to travel.
I take around 8-10 trips per year. The trip starts at the airport so F/J tickets are a must. Besides, I need to experience those cabins for client research
I do use points and miles where prudent for air, but it seems to rarely work out so I tend to be more of a hoarder. I rarely use hotel points. Generally only when a stay at something like a Courtyard or Homewood Suites is required and the rates seem egregious.
For me, the luxury is in the experience.
As a general rule, I want to stay in the best hotel (for me) in any given location. [/QUOTE
I find this thread fascinating and thanks to everyone for sharing their perspectives. I have to state upfront that I'm not a luxury hotel connoisseur at all, and read these threads to see if I am missing something rom my travels, and what I can learn. Value, choice and return on investment are very personal calculations with no single right answer. Travel is the largest category of discretionary expense in our house hold, but we don't put a dollar figure and use some of the strategies quoted above. Off season bookings, routings that provide a short stopover a combination of paid and award tickets, and paid and hotel nights We have earned and burned millions of miles and don't regret one redemption. We travel 5 to 6 weeks a year. In November last year,Namibia South Africa, and a weekend in London on the way home, February Australia, Shanghai, and Bangkok. just returned from Berlin this week, and a planning something in Asia for the fal, with a return to Oceania next February with a stop in Dubai on the way home We like to mix an expensive trip like Africa with a more reasonable one to Asia, and even Europe right now, to get the most out our travel dollar. We are not resort people and am not big on vacation being downtime, so that may be why luxury hotels have not been top of the spend category for us. I'm also torn as to whether as we get closer to retirement, we will want more of the services provided by top hotels, and see the value in it especially for providing insider experiences or want to stretch our dollar even further when we have more time. Thanks for all your insights as I keep integrating and learning.