Introduction:
In February 2019, I will be getting married in Seoul, South Korea – while my wife was busy organizing the wedding, I was focused on planning the honeymoon. My wife was never a huge fan of travel and this is her first time that she will get to enjoy the world of First/Business Class flights and suite upgrades (hopefully).
Table of Content:Airline Route:- Mrs. LDNConsultant: February 03, 2019 KE 86 (JFK to ICN) on B747-8I First – Seat 1A [80,000 Korean Airline SkyPass Miles + $144.80]
- LDNConsultant: February 11, 2019 LH 403 (EWR to FRA) on B747-8I First - Seat 2K and February 12, 2019 LH 712 (FRA to ICN) on 747-400 Business - Seat 10K [120,000 United Miles + $35]
- Both: February 24, 2019 TG 655 (ICN to BKK) on B777-300 Business – Seat 15A and 15B [2 x 40,000 United Airlines mileage Plus Miles + $5.60]
- Both: February 26, 2019 PG 961 (BKK to USM) on A319 Economy Seat – Seat 9D and 9E [Cash Booking]
- Both: March 01, 2019 HX 3751 (operated by Bangkok Air) (USM to HKG) on A319 Economy – Seat 10D and 10E [Cash Booking]
- Both: March 04, 2019 CX 745 (HKG to DXB) on A330-300 on Business – Seat 20K and 21K [2 x 40,000 AA Advantage Miles + $45.30]
- Both: March 06, 2019 EY 101 (AUH to JFK) on A380-800 on First – Seat 1H and 2H [2 x 110,000 AA Advantage Miles + $49.31]
Hotels:
I’m a huge fan of SPG (I guess now Marriott) and I’ve returning to my personal favorites for this trip:
- Bangkok: I’m staying at the The Athénée Hotel, a Luxury Collection Hotel in Bangkok. I’m a huge fan of the W Brand but my wife despises it due to the dark/loud atmosphere. The hotel is currently a Category 4 hotel – 2 nights cost 50,000 Points
- Koh Samui: The island of Koh Samui has been on my list for several years but I’m fortunate enough to go here on my honeymoon and I’ve decided to book Vana Belle, a Luxury Collection Hotel. The recent merger allowed SPG/Marriott members to book this hotel via points, but since this was the most important part of the honeymoon – we decide to book one of the villa (Tropical Pool) via cash (using my corporate rate).
- Hong Kong: Returning to my all time favorite hotel W Hong Kong. The hotel is currently a Category 7 hotel – 2 nights cost 120,000 points
- Dubai: I’ve stayed at the W and St Regis Dubai on my previous business trips. However, with the recent reshuffling of SPG/Marriot properties in Dubai – the choices have slightly diminished. For our 2 nights 3 days stay in Dubai, Mrs. LDNConsultant decided to make an executive decision and split our stay to 1 night in Al Maha, a Luxury Collection Desert Resort & Spa, Dubai and 1 night in Grosvenor House, a Luxury Collection Hotel. The Al Maha was a Category 7 - 1 night cost 60,00 points + 20 AED and Grosvenor House was a Category 5 - 1 night cost 32,500 points + 20 AED.
Planning & Booking:
In order to book these flights I had numerous weapons at my arsenal:
- Korean Airline SkyPass: My wife’s numerous business trips to Korea was enough for circa 40,000 miles and we topped up the additional 40,000 miles via Chase Ultimate Rewards Points to book the KE 86 (JFK to ICN).
- United Airlines Mileage Plus: In 2017, I travelled LGA – IAH on a regular basis and coupled with a couple JFK to ICN on Asiana, I was able to get United Platinum Status as well as circa 170,000 miles
- American Airlines Advantage: In 2018, my bi-weekly flights from JFK to HYD/HKG/LHR was enough to earn my Executive Platinum and a whopping 700,000 miles at my disposal.
- SPG/Marriott Rewards: The past 2 years - due to numerous business trips and circa 400 nights total; I was (fortunate I guess..) to obtain circa 300,000 SPG points. Coupled with using my SPG AMEX/Chase Marriott Visa for personal/business expenses, I had more than enough points to cover this trip.
- Chase Ultimate Rewards: Luckily my company allows me to book hotels and all other business expense (except for flights) on my personal credit card. This helped me immensely in my booking.
This is my first trip report so apologies if things aren’t clean as TR on flyertalk but any recommendations would be much appreciated.