ALMOST THREE MILLION POINTS by a RTW BEER TASTING , READING NEWSPAPERS AND THE LIKE!!
Nov 13, 2011, 5:59 am
#151
Original Poster
Join Date: Jul 2006
Location: Melbourne, Australia
Programs: SQ, QF, MH, VA, AA, BA, AMEX, Citibank
Posts: 289
mmmmm more "chipping" as :
* I always try and get a discount myself wherever I can. so was impressed to note that daughter has just negotiated a 100 Euro discount off her Paris Studio apartment and also that the owner pick her up and drop her off afterwards in the owners car. Not bad for a backpacker. Not content to just book at the internet rate, she discovered the owners contact details to negotiate a better deal.
*Won herself, via a competition, a two week adventure trip trekking in Morocco, that she will now integrate into her growing trip.
So far have yet to book her return award flight back to Oz. At present rate will be interesting to see where I have to eventually 'extract her from. I have 80K of BMI points (gained for free by various means) that I am seeking to use for this purpose. After this little jaunt she will need to start earning her own FF points for future trips.
* I always try and get a discount myself wherever I can. so was impressed to note that daughter has just negotiated a 100 Euro discount off her Paris Studio apartment and also that the owner pick her up and drop her off afterwards in the owners car. Not bad for a backpacker. Not content to just book at the internet rate, she discovered the owners contact details to negotiate a better deal.
*Won herself, via a competition, a two week adventure trip trekking in Morocco, that she will now integrate into her growing trip.
So far have yet to book her return award flight back to Oz. At present rate will be interesting to see where I have to eventually 'extract her from. I have 80K of BMI points (gained for free by various means) that I am seeking to use for this purpose. After this little jaunt she will need to start earning her own FF points for future trips.
Last edited by lovetravellingoz; Nov 13, 2011 at 6:06 am
Nov 13, 2011, 6:14 am
#152
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Nov 2007
Location: Denver • DEN-APA
Programs: AF Platinum, EK Gold, AA EXP, UA 1K, Hyatt Globalist
Posts: 21,603
Just stumbled on this thread for the first time this morning. What a great story!
Congratulations lovetravellingoz on all "earning" all those points and thanks for posting! ^
Congratulations lovetravellingoz on all "earning" all those points and thanks for posting! ^
Aug 21, 2012, 9:19 am
#153
Original Poster
Join Date: Jul 2006
Location: Melbourne, Australia
Programs: SQ, QF, MH, VA, AA, BA, AMEX, Citibank
Posts: 289
Well unfortunately a family accident meant that we had to cancel the July cycling trip to France and Turkey.
Still all is good now, and so we have just re-booked to Paris for next June, and out of Frankfurt for the return.
With the new SQ awards table point cost is slightly higher, however on the plus side you can now book 3 seats together in J on the same flight to European Airports (used to be capped at 2), and so as my daughter is 15 that is a real plus as it avoids having to book on separate flights/days such as I have sometimes had to resort for European destinations in the past except when I was able to get the "mistake" redemption to Italy.
Here in Oz, Amex are in the process of dropping Platinum earn from 1.5 to only 0.5 on many spend items. So while I have some great Point Runs in recent years it would seem that most of my CC spend will soon be finding it's way onto VISA rather than Amex Cards. However there are still some nice "wrinkles" on some Amex cards for some particular spend.
However there are still points to be had, even if it looks to be harder for a while. And with a buffer of about 2.5 million left after my latest European redemption I still have a few flights yet to take
Still all is good now, and so we have just re-booked to Paris for next June, and out of Frankfurt for the return.
With the new SQ awards table point cost is slightly higher, however on the plus side you can now book 3 seats together in J on the same flight to European Airports (used to be capped at 2), and so as my daughter is 15 that is a real plus as it avoids having to book on separate flights/days such as I have sometimes had to resort for European destinations in the past except when I was able to get the "mistake" redemption to Italy.
Here in Oz, Amex are in the process of dropping Platinum earn from 1.5 to only 0.5 on many spend items. So while I have some great Point Runs in recent years it would seem that most of my CC spend will soon be finding it's way onto VISA rather than Amex Cards. However there are still some nice "wrinkles" on some Amex cards for some particular spend.
However there are still points to be had, even if it looks to be harder for a while. And with a buffer of about 2.5 million left after my latest European redemption I still have a few flights yet to take
Aug 23, 2012, 8:12 am
#155
Original Poster
Join Date: Jul 2006
Location: Melbourne, Australia
Programs: SQ, QF, MH, VA, AA, BA, AMEX, Citibank
Posts: 289
However, and this is an Amex Section, with the upcoming change in Amex earn rates I feel a bit like a jilted lover at present, still coming to terms with the "romance" having ended, and needing to be alert for a new "sweetheart".
Still the out-perform with Amex has always come with the "promotions", and so it remains to be seen if there are scaled back as well. There certainly seems to be less about at present. Ame in Oz often seems to run a promo or two in the months prior to Xmas an so hopefully some opportunities will emerge soon.
My trusty "free-for-life" Platinum Citibank VISA is being dusted off and recalled from the drawer that it was in for some new action.
Jan 20, 2013, 12:51 am
#156
Original Poster
Join Date: Jul 2006
Location: Melbourne, Australia
Programs: SQ, QF, MH, VA, AA, BA, AMEX, Citibank
Posts: 289
Well I have at last startered using the last batch of "new" bought socks from the run!! All the beer is long gone though
With my wife now fully recovered the next batch of J -returns to Europe are now booked, as is our week long cycling trip. Return J flights to MEL via Thailand for eldest daughter who has been volunteering in Togo for 3 months, after months of J travel to Asia-Middle East- Africa- Europe - Africa have also been booked.
With my wife now fully recovered the next batch of J -returns to Europe are now booked, as is our week long cycling trip. Return J flights to MEL via Thailand for eldest daughter who has been volunteering in Togo for 3 months, after months of J travel to Asia-Middle East- Africa- Europe - Africa have also been booked.
Last edited by lovetravellingoz; Mar 9, 2014 at 6:53 am
Apr 30, 2013, 10:05 am
#157
Original Poster
Join Date: Jul 2006
Location: Melbourne, Australia
Programs: SQ, QF, MH, VA, AA, BA, AMEX, Citibank
Posts: 289
Now on to Easter 2014 and have just booked my first SQ Suite redemptions for two at the Saver rate from MEL to Zurich. So am very much looking forward to it.
Too early yet to book the return flight, and so have a few weeks to decide out of which city and on which airline. May give MH a try.
Only 6 weeks to France 2013 and so need to research the Germany part of the trip.
Too early yet to book the return flight, and so have a few weeks to decide out of which city and on which airline. May give MH a try.
Only 6 weeks to France 2013 and so need to research the Germany part of the trip.
May 6, 2013, 5:25 pm
#158
Moderator: Mileage Run, United Airlines; FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Jan 2004
Location: The City/Honolulu
Programs: UA 3MM; Hyatt Glob*****; Hilton Diamond
Posts: 14,473
I really appreciate the regular updates on where you're headed to next with the points accumulated! 
May 7, 2013, 3:58 am
#159
Join Date: May 2006
Location: BOS and ...
Programs: UA 2MM, AA 600k, DL 500k, Hyatt GP 1M, HH Gold, Rad. Gold, CP Gold, Miracle Fruit-su Club
Posts: 9,950
May 7, 2013, 8:52 am
#160
Join Date: Sep 2004
Location: Southern Bavaria, Germany
Programs: LH Blue, BA Blue, Hyatt Gold
Posts: 1,517
Well I have at last startrd using the last batch of "new" bought socks from the run!! All the beer is long gone though
With my wife now fully recovered the next batch of J -returns to Europe are now booked, as is our week long cycling trip. Return J flights to MEL via Thailand for eldest daughter who has been volunteering in Togo for 3 months, after months of J travel to Asia-Middle East- Africa- Europe - Africa have also been booked.
With my wife now fully recovered the next batch of J -returns to Europe are now booked, as is our week long cycling trip. Return J flights to MEL via Thailand for eldest daughter who has been volunteering in Togo for 3 months, after months of J travel to Asia-Middle East- Africa- Europe - Africa have also been booked.
And also ^ for Amex to add the points correctly and "paying them out".
So thank you for all of the fun connected with reading your posts!
Mar 9, 2014, 7:20 am
#161
Original Poster
Join Date: Jul 2006
Location: Melbourne, Australia
Programs: SQ, QF, MH, VA, AA, BA, AMEX, Citibank
Posts: 289
Well time for a belated update.... there would have been more, but I have had the great misfortune to need to concentrate on work rather than travelling for a while 
Firstly the France Trip. There may be better ways to travel, but cycling through rural France from small village to small village is hard to top. And the food and wine were magnificent!!! Even the smallest village would have a boulangerie or patisserie with local variations of all the cakes and breads that France offers. Then there were the vineyards....
Our first trip to Germany was wonderful too, with our time mainly spent in Berlin and Heidelberg. However food wise "Currywurst" is not really a competitor to cuisine of France!!!!!!
Fortunately I have been known to enjoy an ale, and with some of the local establishments possessing beer lists to rival phone directories (any reader under 28...ask you parents how big a paper phone directory used to be before the internet made them redundant!) I was able to satisfy my tastebuds in full easure by that means.
Beer is certainly part of the social fabric in Germany, and just as at home I would see a young female office worker grabbing a morning coffee on her dash to work to start her day, in Germany I would see a morning beer imbibed at the bus stop by her local equivalent.
Firstly the France Trip. There may be better ways to travel, but cycling through rural France from small village to small village is hard to top. And the food and wine were magnificent!!! Even the smallest village would have a boulangerie or patisserie with local variations of all the cakes and breads that France offers. Then there were the vineyards....
Our first trip to Germany was wonderful too, with our time mainly spent in Berlin and Heidelberg. However food wise "Currywurst" is not really a competitor to cuisine of France!!!!!!
Fortunately I have been known to enjoy an ale, and with some of the local establishments possessing beer lists to rival phone directories (any reader under 28...ask you parents how big a paper phone directory used to be before the internet made them redundant!) I was able to satisfy my tastebuds in full easure by that means.
Beer is certainly part of the social fabric in Germany, and just as at home I would see a young female office worker grabbing a morning coffee on her dash to work to start her day, in Germany I would see a morning beer imbibed at the bus stop by her local equivalent.
Last edited by lovetravellingoz; Mar 9, 2014 at 8:01 am
Mar 9, 2014, 7:50 am
#162
Original Poster
Join Date: Jul 2006
Location: Melbourne, Australia
Programs: SQ, QF, MH, VA, AA, BA, AMEX, Citibank
Posts: 289
Time for my first trip in Suites. 
I have redeemed in First on SQ before to go to Italy. But time to spoil my wife and I with a Saver Suite redemption MEL-SIN-ZUR.
We were going to come home from MUN in Business Class, but SQ does have "gltches" from time to time, and so instead managed to get two F seats for the cost of Saver J
Main focus of the trip is to catch a sight of, and a walk in, the Swiss Alps and then a 9 day cycle from Germany along the Danube River to Vienna.
We are also popping over to Barcelona (Y) and London (J) and then back to Munich (J) to sample the Hofbräuhaus, amongst other sights. These three flights being extra sweet as a BA "glitch" meant that in the end I only effectively paid the taxes and charges for these flights. sans points! This plus the cheap back to Oz redemption, means that this is a very point friendly series of flights.
In terms of Points Running it is slow and steady: A 5x promo here, a 10x promo there, a few referral bonii, sign-on bonii etc...with some double-dipping, and triple dipping in multiple programs. Nothing like at the start of this thread, but enough to ensure that my long-haul flights will remain at the pointy end of the plane for some time yet.
I have redeemed in First on SQ before to go to Italy. But time to spoil my wife and I with a Saver Suite redemption MEL-SIN-ZUR.
We were going to come home from MUN in Business Class, but SQ does have "gltches" from time to time, and so instead managed to get two F seats for the cost of Saver J
Main focus of the trip is to catch a sight of, and a walk in, the Swiss Alps and then a 9 day cycle from Germany along the Danube River to Vienna.
We are also popping over to Barcelona (Y) and London (J) and then back to Munich (J) to sample the Hofbräuhaus, amongst other sights. These three flights being extra sweet as a BA "glitch" meant that in the end I only effectively paid the taxes and charges for these flights.
sans points! This plus the cheap back to Oz redemption, means that this is a very point friendly series of flights.In terms of Points Running it is slow and steady: A 5x promo here, a 10x promo there, a few referral bonii, sign-on bonii etc...with some double-dipping, and triple dipping in multiple programs. Nothing like at the start of this thread, but enough to ensure that my long-haul flights will remain at the pointy end of the plane for some time yet.
Last edited by lovetravellingoz; Mar 10, 2014 at 3:58 am
Mar 9, 2014, 3:26 pm
#163
Join Date: Apr 2006
Location: London
Programs: BA bronze, Hertz pres circle, Marriott Platinum, hilton diamond
Posts: 2,537
Just stumbled across this, so I'll try and practise my hand at Australian, forgive me if I'm a little rusty.
"Mate, you're a f*****g ledge!" Awesome stuff!
"Mate, you're a f*****g ledge!" Awesome stuff!
Mar 10, 2014, 4:08 am
#165
Original Poster
Join Date: Jul 2006
Location: Melbourne, Australia
Programs: SQ, QF, MH, VA, AA, BA, AMEX, Citibank
Posts: 289
I have been showing a few workmates, and friends, pics of my upcoming SQ Suites flight.
Universally there is puzzlement....they all wonder why I am showing shots of a railway carriage, when I am talking about a flight. Then their jaws drop when I explain, no that is my cabin on the plane.
I do point out though that it may not be all the pic shows, for while I do know that I will get the champagne, that there may be no sprinkled rose petals!
Universally there is puzzlement....they all wonder why I am showing shots of a railway carriage, when I am talking about a flight. Then their jaws drop when I explain, no that is my cabin on the plane.
I do point out though that it may not be all the pic shows, for while I do know that I will get the champagne, that there may be no sprinkled rose petals!