29 Travel Hacks even us FF's Didn't Know!
Jun 18, 2015, 7:47 am
#1
Original Poster
Join Date: Feb 2006
Location: Cockeysville, MD
Programs: Marriott Rewards Lifetime Titanium, Amex Plat, Hertz Gold 5*, National Exec, AA Plat
Posts: 9,467
29 Travel Hacks even us FF's Didn't Know!
http://finance.yahoo.com/news/29-tra...173100299.html
The writer would be disappointed to find out we knew them.
The writer would be disappointed to find out we knew them.
Jun 18, 2015, 9:13 am
#2
Suspended
Join Date: Jul 2001
Location: Watchlisted by the prejudiced, en route to purgatory
Programs: Just Say No to Fleecing and Blacklisting
Posts: 102,095
They didn't cover the change your hotel stay dates in order to try to get around hotel cancellation deadlines.
Jun 18, 2015, 9:29 am
#3
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: May 2001
Location: MSY; 2-time FT Fantasy Football Champ, now in recovery.
Programs: AA lifetime GLD; UA Silver; Marriott LTTE; IHG Plat,
Posts: 14,517
OK, this one is new to me:
Has anyone here used Options Away? Thoughts? A search found only this thread, with a single post by an employee of the service and no responses.
Or put your airfare on hold on carriers like American Airlines, Southwest, and Virgin America, which all have free 24-hour hold services. United has something called a FareLock starting at $6.99 that lets you wait up to a week before booking, while Options Away ($4 to $45) can hold flights for up to three weeks.
Jun 18, 2015, 9:31 am
#4
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: May 2001
Location: MSY; 2-time FT Fantasy Football Champ, now in recovery.
Programs: AA lifetime GLD; UA Silver; Marriott LTTE; IHG Plat,
Posts: 14,517
I'm also curious about this:
Who has tried this (at airports in the USA)? Usually the rules prevent cabs from picking you up except in the designated area, but have you found cabbies willing to break the rule to avoid the long wait they often have?
28. Head to the departure zone for a cab sans line
If you see a massive line snaking around arrivals, do a quick 180 and head to the departure zone. People will be getting dropped off by cabs, which you can simply snag without any competition. Of course this depends on how an airport is set up — it might cost more time than you're saving to take a train to another terminal — but hey, you win some, you lose some.
If you see a massive line snaking around arrivals, do a quick 180 and head to the departure zone. People will be getting dropped off by cabs, which you can simply snag without any competition. Of course this depends on how an airport is set up — it might cost more time than you're saving to take a train to another terminal — but hey, you win some, you lose some.
Jun 18, 2015, 9:49 am
#5
Join Date: Mar 2004
Location: On the road, 24/7/365
Posts: 3,467
I don't personally know any airport where this is permitted, other than some really small ones where arrivals and departures are on the same level and (roughly) the same strip of roadway. Seems like it would make the taxi drivers mad (jumping the departing-cab queue).
Jun 18, 2015, 12:18 pm
#6
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: May 1998
Location: Massachusetts, USA; AA Plat, DL GM and Flying Colonel; Bonvoy Platinum
Posts: 24,232
I doubt they would do this if there were any other cabs in the area. The other drivers, who had to go around and wait their turns, would be royally pissed off and would almost certainly report it. A cab might take a fare this way if the driver was sure nobody would see, but what are the chances of that?
Jun 18, 2015, 1:31 pm
#7
A FlyerTalk Posting Legend
Join Date: Jul 2002
Location: MCI
Programs: AA Gold 1MM, AS MVP, UA Silver, WN A-List, Marriott LT Titanium, HH Diamond
Posts: 52,550
I find it annoying when there's *both* a huge line of riders waiting for cabs *and* a huge line of cabs waiting for riders. Seems like that should be a highly fixable bottleneck. @:-)
La Guardia, for example, has the guy at the front of the line asking everyone where they are going. That turns often turns into a 30-45 second conversation about where exactly in Manhattan, what Broadway shows the visitor is going to see, where to get the best pizza, whether the Yankees are in town, or any number of other topics unrelated to getting into the next f***ing cab as fast as possible.
I'm always going to Manhattan, so I just say "Manhattan", and he points me to a cab. I don't know if he's looking for non-Manhattan riders, or Queen's riders that might give the cabbie a short-ride pass back into the queue, but I know he doesn't care one iota what I think about the Jets quarterback situation or the weather or anything else. I utter one word, he points to a cab, I go. But there's no real direction or signage that explains to people the purpose of the dispatch guy...
La Guardia, for example, has the guy at the front of the line asking everyone where they are going. That turns often turns into a 30-45 second conversation about where exactly in Manhattan, what Broadway shows the visitor is going to see, where to get the best pizza, whether the Yankees are in town, or any number of other topics unrelated to getting into the next f***ing cab as fast as possible.
I'm always going to Manhattan, so I just say "Manhattan", and he points me to a cab. I don't know if he's looking for non-Manhattan riders, or Queen's riders that might give the cabbie a short-ride pass back into the queue, but I know he doesn't care one iota what I think about the Jets quarterback situation or the weather or anything else. I utter one word, he points to a cab, I go. But there's no real direction or signage that explains to people the purpose of the dispatch guy...
Jun 18, 2015, 2:02 pm
#8
Join Date: Jul 2010
Location: Boise, ID
Programs: Virtuoso
Posts: 617
Here is a simple one a client taught me: set up a separate email for just your travel.
I have an email for collecting spam emails, but it never dawned on me to set up one just for traveling! I have one now with my business, but before I had a folder.
I have an email for collecting spam emails, but it never dawned on me to set up one just for traveling! I have one now with my business, but before I had a folder.
Jun 18, 2015, 2:22 pm
#9
Join Date: Dec 2010
Location: DEN
Programs: Delta Silver
Posts: 116
I doubt they would do this if there were any other cabs in the area. The other drivers, who had to go around and wait their turns, would be royally pissed off and would almost certainly report it. A cab might take a fare this way if the driver was sure nobody would see, but what are the chances of that?
Jun 18, 2015, 6:26 pm
#10
Original Poster
Join Date: Feb 2006
Location: Cockeysville, MD
Programs: Marriott Rewards Lifetime Titanium, Amex Plat, Hertz Gold 5*, National Exec, AA Plat
Posts: 9,467
OT but we did one just for financial stuff. Works great.
Jun 18, 2015, 6:31 pm
#11
Join Date: Jun 2010
Location: USA
Programs: SA Air, Air Canada, KLM, BA,Lufthansa, United, AA, Hawaiian, Air New Zealnd, Qantas, Virgin Atlantic
Posts: 777
I can't see this happening at any major airport.
Jun 18, 2015, 6:31 pm
#12
Original Poster
Join Date: Feb 2006
Location: Cockeysville, MD
Programs: Marriott Rewards Lifetime Titanium, Amex Plat, Hertz Gold 5*, National Exec, AA Plat
Posts: 9,467
OK, this one is new to me:
Has anyone here used Options Away? Thoughts? A search found only this thread, with a single post by an employee of the service and no responses.
Has anyone here used Options Away? Thoughts? A search found only this thread, with a single post by an employee of the service and no responses.
https://www.optionsaway.com
Jun 18, 2015, 8:44 pm
#13
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Nov 2006
Location: Bangkok or San Francisco
Programs: United 1k, Marriott Lifetime PE, Former DL Gold, Former SQ Solitaire, HH Gold
Posts: 11,886
A couple of points of disagreement.
2. Book two one-way flights: Almost always more expensive than Round Trip.
3. Book non-US airlines if possible: Obviously doesn’t work in domestic. And limits FF accumulation if you’re always switching airlines based on what country you fly to.
5. Get upgrades by booking an economy ticket with a Y or B booking code: Unless you’re an elite FF you’re not going to get courtesy upgrades and those booking codes are more expensive.
6. Pretend you're somewhere else when booking to score discounted fares: For this to work you almost always have to have your R/T originate in that other country.
13. Pack a squishy carry-on (Checking a bag is amateur hour): No it’s not. Simply an idiotic statement.
14. Roll clothing up, then use air-compression plastic bags to squeeze air out of them: I thought you weren’t checking bags.
22. Get into the airport lounge, even if your ticket says economy: Day passes are expensive and unless you’re laying over for a long time, simply not worth it.
24. Save money staying connected. Both in-flight internet fees and roaming charges are exorbitant. Bypass them by getting a subscription to Boingo, a Wi-Fi hotspot provider that ranges in cost between $4.98 a month for access in the Americas to $59 a month for worldwide coverage: How will that save you money on in-flight internet? And at your destination just get a local SIM card.
25. Minimize jet lag by sleeping right. Jet lag usually takes one day to adapt to per time zone crossed when traveling west and about a day and a half when going east: Huh? She’s saying it take 2 weeks to recover from jet lag when I fly BKK to SFO? Sorry, 2 days, maybe.
28. Head to the departure zone for a cab sans line: Other than it’s illegal in many areas and can get you attacked by cabbies in others.
Another amateur who read some books, flew once and is now convinced she has all the answers.
Blogging is not an inherently bad thing. But you should wash your hands when your done.
2. Book two one-way flights: Almost always more expensive than Round Trip.
3. Book non-US airlines if possible: Obviously doesn’t work in domestic. And limits FF accumulation if you’re always switching airlines based on what country you fly to.
5. Get upgrades by booking an economy ticket with a Y or B booking code: Unless you’re an elite FF you’re not going to get courtesy upgrades and those booking codes are more expensive.
6. Pretend you're somewhere else when booking to score discounted fares: For this to work you almost always have to have your R/T originate in that other country.
13. Pack a squishy carry-on (Checking a bag is amateur hour): No it’s not. Simply an idiotic statement.
14. Roll clothing up, then use air-compression plastic bags to squeeze air out of them: I thought you weren’t checking bags.
22. Get into the airport lounge, even if your ticket says economy: Day passes are expensive and unless you’re laying over for a long time, simply not worth it.
24. Save money staying connected. Both in-flight internet fees and roaming charges are exorbitant. Bypass them by getting a subscription to Boingo, a Wi-Fi hotspot provider that ranges in cost between $4.98 a month for access in the Americas to $59 a month for worldwide coverage: How will that save you money on in-flight internet? And at your destination just get a local SIM card.
25. Minimize jet lag by sleeping right. Jet lag usually takes one day to adapt to per time zone crossed when traveling west and about a day and a half when going east: Huh? She’s saying it take 2 weeks to recover from jet lag when I fly BKK to SFO? Sorry, 2 days, maybe.
28. Head to the departure zone for a cab sans line: Other than it’s illegal in many areas and can get you attacked by cabbies in others.
Another amateur who read some books, flew once and is now convinced she has all the answers.
Blogging is not an inherently bad thing. But you should wash your hands when your done.
Jun 18, 2015, 8:49 pm
#14
Join Date: Aug 2012
Programs: UA
Posts: 60
I've done this at GIG and a couple of other international airports, but never in the USA
Jun 18, 2015, 9:43 pm
#15
Join Date: Mar 2015
Programs: HH Diamond, GHA Titanium
Posts: 1,958
Can't speak for the USA, but I can say that this is totally the case in many South East Asian airports -- cabbies simply won't pick you up from the departure areas.
