Milenomics ² Podcast - No Annual Fee Edition

A Norway Trip Report...on today’s Milenomics² Podcast 01:00 Scope: 2 weeks in Norway. Oslo, Tromso, Lofoten then back to Oslo for a few days.  Wanted to get away from people.  Love the coast, and Norway has a LOT of coastline Spent most of our time in the arctic Circle (but not considered the arctic) Map: 10:12 Outbound: Air France. LAX-CDG Plus a 4hr layover. Flight was smooth and the d...

Episode 38: Show Notes Have you ever wondered what it's like to travel the stunning coastlines and towns of the French and Italian Rivieras? In this episode, we dive into Trevor’s recent adventure to these iconic Mediterranean destinations. From the highs and lows of traveling with family to insightful travel recommendations, Trevor provides his takeaways from his trip. In our conversation, we dis...

Episode 37: Show Notes In today’s organic, stream-of-consciousness episode, we take a look at some of our recent travel experiences, explore current industry trends, and share our take on what we think may happen in the not-so-distant future. Our menagerie of travel stories begins with Thomas’s experience of the Rio Las Vegas before diving into the mileage run that took him to Nevada. Then, we exp...

In this episode, we dive into the adventures of Spencer Howard, the founder of Straight To The Points, as he shares his recent Asia Pacific trip experience. Straight To The Points is a service that helps travelers find and book premium airline award tickets using points and miles, helping save time and money. In our conversation, Spencer shares his incredible 6-week journey through New Zealand, Au...

0:24 Q3 2024 5x Categories Chase Freedom: Gas (and other stuff) Discover: Grocery Stores, Walmart (For the first time in FOREVER!!!) Citi Dividend: Gas Why do banks have these cards? To move our spending onto these cards long after the quarter ends. 04:05 Transfer Bonuses Citi -> Cathay Pacific 15% (7/20) Chase -> Aeroplan 20% (7/31) If the space is there and these miles will be used, great to get...

0:55 Ranking Bank Points for Domestic Airfare We’re talking about deeply discounted airfare, not FREE airfare.  Every one of these programs has a cash out path–that’s great 1:45 Overview: Highs and Lows of each Program 1:59 Chase UR Talked about the most online, but not as valuable as Amex to us Much more straightforward than Amex 1 Cent per Ultimate Reward point earned (easy cash out on all card)...

While today is all about a long weekend in Madrid, Thomas and Trevor go on their usual tangents to bring you yet another information-drenched and fun-filled episode! We begin with our love for gin and tonic ice cubes and by explaining how today’s episode relates to many of our other Travel Stories. Then, Trevor walks us through his recent airport lounge experiences, how food and drinks compare, ho...

Chatting with Nick Reyes of FrequentMiler Episode 34: Show Notes. Few things are as exhilarating as a competitive travel challenge among like-minded peers! Speaking of birds of a feather, today we are joined by fellow travel enthusiast and author, Nick Reyes. Nick is a prime example of how to follow your travel dreams even when your wallet says that you can't, and today, he shares both new and old...

Are you interested in cruises, and want to capitalize on miles and points, but feel unsure of where to start? Then this episode is for you! Today we sit down with, Debra Schroeder, who first became interested in miles and points back in ’94, when she bought an excess of cereal boxes to capitalize on an American Airlines promotional campaign. Her history with cruising goes back almost as far, start...

A Quick Cairo Trip Episode 32: Show Notes. After a two-plus year-long wait, Tom finally used his Qatar booking credit from the pandemic (just in time before the booking expired!). Even though he wasn’t excited about the trip before departure, his wonderful experience of Cairo made him question his initial reservations. Tom details his airport experience in Canada, why he chose to fly out from ther...

Episode 31: Show Notes. When you talk to folks in the community, people have strong opinions about Hyatt’s Baha Mar property, and its not just in one direction. Luckily, today’s guest, Joey Redmond – who has been on the show twice before – is here to tell us all about Baha Mar, a resort in the Bahamas that he has found himself returning to year after year as an ideal vacation spot for him and his...

A First Time Istanbul Visit with Han Episode 30: Show Notes The Turkish Airlines Devaluation was a big deal. We covered our trip to Istanbul, Turkey, but the reality of the matter is, so many people booked trips to Turkey because of this devaluation and we just felt obligated to bring a second perspective. In this case, Han Chicago joins us to share his first time to Istanbul. In this episode, we...

Episode 29: Show Notes This episode on Travel Stories, we dive deeper into sharing our cruise line experiences, and if you have any of your own, we’d love to hear from you! Today, Tom walks us through his recent 10-day journey on Enchanted Princess, starting with his overall evaluation of the experience before assessing tendering and the embarkation process of the ship. We learn about the size of...

Planning a Disney World vacation can be an overwhelming experience. With four theme parks, over twenty resort hotels, and dozens of restaurants - there's a lot to consider. In this episode I chat with Disney travel agent Joe Cheung and my sister-in-law Kelly to plan her family's Disney World vacation . We discuss hotel options, differences between Disneyland and Disney World, dining options, and m...

Tom and Trevor’s annual guys’ trip for 2024 led them to Istanbul, Turkey, and their experience was an absolute Turkish delight! They booked their tickets via Turkish Airlines just before the award chart’s devaluation, and they were relieved to still be able to use their points. In today’s episode, we take a look at Tom and Trevor’s Middle Eastern adventure, starting with their first experience of...

A Pilot’s Perspective: Finding the Right Approach from Cargo to Commercial Episode 27: Show Notes. We welcome Steven Kriese, a traveler, a commercial airline pilot and friend. In today’s episode, Steve takes us back in time to his first flying experience and how airline technology has steadily evolved since. He walks us through his personal preferences including his most desired routes, how his jo...

Usually I lock up a summer trip as far ahead of time as possible. But due to the current award travel patterns and my need for 4 seats I found myself without a summer booking and a family wanting to travel. Today Robert and I chat about the ups and downs of the search for a summer trip, award space scarcity, alliance and search engine fragmentation and more. - Enjoy! 01:55 Let’s talk about the Con...

During this episode, we discuss Malaysia, with a focus on Langkawi. Trevor shares the highlights and disappointments from his recent trip with his wife and young daughter, from Etihad First Class to first-class lounges, luxury amenities, and more. Tune in for a first-hand account of South East Asian travel packed with handy insights of the highs and lows to help you plan your next trip. We discuss...

Episode 25: Show Notes In today’s episode of Travel Stories, we talk about the highs and lows of booking Tom’s recent trip to Australia, the cruise that followed, and his trip home. Thomas recounts his exploits in the land “Down Under,” from exploring Sydney's hidden gems to a firsthand encounter with the lavish comforts of the A380 first-class experience. He also shares his insights on British Ai...

Festivus: The non-commercial holiday's celebration, as depicted on Seinfeld , occurs on December 23 and includes a Festivus dinner, an unadorned aluminum Festivus pole, practices such as the "airing of grievances" and "feats of strength", and the labeling of easily explainable events as "Festivus miracles"  0:15 Intro, some history about Festivus as we held it on the Observation Deck. 03:27 Airing...

From the spectacular cockpit views to gaining status at hotels, a pilot’s travel experience is quite different from ours as a commercial traveler. Today, we’re shifting gears and gaining valuable travel insight from a pilot’s perspective. Brandr is a Navy Reservist and commercial pilot, as well as an avid miles and points nerd. We discuss Brandr’s benefits as a pilot, what his typical internationa...

Planning a trip to New Zealand and Australia? Are you wanting to craft the perfect blend of flights, hotels, and attractions and create an unforgettable journey? Then don’t miss out on today’s valuable insights from our special guest, Joe Cheung! Joe shares his recent family adventure, covering everything from Air New Zealand flights, the Skycouch, and hotel bookings in Auckland to experiencing th...

We're back with a great talk between Robert and I on the following: 0:22 Follow Up: Alaska Status Match (last discussed Ep 68) 06:13 Amex Churnability and Employee Offers Cards used to be much more churnable Popups abound now. Wish there was a way to get rid of them by force 15k for $4k is the new thing Business Platinum ( link ) Business Gold ( link ) Blue Business Plus ( link ) Be sure to use th...

Travel Stories Episode 21: Travel Banter We’re trying something different today a different format for Travel Stories that we like to call Travel Banter. We start by exploring aviation-themed films and series that have impacted us over the years. From the beloved cult classic The Terminal to Up In the Air , we cover a wide range of air travel themes and tropes. Trevor shares his unique Southeast A...

Halloween Episode – Travel Horror Stories Episode 20: Show Notes While it may not be horror like Freddy Krueger or Michael Myers, today’s episode will definitely send chills down the spines of travelers as we share our experiences of when travel went horribly wrong. It’s easy to fall victim to scams in foreign countries as your unfamiliarity with the region makes you stick out as a prime target. S...