Dessie
Forum Replies Created
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We live in France and use Wise a lot.
It has always worked for us, and you can convert dollars well before your trip when the exchange rate is good.
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I’d recommend getting business credit cards that offer bonus points in specific spending categories and allow you to redeem those points for business or first-class flights.
This way, you can enjoy lounge access and other perks without using airline cards, which often don’t earn as many points.
Consider cards like the Amex Business Gold, Amex Blue Business Plus, Chase Ink Cash, or Chase Ink Preferred.
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It depends on where you are going.
My wife put her supplements in a zip lock bag, and they were taken away at the airport in Sydney when we were going to New Zealand.
We had to buy all new medications.
Thankfully, her prescriptions were in their original bottles, as were mine.
If you’ve managed to get away with using zip lock bags for your stuff, count yourself lucky.
But for us, we’ll stick to carrying medications in their original bottles from now on.
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I believe you’ll likely be approved for reimbursement.
My advice is to make sure you have a doctor’s note stating that traveling wasn’t advisable, and gather any other medical records, like ER release documents, if available.
Additionally, request refunds via email, as denials can serve as proof that the expense wasn’t refunded.
Here’s the Chase Sapphire benefits brochure for reference.
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I recommend traveling by train.
I learned how to book train tickets by visiting The Man in Seat 61.
He’s the ultimate resource for train travel worldwide.
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Make sure to set up Alipay, as Shanghai is mostly cashless and may not accept credit cards everywhere.
Immigration was surprisingly easy in Shanghai.
I found they spent more time examining my passport at Kennedy International Airport than at Shanghai Pudong International Airport.
Exploring Xintiandi is enjoyable, and of course, don’t miss the iconic Bund.
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We flew PDX to Frankfurt (RT) in September and had a great experience.
We upgraded to “premium economy” and I cannot recommend this option strongly enough.
Food, drinks, footrest, extra space, modest amenities kit – all worth the fee.
I think we paid an extra $150 per person.
Happy travels!
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We just got back from Portugal and this is the itinerary I put together.
It sounds like a lot but we really had time to see everything plus we made fun stops along the way
Day 1:
Drive from Lisbon to Porto, stop in Tomar on the way (really cool Templar town)
Day 2-4:
Porto. We stayed in the middle of the old town so we could walk everywhere.
We took the Big Red Bus to stop at all the major spots and get the lay of the land.
Day 5-6:
Drove from Porto and stopped in Agueda, Aviero and stayed at Bussaco Palace outside Coimbra.
Day 7-9:
Visited Coimbra and then headed to Sintra for 2 nights.
They have a great public bus that takes you to all the stops you’ll want to see
Day 10-11:
Spent 2 full days in Lisbon before heading home.
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The EU has just implemented a visa requirement for US citizens under 70 but the Schengen Zone ETIAS start date has been pushed back to 2025 at least.
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10x Chase Ultimate Rewards points on Lyft with Chase Sapphire Reserve.
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It’s called short-checking and is quite normal for very long layovers.
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I would stay at those capsule hotels and save the award for when you have more time to enjoy the facility.
Otherwise mid-tier hotels are pretty cheap like $50-80 USD a night.
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With Delta, you can pick a small town and the miles redemption usually goes down.
JFK-MEX-PVR costs much fewer miles than JFK-MEX and also they operate one wide-body/ day and it costs the same miles as others.
Also, If you are going somewhere far like Capetown etc, look for flights from Europe and then book on Flying Blue from US-Europe.
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Thanks!
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Yes, Costco is GREAT.
Their website shows and compares the different car rental agencies all on the SAME page.
The Second Driver Benefit is great and saves you about $15 / day.