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Not Your Average Gal

Not Your Average Gal

Copywriter. Content Creator. Constant Sassypants.

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Hong Kong

Oh, Yes We Did. How We Spent Two Weeks in Asia for Less than $650-including Flights in Business Class

March 27, 2018 By Caroline Peterson

What’s the first thing your little fingers start typing when planning a trip? How to get there, where to stay and how freakin’ much is it gonna cost me? Well aren’t you lucky you landed here today.

I’m going to show you exactly how the hubster and I flew to Asia—in business class—and stayed in fancy-schmancy hotels—that often left us feeling a few tax brackets below the rest of the population—all for under $650. 2 weeks. 2 people. Less than $650.

Why do I care, Not Your Average Gal?

Because travel is more accessible than you believe and it’s something I wholeheartedly think changes your world perspective—for the better.

Ready to dive in? Let’s go!

I’ve organized this little lesson according to our itinerary, so you can see how it all adds up in the end.

Flying to Hong Kong

ORD-HKG
Cathay Pacific, Business Class
140,000 American miles
$11.20 taxes

Since we live in separate states, very often when we leave for international trips, we fly to connect in the same airport, enjoy some bubbly and then jet off to paradise. Did that sound obnoxious? Good.

We redeemed 140,000 American Airline miles to use on their partner, Cathay Pacific, for our long-haul flight to Hong Kong. It also included my flight to Chicago in First Class on American. I have some American Airline miles through credit card sign-up bonuses. Additionally, I transferred 51,000 SPG points to my American account, which gave me a 20% transfer bonus, for a total of 61,000 transferred points. SPG is Starwood Preferred Guest, the mothership company for hotels like Westin, the W and Sheraton.

Staying in Hong Kong

Intercontinental Hong Kong
2 nights
60,000 IHG points
1 Free Night Certificate

Intercontinental Hong Kong Habour View Room

The last time I stayed in Hong Kong, I spent 3 nights at the Intercontinental Hong Kong and knew I wanted to show the hubster what killer views it had of Victoria Habour. I redeemed one of my free night certificates I have by being an IHG Rewards Club Select credit card holder. The hubster used points from his 80,000 point sign-up bonus that he got when I encouraged him to apply for the IHG Rewards Club Select credit card last year, when we originally booked our flights for this trip.

Conrad Hong Kong
2 nights
132,000 Hilton Honors Points

Conrad Hong Kong Peak View

While I enjoyed staying on the Kowloon side, I knew I wanted to explore more of Hong Kong Island itself, so we booked 2 nights at the Conrad Hong Kong for 132,000 Hilton Honors points. I’ve built up quite a stash by primarily staying in Hilton brands, like on our trip to London last year, utilizing the sign-up bonus with the American Express Hilton card (formerly Citi Hilton) and making sure I book stays when bonuses are going on. For instance, I got double the points for our 4 night stay in London because I booked during a time when that promotion was going on. That helped with booking on points for this stay. What’s awesome about having the card is you’re automatically given Hilton Gold status which gains you access to the Executive Lounges in Asia. Free bubbly, wine, beer and good eats with a view!

Flying to Hanoi, Vietnam

HKG-HAN
Cathay Dragon, Economy
9,000 British Airways Avios
$65.18 taxes

747 Fan-girl Heaven

You don’t think it’s all bubbly and business class all the time, do you? We’re totally fine booking cheap flights in economy and traveling light so we don’t need to pay for checked luggage. I utilized British Airways amazing award travel chart for 4,500 Avios for flights that are less than 650 miles (excluding flights to/from North America). Because Cathay is a partner of British Airways, it was super easy to book through BA online. Wham. Bam. Thank ya’ British ma’am.

Staying in Hanoi, Vietnam

Hilton Garden Inn Hanoi
3 nights
30,000 Hilton Honors Points

Hilton Garden Inn Hanoi
View from our balcony

It was hard to pass up using our stash of Hilton Honors points for only 10,000 points a night. Basically, our entire stay in Hanoi wouldn’t even cover half the cost of one night of our stay in the Conrad Hong Kong. We had hoped with my Hilton Gold status we would have been upgraded to the suites, but there weren’t any available and we did have a nice balcony view that others didn’t. The hotel manager did provide a nice tip though, he said when booking at a Hilton Garden Inn online, make a note of your room preference because status isn’t necessarily recognized automatically at Hilton Garden Inns (since the rooms are typically the same).

Flying to Da Nang, Vietnam

JetStar, Economy
$133.12

It was a super quick and super cheap flight into Da Nang from Hanoi. Remember, these costs are for two people. So the individual ticket price is less than $67. This is when it makes much more sense to use cash than points. Discount carriers are plentiful in Asia (and Europe) and this flight fit perfectly in our itinerary. Plus, we played the middle seat game and scored by having no one book the seat between us in the front row.

Staying in Da Nang, Vietnam

Hyatt Regency Danang Resort and Spa
3 nights
24,000 Ultimate Rewards points transferred to World of Hyatt points
1 Free Night Award

Hyatt Regency Danang Resort and Spa: Da Nang Resort Hyatt Regency Danang Resort and Spa: Da Nang Resort

Oh how I wished we could have stayed one more night in this glorious resort! I transferred 24,000 points from Chase Ultimate Rewards to Hyatt for 2 nights of our stay and utilized a free night award at the Hyatt Regency Danang Resort and Spa.

A majority of points earned are by using our Chase Sapphire and Chase Freedom cards. The points earned with Chase are Ultimate Rewards points and can be transferred 1:1 to many travel partners. We pay for nearly everything with these cards, utilizing their bonus categories. See my tips below on how to maximize. Then, because I have the Chase Hyatt credit card, I get 1 free night each year, which I utilized for this stay. It may not have been the best redemption because it costs “so few” points to stay here as compared to other Hyatt resorts. For instance, our regular stays at the the Hyatt Zilara Resort are 25,000 points/night. But, we don’t anticipate traveling a ton this year while I build my business, so I say, USE AWAY!

Flying to Siem Reap, Cambodia

DAD-HAN-REP
Vietnam Airlines, Economy
45,000 Delta SkyMiles
$62.40 taxes

The hubster and I have been “saving” our SkyMiles for quite a long time and honestly, they are getting impossible to redeem for a good value, as many travel hackers will tell you. The last time we redeemed SkyMiles was on our flight to Seoul, South Korea in the upper deck of their now retired 747. *Let’s pour one for the Queen of the Skies* We could have dropped close to $400 each to fly into Siem Reap, but we thought it was a good opportunity to use those SkyMiles. Plus, with my Delta Gold Medallion status, I get free lounge access on international flights, so we I did enjoy some bubbly.

Staying in Siem Reap, Cambodia

The Amazing Residence
2 nights
$76.80

The Amazing Residence Siem Reap Cambodia The Amazing Residence Siem Reap Cambodia

Our main goal was to see and explore Angkor Wat again, so we just were looking for a nice, clean place to lay our heads. We saw The Amazing Residence had a pool and were sold. You really can’t beat the rate and it was in a central part of town. Plus, their employees were so gosh dang friendly. It certainly made our stay.

Flying to the United States

REP-BKK
Bangkok Airways, Economy
$197.20

Siem Reap International Plaza Premium Lounge

If you do nothing in life except get the Citi Prestige Mastercard, you’ll be one happy camper when flying out of Siem Reap. With Citi Prestige, you are automatically given a Priority Pass Select membership which gives you lounge access in many airports. We really enjoyed Siem Reap International Airport’s Plaza Premium Lounge—it was easily my Top 5 of lounges I’ve been in.

We flew on Bangkok Airways, which is known as the “boutique airline” of Thailand. It was perfectly nice, except the flight attendant at check-in eye-balled my luggage that I was carrying-on and asked me to put it in the dreaded carry-on bag size tester on display. I knew it would fit because my bag not only fits domestic standards, but international as well. Meaning, I lose 1 inch of space each time I fly, just for moments like this when they want to test my travel prowess. I took my slim toiletries bag out of my luggage (which I keep in the front), put it in my backpack and watched that puppy slide right into the display. Passed with flying colors.

“Take that,” an immature world traveler thought to herself.

BKK-ICN-JFK
Asiana, Business Class
160,000 Ultimate Rewards Points transferred to United
$94.32 taxes

Business Class Asiana Airlines

From there, we had an 8-hour layover in Bangkok and had we not been so darn exhausted from hauling our butts around 3 countries, we would have left the airport to explore Bangkok again. But, instead we ate mango sticky rice and waited for check-in to open before we busted it to the lounge for bubbly. Are you sensing a trend?

We transferred 160,000 Ultimate Rewards points that we earned using our Chase Sapphire Preferred and Chase Freedom cards to United. United is a partner of Asiana and you can book directly on United.com if you find availability. The transfer usually happens immediately, so you can book right when they hit your account. I always recommend Asiana Business Class, it may not be as fancy-schmancy as some redemptions, but the hard product and customer service are always consistent and friendly.

Bottom Line

To give you an idea of how much a trip like this would cost, I’ve placed the approximate retail costs of each flight and hotel next to what we actually paid. Since I didn’t look at the actual prices the day I booked, the retail costs are a general average based on a basic search and other travel bloggers findings. Your mileage may vary, but it gives you a pretty dang good idea.

Travel for 2 Persons Approximate Retail Cost Paid
Cathay Pacific Business Class $8,500.00 $11.20
Intercontinental Hong Kong $600.00 $0.00
Conrad Hong Kong $950.00 $0.00
Cathay Dragon Economy $65.18 $65.18
Hilton Garden Inn Hanoi $200.00 $0.00
JetStar Economy $133.12 $133.12
Hyatt Regency Da Nang Vietnam $675.00 $0.00
Vietnam Airlines, Economy $62.40 $62.40
The Amazing Residence, Siem Reap $76.80 $76.80
Bangkok Airways, Economy $197.20 $197.20
Asiana Business Class $6,000.00 $94.32
Total $17,459.70 $640.22

Not bad, eh?

Award Travel Tips

  • Pay for everything with your miles-points earning credit card. Every-thing. Then pay off your balance at the end of the month. (Duh.)
  • Don’t immediately scoff at how many points we redeemed for this trip as something you could never possible spend in order to earn the points. You will be shocked at how quickly you earn points, especially with bonus categories.
  • Chase Sapphire Preferred gives you 2X points on all travel and dining. Chase Freedom gives you 5x the points for different categories each quarter. This quarter is grocery stores. Score!  
  • Having a lot of credit cards does not decrease your credit score.  Not paying them on time and carrying high balances does!
  • Sign up for hotel credit cards. Very often, they give you status and Free Reward Night Certificates for a nominal annual fee.
  • Have a trip or travel focus in mind. For the hubster and me, we like long-haul flights where we can lay down and sleep on our way to Asia. So we know the Chase Ultimate Rewards program is our sweet spot. But if you’re into family vacations to Disney, you may concentrate your spending on an airline credit card that allows you to redeem points to fly the fam for free.
  • You can see my favorite Miles and Points Programs here. I will be doing an updated post soon to show you what has or hasn’t changed for how we utilize award travel.

Please note: As many of you know, the hubster and I live 1400 miles apart temporarily. This total does not include our positioning flights because most (sane) couples live in the same state. I felt it would misrepresent the costs for a majority of people if it were included. But, in full disclosure and for your nosey information: We paid $331.90 in total for all of our positioning flights.

Traveling and seeing the world is possible. It simply depends on whether or not you make it a priority. Do you need to fly business class or stay at fancy hotels? Heck no! But when you can do it for free, we see the value in it. Our preferences and priorities have certainly changed over time and yours may be totally different. However you want to roll, just know that traveling tens of thousands of miles is away is something you can (and should) do.

What do you think? How did we do?

More Miles & Points Posts:

My Favorite Programs for Earning Miles and Points

The Basics of Earning Miles and Points

Hotels: How I Stayed in Fancy Hotels for 10 Nights for Under $400

Total Costs: Travel to Australia, New Zealand and Hong Kong

Airfare: How I Flew in Business Class to Australia, New Zealand and Hong Kong for Under $100

Filed Under: Cambodia, Hong Kong, Travel Hacking, Vietnam

Sneak Peek: Two Weeks, One Carry-on and a Full Itinerary

March 8, 2018 By Caroline Peterson

I’m back from the other side of the world!

Real talk: My mind and body are still 12 hours ahead. *cue the espresso*

It’s incredible what 2 straight weeks with your long-distance significant other can do for your heart and sanity. It was the most amount of time we’ve spent together in nearly 2 years. Let that sink in for a bit. And we only argued once while hiking Dragon’s Back Mountain in Hong Kong. After a 3 hour hike turned into 5. After my old foot injury started acting up. After it was balls hot. After we hadn’t eaten in 5 hours. And WE SURVIVED.

We did this trip a bit differently, not having each day planned out other than, “This sounds cool. Let’s do this.” But, man, it was pretty jam-packed from start to finish—and it was great!

Did I mention we paid less than $500 for hotels and flights and we flew business class there and back? Be patient, my little grasshoppers. I’ll show you in due time how we did it.

Here’s a small sneak peak of our itinerary to get your mouths watering before I blog about each city and country.

Flights

Business Class Asiana Airlines

On the way there, we flew Cathay Pacific from Chicago in business class on our 15 hour flight to Hong Kong. I had two 3-course meals, got to lay down to sleep and watched the Oscary-worthy, The Emjoji Movie. On our way home, we flew Asiana Airlines from Bangkok with a layover in Seoul, and then onto our 13 hour flight into New York. This time, I ate another two 3-course meals, laid down to sleep and watched real Oscar-worthy movies, The Darkest Hour and Dunkirk—which I highly recommend watching together in one night if you can.

Hong Kong

Intercontinental Hong Kong

We stayed 4 nights, splitting our stay between the Intercontinental Hong Kong and the Conrad Hong Kong. Both were spectacular. We explored Kowloon, ate enough Dim Sum to feed an army and, like I mentioned above, did a longer than expected hike of Dragon’s Back. Our last night we did a food tour with WithLocals and weaved our way in and out of local markets and restaurants. Oh yeah, this was after the hike too. I believe I had close to 30K steps that day. Feet, on fire!

Vietnam

Hanoi

Bahn Mi

We landed in Hanoi early in the morning after a quick flight from Hong Kong. We spent 3 nights at the Hilton Garden Inn, which is only a 15 minute walk from the Old Quarter, where all the fun stuff happens. Hanoi is a game of frogger—don’t look, just cross the street and the scooters will adjust their path around you. It took me 2 days to accept that I wasn’t going to die. We did a historical tour with HanoiKids and a street food tour with Intrepid. Can we talk about my newfound love of Banh Mi and Vietnamese coffee? (Sorry Cuba, Vietnam stole my coffee-loving heart.) Don’t worry, I’ll be diving into this perfect sandwich and coffee in further blogs.

Da Nang

Hyatt Regency Resort Danang

After an hour-ish flight from Hanoi, we landed in Central Vietnam in a coastal city called Da Nang. It was the prefect respite for us from the wonderful chaos of Hanoi. We stayed for 3 nights at the Hyatt Regency Resort Danang and honestly, we probably should have stayed another full night. It was glorious! Each day we’d take the shuttle into Hoi An, a UNESCO World Heritage city, to sample some local food (Cao Lau!) and get clothes made. YES! Hoi An is known for their tailoring. I bought 3 dresses and the hubster bought an entire new wardrobe. Keep your eyes peeled for an entire blog post dedicated to that experience.

Cambodia

Angkor Wat Siem Reap Cambodia

We booked our flight to Cambodia using whatever Delta SkyMiles we had left, which took us back through Hanoi and landed us in Siem Reap about an hour and a half later. It was great use of our miles and we barely lost any time to traveling. Cambodia will forever hold a special place in my heart because it was the first country we explored in Southeast Asia 4 years ago. We specifically came back to Siem Reap for 2 nights to further explore Angkor Wat, the largest religious complex in the world. We used the same thoughtful and generous tour guide, Tep Nat, who took us to quiet, off the beaten path temples that we would have never discovered on our own. If you want to feel like Indiana Jones, be sure to look for my next posts about exploring Angkor Wat.


Those 2 weeks were just what the doctor ordered. (Ha. Pun intended. Dr. Hubster.) I’m incredibly grateful to be able to travel the world and let little nooks of my heart and mind be forever changed by the cultures and people I meet.

What are you most excited to read about on Not Your Average Gal?

Filed Under: Cambodia, Hong Kong, Vietnam

Solo Travel: Feel the Fear and Do It Anyway

October 21, 2017 By Caroline Peterson

As a child, I was painfully shy. I can’t emphasize the word painfully enough. I stuck to my mom’s side so closely when we were out running errands that she would often accidentally step on me, or I would step on her shoes because I was tagging so closely behind. Once you got to know me, I was a bright, outgoing kid, with a cheeky sense of humor. But the outside world, with strangers and the chance of messing up and embarrassing myself? It petrified me.

Well, that grown up kid flew to Spain alone, met up with buddies, then explored Lisbon, Portugal by herself. About a year later, she hopped on a 10 hour flight from Auckland, New Zealand and flew to Hong Kong to explore the city alone, capping off a 12-day trip to Australia, New Zealand and Hong Kong. When I do travel with the hubster, he understands when I say I’m getting up early to snap some pics and grab a coffee alone.

There’s something soul-satisfying about traveling alone. I fully believe everyone should travel solo at least once in their lives.

Solo Travel: Feel The Fear and Do it Anyway
Lisbon, Portugal

Solo Travel: Feel The Fear and Do it Anyway
Barcelona, Spain

 

Fun fact: You will get scared.

There’s scene in the movie The Good Dinosaur where Butch, a T-Rex, and Arlo, a Brontosaurus, have a heartwarming exchange. What? Save your judgement for later. It’s a good flick! Arlo tells Butch he must not be scared because he stands up to bigger dinosaurs. Butch sort of laughs and replies in only the way someone with more experience can, “If you ain't scared, you ain't alive.”

I was so nervous stepping outside of my hotel in Lisbon, Portugal that I delayed it by a solid hour just moseying around my hotel room. I FaceTimed the hubby. I redid my hair. I double checked the bus schedule. I knew what I was doing, but I was scared.

Solo Travel: Feel The Fear and Do it Anyway

Solo Travel: Feel The Fear and Do it Anyway
Lisbon, Portugal

 

When you travel solo in a foreign country, you’re the one with the accent. When you’re the only blonde or western looking person in the bunch, you feel like the spotlight is on you. (The hubster and I were stopped twice in South Korea to have our pictures taken with total strangers.) Everything feels magnified. More often than not, though, people are more willing to help, or chat with you, or take your picture if they know you’re a tourist. They want to show off their little corner of the world, so they will be friendly. Feeling the fear and doing it anyway is essential to learning more about one another.

Some bloggers come across like they are fearless. They aren’t. They are just as nervous and fearful as the next normal person; don’t let the pretty pictures and captions convince you otherwise.

And you know what? In those first few heart-pounding moments alone, when you step outside your hotel, or off the subway or out of the taxi, you will be overflowing with a breathtaking, finger-tingling sense of being alive.

Cause, “If you ain't scared, you ain't alive.”

Solo Travel: Feel The Fear and Do it Anyway

Solo Travel: Feel The Fear and Do it Anyway
Hong Kong

 

You will do something embarrassing, and you’ll survive.

While in Hong Kong I took a food tour with Hello Hong Kong that would give even the snobbiest foodie wet dreams. It was magical. I finished the tour not only with a full belly, but also feeling inspired. I learned so much about the ins-and-outs of Hong Kong. I was staying at hotel in Kowloon, across the bay from Hong Kong Island where the tour started. In the morning, instead of taking the famous Star Ferry across the bay, I just took a taxi to get to the tour because I had just arrived the day before and wanted to get my bearings.

My friendly tour guide, Michael, walked with me back to the subway as he hopped on a train to get home and he pointed me to the ferry docks, right along the way for me to take the Star Ferry to my hotel. I must have misunderstood where the Star Ferry was located, as there are plenty of ferries that take you elsewhere around Hong Kong. I waited at a the wrong dock for probably a solid 45 minutes. I was completely alone, except for a few locals eating lunch that probably wondered what the hell this blonde chick was doing, standing alone, looking at her feet.

In the amount of time that I waited, the Star Ferry probably came and went 3 separate times (it’s a quick ride) before I decided to question whether or not I was in the right place. Duh, Caroline. I definitely wasn’t. I was flustered and embarrassed as I walked around the ferry terminal trying to figure out where the hell I was and which ferry to take. I could see my hotel across the bay—son of a nutcracker! I finally found where I was supposed to be going-the signage doesn’t always have English options-and bumped into a couple I heard speaking English. They were from Florida too! We chatted and I quickly forgot about my embarrassing 1 hour+ wasted. In fact, I ran into that friendly couple in the airport lounge on my way home. Serendipity.

Solo Travel: Feel The Fear and Do it Anyway

My favorite embarrassing story though was when I did a hop-on hop-off tour in Lisbon, Portugal. It started pouring, so I moseyed my way downstairs on the double decker bus and found the only empty seat next to an elderly woman who didn’t speak a lick of English. I know this because she pointed at the headphone jack for your cheap-o headphones to listen to the tour in your chosen language, and waved it away saying she didn’t want to use it.

So I just listened to the tour in my headphone jack, but in the meantime a British couple had joined the tour and with nowhere to sit, they just stood in the aisle chatting quietly with each other. As you know if you’re a reader here, I love all things British. This couple could have read me bedtime stories and I would have died happy.

They mentioned that they’d like to hear the actual tour, but with no seats available, they didn’t have a headphone jack. So I politely told them that they could just listen with the extra spot we had available in our row. Except I said it WITH A FULL-ON ENGLISH ACCENT. I don’t know where it came from, guys. I just, spit it out like I was full-fledged Brit who had just downed a pint and bangers and mash at lunch. I worried the entire time they would ask me where I was from, so much so that I got off the bus a stop early!

Solo Travel: Feel The Fear and Do it Anyway

Solo Travel: Feel The Fear and Do it Anyway
Hop-on, Hop-off Tours for the win!

 

You’re bound to do something embarrassing or be in an embarrassing situation while traveling, because it’s not home. It’s not your culture. It’s not your everyday life. Great news though, you’ll most likely never see these people again!

When in doubt, simply ask.

Learning how to ask if someone can speak English in the local language, is key. Lost? No signs in English? Look for a friendly face, smile and say “English?” You will find the more you travel, the better equipped you are to assess who to ask and who to avoid. More often than not, people are far more kind than you assume.

Making use of your hotel concierge or AirBnb host does wonders too! Explain you’re alone and they’ll be happy to provide you options of where to go and where to avoid.

Another awesome option I’ve used is to explore is Trip Advisor or Facebook groups. I usually look for what the best walking or food tour is in the area. I’ve met, hands down, the friendliest people on my food tours. Some have invited me out to gamble with them the next day on the island of Macau, some have met up with me at a bar later and some I’ve emailed afterwards.

Solo Travel: Feel The Fear and Do it Anyway Solo Travel: Feel The Fear and Do it Anyway

While not totally my jam when traveling alone, I know a ton of people who swear by going to a bar each night as a solo traveler. Bartenders are always willing to chat, most likely speak English and can usually, and accurately, tell you where to avoid going when you leave their bar.

I popped into a pub near my hotel when I arrived in Sydney, Australia. I was waiting for my friends to arrive the next day and just explored The Rocks area of Sydney by myself. At the pub, I ordered a cider for my jet lagged self and sort of stared into space, while readjusting my bar stool awkwardly several times. The bartender most definitely took pity on me, sitting by myself, on a Friday, during happy hour as most people were getting off work and meeting up with friends. She offered a warm smile, explained what food was good to order and talked to me a bit about the local cider I was drinking. That was it. That was all that was needed to calm my nerves. So I definitely get why people often say belly up to the bar as a solo traveler.

Solitude is good for the soul.

How many times a week or, heck, even a day do you say to yourself, “I just need time to think!” The hustle of our everyday grind is wearing on our souls. I am 100% not impressed with people who proudly wear a badge of honor that they’ve worked so hard they barely have time to piss (or call their wives or see their kids). It’s not impressive – it’s actually embarrassing our culture admires it.

Solo travel offers the solitude your mind needs. One of my favorite things in the entire world is quietly walking around a new city, camera in hand, shit-eating grin on my face, snapping photographs of everyday life in another culture. It’s almost a zen-like experience.

Solo Travel: Feel The Fear and Do it Anyway Solo Travel: Feel The Fear and Do it Anyway Solo Travel: Feel The Fear and Do it Anyway

Your inner namaste may be something different on your solo travel adventures. Here are few other things I’ve done: Sat by the beach reading a trashy book. Gone for a run early enough that the city is just waking up. Treated myself to a social-media-free dinner where I just sat…and ate. (Imagine that?) Shopped for the perfect Christmas gift along rows of sellers at local markets. Took a “junk boat” cruise (a type of ancient Chinese sailing ship) and sat quietly taking in the sites and sounds.

Solo Travel: Feel The Fear and Do it Anyway

You should travel solo at least once in your life.

When people ask why I go on solo adventures, my retort usually is, “Why not?” But for those who need a bit more than a sarcastic response, hear me out.

The confidence gained when traveling solo is life changing. And I don’t say that flippantly. When you get back from traveling alone, and life throws you the inevitable curve ball, you know you can handle it like a champ. For fucks sake, you just got back from a trip where you were lost and asked twice by a stranger if you wanted to “Smok-ah the marijuan-ah?” (I pretended I didn’t understand, Dad.)

You learn you can depend on yourself. No more asking for validation if your choice is correct. No more debating over making the wrong decision. It’s up to you and you alone, and you learn that you’re pretty darn capable of handling it all and depending on yourself.

Solo Travel: Feel The Fear and Do it Anyway
Morning run in Sydney, Australia

Solo Travel: Feel The Fear and Do it Anyway
A temple my concierge suggested in Hong Kong

 

When you travel alone, you’re keenly aware of your surroundings that you may otherwise miss with a group or travel buddy by your side. The hubster bought me a “Field Notes” notebook to take notes during my adventures. Looking back on them, I wrote the most incredible details that I probably would have missed or otherwise forgotten. As a solo traveler, you’re somewhat forced to pay attention to these minute details and human interactions. As an armchair sociologist, I love that!

If you’re scared, it’s okay. (Read above.)

If you claim you have no where to go, I shall throw an atlas in you general direction.

If you don’t have the money, utilize travel hacking as I have.

You don’t have to go to extremes and travel to Hong Kong (ah-hem), you can take a weekend trip nearby at a hotel or AirBnb.

You can take baby steps too. Next time you’re on vacation, go visit a museum alone. Go get coffee and sit in a park alone. Tell your hubby and kids mama wants to see the Target in that area and run free down the aisles!

You can do this! I promise.

Feel the fear and do it anyway.

 

Share your stories! Have you ever traveled (near or far) on your own? What did you love or hate about it?

Pin me!

 


Get some more solo travel inspiration from my favorite kind of Not Your Average Gals:

Adventures Around Asia

 

Young Adventuress

 

Be My Travel Muse

Filed Under: Australia, Hong Kong, Travel

Total Costs: Travel to Australia, New Zealand and Hong Kong

February 17, 2016 By Caroline Peterson

The biggest costs to any trip are usually airfare and hotels. I’m here to show you how those can be cut significantly, so you can easily take a quick round the world trip like I did recently to Australia, New Zealand and Hong Kong.

I wrote about the miles and points associated with flying and staying in hotels here:

Airfare: How I Flew in Business Class to Australia, New Zealand and Hong Kong for Under $100
Hotels: How I Stayed in Fancy Hotels for 10 Nights for Under $400

Flights:

FLL-ATL-LAX: Delta Economy – $179
LAX – SYD: Virgin Australia Business Class – 80,000 Delta Miles + $37.10 tax
SYD-AKL: Air New Zealand Economy $324
AKL – HKG: Cathay Pacific Business Class – 30,000 American Miles + $20.90
HKG – JFK: Asiana Airlines Business Class – 80,000 United Miles + $41.60
JFK-FLL: Delta First Class $397

Total: $999.60

Hotels:

Park Hyatt Sydney: 3 nights – 2 free-night certificates + 30,000 Ultimate Rewards points
New Zealand AirBnb: 2 nights – $127/each
Intercontinental Hong Kong: 3 nights - 120,000 IHG points (plus $240 for my upgrade)

Total: $367.00

FINAL COST: $1,366.60

Now, obviously there are costs associated with food and fun purchases like snazzy scarves you hastily buy because it was 60 degrees in Hong Kong and you are a full-blooded Floridian now so you were freezing.

hongkongtravelhacking

I digress… But since those costs are very particular to each person, I didn’t include them here.

If I desperately wanted to save more dolla dolla bills, I could have forgone the room upgrade, and perhaps planned a bit better and bought my ticket to New Zealand sooner. We paid a lot for that one-way ticket, but weren’t exactly proactive about finding flights in time.

Also, my flight from JFK-FLL was in paid first class because it was only $40 more than economy and I knew after a 15 hour flight from Hong Kong, I’d appreciate it. All of those costs could have been cut, but since I saved so much money in other areas, I was okay with spending it. That’s what’s so great about travel hacking!

The bulk of costs for any vacation are getting there and staying somewhere, I hope you took something from this to see that taking a major trip is a very real possibility if you plan it well and use miles and points.

Filed Under: Asia, Hong Kong, Travel, Travel Hacking

Hotels: How I Stayed in Fancy Hotels for 10 Nights for Under $400

January 13, 2016 By Caroline Peterson

I should have spent over $4,500 to stay in the hotels I fell asleep in during a wine-induced haze. But I spent less than $400. How? Take a looksie.

This is a series of Trip Reports where I'll breakdown the costs associated with airfare and hotels and how I pay for a significant portion of it with miles and points, like I did recently to Australia, New Zealand and Hong Kong.

Airfare: How I Flew In Business Class To Australia, New Zealand And Hong Kong For Under $100

So how did I stay in some fancy schmancy hotels for less 8% of what they cost?

What it cost:

Park Hyatt Sydney:
4 nights – 2 free-night certificates + 60,000 Ultimate Rewards points = FREE
Waiheke Island, New Zealand AirBnb:
2 nights = $127/per person
Rydges Auckland hotel:
1 night – AMEX Membership Rewards = FREE
Intercontinental Hong Kong:
3 nights - 150,000 IHG points + I upgraded at check-in and paid $80/night =$240
Total: $367

Brush up on The Basics of Earning Miles and Points, so you know how travel hacking works. Obviously, I spent some time sleeping overnight on planes during this 2 week vacation, but that wasn’t a problem because I flew in business class like a boss. (Did that sound as badass as I wanted it to? Good.)

What it should have cost:

Sydney Park Hyatt City Harbour View Room
Just a normal view from my balcony…

 

Sydney Park Hyatt: Park King (upgraded to City Harbour King due to my Hyatt Platinum status)

I used my 2 free night certificates I received after meeting the minimum spend on my Hyatt credit card. Plus, I transferred Ultimate Rewards Points to Hyatt for the remainder of the stay. Currently, this my most favorite hotel redemption so far. It was a spectacular hotel.

$941 AUD/night x 4 nights = $2,648.91 USD

 

Waiheke Island AirBnb
I was okay waking up here everyday.

 

Waiheke Island, New Zealand AirBnb: You know, a house.

This is sort of a no-brainer. $381 split between 3 wine-loving gals = bundles of New Zealand fun.

$381 USD

 

Screen Shot 2016-01-13 at 07.37.36
Source

 

Rydges Auckland hotel: Standard Double Room

My friend used her American Express Membership Rewards points to stay in this hotel overnight before we took off on separate paths for the remainder of our vacations. Plus, it was one of the few hotel rooms that had 2 double beds. Bizarre, right?

$264 NZD/night x 1 night = $173.68 USD

 

Intercontinental Hong Kong Harbour View Room
Harbour View Room of the stunning Hong Kong skyline. Light show every night!

 

Intercontinental Hong Kong: Harbour View Room

I used my IHG points that I accumulated through meeting the minimum spend on my Chase IHG credit card, as well as earning bonus points for being a Spire Elite (one of the statuses in their hotel program). In the end, I don’t regret paying cash to upgrade to a Harbour View room, but truth be told, I should have pushed the front desk staff more to get it for free. Even though I’m a Spire Elite (the highest status), I was just too nervous to come across as pushy. Oh well, lesson learned. In the end I only paid $240 for room that should have cost me over $1400. I’d call that a win!

$3,700 HKD/night x 3 nights = $1,430.37 USD
Total: $4,633.96

 

You can read more about my favorite credit cards to use  and decide for yourself which programs make the most sense for you. For this 2 week vacation, I’d say I did pretty dang good for the hotels.

If I were backpacking through Southeast Asia, using my points probably wouldn’t make as much sense since rooms cost $15.

It’s all in how you want to work your points for your needs. Sometimes people feel an obligation to stay at the best hotel for the best points redemption value and sure, that’s great and all, but in the end it’s what you need at that time and if it wasn’t the very best value, so what? You still got a great deal most likely!

In an upcoming post I’ll share the travel costs I paid out of pocket and the grand total associated with that. You’ll probably be surprised.

Filed Under: Australia, Australia-Oceania, Hong Kong, New Zealand, Travel, Travel Hacking

Airfare: How I Flew in Business Class to Australia, New Zealand and Hong Kong for Under $100

January 8, 2016 By Caroline Peterson

The biggest costs to any trip are usually airfare and hotels. So how in the world did I fly three 10+ hours flights, all in business class for under $100? Let me show you.

This is the first part in a series of Trip Reports where I’ll breakdown the costs associated with airfare and hotels and how I pay for a significant portion of it with miles and points, like I did recently to Australia, New Zealand and Hong Kong.

So how did I fly in glorious business/first class for under $100?

Here’s how:

LAX – SYD: Virgin Australia Business Class – 80,000 Delta Miles + $37.10 tax
AKL – HKG: Cathay Pacific Business Class – 30,000 American Miles + $20.90 tax
HKG – JFK: Asiana Airlines Business Class – 80,000 United Miles + $41.60 tax
Total: $99.60

I’m sure you’ve read up on The Basics of Earning Miles and Points, so you’re well versed in travel hacking, right? Obviously, staying at hotels and flying will earn you hotel and airline miles, but for those of us who aren’t jetsetting 24/7 just for funzies, travel hacking works.

I used Delta Skymiles that I’ve earned by flying with them for years, as well as miles earned on my Platinum Delta America Express to book a Virgin Australia business class ticket. Virgin Australia is a partner of Delta and easily bookable online on Delta.com.

Business Class in Virgin Australia...with, you know, a bar.
Business Class in Virgin Australia…with, you know, a bar.

 

I used American miles that I earned simply by meeting the minimum spend with the Citi AAdvantage Platinum Select card and AAdvantage Aviator card (formerly theThe US Airways Premier World MasterCard). Cathay Pacific is a OneWorld partner and was booked through American Airlines.

Note the headline on The Wall Street Journal...what shadow? From my stretched legs on Cathay Pacific?
Note the headline on The Wall Street Journal…what shadow? From my stretched legs on Cathay Pacific?

 

I used United miles that I earned through both my United MileagePlus Explorer card and my Chase Sapphire credit card to book on Asiana Airlines, which is a Star Alliance partner. You can easily transfer your Chase Ultimate Rewards points to United miles and book from there.

It was my own little apartment.
It was my own little apartment on Asiana.

 

As I mentioned previously, I utilized a great company to help me find my Cathay Pacific and Asiana Airlines flights. There was a $200 fee associated with it that I felt was well worth it, since I was flying around the holidays and Australia/New Zealand are notoriously hard award ticket routes. I could have booked all of these flights, meaning there wasn’t some special pricing I got by knowing a hidden website or password. I just didn’t know where to look and that’s where PointsPros helped me out. I highly recommend them and may post about my experience in the future.

Additionally, I also had to get to LAX, fly between SYD and AUK, as well as, you know, get home to FLL, so there were tickets that I paid for out of pocket that I will lay out for you in the final total of costs for a 2 week trip. Hint: All total, including hotels, was under $1500.

Do I have your attention now?

*maniacally raises eyebrows*

Still think travel is too expensive for you? Nah. With minimum effort and a lot of organization, you can easily travel in business class on three 10+ hour flights, for under $100.

Stay tuned to see how little I spent on hotels for this trip.

Filed Under: Australia, Hong Kong, New Zealand, Travel Hacking

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