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ONLY FOUR MORE DAYS (!!!) until my round-the-world summer vacation with my friend Rosio! We’re heading to 8 countries in two weeks (gotta maximize that annual leave), and booked our flights and accommodations using a mix of loyalty points and money. We ended up with a nearly $37,000 trip for 2 that was booked with about 600,000 points and roughly $2,000. I’m so excited, and I want to share bit about the plan and how we booked it.Read More →

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Welcome to the fourth and last installment of my recap for my April trip to New Zealand! If you haven’t already, check out my previous post for part 3.  Auckland  → Bay of Islands → Auckland →Wellington→ Queenstown →Milford Sound → Aoraki Mount Cook → Christchurch →Auckland →Hobbiton → Auckland Aoraki/Mount Cook The bus ride to Aoraki Mount Cook was just under 5 hours, booked as part of my Intercity pass and turned out to be part of a GreatSights New Zealand tour. As far as I could tell, this meant a cushier bus and frequent stops to take photos of the (as always) beautiful scenery. In particular, Lake Pukaki nearRead More →

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Welcome to the third installment of my recap for my April trip to New Zealand! If you haven’t already, check out my previous post for part 2.  Auckland  → Bay of Islands → Auckland →Wellington → Queenstown →Milford Sound → Aoraki Mount Cook → Christchurch →Auckland →Hobbiton → Auckland On New Zealand’s South Island, I stepped off the plane in Queenstown and was immediately struck by how breathtaking the view was. I flew on one of those tiny planes that allow you to deplane from the back into open air, and the mountains in the distance were just gorgeous. My time in Queenstown and the surrounding areas wasRead More →

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Welcome to the second installment of my recap for my April trip to New Zealand! If you haven’t already, check out my previous post for part 1.  Auckland  → Bay of Islands → Auckland →Wellington → Queenstown →Milford Sound → Aoraki Mount Cook → Christchurch →Auckland →Hobbiton → Auckland Auckland After an easy bus ride back to Auckland, I stored my backpack in the super convenient locker at the bus station (less than $10 NZD), and went to do a bit of sightseeing.Read More →

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Last year on Cyber Monday, I stumbled on an unbelievable flight deal through United Airlines for Air New Zealand and bought a nonstop round-trip ticket to Auckland, New Zealand for $395. For context, a flight like this typically costs between $1100 and $1600, so $395 seemed extremely unlikely. Me being me, I bought it anyway, and then waited a to see if it would be cancelled (this is an actual thing that airlines are bizarrely allowed to do in the case of what’s called a “mistake fare”). A month or two later, my ticket was still sitting untouched in my United account, so I startedRead More →

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February is clearly the best month of the year (how could it be otherwise when it signals my entrance into the world?) and every year I try to make sure my birthday provides an occasion for everyone to recognize February’s awesomeness. This year’s flu season actually loosened its grip on me long enough to allow me to properly celebrate, so I headed off to Portland, Oregon. Originally, I didn’t plan to do much for my birthday, but then I remembered I now have the power of Southwest’s Companion Pass* at my disposal, and I couldn’t miss the chance to use it. Helloooo short getaway!Read More →