It’s turning into a big week for United Airlines. The carrier’s brand-new flight from Newark to Dubai touched down on Sunday, March 26, as part of a once-unthinkable partnership with Emirates Airline. Though the tie-up was first unveiled last September, the details about the partnership have been largely kept under wraps, aside from the introduction of United’s new long-haul route and codeshare opportunities. On Thursday, the two airlines announced some additional details about tie-up related to the passenger experience and loyalty perks. Here’s what you need to know. Want more airline-specifi ..read more

This month marked the ninth anniversary of the tragic and mysterious disappearance of MH370 — a Boeing 777 flying between Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, and Beijing on March 8, 2014. To this day, there is no solid explanation of what happened to the aircraft. The event is shrouded in confusion and controversy. How a piece of multimillion-dollar machinery and all its passengers and crew can disappear into thin air is the most perplexing element of the story. It’s a common belief that every aircraft appears as a little blip on the air traffic controller’s screen. You’ve probably seen a movie where that ..read more

You’ve spent weeks meticulously planning your vacation — everything from airfare and hotels to an itinerary. However, what do you do when something unexpected occurs and suddenly you can’t take your trip? Some purchase travel insurance. It can help you potentially avoid losing the thousands of dollars you spent on your vacation. But when is travel insurance worth buying? Here’s everything you need to know about travel insurance so you can decide if you should purchase a policy for your next trip. What is travel insurance? Travel insurance is coverage you can purchase to protect yourself from r ..read more

I never considered myself a nervous flyer until I flew from Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport (ORD) en route to Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta (ATL) for a story with my TPG colleague, aviation reporter Zach Griff, on Feb. 22. Even though we only had mild rain departing ORD, an ice and heavy rain storm afflicting the Midwest notably influenced my flight, DL 1178, heading south. About an hour in, it was clear that this would be the roughest flight of my life thus far, so much so that I turned to my seatmate to ask if he was concerned and started sending my last wishes to my loved ones. I even d ..read more

Fresh off losing Hyatt Globalist status in February and resigning myself to lower-level status with World of Hyatt, an amazing opportunity just presented itself. And you can get in on it too if you act fast. I’ve enrolled and you should as well. It’s the chance to get Hyatt’s top status until 2025! Related: What is World of Hyatt elite status worth? On top of that, with World of Hyatt’s Bonus Journeys promotion now underway, you can stack opportunities for earning extra points. For every two nights after your first stay during the promo period, you get 3,000 bonus points for up to 30 nigh ..read more

For the last few years, we’ve been saying that all-inclusive resorts are making a big comeback — and major brands such as Marriott, Hilton and Hyatt are working to revamp the experience to buck the idea that the know-what-you-pay-upfront style of vacation means bad food, tacky rooms and a lackluster experience. Hyatt, in particular, is one of the leading brands making changes in the space and, back in 2021, added more than 100 all-inclusive properties to its Inclusive Collection with the acquisition of Apple Leisure Group. But before that, Hyatt already had a handful of its own upscale all-inc ..read more

Whether you’re new to the credit card rewards space or you’ve used millions of points and miles to travel the globe, there’s a cardinal rule that every rewards enthusiast should follow: It’s essential to pay off your entire credit card balance each month. When you carry an outstanding credit card balance from one month to the next, it doesn’t take long for the interest charges you pay to wipe out the value of any rewards you might earn. Thanks to rising interest rates, carrying credit card debt is more expensive than it was in past. The average annual percentage rate on a credit card was more ..read more

“Massive seaweed blob invades Florida beaches!” “Huge, smelly snake of seaweed headed toward the Caribbean!” Though the headlines sound like something out of a 1950s horror movie, sargassum is reaching record levels this year, with some beaches already seeing large amounts of the brown seaweed washing ashore. Does sargassum have the potential to sour your seaside vacation in the coming months? TPG spoke with oceanography experts to find out. What is sargassum? JEFFREY M. SCHELL/SEA EDUCATION ASSOCIATION Sargassum is a large, brown seaweed – the common name for various species of marine plants ..read more

It’s official: Disney is making a play for the Asia cruise market. The vacation giant’s cruising arm, Disney Cruise Line, on Wednesday revealed that the massive, partly finished cruise ship it bought in November will eventually be based in Singapore for Southeast Asia voyages. The vessel, which remains unfinished at a shipyard in Germany, was originally ordered for Asia-based Dream Cruises, which collapsed in early 2022. Disney bought it from liquidators for the brand and plans to have it ready to sail by 2025. For more cruise news, guides and tips, sign up for TPG’s cruise newsletter The ship ..read more

Cue up the iconic theme song, because “The White Lotus” is reportedly heading to Thailand for its third season — and we have four leading candidates for the host hotel. The show — which is expected to explore themes of death and Eastern religion and spirituality — is set to move from Sicily to Southeast Asia in its third run, Variety reported this week. Since the show’s creators worked with Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts for the first two seasons, it’s only natural to think that the working relationship will continue in Thailand, where the company has four hotels.   Everyone is busy disc ..read more