You might consider a 100,000-point welcome bonus on a new credit card to be a huge haul, and it is, but not all points balances are created equal. Business owners with significant monthly business expenses could find they are earning points even faster than they can redeem them with the right credit card. In the past, we’ve seen some impressive point balances from readers (and even TPG staffers), but this might be the largest yet. Here’s how you can spend millions of credit card points. Can you have too many travel rewards? TPG reader Larry M. contacted us looking for some advice on how to use ..read more

For centuries, dogs have been bred to work and perform specific tasks. For example, Pembroke Welsh corgis often work as herding dogs and were “once invaluable to farmers in Wales,” according to the American Kennel Club. These days, though, dogs that were originally hard at work are now frequently found hardly working. Like my own corgi, Splenda, whose “job” is helping me — one of TPG’s senior hotel reporters — to review luxurious pet-friendly hotels, like The Plaza in New York City. Ruff life, right? In Nashville, at the Bobby Hotel, there’s another type of job available to our four-legged fri ..read more

If you’re considering changing your Chase credit card, here’s an important step to consider before doing so. The Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card and Chase Sapphire Reserve® are two of our favorite travel credit cards at TPG, and both offer generous welcome bonuses: Chase Sapphire Preferred Card: Earn 60,000 bonus points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first three months from account opening. Chase Sapphire Reserve: Earn 60,000 bonus points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first three months from account opening. They both earn valuable Chase ..read more

Alaska Airlines is launching two new routes from its West Coast hubs and bringing back another it tried out last summer — but full time. The Seattle-based carrier announced Thursday that it will launch nonstop service from San Diego International Airport (SAN) to Harry Reed International Airport (LAS) in Las Vegas. Meanwhile, the carrier will also launch a new route from Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) to Tri-Cities Airport (PSC) in Pasco, Washington. Both routes will launch Oct. 1. Want more airline-specific news? Sign up for TPG’s free biweekly Aviation newsletter. Alaska’s new ..read more

A little more than two hours east of Los Angeles, Joshua Tree National Park is an otherworldly expanse covering nearly 800,000 acres in the high Mojave Desert. Here, majestic boulders mix with striking Joshua Trees, known for their spiky, spiny, twisty profile. These plants — which, fun fact, are not actually trees but succulents — are found only in California, Arizona, Nevada and Utah. This national park is arguably the best place to observe large, undisturbed clusters of them. With more than 3 million annual visitors, it’s within the top 10 most-visited national parks in the U.S., accor ..read more

[circuit type=review circuit_id=”20420174595″] Are you visiting Tokyo Disneyland and hoping to stay as close to the park as possible while still enjoying comfortable rooms and whimsical decor? The Tokyo Disneyland Hotel may be the best Tokyo Disney hotel for you. Here’s what a recent stay there was like. What it’s like at the Tokyo Disneyland Hotel The Tokyo Disneyland Hotel is directly off the Disney Resort Line Station (aka the monorail) and the entrance to Tokyo Disneyland. It feels like an extension of Main Street crossed with the Disney Grand Floridian Resort and Spa in Florida, thanks to ..read more

A proposed Oklahoma City skyscraper is now slated to go even higher in its push to become the new tallest building in the U.S. If — and that’s a major if — all goes according to plan, two Hyatt brands are slated to be a part of the broader complex, dubbed the Boardwalk at Bricktown. A 480-room Dream Hotel, a brand Hyatt acquired early last year, is one part of the project, along with a 1,907-foot residential tower that would be the tallest building in the country. A 14-story Unscripted hotel — a sub-brand within JdV by Hyatt that has another location in Durham, North Carolina — was previo ..read more

Travelers arriving in the U.S. from certain overseas destinations may soon be able to skip one of the biggest pain points of international travel: rechecking a bag and reclearing security before connecting to another flight. Delta Air Lines tells TPG it’s “working closely” with international and U.S. government authorities on a pilot program that would eliminate some security requirements for passengers arriving from an international flight. Want more aviation news? Sign up for TPG’s free biweekly Aviation newsletter. The pilot program would involve certain flights from Incheon Internatio ..read more

Before joining TPG in 2021, I was a newbie to the world of points and miles. Despite traveling frequently throughout the previous decade, I was oblivious to the benefits of loyalty programs or how straightforward it could be to earn points or miles for airfare and hotel stays. For the last few years, I’ve immersed myself in points and miles, keen to understand every facet and maximize the value I get from every trip I take or penny I spend. Fast forward three years and I’ve accrued a healthy stash of Avios and, until very recently, was also sitting pretty with British Airways Executive Club Si ..read more

Southwest Airlines is considering making major changes to its seating process. The airline is researching “transformational options” surrounding its storied single-class, open-cabin format, CEO Bob Jordan said Thursday, as the airline seeks to form new streams of revenue and boost existing ones. Want more airline-specific news? Sign up for TPG’s free biweekly Aviation newsletter. Speaking during an earnings conference call with investors and media, Jordan and other airline executives were purposefully vague about the possible changes, noting that they were studying customer preferences al ..read more