[TJ]

Good afternoon from the platinum wing lounge in Helsinki. First time here…it’s good but I much prefer the various F lounges at Heathrow, particularly when it comes to F&B.

[TJ]

We flew several flights with Indigo last year and had absolutely no issues. Newish planes and all on time. We took advantage of some add-ons to improve our experience such as priority boarding (fast forward) and booking the middle seat which worked like a dream.

We also registered for their loyalty scheme BluChip but currently you can’t use Bluchips outside of India…I suspect this will change at some stage.

[TJ]

@davefl Thanks for the info. I’ll take a look at the price and switch to Sixt if comparable. BA and RJ keep faffing around with my flight times so I’ll need to review my entire itinerary in any case.

[TJ]

@davefl From your updates it looks like you’ve had a great time overall. I’ll be travelling to Jordan next month. Currently have a car booked with Avis who have some poor reviews. I’d be interested to learn how you got on with Sixt.

[TJ]

We were lucky enough to have witnessed the Northern Lights at their peak yesterday having driven about 45mins north of Levi. One minute they were barely visible and the next covering the sky in a multi-coloured dance. Quite magical but incredibly cold at -25. My extremities are still recovering.

[TJ]

@LD27 and @redlilly I’m currently planning a trip to the Phillipines so very much looking forward to your updates.

[TJ]

@Dragonlady Nice to see that you are enjoying your trip. Our trip across India last year blew away many of the misconceptions we had. We will definitely go again and ensure Amritsar is on the agenda next time.

[TJ]

Good morning from a chilly Levi in Finland…currently -21. Still, clear skies meant the Northern Lights were in great form last night.

[TJ]

@strickers I’d go with LATAM if that’s their full fare, i.e. refundable. Otherwise BA is better option for flexibility/cancellations. Have you looked at Avianca? They have direct flights on certain days.

[TJ]

Good morning from the CX F lounge at T3. Arrived early to make the most of it today as sadly this might be my last visit with BA gold lapsing in a few months. Hopefully they will be some decent OW status matches soon.

[TJ]

Crediting to Virgin is a better option as I believe that some domestic routes are excluded from BA. Also, if you have status with both, Virgin gives you a status bonus and (a few) tier points.

[TJ]

tootsci wrote:

Can’t help with the first part, but for crediting where to credit is very out of date, the travel dealz site is much better.

Travel-Dealz.com now runs Where to Credit

[TJ]

This is a newly opened hotel I believe, so hopefully things will improve in the coming months.

[TJ]

It was warm when I stayed there just before Christmas but I was quite active in the pool. No jacuzzi but saunas in the changing rooms.

[TJ]

I received the same error message when I tried this morning but then it just seemed to register when I tried again and is now sitting in my promotions with the usual tracker. A disappointing promo if you are chasing elite nights.

[TJ]

@davefl Given the additional nights acquired with the debit card, I think that I will strive for Titanium this year. That said, as Platinum I’ve always managed to secure a suite if it’s available albeit it usually requires a conversation at check-in where the staff insist that there are no suites available until I show them that I can readily book one on the system!

[TJ]

The Boots landslide at T3 is still open for click & collect I believe.

[TJ]

BA Flyer IHG Stayer wrote:

You don’t want to be denied boarding due to the lack of the right vaccination and the necessary documentaion.

Sometimes the situation can change rapidly and/or is not covered by FCDO or other advisory websites. An example being to exit Costa Rica for travel to Colombia now requires a yellow fever certificate even though entry to Colombia has no such requirement. I had to insert a stopover in Panama to get around this additional hurdle.

[TJ]

davefl wrote:

NorthernLass wrote:

The FlightConnections website is very useful for narrowing down departures to specific airports.

I still maintain flightsfrom.com is far better and doesn’t nag you to pay for features that are very useful.

+1 It’s my go-to for flight connections.

[TJ]

NorthernLass wrote:

Hopefully someone can help with a query re ATL hotels (is @davefl around?) We will be arriving late at night with luggage in April and want the easiest option so we can get to bed asap! I have the Indigo booked but the most recent reviews are awful and it looks like you need to transfer to the domestic terminal and then summon their shuttle, which can take ages from our previous US experiences.

I read that there are hotels directly accessible via the SkyTrain – would this be a better option?

Last year we flew into ATL late and couldn’t find any IHG location near the airport which looked half decent. We ended up staying at the Atlanta Airport Marriott Gateway for safety and convenience (we were picking up a car the following day from the Rental Car Center). Both the hotel and the RCC are connected by the Skytrain but you have to catch a shuttle to get from the International Terminal to the Domestic Terminal first as the Skytrain and Marriott’s own shuttle goes from there. It’s really quite straightforward with hand luggage albeit a bit of a pain if you have lots of luggage.

[TJ]

2025 transactions are still available to boost on the desktop version of Avios.com

[TJ]

We recently came back from Colombia and covered most of the areas already mentioned.

Even though internal flights work well, if you only have 5 days I would just consider sticking to one or two areas max depending on the vibe that you are looking for. You can see the main sites in Bogotá in a full day. Medellin and Guatapé are a good choice but be prepared for lots of tourists at the latter. Cartagena is also a good choice if you don’t mind the heat…you can combine the culture and history of the walled city with a day or so on the beach (maybe even Rosario Islands which are quite nice). We also felt that the walled city had a slight feel of Havana minus the Hemingway-esque charm.

That said, if you have to fly to Quito then I believe the only direct flights are from Bogotá and Medellin so that will probably help you decide accordingly.

[TJ]

Hi @Charlie

Whilst it’s a lesser issue given the number of flights from LHR-DOH, does the Qatar calendar currently work in the same way as BA for multi-segment flights (e.g. for BA LHR-SYD I have to search LHR-SIN and then SIN-SYD separately)?

[TJ]

bh1 wrote:

Thanks for advise , could you swim in the sea @tj

You can but there were no beach facilities or beach club when we were there. They did have nice showers as you walk back into the hotel complex to wash off any sand. The St Regis would be a better choice if you are really focused on the beach.

[TJ]

We stayed at the W a few years back when it first opened and it was impressive….especially the restaurants. The pool area is very nice and the beach is adjacent but public. Nice for a stroll.