[warrior01]

Just closed down the site and realised Alaska Airlines currently has a 100% bonus on purchasing miles, and they have Air Tahiti Nui as a redemption partner. So, you could fly direct from Tokyo to Papeete, Paris to PPT (via LAX), or Seattle to PPT. Lots of options if you use Alaska Atmos miles outright or combine Avios/Atmos flights to Tokyo/SEA/LAX.

[warrior01]

As Colin says above, you could get to Honolulu by Avios (BA/AA/IB/AS/AY combination through US airports), then AS/HA to Honolulu. From there you can get as close to Bora Bora on Avios as possible (Hawaiian to Papeete (the capital of French Polynesia), then a short hop on a cash fare to Bora Bora on either Air Moana or Air Tahiti. Look at both BA and QR to compare avios fares, as they differ.

If there is any way for you to earn/buy Alaska Airlines miles, they have really good redemption fares on Hawaiian right now, and no fuel surcharges.

[warrior01]

Have you tried their UK sales email? Like a lot of Asian airlines, everything seems to get routed via a central mailbox and they distribute it to the relevant teams – this one is at least going to be English-speaking (salesuk@ceair.com).

[warrior01]

focusonskill wrote:

warrior01 wrote:

Just buy ALL Accor+ Explorer membership each year (via a Philippines VPN) for little over £165 and you get instant gold, 2 free night vouchers in SE Asia, 50% off red hot rooms throughout the year, and restaurant discounts. I’ve got an episode of my podcast talking about this and other Accor hacks (with some deep dive episodes coming over the next few weeks): https://open.spotify.com/show/5r8TBgLJUvBUiTKBcMqe7j

I’m considering Accor+ Explorer membership for our upcoming trip to Singapore. Do you know if the 2 Stay Plus FREE Nights can be used on 2 back to back stays for a total of 4 nights?

I haven’t tried this, but Reddit posts suggest you can do back to back (kind of). You would need to do:
1 paid night + free night then 1 paid night + free night.

It will be a bit messy, but if it’s a higher end hotel, you’ll be getting a lot of value from the free nights (they can cover the more expensive nights too apparently).

[warrior01]

Skywalker wrote:

I take it you were able to get your situation with obtaining Accor Gold sorted @warrior01?

Yes, finally…. It seemed to be because I applied on Jan 1st and their systems hadn’t updated (so they say). All sorted after an email to a specific ALL+ Explorer email address and got a 2000 ALL points apology, so i’ll give them the benefit of the doubt this time.

[warrior01]

I once asked a QR agent about this. Take what they said with a pinch of salt, but they said the carrier imposed costs/tax that Qatar gets from often unsold First seats on regional flights is higher than an Economy seat, so they entice people to use avios for First seats to get more real cash in their coffers. Avios costs them very little if earned via BA (the most common route), Amex, etc.

That may be nonsense, but the only real users of First seats on regional flights, who pay cash, are wealthy Arabs. Moat average avios users are unaware of this option.

[warrior01]

Just buy ALL Accor+ Explorer membership each year (via a Philippines VPN) for little over £165 and you get instant gold, 2 free night vouchers in SE Asia, 50% off red hot rooms throughout the year, and restaurant discounts. I’ve got an episode of my podcast talking about this and other Accor hacks (with some deep dive episodes coming over the next few weeks): https://open.spotify.com/show/5r8TBgLJUvBUiTKBcMqe7j

[warrior01]

You also need to make sure you know the difference between co-pay and excess. If you choose co-pay of, say, 10%, your out of pocket costs can be a lot higher if you need to make a claim than a one off excess fee.

[warrior01]

Looks like you need an actual Lloyds current account. Unless im missing something, you can only log into their app with a Lloyds user number/name, and you can only book via their app. I’m with Halifax, but nothing on their app

[warrior01]

Cat wrote:

Go197 wrote:

Can’t believe I forgot to mention that my trip starts with the bit I’m most excited about: the United Airlines Micronesia Island Hopper!

Ooh @Go197, I’ve had my eye on that route for almost a decade now (but it’s not the easiest to do, when UK-based!). One day, please do report back on that one!

Goonerdad wrote:

How much leave do you all get? 🙂 🙂

@Goonerdad – I’m one of the few non-retirees with extensive travel plans – I’m a secondary school teacher with 13 weeks holiday a year. I make *extensive* use of that time!

warrior01 wrote:

3 – I really want to visit Mongolia and Japan, but I probably don’t have time/cash for both this year. I need to get some more Accor hotels in, so maybe Japan is the better option this time.

@warrior01 I posted a link to a few photos of Mongolia on this thread https://hfp2026mar.kinsta.cloud/forums/topic/retirement-2/ on page 1. It is *not* the place to go for chain hotels. If you go there, I highly recommend that you spend your time exploring the mountains and desserts, not Ulaanbaatar! Japan for the Accor status renewal, for sure!

I’m still loving these replies! I’ve been idly wondering about Uzbekistan for a while now, too…

I missed the thread previously with your Mongolia pics, but they’re amazing. I think you might have swayed me to Mongolia instead of Japan. I’ll squeeze in the Accors some other way across the year… here’s hoping MIAT joins oneworld this year to open up Avios options.

[warrior01]

Absolutely nothing firmed up just yet, which is unusual for me, but have had a recent bereavement and everything is up in the air (hopefully not being made redundant in a few months!) But I’ve got some trips in the planning.

1 – Hoping to take trains along the silk road in Uzbekistan. Tashkent-Samarkand-Bukhara-Khiva-Tashkent is the route I’m thinking, and trying to get all Accor hotels along the way to build into my status plans this year. I’ll be flying back home via QR with Avios with a stop over in Kuwait for a night. Have been wanting to revisit the Al Safwa lounge for a while, so a regional First flight should do it to Kuwait.
2 – Looking at island hopping in the South Pacific towards the end of the year. I’m open to ideas, but I really want to visit Vanuatu and Kiritimati and maybe Tonga/Samoa. I’ve bagged AA flights (economy, boo!) from HNL-LAX-ORD-LHR-NCL at the end of October for £158, so will need to hop to Honolulu from the South Pacific island I finish in.
3 – I really want to visit Mongolia and Japan, but I probably don’t have time/cash for both this year. I need to get some more Accor hotels in, so maybe Japan is the better option this time.

[warrior01]

I’ve had a mixed bag this year. Gutted about the low lights.

Low lights:
1 – Had to cancel a trip to South Africa, St Helena and Swaziland (all flights booked on Avios – incl. the hard-to-find Airlink return from JNB to St Helena.) Would have flown on the BA A380 both ways. Had a great Airbnb in the “mountains” above Jamestown booked, a lodge in Swaziland with a waterfall in the garden, and some things planned for SA. My dog needed urgent surgery after eating something silly a week before I was due to fly.
2 – Had to cancel a trip to Chilean Patagonia, Puerto Williams, ferry through the Patagonian fjords and 4 nights on Easter Island because of a bereavement 1 week before I was due to fly. Luckily I was able to get most things refunded, but still gutted.

High lights:
1 – Finally made it to Greenland. Pretty much had Ilulissat in winter all to myself, got lost in the Greenland wilderness and 3 husky puppies appeared and escorted me back to the settlement over about 3 hours of walking (no, I was not hallucinating!) and took the Arctic Umiaq Line ferry from Ilulissat to Nuuk and shared a cabin with an Inuit guy who chain smoked camel cigarettes and didn’t speak a word of English or Danish.
2 – Visited Transnistria without being arrested/questioned by the Russians.
3 – Made it to Moldova and was “kidnapped” by some travellers/gypsy women when I missed my marshrutka in rural Moldova. They were an interesting bunch of people who only spoke Russian.
4 – Took The Canadian train from Vancouver to Toronto over 4 nights. That was amazing, met some interesting people (incl. a guy who was a provincial MP in Alberta in the 80s who went around reminding everyone that he was a provincial MP in the 80s!), and got to see some of the most remote places in the Americas in the depths of winter.

Bring on train along the silk road in Uzbekistan, island hopping in the South Pacific, possibly Japan and Mongolia, and a £158 one way from Honolulu to Newcastle (via LAX, ORD and LHR) in 2026.

[warrior01]

Animal Friends do too. They’ve been great when my King Charles decided to eat the cap off vapes he found on the street that got stuck in his intestines (twice!) Quick to payout to the vet, friendly agents and they’ve even let us renew without a fee increase, despite the 10k claims we made on the previous policy!

[warrior01]

Not directly related to OP’s question, but I’ve recently had to deal with BA on my 2-4-1 voucher that was close to expiry. I was due to fly return from MAD with IB to SCL (to eventually travel on multi-night ferry through Patagonia, take the flight to Puerto Williams and then a few days in Easter Island), but my Grandma died suddenly the week before I was due to fly. Contacted BA with an explanation and the death certificate photo, no questions asked they extended the voucher by 4 months, refunded all of the Avios, despite the date of the outbound flight having passed. So they seem decent for these kinds of things.

[warrior01]

What Amx cards is this offer on? Not on my Business Gold or BAPP ones

[warrior01]

I’m not eligible apparently. Personal PayPal account, never had any issues, never used PP credit. Just getting an error message every time I try to get the card: ‘You are not eligible. Thank you for your interest’.

[warrior01]

Connor wrote:

Thanks for the trip report, I would love to visit Greenland sometime. Just how expensive is it? I remember being shocked at the price of things in Reykjavik pre Covid. I imagine Greenland is even more expensive?

It’s the 2nd most expensive place I’ve visited (Alaska is by far the most expensive!) A couple of random items that I bought at the supermarket blew my budget. An own brand loaf of bread was the equivalent of £5 and a standard size bag of jelly sweets (like haribo) was £12 in a local supermarket.

To be fair, hotels aren’t extortionate (when i went, around £86-100 per night), but even 4-stars were pretty bare with basic decor. Breakfasts tend to be a yoghurt and some packaged cheese, not much more. The nature is unmatched though, so you wouldn’t be in a hotel room much anyway.

[warrior01]

I let postcards picked at random decide my Swiss train trip. I started in Basel, trains to Zermatt, Chur and right around Zurich. With many hidden spots accessible using a Switzerland Eurail country pass (massive savings). I made a few videos for my YouTube channel that may give you some fun ideas of routes to take and the amazing scenery you’ll see. Check them out if you like:

https://m.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLA0KaJ2zwd2BB2fKG4o8VX8YUb_4BTGCi

[warrior01]

My RJ Gold has also just dropped to Silver. It has also resulted almost immediately in my seats booked on AY flights using the RJ number for end of August being unreserved, and on a few long haul IB and BA flights in November. I’m surprised their IT systems are this quick to pick up on the change!

[warrior01]

Ive gone for it. Status match approved from my RJ Gold Sparrow (which was status matched from a hotel membership – is due to expire in 2 days!)

I dont fly with Skyteam airlines much, but maybe this is my incentive to use AF/KLM a bit more in the next year. Worth it for a year and then I probably won’t bother when it expires.

[warrior01]

Don’t you eventually receive an email with a registration code from Priority Pass once the account is all set up? I only did it myself a few weeks ago, so I should know. Alas I’ve forgotten what happened!

[warrior01]

Is there anything written down about being able to access the Al Safwa lounge if you arrive on regional F and fly out on international Y (with a c.5 hour layover)? I’ve been refused access twice by showing both boarding passes. All on reward flights I should add.

The latest reason I was given was something along the lines of: If you arrive on Y and exit on F, that’s fine because you have paid for F. If you arrive on F but depart on Y, you are not eligible to use the lounge because only the departure flight gains access to a lounge. It’s very embarrassing being turned away at a lounge when some people in the queue have paid a fortune for the privilege.

[warrior01]

Jordiib wrote:

How do you check the points prices for partner airlines? I always get errors if I try to find award flghts on routes Virgin themselves don’t fly.

Ive found this too. I usually figure out which partner I want to check redemption rates on (was looking at LATAM… Spoiler, bad deal with VS points!) I google ‘redeem virgin points on [airline name]’ and click redeem on the page. There is a page of all VS redemption partners on the VS site that you cam click through, but I find that way never works.

[warrior01]

I saw someone (likely) from the Indian subcontinent taking a small TV and his wife/mother taking on a mini fridge filled with some kind of food into the cabin on J on QR from MAD – DOH. I assume they were flying on towards Asia somewhere from what I remember of their passport covers. No issues with that as far as I could see.

[warrior01]

I’ve never heard about this being possible. I’ll have c.12+ hours to JNB and back in mid May-early June on BA (economy!!), so I’ll give this a go and report back if nobody else does before then.