Americans, Take Notice – Australia Is Currently A Bargain For You!

Posted on January 26, 2015 by Tara

If anyone has read my series on birding in West Australia and Tasmania and wishing they could afford to come here but scared off by the high Aussie dollar, wait no more! The USD is especially strong right now but you never know when things could change. With the AA/US merger happening and the generous redemption rates currently in effect, this may be your year to visit Australia. If you haven’t bought that $5 Lonely Planet book, you still have 4 hours from now!

I also have a series about birding in Queensland coming up after I finish the Africa series.

Bad news for us Aussies but good news for Americans! Thankfully since we are only going to Southeast Asia & Cook Islands this year we won’t be too badly burned. I’m really glad we did the bulk of our travel last year!

A Major Weedout Of Hotel Programs

Posted on December 29, 2014 by Tara

If you saw yesterday’s post about the Radisson Blu in Port Elizabeth, you got a general idea of how having the right credit card can save you lots of money on accomodation. Mainstream travelers who mostly visit cities have a huge advantage over eco-tourists because they tend to stay in one city for a couple days at least. Maximizing the Club Carlson Visa assumes you want to stay in one hotel for at least 2 days. There are a few places around the world where there are good birding sites within a short drive of a Club Carlson property so you can take advantage of the freebies and not waste your time in a city when you would rather be in a rainforest lodge. The example of Port Elizabeth with the day trip to Birds of Eden is one such example, Panama City is another and I really saved a bundle in Tahiti when we had to wait 2 days for the next flight to Rimatara to see the beautiful Rimatara Lorikeets. We also made good use of the “get one night free” during our travels in Israel & Europe before we went to Tenerife for the World Parrot Conference at Loro Parque.

WHY DID I HAVE ALL THESE HOTEL POINTS ANYWAY?

Although I am by nature a “free agent” and prefer to choose hotels by location and convenience, not because of loyalty to one chain; between 2009-2011 I found myself a member of just about every hotel program in the book. Why? Because I wanted “hits” in the US Airways Grand Slam promo. This was the cheapest way to get a large number of miles with very little extra cost over what I would normally pay for something. I did direct a lot of our discretionary stays to these programs to get these “hits”.

Fast forward to 2012. Everyone in the miles & points community was expecting Grand Slam to happen again in the usual time of Sept-Nov. We painstakingly did surveys, played Facebook games and did Foursquare “check-ins” to get free hotel points. Well guess what? 2012 came and went and no Grand Slam. 2013 came and went, still no Grand Slam. And now US and AA are merging so there won’t ever be a Grand Slam again. I had all these hotel points and had to do something with them.

Since we usually stay in small eco-lodges in remote locations, we have very little use for hotel points other than what has been mentioned above. Mostly we use them at airports before or after a flight. After several devaluations were announced, I knew I had to spend these points asap before they were totally worthless.

2014 was my year for massive burning of hotel points. 100,000’s of Club Carlson were used as above. 100,000’s of IHG Rewards were burned in French Polynesia, Israel & Africa (actually this includes the annual Chase free night certificate). I used E-Rewards to top up Hilton just enough to get us 2 free nights in Mauritius and used Choice for one night pre-cruise at the Comfort Inn Diana in Venice, then sent the remaining points to United Airlines. Now here I am at the end of 2014 and the only hotel points I have left are about 25k in Club Carlson, 30k in IHG and about 12k in La Quinta from the Facebook game last year.

MAKING THE DECISION – WHO STAYS AND WHO GOES

Looking to 2015 and beyond, I now need to assess which hotel programs (if any) I will keep. I also need to know which hotel credit cards to get rid of. To do this, I used two maps made by Drew at Travel is Free. One for Club Carlson and one for IHG.

1. IHG is a keeper for the long run. The $49 for the card which gets a free night certificate is easily worth it. In any given year, we would need at least one stay at an airport hotel and IHG serves this market well. They have properties at most of the gateway cities we would be transiting to get to eco-lodges.

2. La Quinta is easy, there is one near my Mom’s house so I know what to do with them.

3. Hilton, Marriott, Hyatt, Choice, Best Western & Wyndham are either zeroed out or have a few orphaned points (less than 1000) and we won’t be needing any of these chains for the foreseeable future.

4. SPG is more valuable for airline transfers into otherwise difficult programs such as Flying Blue. I have the credit card because of the bonus but never use it because they have no category bonuses and they charge forex fees. Plus I can use my Aussie Amex to transfer into SPG so this card can go, but I will keep my SPG account active.

5. My Club Carlson Visa also comes up for renewal next month – $50 since I only have the basic card (silver status) not the more expensive one that gets gold status. Using Drew’s maps, I can easily see that the only places I want to go to that have Club Carlson properties are Puerto Rico and Trinidad. I can see spending 2 nights at the Puerto Rico one as it is within easy driving distance of El Yunque National Forest and the value of 2 nights is easily more than the $50 fee. This trip is planned for mid 2016 so will be bookable in Oct this year. In Trinidad, a trip planned for 2018, I would much prefer to stay at the Asa Wright Centre’s Lodge for the superb birding, even though it costs more than paying the card fee for 2 more years would cost. So the verdict is keep this card one more year, then cancel it.

SO WHERE WILL I BE BOOKING HOTELS?

By the end of next year, I will be down to only one program – IHG for the annual Chase certificate. SPG doesn’t count as it will be used for airline miles, not hotels. The best thing for me to do moving forward is use the hotel booking engines that GIVE airline miles, not COST hotel points. No more being stuck at inconvenient locations just to get a free night! On the plus side, many eco-lodges also can be booked with these engines.

POINTSHOUND – I use it for AA or Flying Blue miles. Has a wider variety of hotels than Rocketmiles and cheaper options. Using my referral link gets us both 250-1000 miles depending on what promo they are running.

ROCKETMILES – larger miles payouts but limited selection and sometimes hotels cost more so check carefully. Good for United or Flying Blue miles. Using my referral link gets us both a 1000 miles bonus.

HOTELS.COM – used if I would rather get 10 nights for one free night (value is average expenditure for the 10 paid nights). For example if we have 5 nights at a $150 hotel, 3 nights at a $50 hotel and 2 nights at a $100 hotel the total we spent for the 10 nights is $1100. The average for the 10 nights is $110 so that is the maximum value of my free night. It’s best to get as close as possible to that maximum value as you don’t get any left over value. If you choose a $125 hotel you pay the difference of $15. If you choose a $95 hotel, you forfeit the balance of the free night value of $15. You can always maximize by booking a larger/better room or a bed & breakfast rate. Sometimes they have good 5x bonuses in the Chase Ultimate Rewards Mall or Shop with Chase as they call it now. I haven’t seen a referral program for this company.

BOTTOM LINE

Having a good idea of where you want to travel in the next few years or even having a bucket list of ALL the places you want to go if you either get the miles or win the lottery helps you make wise choices in which hotel programs (if any) to participate in.

How To Save Money On Car Rentals In South Africa

Posted on December 24, 2014 by Tara

As one might expect, a continent as huge as Africa with all the amazing wildlife offers different types of safari experiences. In some countries, the infrastructure isn’t there for self drivers and you usually either have to join a group or hire a private car with driver. In later posts I will be blogging about the car/driver experience.

I’ve always been a more independent type and much prefer driving myself. I don’t like being in a group and I don’t like the feeling of being someone’s boss. South Africa is the ideal country to drive yourself in any of the wonderful national parks such as Kruger or to birding hotspots such as the Eastern Cape & Limpopo.

A few hours spent doing research at home can save you lots of money and hassle with your rental car. Here are some of my best tips.

1. Check each car rental company individually using the same dates and car type. Some of the major companies you will find are Hertz, Avis, Budget, Thrifty, Tempest, First and Europcar. Don’t forget to check the local version of the franchise’s website for example www.hertz.com and www.hertz.co.za. Take note of what insurance is included and what the

2. Check all-inclusive companies such as Holiday Autos, Driveaway. They sometimes have great deals that include insurance that are cheaper than what is offered on the companies’ websites.

3. Decide if you want full insurance, usually called “Supercover” or similar in South Africa or do you want to rely on your credit card’s insurance. The credit card may save you money but if you ding the car you may have a few headaches to sort out getting the matter settled. In my case, I decided it was worth a few extra dollars/rand for the peace of mind.

4. Look for specials offered to foreign tourists that include Supercover. Here is an example from Avis (and the one I ended up booking).

Be sure to select the Super Waiver option in your quote.

Check that the quote includes everything you want. I needed an automatic car, unlimited mileage (never rent a car without unlimited mileage in South Africa) and the liability has been reduced by the super cover to around $465 AUD.

Without the Super Waiver you save $16 AUD but you are on the hook for $2300 AUD if you have an accident! When you pick up the car you will be offered tyre & windscreen cover for a nominal $2-ish a day. I took it as there is a good chance we could have had a flat tyre or a rock thrown up by a truck that cracked the windscreen.

5. Once you are satisfied after checking every possible booking site for your car, go ahead and book it. Don’t forget to add your frequent flyer number if you have booked direct with a supplier.

6. Just because I reduced the liability from $2300 AUD to $465 doesn’t mean I want to pay it. When we picked up the car, I made a big show of circling the car, taking detailed photos (one of which had the employee in the background) and questioning any slight scratch or ding. This helps to avoid problems when returning the car. I never return cars after hours, I always have an employee check the car in and give me an “all clear” receipt. If we have an early morning flight, I would rather return the car the night before than drop it off before the office opens in the morning. I also want to be sure the petrol stations are open so I can refuel the car.

This all might sound like a ton of work but a few hours of research can help you get the best deal for your needs and also save you a lot of hassles when returning the car! South Africa is a pleasure to drive in with well-maintained roads and lots of wildlife reserves to explore!

Top 10 Cheapest Countries For Birding

Posted on November 5, 2014 by Tara

I used the recent Price of Travel list “124 World cities ranked from cheapest to most expensive: Backpacker Index for 2014” to figure out which countries are the cheapest overall to go birding in. The lower cost of living translates into cheaper public transport, accommodation, food and guide fees. Of course that doesn’t mean there aren’t more luxurious and expensive options in these countries as well, but it’s nice to know you can go birding with a backpacker budget!

1. Nepal
2. Vietnam
3. Thailand
4. India
5. Laos
6. Bolivia
7. Ecuador
8. Sri Lanka
9. Indonesia
10. Peru

The good news is that you can use miles to get to all these countries. See my guides on South-east Asia, Central Asia & Peru for rough ideas.

Papeete On A Budget (And Where To Splurge)

Posted on August 9, 2014 by Tara

You don’t often see those two words in the same sentence! But believe it or not, it is possible to save money in Papeete by doing what the locals do!

1. Locals use the buses. Unfortunately the colourful “Le Trucks” have disappeared and been replaced by normal buses. Bus fares from the airport to the town centre or Intercontinental will be around 200 XPF and a bit more to the Radisson. Weekdays, buses operate roughly every 15 to 30 minutes from around 5am until about 5.30pm. If you are staying at the Intercontinental, the Pape’ete-Faa’a-Outumaoro line supposedly operates 24 hours but in reality gets very quiet after 10pm. We did manage to get this bus to the airport at 5am but since we only had backpacks we would have walked otherwise. Sunday services are less frequent.

2. Locals eat at the Grande Marche or in the evening at the roulottes. Hotel food is really expensive and you’ve probably seen other blogs talking about $50 breakfasts and $100 dinners. You can save a bundle by visiting the food stalls at the market and buying sandwiches or plates of food to bring back to your room. We also brought packets of Crystal Light to mix with water rather than paying $5 for a bottle of soft drink. Here’s an idea of what to look for at the marche.

If you are feeling festive or planning on attending an island night (luau) you can buy leis just outside. The cheapest pareus (sarongs) are also found on the sidewalk outside the market but it’s cash only!

There are a few jewelry stalls near the tourist office.

3. Free maps and booklets at the Tourist Office.

4. Souvenirs are cheaper in the grande marche or just outside and some shops take credit cards.

LAST BUT NOT LEAST – THE SPLURGE!

I really wish I could have afforded these beautiful bird paintings on wood but they started at around $300! Yikes!

There are some nicer wood carvings and other objets d’art near the Place Vaima. You can also get a SIM card for your cell phone.

We got to see the Miss Tahiti crown on display as the pageant was happening the week after we left. Nearby, you can find some Tahitian haute couture!

Auckland Airport Overnighter – On The Cheap

Posted on July 11, 2014 by Tara

During our recent French Polynesian adventure, ramen noodles weren’t the only cost cutting measure we had to take. Sometimes transit times between Australia and the Pacific Islands can be terrible, even requiring an overnight stay. Lounges close around midnight and reopen for the first international flight of the morning, around 5am-ish. So no matter what class you are traveling in, you will be kicked out for a few hours in any case.

Depending on how long the layover is, you could go to a hotel in the airport vicinity and maybe have a morning of sightseeing. Be aware that not all airport hotels have free courtesy shuttles. My usual go-to brand, IHG charges $6 one way on top of the cash or points for the room so that’s $24 round trip+ for a couple. That may not sound like a fortune, but it’s a savings if you need to get the budget down a bit.

I did have a look through Trip Advisor and saw quite a few reports about people having pre-booked airport hotels and then the shuttle didn’t show up or they had to fork out for a taxi.

Fortunately the Auckland airport is safe and comfortable if you want to just stay airside overnight. If your flight arrives after 11pm, the transit security probably won’t be manned so you have to use a phone near the door to call them down to let you in. Don’t bring any duty-free or lags as they will take them away.

There are couches where you can stretch out on the lower shopping level and various options for food ranging from Burger King to various cafes and bars. They keep the lights on all night but I used a sarong wrapped around my head to block the light and my backpack as a pillow.

You can get 30 minutes of free internet per device. I tried deleting the cookies and using a different email, it didn’t work so it still manages to keep you limited unless you want to pay for more minutes. I had downloaded some movies and books so I had plenty to do while waiting. This isn’t the first time we did this, we usually get stuck overnight when traveling to Rarotonga or Papeete but this was the first time we didn’t have lounge access since I got heavily into the miles and points game. Air New Zealand used to be more generous with J class award seats.

It may not be the most comfortable night you will ever spend but overnighting in Auckland on the cheap is definitely survivable!

Make Your Own Passport Photos

Posted on May 9, 2014 by Tara

It’s that time, 9 1/2 years of travel have whizzed by and it’s time to renew our passports. Remember most countries require you have 6 months left on validity. That means taking the dreaded photo that usually makes us look like wanted criminals. But no more! You can save a bundle and have much more control over your passport photos with Make Passport Photos.

STEP 1

Find out the requirements for your country.

Here are a few for English speaking countries.

If your country isn’t in the drop down menu (such as New Zealand), then use a country which has the same size. Kiwis can use the Australian photo sizer. You may also be able to upload your photo to the passport application online.

STEP 2

Take your own photo using the required white/light background. This is where you can take your time, take lots of slightly different poses and hairstyles. Get it right, you will have to look at it for the next 10 years!

STEP 3

Upload it to the program and use their cropping tool in conjunction with your country’s photo requirement example page to get the right size.

STEP 4

Download it to your computer, copy it to a flash drive and print anywhere you like for just a few cents! Print a few copies so you have some on hand the next time you need a visa for someplace.

Congratulations, you have the best possible passport photo at the lowest possible cost!

Alert: Possible Savings On British Airways Flights For US Dividend Miles Going Away

Posted on April 30, 2014 by Tara

I have already blogged about US Airways leaving Star Alliance and joining OneWorld. This means that awards to certain destinations popular with eco-tourists now have to be booked with British Airways as they are the only OneWorld partner flying there. Typical routes affected would be:

Europe to Central/South America (you can use Iberia or LAN on some of these)
North America/Europe to Africa
Europe to Asia or Australia

British Airways adds exorbitant fuel surcharges to its awards. Up to now there has been a glitch in which the YQ fuel surcharge has not been added. Just this morning, a major US-based blogger (TPG) who is monitored by the airlines blogged about the glitch. It is now just a matter of time that US Airways will shut it down and start adding YQ charges. If you are planning an award that involves British Airways, NOW is the time to book it! Here is an example of what it looks like:

Search on Chicago to Johannesburg

The fuel surcharge on this ticket is highlighted in yellow.

Currently US Airways is not charging this YQ tax. You still have to pay the gov’t taxes regardless of how you buy the ticket.

If you want to go to South Africa and need to use British Airways, you can currently save the $500 – that buys a few days of safaris! Once the glitch is fixed, which most people think will happen within a day or two, you will have to pay the $500 even when redeeming an award.

Bottom line: If your dream award using US Dividend Miles involves British Airways, book now, don’t delay!

Best Boxing Day Sales For Eco-Tourists

Posted on December 26, 2013 by Tara

If you are based in Australia, Wotif.com has a Boxing Day sale on flights. Bali, Fiji & Hawaii are RETURN fare prices! Ends 3 January.

Since many of those cheap fares will be carry on bags only, why not maximize your carry on capabilities with a Scottevest? If you don’t live in the USA, now is the time to enjoy 50% off international shipping until 31 Dec. Check the SALE tab as they have a new product discounted every day!

Finally, since you may want to read up on your destination, Lonely Planet is offering all ebooks on sale! Using ebooks instead of paper books is a very GREEN thing to do!

Full Speed Ahead With Amex Shop Small – Australia

Posted on November 25, 2013 by Tara

The details on how to register and use this promo are in my first post. This is an update as to how it has been working. It’s not too late, you still have until 30 Nov to shop at one of the designated shops. The Aussie promo is a bit different from the USA one as they only get one $10 credit per Amex card but they don’t have to spend $20 at the store. We get up to $50 per card but we have to spend $100 to get it so it’s basically getting stuff half price. Buy stuff you normally use at small shops that are listed on the site.

Warning, the map tool is out of date and I went to several shops that don’t take Amex or have changed name or ownership.

The best thing is you get a confirmation email each time you use a registered Amex card, makes it very easy to keep track!

LOOK FORWARD TO A LITTLE SOMETHING

IN YOUR ACCOUNT.

Thanks for using your Registered Card ending in xxxxx to Shop Small.

You can still get 2 more $10 statement credits by continuing to Shop Small in November. You have received $30 so far and can get another $20.

But hurry! Shop Small is only running until the end of November. So support your local businesses now – and add another credit back into your account.

Statement credits may take up to 8 weeks to issue but generally, it should be credited within 5 business days.

You can find out which businesses in your area are participating via our Shop Small map.

Where to Shop Small in your neighbourhood.

To view the full offer details, and terms and conditions, please visit www.shopsmallaustralia.com

Thanks.
American Express

Remember you can use each Amex card you registered at 5 different designated shops. You can also use different Amex cards at the same shop. I have been having trouble finding grocery stores to stock up on non-perishable food. Pharmacies are good if you want to stock up on meds & toiletries. Also try small hardware stores if you have any home renovations to do.

Miles To The Wild

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Category Archives: Saving Money