My Travels

Headed out to Sin City for a quick weekend because of a timeshare deal with Hilton. On this trip, I flew Virgin America through my SPG points. With the news of a Marriott merger, I am looking to spend as much SPG points as possible and it was a fair exchange given that flights were around $300. For Superbowl weekend, Vegas gets pretty expensive fairly quickly. Checked into the Elara hotel late at night and opted to stay in and relax. I had booked a one bedroom suite but my friends had to cancel out at last minute. Went out to breakfast at the Earl of Sandwich  inside Planet Hollywood. I've always liked the Elara as it is conveniently located in the strip and attached to PH through the Miracle Mile Shops . After breakfast, went over to the Hilton timeshare folks and ended up upgrading my membership. Now I have to go on more vacations! Afterwards, went to dinner at Mastro's with some local friends. The service and food was as impeccable as ever. Grabbed an after dinner drin...

On this trip, I will be retiring my passport with a final international trip to Thailand. It looks like Thai Airways has left the U.S. market. So I flew on United and ANA to Bangkok via Narita. I have always enjoyed the ANA Lounge for its curry, karaage, and ramen.  Better booze selection than the United Club. Since I was flying economy on the way to Bangkok, it was a nice break foodwise. My flight connection to Koh Samui was twelve hours and I opted to stay at the new Le Meridien Bangkok Airport. I missed the airport shuttle due to poor choice of choosing the wrong exit for customs. An hour later, I grabbed a taxi to the hotel. It worked out since the taxi was half the cost of the airport shuttle. I'm not used to having to pay for transfer service from an airport hotel but maybe the Thais don't understand that concept. Le Meridien Suite Bathroom and Bedroom Le Meridien Suite Living Room The hotel was gorgeous. The service was on point and the breakfast buffet was...