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BA switches from BA Miles to Avios Points as its loyalty currency from November 2011

by Ajay 2 Comments

a close-up of a logo

The merger of British Airways and Iberia, which was agreed upon in April 2010, was obviously going to lead to synergies amongst the two carriers, but the mileage programs did not see it yet. And now, BA and Iberia have something to show on this aspect. Since both the carriers are going to operate under their own brands, so the Executive Club, BA’s loyalty program retains its name. But BA is promising to change the way you can earn and spend on BA. And it looks like it is taking feedback on the way. Here is a part of an email I just received from the Executive Club, We know how important the Executive Club is to our customers, and…

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Birdwatch: Photo # 2 (Air Macau)

by Ajay Leave A Comment

While all of you are trying to help me figure out which trip report comes up next for all of you, here is a picture of one of the most interesting liveries I’ve ever seen.  This is at the Beijing Capital Airport, a yellow colored Air Macau aircraft, leased back to parent Air China sitting on the tarmac ready to go (somewhere). It turned out this very interesting plane was my flight to HKG. 😛 Airline: Air Macau (leased to Air China) Location: Beijing Capital Airport Airframe: Airbus 321 If you want to share a picture of a plane, an airport, or anything aviation related, please send it across to aj@livefromalounge.com with the details and I’ll put it up here.…

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Help me decide which trip report to bring up next…

by Ajay 10 Comments

From my repertoire of trips made in the recent past, there are four of these which I’d really love to write down for all of you to read. Trouble is, I can’t seem to make up my mind on where to start! And this is where I need you all to help me prioritise all of these, or just tell me which ones you’d like to read first! Here goes…. 1) Colombo on Jet Airways and Taj Hotels Colombo  2) The USA via Brussels on Jet Airways, Delta Airlines and at the Hilton Hotels in Washington DC 3) South East Asia on Jet Airways, Singapore Airlines, Air China, Cathay Pacific and Holiday Inn, Intercontinental, W Hotel, Crowne Plaza  4) Western…

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Plaza Premium Lounge Delhi Domestic Terminal 3

by Ajay 3 Comments

Introduction & Trip Index After my hectic work trip got over, I had decided to spend the Saturday with my parents before returning to Mumbai (Bombay) on Sunday morning. Ideally, I’d have loved to spend the Sunday home also, but I was going to be gone for a long time on the upcoming weekend, and hence I was planning to pack up some gear on that particular Sunday and catch up with friends. With that thinking in mind, I was booked on a Sunday morning 8 AM flight to BOM. Yeah, a Sunday morning flight, when I’d ideally liked to have crashed at home. But Sunday flights can be fun, and this was proven again after a long while! However,…

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Its Promo season, and SPG asks you to Triple Up!

by Ajay 1 Comment

Right after I registered for the Priority Club Rewards promo, and blogged about it here a short while ago, I noticed that SPG had also announced the fall promo, valid right uptil a slice before Christmas/New Year on December 18, 2011. This one is called Triple Up! SPG has kept it simple this time: Registration necessary by November 15, 2011 at spg.com/tripleup. All stays between September 6, 2011 to December 18, 2011 will earn double points i.e., 4 SPG points per dollar spent (2x of 2 points per dollar spent). Additional 1 point per dollar depending upon your membership tier being Gold/Platinum. If you stayed the night of Thursday or Sunday as a part of your stay, you earn triple…

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‘Crack the Case’ inspires IHG Priority Club fall promo!

by Ajay Leave A Comment

The IHG Priority Club just announced its fall promotion valid from September 15, 2011 to December 31, 2011. This one is called a ‘Brand Multiplier‘ and seems to be inspired by the ‘Crack The Case‘ promotion that ran about a year back from PCR. ‘Crack the Case’ was a customized promotion and each participant selected by PCR was allocated a few tasks and on completion of each task, one would get a certain number of bonus points. My ‘latches’, as they were called, included one of staying at at least 4 different IHG brands in the promotion period and I’d be awarded 4400 bonus PCR points. So, that was one easy kill! This fall, PCR has taken inspiration from the…

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Get upto 1500 Priority Club Rewards points for shopping (outside the US)

by Ajay Leave A Comment

IHG Priority Club has launched an offer whereby one can earn upto 1500 Priority Club Rewards points for shopping at the Priority Club Shop at priorityclubshopping.com. The offer is valid uptil 15th September 2011, where for 3 eligible transactions, one can avail of 500 bonus PC points apart from the points credited for shopping on the online mall.   This one should be of interest to those who would be shipping products outside the USA, and works for me if I choose to ship some of these purchases into India. Storewide purchases are anywhere from 1 to 15-30 PCR point per USD purchase value. And looks like I can purchase Air France tickets from AF’s Canadian website and earn PCR…

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Parody on Star Mega Do 3

by Ajay Leave A Comment

I discovered this hilarious video parody today thanks to Randy’s tweet this morning. Hitler wants to fly on the Star Mega Do 3, and is worried he’ll not be able to fly with Randy because he does not have enough details on how things are progressing! Though I could not quite figure out the use of the ‘fair use’ phrase! I am sure he went on to say, “Hail Randy!” How I wish I was going to be there to witness both of them take the front row together of the Continental jet being chartered for the event! 😉 Apart from a pot shot on Hyatt and United, I love the part where he wonders about those pictures from Boeing.…

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SkyTeam courting Air India (a.k.a. the rebound after being dumped by *A)

by Ajay Leave A Comment

Air India may still have a shot at becoming an awesome airline, and that one is all thanks to joining the SkyTeam ***drum beats*** 😉 I am sure the people at Air India’s helm are watching a lot of “How I Met Your Mother”, and decided to act awesome in line with the Bro Code. After being embarrassed by the Star Alliance, who AI took 4 years to ‘comply’ with the membership conditions of, and then *A leaving them alone at the altar, the news reports are now talking of SkyTeam talking to the Government of India about inducting Air India into their alliance. Speculations were ripe about this as early as the beginning of August, as per the Centre…

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Is Jet Airways losing its golden touch?

by Ajay 3 Comments

About 24 hours ago, I got off my flight(s) with Jet Airways which brought me back from a hectic vacation in NYC, SEA and DCA to Mumbai. As usual, I took my favourite airline on the way back, to fly JFK-BRU-BOM in Jet Airways Business Class. The reason I have enjoyed my experiences in the front and the back of a Jet Airways flight is the eye for details, and the hospitable, welcome approach they have to flying rather than most other carriers. I’ve been used to their (very) good service over a period of time, and which is reason enough for me to stick to them as my preferred airline. And sometimes also go the extra mile to convert…

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