Etihad Guest, the frequent flyer program of Etihad Airways, is offering a tier match to their Gold tier (second from top-most) and inviting people to apply for the status match till March 15, 2015. Etihad has long been offering status matches to Gold Elite tier, at least once a year. If you are in India and have a Citibank Prestige card, you anyways have an assured access to an Etihad Gold account, but if you don’t you should continue reading. Etihad Guest is a beneficial program for Indian frequent flyers, who travel on Jet Airways. Reciprocal benefits are available and you can use Etihad Guest miles to travel around India. The program works best in case you are a frequent…
JetPrivilege Platinum? You may bring a guest along to the lounge
Jet Airways withdrew the access for a +1 guest for higher end elites in 2011. Before 2012, the policy for lounge access used to allow JP Platinum members to bring 1 guest along to the lounge, regardless of the fact if the Platinum member was flying Economy or Business class. As a not so frequent flyer then, I used to benefit travelling with my colleagues at that point of time who were Platinum tier members. However, with effect from February 16, 2015, Jet Airways has reinstated this benefit for Platinum tier members. Which means, Jet Airways Platinum tier members can now help a family member/friend/colleague into the lounge along with them as well. Do remember however, that this lounge access…
Review: JW Marriott Mussoorie Walnut Grove Resort & Spa
We spend a leisurely weekend in the hills at the JW Marriott Resort & Spa in Mussoorie. This is a beautiful resort that has two great things about them; First, they managed to build a great team with a majority of staff being local. Second, their focus on the local economy. Local cooks were hired on a part time basis to bring local flavors to the cuisine.
This is a hotel I’d love coming back to, more than once. And I hope they keep their standar
Etihad Guest 25% bonus miles on Amex Membership Reward conversion
Etihad Airways is offering a 25% bonus on conversion of your Membership Rewards points to Etihad Guest miles, in case the transfer is completed between February 11, 2015 and March 11, 2015. The usual rate for conversion is 2 Membership Reward points = 1 Etihad Guest mile, but with this conversion bonus built in, it comes down to 1.6 MR = 1 Etihad Guest miles. Etihad Guest is a very useful program for Indian frequent flyers, given their partnership with Jet Airways. So if you’ve been looking to convert those Membership Rewards points, right now is a great time to start. Here are the terms & conditions of the promotion: Etihad Guest Miles transferred may take up to 7 days…
When Air India did its job and got flak for it!
There is a video making the rounds these days, where Air India employees are putting up with passengers who arrived late and the flight was closed. This is a video which was shot at Mumbai’s Terminal 2 a few days ago, with a camera smartphone and uploaded to a social network for maximum impact. Apparently, a bunch of passengers arrived at Terminal 2, Mumbai, 55 minutes before the flight. For Air India, they operate a few flights from Terminal 2 at this moment, but these are domestic legs of international flights. For instance, very clearly mentioned on their website, is this information: Assuming the passengers arrived at Terminal 2 and not Terminal 1A, which is at least 20 minutes away…
Vistara offering 2x Club Vistara points to try out Premium Economy
Vistara launched a new product in the Indian domestic aviation market, which is the Premium Economy cabin, and was never seen in Indian aviation before. However, initial feedback has not seen enough great reviews and the travellers have found it to be a glorified Economy Plus rather than Premium Economy. You can read my review of the inaugural flight here. To encourage more people to try out the Premium Economy offering, Vistara is now offering 2x points on Club Vistara to passengers who fly on Premium Economy between February 5, 2015 to March 5, 2015. Here is how Club Vistara earning and burning works. All Premium Economy flights across the network are eligible for the offer, and the promotional bonus…
Is Jet Airways doing the ‘Return of the Tamarind Candy’ all wrong?
Long long time ago, a staple fixture on all the Jet Airways’ flights was a little basket full of tamarind candies, along with cotton for ear plugs. I never could have enough of them, and that was one of the things that went away when the economy went rough, and Jet Airways had to pick things to cut off from their in-flight experience. Now, as a part of the revamp of the airline, Jet Airways brought back meal service on all flights. Some short flights you get a cold sandwich, on long flights you get a hot meal. But the candy is back, and it has been staring me in my face on almost every flight since December 2014 I’ve…
Le Meridian Mahabaleshwar puts off opening by another month
There are two resort properties I have been very interested in recently. One is the JW Marriott Mussoorie Walnut Grove Resort & Spa, which I visited the last weekend, and the other is the Le Meridien Mahabaleshwar Resort, which was due to open March 1, 2015. The reasoning is the same, these resorts are the first entries of these marquee brands in the luxury hill station resort segment in India, and I’d love to figure out how they bring a difference to the earlier experience. Anyhow, I was very excited to go to over to the new upcoming resort in the coming month, however I then received the dreaded email yesterday: You see, I had reservations there, and there is…
Back at the Lounge: February 15, 2015
Hello from Mumbai, I am just back from a lovely 2 days in Mussoorie. I hope all of you enjoyed the big cricket match at the Cricket World Cup today. Here is a recap of the posts from last week, just in case you missed something: The Novice Perspective Shipra, the first contributor to the blog, wrote this morning about how she was learning the ropes of maximising hotel loyalty programs. Jet Privilege JetPrivilege is on a roll! They just made it easier to get you elite status, without taking away anything! I wonder when is JetPrivilege announcing a counter offer to Vistara’s new flights. Air India Flying Returns Air India Flying Returns is giving away a free ticket on…
The Novice Perspective: Benefiting from hotel loyalty programs
Shipra is my fiancée and the first of contributors at the blog. She has worked with one of the largest airline conglomerates in the world, and is now based in Mumbai. Shipra has lived, worked and travelled across 4 continents. We travel often enough, together and separately. These are her perspectives, as she gets used to the world of business and leisure travel and our hobby! The Novice Perspective: Initiating my Fiancée to Points & Miles The Novice Perspective: Getting used to Airport Lounges Brace yourself, for this is going to be a long one. My first holiday with Ajay in Goa almost led to a break up. Ajay asked me to choose a property to book and I opted…
JW Marriott Mussoorie Walnut Grove: I am floored!
Hello folks, and happy Hallmark day to all of you. I have to admit, I am a sucker for high end resorts, but ever since Hilton left me high and dry in Shillim a year and a half ago, I was not giving them much leeway to disappoint me again. A few months ago, JW Marriott opened a resort in Mussoorie, a hill station I am sure everyone who is in India and loves to travel has been to at some time or the other in their lives. Except, this one is the first 5 Star property in this part of the world. I arrived here yesterday for a short stay. After all, I have places to go and not…
