Trip Report: Our Honeymoon to Europe (or, We're Just Insane)

In conjunction with AirlineReporter.com

Background info: My wife Kat and I were married last October 2014. We met at an airport, I even proposed at an airport. We're both definitely travel nuts... I mean, just look at our cake!

One of our wedding cakes, courtesy of our amazingly talented friend,
Elly Artiz of Cakes by Elly!

We've already traveled short and long haul together, so it was natural that we wanted to go all out on our honeymoon.

We decided pretty early on that we'd postpone our honeymoon until this summer, because Europe was our first choice, but we didn't really want a depressing winter honeymoon. We had considered going to South America so that it would be summertime there, but some of the political and economic instability had made us hesitant, and the excess visa/reciprocal fees for US citizens (almost $1,000 just to be able to visit the countries we wanted) would eat into our budget. Finding a super deal on Air France's Airbus A380 in premium economy to Paris, then onto Istanbul, sealed the deal. We had to fly out of San Francisco, but that's no biggie for us.

Air France's Premium Economy section on their Airbus A380. Source: Air France

We really weren't going to spend too much time in Istanbul, but it got us close enough to travel to other parts of Europe, especially to where it would be "exotic" to us. Plus, our US passports gave us visa-free entry into most countries (the only exception was Turkey, and that was a mere $20/person fee for multiple entries).

Kat knew what she was getting into (#FFNerd- and #AVGeek-wise) by marrying me, and thankfully she trusted me enough to give me the green light and go along with building an insane flight itinerary.

It took about a month's worth of researching and planning on where to go and what flights were available, but we were able to use some United miles (gifted by my parents... thanks, Mom & Dad!) to book the following award flights on their Star Alliance partners:

• Istanbul to Vienna on Turkish
• Vienna to Budapest on Austrian
• Budapest to Hamburg on Germanwings
• Hamburg to Geneva on Germanwings
• Zurich to Paris on Swiss
• Paris to Dubrovnik on Croatia
• Dubrovnik to Athens on Olympic
• Athens to Istanbul on Turkish Aegean (I'll explain later)

Route map of our award flights, courtesy of Great Circle Mapper.

Eight flights for just 30K miles roundtrip, the intra-Europe "saver" economy level roundtrip award for each person. I definitely feel like I got a great return for the miles. Knowing the intricate rules for United's awards definitely helped, as I basically planned a "simple" open-jawed round-trip with multiple connections to get me to my "destination" and back to my origin.

I'll be the first to admit that I'm not a fan of United's MileagePlus program. I find the American AAdvantage and Alaska Mileage Plan programs to be more valuable and superior for accruing redeeming miles.

However, I was duly impressed with Star Alliance's coverage of non-Northern Europe. Oneworld isn't perfect, and quite frankly Star has superior coverage for getting around the rest of Europe, with plenty of hubs (and thus, non-stop flights) all throughout the continent.

A sampling of views from the window seat.

(I'll still need to have a talk with Mom & Dad about getting a different points-earning credit card, but that discussion will come later).

For those who know me, you may be wondering why we didn't book business class seats.  Unfortunately, "business" class in Europe (what we would call "first class here in the US) usually means the same coach seat, just up front and with a blocked middle seat.  Along with the short flights, I felt the extra miles wouldn't be worth it.

Row 1 in Business Class on a Turkish Airlines Airbus A320, for an intra-Europe flight.
At least this middle seat has a fold-down tray/armrest.

Along with our positioning flights from Southern California to the Bay Area, as well as flights to Thessaloniki that got flushed down the drain, we're looking at:

• 4 separate tickets, 16 flight segments (14 flown) between 13 different airports on 9 different airlines (and just 1 flight cancellation!);
• 14 nights at mostly-Hyatt hotels and Airbnbs;
• 3 car rentals; and of course,
• 8 European cities in 7 different countries, plus a couple days in the Bay Area and Napa Valley

This special honeymoon trip report will be split up into segments:

• Flight reviews will be posted as part of my coverage on AirlineReporter (.com | my articles). 
• Hotel reviews, foodie pics, and trip notes will be posted here on VNAFlyer.
• This entry will be constantly updated with links to individual segments as they post.
• You can also get updated when items post by following along on Twitter (@VNAFlyer) or Facebook (/VNAFlyer).

I'm excited to share our travels and experiences with you, so thank you for following along, and please feel free to post comments and questions any time!

What is Rocketmiles? Let's Start with 1,000 Bonus Airline Miles...

Rocketmiles is a relatively new player to the travel game that incentivizes customers to book hotel stays through their platform with airline currency, sometimes many more miles or points than if they had booked on even the hotel's own website.

UPDATE: Rocketmiles is offering 3,000 bonus miles for some programs. Click here for details

CLICK HERE to sign up for Rocketmiles and earn 1,000 ADDITIONAL bonus points after your first stay

Many major airline frequent flyer programs are included in their network:

Rocketmiles partners include: Aeromexico (Club Premier), Air Canada (Aeroplan), Air France (Flying Blue), Alaska Airlines (Mileage Plan), Alitalia (Millemiglia), American Airlines (AAdvantage), British Airways, (Avios), Cathay Pacific (Asia Miles), Ethiopian (ShebaMiles), Etihad (Guest), Frontier Airlines (EarlyReturns), Hawaiian Airlines (HawaiianMiles), Icelandair (Saga Club), JetBlue (TrueBlue), Jet Airways (JetPrivilege), KLM (Flying Blue), Malaysia Airlines (Enrich), Norwegian Airlines (Reward), Qatar Airways (Privilege Club), Royal Jordanian (Royal Plus), Saudi Arabian Airlines/Saudia (Alfursan), Southwest Airlines (Rapid Rewards), Turkish Airlines (Miles & Smiles), United Airlines (Mileage Plus), US Airways (Dividend Miles), Virgin America (Elevate)

Reservations booked through Rocketmiles are credited with 500-5,000 miles per night, roughly based on the rate itself (or more accurately, on Rocketmiles' commission). This can be a lucrative deal for those who were needing to book a hotel stay anyway, as they claim to have the same prevailing rates as hotel and other travel websites. Refundable rates are also available, though Rocketmiles will charge your card first and refund later if you cancel within the hotel's policy.

For business travelers who book their own rooms for work and expense it later, Rocketmiles will produce a receipt that does not mention the bonus miles.

Here's a quick sample search for the Intercontinental Tokyo Bay on April 1 for a one-night stay for 2 persons (I like American Airlines' AAdvantage program myself, so I selected it):

Given the small variance in exchange rates, at a cancelable rate of $326 per night, Rocketmiles' pricing in this case is right on the mark with Intercontinental and Orbitz, but with the added bonus of 5,000 AAdvantage miles per night (I can't emphasize that enough). A five-night stay for 25,000 miles would be enough for an round-trip domestic award ticket on American.

Compare this to the Intercontinental's IHG Rewards program awarding only about 3,250 points in their program (10 points per dollar), which equals a prorated amount of 650 AA miles.

And of course Orbitz has its own rewards program, Orbucks, which earns credit towards future Orbitz hotel bookings. I can redeem AA miles at 7 cents a piece, which values 5,000 miles at $350... much more valuable than $12 in hotel credit. Even at a low valuation of 1.5 cents per mile, Rocketmiles gives you a return of $75.

The same search also yields a 5,000 mile/point reward for a couple more programs that I value highly: Alaska Airlines' Mileage Plan and Avios, used by both British Airways and Iberia.

Here's another search for the Grand Hyatt New York on May 1 for one night for 2:

This time, it's the same prepaid rate of $299. Rocketmiles will give you 3,000 AA miles. Hyatt will give you only 500 AA miles or 1000 Hyatt Gold Passport points (you have to pick one). Orbitz gives you $10.40 in Orbucks.

As with any rewards program, there are some caveats to note:

• Sometimes Rocketmiles will be more expensive; only you can decide if it's worth the extra cost.
• Stays booked through Rocketmiles MAY NOT earn points or elite stay credit to the hotel's loyalty program, and some hotel brands even take away any elite benefits for staying at their property..
• There is no "best rate guarantee" so if the price drops, you'd have to cancel and rebook your stay, assuming that you can still cancel your reservation..
• They have a limited portfolio of hotels.

Rocketmiles is a great program for:

• People who have no loyalty to any hotel, brand, or program, or don't need stay credit.
• Business travelers whose employers allow self-booking and expensing.
• Anyone with a longer stay at a higher-end hotel.
• Earning rewards when there is usually none.

To that last point, there seems to be quite a number of independent hotels that don't even have their own rewards program, so it's nice to be able to earn something, even if it's just 1,000 miles.

On the flip side of the coin, Rocketmiles may not work out so well for:

• Hotel elites looking to earn stay credit for their status.
• Those who are required to use a corporate travel agency.
• Some elites who want to exercise their status during their stay.

If you sign up using this referral link, you will earn an additional 1,000 miles/points after your first stay, on top of the miles you would normally earn. Of course, you don't have to use the link, but if you did, I would very appreciative.

Tell us about your Rocketmiles experience by commenting below!

2,700+ AAdvantage Miles for Purchasing Bose Headsets

Earn 2,700+ AAdvantage miles when you purchase from Nordstrom via the AAdvantage Shopping portal by February 26.

I'm a fan of Bose, especially for their noise canceling technology, and their latest headset, the QuietComfort 25, has been receiving rave reviews. As a frequent flyer, these headsets are a necessity, to drown out noise not only in planes but also at airports and other public spaces.

I found the over-the-ear design to be very comfortable and the active noise cancellation was superb, so I was in the market for a pair and have been waiting for the "right moment" to pull the trigger. Others prefer the QC20s, which are in-ear buds with active noise cancellation and a much smaller form factor.

Both the QC20 and QC25 retails for $299, and Bose is known for fixing its prices no matter who the retailer is, so rarely will you find a discount directly off that price. The best you can hope for is some sort of secondary or indirect incentive from the retailer of your choice, such as free add-ons.

I happen to fly American Airlines (AA) a lot, especially to access an Asian gateway airport to connect to Vietnam Airlines, and AAdvantage miles are some of the more valuable airline currency out there.

Therefore, I tend to look for ways to maximize AA miles for purchases. The AAdvantage eShopping portal is one place to check, as it has a large network of online retailers, many of whom offer in-store pickup and/or free shipping.

As it happens, Bose itself is listed in the portal, offering 3 miles per dollar spent, which would be about 900 miles earned from purchasing a set of QC25s.

The best bonus I've seen anywhere for purchasing Bose headsets was 1,500 miles for the previous generation QC15 if purchased through a special link.

Fortunately, several other retailers sell the QC25, and I believe I just found the most lucrative offer currently available... Nordstrom has a special offer of 9 miles/$ spent until February 26 (it's normally 4 miles/$), meaning you can earn over 2,700 miles, since the total purchase price including taxes is used to calculate bonus miles.

Nordstrom also offers free shipping, free returns, and has its own rewards program for using select Nordstrom cards (don't worry, no referral links here). As an example, my QC25 purchase along with couple of other items was enough to earn me a $20 Nordstrom credit I can use on a future purchase.

Of course, if you like Nordstrom anyway, this may be the perfect time for you to start earning miles on things you were already going to buy.

Those who want to take points earning up a notch can use a rewards card that offers 5x points for buying gift cards, including for Nordstrom, from office supply stores. Do a Google search and you'll see what I mean.

Make sure you allow the AAdvantage eShopping website to save cookies to your browser, and don't close the window out. Otherwise, the can't properly track your purchase and credit your bonus miles.