A New Age of Travel: FAQ — Be Free To Wander

Jun 17

Jun 17 A Weird New Age of Traveling

We survived two years of limited (or none at all!) travel, now the economy is madness, what do we do!?

Did you miss this view? I certainly did.

It broke my heart to spend a year inside, and the following year on a limited travel itinerary. In 2022 I went ham and booked 22 trips, so excited to get back out there and enjoy my favorite hobby.

Then, BAM, flight prices skyrocketed, road trips became laughable as a means of affordable travel, and hotels decided to have a price hike free-for-all. Ooooof! Now what!?

As a points/miles and travel hacking coach here are some of the most asked questions I’ve gotten recently and how I answered them.

A bucket-list trip to Greece, despite all the odds. Many people asked if I should cancel this trip. I prepared for the worst and had the experience of a lifetime.

Will travel ever get back to pre-pandemic levels? Do we WANT it to!?

It will, and it is almost there! Do we want travel volume to be back to pre-pandemic levels? …Not sure. I am leaning no because the airlines don’t seem to have the bandwidth, staff, or customer service agents to handle it. Right now more passengers equals more problems.

The only positive element of travel returning to pre-pandemic levels is that certain areas desperately need the tourism. Hopefully they will get the tourist dollars they need and maybe more restaurants and activities will open back up or stay open later.

Will Fall travel drop off significantly?

Some guys I listen to weekly on the Miles to Go podcast suggested that fall travel will take a nosedive. They made a solid argument that families are getting their travel in over the summer (since they’ve waited so long!) but then they will likely lay low to save money this fall. I have to agree that once the hustle and bustle of life picks back up in September, people might cut travel from their budget to save on gas and groceries. Only time will tell.

Why are points bookings through London outrageous with fees and taxes?

Heathrow adds on some hefty fuel surcharges, always double check the taxes and fees when booking a points booking that flies through LHR. Sometimes it is worth it but you will want to factor in these fees when calculating your pennies per point.

Is it too late to book my summer plans?

Yes. Probably… if you don’t want to spend a fortune. My only piece of advice on this one is to be as flexible as possible. Don’t discount the fun of a local roadtrip or a staycation at a sweet rooftop pool at your local Hyatt. Use google explore and pick a spot on the map that fits your budget. It’s summer, so the weather should be in your favor most places. Also, Europe is cheaper to get to than most domestic US cities, don’t skip Europe in your searches.

Why can’t I find award availability anywhere!?

You definitely can! But, you need to know where and WHEN to look. One year out seems to be a sweet spot right now. I am finding business class to Europe for 27k points, Air France flights to Paris for under 50k points and even LAX to Tahiti for 64k points. These deals exists but you can’t book them for next month. So plan early and plan ahead. Take advantage of the no change fees that many airlines are still running.

Everyone has a travel horror story! Am I going to get stranded somewhere!?

This question is a doozy and probably requires its own article. There are so many things you can do to avoid a travel disaster this summer. The first piece of advice I will give on this is that booking directly with airlines and hotels and car rental companies will save you a ton of hassle if something goes wrong on your flight. I even avoid booking portals in lieu of booking direct despite earning more points from a portal. That is how much I believe in booking direct to avoid hassle and travel nightmares.