Good Plane Spotting Day - EWR

I had a decent day plane spotting last week at Newark.  I found United's March of Dimes 737 and retro Continental 737.

United March of Dimes Branding

Retro Continental 737-900ER

Newark Finds Retail Space

Newark airport is very creative in their search for new space.  They removed moving walkways to add a restaurant and bar.  There was too little space and now there's less.  The prices aren't great, but I'd be in favor about the bar if they offered $1 PBR's.

Almost Enough Room

Emirates Crew Doesn't Travel Light

The Emirates crews must being running a serious personal cargo operation.  This is an A380 crew's luggage, plus each crew member has their own roller bag and pilots have an extra pilot case too.  It seems a bit excessive.

Cargo

One Minute of Fame or Two Month's of Hotel Stays

SPG recently auctioned off an experience to throw out the first pitch at a Chicago Cubs game.  The package included two game tickets, a pre-game photo, and no hotel stay.  The winning bid was 189,502 points. That equates to 20 free nights at my favorite SPG hotels, the The Westin Sydney or The Westin Palace Madrid.  It also could be 50 free nights at the Sheraton Oklahoma City or 73 free nights at the Sheraton Athlone Ireland. The points could also be converted into 234,502 frequent flyer miles, enough four or five transatlantic business class flights.  The auction winner bought a cool and unique experience that they could not buy with money. That is the value of points programs, they make the impossible achievable.  I'm also certain I would not spend that much on an experience that lasts about 45 seconds.

Where Could 234,502 Miles Take You?

Math Note: Math assumes maximizing the 'stay 4 get 1 free' room redemption pricing. I did not include any welcome gift or Make a Green Choice bonus points. Off season pricing used for Westin hotels mentioned. Frequent flyer mile math assumes 1:1 program transfer and maximizing the 5,000 mile bonus for every 20,000 points transferred.

QANTAS Admits Dark Secret

QANTAS admitted a long kept secret.  Their ad shown below admits that Australia is not close to the USA.  The flight from LAX to Sydney is almost 14 hours in air.  That's far.  Really far.  They try to spin this bad news as well they can, as you can see.  The trip is well worth the time and the flight is rather pleasant. 

QANTAS Ad Found Online

LGA Will Have $4 Billion Renovation and Not Fix Main Problem

La Guardia airport will still have only two runways and they will still intersect.  The main reason I am frustrated when flying from New York-LGA will remain.  There will be new terminals so you can wait your delayed flight with more space.

Newark Still Looking Good

IGH - Priority Club Spire Elite Status

I lucked into this one.  I signed up for the IHG credit card for the 80,000 point sign up bonus and perpetual Platinum status.  It also comes with a free night certificate all for a reasonable $49 annual fee. Soon after my card arrived, IHG announced a new higher level in their program so Platinum is second tier.  I was disappointed because I wanted to buy top status for $49. The new level is called Spire Elite and I qualified because my credit card sign up bonus earned enough points to qualify. I doubt my domestic Holiday Inn experience will change, but this could be very handy in Europe where top elite status seems to be more meaningful. 

Spire Elite Status Could be Fun in Europe

The moral of the story is to wait until there is a 75,000+ sign up bonus before signing up for the card. I found my 80,000 offer on a reservation review page before confirming a booking. Also the card is a miserable point earner, so don't use it after hitting the sign up bonus if you aren't paying for an IHG hotel stay.