My latest for One Mile at a Time

• Chicago Seminars Go Online For 2020
  One of the longest standing annual miles & points “events” is the Chicago Seminars, which has been held at the Holiday Inn in Elk Grove, Illinois (nearish to the Chicago O’Hare Airport) for the past ten years. Ten years. I'm getting old. Ben and I actually met in-person for the first time at a Chicago […]
• Housekeeping: Estate Planning & Your Miles
  Not to be morbid, but this is a question I get all the time. Miles and points are confusing enough, and when you add in the stress surrounding an unexpected (or even expected) death it can be difficult to understand options and make decisions. I first wrote this post in the weeks after my grandfather […]
• Paying Taxes By Credit Card: How To Come Out Ahead
  Ah, tax season. As many Americans are starting to procrastinate finalize their tax returns, questions about earning points for making those payments always come up. That's particularly relevant this year, and individuals and businesses may be paying two quarters worth of estimated payments along with their 2019 return. I pay all my estimated quarterly and annual […]
• 146 Marriott Hotels & Resorts For US Getaways
  While we're writing more about travel lately, we're not necessarily suggesting people do travel (though if you do, please be considerate and smart). But we also recognize that many folks need a break, whether that's because they have been homeschooling for months, or living in a small apartment, or otherwise need a reset. We've been […]
• When Will You Travel Again?
  One thing we've noticed (and this is not a new phenomenon) is that "travel sentiment surveys" don't really take into account the viewpoints of the most frequent travelers, or the most highly-engaged loyalty program members. Our community may not be statistically significant in terms of determining "most popular vacation destinations" or whatever, but we do […]
• Amex Credit & Benefit Tracker
  Several American Express cards offer statement credits and rebates as part of the card benefits. These can be very lucrative, and more than offset the annual fees on the cards, provided you can max out (or at least get close) the assorted credits. The challenge, however, is that Amex makes these benefits somewhat tricky to […]