This Holiday, Send Your Loved Ones Away

December 5, 2013 by · 4 Comments

As a huge fan of traveling, I think there’s never a wrong time for travel-themed gifts. But the circle I buy for at this time of year falls into two distinct groups: those who always travel, and those who never do. And this presents a problem. The ones who do it a lot have such a practiced routine that they’re reluctant to disrupt it by trying something new. And the ones who never leave their own zip code are often baffled by the process of booking travel.

My solution: go to the pros. Most people forget (or, more likely, never knew) that American Express started as a travel company, and the thrill of going over the horizon is still in its bones. Obviously you can use points for trips, which is always the best way to go, but you can also get cool swag that will make the trip smoother and more enjoyable.

Here are the top three ways that I’ll be putting American Express Membership Rewards® points into play this season.

amex 1. The Gift of Travel
There’s one way you can be sure you’re giving the right thing for any traveler: give the trip itself! American Express’s mobile “Pay with Points” gives you this flexibility to pay for any airline tickets, hotel bookings, car rentals, meals – all the things that just about every traveler needs to get going. You can opt to “Pay with Points” to book specific trips or purchase gift cards for your loved ones that they can use for spa treatments or nights on the town (see the quick “How-To” in the infographic to the left).

You can also choose themed journeys via Membership Rewards®- experiences that range from couples or family trips to city or beach destinations.

One destination I can personally recommend: Puerto Rico, which I recently explored completely on points. It’s close to the US, travelers don’t need to clear customs or change currency, and the beaches, caves and culture offer a diversity of activities (and non-activities!) that every traveler will love.

2. The Gift of Technology
Whenever I travel, I try to use my cellphone and computer as little as possible; they’re the trappings of my home life. But there are devices out there that will make traveling easier and more enjoyable. You can find most of them in the “Cool Gadgets” section of shopAmex®, the online shopping site where you can use points. One of my favorites is the Oakley Airwave 1.5 Goggle.They make it easy to see incoming calls and texts (the ones you just can’t skip) while leaving your hands free to enjoy what you’re actually doing.

3. Tickets
AmEx Card Members can use points for a variety of entertainment gifts when purchasing directly through Ticketmaster. From New Year’s Eve events in New York City to parties and shows in Las Vegas, there is plenty choose from over the holidays (and all year long). Once you’re logged in with your American Express account, you can opt to use Points instead of cash to pay for your tickets.

I was selected by American Express as to help educate consumers about how to use Membership Rewards points. As such I was paid for my services, but all gift choices selected and opinions about the gifts and American Express are my own. http://paid-po.st/3Nfrb0

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Press Conference for our Favorite Boxer Andre Ward and Serious Vehicle Troubles!

December 1, 2013 by · Leave a Comment

I headed out on the 10, East to Ontario, California recently to help cover a press conference between at the time two undefeated boxers, Andre Ward (26-0) and Edwin Rodriguez (24-0). A friend and I have been following Andre’s professional career for some time – he took America’s last gold medal for boxing at the Olympics and has had a stellar professional career so far. We’ve run a fan site promoting his career since his 10th professional fight and have been fortunate to have attended many of his fights.

On an abnormally warm November day (temps around 35C) we headed all over town making good use of the HOV (carpool lanes). Heading back to LAX where I had to catch a flight that evening – we got off the 105 at Nash and as we were circling around the offramp all the following happened at once: the overheat light came on, we all smelled badly burning rubber, the steering wheel became extremely difficult to turn and most of the brake function failed. We made it through one stoplight somehow and then pulled it into a small parking lot. We popped the hood, opened the radiator cap and brown liquid spewed out, steaming aggressively everywhere, highly dangerous to be close to this mini geyser until it finally cooled. We put 2 gallons of water into it. We were getting ready to leave and then some chap walked by and questioned, “whats the big black belt hanging under your vehicle”. No clue how he saw it but sure enough there it was – burned and hanging by a thread.

As it turned out the car would no longer start. At this point I had to get to the airport. I raced down a side street (running) to Imperial Ave and began running down the sidewalks looking for a shuttle and asking strangers as I passed by – throwing out questions on the breeze, hoping they would produce a timely useful answer. I knew there was a free LAX Shuttle stop near the metro stop but I didn’t quite make that. Ended up jumping on a shuttle from one of the nearby parking lots. But as it was despite the racing heartbeat, I made it to the airport with time to spare!

Post fight note: Andre took this fight as he has all the others in his professional career, making him now 27-0 and ranked number one in the World and USA in his weight division (super middleweight). Legends, Roy Jones, “Iron” Mike Tyson and Floyd Mayweather were in the audience watching.

Here are some photos from the press conference featuring the promoters, trainers and the two fighters.

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Dublin at Christmas

November 29, 2013 by Simone Visser · Leave a Comment

dublinDublin is a fabulous city to visit all year round but it is especially magical at Christmas. Every street, from the wide thoroughfares to the little winding alleys are lit for the season and the shops – always a delight – really rise to the occasion. For a very special Christmas break, Dublin is hard to beat and you can find an assortment of hotels on offer from Hotel Direct. Dublin’s markets are famous and at Christmas they are where you will find some great bargains and some unusual gifts for people back home. The Christmas Cracker Flea Market is on this year from the 13th to the 15th of December and is a must-see with over a hundred stalls selling everything from food to vintage clothing. The Docklands Christmas Festival is on for longer – from 12th to 23rd of December – and so whether you are a planner or a ‘last-minuter’, it is ideal. As well as loads to buy, there is also entertainment on offer, with carousels for the kids.

How to get there
Dublin is a very short flight away from most UK airports but if you think you might be buying lots, you might prefer to take the car. There are ferries running frequently from Fishguard, Holyhead and Liverpool so you can just drive on, drive off and get on with the shopping. For a cheaper option that is a little more relaxing than driving or wrestling with airport crowds, you can also go by coach or train. It is easy to book straight through from a number of UK stations. Typically, the coach is the cheapest option, cheapest of all when prebooked using a coachcard.

Christmassy evenings
merrygor Many of the pubs and bars in Dublin go all out to ensure their patrons have a good old-fashioned Christmas and perhaps the pinnacle of the decoration is to be found in the Central Hotel, in Exchequer Street. Their Library Bar is like a Christmas dream come true with deep comfy armchairs and sofas, a huge Christmas tree and all the trimmings. Their wonderful Mulled Wine completes the deal and shouldn’t be missed when in Dublin at Christmas. The Stag’s Head turns its upstairs bar into a kind of fairy grotto and with hot toddies all round it is impossible not to join in the Christmas spirit. Dublin is so full of wonderful places to eat and drink that seeing Christmas in with a cheer is easy – just walk outside and listen for the noise! Many of the restaurants are very child friendly too, so there is no need to leave the kids at home. Christmas is all about children after all and the looks on their faces when they see the amazing decorations that Dublin is full of at this time of year makes you feel covered in Christmas glow. The great thing about Dublin is that it is one of the most walkable of all cities, so strolling through the lights and tinsel is easy to do and even Ebenezer Scrooge would end up full of the joy of Christmas before he had gone many steps.

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Pinterest New Features, Announcement Party at Headquarters

November 23, 2013 by · Leave a Comment

Pinterest (2) Pinterest (3) Pinterest (1)Recently I had the opportunity to pre-test out a number of new features for Pinterest before their release in late November. The “place pins” are the highlight of these features – now you can add pins directly to a specific location on an interactive map and at the same time see who else has pinned that particular location.

This is sure to be popular with travelers – you can catalog trips this way and now easily send individual boards to an email address or friends via social media.

I was in San Francisco for VEMEX and it just so happened that Pinterest was having their launch party for this brand new service after our trade show event finished. Johnny Jet joined me; I think we both felt old after mingling with the Pinterest employees – most of the crowd seemed to be in their 20′s!

Here is an example of one of our travel boards that has been converted over to “place pins” – www.pinterest.com/davestravel/epic-los-angeles

Here are a few brief comments by Pinterest CEO Ben Silbermann

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My Winter Wish List for the Holidays

November 12, 2013 by · 8 Comments

mountainAs the weather cools, travel heats up this time of year- visits to friends and family during the holidays, local trips to experience outdoor activities or destination trips to warmer locales certainly sounds appealing – especially as I write this – huddled next to a space heater. The warmth of this heater is making me reflect upon warm weather destinations that I visited earlier this year; Bermuda (an easy flight from the East Coast), Sydney, Australia during the summer, and Thailand, which is warm most of the year. All of these make great destinations, especially during the colder winter months of the Northern Hemisphere.

However, colder weather does not necessarily mean stuck indoors – with the proper gear and mindset, there are plenty of outdoor activities to enjoy this time of year close to home, especially for those living in climates that do experience a real winter.

With that said, having the right gear for outdoor and winter adventure travel is crucial. American Express offers a number of ways to redeem Membership Rewards points for these types of presents – including a wide range of exciting products on shopAmex® , Ticketmaster events, pay with points using your existing Amazon Account and, of course, travel. Moreover, some of the best dollar-to-point value ratios through rewards programs such as the store gift cards available on MembershipRewards.com.

Here are my top 5 winter wish list items for the upcoming holidays – travel related of course :)

1. Bose® QuietComfort® 15 Acoustic Noise Cancelling® Headphones – Until technology is built into planes to eliminate the noise of forward movement, this is very good alternative. It is hard enough to sleep on a plane – we need all the help we can get!

2. I become cold rather easily. I enjoy climbing mountains. Not the most ideal combination. As a result, I’ve built a rather robust collection of winter gear over the years, including a -50 degree sleeping bag I had specially made for me – stuffed with extra high quality goose down. That might be a bit extreme for most uses, but there are plenty of winter sleeping products on shopAmex.com, including a light yet warm sleeping bag, rated +5F/-15C from Everest Mummy.

3. Gift cards are a good value and are the most versatile of presents. There are plenty of stores you can choose from, like Sports Authority for additional winter gear.

4. My last outdoor hiking boots finally succumbed to the elements leaving pieces of rubber all over my friend’s car on a recent camping trip – what looks to be a sturdy boot, built for outdoor enthusiasts is the Itasca Amazon Men’s Boots.

5. Sure, there is an overwhelming amount of travel and destination information online, but travel books still provide a valuable need: condensed information about regions based on focused research. Do a search for “Lonely Planet” on shopAmex – there are over 500 products listed!

Getting value from Membership Rewards is easy. Once you have signed up for an American Express card – use it all year – for travel expenses, airlines, hotels and restaurants. Not only that, but using the card for your daily expenses is crucial to quickly accumulating points.

Through Dec 2013: American Express Card Members can browse great gift ideas available with Membership Rewards points for the Holiday by visiting: shopAmex

Note: I was honored to have been selected by American Express as an ambassador to help educate consumers about how to use Membership Rewards points. As such, I was paid for my services, but all gift choices selected and opinions about the gifts and American Express are my own. http://paid-po.st/3Nfrb0

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Lassen Trip, California

November 10, 2013 by · Leave a Comment

lassen-park (5)A friend of mine looked at YouTube the other day and found fishing videos of Hat Creek (located near Lassen National Park in Northern California). He had not been to Lassen in over 40 years – “Lets go fishing there”, he told me.

We hurriedly threw a bunch of gear in the back of his pickup – I can travel the world for a year with a school size backpack, but for 3 days in the woods – we had enough gear to hold a small garage sale if we had decided to.

We arrived at our random campsite in the woods in the evening – pitching the tent in the darkness and what felt like tailgating, we quickly cooked some chicken in the back of the truck. It was cold – it was forecast to be in the mid 20′s (around -4 Celsius) at night but my friend had only brought a lightweight summer bag. Fortunately I brought an extra winter sleeping bag.

Woke up the next morning – early, to cold to get out of the tent so remained horizontal till 10am. After 14 hours of sleep, popped out and saw my friend eying a completely flat tire. Sidewall failure – apparently from the rutted roads combined with the fact this tire should have been changed out decades ago. Somehow we got the spare on and limped on side roads to a small town where we replaced the tire with another used one for $30.

Spent rest of day unsuccessfully fishing Hat Creek. No bites, no fish. A number of serious looking fisherman walking the banks. Headed back up to camp at dark – frustrated we had no fish we found a lake and tried some more fishing at dusk. My friend let me borrow one of his poles – 3/4 of the fishing pole went flying out in the water on the first cast. Reeled in what was left.

Then walked out on large log and immediately slipped and fell into freezing water up to chest soaking all my clothes. Raced out of water, freezing and completely drenched. Unfortunately the heater is broken in my friends pickup – we then bounced around on the rutted roads – making a beeline for our campsite where we started a much needed fire.

Lassen is one of the most underrated National Parks in California and thankfully under-visited to. Here are some photos we took:

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