a few gifts from me to upgrade your upcoming travels ✈️
and other musings on my mind at the airport...
howdy, from me and my 23 oz Blue Moon the LGA Terminal C Bubby’s!
yes, there’s a Bubby’s at the airport. and yes, I actually sometimes get a hankering for a massive beer in extremely situational settings—like when I’m watching the Bill’s win from the bar while Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow! by Doris Day pumps through the terminal speakers…
I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again…I love the airport vibe over the holidays.
people make a huge fuss about how stressful holiday travel can be, but as someone who literally only has to worry about themselves (a perk of being child-free!!), has TSA-Pre-Check, CLEAR, and whenever possible, only travels with a carry-on, I find it rather energizing to be in the thick of it because most to the time, I’m unencumbered by lines and the real frustration that can occur when you go in less armed for chaos.
want to jump the TSA line with CLEAR? if you don’t have it yet, I have 5 family and friends passes for 3 free months of CLEAR Plus as a part of my member benefit!
this is totally going to be an ‘early bird gets the worm’ situation, but the first five people to use my code TGDHGP248E24E14 can get CLEAR Plus for free for three months on me! hope you love it as much as I do, dolls!!!!
but anyway, back to me and my beer here at the bar. everyone around me right now is in a chipper mood. there are Bergdorf’s, Tiffany’s, and Goyard shopping bags littering the ground. the person next to me is humming along with the music (now Michael Bublé). people are so happy to be going home and see their loved ones…they can’t wait to shower them with gifts! and me too—I’m super excited about the trinkets I’m traveling home with to share with my family, some of which I started collecting back when I was living in Paris for a month in the fall. not sure about you, but I think that’s pretty dang special!
and while we’re on the positivity train, let’s talk about the beauty of leaving early for the airport. this is a luxury I don’t know well, but perhaps getting to the airport early could be more of a thing for me in the future?? *incite gasps from the peanut gallery, aka my friends and colleagues who hate traveling with me because I want to arrive at the airport ten minutes before boarding*
this evening, it took me approximately fourteen minutes after getting off the Q-70 bus to when I was sitting at the bar, watching the game and writing this letter to you. I took the E train to the (free) airport bus as I was traveling light, and it seemed a better alternative to an egregiously priced Uber…I mean, $2.90 versus $100+ and the potential for traffic? no-brainer.
if you haven’t been to the new LGA, you are seriously missing out. as someone who forced themselves to pivot from being a United/EWR girlie to a Delta/LGA girlie this year, it takes a lot for me to admit it, but Delta is a supreme experience the majority of the time! don’t get me wrong, I’m still playing the field; this year, unless I decide to book a mileage run last minute (I did one a couple Decembers ago to Charleston to hit United Platnium status and I never regretted it the following year when I was getting upgraded left and right!) I’ll just *miss* Platinum status on Delta, instead securing Gold, while simultaneously managing to maintain Silver on United.
in reality, I wish I’d been just slightly more strategic throughout the year—as in, not booked that one long-haul to Paris on points because if I’d just paid for it I’d have hit Platinum—but alas, you live, and you learn. I never thought I’d fly as much as I did this year! but that’s the nature of the beast. it’s often hard to predict how the year will play out, but I’ll double down next year and see what comes of my travel schedule.
I’m a huge proponent of flying the route/timings that make the most sense for your schedule and using an airline credit card to maximize where you can. you can’t be too beholden to your miles. so, I have both the Delta Sky Miles Platinum with American Express and United Explorer with Chase, each of which has served me well.
with the Delta Amex, you get 3x miles on Delta purchases, 3x miles at hotels, and 2x miles on dining. but one of the biggest perks (if you’re trying to make status) is the MQD headstart and MQD boost. you also get a rideshare credit, first checked bag free, and right now if you use my referral link, 90,000 bonus miles when you spend 3k in your first six months! linking up below in case you’re interested.
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if you’re more of a United person as I was and have been for many, many years, their credit card perks are also worth exploring. they’ve got four levels depending on what you think you might need, each with varying perks, various annual fees and sign-on bonus miles. best to look at it all and compare on their site! sharing my referral link below.
why am I sharing this all, you may ask? because I really, really believe in the power of how much of a difference it makes to travel smarter! let 2025 be your year of giving yourself an upgrade, starting with seeing whether it makes sense for you to bolster your already consistent spending with the backing of an airline credit card.
and while we’re on the topic of travel, what are we planning for 2025?
I’m beginning to plot out trips with friends as well as block off days/weeks for bachelorette/wedding/birthday celebrations. it’s so fun to have these milestones for my loved ones to look forward to! my goal next year is to get more on the books further in advance. so far, so good.
my annual birthday trip is always one of the trickiest for me to nail down. if you’re new here, for the past decade, I’ve planned a trip to ensure I’m away on my birthday. when I launched the paid version of the sunday series while on a birthday trip this year, I broke down:
ideas for where to celebrate your birthday solo
ideas for where to celebrate your birthday with a partner
ideas for where to celebrate your birthday with a small group
ideas for where to celebrate your birthday larger gaggle of friends (think milestone birthdays where you want to ball out!)
how to get started in planning!
I’m linking up the post below in case you’re in need of ideas. at my house this year, we have two milestone birthdays in my immediate family, so the holidays will be the perfect time for us to dive back into this list as we plot how we’re going to celebrate. maybe you’ll find yourself doing the same!
books, books, books
beyond the world of travel, my brain is essentially occupied by books. today, I finished two. one fiction and one nonfiction. I also did a little series exchange with one of my West Village Book Club girlies, Laura, where we swapped the WINTER IN PARADISE series for FOURTH WING and IRON FLAME. yep, that’s right, after soooo many friends insisting I finally read fantasy, I’m going down the Rebecca Yarros rabbit hole this holiday break. I can’t wait to share more with you once I’m in it!!
all of that to say, my fourth annual top books of the year roundup is coming next week! I’ll probably finish the year at around 55 reads, so it should be a nice mix. and in the meantime, ICYMI, linking up last year’s below…
okay, I’ve got to go because it’s literally time to board! thanks for letting me squeeze this one in from the airport amdist the holiday insanity. to be honest, I was planning to take this week off as a part of my Christmas break, but then I just couldn’t resist checking in with you!!!! thrilled about our last big send of the year next sunday and then oh-so-much-fun to come together in 2025.
have the best time celebrating Hanukkah and Christmas with your loved ones in the week ahead! love you, mean it. xKD