I stayed away from frequent flyer credit cards for a long time, because I wanted to avoid debt. The other reason was that since I lived in Asia, flights were relatively cheap anyway. Looking back, there were a lot of missed opportunities to earn air miles. Now that I'm back in the States, my situation...

There was a post on The Economist 's travel blog titled, Turning seatmates into SeatBuddies . It talks about how airBaltic is following the example of Dutch KLM in allowing passengers to link their social network profiles with the airline website. Then you could pick your seatmate as well as your seat. From the description,...

What would you rather have: a million dollars or a million frequent-flyer miles? Airline miles have almost become a new currency. They can be exchanged for hotel stays, car rentals, gift cards, and merchandise. The movie "Up in the Air" with George Clooney brought mainstream attention to "travel hacking." This is how people use their...

Plane food doesn't have the best reputation, and people love to complain about it . One family even sued American Airlines for killing their father with a chicken dish on a flight from Barcelona to New York. But don't get too attached to your mystery meat and stale dinner rolls. Celebrity chefs have taken to...

The start of a new year usually means resolutions. New beginnings. New goals. This is the time when many people finally take control of their lives and accomplish the things that they really want to accomplish in life. If one of those goals is to travel the world, then stop making excuses and do it....

When you travel frequently, you become very familiar with the airline game: which days of the week are more likely to have lower fares, which airlines charge extra for checked baggage—even which airlines still give out free snacks. But when it comes down to booking your airline tickets, are low fares or airline loyalty perks...

Those vagabonders funding their travels by working abroad in Korea, or those simply traveling through the country, will be happy to hear of Air Asia's new service to Korea. Korea has rested infuriatingly outside of the budget travel loop for quite some time. However, in November of last year, Air Asia began offering flights from...

Security officers x-ray luggage at Chitose airport in Hokkaido, Japan. Photo: Miki Yoshihito / Flickr Creative Commons In this age of increased security, sometimes airport officials will pounce on innocent items that look dangerous in an x-ray scanner. The list of restricted or banned items just gets longer and longer. Sometimes, it seems like things...

Who draws the line between "corporate travel" and "leisure travel"? (My answer: The travel industry.) Is this a good thing or a bad thing for travelers? Why? Discuss.

I regularly fly through Houston’s IAH airport when I’m returning from travel to Central and South America, and lately, I’ve been running into brochures for the Global Entry Trusted Traveler Program . Enrolling allows members to speed past those horribly long immigration lines, and check in at a kiosk instead, currently available at 20 airports...

As often as possible, I try to get a window seat when I’m traveling. Certainly anything beats the dreaded middle seat, and crawling over other people when you need to stretch your legs can be a pain, but that window seat has the best thing on board—a window. A recent article by Peter Ferry on...

Traveling solo has its benefits. Want to change your itinerary? No problem. Want to stay out all night? Go ahead. Want to wander sans clothing through your hotel room? There’s nobody to object. You can do whatever you want within your own budget and not have to worry about convincing your companions to buy in....

It's not a likely scenario, but it is one that provides food for thought of our dependance on these hydrocarbon-burning aluminum tubes that we pack ourselves into like sardines to get from point A to point B as fast as possible, placing our faith in well-maintained aircraft, pilot training, physics, and luck. The eruption of...

After two months of living in Asia, I’m finally starting to feel settled. My mind is no longer preoccupied with the endless details of moving to another country, and I can finally get down to business and start asking the important questions. Is there a doctor’s office close to where I live or work? What...

Every once in a while, I'll meet grizzled older travelers who talk about traveling in Southeast Asia before the advent of Air Asia. It was either spend ridiculous amounts on flying or spending 10+ hours on a rickety bus. Budget airlines were once a secret of the locals and savvy backpackers. Now they've become much...

Being April Fools Day , I feel compelled to share this article posted yesterday on Jaunted.com; The Top Ten Most Ridiculous Items Taken Away By The TSA . As vagabonders traveling the world, packing for a trip is often an exercise in figuring out what does and doesn't count as a potential terrorist item, and...

Two days ago, I spent all 14 hours of the New York - Delhi nonstop flight worrying that my seatmate was quietly infecting me with something nasty. He stayed bundled in his ski parka and wool hat the enitre flight. He had a telltale IV drip bandage on the back of his hand, sat eyes...

Quite a few vagabonders that I've talked to in the last couple of months are Asia-bound this year, so this promotion just announced by Cathay Pacific may offer some interesting travel options from the U.S. The 2010 All Asia Pass , starting at $1599, not including $180 in taxes. This package includes round-trip air fare...

The biggest single expense for most trips abroad is generally the plane tickets. Whether you buy a round the world ticket or piece together a series of plane flights yourself, the tickets will likely be your biggest expense. That's why it makes sense to be come something of a discount airline guru. We've pointed out...

While most major airlines have tightened up the rules (and added new restrictions) surrounding frequently flyer miles, that doesn't mean you can't find some pretty good deals. And honestly, who wouldn't like to fly for free? If, like me, you've got quite a few frequent flyer miles and are trying to figure out the best...