Europe2018

Review: Emirates Business / First Lounge Hong Kong

Our flight to Dubai departed Hong Kong at 7:50 am, so I had arranged to be picked up from the Conrad Hotel at 5:15 am. With our 4:30 am wake-up call, we packed up and made our way downstairs to check out. By the time we finished

Europe2018

Review: Conrad Hong Kong Junior Suite

I had made a deliberate choice this holiday to book into a few Hilton properties to test the Hilton HHonors Diamond upgrade benefit and see if we could score an upgrade or two. As we were only planning to stay in Hong Kong for a few nights, I splashed out

Europe2018

Review: Qantas A330 Business Suites Sydney to Hong Kong

We arrived at Gate 30 five minutes before boarding was due to start and were second in the priority boarding queue. I always like to try and board early as it makes taking photos much easier. Shortly after we arrived, they announced a 15-20min delay in boarding as, thanks to

Lifemiles

Lifemiles 130% Promotion on Purchased Miles

Lifemiles just launched a new promotion for the next few weeks offering miles purchases with up to a 130% bonus up until the 18th of September. Lifemiles is one of my favourite programs, whilst it has some quirks that frustrate many people, I have managed to successfully book several cheap

Europe2018

Review: Qantas International Business Lounge Sydney

To be honest I didn’t have high hopes for the Qantas International Business lounge (not to be confused with the Qantas International First Class Lounge - which I do have high hopes for). Admittedly it has been many years since I have visited the Qantas International lounge and I

Europe2018

Escaping Winter to Europe With a Quick Stopover in Hong Kong

The last six months have been quite a busy time for us, so this holiday couldn’t have come sooner! But we are off, in fact, I am writing this at 38,000 feet somewhere near Manila on the first of five flights in this holiday.

Tips

The (Hidden) Cost to Aquire Airline Miles

I have said it before, and I will say it again travelling on miles & points is not free. Every mile you earn costs you something, whether you realise it or not. This is why it is essential to understand what they are worth to you individually because as you dive

12 Months of Pointy End of The Plane

Wow, it is hard to believe that it was 12 months ago that I registered pointyendoftheplane.com and started this blog. It began as a hobby and still is very much is a hobby. In the last 12 months, I have somehow managed to put out 138 posts covering both

News

Last Week to Pick up Alaska Miles With a 40% Bonus

Just a reminder that it is the last week of Alaska Mileage Plan's current promotion offering 40% off purchased miles which ends on the 9th of April. If you have any immediate travel plans it may well pay to have a quick look if suitable flights are available via Mileage

News

Lol... Virgin Australia is Introducing an In-flight Spin Class

I also get a giggle at the various stunts companies do on April fools day, it seems like it must be a fun day if you work in marketing. Well, Today (April 1st) Virgin Australia launched a new partnership with Virgin Active to introduce a new in-flight facility called Virgin

News

Velocity Daily - A New Way to Earn Points

Velocity quietly launched a new and interesting way to earn Velocity points on everyday purchases when using ANY Visa card. Some members have been sent invitation emails. However, you can go to the website right now and register either way. Velocity Daily appears to be a partnership program with Visa

News

Qantas Open New Perth Transit Lounge

Qantas has debuted their new International transit lounge in Perth ahead of the launch of the Perth to London direct 787 service starting today and has a focus on reducing jetlag and improving health and comfort. According to Qantas, the new lounge was designed by Australian Industrial designer David Caon

Qantas

How to Join Qantas Frequent Flyer Program for Free

If you are reading this blog then you most likely already have a frequent flyer membership with both Qantas and Virgin. But on the off chance that you don't already have a Qantas membership or you need to sign a family member up here is a quick way to do

Japan-2018

Review: Thai Airways 747 Business Class Bangkok to Sydney

As I have already reviewed Thai Airways 747 Business class a few times now, the focus of this review will be on the sleeping experience of the angled lie-flat seat.

News

Last Chance to Get 30% off Qantas Eonomy Awards

Today is the last chance to take advantage of the current Qantas promotion for 30% off all Economy award tickets. You have until 11:59 pm tonight the 12th of March to book. While this promotion isn't as good as the recent Virgin Australia promotion that was offering 30% off

Hello Fresh Review - Was it Worth the 16,000 Points

I recently wrote about a promotion HelloFresh, and Qantas were running, offering 16,000 Qantas point for ordering two weeks worth of meal subscription delivery boxes. Well despite it not being the topic of this blog, I wanted to report back on my experience and thoughts on HelloFresh. I decided

News

Etihad Now Selling Access to VIP Room in Abu Dhabi First Lounge

It appears that Etihad is now selling access to a VIP room within the Abu Dhabi First Class lounge for $100usd. Access is based on a first come first served basis and does not appear to be able to be booked. The VIP Room Based on the photos it looks

Japan-2018

Review: Thai Airways Business Class Sapporo to Bangkok

After the disappointment of the Sapporo Royal Lounge, we headed to gate 65 early at 9:10 am. Boarding was scheduled for 9:20 am, however shortly after arrival boarding was delayed to 9:40 am.

News

30% Discount on Qantas Economy Award Flights

Qantas is offering a promotion offering 30% off all economy reward tickets for the next five days. The promotion launched today and will run until 11:59 pm on the 12th of March. This is interestingly timed just a week after Virgin Australia finished a promotion offering 30% off award

Japan-2018

Review: Sapporo New Chitose Royal Lounge

We arrived at New Chitose International airport crazy early thanks to a fast private transfer and reasonable road conditions. But unfortunately, check-in hadn't even opened yet and to make matters worse none of the shops in the airport had opened either.

Tips

Guide Series: Tips for using Lifemiles

Lifemiles is a really interesting frequent flyer program that is known for often running aggressive promotions on the bulk purchase of miles. When used correctly these promotions can offer great value for purchasing cheap business class tickets on Star Alliance carriers such as Thai Airways, ANA and Singapore Airlines. Lifemiles

News

Qantas Epiqure Once Again Offering 15,000 Bonus Points

Qantas Epiqure is once again offering 15,000 bonus Qantas points on certain wine purchases. While they often offer 10,000 point bonuses, it is only so often that 15,000 comes up, the last time I saw was back in July 2017. Usually, the bonuses on offer at between

News

Alaska Mileage Plan 40% Bonus For March

Alaska Mileage Plan is once again offering a 40% bonus on purchased miles up until the 9th of April. This is the same bonus they offered back in December and appears to be available to all members and not a targeted offer. I have written about Alaska Mileage Plan before

Japan-2018

Travel: Exploring Niseko

Niseko is about 2-3 hours drive from Sapporo airport depending on traffic and road conditions. The best way to get there is via a shuttle transfer directly from the Airport. This was my third trip to Niseko and I can safely say it is by far my favourite skiing destination.

News

Virgin to Start Sydney to Hong Kong Flights

Today Virgin Australia announced that they will be expanding there footprint into Hong Kong and adding daily flights from Sydney beginning mid-2018. This comes just 6 months after launch a daily Melbourne - Hong Kong service. Similarly to the Melbourne to Hong Kong service, Virgin are servicing this route with