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Venice is virtually underwater in the worst flooding the city has seen in at least a decade. Severe storms have been sweeping through Italy since Monday, and officials say at one point, roughly 77% of Venice was submerged in water.So far, nine people have died in Italy’s band of severe rain and thunderstorms. The fatalities were mostly caused by falling trees and debris throughout the country. Among the deceased is a volunteer firefighter who died amid an emergency response call in San Martino in Badia....

Update: Some offers mentioned below are no longer available. View the current offers here.Over the last few weeks, I’ve taken a close look at elite status granted through six major carriers’ frequent flyer program: American AAdvantage, Delta SkyMiles, United MileagePlus, Alaska Mileage Plan, JetBlue TrueBlue and Southwest Rapid Rewards. In each post, I identified the various benefits offered to each elite status tier and tried to peg a value on each one....

Update: Some offers mentioned below are no longer available. View the current offers here: Citi Prestige, The Platinum Card® from American ExpressWhen it comes to travel, it’s important to take control of your overall experience — whether that means doing the research before you go or tracking flights and mileage balances post-travel — there are a ton of online resources at your fingertips. As AvGeeks, we all have our favorites, which allow us to explore the inner workings of airlines and aviation in general....

For the jet-setting holiday traveler, JetBlue has you covered. Mint customers will feel refreshed with the help of his-and-hers seasonal amenity kits made by New York City-based luxury brand, Hayward Luxury and Hopper Goods. The snazzy new seasonal amenity kits are available until early January 2018 for Jet Blue’s premium Mint product on select coast-to-coast and Caribbean routes: JFK route to Aruba (AUA) , St. Lucia (UVF), Palm Springs(PSP), St. Maarten (SXM) and Grenada (GND) and from Boston (BOS) to Aruba (AUA), St....

American Airlines filed a lawsuit in federal court on Monday seeking an injunction against its mechanics’ unions. The court filing accuses the mechanics in the airline’s two mechanics’ unions, the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM) and Transport Workers Union (TWU), of intentionally slowing down work to delay American’s operations.“Unfortunately, the union has chosen to illegally gain leverage in contract negotiations by directing a coordinated and deliberate illegal slowdown focused on the maintenance operation,” the airline said in an internal letter to its employees regarding the injunction, according to One Mile at a Time....

American Airlines CEO Doug Parker hasn’t been shy about making bets and confident claims about the airline’s prospects — but he’s rarely been proven to be right yet. Parker ended up well shy of his bet that AA’s stock price would hit $60 per share before an analyst turned 60 in November 2018. The airline’s market value was $10 billion less than it would’ve been if he was right.Thursday morning, he fell short of another publicly stated goal, this time regarding just how profitable the airline would be....

Sign up for our daily newsletterEmail addressSign upI would like to subscribe to The Points Guy newsletters and special email promotions. The Points Guy will not share or sell your email. See privacy policy.Update: Some offers mentioned below are no longer available.If you’re looking to earn rewards for free flights and hotel stays without paying a credit card annual fee, the Amex EveryDay® Credit Card from American Express is definitely worth a gander....

For Marriott, it seems being the world’s largest hotel company just isn’t enough. On Monday morning, the Wall Street Journal reported that the hotel giant is getting into the vacation rental business in a bid to win over travelers who would otherwise book with Airbnb, HomeAway or similar short-term rental platforms.Detailed plans for what’s been dubbed Homes & Villas by Marriott International could be available as early as next week, according to Skift’s Deanna Ting, who also said Marriott Bonvoy members will be able to earn and redeem points for stays in these properties....

[tpg_rating tpg-rating-score=“71” ground-experience=“5” cabin-seat=“18” amens-ife=“5” food-bev=“20” service=“23” pros=“Good onboard food, friendly flight crew and a comfy seat with tons of legroom.” cons=“The cabin was dated and the IFE didn’t really work.” /]In late January, I was assigned the arduous task of spending a week in Puerto Rico, primarily to review two recently opened resorts: Dorado Beach, a Ritz-Carlton Reserve, and The St. Regis Bahia Beach Resort (stay tuned for full reviews of both — coming soon!...

Europe has a new airline, one deemed so important for its country that the Prime Minister in person showed up at the inaugural ceremony on Friday.It’s Air Albania, the new flag carrier of the nation just across the Adriatic Sea from Italy, where air traffic has grown by a huge 13.4% in the first half of this year — but with only a tiny Albanian-owned airline, Albawings. All other airlines serving this booming market of almost 3 million people, and a candidate for membership in the European Union, are based somewhere else....

Over the weekend, LaGuardia Airport opened a brand new concourse as part of its long-awaited $8 billion revitalization project. The new Eastern Concourse of Terminal B is home to Air Canada, American and Southwest. With 11 gates, the new concourse is a massive upgrade over LGA’s old drab, dark space.This week, the terminal’s newest airline lounge is being opened to the public. TPG had a sneak preview of Air Canada’s new Maple Leaf Lounge, which is the airline’s third lounge in the US and 23rd overall....

Update: Some offers mentioned below are no longer available. View the current offers here.I’m a big time fan of the low cost carriers within the United States. For me, the bottom line is that low cost carriers make it possible for people to fly when they otherwise would often be priced out of even considering air transportation. I don’t fly low cost carriers super frequently myself, but they are a solid back-up plan for when rates go crazy, and a good primary strategy for those who simply want the cheapest way to get from Point A to Point B....

Update: Some offers mentioned below are no longer available. View the current offers here.Most of us know that when we are talking about “Hawaii” we are actually talking about several different islands that make up the state of Hawaii. To be specific, there are over one hundred islands in the Hawaiian Islands, but there are more or less eight main islands, of which seven are inhabited, and six are most relevant on the tourism front....

As discussed in our Kauai episode of Miles Away, travelers visiting Hawaii’s Garden Isle typically choose to book their accommodations either on the north or south sections of the island. Personally, I prefer Princeville in the north, since it’s near the breathtaking Nā Pali Coast State Wilderness Park, offering impressive views from the former St. Regis Princeville. It’s also home to The Westin Princeville Ocean Resort Villas, a Bonvoy member favorite....

Things haven’t gone smoothly for Marriott travelers since Marriott merged with Starwood Preferred Guest and relaunched its loyalty program as Marriott Bonvoy.As a Platinum Elite with 35 elite nights so far in 2019, I’ve had plenty of frustrations with Marriott – from two-night stays at a 35,000-point property pricing at 140,000 points to conducting an audit that revealed Marriott owed me 183,980 points.Now, with issues continuing more than nine months into the new program, Marriott seems to be trying to earn back some goodwill with its elites....

Update: Some offers mentioned below are no longer available. View the current offers here.Priority Pass is adding another lounge to its network, which will help it increase its US presence. If you have a membership to the lounge network, you can now access the PGA MSP Lounge at Minneapolis/St. Paul International Airport (MSP).This news come after Priority Pass lost the Escape lounge at MSP on June 14, which was its only lounge at the airport....

In central California, a proposal from Verizon Wireless to install a cell tower in Sequoia National Park has been approved. But the decision to bring technology to the wilderness can have both positive and negative effects.Verizon proposed the 138-foot-tall tower back in 2017, and has been working with park officials to hammer out details ever since. Construction on the tower hasn’t begun yet, but the project is scheduled to be completed by November 2020....

Update: Some offers mentioned below are no longer available. View the current offers here.TPG reader Jason wrote in to ask me an interesting ethical question:“Do you think it’s acceptable to seek reimbursement from your work for travel booked using points earned from non-business related sources (e.g., sign-up bonuses)? More specifically, do you think it’s acceptable to book a flight using points and then have the company reimburse you the fare quoted for those flights?...

Forget El Camino de Santiago. This summer, serious hikers should consider Slovenia’s new Julian Alps Hiking Trail.Long-distance hikes such as the Pacific Crest and Appalachian trails have long been popular with backpackers in the US. And ambitious mountain treks, like those in the Himalayas, also attract adventure seekers and nature lovers from across the globe. But multiday hikes have recently become much more mainstream, thanks in part to the movie “The Way,” where a father completes the pilgrimage that took the life of his estranged son....

Update: Some offers mentioned below are no longer available. View the current offers here.No matter how you slice it, many travel cards are not providing enough value in the current environment for cardholders to take them out of the sock drawer. Some of the biggest spending categories are not flights and accommodation, but rather household items and essentials like groceries.That makes sense when you consider travel has come to nearly a complete halt....