Jack – Another Day Another Mile

Review: KLM World Business SFO-AMS

This was our first big international trip since the pandemic and I was excited to fly KLM for the first time. I took advantage of a AMEX transfer bonus and transferred points to Flying Blue. Two round trip tickets in business class cost 252,000 Flying Blue points or ~193,000 AMEX Membership Rewards (~48.5K each way) which seemed solid.

Review: AA Flagship First SFO-JFK

We were at the SFO Admirals Club getting ready to head to the gate when I saw a seat change notification. I wasn’t expecting good news. However, for whatever reason, we were both upgraded from Flagship Business to Flagship First. My only guess is that business was oversold. The agent provided us our new boarding pass and we were on our way to the gate.

Review: JFK American Flagship Lounge

This was our first time flying American in Flagship Business. Our ticket got us access the JFK Flagship lounge which is the same lounge international business class has access to. We scanned our boarding pass and was directed towards the lounge.

Review: PHX Centurion Lounge

After clearing security we made our way to the Centurion lounge. I haven’t been to this location yet and was excited to see what a new Centurion lounge has to offer. We checked in using the American Express app and got a QR code to present at check in. Once checked in we headed into the lounge.

Review: SFO Alaska Club

Alaska Airlines opened their new San Francisco club a few months back and I finally had time to check it out. Before the pandemic the original plans were to create a new space. However, plans changed and Alaska took over the former American Airlines Admirals club. The agent quickly scanned our boarding pass and we entered the lounge.

Review: ORD Admirals Club Concourse H/K

Alaska Airlines has two gates in the G concourse. However, American Airlines is only operating one club at ORD in the H/K concourse. We made our way over and we’re quickly admitted.

Upon taking the elevator up to the club we saw the updated look of this Admirals Club.

Review: JW Marriott Chicago

I took advantage of various Marriott gift card deals ranging from 15-20% off. Since these gift cards were in USD it’s best to use them locally and not be subject to a bad conversation rates. My fiancé wanted to visit a cold weather destination and Chicago came to mind!

We took the blue line from the airport and arrived at the hotel about 50 minutes later. The JW Marriott is located in the loop which is central to most locations. However, as the loop is a business district many things were closed for the holidays. We walked into the hotel which had a large lobby decorated for Christmas.

Review: LAX Alaska Club

Alaska Airlines has been expanding their lounge footprint and updating their lounges. Previously the locations were called boardrooms and had a older look to them. The new locations have a modern Pacific Northwest look and feel.

The LAX location is part of Priority Pass but is notorious for not admitting members due to crowding which was also the case today. I was quickly admitted by having a Alaska Club membership (First Class tickets also come with access).

The lounge is pretty small and consist of one seating area and a bar area. The seating area has cubical seating and tables for working or eating.

Review: LAX Centurion Lounge

The LAX Centurion lounge opened a few days back and I wanted to check it out as soon as possible. I booked a flight to LAX for the day just for the occasion. When I checked into the lounge I was told there is a 3 hour policy and I’d need to wait 45 minutes before returning. I understand rules are rules. However, the main purpose of that rule was for crowding and given the current situation with COVID-19 I had a feeling there wasn’t any crowds. When I returned I was quickly admitted into the lounge to find about 10 people.

Review: LAX Admirals Club

LAX has a variety of lounges that I wanted to see so I booked a flight to spend a few hours at LAX. That’s normal, right?

The main motivation behind this trip was to see the new LAX Centurion Lounge. However, with my Alaska Airlines club membership I also had access to the Admirals Club. I walked over to Terminal 4 and walked into the check in area.