Paris (photo credit)
About a year ago we flew from Asia to Europe to begin a 4 month tour. We spent a month each in Spain, Italy, and UK/Ireland, and a handful of weeks in Portugal, Czech, Germany, Denmark, and Iceland. This was a big chunk of Jr’s 16 countries visited in his first 16 months.
Notably absent from this list of countries is France. And it has been an awfully long time since I’ve had a good croissant.
To rectify this terrible situation, in a few weeks we are flying to Paris. We’ll be there at least 2 weeks, after which we will eventually make it to the other slighted countries.
I was pretty excited about how we saved $10k+ on our previous trip. But this time… we did even better.
Epic Award Flights to Europe
Our flights to Europe are probably the biggest award travel score that I’ve pulled off.
There is only 1 direct flight from Taipei to Paris, on EVA Air. One-way tickets for 2 adults and a child were $2,150 in coach (3 seats) and $7,450 in Biz (lap carry child.) We fly 1-day before Jr’s 2nd birthday, so we can still lap carry, but no way are we doing that in coach for 14 hours (would save ~$520.)
Unfortunately, there was no award travel availability for business class, and coach seats were 45k miles each (total 135k.) That is ~1.6¢ per mile, which is OK for United miles, but I would have to transfer UR points 1:1. These are worth at least 2.1¢, so I’d be losing 25%+ of the value.
Alternatives weren’t looking great. Google Flights was giving me terrible choices for other airlines, with long layovers or indirect routes. 30 hours with 14.5 hour layover in Seoul is a “best flight”?!?!
Mileage options were even worse, with no availability in economy and 75k+ points per adult for biz.
So I ignored the flight search tools and built my own.
Hong Kong
Cathay Pacific had a nice flight to Paris from Hong Kong, but the price was a little steep at $8,493 per adult in Business and $3,270 in coach. Frequent flyer miles to the rescue!
Alaska Airlines has a partnership with Cathay Pacific, with Business class flights from Hong Kong to Europe for 42,500 miles! That is a valuation of $0.20/mile! This can’t be booked online, so I had to call Alaska Airlines. The first time they told me I couldn’t do what I wanted to do, so I hung up and called back for a different sales person.
Unfortunately, this mileage fare is only valid for flights from Hong Kong. The leg from Taipei to HK needed to be booked separately, at a cost of 22,500 miles per adult.
Uhh, no.
Instead I opened a brand new British Airways Avios account and transferred 10,000 UR points. This was processed instantaneously. For 4500 Avois points per adult we now had our Hong Kong flights (economy, lap carry.)
Lap carry
The problem with this arrangement is most airlines charge 10% of the full adult fare for a lap carry infant on International flights… that big $8k price tag on the Cathay flight means a $875 lap carry fee. Bummer. I guess all of those people who told us kids were expensive were right after all :p (I even thought about leaving him in Taipei, but Winnie said no.)
I could have booked Jr his own business class seat for another 42,500 miles, which would have saved us $875 with a mileage valuation of ~2.0¢. I probably should have done that, but I couldn’t shake the image of some poor 6’7″ person stuck in the back with their knees touching their chin, while our 25 lb kid lounged in a super-sized seat sipping alcohol free champagne. So he will sit with us.
Fortunately, when it comes to lap carry children, British Airways shines. They only charge 10% of the mileage fare for lap carry, so Jr gets to ride on the 2 hour flight to HK for only 450 miles. At 2.1¢, that is only $9.45.
We are flying the day before Jr’s 2nd birthday, so it would suck a bit if flights are delayed/cancelled and our travel gets pushed out a day (can’t lap carry from Age 2 onward), but that is what travel insurance is for.
Summary
Total trip time: 16.5 hours (2.5 hours longer than direct flight)
Miles used: 85k Alaska miles ($1,615 value), 9450 Avios points ($198.45 value)
Taxes/fees: $1,072.65 (which also earns 3,218 points worth $67+) ($875 of this is for Jr.)
Cost if paid cash: $19,204
Alaska valuation: $0.20/point!
UR valuation: $0.108/point!
However, I would never pay cash for flights at these prices. These mileage valuations, while amazing, are overstated. Instead, assuming the original EVA biz class flight ($7,450), subtracting the taxes/fees, blending the points: 94,450 miles/points -> $0.07/mile. Still amazing!
Or, for $1,000 less than the purchase value of the coach flight, we fly business class. I’m good with that.
Airport Hotel
Since we are moving out of our apartment the day prior, and our flight leaves at 6 am, I booked us an airport hotel.
I didn’t use points though… instead, I had the Holiday Inn Express pay me.
Every year, IHG has what they call the Accelerate bonus offer, which is unique per member. This is mine, which expires in mid-April, so this is the last opportunity.
With a 2-night weekend stay, paid with my IHG credit card, I will get 3k + 1.5k + 4k + 21.5k = 30k IHG points. These are valued at ~0.7¢/point+, for a total of $210. Although as with our flights, I routinely get better value, e.g. 15% better with a 0.8¢/point for a stay in Bath, England. I also have a 1k point Anniversary bonus if we stay before May, which is worth another $7. We will be using these points and the annual Free Night that comes with the IHG credit card elsewhere in Europe, TBD.
The total bill for 2 nights is ~$159, which includes breakfast. I paid an extra $3/day to get another 1k points/day, which brings the total for the stay itself to 4,187 points (value = $29.30.) I’ll get another 5 points per dollar spent on the IHG card, for another 800 points ($5.6.)
But wait, there is more. BeFrugal currently pays 7% on IHG hotel bookings… (See how to get maximum hotel value.) After checkout we will get another $11+/-.
Total cost: $165. Total value: $265. Eat, sleep, profit.
As a bonus, we can take the subway to the hotel for a couple bucks rather than an early morning airport taxi for $35. (Savings, ~$30.)
Do you always get paid to stay in hotels? “No, but I did stay at a Holiday Inn Express last night!”
Airbnb
Last night I booked 2 weeks at an Airbnb in Paris. ($40 off your 1st stay!) It is next to a big park and has a great central location. I can’t imagine we’ll be eating too many meals at home (cuz, Paris!) but the kitchen also looks very nice. Hopefully the convertible couch is comfy, since a London friend is coming over for Easter weekend. (Check out all the great European Airbnb apartments we stayed in last year.)
This apartment had a 12% weekly discount, and the owner gave us an extra 13% off since I asked nicely. Compared to what else we were finding, $127/night seemed like a rockin’ good deal. ($1,781 total.)
But… $800 of this I paid with Gift Cards which I had purchased at 20% off ($800 for $640.) In hindsight, I should have purchased more (MUCH MORE!)
$100 of this I purchased from Amazon.com for $80 with my Amazon credit card, which earns 3% back. These were physical cards mailed to my mom in California, with no shipping and no sales tax. Actual cost: $77.60 / 22.4% off.
The remainder I purchased from giftcardmall.com, also with no sales tax, and I bought these through the Ebates shopping portal for an additional 1% cash back. Actual cost: $475.20 / 20.8% off. (See how to Never Pay Retail Again.)
The remaining $981 was paid on Winnie’s Sapphire Reserve card, which earns 3 points / $. Each point is worth at least 2.1¢, for 6.3% back (although with the Hong Kong flight above, UR points were redeemed at 10.8¢… 32.4% back?) Actual cost: $919.20 / 6.3% off.
All together, the total cost for 2 weeks is $1,472, or $105/night.
Survey says…
Incidentally, I recently took a survey on Facebook and Twitter to see which 3 European cities are a reader’s favorite. Check out the results! Also follow us on Facebook, Twitter, or both(!), for more day-to-day fun stuff.
We’ve both been to Paris before, but this will be our first time there together. We’ve been to 9 of the top 10 cities from the survey, and the rest of the list is giving us some ideas for where to head next. Christmas in Vienna / Salzburg and a sailing trip on the Dalmatian Coast are 2 ideas we are exploring.
Trip Summary
We are planning at least 4 months in Europe, starting with 2 weeks in Paris. We really have no idea where we’ll head after that. I’m reading through a copy of Lonely Planet France for ideas. If you have some French favorites, please let us know!
Business class tickets from Taipei to Paris, via Hong Kong, cost about $300 in taxes/fees plus 85k Alaska Airlines miles and 9450 British Airways Avios points, and another $875 for Jr to sit on our laps. With an early departure we’ll stay in a hotel near the airport, which will give us another $265 worth of points to use in Europe for a low fee of $165.
Booking by the week, we snagged 12% off our Airbnb in Paris, and I got another 13% off just for asking. About half of the total price was covered with Airbnb Gift Cards that I purchased for 20% off. I should have purchased more, as I can’t currently find any available discounted GCs.
Croissants though… those I’ll pay full price.
What is Your Best Award Travel Story? Have Paris tips for us?
Check out some other examples of incredible award travel deals, including $10k off our last trip to Europe.
After Paris try Nice on Cote D’Azur. From there using only their buses you can see all their coast including Monaco – not France but very close – Cannes, Antibes etc. Further away with a rental car you can go to Italy. The weather should be ok although Europe had some odd changes in climate and weather in the last couple of years. Good luck and enjoy!
I like this idea! I originally dismissed Nice because I’ve been there a handful of times, but that was always for work… It is a beautiful city, I just didn’t get to really enjoy it. Thanks for the suggestion!
It’s not by far only the city, the entire region is full of small lovely cities or villages. Moreover, you have the area with the lavander fileds just a few miles away + the mountains for trips with a rental car/ train. In total it’s a huge area to explore and if you have time to go to Italy also on the same coast it’s just splendid.
Them some kick ass redemptions you got! Nice job Jeremy! (Probably a good thing the nanny quit so you didn’t have to worry about a 3rd adult ticket haha!)
We might have to get a traveling nanny. The pay sucks, but the benefits are sweet.
Have fun in Paris! My wife and I went there 4 years ago and loved it. Sitting by the Eiffel Tower at night with a bottle of wine and some sort of treat was our favorite way to end the day. Wish I would have known about Airbnb back then. $127/night is a lot better rate than what I paid!
Hello, 4-6 years ago there were websites sort of like airbnb (for example homelidays.co.uk but there were many others) with rental appartments. It’s a gorgeous way of staying in the city trourist areas but with great surface and furniture but at much lower prices than hotels. I stayed like this in many European important cities and never encountered any trouble with the landlords, the way the places really looked etc. Maybe it was just our luck!
nice timing on this article. we are currently planning a trip to Europe, and plan to use travel hacking to help get us there. I’m yet to use Airbnb, but I’ve been putting in our trip details and it seems like most places offer HUGE discounts if you stay for a month or more. Another good reason to slow travel I guess. Just curious, do either of you speak French? Is it needed in?
Neither of us speaks any French. We’ll fix that a bit to be polite.
Airbnb is the best. I hear they are a profitable company now too.
Those are some sweet hacks! We’re in Jamaica right now on our free hacked trip. Nothing beats travelling on points :)
I’ll be looking forward to reading up on another epic Europe trip. I miss those French croissants!
I’ve never been to Jamaica, how is it?
I may have to write a blog post that consists of nothing but photos of me eating croissants.
If you like sun, sand, Red Stripe, jerk chicken, and Caribbean blue gin water, then you would like Jamaica. This is actually our 5th trip to Jamaica. We used to come down a lot while working, the all inclusive resorts are a good deal. The only thing about Jamaica is that you get hassled a lot off resort. For a trip that is not on a resort, there are probably better options like Barbados. But with snorkeling, windsurfing, kayaking, paddle boarding, and sailing all available on most resorts, we don’t have much time for anything else. I’m just laying down now after a wild windsurfing session, some Red Stripes are in my near future :)
I’d read a post all about croissants ;)
We’ve been to Jamaica and Barbados. You are 100% right about both! We stayed at an AirBnB in Barbados and walked to the fish market at night. It was like heaven (and driving on the opposite side of the road was crazy too!)
We did a sailing trip in the BVIs quite a few years ago (with miles, of course) and I had my fair share of Red Stripe. Sounds fantastic!
Spend some time in the Dordogne region, specifically Sarlat. We loved canoeing through the beautiful medieval villages.
I just browsed Google images… wow, it looks amazing
Yup the Dordogne is incredible. We stayed there in an airbnb that was absolutely spectacular. The street we stayed on had been in a movie! Let me know if you want the details. Bon voyage!
Wow, that’s an incredible flurry of credit card hacking there. One point of clarification though…the prices/points quoted are for one person (I think?) So should we be doubling them to get the full count used for the flights?
What’s even more impressive is that you can get a 2 year old to sit in your lap for a flight that long…sorry two year old minus one day!
The summary is total.
He won’t sit on our lap that whole time (not a chance) but the seats lay flat for nap time, are wide enough for him to sit next to Winnie (I’m too fat), and also come with a lot of floor space for driving cars/playing legos/etc…
I’ll get to Europe some day, but first I need to save up some CC points apparently! Until then, I guess I’ll live vicariously through you and your pictures. Please post lots!
Check out our Instagram feed too! We will post a photo or two per day.
Great job on those redemptions! I’m hoping some of that pro-travel-hacker knowledge sticks and I can get even close on my next trip!
As for recommendations, I have something that’s a little different. If you find yourself in the Lyon region, I would highly recommend spending a couple of nights at Couvent Sainte-Marie de La Tourette. It’s a convent in the French countryside designed by a couple of famous architects (that’s the reason I stayed there myself) and they allow tourists to stay as well as students from nearby areas who go there to study with no interruptions. There is no WiFi and guests are expected to be pretty quiet most of the time (I’m not sure how that would work with GCC Jr. I don’t have kids so I don’t know at what age they begin to understand the concept of quiet time, but I’ve heard it may be around 20), and the stay includes amazing home-cooked meals with the monks. I did this towards the end of a pretty hectic trip and it was a great way to recharge and take a break from constant activity.
I have no idea if this is down your alley or even doable with a small child, but I figured I’d put it out there in case you or anyone else reading the comments might be interested. I also have heard that many convents throughout France (and possibly other European countries) do this and it can be a really affordable and interesting experience.
Ah, thanks for outlining how you saved moolah on your travels. It’s always cool when people talk about what they saved, but since I’m planning a vacay in a year or so, it’s nice to see how to save too.
I’ll be honest: I HATE France. I’ve never had a fun or good experience in France, no matter where I’ve been. It’s just not a great place in my opinion (and I used to live in Europe and frequently went there). I’d recommend touring Germany and Belgium. Belgium is a great little gem that actually was one of the best places I’ve ever visited.
No way to get those croissants at a discount? :)
Actually I found an app for that. “Too Good To Go”. They basically sell surplus food from restaurants through the app. You buy during the day and then pick up during the designated pick up time (which appear to be just after lunch and just after dinner, so maybe 3:00-4:00 pm and 8-10 pm). Lots of bakeries on the app. Though you want fresh baked piping hot croissants, no? :)
They have TONS of restaurants on board in France and much less in Portugal, Spain, Italy, Austria, Czech. There are a few in Germany. I’ve scoped out a few sushi/Chinese places and Indian restaurants near our airbnb in Berlin. Novel concept, so I’m curious how it works in the execution. Looks like most take out plates are €3-4 through the app vs. what I assume are full price meals at €7-15. Leftover Tikka masala for breakfast the next day sounds kind of nice (I mean, if you’re too lazy to go out for fresh croissants).
I like the fresh ones :) But since we pay with credit cards, we at least get 3 points per dollar or 6.3% off
Will have to check out that app though
What’s a good way to search for flights to be paid with miles? I can search individual airlines but they are not the most friendly (AA and UAL). I like the google flight options but can only search by $ price as far as I can tell.
This is a tough one. The Earth Awaits has a tool that helps. Otherwise, I usually just pick a destination and then look at the airlines that fly there.
Thanks!
You utterly amaze me with all your hacks! We need to work on that! I have a question off topic a bit that I hope you can help me with. How do you manage to go someplace on one way tickets? Recently we purchased one way tickets to Bali, but when we arrived at the airport we were not allowed to leave without purchasing return flights. I don’t understand. Can you help please? Thanks!
This can depend on the country or the immigration officer. Worst case you can just buy a refundable ticket and then cancel it later.
I can only recall once ever being asked.
Oh! So these are one-way tickets, not round trip? That explains why I though your total was only for one person.
We don’t know where we’ll head next, so yeah, 1-way.
Not sure if you know about this already, but Delta is running a promotion where you get 3 miles per dollar spent on airbnb through their portal until April 30: https://www.deltaairbnb.com/
Might come in handy if you book additional airbnbs after Paris.
I didn’t know about this, thanks!
Wow, that’s some travel hacking. As for places in France, we swung into France during my wife’s last work trip in Germany. We visited Strausburg which is a very cool old churches, along with the European parliament. The city center is a world heritage site. If Alsace is not too far out of your way I’d highly recommend it.
When you leave Paris you should spend at least 2-3 days (maybe more) in the Loire Valley and visit the castles. It’s only about a 2-3 hours drive from Paris. There are so many castles to choose from (Chenonceau, Chambord, Amboise, Blois, etc.) . We stayed in Blois for a night that city is so beautiful and the castle is right in the middle of the city and there is so much history that seems alive around you (if you are into that). I know there are small castles in the region that have been converted into hotels maybe you can stay in one but we didn’t. We were there in spring and the whole region was so beautiful with the trees in bloom and flowers everywhere.
Since you are travelling with a child, I would suggest Nante. The most child-friendly city in France (IMHO). Birthplace of Jules Verne. Ile des machines is great is great for big and small. The Botanical Garden (near the train station) has a children’s playground directly in front of the licensed cafe. Relax with a glass of wine while keeping an eye on your child – how civilized.
My favourite city is Montpellier. The zoo is free. The beach is within cycling distance. Go. You’ll love it.
We’ll be in Paris in two days! Like you, we have an AirBNB for about the same price, also centrally located. Unlike you, I only have 6 days to spend there, and we’ll hit up Iceland again for a couple days on the way home.
I look forward to slow travel, but in the meantime, I’ll let you know if I have any must-see or must-do activities to share after our trip. Aside from the expected Louvre / Eiffel Tower / Arche de Triomphe, we’re excited to see the Catacombs, and our older son will be taking his very first communion at Notre Dame, which is way cool.
Cheers!
-PoF
Sounds like a great trip! Slow travel is one of the main reasons I’m not working… jobs just take too much time away from travel.
Also let us know if you find some great croissants!
Yeah… sometimes I wonder what we’re waiting for. Four long flights for eight days of adventure. By the time our boys have adjusted to the time change, it’ll be time to upset the apple cart once again.
I hope they put apples in pastries over there. I’ll let you know about the croissants.
And the apple thing.
Cheers!
-PoF
Quick time zone hopping is the worst, although I imagine the boys will fare better than the adults. Ahhh, youth
I hope you’re right. Our 6-year old has a 102 fever today. Pumping him full of Tylenol and ibuprofen. I told him he’s got 24 hours to shape up! ;)
last week Jr had fever, diarrhea for 5 days straight, with occasional vomiting. Good times. I should have tried the tough love :)
Best croissants? And pain au chocolat. Ble sucre 7 rue Antoine Vollon – 75012 Paris (métro Ledru-Rollin, ligne 8) / tél : 01 43 40 77 73. Tue to sat 7h30 to 19h30, Sunday 7h30 to 13h30. Vetted by adult and child (multiple times to be sure). Park across the road is a bonus. The website parisbymouth is a great resource for food gems. Jealous! But looking forward to your next round of posts.
I have marked this on our map as one of our main destinations! Thanks!
I’ve also bookmarked the Paris By Mouth Best Croissants in Paris page.
Wow this is awesome! I need to look this kind of deals a bit more. :D
Whatever happened to heading to Oz? Change of plan?
Yeah, we just decided this last week :p
Fun! Can’t wait to see some “grand croissant” pics from France.
We stayed in Montresor in Loire Valley for a few days. Quiet and peaceful – just what we needed. And there was a pastry shop within easy walking distance, so that was a bonus. In Paris you must do the sewer tour. You can tell from the stench that it’s the real deal. Have fun!
Ultra 4K HD videos on demand on a large screen keep getting better; drones add a dimension (up/down). Not fond of crowds or cities so satisfies my interest in tourist hotspots.
Have you tried any of the VR headsets?
Sounds like a sweet trip. I have to start travel hacking…it is a lot more fun than this other rewards card I do.
Free travel is great motivation.
Heading to Europe next month also. Iceland. Amsterdam. Then wherever the wind blow me. Sound like you got great deals on hotel/flights…travel hacking at it best. Wish I am as organize so I can figure how much per cents…I just winging on my trip most of the time!
We wing it a lot too. For this trip I benefited from all of the research I did last year, so it only took a couple hours to put it all together.
We were in Iceland in August last year. It is a beautiful country.
Let us know if you will be staying in Belgium too (or just rushing through as most tourists tend to do) and we’ll give you a few tips (and can even throw in 2 spare bedrooms)
Thanks FFS! We just booked a couple nights hotel in Brussels. Would be happy to meet up for a beer
We’re pretty excited because we’ve been travel hacking AA awards, and have so far gotten enough for 2 tickets to Santiago. We need 4 by December. It’s definitely motivating to not to have to pay $6000 in tickets! We’ve tried travel hacking before but I think it’s working this time because we’re a) opening one card at a time and putting all our expenditures on it and b) crystal clear on exactly how many frequent flier miles we need from a specific airline.
Very nice! I think the best way to get started with the award travel is to just pick a destination and go from there. Clear goals make it easy to decide which cards to get.
Maybe we should head over and hang out.
Bet they have some wonderful emergency rooms to visit…. ;)
I think you should. We may end up in the UK a bit in August too.
Any other Alaska Airlines tips/websites you use for the travel hack? I actually got an Alaska Air CC to travel to Montana this year and Alaska next, using the companion pass as my motivation.
Nothing specific comes to mind. They allow a stopover even on 1-way flights, so we had flights from MSP to SEA to SFO last summer for only 12,500 miles. The free bag check with the credit card is nice, as is the companion fare. This is one of the cards I keep and/or apply for periodically.
How do you get around the 90 day Schengen visa thing? I thought you have to leave for 1.5 years before coming back?
The limit is 90 days every 180 days. We’ve been outside Schengen for ~9 months, so no problem.
Unless we slip into Turkey in May (still figuring it out) we’ll have to leave Schengen in early July. Then we can go back again in October through Xmas. The only issue I have with this is that we’ll miss Octoberfest, which strangely takes place in September
In High School German class, they told us Octoberfest was held in September, as October it rains too much in Germany.
I’ve been to Paris 3 time in the last 8 years, and my #1 tip is: get ice cream at Berthillon!
Thanks!
Great job, we’d love to get to Paris too, perhaps after I call my career quits here soon. I have a question about the Chase UR points. I know the points guy says they are worth 2.1 cents each, but form what I’ve seen, they are worth about 1.5 or 1.6 cents each. I suppose they are worth 1.9 cents IF you transfer them to Hyatt. Of course we don’t fly first class either, which is probably why we don’t value them quite as high.
For now, we’ll have to settle for a week In Puerto Rico. Thank you, JP Morgan Chase!
I use the 2.1¢ as a guideline. If redeeming them would value the points less than that, I just pay cash as I did for Jr’s lap carry. For our flights to HK, we got more than 10¢/point. We don’t typically fly Biz or 1st, but in some cases it is a no brainer. Why pay 135k miles for the 3 of us in coach when we can pay 85k in biz.
We booked our trip to Europe this spring too! We were going to use miles but buying the actual plane tickets ended up cheaper for us (I might have done my research wrong :\) Definitely good tips in this article that I hope to use in the future, such as buying gift cards on discount to pay for stuff. On the bright side, all the travel expenses were charged on our new shiny Chase Sapphire Reserve and we’re on our way to hit the quota for that sign up bonus!
Congrats on getting the big Reserve bonus! That is a sweet card.
Flights to Europe from the US are ridiculously cheap right now. I would probably pay cash too.
Sounds awesome :) Love your itinerant lifestyle and it is one of my biggest motivations for FIRE.
We’re actually going to Paris this spring as well for about 2 weeks at the end of Apr/ beginning of May. Booked the travel on my and my wife’s Chase Sapphire Reserve cards getting those sweet 100k bonuses, plus all the 3x miles for travel.
Nice! Love that card
How about Canada for the late summer/early fall? Camp Mustache Canada is near Toronto in late October. ;)
I thought you two were staying in Taipei basically the whole year for family reasons. Hope everything is okay on that end. :)
late summer / early fall is still up in the air. Canada could be fun
We kept procrastinating on the next round of IVF and came to the conclusion that we weren’t ready yet. So maybe next year.
Oh good, I’m glad to hear there was no medical reason for the change. :)
Is FinCon back on the range of possibilities?
I should probably take back my Canada comment :) We probably won’t leave the European continent this year.
booooooo
totally understandable. :)
Very interesting post! I am very impressed with your kid travel and travel hacking skills! Looking forward to keeping up with your exciting adventures and insights.
Glad to see another crazy traveller blogging about money. The world is so small, so why not just go wherever you want. Will read more here for sure :)
If you’ll be in Europe in late fall, you definitely want to check out the Christmas markets. We spent Christmas 2014 in Vienna and Salzburg and it was magical. We loved it so much we did a 2016 Christmas markets tour of part of France and southern Germany. Salzburg was the best, followed by Vienna, then Strasbourg. Paris Christmas markets were terribly commercial and not at all charming. It’s hard work drinking mulled wine and eating delicious street foods every day, but I think you can do it. ;)
What does it mean for Taipei to be your home base? Do you sub-lease your apartment while you are traveling elsewhere or do you guys move into a new apartment whenever you decide to return?
How much time do you spend looking for lodging at a destination? What is your criteria; does it have to be the cheapest, the safest, the best location? When I travel I spend a frustratingly long time comparing Airbnb/hostel listings for the above, to try to get the best value for my money and it doesn’t encourage me to want to travel more. What’s your advice?
Taipei is mostly a base in name only. We don’t have much of anything there. When we head back that way again we will find new housing.
For finding new places to stay, we don’t spend much time. As an example, we are headed towards Japan for 5 weeks +/-. We will stay in 14 places during that time, some Airbnb / some hotel. It only took a couple hours to find and book everything. If we were planning to stay somewhere for months, we would look a little more closely. We focus a bit on location so we can walk most places, and look at getting a fair price but not necessarily maximum value.
Hi Jeremy,
We’ll be taking our (then) 14 month old on a ten hour flight so I’m looking at the three coach seats or two business class seats options as well. When you had two business class seats where did jr sleep, just on the lap, obviously even in business class this would be a little uncomfortable for the parent no? What about coach, I would imagine if you had a spare seat you don’t take a car seat with you? I was looking at something like this https://tripswithtykes.com/cares-harness-review-alternative-car-seats-planes/ but imagine that would be uncomfortable to sleep in as well.
Thanks.
We had full lie flat biz class seats, and Jr just sat/slept/played at my feet near the TV most of the time. Then he would climb over the wall and do the same on Mom’s side.
See this image as an example.
For coach we have never had a car seat in the cabin. Jr sat/slept on our laps, or sometimes you get lucky and get an empty seat.
But you can also request the bulkhead with a bassinet for sleeping. This is probably the best option. I wouldn’t buy anything.