Pic: Lobby at 16th floor of Hilton Pattaya (Aug 2011)

Pic: Spectacular corridor at Hilton Pattaya (Aug 2011)
For my last night in Pattaya, I had booked what must be the most spectacular hotel in town, the Hilton.  Via Hotelscombined.com I spotted deeply discounted rates at Octopustravel.com and paid 126,50 euro for a Deluxe Room including breakfast which was 175 euro at Hilton.com 

Pic: Deluxe room at Hilton Pattaya (Aug 2011)
Pic: Bathroom of Deluxe room – Hilton Pattaya (Aug 2011)
At arrival around noon, I was told my room wasn’t ready yet.  I used the opportunity to discover the hotel and had lunch at Edge.  The buffet was limited, but at 300THB (7 EUR) cheap for Hilton standards.  Good quality food in a nice setting.  At 2.30pm my room was ready, a request for late check-out (1pm) was denied.  The 46sqm deluxe room on the 19th floor was spotless and had an impressive interior design.  Only disappointment was the partially blocked view.  If I ever stay again at Hilton Pattaya, I would book a Deluxe Plus room.  It offers better views and has an extended balcony with outdoor bathtub.
Pic: View from the Edge Restaurant Terrace at Hilton Pattaya (Aug 2011)
Another highlight of my Hilton Pattaya stay was the impressive pool area called Shore.  I didn’t bring my camera to the pool since there was no way I was going to beat the photographer who made these awesome shots.

Pic: King Executive room at Millennium Hilton Bangkok (May 2012)

Pic: King Executive room at Millennium Hilton Bangkok (May 2012)
For my first night in Bangkok (Thailand trip May 17 – May 27) I used The Great Getaway Hilton promo (valid till July 23 for stays until September 30, 2012).  Unlike some of the other ‘promotions’, this one really offers steep discounts on Hilton room rates.  I paid THB3469 (EUR89) for a King Hilton Deluxe room which was upgraded to a King Executive room upon arrival.  I enjoyed a free upgrade + free executive lounge access (breakfast, cocktails, dinner snacks, …) + free internet because of my HHonors Gold status.  How I got this status?  Normally you only get this status after staying 16 times or 36 nights at Hilton hotels during one calendar year… but myself (and many of my twitter followers) got it for free.  In the past months several links were posted on my twitter account which allowed you to obtain HHonors Gold status for free.  You just had to sign-up using the link and got instant HHonors Gold status!  Make sure to follow me on twitter so you don’t miss future deals.  I post several “Great Deal Alerts” a week.

Pic: Executive Lounge Breakfast at Millennium Hilton Bangkok (May 2012)

Pic: Lounge chairs at The Beach – Millennium Hilton Bangkok (May 2012)

Pic: Welcome ad Heathrow Airport – Beefeater Tower of London (May 2012)

Pic: Hilton HHonors ad at London Heathrow Airport (May 2012)
On my return from Thailand to Belgium, I made a stopover in London.  I arrived on Sunday night (open-jaw Etihad ticket GVA-BKK-LHR) and had a Eurostar ticket to Brussels for Monday afternoon.  It was another opportunity to use The Great Getaway Hilton promo. (valid till July 23 for stays until September 30, 2012)  I paid £100 (€128 on Amex) for a Double Hilton Guest Room at Hilton London Tower Bridge which was upgraded to a Double Hilton Executive Room thanks to my free Hilton HHonors Gold status.  This upgrade included access to the Executive lounge (free breakfast, evening cocktails & snacks, etc…) and HHonors Gold member, I also got free internet access.

Pic: Sunset City Hall view from London Tower Bridge (May 2012)
The hotel is conveniently located near London Bridge station.  I didn’t check the closest station in advance and ended up at Tower Hill station.  Exhausted from the longhaul BKK-AUH-LHR flight, I dragged my luggage across Tower Bridge.  In the process of doing so, I managed to make the sunset shot above.

Pic: Executive floor room (1108) at Hilton London Tower Bridge (May 2012)
The Executive room wasn’t huge but offered all the comfort an exhausted traveler could wish for.  After a 16h trip from Bangkok to London, the walk-in shower was heavenly.  Before falling asleep I snapped a few more shots of the great view.  Several famous London landmarks were visible from my room, including the soon to be completed Shard London Bridge tower.

Pic: Sunset view from Executive floor room at Hilton London Tower Bridge

Pic: Nighttime view Shard London Bridge Tower from Hilton Tower Bridge
Pic: Hilton London Tower Bridge exterior (May 2012)
After a good night of sleep, I had the pleasure to enjoy a fantastic sunny day in the City.  Before heading to St Pancras station to catch my Eurostar train to Brussels, I spend several hours browsing the business district of London.  Below some shots of the great scene’s I encountered.

Pic: St Paul’s Cathedral Festival Gardens London (May 2012)

Pic: Royal Exchange on sunny day in London (May 2012)

Pic: 30 St Mary Axe Tower and St Andrew Undershaft, London (May 2012)

Pic: Terrace 30 St Mary Axe London (May 2012)
The City is ready for the London 2012 Olympic Games!  Looking forward to be part of it!  See you soon London.

Pic: Olympic Rings at St Pancras Eurostar station in London (May 2012)

Pic: Conrad Koh Samui entrance on top of the hill (July 2012)

Pic: Conrad Koh Samui Private Pool at Oceanview villa (July 2012)

Pic: Conrad Koh Samui One Bedroom Oceanview Pool Villa (July 2012)

Pic: Conrad Koh Samui Breathtaking Sea View from Villa 311 (July 2012)

Pic: Conrad Koh Samui Pool Villa 311 Oceanview (July 2012)
Each year in the April/May time frame, the U.S. Travel Association organizes a five week sale of (mainly) hotel loyalty points called “Daily Getaways”. The aim of the Daily Getaways campaign is to encourage domestic US summer travel and thus intended for US citizens, nevertheless both in 2011 and 2012, I managed to buy several point packages. As these points are being sold at steep discounts, the sale has become incredibly popular and the better offers tend to sell-out in seconds. My best ‘catch’ in 2011 was a package of 24,000 Hyatt Gold Passport points for $250 (€175,43) This year, I scored two great offers: I bought 98,000 Wyndham Rewards points for $308 (€237,85) and 150,000 Hilton HHonors points for $825 (€633,46) I had never heard of Wyndham hotels before and wasn’t planning to stay at any of their properties either. Still, buying those 98K points was an incredible deal as you could convert them to a lot of partner airline miles. In my case, I converted the 98K Wyndham Rewards points to a whopping 39,200 United MileagePlus miles. The icing on the cake came two weeks ago, when Singapore Airlines accidentally released all reward inventory to Star Alliance partners. An ideal opportunity to convert those cheap United miles into something very valuable… Yes, I booked a Singapore Airlines First Class flight for Jan 2013! More on that later.

Pic: Conrad Koh Samui Villa Keycard (July 2012)

Pic: Conrad Koh Samui Bedroom of Oceanview Pool Villa 311 (July 2012)
Back to the subject of this post, Conrad Koh Samui in Thailand. A property with 66 villa’s located on a west facing hill in the Southern tip of the Koh Samui island. Opened in September 2011, with an average room rate well above THB20,000 (€500) per night, not particularly fitting the average travel budget. Except if you collected and/or bought Hilton HHonors points. The hotel is ranked Category 7 in the HHonors program, meaning 50K points are required for a free night. HHonors Elite Members (Silver, Gold and Diamond) get discounts on the number of points required for extended stays. As I obtained HHonors Gold status for free last year, I was eligible for a 15% points discount on a four night stay: 42500 points per night (4 nights = 170K) instead of 50,000 (4 nights = 200K). Before my 150K points purchase, I had 16,565 HHonors points in my account. The missing 3435 points to total the 170K were offered during the booking process for $34,35 (€28). That brought the total for 4 nights at Conrad Koh Samui to €661,46 (€633,46 (150K) + €28 (3K) +16K points which were in my account) A paid stay at my one bedroom Oceanview Pool Villa using the cheapest non-refundable rate would have cost me THB78,523 (€2020)!

Pic: Conrad Koh Samui Bathroom Oceanview Pool Villa 311 (July 2012)

Pic: Conrad Koh Samui Hilton HHonors Gold Welcome Amenity (July 2012)

Pic: Conrad Koh Samui HHonors Gold Welcome Amenity (July 2012)

Pic: Conrad Koh Samui Zest Restaurant Entrance (July 2012)
The downside of exclusive resorts like Conrad Koh Samui is their remote location. Without own transportation means, it’s quite hard to leave the resort and the nearest restaurants and shops are not at walking distance. This works in the advantage of the resorts who tend to charge much higher prices for food and drinks compared to the local market value. Fortunately, my free Hilton HHonors Gold status comes with complimentary breakfast for up to two room guests. This allowed us to take an extensive daily ‘brunch’ covering both breakfast and lunch. As HHonors Gold, we could order anything from the menu (except the Sparkling Breakfast option) and/or we could serve ourselves at the buffet.

Pic: Conrad Koh Samui Zest Restaurant Interior (July 2012)

Pic: Conrad Koh Samui Breakfast Meat Selection (July 2012)

Pic: Conrad Koh Samui Breakfast Freshly Baked Pastries Selection (July 2012)

Pic: Conrad Koh Samui Breakfast Fresh Honey (July 2012)

Pic: Conrad Koh Samui Breakfast Fresh Juices (July 2012)

Pic: Conrad Koh Samui Breakfast with a view at Zest (July 2012)

Pic: Conrad Koh Samui Breakfast Freshly Baked Pastries (July 2012)

Pic: Conrad Koh Samui Breakfast Egg Royal (July 2012)

Pic: Conrad Koh Samui Breakfast French Toast (July 2012)
For in depth reviews of the resort, I would like to refer to colleague bloggers Garry Leff (View From The Wing, part 1, part 2) John Ollila (LoyaltyLobby.com) and the thread on Flyertalk. If you have any questions, feel free to ask in the comment section below. Thanks!

Pic: Conrad Koh Samui Main Pool (July 2012)

Pic: Conrad Koh Samui Main Pool Infinity Edge (July 2012)

Pic: Conrad Koh Samui Main Pool Underwater View (July 2012)

Pic: Conrad Koh Samui Beach Hammock and Chairs (July 2012)

Pic: Conrad Koh Samui Beach Lounge Chairs (July 2012)

Pic: Conrad Koh Samui Azure Pool Bar and Gril Restaurant (July 2012)

Pic: Conrad Koh Samui Azure Delicious Pizza (July 2012)

Pic: Travel blogger Bart Lapers at Conrad Koh Samui (July 2012)
Video: One Bedroom Ocean View Villa at Conrad Koh Samui

Back in May 2011, I published an insight in my loyalty program statuses including the number of points and miles earned.  More than a year has passed since then, so it’s time for an update:

HOTEL LOYALTY PROGRAMS

1) PRIORITY CLUB

• Membership Level: Platinum Royal Ambassador
• Expiration date: Jan 2014 (Platinum) Feb 2013 (Royal Ambassador)
• Qualifying nights in 2012: 11
• Number of points: 117,574
• Points earned in 2012: 77,545

How did I earn these points?
Obviously by resting my head for 11 nights on qualifying rates at IHG properties in the first 6 months of 2012, but more importantly, by signing up for every possible Priority Club Promotion (check FrequentFlyerBonuses.com and FlyerTalk.com for more details)  I also made some changes to my London 2012 Olympic Games reservations.  I cancelled my 7 nights at Hotel Indigo London Paddington reimbursing me 175K points.  I retained my two night booking at Hotel Indigo London Tower Hill for the opening weekend and added one extra night at Radisson Blu Edwardian Mercer Street using Club Carlson points.  This shortened my London 2012 Olympics trip to 3 nights instead of 9, but allowed me to use some of the points to book my upcoming French Polynesia trip.
Where did I spent points?
Past stays:
30K points for two nights at City Ocean View room at Holiday Inn Pattaya
25K points for one night at King Suite at Crowne Plaza Changi Singapore
5K points for one night at Crowne Plaza Venice East-Quarto d’Altino
Upcoming stays:
60K points for two nights at InterContintal Resort Tahiti
150K points for five nights at InterContinental Bora Bora Resort & Thalasso Spa
90K points for three nights at InterContinental Moorea Resort & Spa
Video: Intercontinental Bora Bora Resort & Thalasso Spa

2) HYATT GOLD PASSPORT

• Membership Level: Diamond
• Expiration date: Feb 2013
• Suite Upgrade Award vouchers left: 4
• Qualifying nights in 2012: 0
• Number of points: 40,820
• Points earned in 2012: 452

How did I earn these points?
I only stayed once at Hyatt this year and it was on points.  During award stays you only earn points on food & beverage charges, in my case 452 points.
Where did I spent points?
30K points for two nights at Club View King room at Grand Hyatt Seoul

3) HILTON HHONORS

• Membership Level: Gold
• Expiration date: Mar 2013
• Qualifying nights in 2012: 6
• Number of points: 3,066
• Points earned in 2012: 9,236

How did I earn these points?
Stays at Hilton Millennium Bangkok and Hilton London Tower Bridge.  Interesting detail:  I didn’t stay a single night at Hilton properties in 2011, still I managed to achieve Hilton HHonors Gold status for free.  I posted this opportunity several times on my twitter feed, make sure you don’t miss it next time, follow me on twitter! 
Where did I spent points?
170K points for four nights at Ocean View Pool Villa at Conrad Koh Samui
Note: 153,435K points were bought for this stay, read the blog post for all details.

4) STARWOOD PREFERRED GUEST (SPG)

• Membership Level: Preferred Guest
• Expiration date: N/A
• Qualifying nights in 2012: 4
• Number of points: 2,524
• Points earned in 2012: 4,040

How did I earn these points?
Stays at Honeymoon Suite at Sheraton Seoul D Cube City and Caroline Astor Suite at St. Regis Bangkok
Where did I spent points?
3K points for one night at Four Points by Sheraton Barcelona Diagonal

5) Club CArlson

• Membership Level: Silver
• Expiration date: Feb 2013
• Qualifying nights in 2012: 3
• Number of points: 64,214*
• Points earned in 2012: 108,722*

How did I earn these points?
Stays at Radisson Suites Bangkok Sukhumvit, Park Plaza Soi 18 Sukhumvit Bangkok and Park Inn Leuven.  Check my Club Carlson post for more details.
* Points from my Park Inn Leuven still need to post (including 44K bonus)
Where did I spent points?
50K points for one night at Radisson Blu Edwardian Mercer Street Hotel (Opening weekend London 2012 Olympics)

6) LE CLUB ACCOR

• Membership Level: Platinum
• Expiration date: Oct 2012
• Qualifying nights in 2012: 1
• Number of points: 1,676
• Points earned in 2012: 452

How did I earn these points?
One night stay at Novotel Bangkok Suvarnabhumi Airport.
Interesting detail:  I acquired free Le Club Accor Platinum status using a simple sign-up link.  I posted this opportunity several times on my twitter feed, make sure you don’t miss it next time, follow me on twitter! 
Where did I spent points?
No Le Club Accor points spent in 2012.  Le Club points have a very low value, you need a minimum of 4K points to convert them to 2000 airline miles or 2K points for a €40 discount voucher (which can only be used to lower roomrates, not on F&B)  In general, this loyalty program is really weak,  with platinum benefits rarely honored.  The only really positive experience I had as A Club Gold member was at Sofitel Paris La Defense back in 2010.

AIRLINE LOYALTY PROGRAMS

1) MILES AND MORE (LUfthansa)

• Membership Level: Senator – Star Alliance Gold
• Expiration date: 02/14
• Number of Award miles: 346,564
• Number of Status miles earned in 2012: 59,093
• Number of eVouchers: 2

How did I earn these miles?
I earned more than 280,000 miles in the past year.
150K miles were ‘butt-in-seat’ miles (by taking flights)
32K bonus miles for business flight to Rio de Janeiro
75K miles were earned using the Brussels Airlines American Express cards.
23K miles were earned from various sources like hotel stays, shopping, etc…
On what did I spent miles?
70K miles to upgrade GIG-FRA from Business Class to new Lufthansa First Class

2) MILEAGEPLUS (UNITED)

• Membership Level: MileagePlus member
• Expiration date: N/A
• Number of Award miles: 521
• Number of Status miles earned in 2012: 0
• Number of Award miles earned in 2012: 61,200

How did I earn these miles?
I bought 98,000 Wyndham Rewards points for $308 (€237,85) during the yearly U.S. Travel Association “Daily Getaways” campaign and converted them to 39,200 United Mileage Plus miles.  I also bought 20,000 Mileage Plus miles for $451 (€347,86) via a facebook 40% discount sale.
Finally, during an award reservation, I was 1479 miles short, so I had to buy a set of 2000 Mileage Plus miles for $70 (€58,47).
Conclusion, in total I bought 61,200 United Mileage Plus miles for €644,18
On what did I spent miles?
70K miles on an itinerary including Singapore Airlines First Class & Business Class + Air New Zealand Business and Economy Class.  More details to follow!

French Polynesia Trip Report Index
Tahiti and Bora Bora – Flights & Airfares
Hilton Frankfurt Airport
Lufthansa Senator Lounge Frankfurt Airport (Terminal 1, Departure Area B)
InterContinental Resort Tahiti
InterContinental Bora Bora Resort and Thalasso Spa
The St. Regis Bora Bora Resort (site inspection)
InterContinental Resort and Spa Moorea

Pic: Hilton Frankfurt am Main Airport – Entrance (Sep 2012)
As I had two separate tickets for my trip to French Polynesia, I decided to play safe by booking my BRU-FRA flight one day in advance.  I arrived at Frankfurt am Main Airport on Thursday night Sep 6th.  This turned out to be a smart move, as Lufthansa was having a strike on Friday Sep 7th and my original 1.40pm FRA-LHR had been cancelled.  Instead, I was rescheduled for a Lufthansa Regional flight at 6:55am not affected by the strike.  Fortunately, I had also booked my overnight stay at the new Hilton Frankfurt Airport, avoiding a really early wake-up call.

Pic: Hilton Frankfurt am Main Airport – Lobby (Sep 2012)
At €159 (advance purchase rate) it was an expensive airport hotel stay.  I had been monitoring the hotel rate for a few weeks when it dropped from +€240 to €159.  A few days after my booking, Hilton launched ‘The Great Getaway’ sale resulting in an even lower rate of €113.  A painful experience for a ‘luxury traveller on a budget’ like me! But hey, you can’t always win!

Pic: King Hilton Executive Bedroom – Hilton Frankfurt Airport (Sep 2012)
As Hilton HHonors Gold member, I was upgraded to a King Hilton Executive room on the 9th floor and provided with complimentary internet access.  Executive rooms are basically the same as standard Hilton Guestrooms on the lower floors, they just come with access to the Executive Lounge.  My Executive room was facing the lobby atrium and felt a bit cramped.  The interior drowned in a sea of beige and didn’t really feel inviting.  At check-in, I was told the Executive lounge was serving snacks and drinks until 9pm, but arriving there just after 8.30pm the complimentary drinks and food service was over.  Bummer!  Unfortunately, my high expectations for this new and expensive Hilton property were not met.  My stay earned me 6153 Hilton HHonors points, including the “My Way” option of 1000 extra points for skipping the complimentary breakfast due to my early check-out time.  I might try next door’s Hilton Garden Inn on the next overnight stay at Frankfurt Airport.  For more pictures of Hilton Frankfurt Airport, check Damian’s review at upgrd.com
Pic: King Hilton Executive room bed – Hilton Frankfurt Airport (Sep 2012)

Pic: Hilton Frankfurt am Main Airport – King Executive Bathroom (Sep 2012)

Fiji Trip Report Index
Introduction: Belgium to Fiji in 13 flights (26561 miles, 42746km)
DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel Kuala Lumpur
Grand Suite at Grand Hyatt Kuala Lumpur
Singapore Airlines First Class: The Private Room @ Changi Airport
Singapore Airlines First Class: SQ211 Singapore to Sydney B777-300A
Opera King room at Park Hyatt Sydney
Beachfront View room at InterContinental Fiji Golf Resort & Spa
Singapore Airlines Business Class: SQ232 Sydney to Singapore
Thai Airways First Class: Royal Orchid Spa, TG920 Bangkok to Frankfurt A380

Pic: Ground floor Lobby DoubleTree by Hilton Kuala Lumpur (Jan 2013)
For my first night in KL, I booked a Deluxe room MYR325 (€84) at DoubleTree by Hilton Kuala Lumpur.  It was easy and cheap to get from KUL airport to the hotel: KLIA Ekspres to KL Sentral station, LRT Kelana Jaya line to Ampang Park station and a 3 minute walk.  Upon arrival at the hotel, I was escorted to the Executive Lounge for check-in.

Pic: King Executive Room at DoubleTree by Hilton Kuala Lumpur (Jan 2013)
As Hilton HHonors Gold member, I was upgraded to an Executive room.  It had the same layout as a Deluxe room but was located on one of the higher floors and came with access to the Executive lounge where I could enjoy complimentary breakfast and evening cocktails.

Pic: Breakfast at Executive Lounge DoubleTree by Hilton KL (Jan 2013)

Pic: Swimming Pool at DoubleTree by Hilton Kuala Lumpur (Jan 2013)

Pic: View on Petronas Twin Towers and KL Tower from DoubleTree KL

Pic: Visited Cape Town thanks to a Turkish Airlines Business Class Error Fare
Back in June 2013, Turkish Airlines (TK) published a oneway business class error fare from South Africa (CPT, JNB) to Switzerland (GVA, ZRH). It was their second (known) business class error fare of the year. I had already booked a business class roundtrip error fare (€638) between Warsaw and Kuala Lumpur back in February 2013 which I flew and reviewed in Nov 2013. As I had no vacation days left for 2013, I booked my Cape Town – Geneva flight for January 2014 and paid just €339.

Pic: My favorite Business Class seat (4E) on the TurkishAirlines A330-300 (Jan 2014)
Turkish Airlines TK41 from Cape Town to Istanbul via Johannesburg.

Pic: The excellent Turkish Airlines Business Class DO&CO inflight catering (Jan 2014)

Pic: Very spacious Intra-Europe Turkish Airlines Business Class on B737-900ER
Turkish Airlines flight TK1917 from Istanbul to Geneva was operated by a brand new Boeing Next Generation 737-900ER.

Pic: Turkish Airlines DO&CO Intra-Europe Business Class Breakfast (Jan 2014)

Pic: Flatbed Business Class seats on South African Airways A340-600 (Jan 2014)
For my positioning flight from Brussels to Cape Town, I used 52,500 Avianca Taca LifeMiles to book Brussels to Frankfurt in Lufthansa Business Class and Frankfurt to Cape Town (via Johannesburg) in South African Airways Business Class.  I had bought the required miles (€611) during a 100% bonus LifeMiles promotion.  With the taxes & fees (€79) included, I paid a total of €690 for my BRU-CPT Business Class flights.

Pic: Sunroof Terrace at Park Inn by Radisson Cape Town Foreshore (Jan 2014)
For my first two nights in Cape Town, I booked the Park Inn by Radisson Cape Town Foreshore using the Club Carlson Family and Friends promo. This rate is intended for travelers who have a friend or family member working at the Carlson Rezidor Hotel Group. Don’t we all have extensive networks of friends via Facebook, LinkedIn, etc…these days? No worries, most hotels don’t ask questions. ;-) Check this Flyertalk thread for individual hotel’s ‘behavior’. To use the rate, go to ClubCarlson.com and enter ‘CARLSONF’ in the ‘Promotional Code’ field. It will lower most Park Inn rates to the equivalent of €70 and Radisson (Blu) rates to €80 or $80. The rate has same day 6pm cancellation flexibility and includes breakfast + 25% discount on F&B. Note: The Carlson F&F rate is capacity controlled and thus not always available. Make sure to double check the cancellation conditions and other rate features at the time of booking.

Pic: Sunset at Kloof Neck in Cape Town, South Africa (Jan 2014)

Pic: Presidential Loft Suite at DoubleTree By Hilton Cape Town Upper Eastside
After my Park Inn stay, I moved to the DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel Cape Town – Upper Eastside where I had booked 3 nights using the Hilton Any Weekend Anywhere sale. Via this promo I managed to book the 122 sq.m. Contemporary New York Style Presidential Loft Suite at ZAR1336 (€89) for my first night, and a Queen Guest room at ZAR934 (€62) for the second and third night. As a Hilton HHonors Gold member (obtained via credit card link), I was upgraded to a Deluxe room on my second and third night and could enjoy complimentary breakfast and internet access.

Pic: The City Sightseeing Red Bus is a great way to see Cape Town (Jan 2014)
The first two days of my trip, I didn’t have a rental car. I found the City Sightseeing Cape Town Red Bus an excellent way to discover the city and it’s beautiful surroundings. I managed to complete both the Cape Town Red City Tour (Red Line) and Cape Town Blue Mini Peninsula Tour (Blue Line) in one day, including the cable ride to the top of Table Mountain!

Pic: Cable Car to Table Mountain in Cape Town, South Africa (Jan 2014)

Pic: Abseiling from Table Mountain in Cape Town, South Africa (Jan 2014)

Pic: My Uber private driver in Cape Town, South Africa (Jan 2014)
On my second day in Cape Town, I used my favorite private driver app Uber to drop me at the start of the Lions Head trail. (try Uber yourself, €20 free credits via my referral link)

Pic: The money shot at the Lion’s Head summit in Cape Town, South Africa (Jan 2014)

Pic: The amazing Camps Bay in Cape Town, South Africa (Jan 2014)

Pic: Culinary lunch at Waterkloof Wines, Somerset West, Cape Town (Jan 2014)
South Africa is famous for it’s wines, so we had try some in style. Waterkloof Wines proved to be an excellent venue for both wining and dining… and what an amazing estate! Thanks to the weak ZAR, the 6 course degustation menu including wine pairing was less than €50!

Pic: Porcini Custard – Rocket Pesto, Crispy Quail Egg – Waterkloof Wines Restaurant

Pic: Dessert by Chef Gregory Czarnecki at Waterkloof Wines Restaurant (Jan 2014)

Pic: Coffee with a view to finish my amazing lunch at Waterkloof Wines (Jan 2014)

Pic: Monkey Valley Beach Nature Resort at Noordhoek Beach, Cape Town (Jan 2014)
Another absolute must-do is Chapman’s Peak Drive, one of the world’s most stunning coastal roads! You’ll discover the incredible Noordhoek Beach on your way to Cape Point.

Pic: Bart at Noordhoek beach near Cape Town, South Africa (Jan 2014)

Pic: African Penguins at Boulders Beach near Simon’s Town (Jan 2014)

Pic: Bart Lapers at V&A Waterfront in Cape Town, South Africa (Jan 2014)
Conclusion: If Cape Town isn’t on your todo list yet, you should add it today. It’s insanely beautiful, friendly and affordable!

Pic: King Deluxe room at Hilton Sukhumvit Bangkok (Jul 2014)
End of July, I spent a week in Bangkok, a city which I tend to visit at least once a year. For my first 5 nights, I booked the new Hilton Sukhumvit Bangkok using 120K Hilton HHonors points. The hotel was 30K points per night, but as HHonors Gold member, I got my fifth night for free. Additional benefits were Executive Lounge access, complimentary breakfast and WiFi. A very nice hotel with attentive staff which shows in their excellent tripadvisor reviews.

Pic: Executive Lounge at Hilton Sukhumvit Bangkok (Jul 2014)

Pic: Maggie Choo’s Speakeasy bar at Novotel Bangkok (Jul 2014)
Another great discovery was Maggie Choo’s located beneath Novotel Bangkok Fenix Silom. An awesome speakeasy hidden behind a Thai-Chinese restaurant with very authentic interior.

Pic: Maggie Choo’s Thai Chinese restaurant at Novotel Bangkok

Pic: Bubble Girl at Maggie Choo’ s Speakeasy in Bangkok

Pic: Bart at W Hotel in Bangkok (Jul 2014)
A new hotel I definitely had to visit was W Bangkok. I wasn’t too impressed by their futuristic outdoor pool, but the AWAY Spa looked cool. The global jetsetter atmosphere at WOOBAR makes it a great nightlife venue.

Pic: Treatment room at AWAY Spa, W Bangkok (Jul 2014)

Pic: Relaxation aria at AWAY Spa W Hotel Bangkok (Jul 2014)

Pic: Octave Rooftop Lounge & Bar at Marriott Bangkok Sukhumvit
My new favorite rooftop bar in Bangkok is called Octave. Amazing views guaranteed. Other rooftop bars I can recommend are Above Eleven, Sirocco at Lebua and The Speakeasy at Hotel Muse.

Pic: Stormy clouds above Octave Rooftop Lounge & Bar (Jul 2014)

Pic: The Siam Hotel Bangkok – An Urban Luxury Resort (Jul 2014)
Finally, I had the pleasure to enjoy a tour of The Siam hotel near the Chao Phraya River. The hotel features an incredible collection of antiques and has professionally equipped Muay Thai boxing gym!

Pic: The pool at The Siam Hotel Bangkok (Jul 2014)

I travel too much… at least to keep this blog up-to-date! In first 5 months of this year, I visited 20 destinations in 12 countries. Some stats:

• 51 flights, 76350 flown miles, 3.1x around earth, 182 hours up in the air
• First Class with Garuda Indonesia, Cathay Pacific, Qatar Airways and Lufthansa
• Business Class with ANA, SWISS, Finnair and British Airways
• 10 free hotel stays thanks to IHG’s Best Price Guarantee
  

Trip Highlights

Pic: Driving the all-new BMW 7 Series
In January, Belgian television magazine ‘Telefacts‘ made a documentary about my luxurious travel lifestyle. BMW provided me the all-new 7 series for our drive from Brussels to Paris Charles de Gaulle airport. You don’t get to drive a ~150.000EUR car every day!
Pic: The all-new BMW 7 Series with Executive Lounge

Pic: The new SWISS Boeing B777-300ER
On February 8th, I had the pleasure to fly the new SWISS B777-300ER on the first day of commercial operations. I also spent a few hours in the new SWISS Senator lounge at Zurich Airport Terminal E.

Pic: New SWISS First Class Cabin on Boeing 777-300ER

Pic: First Class Seat 2A on the brand new SWISS B777-300ER

Pic: Awesome runway view before take off in Zurich

Pic: Garuda Indonesia B777-300ER First Class Seat 2A
Mid February, I enjoyed one of the last Garuda Indonesia 5th freedom flights between Amsterdam and London Gatwick. With just 45-minutes up in the air, it was Europe’s shortest First Class flight. The best short haul I have ever flown!

Pic: Duck & fruit salad with Laurent-Perrier Cuvée Rosé Brut Champagne

Pic: Garuda Indonesia B777-300ER First Class lunch

Pic: All Nippon Airways B787 Dreamliner Business Class
In March, I flew non-stop between Brussels Airport and Tokyo Narita Airport with All Nippon Airways (ANA) on the B787 Dreamliner in Business Class. I used IHG Rewards Club points to stay at The Strings By InterContinental Tokyo (video) and InterContinental Tokyo Bay (video). I also visited Osaka and Kyoto where I stayed at the Hyatt Regency Kyoto using a combination of Hyatt Gold Passport Points + Cash and the Hyatt Best Rate Guarantee.

Pic: Bart at Fushimi Inari-taisha shrine in Kyoto, Japan

Pic: Japanese pancakes at Brothers Café in Osaka

Pic: The Great Sphinx of Giza in Cairo, Egypt
End of March, I visited Cairo for the first time. Highlights were the Pyramids of Giza and Tutankhamun’s mask at the Egyptian Museum. Hotel wise, Cairo offers excellent opportunities to burn Hilton HHonors points. I stayed two nights in a Junior Suite at Hilton Ramses for just 10,000 points per night.

Pic: Qatar Airways A380 First Class from Doha to Bangkok
From Cairo, the trip continued with Qatar Airways First Class to Bangkok. Thanks to a very lucrative GOL Smiles promotion back in May 2015, I managed to fly Qatar Airways First Class six times for less than 250EUR per flight in the past year. The best miles redemptions I’ve ever made!

Pic: Oscietra Caviar, Krug Grand Cuvée Champagne and Belvedere Wodka

Pic: Soaking up the sun at Holiday Inn Mai Khao Beach
The first week of the Easter vacation was spend at Holiday Inn Mai Khao Beach. Another great points redemption at just 15,000 IHG Rewards Club points per night. As IHG Rewards Club Platinum member, I was upgrade to a nice Pool Access Suite.

Pic: Pool at Holiday Inn Mai Khao Beach Phuket, Thailand

Pic: Rubber Duck at Conrad Macao, Cotai Central
Followed by 3 nights at Conrad Macao Cotai Central booked using Hilton HHonors points. A triple upgrade to a Deluxe City View Suite and fantastic club lounge experience thanks to my HHonors Diamond status.

Pic: Rooftop pool at Hotel Indigo Hong Kong Island
With the Cotai Water Jet, it took me less than an hour to get from Macao to Hong Kong. The sunny rooftop pool at Hotel Indigo Hong Kong Island was a real pleasure after 3 days in foggy Macao.

Pic: Cathay Pacific First Class lounge The Wing in Hong Kong
When in Hong Kong, one must visit the legendary Cathay Pacific First Class lounges. I visited both The Wing and The Pier where I relaxed at a cabana and had a blissful foot massage at Gentlemen’s Tonic. 

Pic: Cabana at Cathay Pacific The Wing First Class Lounge
I used British Airways Executive Club Avios + Cash to book Cathay Pacific First Class on the B777-300ER from Hong Kong to Bangkok.

Pic: Cathay Pacific ‎First Class ‎Hong Kong to ‎Bangkok B777-300ER

Pic: Cathay Pacific Business & First Class lounge in Bangkok

Pic: Lufthansa A330-300 First Class Cabin

Pic: Laurent-Perrier Grand Siècle – ‎Lufthansa First Class
For my return home, I redeemed 62000 Lufthansa Miles & More miles + 217EUR in taxes & fees to book Dubai – Munich in First Class on the A330-300. The required miles were earned with my Brussels Airlines American Express card.

Pic: Magical landscapes of Iran seen from my Lufthansa flight

Pic: Lufthansa First Class Caviar Service

Pic: Lufthansa First Class Breakfast

Pic: Delicious Lufthansa First Class Dessert

Pic: Mercedes-Benz S-Class ride to the plane

Pic: Finnair A330-300 Business Class Helsinki to New York

Pic: Breakfast onboard Finnair A320 Business Class Oslo to Helsinki

Pic: Amazing views of Greenland from my Finnair flight
In May, I flew twice to the West Coast using a Oneworld Business Class error fare from Oslo. The first trip was a long weekend in Seattle where I stayed one night at Crowne Plaza Seattle Airport using 25,000 points and two nights at Holiday Inn Express & Suites Everett for just 5000 points per night! (IHG Rewards Club PointBreaks) With the Boeing Everett Factory only minutes away, a perfect location to visit the largest building in the World by volume! There was also room for nature, a beautiful day at Mountain Rainier National Park.

Pic: Boeing Future of Flight Aviation Center in Everett, Seattle.

Pic: Space Needle in Seattle, Washington, USA

Pic: British Airways A380 Business Class seat 53K
One week after my Seattle trip, I visited the US again. This time I was flying to San Francisco with one of my least favorite European airlines, British Airways. Their Club World Business Class is a joke, I still don’t get it how people can pay > 2000EUR for such inferior experience. I’ve now flown Club World on the B777-200, B747-400 and A380-800 and all I can say is, if you really need to fly BA Club World, make sure to fly it on the A380 and go for seat 53K. One of the rare seats with ‘private’ aisle access.

Pic: British Airways Business Class meal service

Pic: Salt ponds on final approach San-Francisco airport

Pic: Blue Hawaiian helicopters on Kauai, Hawaii
From San Francisco, I continued to the Hawaiian island of Kauai. As there are six Hawaiian islands to choose from, I found this infographic helpful to decide which island to visit. Kauai was an excellent choice with the Na Pali Coast as absolute highlight. I booked two helicopter flights over the garden island, a luxurious comfortable ride with Blue Hawaiian Helicopters and a more adventurous doors-off flight with Jack Harter Helicopters. Amazing!

Pic: The mind blowing Na Pali Coast on Kauai, Hawaii
Conclusion: I’ve travelled a lot in the past 5 months, in fact, my travel pace has never been higher. If you don’t want to wait until my next blog post, make sure to follow me on Snapchat, Instagram, Facebook and Twitter. Thank you for your likes and support!

Time to wrap up 2019 with an overview of my travel highlights of the year. In this post I review my best flight and hotel experiences of the year. In a second post, I talk about my favourite destinations of 2019.

Flights

2019 was another great aviation year for me with:

• 107 flights (152,446 miles) (6.1x around the earth, 370 hours up in the air)
• 3 First Class flights with British Airways and Qatar Airways
• 24 Business Class flights with Austrian Airlines, British Airways, Ethiopian Airlines, Cathay Dragon, LOT Polish Airlines, Lufthansa, Oman Air and Turkish Airlines
• 5 Premium Economy flights with Austrian Airlines, Cathay Pacific, Lufthansa and Norwegian

Best First Class Flight: Qatar Airways

In June, I redeemed 50,000 British Airways avios + €112 for Qatar Airways First Class from Doha to Frankfurt on the A380. Check my Instagram TV for the full trip report. Consistent service & great value. Still my favourite airline whatever cabin I fly.

Best Error Fare: British Airways First Class

As my focus in travel shifted towards new destinations, I didn’t book as many error fares as in the past. Also the number of published error fares has been on the decline the past years. Still I managed to fly some great error fares in 2019.

• Norwegian B789 Premium Economy from Singapore to London OW (€78)
• LOT Polish Airlines B788 Business Class Copenhagen to Singapore RT (€653)
• British Airways B747 First Class Cape Town to Barcelona RT (€774)

The Norwegian flight from Singapore to London Gatwick was the very last one before Norwegian suspended their service to Singapore. 14 hours in Premium Economy for €78 was a heck of a deal. I also received €100 in Norwegain CashPoints as compensation for my broken seat on the flight. The LOT Polish Airlines Business Class error fare earned me 16,206 status miles with Turkish Airlines Miles & Smiles enough to renew my Star Alliance Gold status for another two years. But the title for “Best Error Fare of the Year” goes to the British Airways First Class Cape Town to Barcelona for €774 roundtrip earning me 40,420 avios and 560 tier points renewing my OneWorld Sapphire status. Check my British Airways First Class IG Stories: Part 1, Part 2.

Best Miles Redemption: Turkish Airlines Regional Business Class

In May, I redeemed 15,000 miles + €157 for a roundtrip Brussels to Izmir via Istanbul in Turkish Airlines Business Class. This deal was part of a promotion to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the Turkish Airlines Miles & Smiles loyalty program. Apart from the low number of miles required for this award, I also got to fly the new Turkish Airlines regional business class. Definitely the best Business Class you can get on European flights!

Other great redemption in 2019 worth a mention:

• Turkish Airlines Business: Brussels to Muscat 35K Miles & More miles + €195
• Oman Air Business: Muscat to Doha 6K Etihad Guest miles + €85
• Ethiopian Airlines Business: Brussels to Mekelle RT 70K M&M miles + €134
• Turkish Airlines Business: Brussels to Bahrain 29K KrisFlyer miles + €130

Hotels

Pic: El Patio Courtyard House Tunis (Apr 2019)

In 2019, I stayed 107 nights at hotels:

• Hilton: 46 nights
  • Hilton: 26
  • DoubleTree by Hilton: 12
  • Hilton Garden Inn: 7
  • Hampton by Hilton: 1
• IHG: 13 nights
  • Holiday Inn: 8
  • Holiday Inn Express: 3
  • InterContinental: 2
• Park Inn: 5 nights
• Hyatt: 5 nights
• Marriott: 2 nights
• Airbnb: 3 nights
• Other: 33 nights
• TOTAL: 107 nights

Despite having Spire Elite Ambassador status at IHG Rewards Club, my business shifted to Hilton due to a lack of top tier elite recognition at IHG. I still don’t get it why no complimentary breakfast is offered to the highest elite members at IHG while it is a standard perk at Hilton Honors as soon as you hit Gold status. I status matched my IHG Spire Elite to Hilton Honors Diamond and stayed 30 times at Hilton this year to renew my Diamond status for 2020.

Best Error Rate: Hilton Phuket Arcadia

In February, I stayed 3 nights at a Superior Deluxe Suite at Hilton Phuket Arcadia Resort & Spa. The 138 sq. m. suite featured panoramic ocean views, balcony with jacuzzi and more… Thanks to an error, it was possible to book this suite for €135 per night during Chinese New Year, the same price as a regular room. Check my Instagram Stories for a full tour of the suite & hotel grounds.

Best Hotel Redemption: Hyatt Regency Bali

In January, I stayed 5 nights in a Regency Suite at the new Hyatt Regency Bali. I bought the required 40K World of Hyatt points for ˜€600 instead of paying €2693 cash for the stay. An excellent deal which included complimentary breakfast and club lounge access. Full trip report on my Instagram Stories.

Best City Hotel: Anantara Riverside Bangkok Resort

After having stayed at a few dozen hotels in Bangkok in the past 10 years, Anantara Riverside Bangkok Resort is one of my absolute favourites. It offers a true sanctuary along the riverside of this bustling city with it huge pool, sundecks and outdoor jacuzzi. Using HotelsCombined you can usually book the hotel between €120 and €140 per night.

Best Elite Recognition: DoubleTree Resort Zanzibar – Nungwi

I november I stayed as Hilton Honors Diamond member at DoubleTree Resort by Hilton Hotel Zanzibar – Nungwi. I was upgraded to an Ocean view room with direct beach access, complimentary minibar, complimentary breakfast & dinner (!), 6PM late-checkout and 15-min free foot massage at the SPA. The staff was super friendly and service minded. The rooms weren’t fancy or newly renovated, but the service compensated for it. Full Zanzibar trip report on my Instagram Stories.

Conclusion

Despite not being my main focus anymore, loyalty programs and their points & miles combined with error fares and error rates uplifted my travel experiences once again in 2019. What were your flight and hotel highlights of 2019? Feel free to share them with us in the comments section below. Have an awesome travel year 2020!