NOTE: This entry is part of a series in which I fly over 40,000 miles in two years. Read the introduction here. For this journey I redeemed points for all of my tickets so no part of this trip counts towards my flight goals.
Two different worlds just a few hundred miles apart. That’s the difference between New Orleans, Louisiana and Miami, Florida. The former was the place to be for old-world charm, great music, southern food and laid-back partying. Miami on the other hand is the most happening spot in the summer for glitz and glamor – even more so than Las Vegas and Los Angeles. Key West in Florida was the third and final part of my trip and provided a tropical paradise in which to unwind before heading home.
Trip summary
- Routing: YYZ-ORD-MSY-MIA-CLT-YYZ
- Mileage and Cost: 2348 miles for $106 (approximate) equals 4.51 cents per mile (target: less than 5 cpm). I didn’t pay for any of my tickets this time but used air miles and points.
- Remaining: 25413 miles (no change) in 1 year and 39 days
- Goofs: (1) Almost getting myself killed twice on the roads of New Orleans: once running across it and once trying to flag down a bus (2) Not checking my flight schedules when booking accommodation and ending up paying for an unused day.
- Soundtrack: Film soundtracks & Bhangra
- The great: New Orleans’ incredible food and music, Miami’s nightlife, Key West beaches
- The good: Ernest Hemingway’s house on Key West
- The bad: (1) Horrible public transport and the ‘bad side’ of Bourbon street in New Orleans. It is a definite part of its charm though. (2) Hurricane Katrina hit New Orleans five years ago but many parts of the city still lie in disrepair.
The amazing diversity in geography, climate, food, music and culture that you can find across the United States is what makes visiting it so special. However nothing has made my eight days of traveling as memorable as the countless friends I made from all over the world. Once again I am reminded that the greatest joy of traveling is the people that you meet along the way and not the destination in itself.
NOTE: This entry is part of a series in which I fly over 40,000 miles in two years. Read the introduction here. For this journey I redeemed points for most of my tickets so only part of the trip counts towards my flight goals.
Party, party, party. There’s no better place to have fun and blow your money than in Las Vegas. This ‘entertainment capital of the world’ is bizarrely located in the middle of the desert and can provide you any kind of experience you’re looking for – legal and otherwise. I also stopped in Houston, Texas but there’s not a lot to see there.
Trip summary
- Routing: YYZ-IAH-SFO-YYZ
- Mileage and Cost: 4445 miles for $275 equals 6.18 cents per mile (target: less than 5 cpm). I didn’t actually pay for all of my tickets. For more details see the trip notes.
- Remaining: 25413 miles (partial miles) in 1 year and 149 days
- Goofs: (1) Underestimating how busy the Las Vegas strip becomes on a Saturday night and getting to an expensive show late. (2) Running out of cash on hand to take the bus back home from the airport and having to fork over huge bank ATM charges.
- Soundtrack: Hip-hop/Rap
- The great: Walking around in the world’s best hotels on the strip, Vegas’ nightlife, camping in the Valley of Fire and the Grand Canyon.
- The good: Cheap buffet meals and Fremont Street (the old Las Vegas).
- The bad: Watching tired people playing slot machines at 4am.
I can honestly say that I’ve had the best time yet in Las Vegas. I would have stayed there longer if I could. Cheers to bigger and better journeys in the future!
To read detailed trip notes for this journey please click here to continue.
NOTE: This entry is part of a series in which I fly over 40,000 miles in two years. Read the introduction here. I took the bus on this particular journey so there are no airmiles.
If you’re looking for the big city experience look no further than New York City. This 8-million strong sprawling metropolis truly never sleeps. Using the bus to get there (a 10-hour journey) and back was a much better experience than I had expected it to be.
Trip summary
- Routing: YYZ-NYC-YYZ
- Mileage and Cost: 1060 miles for $84 equals 7.92 cents per mile (target: less than 5 cpm). It’s often cheaper to fly somewhere than to use a bus!
- Remaining: 26403 miles (no change) in 1 year and 217 days
- Goofs: (1) Forgetting to take a bottle of hand sanitizer. Rubbing body wash on your legs and shoes to keep them from smelling doesn’t work as well (I think I made it worse). (2) Stepping into a pile of horseshit at Central Park is not pleasant.
- Soundtrack: Indian fusion
- The great: Times square, The Met museum, Brooklyn bridge, Central Park, the Staten Island Ferry and almost everything in downtown Manhattan.
- The good: Ground Zero at the World Trade Center site was moving but there’s not much happening after eight-and-a-half years.
- The bad: The United Nations buildings were literally crumbling and many neighborhoods in Brooklyn were quite creepy.
New York City is one of the most incredible places on the planet. Three days was barely enough to scratch its surface. What’s next? One of my goals this year is to fly to somewhere on another continent.
NOTE: This entry is part of a series in which I fly over 40,000 miles in two years. Read the introduction here.
I’ve just had the time of my life. After this second trip I’m finding myself becoming addicted to the idea of traveling. I’d like to make this clear: I don’t have the ‘travel bug’. I’m simply doing this to face my fears and it’s becoming a very rewarding experience.
This time I went to Los Angeles and stayed in Hollywood and Santa Monica. I was also unexpectedly able to visit San Diego.
Trip summary
- Routing: BUF-CLT-MCO-LAX-DEN-AUS-IAD-BUF (plus driving YYZ-BUF and back)
- Mileage and Cost: 6698 miles for $230 equals 3.43 cents per mile (target: less than 5 cpm)
- Remaining: 26403 miles in 1 year and 249 days
- Goofs: (1) Running out of batteries on my camera and missing out on taking some very good pictures. Always carry more than you need in this case. (2) Buying movie tickets days in advance and then missing out on hanging out with new friends (even though ‘Avatar’ was a great flick). Don’t make your plans on the ground so rigid that they can’t be changed.
- Travel tips: (1) When you’re at an airport find and grab a seat next to a power outlet. Plug in your iPod even if it seems full. You’ll be glad you did when you’re running low a few hours later. (2) Whether you travel or not go and shell out ten bucks for Skullcandy “Ink’d” earphones. They sound decent but their real draw is that they cut noise as much as earplugs do. (3) Buy a travel-sized bottle of hand sanitizer and apply them to your feet, socks and the soles in your shoes every few hours to make them stop smelling.
- Soundtrack: Pop
- The great: Hiking, pubbing and clubbing in Hollywood and the cities and beaches of San Diego and Santa Monica.
- The good: Hollywood Walk of Fame, Runyon Canyon, Grauman’s Chinese Theater and the Santa Monica Pier.
- The bad: Universal City is extremely tacky. I also regret not having enough time to visit everything, particularly Venice Beach, the Griffith Observatory and the Getty Center.
Its been an awesome experience to leave everything behind for a few days and meet great human beings somewhere else across the globe. I’m glad I’m trying to face my fears. Lets see what the future holds. Next trip of 40,000 miles: New York City in a month from now! Yeah, I’ll be playing Empire State of Mind all the way there.
To read detailed trip notes for this journey please click here to continue.
NOTE: This entry is part of a series in which I fly over 40,000 miles in two years. Read the introduction here.
I would never have done this a few weeks before. After flying through six American states and touring Seattle in three days all I can say is that the experience was incredible.
Its amazing how travel can bring out so many emotions in a short span of time: fear, happiness, loneliness, excitement and everything in between. Living out of a backpack for a few days helps you look at life differently. I recommend that you try it.
Trip summary
- Routing: BUF-CLT-PHX-SEA-SFO-PHL-BUF (plus driving YYZ-BUF and back)
- Mileage and Cost: 6899 miles for $244 equals 3.54 cents per mile (target: less than 5 cpm)
- Remaining: 33101 miles in 1 year and 279 days
- Goofs: (1) Climbing onto an empty, unfinished train platform and getting stared at by a hundred people on the other side. (2) Dropping my transit ticket and having to give the guy who found it a dollar to get it back.
- Travel tips: (1) Don’t forget to take the charging cable for your phone. (2) Pack much lighter than you think you need to. Your backpack will start hurting after a day or two. (3) If you get caught by a long flight delay ask the airline for an alternate route (I flew CLT-PHX-SEA instead of CLT-SFO-SEA and saved six hours).
- Soundtrack: Bhangra
- The great: Washington State Ferries, Museum of Flight, Pike place market (and the very first Starbucks)
- The good: Seattle pub crawl tours, Laser dome (and the Space Needle), Central Library, US Airways and United Airlines.
- The bad: The large number of homeless people on every block in downtown Seattle. They were harmless though.
Would I do it again? Well, I’m off to California in a few weeks! This time my stay will be longer and less comfortable.
To read detailed trip notes for this journey please click here to continue.
I’m going to fly 40,000 miles in two years.
Since I was little I’ve always loved anything that has to do with flying. Having had family that worked in travel and access to cheap tickets didn’t hurt either.
I’d like to get myself into the air. Now, I could simply go over to Expedia and start booking tickets.
But that would be unrewarding and way too expensive. There must be a better way.
Ready, Set, Read
Internet forums are the best place to connect with people and information on any topic. I spent days browsing the ones at FlyerTalk and Airliners.net. I brushed up on my knowledge of mileage runs, airline alliances and more.
Aim for something
All the information I gathered helped me to set two goals:
- Spend less than 5 cents per mile of flying. In other words, flying a hundred miles must cost me less than 5 dollars including all taxes and fees. The cheaper the better.
- Achieve Star Alliance Gold status. There are many ways to do this but the easiest and cheapest is to join the frequent flyer program at Asiana Airlines. I get gold status by flying 40,000 miles over the next two years on any Star Alliance airline (there’s 25 of them now).
Why I’m really doing this
To be honest, what’s pushing me more than flying, adventuring or acquiring status is the chance to face my fears including:
- Traveling somewhere unknown all by myself
- Being stranded in the middle of nowhere
- People thinking that I’ve lost my mind for doing this
- The same people telling me that I’m wasting my time, money and effort
Its time for me to go. I’ll see you in the sky.
