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Tourist entry taxes just got tripled for many visitors: https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/ckgwpkvl97eo

That is the most likely alternative. For my dates, LAX and YVR are very comparable in price

This is our situation with respect to seats. Thanks for that idea. I looked in SEA and SFO as well as LAX, but I didn't think about YVR. I will look there too.

That and the entertainment is what you are paying for on Disney. If you take the Disney cruise, I would keep the shore time to a minimum and try and get on board as soon as possible. BTW - our first two cruises were on Disney and we really loved it as our kids were young at the time. After taking two cruises, I just couldn't see paying the Disney premium and moved on to other lines.

They may never expire, but every day they drop a little more in value. What could be better than giving a 30 year interest free loan to a major corporation like American Express? Amex, and other similar vendors, should send a big thank you to everyone holding on to these old traveler's checks.

Does she actually write the checks or use the various government online payment systems? I prefer to pay the various government agencies online using my checking account information rather than to write a physical check. I agree on skipping the processing fee on government accounts. Our local utilities also charge extra for the use of a credit card.

Thanks, I have been looking at videos like this one.

I am curious about any direct experience with any of these flights to/from the USA in premium economy. I have a cruise departing Singapore in very early January. I found a cheap, refundable ticket in Premium Economy and bought it without thinking about the flight. I am now thinking of changing flights/airlines to get a business class ticket as 15-16 hours in a recliner is a pretty long time. Of course, when I went back to look again at SQ and the price in business class is now really expensive (at least for me.) Any thoughts one way or another in terms of keeping my current flight or searching for something else? Thanks in advance for any opinions and direct experiences.

You have a shot with the Christmas holidays and New Year possibly helping revenues. I only had this experience once with a very, very short-lived airline called, Pride Air. I only bought the ticket because a friend of mine at the time was an ex-Continental pilot who was involved in the startup. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pride_Air It seems the North Atlantic is a "graveyard" for these types of carriers. I am not sure of the business results, but JAL's Zipair seems to be surviving and has now been flying for at least a few years as a low cost long haul carrier in the Pacific region.

Most likely. A long winter is just around the corner...

It's not looking great for Norse Atlantic: https://onemileatatime.com/news/norse-atlantic-updates-business-model-reduces-fleet/

I think Air Canada's baggage restrictions are pretty generous in that they are allowing you a total of 3 pieces of luggage - checked bag, carry on and a personal item. Their carry on dimensions are pretty good and don't come with a weight limit. https://www.aircanada.com/ca/en/aco/home/plan/baggage/carry-on.html#/ Regardless of whether you can carry it or not, you should definitely check the weight of your bag before you bring it to the airport. Assuming you have no status with Air Canada and are flying coach, your checked bag can weigh no more than 50lbs or 23kg. Good luck packing! BTW - I have never had issues onboard any ship finding a place for my bags.

or wunderground.com (Weather Underground)

I have stayed at the Quinta Bella Huatulco as a guest and also went there one day on a day pass when we stayed at a B&B off the beach and wanted a resort-style experience. The Quinta Bella Huatulco is maybe a 20-25 minute walk from the cruise terminal. I haven't been there in a couple of years so it would be worthwhile checking with the hotel to see if that doesn't work. If not, I believe there is another beach club next door. https://www.quintabellahuatulco.com/en/

All of these entry systems require or at least strongly encourage the download of apps onto your phone. I already have apps from Australia and New Zealand on my phone. I expect to get more like ETIAS. My conspiracy mind suggests that every major government entity in the world will eventually have a "backdoor" installed on my phone to keep track of me - to say nothing of the additional application bloat on my phone. 🙂

I don't know if it is possible in a cruise stop visit, but Cabo Pulmo is a highly recommended area and marine park a bit north of San Jose del Cabo. https://sallysees.com/cabo-pulmo-bcs/

As someone who lives near a very active international border this comment truly gave me a chuckle. We occasionally do see "cruise passengers" jump out of boats on the beach near were we live without officially entering the US. 🙂 I hope you are not offended by my sense of humor

That's a good question! I found one site on line but I have never tried it out. If you type CRUISE and WATCH as one word along with the typical .com you'll find something. You can also look on individual cruise line sites and see if they have this service. For example, I did see something on RCCL's website that you can set a "watch" for a cruise and be notified of any price changes. I have no idea whether this works or not either. Good luck and let us know how it goes...

Me too. This is especially important with dynamic awards. In AA's latest investor day presentation and in other public comments, AA stated that AAdvantage is a big source of high margin revenue. AA also views their program as a competitive advantage over their primary competitors UA and DL. It will be interesting to see how the program evolves... https://americanairlines.gcs-web.com/static-files/383c2fd2-a7dc-476f-bd0d-9e9b05e9b98c

I was finally able to find something a bit better this morning in premium economy seats for 60k per seat on a flight with a much better departure and arrival times. This really isn't a great deal, but the improved timing of the flight and a somewhat better seat got me over the edge. I am still holding out some amount of hope that JAL awards or a cheap AA business class award will become available between now and my preferred flight date. If not, we will be fine with what we have. The bottom line is that dynamic awards require more effort and patience to find seats at a reasonable price. BTW -

This can help, but it is really no guarantee. At our home, the thieves simply threw a rock and smashed a double-paned glass door. Our neighbor's house was robbed by someone using a crowbar on the front door. I am starting to think it's best not to make your house too secure as it only results in more damage being caused... BTW - the "funny" thing is that we supposedly live in a nice and secure neighborhood...

The only time I actually like to receive these brochures is for lines that I am not familiar with or ones that really aren't "top of mind" for me. One recent example was a brochure for Atlas Cruises which I hadn't really thought about since I first heard of the line. This is in contrast to Viking which bombards our house on a very regular basis.

I really dislike that practice and it is becoming increasingly widespread regardless of your "home" currency and location. To all - Be careful of what button you press on credit card terminals to avoid these "convenience" services and always pay in the local currency.

I have heard that some people may put two in their checked baggage and carry on an additional two on RCCL. Yes, it works well if you have a balcony cabin and enjoy sitting out with a glass of wine in the afternoon/evening - climate dependent of course. That said, we have brought wine to the main dining room on RCCL and were not charged a corkage fee. It is either a line dependent policy or we simply had a nice waiter.

Which can be useful if you want to wander back over and try a different lounge during a 12 hour layover.