I probably sound like a broken record by now, but my single most favorite thing about points and miles is the freedom of having the world at your fingertips at any given moment. Last week, I helped a friend of “flee the country” with just hours notice to help cheer her up.
A few of my travel buddies were participating in the StarMegaDo5 and were scheduled to be in Toronto last Thursday for the event kickoff. I attended last year’s StarMegaDo (which was an absolute blast), but I had some scheduling conflicts this time around, so I wasn’t able to commit to the full event. As the event approached, the excitement from my friends who were participating naturally heightened… and so did mine – I wanted to somehow be part of the action too!
I knew that a round trip ticket to Toronto from New York was just 9,000 Avios and ~$56 in taxes – a complete steal and awesome redemption that I always had my eyes on. I convinced myself that I had the perfect excuse to meet my friends in Toronto for the night, so without further thought, I booked myself a ticket.
The night before I was scheduled to leave, a good friend of mine reached out and ask if we could have a night of “girl talk”. We all have our ups and downs in life, and my friend Jeannette was experiencing a low-point in her relationship at home. She playfully said, “man, Ang, I wish I could just get up and go… and just leave the country!”
A true points and miles fanatic never takes “leaving the country” requests lightly. Without thinking, I blurted out, “Uhh… Want to go to Canada for a night with me? … in 8 hours? My treat.”
She paused and looked at me like I had 5 heads for a second, but to my surprise, she agreed!
Luckily, I was able to book her a ticket with my Avios account for the same flights I had booked myself departing the next day (for some reason NYC-YYZ and [vice versa] availability is always there). I told her to go home, pack, and be ready at the crack of dawn.
As this was all happening, it was all settling in. Even for me. I thought to myself, “wow, isn’t it cool that miles and points let us do incredible things, such as help a friend flee the country when they’re having a bad day?” Like any other social media addict, my thought quickly made it to my twitter feed:
Jeannette and I ended up having an amazing “pick-me-up” get away – just 24-hours in a new place was enough to get her to feel better, and I’m proud of her for two reasons: 1.) like many people, she always had the “itch to be spontaneous”, but rarely acted upon it, and 2.) She hasn’t traveled in years, so this was a big step for her. I’m glad she was able to get out and travel to enjoy herself.
Excitement excerpt from Jeannette’s Facebook profile page.
Me, Elena (Giddy for Points), and Jeannette enjoying Toronto
Typical on-board airplane selfie
Have you traveled impulsively lately? Better yet – have you helped someone “get away†when they needed it most? If so, where did you go/where did you send them? What miles made the trip possible? Would love to hear your stories!
Related posts:
- Using Points and Miles to Travel Impulsively and Why You Should Never Sacrifice Your Love for Travel
- Quick: So I’m Headed to Tokyo in Less Than 24 Hours – Now What?
- British Airways Avios Make Me Do Silly Things
- I Planned a Destination Beach Wedding in 10 Days
Let’s connect: Twitter | Facebook | Subscribe | japt.co
Nothing like 8 hours time bit about three weeks. Suddenly had a week and a half off so extended my trip in Europe to go to New Zealand for the marathon and Sydney for sightseeing. Long flight on points. Hotel in akl and short flight on cash.
:)
What a nice thing for you to do. Thanks for the reminder.
If your friend needs a pickmeup you can direct her to read TBB ;-)
I am thinking about going to DFW to work in that new amex lounge! Impulse? I went to Amsterdam once via Honolulu back in my youth days, oh the good old days!
Best to your with the baby and all the new in your life!