Category Archives: Frequent Flyer

Tips and tricks from a frequent flyer - Travel for a Living

With up to a hundred flights a year, I confidently call myself a frequent flyer. I am no stranger to airlines, airports and airport lounges. I know my way around an airport, how to get in and out as efficient as possible and had my share of flights delayed, cancelled or postponed over the years.

Let me share with you my experiences and hacks to make your air travel as smooth and luxurious as possible. Flying for the first time? You might want to start here.

Is Ryanair cheap? Or good value for money?

Is Ryanair cheap? Or good value for money? - Travel for a Living

To many, Ryanair is the epitome of a budget airline. They pride themselves as being a low-cost airline. But how does Ryanair achieve that? And does that mean Ryanair is cheap? Or good value for money? Well, let’s find out. 

Anyone who knows me (or has been following Travel for a Living for a while) might have a pretty good idea how I feel about Ryanair and their approach to flying on a budget. But it wasn’t always like that. In fact, I used to love flying Ryanair. So, what has changed? And does my personal dislike for Ryanair mean you shouldn’t fly it? 

Read more Is Ryanair cheap? Or good value for money?

My experience flying BA Business Class

Experience flying business class - Travel for a Living

I might not have flown quite as much in recent months as I did three or four years ago. And I am definitely no stranger to flying. But even I still have new experiences to look forward to every once in a while. Like flying long-haul business class for the very first time (finally). Turning left as you enter the aircraft. Exciting stuff. So how about I tell you a little about what to expect flying business class? Is the experience flying business class really worth all the extra money? Well, make it to the end of this post and I might just tell you.

Spoiler alert: I did not actually pay exorbitant amounts for my business class experience. Over the years, I had accumulated enough frequent flyer points to upgrade our flight back from New York to London. But more on that in a bit.

Read more My experience flying BA Business Class

What to expect flying Luxair

What to expect flying Luxair - Travel for a Living

Hand on heart, have you ever heard of Luxair? And if so, have you ever flown Luxair? If you are based outside Europe, the answer is probably no. As Luxair isn’t necessarily the biggest European airline there is. But it has actually been around for quite some while (Luxair was founded in 1962, if Wikipedia is to be believed). And they are the flag carrier airline for Luxembourg. Ok, that might be more to do with the fact that they are the only airline Luxembourg has, but hey, let’s not be picky. A day trip to Luxembourg a while back gave me the chance to experience my first ever flight with Luxair and more recently I flew with them again (for another day trip from London to Luxembourg). Which obviously gave me the perfect excuse to tell you all about flying Luxair. If you are considering a trip to Luxembourg, let me share with you my experience of what to expect flying Luxair.

Read more What to expect flying Luxair

My first flight in a very long time

591 days. This is how long it has been since I last boarded an aircraft. Little did I know, when waiting in the British Airways lounge at JFK that the flight back from New York would be my last flight in a very long time.

Five hundred and ninety-one days! As someone, who would average 80 to 90 flights a year and who’s record still stands at six flights in seven days, this is almost beyond belief.

Read more My first flight in a very long time

Are frequent traveller programmes really worth it?

Are frequent traveller programmes worth signing up for? Travel for a Living

It might not come as a massive shock to you that I travel a lot. I mean, even if you are new to my blog, ‘Travel for a Living’ is probably giving it away just a tad. As part of my job, I’ve spent the best part of the last decade travelling the length and width of Europe (and beyond, like those trips to Israel). And to make the most of these travels, I’ve signed up to quite a few frequent traveller programmes over the years. But should you? Well, to help you decide, let me tell you which ones I’ve signed up for. And most importantly, if these frequent traveller programmes are really worth it.

Read more Are frequent traveller programmes really worth it?

Inside the British Airways Lounge at JFK Airport

As you might know, I am a frequent flyer on British Airways. And one of the perks of my silver status is access to the airport lounge, whenever I fly. So, travelling back from New York was no exception obviously. We’ve been to the lounge at JFK a couple of times before and it didn’t really make my Top 5 if I am honest. However, they have recently undergone a massive refurbishment. Meaning I was quite excited to check it out as we headed back to London after our recent week in New York. And what can I say. The new BA lounge is way better than the old one. Curious? Let me take you inside the British Airways Lounge at JFK airport for a quick nose around.

Saying the old lounge was no good is moaning at a very high level. There wasn’t anything really wrong with it. It was just a bit knackered. But not the worst BA lounge I’ve ever been in. 

Read more Inside the British Airways Lounge at JFK Airport

British Airways Executive Club worth signing up for?

Is the British Airways Executive Club worth signing up for? - Travel for a Living

Let’s talk travel perks a little. There are lots of frequent traveller programmes out there and I will shortly publish another post about all the programmes I use. But for now, I want to focus on the loyalty programme of British Airways. And the question whether or not the British Airways Executive Club is worth signing up for.

If you are a regular to my blog, you are probably well aware, that I have Silver Status in the British Airways Executive Club, the BA frequent traveller programme. But what does this mean? And how did I get there?

Read more British Airways Executive Club worth signing up for?

My experience flying Hop! for the first time

My experience flying Hop for the first time - Travel for a Living

Seems this year is a series of firsts when it comes to flying. I’ve extended my knowledge of different airlines quite a bit. Flying LOT Polish Airlines for the first time at the start of the year. Followed by my first ever Lauda Flight back from Vienna. More recently my first two flights with Vueling. And today I’d like to share with you my experience of flying Hop for the first time.

Hop is one of those airlines that I vaguely heard about before, but I never really used them before. Probably because they mainly do inland flights within France. And I don’t travel to France that often (yes, I know this does sound a bit weird, given that I just returned from a holiday in France a couple of days before the trip). However, I did have a business trip to Marseille and Toulouse. And whilst the flights to Marseille and back from Toulouse were both British Airways, the inland flight between Marseille and Toulouse was operated by Hop (although it was actually booked on Air France and we only realised afterwards that it would be operated by Hop).

So, what can you expect, when flying Hop for the first time?

How about, I just tell you about my first flight on Hop?

Read more My experience flying Hop! for the first time