The following is a recollection of an intense two-day drive through the foothills of the Andes Mountains on the Argentinian side. This trip occurred in 2010, well before I had ever fathomed being a travel blogger, and this is my first time putting the story into writing. This post covers just two days out of a 7 day, ~2,500 mile trip in Chile and Argentina. For more, check out … [Read more...] about Offroading, Volcanoes, Andes Foothills and Near Misses in Argentina
[Friday Photo] Spaceship Cloud in the Argentinian Andes Foothills
As part of the process of adding Argentina to my travel map, I started to look through photos I took along the way. One photo has always stood out from that trip, a cloud like none other that we encountered driving through the Andes Mountains. You may think it looks like a brush stroke on a blue canvas, but to my dad, uncles and me, we thought it looked like a gigantic … [Read more...] about [Friday Photo] Spaceship Cloud in the Argentinian Andes Foothills
[Reader Question] When is the Best Time to Book a Flight to Toronto?
This reader question is probably more specific than some readers may be expecting to see (booking a flight from MSP to Toronto), but I wanted to share the result for two reasons: 1) It gave me the opportunity to share my thought process for booking flights within North America and 2) the story has an ideal ending. Maybe it will be helpful for others facing a similar situation. … [Read more...] about [Reader Question] When is the Best Time to Book a Flight to Toronto?
Putting Argentina on the Travel Map
This weekend I added Argentina to the Jeffsetter Travel Map in part of my efforts to chip away at adding the 22 countries I have visited to date onto the map. While updating the map is ultimately coming at the expense of other trip reports, it's important that I get both of these done in a reasonable timeframe. Even though I only spent 3 short days in Argentina in 2010 … [Read more...] about Putting Argentina on the Travel Map
[Friday Photo] Glacier Reflections in New Zealand
This week's photo was taken in March of 2011 on the south island of New Zealand. During our beautiful stay in New Zealand we spent two nights at the foot of the Franz Josef glacier, which gave us plenty of time to explore the surrounding areas. This lead to a lot of hiking, a helicopter ride and photo ops galore. … [Read more...] about [Friday Photo] Glacier Reflections in New Zealand
[Photo Friday] Tahitian Sunset on the Island of Moorea
Because I am feeling a little guilty about my lack of progress on completing my Tahiti/Cook Islands trip reports, I decided that this week's photo Friday would demonstrate some of the beauty I saw while staying in French Polynesia. The sunsets in French Polynesia were amazing - probably the best that I have seen in my life and definitely the best that I have … [Read more...] about [Photo Friday] Tahitian Sunset on the Island of Moorea
Jeffsetter is Joining the Team of Bloggers at Boarding Area!
There was a time in my points and miles earning career where I was a waste of miles. It's almost embarrassing to admit now, but not so long ago I only earned miles by doing archaic activities like *gasp* flying in an airplane. Not only that, but I would redeem miles for domestic tickets in coach class. Then I came across blogs like View from the Wing, One Mile at a Time and … [Read more...] about Jeffsetter is Joining the Team of Bloggers at Boarding Area!
[Video] Snorkeling in Moorea at the Hilton Moorea Lagoon Resort and Spa
While it took me longer than expected to start pulling together and editing the videos I shot during our trip to the Cook Islands and French Polynesia in June, I am now starting to produce and edit the videos taken during that time and will be releasing them over the next several weeks. Each video ranges from 1 to 5 minutes long and covers a variety of topics from my … [Read more...] about [Video] Snorkeling in Moorea at the Hilton Moorea Lagoon Resort and Spa
[Reader Question] How Do I Downgrade an American Express Gold Card?
The following is a reader question from Sara in Chicago, IL. Sara asks: My husband and I recently took advantage of the large signup bonus offers for the American Express Gold Card. As we approach the 1 year mark, we are wondering how to keep our Membership rewards points without paying an annual fee. Is there a way that we can make this happen? While I have not done this … [Read more...] about [Reader Question] How Do I Downgrade an American Express Gold Card?
[Tuesday Conversation] Gary Leff Talks Travel
Today we are proud to introduce a new feature on Jeffsetter that I am hoping will catch on and become a regular feature. We are calling this feature the Tuesday Conversation and I plan on conducting more travel interviews with travelers who inspire me. When I first hatched this concept, I knew that I wanted the first interview to be with Gary Leff, the longest tenured points … [Read more...] about [Tuesday Conversation] Gary Leff Talks Travel