2019 – Cafes and Alleyways

Hyatt Zilara All-Inclusive, Adult Only Cancun, Mexico

Post author:CafesandAlleyways
Post published:December 27, 2019
Post category:General
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Aerial View Cancun Cancun is as beautiful as it gets! The clear, aqua blue Caribbean waters that surrounds the white sandy beaches is enough to make your heart sing at first sight! Hyatt Zilara Check-In Lobby After checking in at the Hyatt Zilara lobby, we bee line it to the huge glass sliding doors that lead from the hotel to the infinity pool and the ocean. Pick up your drink of choice on the way out at the bar (it's all included). You will find a coffee shop to the right of the sliding glass doors if that's more…

Getting Started with Points and Miles- Look and Learn Before Your Leap

Post author:CafesandAlleyways
Post published:December 22, 2019
Post category:Points+Miles
Post comments:3 Comments

Welcome to the world of points and miles! We’re sharing how ordinary people can travel to extraordinary places with the use of airline miles and hotel points. In this series we lay out steps to save money and travel more. These steps include: Getting Started with Points and MilesLook and Learn Before You LeapDecide What Type of Reward Points You Want to Begin EarningSign-Up For a Frequent Flyer AccountEarn Your First PointsEarn Points Through Credit Card Sign Ups- Part 1- Count the CostEarn Points Through Credit Card Sign Ups- Part 2- Ten Steps to FollowEarn Points Through Credit Card SpendingEarn…

Getting Started in Points and Miles

Post author:CafesandAlleyways
Post published:December 16, 2019
Post category:Points+Miles
Post comments:4 Comments

Do you dream of traveling? Want to travel more for less? You’re in the right place! Welcome to the world of points and miles. Points and miles can help ordinary people travel to extraordinary places. In this series we’ll look at practical steps to earn miles and save money while traveling more. To get started, let’s do some dreaming… Where can Points and Miles take You? Chances are you found this article because you want to travel. If you could go anywhere, where can points and miles take you? Perhaps you dream of a visit to Paris, the city of lights. Maybe it’s a full-blown family vacation to…

Old Town Nice, France

Post author:CafesandAlleyways
Post published:December 9, 2019
Post category:Destinations General
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Warmth is all around as we walked through old town Nice in France. We can feel the sun’s warmth on our faces and see it on the facades of the building and alleyways. The colors on the buildings in Nice are definitely warmer toned than you find in northern areas of France. Old Town Nice Alleyways in Nice The old town open air market, also known as Cours Saleya Market, is filled with the fragrance of flowers from local growers. Soap vendors, also known for France’s lavender soaps abound. If you are hungry, you will find a good amount of…

Day Trip to Lake Como

Post author:CafesandAlleyways
Post published:December 6, 2019
Post category:Destinations
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Lake Como is situated in northern Italy along the border with Switzerland. The lake is a quick hour or so north of Milan, which makes for a great day trip. Lake Como was on our bucket list of places to visit until we finally had the chance during a recent trip to Milan. Train Route to Varenna Our journey consisted of two legs. First, a train ride from Milan to the village of Varenna. Second, a ferry from Varenna to Bellagio. On the morning of our trip we left the Park Hyatt Milano and took a taxi to the…

Coachella Valley at Thanksgiving- 2019

Post author:CafesandAlleyways
Post published:December 3, 2019
Post category:General
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Growing up in the Coachella Valley we rarely experienced snowfall. This Thanksgiving, on our way to the Coachella Valley it started snowing in the Beaumont area. The snowfall created a bumper to bumper situation, as traffic slowed to a crawl. But, as it rarely snows in these parts, I’m assuming most people didn’t mind. The white stuff started piling up on the sides of Interstate 10 and in the palm tree fronds. Snowing on Interstate 10- Beaumont, California Coachella Valley- San Jacinto Mountains On Interstate 10, east of the Morongo Casino, you can find the two dinosaurs that have…

My Current Strategy for Earning Points and Miles through Online Shopping Portals

Post author:CafesandAlleyways
Post published:December 3, 2019
Post category:Points+Miles
Post comments:1 Comment

I recently did a post on using online shopping portals to earn airline miles without flying. That post was followed up with an article on earning cashback via shopping portals. In this article I share my current shopping portal strategy and why I’m choosing this approach. Over the years I’ve earned both airline miles, and cashback. My current focus is this: Earning Membership Reward points through the Rakuten shopping portal. Rakuten (formerly called Ebates) is best known as a cash back site, but now offers the option to earn Membership Reward points. Membership rewards are the flexible point currency of American Express, and great for what I like to do, use them…

Quick Tip: Consolidate Your gogo wifi passes prior to closing your CNB Crystal Visa Infinite credit card

Post author:CafesandAlleyways
Post published:November 27, 2019
Post category:Points+Miles
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CNB has recently slashed benefits on their Crystal Visa Infinite credit card. Christmas is pretty much cancelled. As a result, when the annual fee comes around, many card holders may chose not to renew their card. Here’s a quick tip: Consolidate Your gogo wifi passes prior to closing your CNB Card Each CNB card comes with 12 gogo passes. We have a total of four CNB cards (3 authorized users) so collectively we have 48 passes. Prior to cancelling the cards, we went to the dedicated page on the gogo website and loaded all the passes into a single gogo account. A separate gogo account is…

Chez Janou, A Quintessential Parisian Cafe

Post author:CafesandAlleyways
Post published:November 25, 2019
Post category:Destinations Food + Drink
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Chez Janou is a provencal bistro within walking distance from the Bastille in Paris. We arrived between the lunch and dinner hours and took a seat under the brightly covered awning. As the peripheral noise of the hustle and bustle disappears, we ordered our favorite coffee drinks, a cafe creme and an americano. There were no interruptions except for the occasional, and I mean occasional wait staff that comes by to check on us. The Bastille Monument Chez Janou Provencal Bistro As the cool afternoon breeze rustles the leaves of the vines by my table, I start to daydream about…

Earn Cash Back When Shopping Online

Post author:CafesandAlleyways
Post published:November 21, 2019
Post category:General Points+Miles
Post comments:2 Comments

Do you shop online? If so, maximize your money by shopping through an online portal. Online shopping portals reward you for using their portal as the starting point for your online purchases. This reward comes in the form of cash, airline miles or other reward currencies. I recently did a post on earning frequent flyer miles by using an airline's online shopping portal. In this post we'll look at earning cash back. Earning Cash versus Airline Miles Through Online Shopping Our blog is about travel, so why would someone who likes to travel, consider earning cash instead of airline miles?…