STATUS · 04.09.26

Pomp and Points: Learning to Tell Them Apart

Before the final chapter of the Novotel Nara**** saga, I’d like to make an important …

STATUS · 26.08.26

Nights in the Cowshed

Hyatt launched the UrCove brand in 2019 as a joint venture with China’s BTG Homeinns …

24.08.26

Köfte in Gobsmack Sauce

GPT-5.6 SOL Yes, it all makes sense: T-T is the booking class, while EcoFly / ExtraFly / …

MILES · 28.07.26

Rove: Travel the World for

Rove’s slogan on its Y Combinator pitch page sounds defiantly implausible: …

STATUS · 14.07.26

Marriott Bonvoy

O Marriott, Marriott, wherefore art thou so stingy with the nights? And, while we’re …

ROVE · 13.05.26

How to Buy €110 for $57?

Well, knock me down with a feather! Antoine Al-Mourjan ran back and forth across a bridge …

TOKYO · 24.03.26

JAL at $11.11 per Thousand

Thanks to the Rove promotion, you can stock up on JAL miles. You can’t buy JAL miles …

MILES · 15.03.26

Mileage Maniac

In the time I had left over from resting, I read the book by Steve Belkin — or Stepan …

13.03.26

Airline Pricing Dynamics

Airlines have been running dynamic pricing on cash fares for a long time, and ruthlessly. …

MILES · 02.03.26

Maharaja Club, and the USA of All Places

Rove uses little badges to flag where a programme gives you a financial edge. For example, …

MILES · 22.01.26

Ocean Headlights

The piece about my namesake was an introductory epitaph, a warm-up before the brunch …

LOUNGE · 10.01.26

Other People's News

I read the news and I’m envious. Everyone else gets adventures; I get obligations. …

MILES · 02.01.26

The Flies Voted No

I stepped over my crypto principles and bought some Durov-dollars (TON) to pay for …

ROVE · 15.12.25

Miles, Smiles and Monkey Business

While I wage an unequal battle with Rove’s legal department over 32,692 miles at a …

MILES · 08.11.25

D-Day: Wish You Weren't Here

There’s no such thing as loneliness in a hostel — it gets split eight ways, along …

MILES · 03.11.25

Rove: Rove Miles

Gagarin: Giving the count: 1… 2… 3…. 4… 5… 6… …

MILES · 03.11.25

Rove: Plane Tickets

The price is the same as at every other OTA: give or take a couple of dollars, nothing …

MEXICO CITY · 30.10.25

Where Have All the Good Times Gone?

To hostelworld.com, young man. Where the beds creak like a long-distance relationship, and …

MEXICO CITY · 30.10.25

Where Are the Miles, Lebowski?

They’re spread thickly, like Marmite, across ordinary non-chain hotels. That’s …

ROVE · 30.10.25

Right, the Numbers

Rove has rolled out a rate identical to Hyatt’s: $192.16 for 2 nights. Globalist …