The offers for the cards listed in this post have expired, so the links have been removed.

Deborah writes:
Goal: I want to start planning for a trip to Japan. My home airport is Washington-Dulles. Assuming I am starting from scratch, for which airline does it make most sense to start collecting miles?
So which program is best from the east coast to Japan? My advice and reasoning after the jump.

I would definitely focus on United miles if I were Deborah.

Rocketmiles is a hotel booking site where you earn thousands of bonus airline miles for booking hotel stays at the prevailing rate online.

Today only, you can earn double miles on hotel bookings made at Rocketmiles.

A few months ago, Bill wrote a great piece titled Beware Phantom Award Availability at United.com. It's true that United.com occasionally lists Saver award space that just doesn't exist and that you can't book online or by phone.

I've just come across the opposite: phantom non-award space.

Update 12/17/13: The 50k mile offer is dead.

Part 1 focused on Buenos Aires. Part 2 will focus on three days in two other places: Iguazu Falls and Tigre. (Also check out a Trip Report on the Lake District of Patagonia.)

Lots of photos after the jump.

Iguazú Falls

The highlight of the week was our big trip outside of Buenos Aires to the Argentine side of Iguazú Falls. Without a doubt, this is the most incredible place I have ever been. No wonder it was named one of the New7Wonders of Nature!

The falls are located in the Iguazú National Park.

Update 3/6/14: This post is outdated. See Master Thread: Holds on United Awards

You can get a free hold of up to three days on United Airlines awards.

I recently saved a MileValue Award Booking Service client 60,000 miles on a trip to Israel by taking advantage of the best use of American Airlines miles and British Airways Avios on the same trip.

A client contacted me looking for a trip for two from Atlanta to Israel next spring. She had some Delta miles, American miles, and Avios.

In July of 2006, I went to Iguazu Falls, Argentina as an 18-year-old rookie traveler, traveling on my own for the first time.

In May of 2013, I returned to Iguazu as a veteran of over thirty countries, bringing two rookie travelers to one of the New7Wonders of Nature according to 100 million votes cast in the last few years.

See my attempt to recreate my favorite photo from the trip.

Much has changed in the seven years, but I wanted to recreate a spontaneous photo taken on my first trip that captured my first extended sabbatical from shaving and

Pre-departure services and the Global First Lounge

United Global First Los Angeles to Sydney

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I've included a brief report on Air New Zealand business class because the plane I flew operates some key routes you might want to fly like Honolulu to Auckland and Shanghai to Auckland. Because getting to New Zealand in business class with United miles is tough, you might find yourself on one of those flights.

After taking off on New Year's Eve, I landed well rested in Sydney on January 2nd.