At long last, it’s time for me to say hello from the road!

This isn’t just another run-of-the-mill domestic trip. Instead, I’m somewhere over the Pacific en route to Hong Kong.

Everything came together at the last minute, but I’m going to attend a special event as a guest of Cathay Pacific. I’ll have lots more to share about my experience later this week.

I haven’t been back to Hong Kong since January 2020. I’m looking forward to spending some time relaxing in the city, and I even tacked on a 24-hour layover in another major city on the way home. (You’re going to love the hotel I managed to book.)

In the meantime, I need to catch some shut-eye so I can hit the ground running when I land.

Here’s everything you need to know heading into the week.

Advertiser and Editorial Disclosure

Absolutely not. In fact, it’s quite the opposite.

“We’re upgrading customers at a more consistent rate than we have in quite some time,” said Dwight James, Delta’s SkyMiles chief, in an interview with me. (If you fly Delta, do you agree with James?)

James went on to share how he’s tackling lounge overcrowding, what’s coming to SkyMiles in 2026, and why Delta didn’t raise the elite thresholds this year.

This is one of those exclusives that you don’t want to miss.

And speaking of upgrades, reading this interview is free, but in the future I'm thinking of limiting this type of story to a premium version of this newsletter. More on that soon.

If you have one of my top-recommended credit cards, odds are you have credit to Lululemon and Stubhub.

If you do, you’ll want to use it today because there’s a lucrative double-dip opportunity.

I’m not sure about you, but I’m going to be really sad (and a lot poorer) if Spirit gets sold for parts.

(Speaking of which, United is acquiring two gates in Chicago as part of Spirit’s bankruptcy restructuring. Let the relentless fighting continue.)

Even if you never fly an ultra-low-cost carrier, I can almost guarantee that you’ve benefited from their presence. When they go head-to-head with the big airlines, they often put downward pressure on fares.

Sometimes, though, the network airlines aren’t bothered by the presence of the discounters. Like in this example, when I’m trying to fly from Denver to Las Vegas.

United: $1,167. Frontier: $33. Would I be insane to do anything but Frontier? (Especially because I now have 5,000 free miles sitting in my account.)

I’ve said this before, but it’s worth repeating. There’s only one inflight Wi-Fi provider that’s great, and it’s Starlink. (When Amazon’s Project Kuiper finally launches, it’ll probably be in the Starlink category.)

Every other inflight internet provider, including Viasat (which connects most American, Delta, and JetBlue planes), is just playing in a totally different league.

I experienced this firsthand on my way to Asia. I was flying during the Super Bowl and couldn’t stream using the United Wi-Fi powered by Panasonic.

(Last year, I also flew United during the Super Bowl. I was able to stream the game, albeit with lots of buffering on a Viasat-equipped plane.)

The problem right now, especially with United, is the inconsistency with Wi-Fi providers. The airline just dropped millions on a Super Bowl ad promoting Starlink on 300 (mostly regional) jets.

But until Starlink is available fleetwide — expected late next year — you (and I) should temper our expectations. It can’t come soon enough!

Did American Airlines stumble on a premium route so profitable that Delta is now taking note?

Over the weekend, Delta filed plans to resume service between New York and Orange County, California, after a seven-year hiatus.

This time, however, Delta will fly its lie-flat-equipped Boeing 757 on the route, featuring 16 Delta One pods (in a 2-2 configuration), 44 Comfort extra-legroom seats, and 108 standard economy seats.

Interestingly, American has been flying its poshest domestic plane, the 102-seat Airbus A321T, between JFK and SNA since 2021.

(United, meanwhile, flies from Newark to SNA three times a day using a Boeing 737.)

American’s historical loads have been pretty good. (In 2024, American ran a ~82% load factor at an average fare of $499, Department of Transportation data analyzed by Cirium shows.)

Maybe Delta wants a piece of that.

Question: Should you book via a travel portal or directly with the travel provider?

Answer: This is such a good question. And sadly, it doesn’t have a one-size-fits-all answer. The truth is that I book flights directly with airlines whenever possible. If you end up needing to change a flight booked through a third party, things can go awry pretty quickly.

Obviously, that’s not possible if you’re trying to redeem Ultimate Rewards points via the Chase Travel portal, but when in doubt, book flights directly. (Or use this Bilt hack for extra points on a direct booking.)

I’m not as strict about hotels, especially the fancy ones where you get better benefits through credit card portals or travel advisors, but where possible, book direct.

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