Hello from my home office!

At long last, I'm home for a long stretch, and that's exciting for a few reasons.

The first is obvious: more time with family and friends. Second, I get to spend more time outdoors with cooler temps.

There are a couple of other reasons, too, but more on those exciting developments soon.

In the meantime, I've got a packed update for you below.

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My favorite domestic flight experience is scoring a lie-flat seat without leaving the country.

That's standard on the premium transcon routes from New York to Los Angeles and San Francisco. But thousands of other domestic flights offer lie-flats in the pointy end of the plane.

Finding these flights is one of the easiest ways to upgrade a trip. And even if you're back in economy, international jets tend to offer a roomier ride.

So I built a tool to find them.

It's free for newsletter subscribers. (You'll need to enter your email to confirm.)

For more about the tool, here’s my explainer post.

One of the easiest credit cards to maximize just launched its best limited-time offer in more than two years.

I'm talking about the $95-a-year Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card. Here's how the new welcome offer breaks down:

Together, that's more than $1,000 toward travel. I value the $300 stays credit at face value.

The miles are worth 1 cent each when you redeem directly with Capital One for travel, or you can move them to 22 airline and hotel loyalty partners.

If you transfer, two of the best options are Air Canada Aeroplan and Air France Flying Blue. You can find business-class tickets to Europe starting at 45,000 miles with Air France during promotions.

In my mind, there are three types of people who should consider this offer:

(Quick note: if you use my link in my review, I'll earn a small commission that keeps my content free. Thanks in advance.)

One of the most common questions I get is “when does it make sense to upgrade my flight?”

So I figured I’d share the framework I use to decide:

Domestic flights:

International flights:

A few considerations:

Two of the biggest hotel chains are running limited-time promotions to sweeten fall travel. Both take about a minute to register.

Marriott

Earn 1,500 bonus points on paid stays of two or more nights, plus another 3,000 at resorts. It applies to stays from Sept. 22 through Nov. 22.

This is hardly Marriott's most lucrative global promo, but it's worth registering even if there's only a chance you'll trigger it.

Hyatt

Earn 2x bonus points on stays at Thompson Hotels booked through the World of Hyatt app, for stays from Sept. 8 to Nov. 10. It's tied to the brand's 25th anniversary, and bonus earning caps at 30,000 points.

I like Thompson properties, and I'll shift my nights there if the rates aren't much higher.

The only gotcha: you need to register first and book through the app.

Etihad just took the wraps off Beyond Borders, a new design language and cabin lineup that will roll out across its fleet.

The first jet to feature it is the Airbus A330-900neo, which enters service in September 2027. Etihad plans to take 15 of them over five years and fly them on regional and medium-haul routes across Europe, Asia, and the Middle East.

Here's the configuration:

Etihad says it'll progressively extend the new design to its lounges, cabins, and ground experiences.

The airline also says it's seen strong demand for first class, and it'll keep expanding the cabin across the fleet.

Here's the interesting part: Etihad's first class on the A330neo and A321LR is an elevated business-class-plus product, not a true mega-suite.

But the airline has differentiated the service and amenities, and the buy-up is more reasonable to compensate for not getting a mega-suite.

I like the approach, and seemingly so do customers.

Today's a big day for every Apple device you own.

iOS 27 and the rest of the company's next-generation software updates just launched.

Travelers have plenty of reasons to update, but two stand out:

In my upgrade playbook above, I said I'll pay for the upgrade rather than gamble on the elite upgrade list when there are two or fewer seats left for sale.

With United, that’s easy to check. You just need to enable Expert Mode on your account.

With the feature on, you'll see the fare-class breakdown for every flight you search.

The number next to J tells you how many premium-cabin seats are left for sale. J2 means two seats. J9 means nine or more. (Nine is the maximum United displays.)

Expert Mode also shows award availability (IN, I, X, and XN fare classes) and upgrade space (PZ, PN, and RN).

Here are the steps to enable Expert Mode:

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From the Tray Table is part of an affiliate sales network and receives compensation for sending traffic to partner sites. This compensation may impact how and where links appear. Not all financial companies or all available offers are included. The opinions expressed are mine alone. Content is not reviewed or endorsed by an entity.