Hello from New York!

I'm back from a few days in Europe, touring some new planes and catching up with friends.

The highlight of my trip: seeing the United A321XLR.

The lowlight: the longest European immigration line I've ever experienced.

And before we get into today's updates, Chase just told me this is your last chance for the limited-time offer on the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card. It ends on Thursday, July 30, at 9 a.m. ET.

More on that below.

Advertiser and Editorial Disclosure

I just waited in the longest line I've ever seen for European immigration.

On my way home from Europe, I spent some time in Paris — and the exit immigration line was more than two hours long.

It wrapped around the terminal and would not move. Authorities even stopped using the formal EES process to keep the line moving.

Fortunately, I had access to the Sky Priority lane, but even that took 40 minutes.

I updated my EES guide with new learnings, and if you haven't bookmarked my live EES predictor tool, here's the link.

I warned you this was coming, but now it's official from Chase's mouth.

This is your last chance to grab the 100,000-point welcome offer on the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card.

It’s officially ending on Thursday, July 30, at 9 a.m. ET.

You earn 100,000 bonus points after spending $5,000 within the first three months.

I've spilled plenty of ink breaking this down, but here's my review of the offer if you're still on the fence.

In my mind, it boils down to these points:

Even if you redeem the points at the least efficient rates, you'll still come out ahead — which is why everyone I know is calling it the offer of the year.

Got questions? Hit reply.

(As always, if you are planning to apply, here’s my referral link. Using it helps keep this content free — thanks for your support!)

I flew Air France home from Europe because it's the single-best way to ensure you can work on the flight home.

(Air France has most of its long-haul fleet equipped with free Starlink Wi-Fi that works better than cell service on the ground.)

It also happened to be a steal on points. Air France's Flying Blue program often runs discounted promo awards on routes you'd actually want to fly.

I booked a 45,000-point award (with points transferred 1:1 from Chase Ultimate Rewards) for business class from London to Paris to New York.

(Taxes were just over $700, but that's because the U.K. levies a premium cabin tax that's passed on for award redemptions on all carriers.)

Even without a promo award, Flying Blue offers some of the best award rates for Europe travel, and there's plentiful availability — especially on routes with multiple frequencies.

Here's the step-by-step:

Air France prices each route differently, so you may have luck flying to Paris or Amsterdam and booking a separate connection — or booking the whole journey together in one itinerary. Search both ways and compare prices.

Earlier this week, I shared my complete July edit, which includes a selection of travel-ready picks spanning apparel and gear.

Everyone’s been loving it, so I’m back today with a curated list of items I’d suggest from Nordstrom’s once-a-year anniversary sale.

On my last night in London, I moved to a more affordable hotel: the Crowne Plaza in Terminal 4 at LHR.

The hotel itself wasn't particularly memorable — except for what happened the next morning.

I woke up, hit the gym (one of my top jetlag busters), and walked 300 steps from the hotel to the terminal.

If you have an early flight, I can't recommend enough staying at an airport hotel connected to the terminal.

Here are my picks at Heathrow:

I often talk about how you can get compensated for flight delays to, from, or within Europe.

(Except if you're flying British Airways and they claim you're not actually eligible, despite flight attendants telling you otherwise.)

But I just learned you can also get compensation for delayed trains. I waited nearly an hour for my train from Farnborough to London Waterloo, and someone near me suggested filing a delay complaint.

I did — and within 24 hours, received an email that I'd get 11 GBP back to my credit card. (For what it's worth, the train ticket was 22 GBP.)

Here's the link to bookmark for the future.

And if you're looking for a catch-all way to get delay coverage for flights, even outside Europe, here's my guide to the best trip delay protection in the business.

In Europe this week, I stayed at a Crowne Plaza and Holiday Inn, and both far exceeded my expectations.

By so much, in fact, that I'd have no trouble recommending either.

Which got me thinking: why do hotel brands abroad punch way above their weight? Or maybe my preconceived notions about a brand are shaped by the below-average experiences I've had with them in the U.S.

Either way, I'm curious if this is just me — or something you've noticed too.

If you want the best deal on European fashion, the single cheapest place to buy is the airport duty-free store.

You'll pay the pre-tax amount with no fees or surcharges, and you won't need to complete the VAT refund process.

The hardest part is checking availability, but I've found you can call the airport store ahead of time and ask them to reserve whatever you're looking for.

To give you an example of the savings, I visited the Moncler store at CDG and looked at a jacket:

If you're planning a big purchase, the airport is the place to do it. (The Italian airports often have the cheapest rates I’ve found in Europe.)

All the big news is above. Enjoy the weekend!

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