200,000+ Miles over 47 weeks and Amazingly No Travel Mishaps!

For my year-end review of my 2011 travels, my butt-in-seat air miles added up to 201,832 and I was gone for part or all of 47 weeks. I had lots of travel to Houston, New York, Los Angeles and Las Vegas domestically, and several international trips to the UK, France, Norway and Singapore.

With my Continental Platinum, I was upgraded 100% of the time on my domestic flights. My Delta Diamond status also got me upgraded 100% of the time within the US. I succeeded a few times in using my system-wide upgrades on my Continental international flights; while watching my Delta upgrades sit idle in my account. My attempt to get six Delta first-class seats to Hawaii for my family, all on the same flight, was a 100% success (80,000 miles each).

I checked my bag about 20% of the time, usually on my longer international flights. I had TSA greeting cards in only a few of these checked bags and no lost or stolen items that I’m aware of.

All these stats are ho-hum – what’s really amazing is my 0% travel mishap stat for 2011.

Not one lost bag; not one significantly delayed flight (a few flights were up to two hours late, but that’s all); not one issue with TSA. Oops … strike that last one. TSA did nab my water bottle that I had with me during my 39-Mile Avon Walk in NYC in October because there was about 1″ of water left in it. Yes, this made me mad that day and I guess I’m still not over it if I’m writing about it. No overnight sleeping in airports this year; no sitting on tarmacs for hours on end; no being walked by a hotel.

Oh, I’ve had my share of travel woes. My first 13 years of travel were in and out of O’Hare where I needed a taxi to and fro for only a three mile ride. I don’t know what was worse; the delays at O’Hare or the verbal beatings by the taxi drivers.

So I am very grateful for a boring year – the first in a quarter of a century of travel for me. I guess every 25 years or so a frequent traveler is due for a good year. I do hope this is the beginning of a good travel karma streak that repeats itself in 2012 and doesn’t make me wait this long again.

Here’s to good travel karma in 2012 – for you and for me!

To receive a free copy of our ebook, 70 Secrets to Safe Travel — Because Your Life Can Change in a Heartbeat, and for more travel savvy info to help you travel smarter, safer and with more enjoyment, visit SmartWomenTravelers.com and PearlsofTravelWisdom.com. Watch for my new book, Business Travel Success – How to Reduce Stress, Be More Productive and Travel with Confidence, being published by Morgan James in early 2012.