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We're all old enough and experienced enough to know how this is going to play out. It's a pendulum. It always has been. More and more people will have the same attitude as @Forg and change their travel plans. The tourism, aviation and hospitality industries in the USA will be hit really hard...

They work almost all the time. It's good to be aware of their limitations -- they need to be in range of an internet-connected Apple device or (I think) a known network in order to update their location. The first time I used AirTags was on a Europe trip a few years ago which involved a short...

Indefensible. As were the even greater and much more frequent infidelities of one of Australia's greatest ever Prime Ministers. Or does the fact that we don't have recordings of Bob Hawke on YouTube make it more acceptable? Both sets of sexual infidelities are/were indefensible. But we live in...

I vividly remember standing here in January: Americans haven't forgotten that that crime against humanity was committed by foreign nationals who had been welcomed into the USA with open arms. Since then, I think the USA has struggled to get the balance right between caution and openness...

Hope you have a wonderful time! I'm sure we'll all be interested to know of your experience with CBP when you arrive.

Having said that, I've met many, many people with a deep, deep hatred of the USA and everything it stands for. I don't think I've met anyone with a deep, deep hatred of Hong Kong and everything it stands for. So in one sense one can understand the twitchiness...

It's hard to tell for sure whether they'll both stack, until you actualy make a purchase. My guess, though, is that they will stack. A couple of years ago there was an The Australian Wine offer -- spend $150, get $50 back. At the same time there was a Lathwaites Wine offer: spend $150, get $50...

The USA is, and always has been, a country of contradictions. I stood at the Jefferson Memorial in January reading Jefferson's impassioned appeal against slavery -- written while he was a slaveowner. The more things change, the more things stay the same. If you think what is happening now is...

Well, obviously there are competing interests here. On the one hand VA should be about maximising revenue from paying customers (even if they're "paying" in points rather than currency). On the other hand, VA should be about looking after its (lets face it, long-suffering) staff and if that...

In the SYD lounge (which, incidentally, markets itself as the “Virgin Australia Lounge”, not the “Virgin Australia Business Lounge” as per the title of your post) the wraps appeared on Sunday at 10:30am, immediately after the breakfast food was cleared. Strange that it’s different in Adelaide.

Not showing for me yet. What's the timeframe? Six months? ;)

Status credits earned after your review date accrue to the new membership year. Last year the time between my review date and renewal date occurred during the triple-status-credits promotion and I earned 480 SCs between review & renewal date, helping me to requalify for Platinum for another...

A "big risk"? No way. Tens of thousands of people enter the USA every day, and despite all the media attention there are only a few cases of detention/deportation that we know of and none from the past couple of weeks. The article below is the latest I've read, but note that it cites only three...

It's hard to know because it's my understanding that DFAT and those providing consular assistance in some countries will often advise that people do NOT go to the media, as this can be counterproductive. Even after the event, people could legitimately fear for relatives, acquaintances etc and...

Look up “married segments”. This has happened to me more than once and yes, it’s incredibly frustrating. It’s not a “new rule” but it might not be “general incompetence” either. Long story short: the airline might have determined to make SYD-LAX awards available, but not BNE-SYD-LAX. Like I...

As always, the dialogue betweeen @RooFlyer and @justinbrett has been an entertaining read. Arguments on both sides are strong, however, I’m sure @justinbrett understands that there are always going to be examples of a discrepancy between the law as written and the law as practised. I could...

Many decades ago when I worked in customer service, I was instructed that one of the features of really good customer service is that when a mistake is made or there’s an error, we should always go to greater lengths to put it right than the customer would expect. You’ve just outlined an...

The phrase “If you don’t laugh, you’ll cry” comes to mind…

“USA” and “rules” seem to have a very weird relationship sometimes. Which I suppose is the point of this whole thread.

When I was in the USA in January I flew domestically three times. The first two times I just showed my passport. On the third occasion I kept my passport in my bag and decided to find out how they’d react to my showing my Australian drivers licence. The TSA officer let me through with a smile...