Flying for Fitness

Last week, The Japan Times posted an article stating the the Japanese government would be implementing a $12.5 billion USD plan that would cover up to half of foreign tourist vacation costs.  This built excitement across the globe as Japan, whose tourism has been hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic, is a wonderful place to visit.  But all those hopes have just come to an end as the Japan Tourism Agency (JTA) posted a series of Tweets clarifying the "Go to Travel Campaign": the Go to Travel Campaign under consideration by the Japanese government is to stimulate domestic travel demand within Japan after the Covid-19 pandemic and only cover a portion of domestic travel expenses.（２／２） — 観光庁（Japan Tourism Agency） (@Kanko_Jpn) May 27, 2020 So unfortunately, the campaign will "only cover a portion of domestic travel expenses", thus excluding the hopes of your international flight to Japan being subsidized.  Furthermore, as stated by the JTA, the plan is intended to cover ...

24 Hour Fitness, or rather 16 Hour Fitness due to their new operating hours of 5 am to 9 pm, has been slowly re-opening their clubs in Texas.  A number of clubs in the Dallas area re-opened in mid-May, with the rest in Dallas and the Houston area coming June 1.  In addition, select clubs in Florida and all clubs in Hawaii are scheduled for re-opening in mid-June.  The privately-owned fitness chain has been implementing the following social distancing and sanitation measures : Mandatory workout reservations over the 24GO app , limited to one per day for up to 1 hour 30-minute total gym closure for cleaning between each 1-hour reservation slot Touch-free check-in with the app Closure of all ball courts Classes will meet at modified times and locations to support social distancing Some equipment may be powered off or moved to provide ample space to work out safely Senior hours between 2-3 pm daily All clubs will be closed for 30 minutes for cleaning after each 1-hour worko...

As the public has struggled during the COVID-19 pandemic, Chase has made a number of positive changes to their cards, including increasing cashback for grocery store purchases through June 30th and extending the time period to meet spending for sign-up bonuses.  Today, Chase announced a couple of positive changes to their Sapphire and Reserve and Preferred cards.  Through September 30, 2020, the Sapphire Reserve will enjoy a 50% bonus and the Sapphire Preferred will enjoy a 25% bonus cashout when points are applied to the following purchases: grocery stores dining (including restaurants, takeout, and eligible delivery services) home improvement stores such as Home Depot and Lowes What this does is put the above categories in line with redeeming Chase Ultimate Rewards (UR) through their travel portal, which comes out to a valuation of 1.5 cents per point for the Reserve and 1.25 cents per point for the Preferred.  Since most of us aren't traveling at the moment though, ...

For today only, Alaska Airlines is offering 20% off all domestic economy class flights with the exception of Hawaii and Prudhoe Bay.  Valid travel dates are for most of the summer from July 7 to September 30, 2020, with blackout dates of September 3-7, 2020 (Labor Day weekend).  To book your flight, simply go to the Alaska Airlines website and enter promo code 2020GRADS. The 20% off discount is good for up to 6 travelers on the same reservation, and you don't have to be a recent school graduate to take advantage of it.  You'll also be covered by Alaska Air's COVID-19 travel waiver , which allows you to cancel or change all flights without a fee. Discount code terms: Passengers:  Up to 6 people per Discount Code, traveling together and booked and ticketed at the same time in the same reservation and at the same fare. Routes:  Discount valid between Alaska Airlines cities in the United States (excluding Hawaii and Prudhoe Bay). Based on published fare r...

Both Office Depot/OfficeMax and Safeway/Vons/Albertsons are offering $10 off $100 Visa gift cards, which can be used at online merchants and anywhere Visa debit cards are accepted in the U.S.  The Office Depot deal ends on May 30, 2020 and Safeway's on June 6, 2020, and both deals offer $10 off as long as you purchase $100+ in Visa gift cards cumulatively.  For Safeway, the coupon first needs to be added to your Just for U account before the purchase .  Whereas at Office Depot, the $10 discount is instant and does not require a coupon Which credit cards to use $100 Visa gift cards come with $5.95 activation fees and $200 Visa gift cards with $6.95 fees.  Even with the higher activation fee, you'll come out on top buy purchasing a $200 Visa gift card especially if you're using a credit card that earns 5x at office supply stores like the Chase Ink Cash, and 5x at supermarkets like the Chase Freedom and Chase Reserve, which both offer 5x at grocery stores until June 30...

SoFi has long offered sign-up bonuses for both their Money and Invest accounts.  The bonuses have varied, but now SoFi is offering $75 for both their Money and Invest accounts, which is one of the highest.  And since SoFi Money and Invest are two separate accounts that each take only minutes to sign-up for with no credit check required, you can get both bonuses for a total of $150. SoFi Money The $75 sign-up bonus for SoFi Money, which operates similar to a checking account, requires two direct deposits of at least $500 each.  I've written about SoFi Money in the past , and it's a great financial entity as if offers the following benefits: Earn 0.2% APY on your account balance. No account minimum balance requirements. No account fees. ATM fees reimbursed worldwide.  As long as there is the ATM is displaying the Visa®, Plus®, or NYCE® logo. No foreign transaction fees. No credit check required to sign-up. The cash balance in SoFi Money accounts is swept to one or mor...

Like many countries, Japan has suffered an astronomical drop in tourism, with a 99.9% decline in tourists for April 2020.  An estimated 2,900 tourists visited Japan last month, which represents the lowest number on record and the first time below 10,000 since the Japan Tourism Agency began compiling statistics in 1964.  In an effort to lure back tourists, the government is starting a $12.5 billion plan as early as July that could cover up to half the costs of travel expenses for foreign visitors. Furano's beautiful flower fields in Hokkaido Japan's current entry ban aimed at curbing the spread of COVID-19 was expanded to 100 countries this month.  In April, which is typically one of the busiest tourism months with the elegant cherry blossoms, fewer than 10 visitors arrived from Spain and Italy, which have both been hit hard by the pandemic.  The number of visitors from Taiwan and the United States also decreased to 300 each from 403,467 and 170,247, respectively, in ...

American Express has just partnered with Calm to offer one full year of Calm Premium Membership for free to all Amex Consumer and Corporate card members.  Calm has been consistently rated as the #1 sleep, relaxation, and meditation app, which many of us could use right now in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic.  Premium Membership, which normally costs $69.99 per year, gets you access to all the video, audio, and masterclass collections offered by Calm, which won Apple's App of the Year award in 2017.  After your one year of free membership ends, Amex card members will be able continue their membership for a second year for half the normal cost. To sign-up for Calm for free, go to the promo page .  This offer is available to U.S. American Express Consumer and Corporate Card Members who do not have an active Calm Premium membership and who sign up by September 30, 2020. Quick thoughts Calm is a great app that should help in your sleep, relaxation, meditation, stretch...

The Boeing 777 has consistently served as the long-haul international workhorse for Delta Airlines.  The carrier's B777-200LR (longer range) has long operated the Altanta-Johannesburg route, which is the only nonstop route between the U.S. and South Africa.  Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Delta has just formally announced the retirement of its entire B777 fleet, phasing out all 19 aircraft by the end of the year.  This is in addition toe Delta's announcement last month to accelerate the retirement of its entire MD-88 and MD-90 fleet. Delta has flown the B777 since 1999, but the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on both public health and the travel industry has proven too costly for the survival of many wide-body jets.  Emirates, who is by far the largest operator of the double-decker A380, is presumably decommissioning 30% of its A380 fleet.  Emirates' President Sir Tim Clark recently stated that the era of the “A380 is over”, and that smaller capacity efficient pl...

Alaska Airlines has partnered with Strava to hand out a total of 250,000 miles to 8 lucky fitness enthusiasts who participate in their new Miles on the Ground Sweepstakes: Alaska Airlines President and cycling-enthusiast, Ben Minicucci, is rising to the challenge––and he wants you to join him. If you log at least 360 minutes of physical activity (45 minutes a day/4 times a week or 30 minutes a day/6 times a week––anything that adds up!) between May 16 and May 30, 2020, you’ll be qualified for a chance to win up to 100,000 miles. While you’re not flying through the skies, you might be flying through your workouts!  360 minutes of exercise (6 total hours) over the course of 2 weeks will be pretty easy for us fitness junkies, even with most of the gyms being closed.  And since the list of qualifying activities is extensive, even couch potatoes would be able to do it: Qualifying Activities Alpine Ski Backcountry Ski Canoe Crossfit E-Bike Ride Elliptical Handcycle Hike Ice Skate I...