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The best ski resorts in the US for your next trip to the slopes

Posted on October 13, 2024 | by travelbestdiscounts

Editor’s note: This is a recurring post, regularly updated with new information

Each year, as cool nights and changing leaves descend upon the northern hemisphere, skiers and riders head straight for their gear rooms, dusting off their skis or boards in anticipation of the impending ski season. Dreams of bottomless, untouched powder become the nightly norm while obsessively checking the long-range winter forecast and ski area opening dates fill the work day.

While forecasts can help narrow down your choices on where to go this winter, opting for destinations with flexible hotel bookings and airfare or waiting until the last minute (if that’s in the budget) will increase the odds of ending up in a snow globe rather than having to pick your way between mud patches on the slopes.

Forecasters are predicting a La Nina weather pattern ahead of the 2024-25 ski season, which tends to favor western resorts. During the last La Nina, during the 2022-23 ski season, ski areas across California and Utah smashed snowfall records. But that doesn’t necessarily mean destinations in the Northeast and Colorado should be written off just yet.

Knowing your priorities is important when considering the best ski resort. For some, the “best” ski resort is one where deep powder and steep slopes take center stage, even if the only nearby lodging option is the back of your car in the parking lot. Others might prioritize ski resorts with high-end hotels despite crowded lift lines that make it nearly impossible to get more than a handful of runs in during the day.

Regardless of where on this spectrum you fall, the United States has seemingly endless ski resorts to choose from. Below is a guide to some of the most popular and why each might be the best for you.

Aspen Snowmass Resort

From the expert runs of Aspen Mountain and Aspen Highlands to the expansive and family-friendly terrain of far larger Snowmass, this 5,500-acre complex encompasses four skiing and snowboarding areas. It lives up to its reputation as the definitive all-in-one ski destination and one of the best Colorado ski resorts. And thanks to the 2023 addition of a high-speed quad and a significant terrain expansion on Aspen Mountain, there will be plenty to explore this winter.

Despite its upscale image, there’s plenty of fun here. Go tubing and snow biking under the stars at Elk Camp or ice-karting around a frozen lake in nearby Roaring Fork Valley.

What to know

Each of the four Aspen Snowmass ski resorts has its own personality. Aspen Mountain is known for its challenging terrain and easy access to town and nightlife, while Aspen Highlands is famed for its expert runs. Families and beginners can’t do better than the gentle slopes of Buttermilk, especially the tot-friendly Panda Peak and the teenager favorite X Park.

Snowmass offers equally easy access while still pleasing thrill-seekers with its 4,400-foot rise. Speaking of thrills, no other resort offers an experience like the Breathtaker Alpine Coaster, which whizzes through the forest on an elevated track.

Where to eat

Hit Aspen Public House for burgers and truffle potatoes or Spring Cafe for soups, salads and creative breakfast scrambles. Try the French bistro cuisine at Betula or the dry-aged prime rib at Catch Steak for something more celebratory.

Where to stay

Where you stay depends on your budget and the mountain resort you want to ski. There are plenty of choices; luckily, Aspen has some of the best ski hotels in the U.S.

The Mollie Aspen is a great option for those looking for a quieter, simple boutique hotel in the center of town. The St. Regis Aspen Resort is ideal if you’re hoping for a dose of luxury just a few steps from the lifts at Aspen Mountain.

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Rates start around $2,000 or 130,000 Marriott Bonvoy points per night during ski season on select midweek dates, although weekends can exceed $3,000 per night. Depending on the number of nights booked and specific dates, nights can be as low as 90,000 points early season.

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Rates start around $1,150 on select nights during ski season or from 85,000 Marriott Bonvoy points per night, all plus a $65-per-night resort fee.

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Rates start at $2,000 per night during ski season.

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Rates start at $550 per night during ski season, or 80,000 points per night during ski season, plus a $50 daily resort fee.

Park City Mountain Resort and Deer Valley Resort

With the 2014 addition of the Canyons ski resort increasing its size to 7,300 acres, Park City arguably became the largest ski resort in the United States. It’s second only to Whistler Blackcomb in North America. And thanks to major snowmaking upgrades on some of Park City’s popular trails, they anticipate an earlier-than-usual opening date this season.

Deer Valley Resort, just 3 miles away, offers skiers a premium experience with high-touch service; snowboarders are still banned from the impeccably maintained slopes.

In 2023, Deer Valley’s parent company, Alterra Mountain Company, announced a historic expansion incorporating the Mayflower Mountain Resort into Deer Valley. This will double the skiable terrain and add 16 new lifts and a 10-passenger gondola to the slopes. Deer Valley will also debut 300 new skiable acres for the 2024-25 ski season.

What to know

A new eight-person gondola now connects Park City Mountain Resort and Canyons from peak to peak, making access easy. Snowboarders are out of luck at Deer Valley, one of the three last American resorts open only to skiers. Luckily, Park City and Canyons are snowboarders’ favorites.

Where to eat

As one of the best ski towns in the U.S., Park City has no shortage of terrific dining options. You’ll find plenty of chef-driven culinary haunts along Main Street, including Riverhorse on Main, Grappa and Chimayo. Though you’ll pay handsomely for the scenery and prime location, a younger crowd flocks to places like High West Saloon and No Name Saloon. Locals tend to frequent places off the tourist trail, such as Five5eeds, fresh, healthy fare purveyors, or Sammy’s Bistro, a local institution.

The Swiss Alps come to Utah at Deer Valley Resort’s Fireside Dining, where you can feast on warm raclette cheese and classic fondue after arriving by horse-drawn sleigh.

Where to stay

Plenty of fabulous lodges allow you to park your skis at the end of the day on the slopes. The big decision is whether to stay closer to Deer Valley or Park City. The decision is easy for snowboarders or families with snowboarders since they aren’t welcome at Deer Valley.

But for skiers, the decision is less straightforward. Regardless of where you’re skiing, staying close to Park City Mountain Resort or Canyons is an option. They are quite literally side by side and connected by the Quicksilver gondola once you are on the mountain.

Staying at Deer Valley is a better option for those looking for a more luxurious, secluded, high-end vibe, while Park City lends itself to a more laid-back, casual experience. If you want to walk from bar to bar or explore different restaurants on foot, staying closer to Park City is a better bet.

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Winter rates at the St. Regis Deer Valley start at just under $1,200 or 122,000 Marriott Bonvoy points.

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Winter rates at the Montage Deer Valley start at around $1,550 per night.

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Rates start at $430 per night in low season, around $1,100 in high season or 110,000 Hilton Honors points.

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Rates start at around $600 per night or 29,000 World of Hyatt points during ski season and around $300 per night during the offseason. There is also a $40 daily resort fee.

Breckenridge, Colorado

A Western-chic vibe still pervades this historic 19th-century mining town. The resort’s Five Peaks frame a bustling main street lined with gingerbread-bedecked clapboard buildings.

An all-season destination known for mountain biking and hiking almost as much as it is for skiing, “Breck” hosts a year-round roster of festivals and events. This includes the International Snow Sculpture Championships, which turn the town into a magical fantasyland of ice during the last week of January every year.

The fun vibe continues in town which you can reach via the free BreckConnect gondola. From the top of the Imperial SuperChair — the highest chairlift in North America, which sits 12,840 feet above sea level — you can take the trails directly from the slopes into town.

What to know

At 9,600 feet above sea level, Breck is among the highest-altitude towns in the U.S. As such, it has become known for early fall color, snowfall and late snowmelt, with good snow conditions typical into late spring. And with such a wide variety of lodging around town, it’s no surprise that Breck has some of the best ski lodges in the U.S.

Where to eat

Dine on elk and buffalo while listening to jazz and blues at Blue River Bistro, known for its three-hour happy hour. Or, class it up at Legends Steak & Seafood, where the butcher’s cut of the day is reliably excellent. The restaurant at Breckenridge Distillery is almost as beloved for its celebratory atmosphere and eclectic menu of small plates as it is for its world-class whiskey.

Tip: Take a tour of the Breckenridge Distillery if you have time.

Where to stay

More casual than some of Colorado’s glitzy ski destinations, Breckenridge still has some wonderful places to stay. Hotels like the Residence Inn are perfect for enjoying the town; its location on Main Street makes it the perfect place to enjoy the nightlife after a long day of skiing or riding. And with the number of restaurants, shops and bars in Breck, it’s worth leaving the slopes and wandering around town.

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Rates from around $360 per night during ski season, or 60,000 Marriott Bonvoy points.

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Rates from $389 per night during ski season.

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Rates start at $471 per night during ski season or 44,000 Marriott Bonvoy points (though they can be difficult to find).

Jackson Hole Mountain Resort

Jackson Hole is a bucket list destination for expert skiers looking to prove themselves on its craggy slopes and famously steep chutes like the infamous Corbet’s Couloir. Beginning and intermediate skiers will also find some gentler trails and recently expanded intermediate terrain.

What to know

It’s only a 15-minute ride up the mountain on the aerial tram affectionately dubbed Big Red, but get there early during peak times to avoid lines. Families and beginners will love the recently opened Solitude Station ski school and learning hub that offers lessons, rentals and fire pits to make waiting more pleasant.

Where to eat

There’s no lunch spot like Piste Mountain Bistro at the top of the Bridger gondola, where a glass wall showcases mountaintop views. Gather, a local favorite, serves up modern American comfort fare in an unusual round dining room surrounded by a spacious patio. The top-of-the-world waffles at Corbet’s Cabin are a must.

Where to stay

Rustic-chic is the name of the game when it comes to luxurious lodges in this former frontier town. Many lodging options, like the Caldera House and the Four Seasons Resort and Residences in Teton Village, are higher-end properties that focus on the amenities and a luxurious off-slope experience. There are also more affordable options, like the Snake River Lodge and Spa, a luxury mountain resort slightly less high-end than other properties.

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Rates start at just over $500 per night during ski season.

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Rates start at around $1,360 per night in high season, plus a 10% occupancy fee.

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Rates start at around $3,000 per night in high season.

Palisades Tahoe

As you’d expect from a resort that hosted the 1960 Winter Olympics and trained 1998 gold medalist, Jonny Moseley, Palisades Tahoe is the resort of choice for expert skiers drawn to extra-steep runs, including several newly designated double black diamonds. But it might come as a surprise to learn that the terrain at today’s resort is almost evenly divided among beginner, intermediate and expert.

Palisades Tahoe has recently undergone several major improvements, including a multimillion-dollar Gold Coast midmountain lodge renovation.

What to know

Two base areas, the Village and Alpine (the former Alpine Meadows, now part of Palisades), are linked by a brand-new base-to-base gondola, making it possible to ski both in one day. Unlike most resorts, Palisades has beginner areas at the top of the mountain at the 8,200-foot High Camp, accessible by an aerial tram.

Where to eat

Take a lunch break with 8,200-foot views at High Camp’s Granite Bistro, which overlooks the pool and hot tub, or savor kebabs and other Middle Eastern and Mediterranean fare at Mogrog Cafe in the Alpine base camp. Off-resort on the banks of the Truckee River, the River Ranch Lodge serves elk ribs, bison chops, scallops, calamari and ahi poke alongside more conventional pub-style fare.

Where to stay

More casual and laid-back than other ski resorts, Palisades Tahoe has plenty of accommodation options for travelers of various inclinations.

Unlike destinations like Aspen — where luxurious rooms and top-notch spa treatments are just as (if not more) important than the skiing itself — the Tahoe area has accommodations perfect for winding down between long days of skiing. That’s not to say there aren’t some nice places to stay (like North Tahoe’s PlumpJack Inn), but they’re just a bit more casual than the hotels frequently found in some of the higher-end destinations.

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Rates start at $250 per night for a studio midweek during ski season.

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Rates start at around $400 per night during ski season.

Sun Valley Resort

Ernest Hemingway finished “For Whom the Bell Tolls” there; Tom Hanks, Ashton Kutcher and Jamie Lee Curtis own homes there; and so many Hollywood celebrities vacation there that it’s known as New Hollywood North. Yet Sun Valley, Idaho, has plenty to offer the rest of us, from the beginner terrain on Dollar Mountain to the pristine and well-groomed trails on Bald Mountain. It also gets more than 250 days of sunshine a year.

What to know

Dollar Mountain lures beginners with easy-to-navigate trails while experts head for Bald Mountain, or “Baldy,” for black diamond runs. Sunrise, a 380-acre terrain park that opened in 2020, expands the resort’s skiable acres by 20%. And in December of 2023, Sun Valley improved the Warm Springs part of the resort with several new lift installations and an additional 54 acres of gladed terrain.

Where to eat

Pub-style food and a convivial atmosphere make Warfield Distillery & Brewery a good place to chat with locals and catch the occasional live band.

Where to stay

While Sun Valley is no secret, it gets much less recognition than other major ski destinations throughout North America. Naturally, the accommodations will be much more laid-back and affordable than the higher-end inns and lodges at places like Breckenridge and Jackson Hole.

That said, Limelight does have a location in nearby Ketchum, which emulates its successful property in Aspen. And just because it gets less recognition (although that seems to be changing recently) doesn’t mean the skiing or lodging experiences are any less noteworthy.

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Rates start at around $600 per night.

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Rates start at around $559 per night during ski season.

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Rates start at $211 or from 45,000 Marriott Bonvoy points.

Steamboat, Colorado

In Colorado’s Yampa Valley, the town now known as Steamboat Springs served as an important hunting ground for the Ute tribe; the area’s natural springs were also culturally significant for the Yampatika Ute and Arapaho tribes. When a railroad was built in the early 20th century, the region became important for ranching, but it wouldn’t be long before skiing followed.

Today, the ski area pays tribute to its past with events like the Cowboy Downhill race, which is exactly what it sounds like: a rowdy time with professional rodeo cowboys competing in a race that includes slalom, a jump, lassos and horses.

What to know

The resort completed a $220 million, three-year development project for the 2023-24 ski season — the largest in resort history.

The project’s final phase adds 655 acres of skiable expert terrain, bumping Steamboat up to the second-largest resort in the state. The recently installed upper section of the Wild Blue gondola makes it the fastest and longest 10-person gondola in North America. Steamboat is approximately a four-hour drive from Denver, but there is nonstop flight service to nearby Yampa Valley Regional Airport (HDN) from 16 major cities nationwide.

Where to eat

There are plenty of options for food around Steamboat. There are casual spots like TBar — set in an old ski patrol building and offers empanadas and sandwiches like a pork belly BLT — and higher-end culinary experiences like Laundry Kitchen & Cocktails, specializing in smoked and cured foods.

Where to stay

Steamboat has plenty of lodging options. Gravity Haus has a ski-in, ski-out location for those who don’t want to waste time before getting to the slopes in the morning. Sheraton Steamboat Resort Villas is also an on-mountain hotel with great access to and views of the slopes.

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Rates start at around $350 per night during ski season, and Bonvoy points bookings are typically unavailable during high-demand times, like ski season. Rooms tend to get booked far in advance, so planning will help you lock in cheaper rates.

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Rates start at $350 per night during ski season.

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Rates start at around $330 per night during ski season.

Big Sky Resort

Halfway between Bozeman and West Yellowstone in Montana’s Madison Range, Big Sky is the out-of-the-way destination every skier dreams of.

The resort became another contender for one of the largest ski resorts in the U.S. with the 2013 addition of Moonlight Basin, bringing the total skiable acres to 5,850. There are even lifts and runs connecting Big Sky to the privately owned 2,200-acre Yellowstone Club, open only to those owning property or staying there.

Big Sky is also nearing the end of a 10-year upgrade project, which includes a new network of lifts, new food and beverage options, and a new Lone Peak tram with an all-glass viewing platform at the offload point (and glass floors in the tram itself).

What to know

Four connected mountains and seven terrain parks give Big Sky various runs and conditions. It also boasts the second-longest vertical drop in the U.S., an adrenaline-surging 4,350 feet from the top of Lone Peak.

Where to eat

Fuel up for the day at Blue Moon Bakery, serving a mean pizza. Celebrate a special occasion — or a successful day on the slopes — at Alpenglow, the Montage’s swanky brasserie.

Where to stay

Thanks to cozy town hotels and new over-the-top luxury lodges, Big Sky is quickly becoming one of the country’s premier ski resorts to visit. Despite Big Sky being less crowded and popular than some of North America’s megaresorts, there are still plenty of lodging options. Options range from high-end resorts like Montage Big Sky to the Summit Hotel, which has a bit more of a “standard” hotel feel.

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Rates start at around $1,300 per night.

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Rates start at around $560 per night.

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Rates start at $348 or 57,000 Marriott Bonvoy points per night during ski season.

Killington Resort

Living up to its nickname of the Beast of the East, Killington boasts the most trails and terrain parks of any resort in New England. The 3,000-acre resort in the Green Mountains also prides itself on being the first to open and last to close, often keeping the snow on at least one trail as late as June.

What to know

The Snowshed base area is the perfect starting point for beginners, while Ramshead is Killington’s playground, making it one of the best family ski resorts. Serious skiers head for Killington Peak, known as K-1, which has the resort’s most challenging terrain, including the second-largest vertical drop on the Eastern Seaboard.

Where to eat

Pizza and calzones from Domenic’s will fill up the family, while The Foundry is the local hot spot for a festive meal. Lookout Tavern is a lively spot for beer and the family basics, including a large, well-priced kids menu.

Where to stay

Even in a little ski destination like this, your hotel points could be handy at places like the Killington Mountain Lodge, a Hilton property. Killington is known for its lively nightlife (check out the Wobbly Barn for an iconic apres-ski scene), but since the town is relatively small, it’s pretty quick and easy to get around regardless of where you stay.

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Rates start at $400 per night during ski season.

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Rates start at around $200 per night during ski season, or 60,000 Hilton Honors Points.

Stowe Resort

Despite its location in northern Vermont, where the “big” ski destinations pale compared to the resorts out west, Stowe has diverse terrain, plenty of snow and an overall vibe comparable to any quintessential ski destination in the country.

At Stowe, skiers and riders are treated to 485 acres of mellow, groomed runs, exhilarating meadows and plenty of steep, natural terrain.

The resort is also located just minutes from Stowe’s downtown area, which is about as “New England” as it gets. Iconic white steeple churches sit in the foreground of Vermont’s rolling Green Mountains, and the streets are lined with cafes, restaurants and breweries, perfect for exploring after a day on the slopes.

What to know

Vail Resorts purchased Stowe in 2017, making it their first East Coast resort. Buying an Epic Pass provides huge cost savings when visiting Stowe, Breckenridge and any of Vail’s other resorts. Stowe also tends to get busy by East Coast standards, so visiting mid-week and avoiding vacation weeks is for the best. The resort is split between Mount Mansfield and Spruce Peak, giving it the feel of two resorts in one. The Mansfield side is larger, with more expert terrain, but the Spruce Peak side still has its share of challenging runs.

Where to eat

Rural New England isn’t necessarily known for its culinary scene, but Stowe stands out against the rest of the region. Not only is it home to one of the best breweries around — The Alchemist (creator of Heady Topper, the first New England-style IPA) — but it has endless high-quality restaurants to choose from. Check out Doc Ponds, just up the road from the resort, with standard bar fare, like chicken sandwiches and burgers. For the beer lover in the family, their selection of local craft beers from famed breweries like Hill Farmstead is top-notch. Idyltime Brewing Company is another worthy option, with a rotating menu often featuring half-roasted chicken and Vermont mac and cheese.

Where to stay

You won’t find many big-name hotel brands around Stowe, which is part of the charm. Instead of luxury Marriott properties, the town has plenty of family-owned bed and breakfasts and lodges. But there are a few options for those looking to utilize and earn those points.

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Rates start at $400 per night plus a $45 nightly room fee or 45,000 World of Hyatt points during ski season.

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Rates start at around $200 per night during ski season.

Related reading:

Guide to Marriott and Hilton elite status with the Amex Platinum and Business Platinum

Posted on October 12, 2024 | by travelbestdiscounts

Editor’s note: This is a recurring post, regularly updated with new information.

Many of the best travel rewards cards provide valuable premium travel benefits. For example, The Platinum Card® from American Express and The Business Platinum Card® from American Express offer many perks, including complimentary entry to Centurion Lounges and extra benefits on luxury hotel stays booked through the American Express Fine Hotels + Resorts program.

But one benefit these two cards offer is often overlooked: the ability to enroll in complimentary elite status with Marriott Bonvoy and Hilton Honors. Here’s what you need to know about hotel status with the Amex Platinum and Business Platinum.

What is this benefit?

Cardmembers of The Platinum Card from American Express and The Business Platinum Card from American Express — including authorized users with additional Platinum or Business Platinum cards — can enroll in complimentary Marriott Bonvoy Gold Elite and Hilton Honors Gold status.

Man checking into a hotel room — SOFIE DELAUW/GETTY IMAGES

Once enrolled, you’ll maintain at least Gold status if you keep your Amex Platinum or Amex Business Platinum account open (assuming American Express continues to offer this benefit for your card).

How do I enroll?

To enroll in either (or both) complimentary hotel elite statuses, log in to your American Express account, click on “Rewards & Benefits” in the top navigation bar and then select “Benefits.” Scroll down — you may need to expand a “Premium Travel” section — to find separate icons for Hilton and Marriott.

Amex Platinum hotel status — AMERICAN EXPRESS

Click “Learn More” in either (or both) tiles for more information. If you want to enroll, click “Enroll Now” and enter your member number with the hotel loyalty program. This online enrollment process should work for both primary and additional Platinum cardholders, but you can also enroll by calling the customer service number on the back of your Amex Platinum or Amex Business Platinum card.

Once you request enrollment, American Express will share your enrollment information with the hotel loyalty programs, which will upgrade your status to Gold if you currently hold a lower status. The upgrade usually takes three to five business days but could take longer, so don’t wait until just before a trip to enroll in these benefits.

What are the benefits of Marriott Bonvoy Gold Elite status?

Marriott Bonvoy Gold Elite status usually requires you to accrue at least 25 elite night credits per calendar year. As a Marriott Gold Elite member, you’ll have access to the following benefits:

25% more points on stays: Earn 25% more points than base-level members on eligible hotel purchases at participating Marriott properties.
Enhanced room upgrades: The Marriott Bonvoy terms and conditions note that Gold Elite members may receive a complimentary upgrade to “rooms with desirable views, rooms on high floors, corner rooms, rooms with special amenities, rooms on Executive Floors” at participating properties. However, each hotel is left to identify room upgrades; some brands don’t offer complimentary upgrades, and upgrades are subject to availability.
Late checkout at 2 p.m.: Get 2 p.m. late checkout at participating brands upon request (based on availability).
Enhanced internet: Enjoy complimentary enhanced internet when staying at participating properties.
Welcome points: Get 250 or 500 welcome points per stay at participating brands.

Marriott Westin Cleveland — THE WESTIN CLEVELAND DOWNTOWN/MARRIOTT

In addition to the Amex Platinum and Amex Business Platinum, several Marriott Bonvoy cards provide automatic elite status. For example, you can get automatic Gold Elite status with the Marriott Bonvoy Bevy™ American Express® Card and the Marriott Bonvoy Business® American Express® Card. Meanwhile, the Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant® American Express® Card offers automatic Platinum Elite status.

What are the benefits of Hilton Honors Gold status?

Hilton Honors Gold status usually requires that you stay 40 nights per calendar year, stay 20 times per calendar year or earn 75,000 Hilton Honors base points per calendar year. As a Hilton Gold member, you’ll have access to the following benefits:

80% elite status bonus on stays: Receive an 80% bonus on the Hilton Honors base points you earn on stays.
Continental breakfast or a daily food-and-beverage credit: Some brands provide breakfast for all guests as a brand amenity. But at most other brands, you can select a daily food-and-beverage credit (at select brands in the U.S. and at Motto by Hilton properties globally) or daily complimentary continental breakfast (at select brands outside the U.S., excluding Motto by Hilton) for yourself and up to one other guest registered to your room as a MyWay benefit.
Space-available room upgrades: Gold members may receive a complimentary upgrade to preferred rooms up to Executive Floor room types. The Hilton Honors terms and conditions note that “Preferred rooms may also include those not on the Executive Floor but conferring Executive Lounge access (excluding the Sakura Club at Conrad Washington, D.C and Club Signia at Signia by Hilton hotels), the next-best available room types, rooms with desirable views or amenities or other rooms identified as ‘preferred’ by the hotel and may vary within each brand.” Additionally, upgrades are “granted on a space-available basis for the entire stay,” and some brands and properties don’t participate in complimentary upgrades.
Fifth night free: Hilton elite members get every fifth night free (up to four free nights per stay) when booking a reward stay of five nights or more using points.

Hilton Maldives Amingiri Habitat — Breakfast at Hilton Maldives Amingiri Resort & Spa in the Maldives. KATIE GENTER/THE POINTS GUY

In addition to the Amex Platinum and Amex Business Platinum, you’ll also get automatic Hilton Gold status if you have the Hilton Honors American Express Surpass® Card or The Hilton Honors American Express Business Card. Additionally, you can get automatic top-tier Hilton Diamond status as a perk of the Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card.

The information for the Hilton Aspire card has been collected independently by The Points Guy. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer.

Bottom line

Hilton Honors Gold and Marriott Bonvoy Gold Elite status provide some valuable perks, so it’s great that cardmembers of The Platinum Card from American Express and The Business Platinum Card from American Express can enroll in these statuses as a perk of their card.

Getting Hilton Gold and Marriott Gold Elite status through the Amex Platinum or Business Platinum can be useful if you don’t stay frequently enough with these programs to earn elite status organically and don’t want to add a hotel credit card to your wallet.

However, having the Amex Platinum or Amex Business Platinum won’t help you earn higher status with either program. After all, unlike select Marriott Bonvoy cards that provide elite night credits as a cardholder perk, you won’t get Marriott Bonvoy elite night credits as a benefit of the Amex Platinum and Amex Business Platinum.

Quick Points: How to search for hotels when using free night award certificates

Posted on October 11, 2024 | by travelbestdiscounts

Editor’s note: This is a recurring post, regularly updated with new information and offers.

Many hotel loyalty programs have shifted to dynamic pricing, making it difficult to know how many points you’ll need for each hotel night on your upcoming vacation.

Will your free night certificate be sufficient? Or will you be priced out, with hotels requiring more points than the value of your free night certificate?

Here’s how to search for hotel stays with free night certificates by filtering for hotels that match the value of your free night award.

Hilton Honors

You can use Hilton free night awards any night of the week (an improvement over the previous weekend restriction) at nearly any Hilton property. (The list of exclusions is here.) While you must redeem these awards over the phone, you should still search for availability online first, verifying that the hotel you want has standard rooms available on the night you want.

Here’s a search using Hilton Honors points in Honolulu.

Next to the points value, look for the words “standard room reward.” You need standard room availability to use your Hilton free night reward. Once you’ve found a property you like, call Hilton at 800-446-6677.

Marriott Bonvoy

Marriott Bonvoy might be the most complex program on this list for using free night certificates. It issues free night certificates with multiple values.

When searching for a hotel in Seattle, the results are overwhelming. Below the numbers of rooms and guests, click on “All Filters.”

From here, you can filter for hotels in certain point bands. Choose the band that aligns with your free night award’s maximum value.

If you’re using a 35,000-point certificate, choose the 0-40,000 points option. Now, you’ll have a more manageable list of hotels to consider.

Remember that this will show hotels charging up to 40,000 points — a bit more than what your free night is worth. You can only choose hotels your free night award covers in full. Or, you can choose hotels that cost up to 15,000 points more than your free night’s value — topping up the award with your Marriott points.

See these for some booking inspiration:

World of Hyatt

Start your search after logging into your World of Hyatt account. Click on “Awards” to see any free nights available in your account.

You can search for a location (but not specific dates) from here.

This search for San Francisco hotels provides numerous results. Clicking “Filters” in the top right allows you to select which categories of hotels you want to see. If you have a Category 1-4 free night (such as the annual award provided by the World of Hyatt Credit Card), select only hotel Categories 1-4.

Options for filtering hotel results on Hyatt's website — HYATT.COM

Now, you have a manageable list of which properties match the value of your free night award.

This doesn’t show availability on particular dates — just which hotels might work. Five hotels match the Category 1-4 free night award, so you can check availability at whichever hotel you prefer.

Bottom line

You might see numerous results on your intended travel dates when searching for hotels. Unfortunately, not all of these hotels can be booked with your free night awards.

Understanding how to limit your search results to hotels that match the value of your free night certificate makes for a better booking experience. It provides realistic options and makes the decision process easier, ensuring you can always redeem those valuable certificates.

What the duck? Why people hide these kiddie toys on cruises — and how you can, too

Posted on October 10, 2024 | by travelbestdiscounts

On many a cruise, rubber ducks can be found peeking out from random hiding places, beckoning passengers to pick them up and read their accompanying information tags. Perhaps you’ll find one hidden behind a plant by the Doe family from Springfield or another carefully placed somewhere in the buffet by the Smiths from Greenville.

What the duck, you might be wondering, is the deal with hiding ducks on cruise ships?

As an avid duck hider, let me clue you in to this popular onboard pastime. Whether you’re ready to hide ducks on cruises or want to send your kids on a hunt for cruise ducks, you’ll need to get your own ducks in a row before you set sail.

Cruise ship rubber ducks, explained

A rubber duck dressed like a cruise ship captain sitting on the railing of a cruise cabin balcony — A branded The Points Guy duck on a cruise ship. ASHLEY KOSCIOLEK/THE POINTS GUY

Cruisers often bring rubber ducks on cruises in an effort to have a bit of fun by hiding them throughout the ship. The ducks usually have information cards attached to them bearing the names of the people who hid them and where those passengers are from.

What began in 2018 as a cute gesture by a 10-year-old girl named Abby — who simply wanted to make other passengers smile — now spans several Facebook groups with hundreds of thousands of members. In these groups, cruisers chat about the ducks they’ve ordered, the best places to purchase them, clever places to hide them after they’ve set sail and the best ways to attach the information tags.

The largest group I’ve been able to find — yes, I’m a member — is Cruising Ducks – Original, which encourages people to share photos of the ducks they plan to hide as well as ducks they’ve found on board. Think of it a bit like geocaching, but simpler — and with ducks.

What to do if you find cruise ship ducks

A rubber duck hiding on a stairwell on a cruise ship — A TPG duck hidden on a cruise ship. ASHLEY KOSCIOLEK/THE POINTS GUY

If you find a duck, the next step is simple. Take a photo of yourself with the duck you’ve found and post it to the Cruising Ducks – Original Facebook group. Mention the name of the person who hid it. You might also choose to reach out to thank them if they have provided contact information on the card attached to the duck.

Then, either keep your new friend to take home with you as a souvenir or rehide it according to the below rules.

Rules for hiding ducks on a cruise

A group of colorful rubber ducks waiting to be hidden on a cruise ship — Mini ducks won in the arcade on a cruise ship. ASHLEY KOSCIOLEK/THE POINTS GUY

It might sound silly, but there are rules for hiding rubber ducks on cruises. The first is that you should never put it in a pool or hot tub. You wouldn’t want an excited child or inebriated passenger to fall in and drown or hurt themselves while attempting to fetch it.

Second, don’t hide ducks in any of the onboard shops. If someone finds one hidden there and tries to take it with them, it could appear as though they’re stealing something.

Third, don’t place ducks where they might fall overboard. It’s a huge no-no to toss anything into the ocean, even by accident.

When choosing ducks, the sky is the limit. I’ve seen everything from mini ducks to giant ones that are a foot tall. You can find simple, classic yellow ducks in bulk online or you can choose to go all-out and purchase custom ones in a color or design that suits your personality. You might also choose to order plain ones and decorate them yourself with feathers, glitter or paint. Really, anything goes in terms of theme.

Some participants even choose to vary it a bit by hiding other duck-themed toys or objects, such as duck keychains, hand-crocheted ducks, duck-shaped Hot Wheels cars or small LEGO duck kits.

On a couple of my recent sailings, I won some inexpensive mini ducks by playing a claw game in the onboard arcade, and I used spare hair ties to attach my business card to them. It was a last-minute improvisation, but boy, was it fun. Hiding them also kept the young daughter of one of my travel companions busy for an afternoon.

Donald and Daisy Duck posing with a TPG rubber duck on Disney Wish — Donald and Daisy Duck posing with a TPG duck on Disney Cruise Line’s Disney Wish. ASHLEY KOSCIOLEK/THE POINTS GUY

For the tags, make sure to include your name and where you’re from, along with instructions for the people who find your little quackers. Standard wording is generally something like this:

“Oh, what luck. You found a duck! Keep or hide, you decide. You found a cruising duck hidden by [name] from [city, state, country]. Hide in public places only — no pools, hot tubs or stores. Take a photo, and post it in the Facebook group Cruising Ducks — Original.”

At a minimum, the tag should tell the duck’s finders that they can either keep or rehide the duck and the places that are off-limits. It should also encourage them to share the ducks they find online. You can also choose to include additional information, such as a QR code or your e-mail address.

Cruise lines that have banned cruise ducks

For reasons unknown, a couple of cruise lines have recently cracked down on duck hiding. In particular, Disney Cruise Line and Norwegian Cruise Line have asked passengers to refrain from hiding rubber ducks on cruises. Although there are no severe consequences for hiding them anyway, it’s best to be aware of these lines’ policies.

Bottom line

If you’re hiding ducks, be sure to adhere to the rules. If you find a duck, whether you keep it or rehide it, be sure to post a photo per the accompanying instructions.

Hiding rubber ducks on cruise ships is a fun way to connect with other passengers on your next sailing, as well as an entertaining pastime on sea days. Whether you find a duck and contact the folks who hid it or hide your own flock so others can reach out to you, it can help you to make new friends from all corners of the globe.

Planning a cruise? Start with these stories:

United launches unique global expansion for summer, adding 8 cities, 13 routes

Posted on October 10, 2024 | by travelbestdiscounts

United Airlines is gearing up for its biggest — and perhaps most exciting — summer season yet.

On Thursday, the Chicago-based carrier unveiled a blockbuster expansion that includes a whopping eight new international destinations and 13 new routes.

In recent years, United (and its competitors) have turned their summer expansions into a grand reveal, with teasers posted on social media in the hours leading up to the announcement, followed by splashy press releases with exciting details of all the new places you can go.

But this announcement — United’s largest international expansion yet — is unlike any other we’ve seen from a major U.S. airline in recent history. In fact, it includes a slew of exotic, off-the-beaten-path destinations that are likely to impress, assuming that you can place them all on a map. (As for me, I didn’t even know the airport codes for some of United’s new destinations.)

Here’s everything you need to know to start planning your summer trip. And if you’re ready to book, all the new flights are already available for sale (except Nuuk, Greenland, and Dakar, Senegal — those are coming soon).

United unveils 8 new destinations

Beginning in May 2025, United will add eight new destinations to its network. The full list is available below.

Route	Start date	Seasonality	Frequency	Aircraft
Newark to Bilbao, Spain	May 31, 2025	Seasonal	Three times weekly	Boeing 757-200
Newark to Faro, Portugal	May 16, 2025	Seasonal	Four times weekly	Boeing 757-200
Newark to Madeira, Portugal	June 7, 2025	Seasonal	Three times weekly	Boeing 737 MAX 8
Newark to Nuuk	June 14, 2025	Seasonal	Twice weekly	Boeing 737 MAX 8
Newark to Palermo, Italy	May 21, 2025	Seasonal	Three times weekly	Boeing 767-400
Tokyo to Kaohsiung, Taiwan	July 11, 2025	Year-round	Daily	Boeing 737-800
Tokyo to Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia	May 1, 2025	Seasonal	Three times weekly	Boeing 737-800
Washington, D.C. to Dakar	May 23, 2025	Year-round	Three times weekly	Boeing 767-300

Seven of the eight new destinations aren’t served by any other U.S. airline — Delta Air Lines flies to Dakar from New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK).

Technically, Delta will also soon fly from New York to Sicily in Italy, but Delta chose Catania as its primary Sicilian gateway while United is opting for Palermo.

It’s interesting that we’re jumping from no U.S. nonstops to Sicily to suddenly having two as of next summer — something that’s likely to please “The White Lotus” fans.

Value check: Are airline credit cards worth it anymore?

Otherwise, this list of new routes feels markedly different from any other recent announcements from United. You’ll notice that there are no new flights to London, Paris, Rome or even Athens, Greece, some of the tried-and-true destinations that consistently draw scores of American tourists each summer.

Of course, United already flies to many of the top European destinations (with two additional new transatlantic routes taking off next summer, as detailed below), but it’s interesting to compare United’s announcement with the recent expansions unveiled by American Airlines and Delta.

American and Delta are still very much focused on the pre-coronavirus pandemic playbook of boosting service to popular European destinations, such as Athens, Rome and Edinburgh, Scotland.

United and its network planning team, led by Patrick Quayle, are charting their own course. They continue to add service to far-flung destinations that might first elicit a “where’s that?” question when you read the announcement.

Which strategy works best in the long term is still up for debate. After all, not every new United route works.

The airline calls Faro a new destination this year, but it originally announced that city in 2023 and then scrapped the launch of new flights just weeks before they were supposed to start. Plus, the airline recently added new flights to Tenerife in Spain’s Canary Islands in 2022, but they weren’t as successful in the summer as originally planned, and now United will try operating them exclusively in the winter to see if there’s more demand.

That said, several of the recent new United routes are sure winners. Take, for instance, service to Cape Town and Johannesburg, which Quayle referenced more than once in a briefing with reporters on Wednesday afternoon ahead of the announcement. Those routes were innovative when they launched in 2019 and 2021, respectively, and now consistently perform as some of the best in the international network.

Time will tell how United’s new destinations fare, but the airline is confident they’ll succeed.

“People look to United to tell them where to fly. … These are unique destinations that are undiscovered gems. United just became this one-stop shop for all unique content that you need, whether it’s business, whether it’s leisure, whether it’s honeymoon. No matter what it is, people are coming to United,” Quayle said. (Despite United’s network chief just starting his own professional Instagram account, Quayle still considers “routes” his real “content.”)

It’s interesting that four out of the five new flights from Newark will be operated by a narrow-body aircraft. The Boeing 737 MAX 8 does not feature lie-flat pods in the pointy end of the plane (just standard domestic recliners), so it’s pretty clear that these routes are geared toward leisure flyers.

Of all the new transatlantic routes, just one will be operated during the daytime in both directions: the service to Nuuk in Greenland. Flights will depart Newark at 11:30 a.m. and arrive at 6:45 p.m., all times local. The plane will remain overnight in Nuuk, leave the following morning at 8 a.m. and land back in Newark at 9:30 a.m.

While most of the focus is on the Atlantic, United has been busy in recent months growing its presence at Tokyo’s Narita International Airport (NRT) into a de facto gateway hub within the larger region. The airline recently announced new flights from Tokyo to Cebu in the Philippines taking off later this month, and now it’s adding three more short-haul regional routes from the airport.

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Its latest announcement includes new routes from Tokyo to Mongolia and Taiwan.

United says that its joint venture partnership with Japanese airline All Nippon Airways will help these routes take off. The new flights will also be supported by travelers looking for one-stop connections from the U.S.

“We are thinking about Tokyo differently than how it’s been thought of in the past. I think Tokyo is a real asset to us. … And when we went through the data, a lot of this traffic was connecting over Beijing, but is not doing so anymore. And so this is a way to connect it over Tokyo,” Quayle explained.

United adds 13 new routes

In addition to the new destinations, United is adding new routes to existing destinations for next summer. They include:

Route	Start date	Seasonality	Frequency	Aircraft
Tokyo to Koror, Palau	April 2, 2025	Year-round	Daily	Boeing 737-800
Washington, D.C. — specifically, Dulles International Airport (IAD) — to Nice, France	May 24, 2025	Seasonal	Four times weekly	Boeing 767-300
Washington, D.C. (Dulles) to Venice, Italy	May 22, 2025	Seasonal	Daily until Sept. 25, 2025, then four times weekly	Boeing 767-300

The two new routes from Dulles definitely fit the bill for a traditional European expansion. While Nice and Venice don’t draw as many tourists as London or Paris, plenty of Americans still look to fly to these cities each summer, and United’s new flights should have no trouble filling up.

After all, the airline already serves these cities from Newark, so it has a good pulse on demand. Plus, opening a new gateway will offer travelers more connecting opportunities from points across the U.S.

When to go: These are the best times to buy an international flight

As for the Tokyo-to-Koror route, United says it’ll further grow its presence in Tokyo with these flights. The airline already flies to Koror from Guam and Manila in the Philippines.

United boosts short-haul international network

While much of the focus is on the new long-haul routes, United isn’t resting on its laurels. The airline also has some new short-haul international flights taking off next year.

To start, a new once-weekly service from Houston to Puerto Escondido, Mexico, will take off April 5, 2025. United will be the first and only airline to connect the two cities. The airline’s regional affiliate, Mesa Airlines, will operate the flight using an Embraer 175 aircraft.

Then, starting May 22, 2025, United will also add a new daily flight from San Francisco and San Jose, Costa Rica, on board the Boeing 737 MAX 8 aircraft. Once it launches, the airline will offer service to San Jose from all seven of its mainland U.S. hubs, making the airline the largest U.S. carrier to Costa Rica.

While not included in this announcement, United will also launch flights from Newark to Dominica in the Caribbean on Feb. 15, 2025, as TPG previously reported.

United grows existing portfolio

United Boeing 737 Newark EWR — ZACH GRIFF/THE POINTS GUY

Finally, the airline will also expand the operating season and upgauge certain aircraft on key European routes next year.

From Newark, the carrier will relaunch flights to Athens on March 6, 2025; to Venice on March 29, 2025, and to Dubrovnik, Croatia, on May 1. Dubrovnik flights will also move to daily service, while flights to Palma de Mallorca, Spain, will increase to four weekly services.

Additionally, on May 1, United will resume service from San Francisco to Barcelona and Chicago to Athens. Both flights will be operated by the Boeing 787-10 Dreamliner, providing more capacity than before on these routes.

Bottom line

When all is said and done, United will offer a whopping 800 daily flights to and from 147 international destinations, including 40 nonstop routes no other major U.S. airline serves.

This expansion reaffirms United’s position as the largest international airline in the U.S. From unlocking new adventures in Greenland to adding more service to Italy, United will have something for everyone next summer.

For the airline, moves like this help enhance its end-to-end value proposition.

“What we see is the more unique content, the better the credit card acquisitions. And the more unique content, the more we differentiate ourselves from our competitors,” Quayle explained.

While the airline has now formalized its summer plans, Quayle and the network team aren’t going into hibernation mode. In fact, there have long been rumors that the carrier will soon add flights to Bangkok and possibly even to Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam.

Those flights weren’t announced in Thursday’s update, but Quayle did drop a teaser during his remarks.

“We will potentially add some more West Coast flying later this year, so stay tuned for that,” he said.

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8 affordable ski resorts in the US and Canada

Posted on October 9, 2024 | by travelbestdiscounts

Skiing has long had a reputation as a sport for the wealthy. Since its introduction to North America in the early 20th century, it’s typically been reserved for those who can afford to take time off from work to spend exorbitant amounts of money traveling to far-flung destinations like Colorado, Idaho and New England.

Today, not much has changed except that the cost of skiing has grown exponentially. During the 2022-23 ski season, 47% of skiers had an income of $100,000 or more, according to Snowsports Industries America‘s annual participation study. Skiers and riders on a tighter budget have to find alternate options from the megaresorts, given they can expect to pay nearly $300 per person, per day at popular destinations like Vail, Colorado; Deer Valley, Utah; and Jackson Hole, Wyoming, even if tickets are purchased online in advance. Factor in lodging, food, travel and gear rentals, and the cost starts to get out of reach.

Luckily, there are ways to cut down on costs. Most ski resorts are incentivizing skiers to purchase season passes or day tickets in advance by offering discounted pricing. Multimountain passes like the Epic and Ikon passes, which cost $1,025 until Oct. 9 and $1,359, respectively, offer unlimited access to their resorts. But even those offer rates that are cheaper the earlier you buy. The Epic Pass has several options like the Northeast Value Pass, which costs $626 until Oct. 9 and gets skiers unlimited and limited access to select Northeast ski resorts. And then there are passes like the Indy Pass, which offers two days each at over 200 resorts (although it’s currently on a waitlist-only purchase option for the 2024-25 ski season), and Mountain Collective, which gets passholders two days at each of its 25 resorts for $659.

But for those unwilling to commit to buying a multiday or multimountain pass, there are plenty of smaller ski and ride areas offering lift tickets that don’t require taking out a loan to pay for. And you don’t necessarily have to sacrifice snow quality, terrain or a cool vibe to save a few bucks.

Below, we round up a few resorts with the cheapest lift tickets in North America.

Burke Mountain, Vermont

Vermont is known to have some of the deepest and most reliable snow on the East Coast. And while Burke‘s 217 inches of annual snowfall isn’t the most in the country — or even the state — it’s more than what most New England resorts typically get.

Located in northern Vermont, two hours from Burlington, Vermont, and less than seven from New York City, Burke Mountain offers 53 named trails and glades on 270 acres of terrain and has a vertical drop of over 2,000 feet. Adult lift tickets are just $89 per day on weekends and $45 midweek.

Mount Abram, Maine

Mount Abram is a sleepy little hill just south of Bethel, Maine, and is popular among locals. You won’t find luxury resorts and all the bells and whistles of places like Park City, Utah, or Aspen, Colorado, but you won’t find the crowds or lift lines either.

Like most New England resorts, Mount Abram isn’t the place to go for bottomless powder or steep chutes and open bowls, but with 42 trails and glades on 450 acres and a 1,150-foot vertical drop, there’s enough to keep most skiers and riders happy for a few days. There are plenty of short-term rentals around the resort and a handful of hotels and lodges in nearby Bethel, Maine, which is home to the much larger (and more expensive) Sunday River. Mount Abram is also just an hour from Portland, Maine, which is a worthy destination in itself. If the hour commute isn’t a deal-breaker, staying in the city — which has more breweries per capita than any other city and a mean lobster roll — is worth considering.

Lift tickets at Mount Abram are just $39 per day thanks to a partnership with LL Bean, but the mountain is closed Monday through Wednesday in winter. Indy Pass holders also get two days at the ski area.

Willamette Pass, Oregon

With just 555 acres of skiable terrain, Willamette Pass is a relatively small resort, but the 430 inches of annual snowfall, thanks, in part, to its high base area that sits 5,120 feet above sea level makes up for it.

The resort is just an hour from the small city of Eugene, Oregon, and has a vertical drop of 1,563 feet, 225 acres of groomed terrain and over 12 miles of Nordic trails. Like many smaller resorts, there’s plenty of easier terrain, perfect for beginners and families, but Willamette Pass is also home to RTS — one of the steepest inbound runs in the country. In fact, nearly half of the resort’s trails reach or exceed 35 degrees in spots, which is steeper than you might imagine, making it a great resort for intermediate and advanced skiers and riders. There isn’t much in terms of lodging at the resort, but the nearby towns of Oak Ridge and Crescent, Oregon, have several options. Or, you can make the one-hour drive to Eugene, which has plenty of restaurants and places to stay.

Lift tickets at Willamette Pass start at $19, and it plans on operating daily during the 2024-25 ski season for the first time in 20 years. Kids 12 and under and adults 75 and over ski for free, but tickets must be “purchased” online for $0.

Howelsen Hill, Colorado

With just 50 skiable acres and less than a 440-foot vertical drop, Howelsen Hill isn’t the type of place worth flying across the country for, but its location in downtown Steamboat Springs, Colorado, and free lift tickets on Sundays (with non-Sunday tickets costing just $47 during the 2023-24 ski season) makes it worth checking out if you happen to be in the area and want to save a few bucks on lift tickets for a day or two.

The city-owned hill, which opened in 1915, is also the longest continuously operating ski area in North America. It’s known for being an Olympic training ground thanks to its impressive ski jumping complex.

Brian Head, Utah

Thanks, in part, to having the highest base area in Utah, Brian Head Resort receives over 360 inches of dry, fluffy snow each year, making it a great spot for skiers and riders looking to maximize their powder days and minimize their credit card balances. Located in southern Utah, just an hour from Bryce Canyon National Park (which is worth visiting in winter!) and three hours from Las Vegas, Brian Head offers 650 acres of skiable terrain and 71 named runs across two connected mountains.

The mountain operates a lodge that is just a two-minute shuttle ride from the slopes. Lift ticket prices vary, but when purchasing online in advance, they can be as low as $52 on Saturdays and $24 midweek. Early and late in the season, lift tickets can be purchased for less than $20. Kids 12 and under ski for free with the Power Kids Pass, which is also valid at its 12 partner resorts, including Willamette Pass. Adults 75 and older ski for free, too.

Ski Cooper, Colorado

Founded in 1942 as a training ground for the 10th Mountain Division, Ski Cooper is one of the oldest and most affordable ski areas in Colorado. The resort gets an average of 260 inches of snow annually, which is plenty given that you won’t be competing with massive crowds for first tracks. And with a base elevation of 10,500 feet, you’re almost guaranteed soft and dry turns.

Ski Cooper’s 480 skiable acres deems it pretty small by Colorado standards, but it has a variety of beginner-friendly runs with a few challenging glades in the Tennessee Creek Basin zone.

Amenities at Ski Cooper are minimal — there’s no on-site lodging — but it’s just 15 minutes from Leadville, Colorado, a mid-19th-century mining town with plenty of restaurants, shops, and hotels and inns. Check out Melanzana if you want to do some shopping for locally made outdoor apparel, but book an appointment in advance to get access to their full line.

Weekend day tickets at Ski Cooper cost $95 during the 2023-24 season (pricing isn’t available yet for this year, though it’s unlikely it’ll change by much), and adults 75 and older can get a season pass for just $10. It’s also bringing back $30 Thursdays, where skiers and riders can get $30 lift tickets, $30 ski rentals and $30 off lessons if purchasing two days in advance.

Bridger Bowl, Montana

With a 2,700-foot vertical drop, 2,000 skiable acres and 300 inches of snow annually, Bridger Bowl rivals North America’s biggest resorts. Montana’s much larger and more expensive Big Sky gets most of the attention, allowing Bridger to maintain its laid-back, “locals” feel. But that doesn’t mean the expert skier of the group will be stuck on meandering groomers all day — Bridger has some extremely challenging terrain, including a ridge with steep chutes, cliff bands and open snow fields that require extensive avalanche and backcountry knowledge and gear.

Bridger Bowl does have a few base lodges where you can grab a bite to eat, get your skis tuned or warm up with some hot chocolate, but most lodging options are in the nearby town of Bozeman, Montana, just 25 minutes away.

Day tickets at Bridger Bowl are $82 for adults when purchased online in advance.

Baldy Mountain, British Columbia

British Columbia is known for its rugged terrain and consistent, dry powder snow, and Baldy Mountain Resort is no exception. Baldy’s base area, which sits 5,665 feet above sea level, is the sixth highest in Canada, making it likely you’ll find high-quality snow coverage top-to-bottom. It also gets between 300 and 420 inches of snow each winter, turning its 600 acres of groomed and natural terrain into a skier and rider’s paradise.

Baldy has several lodges and rentals around the resort, including the ski-in, ski-out Tinhorn Lodge in the upper village. It also has partnerships with a few nearby accommodations, offering “ski and stay” packages that get you discounts on lodging when you show your lift ticket.

Adult day tickets cost $87 on weekends, but the resort is also on the Indy Pass, which gets you two days on the hill. It’s closed Tuesdays and Wednesdays through ski season, so if you can hit it on Thursday after a storm, you’re in for a good time!

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Gulf Air eyes US flights, will add free Wi-Fi and improved food as it upgrades service

Posted on October 9, 2024 | by travelbestdiscounts

Bahrain’s Gulf Air plans to upgrade some aspects of its inflight offerings next year as it eyes a return to the U.S. amid its 75th anniversary celebrations.

At the Routes World 2024 conference in Bahrain Oct. 6, Gulf Air CEO Jeffrey Goh said the airline’s soft product improvements will include new and upgraded food options, onboard amenities like free Wi-Fi and improved inflight entertainment content.

“New chinaware, new glassware, new cutlery, new soft finishings — all those will be coming onboard,” he said.

The airline does not plan to update its seats and other aspects of the physical product onboard its planes because, as Goh put it, the interiors are “quite modern and new.”

The average age of Gulf Air’s fleet of 32 Airbus A320-family narrow-bodies and eight Boeing 787 wide-bodies is less than seven years, according to data from aviation analytics firm Cirium.

A historic player among giants

Gulf Air, founded as Gulf Aviation in 1949, was the flag carrier for the Persian Gulf nations of Bahrain, Oman, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates for decades before the rise of major carriers like Emirates and Qatar Airways. It only became a solely Bahraini airline in 2007 when Oman sold its stake in the carrier.

Now, the historic airline is a small player among giants. Its fleet of 40 planes compares to well over 200 aircraft each at Emirates and Qatar Airways.

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As such, Goh — who only took the top job at Gulf Air in 2023 — is focused on expanding the airline’s connectivity to and from Bahrain rather than competing for connecting traffic with its much larger rivals.

“Your airline, a national carrier, will always be your flying billboard,” he said.

Even as a national carrier, Gulf Air has ambitious growth plans. The airline intends to increase the number of destinations it serves by a quarter — or from around 60 cities to around 75 — by the end of the decade, Goh said.

Those plans include new U.S. flights. When asked about the timing, Goh said Gulf Air is working to meet the Federal Aviation Administration and Transportation Security Administration requirements necessary before it can begin flights. He declined to comment on where Gulf Air could fly.

The carrier’s last U.S. flights to New York City’s John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK) from Bahrain and Abu Dhabi ended in 1997, according to Cirium Diio.

Gulf Air added seven new destinations to its map this year, including Geneva Airport (GVA), Munich Airport (MUC) and Shanghai Pudong International Airport (PVG), Cirium Diio schedule data shows.

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Celebrity Cruises Captain’s Club loyalty program: The ultimate guide

Posted on October 8, 2024 | by travelbestdiscounts

Showing loyalty to Celebrity Cruises can get you some great rewards.

Like many frequent cruiser programs, Celebrity’s Captain’s Club loyalty program doesn’t offer all that many truly valuable perks at its lower tiers. But as you rise through the status levels, you’ll quickly reach a point where you’re getting all sorts of discounts, freebies and special access perks — from complimentary laundry service (a real blessing on longer voyages) to savings at specialty restaurant meals and a standing invitation to a private breakfast lounge.

At the very top tier of the program, the Zenith level, the Celebrity Cruises Captain’s Club also offers one of the truly spectacular rewards in the cruise loyalty program universe: a free cruise for two.

A few of the long-standing perks of the Captain’s Club program (discounted internet and drink packages, for instance) aren’t quite as valuable now that many Celebrity customers book the line’s All Included fares — a type of fare that didn’t exist a few years ago. Still, these perks do have some value, particularly for those who book the line’s lower-priced Cruise-Only rates.

The discounts on internet service and drink packages that come with the various tiers noted below still can come in handy for those booking the All Included fares when upgrading to premium internet or drink packages on ships (which still come with extra charges). Additionally, with the addition of All Included fares to its fare structure, Celebrity did sweeten the entire loyalty program a bit by offering better spa and photo discount benefits at various tiers and by adding some onboard events for members.

Ways to earn points

The number of Captain’s Club points you earn for cruises will vary greatly depending on both the length of the sailing and the type of cabin you book.

When staying in the most basic cabins, such as windowless “inside” cabins, you’ll earn just 2 points for each day you sail. When staying in a top suite, by contrast, you can earn as many as 18 to 24 points per day.

Staying in balcony cabins, which the line calls Veranda cabins, will get you 3 points a day.

Here is a breakdown of the points you’ll earn per day by cabin type:

Inside cabins: 2 points
Ocean View cabins: 2 points
Veranda cabins: 3 points
Infinite Veranda cabins: 3 points
Concierge Class cabins: 5 points
AquaClass cabins: 5 points
Sky, Aqua Sky, Magic Carpet and Sunset Sky suites: 8 points
Celebrity, Signature, Horizon and Royal suites: 12 points
Reflection, Penthouse and Edge villas: 18 points
Iconic suites: 24 points

As you can see, you’ll earn far more points by staying in a suite than by staying in a less pricey regular cabin. The Captain’s Club program is designed to reward Celebrity’s biggest-spending customers the most.

There’s also one more way to earn Captain’s Club points. In 2020, Celebrity launched a new program called Power Up Points that allows Captain’s Club members to earn bonus points by filling out online surveys, participating on social media or booking specific promotions.

Taking part in such activities will get you Power Up Points, which then can be converted into Captain’s Club points at a ratio of 10 to 1. For every 10 Power Up Points you earn, you’ll receive 1 additional Captain’s Club point.

If you want to play along, be sure to subscribe to Celebrity’s email list so you get notified about Power Up Points activities. You can start the process by visiting the website. If you’re already a Captain’s Club member, click on the “Subscribe for Emails” button. If you’re not yet a member, click the “Enroll Now” button.

Celebrity Captain’s Club levels and benefits

Celebrity Reflection cruise ship — Celebrity Reflection. CELEBRITY CRUISES

There are six tiers to the Captain’s Club program:

Preview (at 0 points)
Classic (2 to 149 points)
Select (150 to 299 points)
Elite (300 to 749 points)
Elite Plus (750 to 2,999 points)
Zenith (3,000 points or more)

The good news here is that you can be recognized at the program’s first tier (Preview) before you even take a single cruise. All you have to do is sign up for the program. At the Preview level, you gain access to the online Captain’s Club newsletter and the Loyalty Desk service center between cruises. You also can book Captain’s Club promotions once you’re on board your first cruise.

The next level up, Classic, brings:

Exclusive Captain’s Club offers
One precruise category upgrade to AquaClass (based on availability)
An invitation to a Captain’s Club welcome party
One complimentary specialty coffee when you dine at a specialty restaurant
One free scoop of gelato
10% discount on any bottle of wine
10% discount on a Premium drink package upgrade when purchased precruise only
10% discount on a drink package when purchased precruise
10% discount on Wi-Fi packages and upgrades, and complimentary premium minutes
25% discount on any digital or print photo package
10% discount on The Studio photo package
10% off one-time use laundry service
10% discount at the spa
Various casino perks
5% discount on small-group Discovery shore excursions
5% discount on Hollywood Hot Glass

The Select tier adds bigger discounts on internet and photo packages (25% and 30% off, respectively). You’ll also get an invitation to a wine tasting and a backstage tour on the ship, a discounted price for one standard bag of laundry (wash, dry and fold) if your cruise is 12 nights or longer, and two complimentary pressed items.

Reaching the Classic level takes just one cruise, no matter what type of cabin you book. Reaching the Select level can also take just one cruise if it’s a longer sailing and you’re staying in a top suite. However, if you’re a more typical cruiser sailing a seven-night trip in a standard balcony cabin (worth 3 points a night), you would need to take eight cruises to reach the Select level.

The elite level that makes a difference

Celebrity Edge. FLEET PHOTOGRAPHERS/CELEBRITY CRUISES

Being loyal to Celebrity really starts paying off when you reach the Elite and Elite Plus levels.

One of the great perks of Elite status is gaining access to the Captain’s Club Elite Continental Breakfast, where you can enjoy a coffeehouse-style breakfast each morning. This is a particularly big deal on shore excursion days, as it means you have a relatively quiet and uncrowded place to grab a quick breakfast before heading out for a tour.

Elite members also get unlimited free drinks from the Captain’s Club menu each day, excluding embarkation day, between 5 and 7 p.m. at most bars and lounges on the ship. All you have to do is present your SeaPass card. As noted above, this isn’t quite the perk it used to be since a basic drink package is included with many bookings now as part of the line’s relatively new All Included fare tier.

If you’re sailing on a Solstice Class or Millennium Class vessel, reaching the Elite tier will get you free access to the Persian Garden spa zones — home to steam rooms, saunas and heated loungers — on one port day of your choice.

Elite level also brings:

Priority tender service, where available
Access to a private lounge on departure day serving continental breakfast
An invitation to a senior officer party
An invitation to a Create & Pour event on Edge Class ships
An invitation to a Music & Mixology event
A higher 20% discount on a bottle of wine
A higher 30% discount on Wi-Fi packages and upgrades, plus 90 complimentary stream minutes
A higher 15% discount on drink packages
A higher 40% discount on a digital or print photo package
A higher 20% discount on The Studio photo packages
One complimentary dry clean item
One bag of complimentary laundry
A higher 15% discount at the ship’s spa

Elite Plus kicks things up by offering a lot of these same benefits plus another free bag of laundry; additional discounts for onboard services (including a 15% discount on specialty dining cover charges); and free cappuccino, latte, espresso and tea throughout your sailing.

You can reach the Elite and Elite Plus levels in just a few cruises if you’re partial to the longer sailings Celebrity offers and you stay in top suites. For a more typical cruiser who sails a seven-night trip in a standard balcony cabin, it would take 15 sailings to reach the Elite level and a whopping 36 sailings to reach the Elite Plus level.

Best Celebrity Captain’s Club elite benefit

The ultimate perk for Captain’s Club members comes when you reach the top Zenith tier. You’ll get a free seven-night Bermuda or Caribbean cruise in a balcony cabin. Yep, that’s right: a free cruise. Not bad, right?

Of course, you’ll need 3,000 points to reach the Zenith tier — a number so high it’s out of reach for most cruisers. For someone who always stays in balcony cabins and prefers seven-night sailings, it would take an almost inconceivable 143 cruises to reach the Zenith tier. Put another way, you’d have to spend 1,000 days at sea with Celebrity to hit the Zenith mark.

Still, for those who always stay in top suites, getting to Zenith after just a few years of heavy cruising is not out of the question. For those travelers in Penthouse and Reflection suites, it would require 167 days at sea. Take a few long sailings of 20 or 30 days, and you’ll be well on your way.

Once you hit the Zenith level, you’ll get another free Bermuda or Caribbean cruise after every 3,000 points you accumulate. Plus, there’s an added twist for your second free cruise and any others you accrue after that: The additional free sailings will be in an upgraded AquaClass cabin.

In offering its top-tier Captain’s Club members free cruises, Celebrity is in the company of just a handful of other lines — most notably Royal Caribbean and Norwegian Cruise Line.

The Zenith tier also brings several other big-deal perks. For example, you’ll get priority seating in ship theaters and a 25% discount on specialty dining.

Zenith members also enjoy a bevy of freebies, such as laundry, automatic premium beverage upgrades and automatic premium internet upgrades. Round that out with discounts on spa services (20% off) and photo packages (50% off) as well as nice little touches such as upgraded bath amenities in your cabin, and you can see why it pays to attain Celebrity’s top status.

As is often the case with cruise line loyalty programs, Celebrity customers do not have to requalify for status each year. Captain’s Club members keep their points at the end of each year and continue to accrue points indefinitely. This means that someone who hits Zenith status will remain at that top tier level forever (or until Celebrity makes a change to the program).

Such “forever status” is one of the great allures of cruise line frequent cruiser programs. Many airline frequent flyer programs, by contrast, require loyalty members to requalify for status each year.

Matching status with sister cruise brands

One other notable perk of Celebrity’s Captain’s Club loyalty program is that members get matching status in the loyalty programs at Royal Caribbean and Silversea Cruises, which are both sister brands. The matching status you get in each program depends on your tier. Members at the Elite level of the Celebrity Cruises Captain’s Club loyalty program, for instance, will enjoy membership at the Diamond level of Royal Caribbean’s Crown & Anchor Society program.

Diamond status in Royal Caribbean’s loyalty program brings such valuable benefits as priority waitlist for shore excursions and spa services, access to an exclusive Diamond Club on select ships, access to an exclusive nightly Diamond event, and a complimentary entertainment tour.

Members at the Elite level of the Celebrity Cruises Captain’s Club loyalty program will match into the third tier of Silversea’s Venetian Society loyalty program, known as the 250 VS Days tier.

Note that, as of Feb. 1, 2023, Celebrity elite members no longer can get matching status when sailing with Azamara, a former sister brand. Nor will Celebrity elite members get points in the Captain’s Club program when sailing on Azamara ships.

Bottom line

Celebrity may have one of the better cruise line loyalty programs. Like many others, it’s a bit stingy on the truly valuable perks at its lower tiers. As you rise through the six levels, though, you’ll quickly reach a point where your status gets you a lot of interesting perks, discounts and freebies.

We’re especially fond of the access to a private breakfast lounge that comes with Elite status. There’s nothing like having your own private hideaway in the mornings. And, of course, nothing competes with the free cruise benefit that comes with top-tier Zenith status.

Planning a cruise? Start with these stories:

KLM’s 105th Delft Blue House collectible honors a mansion on 3 canals

Posted on October 8, 2024 | by travelbestdiscounts

Amenity kit cases that can double as evening purses and salt and pepper shakers in the shape of airplanes are among the cool AvGeek things you can swipe off airplanes guilt-free.

But if you fly on a KLM intercontinental business-class flight, you can walk off the plane with a house.

Granted, it’s a miniature house … a numbered, collectible, miniature Delft Blue house in the shape of a notable historic or landmark building in the Netherlands or abroad, to be exact.

And did we mention it’s filled with Bols Genever, a Dutch gin?

KLM, the flag carrier of the Netherlands, began gifting its intercontinental first- and business-class passengers these tiny houses in the 1950s. The tradition began because a cocktail served in a collectible container was how the carrier cleverly skirted restrictions limiting the value of gifts that passengers could receive from airlines.

In 1994, on the carrier’s 75th birthday, a catch-up batch of houses was issued to match the number of houses to the age of the airline. Nowadays, a new house is released with fanfare each year on Oct. 7, KLM’s birthday.

This year, to celebrate KLM’s 105th anniversary, the airline revealed its 105th Delft Blue House.

Close up of KLM Delft Blue House #105 - House on Three Canals — A close-up shot of KLM Delft Blue House No. 105, The House on Three Canals. HARRIET BASKAS/FOR THE POINTS GUY

This one honors a 17th-century heritage house in Amsterdam known officially as “Het Huis aan de Drie Grachten,” or “The House on Three Canals.” Built in the Dutch Renaissance style and renovated in 1909, the Dutch national monument faces a canal on, you guessed it, three sides and has both diagonal and straight angles.

“It’s not the oldest house in Amsterdam, but it’s the oldest privately owned house in Amsterdam and one of the most photographed monuments in the city,” said historian Mark Zegeling during a canal tour of this and other Amsterdam buildings that have served as models for KLM’s miniature Delft Blue houses over the years. “You can see from the three sides that the building — which was originally two buildings — has three different facades, or faces.”

Value check: Are airline credit cards worth it anymore?

Zegeling is the author of “Little Kingdom by the Sea,” a regularly updated two-book set with detailed descriptions and histories of each building in the KLM Delft Blue House series.

Author Mark Zegeling in front of the House on Three Canals — Author Mark Zegeling in front of The House on Three Canals. HARRIET BASKAS/FOR THE POINTS GUY

Each year, the identity of KLM’s newest Delft Blue House is kept tightly under wraps until the evening of the big reveal. As is tradition, the big reveal takes place at a celebration held either in the building being featured or in a building nearby each year.

he House on Three Canals - with KLM flight attendants out front. — The House on Three Canals with KLM flight attendants in front. HARRIET BASKAS/FOR THE POINTS GUY

This year was no exception. On Oct. 7, KLM CEO Marjan Rintel presented the first copy of the Delft Blue miniature of The House on Three Canals to Arthur van Dijk, the king’s commissioner for the province of North Holland. Because the house is privately owned, the reveal party took place nearby at the Sofitel Legend The Grand Amsterdam hotel.

KLM CEO Marjan Rintel at the 2024 Delft Blue House reveal. HARRIET BASKAS/FOR THE POINTS GUY

KLM’s birthday and the new Delft Blue miniature house reveal come at a “challenging time” for the carrier, Rintel acknowledged in a pre-event press conference. While the airline is investing billions in new, more efficient aircraft, it is facing “headwinds” linked to its rising costs for equipment, staffing and airport fees, she said.

As a result, Rintel said, the airline has started a program to reduce costs, increase productivity and increase network capacity, especially on long-haul flights.

“We will look at each and every investment,” she said. “However, in our 105-year history, we have often faced headwinds, and KLM has always shown itself to be created and resilient in overcoming them.”

When asked if cutting out or cutting back on the Delft Blue House program might be part of the cost reductions being considered, Rintel said, “We look at everything but not the Delft Blue houses. We’re well known for it and it will stay as part of our brand.”

The latest KLM Delft Blue House honoring The House on Three Canals joins 104 other notable buildings in the series.

In 2023, KLM’s Delft Blue House No. 104 honored Valkenburg railway station, the oldest existing train station in the Netherlands.

In 2021, the Delftware miniature house No. 102 in the series portrayed Amsterdam’s stunning Tuschinski Theatre, which Time Out magazine voted the most beautiful cinema in the world.

And in 2016, KLM’s 97th miniature Delftware house was a likeness of the Hotel New York in Rotterdam, which occupies the former headquarters of Holland America Line.

In the past, KLM has honored everything from the Anne Frank House (No. 47) and the Rembrandt House Museum (No. 48) to Mata Hari’s love nest (No. 26) and the Heineken Brewery (No. 95) with a KLM Delft Blue miniature version.

There are several ways to get your own little KLM Delft House. If you’re flying business class on a KLM intercontinental flight, you’ll be able to choose a current or past year’s little house model from a cart a flight attendant will roll down the aisle just before the end of the flight.

Many Delft houses from past years are also offered on eBay and in antique and secondhand shops around Amsterdam. If you end up with duplicates or have a specific year’s miniature house in mind, you can try swapping one little house that you have for another at the KLM Crown Lounge in Amsterdam Airport Schiphol (AMS), where all the models are on display, though not all are available for swapping.

Once your collection starts to grow, you can track it on the KLM Houses app, and, when in Amsterdam, you can embark on a self-guided walking tour that takes you past dozens of the full-size homes and buildings portrayed in this highly collectible series of tiny Delftware miniatures.

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The best restaurants at Disneyland in 2024

Posted on October 7, 2024 | by travelbestdiscounts

Editor’s note: This post was updated with new information.

On-the-go churros or chicken fingers may work as meals for some Disneyland Resort guests. However, when you’re spending as much as a trip to a Disney theme park costs these days, you might want to be sure you’re enjoying the best restaurant meals, concessions and experiences that the park has to offer.

While Disney World’s restaurants are often more talked about, Disneyland’s dining options have also transformed. With increased crowds and quickly booked-up restaurants, it’s a good idea to map out your eating plan in advance — at least for a few meals.

Best Disneyland Restaurants for Families - Lamplight Lounge — JOSHUA SUDOCK/DISNEYLAND RESORT

What makes a Disney restaurant great is not necessarily the food. It may be a character experience, a fun theme or a good spot right near the rides that makes the restaurant special.

Does it get better than actually eating inside an attraction at the Blue Bayou and watching the Pirates of the Caribbean boats go by? We think not.

Inside the Blue Bayou at Disneyland. TARAH CHIEFFI/THE POINTS GUY

We’ve dined at dozens of Disneyland restaurants over the years on both family and adult-only vacations, from the smallest of snack carts to the fanciest white-tablecloth eateries. Here’s what you should know about dining at Disneyland and our picks for the best Disneyland restaurants — whether you’re at Disneyland, Disney California Adventure Park or a Disneyland hotel.

For no-cost assistance with planning and booking your next Disney vacation, check out TPG’s Disney booking partner, Mouse Counselors.

Best restaurants in Disneyland Resort

Here are some of the best Disneyland restaurants to enjoy.

Plaza Inn

Where it is: Main Street, U.S.A.

What’s on the menu: Mickey waffles and fried chicken

Home to the only Disneyland character meal within either of the two parks, Plaza Inn is a favorite for families or anyone who wants some character face time. During morning hours, Plaza Inn hosts Minnie & Friends — Breakfast in the Park. The breakfast is buffet style, with kid-friendly favorites like Mickey Mouse-shaped waffles available alongside eggs, biscuits and gravy, and other morning comfort foods.

Visitors are always guaranteed a photo opportunity with Minnie Mouse. Other regular characters include Winnie the Pooh, Tigger, Chip ‘n Dale, Pluto and Daisy Duck.

Plaza Inn Character Meal at Disneyland — Plaza Inn character meal at Disneyland. DISNEYLAND/FACEBOOK

Reservations go quickly for this meal, so make your plans as soon as the 60-day advance reservation window opens. A reminder: Early morning is the best time for short ride lines, so you may not want to waste these first few hours sitting down for breakfast. Reserve a time that’s a few hours after the park opens. (I have always found that 10:30 a.m. is ideal on days with an 8 a.m. park opening.)

For lunch and dinner, the characters call it a day, and the restaurant becomes a regular fast-casual restaurant. Even without characters, Plaza Inn is a restaurant with a lot of value. Prices are reasonable, and portions are hearty. Don’t miss the restaurant’s signature dish, fried chicken.

Bengal Barbecue

Where it is: Adventureland

What’s on the menu: Chieftain chicken skewer, Bengal beef skewer

For a very quick bite, Bengal Barbecue in Adventureland has always been one of my family’s favorites.

The menu offers a lot of lean meats and a few veggies — a welcome change from all the churros and Mickey ice cream bars that often make up a Disneyland diet. Many of the food items are on skewers, so you can take them to go as you race off to your next Lightning Lane reservation time. If you have more time, sit and take a break in the adjacent shaded and themed seating area.

Best Disneyland Restaurants for Families - Bengal Barbecue — You’ll find healthier food choices at Bengal Barbecue. LESLIE HARVEY/THE POINTS GUY

Red Rose Taverne

Where it is: Fantasyland

What’s on the menu: Burgers, chopped salads, pizza flatbreads

If you have little ones, chances are good that you’ll spend a lot of time in Fantasyland. The quick-service restaurant there works well for families with babies, toddlers and younger children. It was rebranded a few years ago as Red Rose Taverne from “Beauty and the Beast,” but many guests still know it as Village Haus.

Red Rose Taverne Disneyland — Red Rose Taverne’s Fantasyland location makes it a smart lunch stop for families with younger kids. LESLIE HARVEY/THE POINTS GUY

You can count on Red Rose Taverne for the staples many picky children eat, including chicken tenders, hamburgers and flatbread cheese pizza. There’s ample indoor and outdoor seating, and there’s even enough room to maneuver a stroller up to many of the tables. The food for adults is nothing particularly memorable, but park-weary parents will be grateful for the easy logistics.

Tiana’s Palace

Where it is: New Orleans Square

What’s on the menu: 7 greens gumbo with chicken and andouille sausage, Gulf shrimp and grits

Tiana's Palace Exterior Disneyland — Tiana’s Palace. LESLIE HARVEY/THE POINTS GUY

More than a year after its debut, Tiana’s Palace restaurant in New Orleans Square is holding strong as one of the best quick-service restaurants at the Disneyland Resort.

Tiana’s Palace replaced longtime favorite French Market as part of bringing the beloved “The Princess and the Frog” story to Disneyland. It will soon be joined by a new attraction, Tiana’s Bayou Adventure, on Nov. 15, 2024.

Like its French Market predecessor, Tiana’s Palace is a higher-end counter service restaurant. This makes it a smart choice for guests who want a nicer dining experience without quite as much expense or time invested as a true sit-down meal.

Disneyland Tianas Palace 7 Greens Gumbo Chicken Andouille Sausage — The house gumbo at Tiana’s Palace restaurant. DAVID NGUYEN/ DISNEYLAND RESORT

The menu is Creole- and Cajun-inspired, with several gumbo dishes, a beef po’boy sandwich, cheesy shrimp and grits, and sides like buttermilk cornbread. Less adventurous options (toasted ham and cheese sandwiches and macaroni and cheese) are on the kids’ menu if you have picky eaters in the family.

Tables are outside on a mostly shaded veranda overlooking Rivers of America and the Mark Twain Riverboat. Stop by the nearby Mint Julep Bar, where you can grab a (nonalcoholic) mint julep to accompany your meal or a Mickey beignet for dessert.

pastry and coffee — SUMMER HULL/THE POINTS GUY

Blue Bayou

Where it is: New Orleans Square

What’s on the menu: Chicken gumbo and filet mignon

For the quintessential Disneyland date night, head straight for New Orleans Square.

My husband and I have made dinner at Blue Bayou our date-night tradition, starting when we first visited the park together more than 20 years ago. It’s fair to say the food quality and menu variety have both dropped a bit in the last several years. However, it’s still hard to top Blue Bayou’s location and ambience.

The restaurant is entirely indoors but is lit to give the illusion of alfresco nighttime dining overlooking the bayou.

Boats from the Pirates of the Caribbean ride float by while fireflies dance overhead. Lunch is less expensive than dinner, but it is still one of the most expensive meals at Disneyland. The restaurant has shifted somewhat from its Cajun and Creole roots to offer more standard American fine dining fare, but there is still some spice in a few dishes. Reservations are an absolute must.

While this is a fancier restaurant and is priced accordingly, families shouldn’t necessarily rule it out. Blue Bayou can be a very special higher-end Disney dining experience with older children or teens for dinner, and it’s usually filled with quite a few families at lunch.

Docking Bay 7 Food and Cargo

Where it is: Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge

What’s on the menu: Endorian fried chicken tip-yip

The opening of Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge at Disneyland in 2019 brought several new restaurants. The food options on Batuu were not without some controversy and mixed reviews — at least initially.

A sampling of the dinner entrees at Docking Bay 7 Food and Cargo. LESLIE HARVEY/THE POINTS GUY

Disneyland constantly tweaks menus in response to customer feedback, and Docking Bay 7 has now stood the test of time as one of the more reliable counter service restaurants in the park. With ample, air-conditioned indoor seating, it’s also an easy place to take a break and (usually) find a table. There’s a small, partially shaded outdoor terrace that offers fresh air and quality views for Star Wars people-watching, too.

Lunch and dinner menu items include fried chicken (“tip-yip”), a few adventurous seasonal entrees and several vegetarian options. The pickiest eaters won’t find many choices here, however, so check the menu carefully if you have young kids.

Also, don’t rule out the idea of a wrap from Ronto’s Roasters next door; it’s arguably an even tastier option and is also open for breakfast. The traditional morning wrap with egg and pork sausage is our favorite; there are also plant-based garden wraps and a wrap with sausage and slaw available for lunch or dinner. And if you’re in the mood for a fun, sweet coffee-style drink, grab the cold brew black caf (cold brew topped with sweet cream cheese and chocolate puffs).

Hungry Bear Barbecue Jamboree

Where it is: Critter Country (soon to be re-named Bayou Country)

What’s on the menu: Barbecue platters and sandwiches, burgers and ribs

While it’s too soon to give this restaurant an official place on the “best Disneyland restaurants” list, Hungry Bear is at least one to watch closely in the coming weeks and months.

In a quiet corner along the Rivers of America in Critter Country, Hungry Bear Restaurant was a longtime counter service favorite for families with young kids. The restaurant had lots of shaded outdoor seating, so it was always an ideal place to take a much-needed break for lunch midday.

Unfortunately, the food quality declined, and the menu became pretty ho-hum, so we deleted this restaurant from our list several years ago. Thankfully, Disney responded to the lackluster reviews. It’s in the process of completing an overhaul of the restaurant and its menu in anticipation of the opening of Tiana’s Bayou Adventure next door.

The new menu is expected to bring back some of the flavors from the beloved and never-forgotten Big Thunder Ranch Barbecue restaurant, which closed nearly a decade ago to make way for the construction of Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge. The recently revealed food lineup includes barbecue, brisket and ribs, along with the usual burgers and chicken tenders that work well for picky eaters.

Best restaurants in Disney California Adventure

Here are the best Disney California Adventure restaurants.

Disney California Adventure Pixar Pier Balloons — CHRISTIAN THOMPSON/ DISNEYLAND RESORT

Flo’s V8 Cafe

Where it is: Cars Land

What’s on the menu: Burgers and turkey club sandwich

Flo’s V8 Cafe is Disney’s take on the classic American diner, just like you might find along Route 66.

The theming and setting in Cars Land are immersive and just so much fun. By quick-service restaurant standards, the food is downright delicious. The menu isn’t quite as extensive and varied as it used to be a few years ago. However, it still has more choices than your average counter-service restaurant at Disneyland Resort.

Lunch and dinner include items like burgers, a Cobb salad, fried chicken and a turkey club sandwich. Shakes are also available as a sweet treat. Kids can find plenty of variety, from macaroni and cheese to chicken strips.

Lamplight Lounge

Where it is: Pixar Pier

What’s on the menu: Lobster nachos, potato skins and doughnuts

Lamplight Lounge remains one of the hottest dining tickets at Disneyland Resort, so it’s a must to make a reservation well in advance if you want to dine here. Weekend brunch (Friday through Sunday) is especially popular.

Instagrammable food and cocktails abound. The decor is Pixar-themed, with tons of memorabilia and details to explore. Like Blue Bayou in Disneyland Park, Lamplight Lounge is probably better suited to families with older children and teens due to its atmosphere and price. Still, younger kids who love Pixar movies will feel right at home here, too.

Best Disneyland Restaurants - Lamplight Lounge — Pixar memorabilia at the Lamplight Lounge. JOSHUA SUDOCK/DISNEYLAND RESORT

The sentimental favorite menu item is the lobster nachos, which were also available at the predecessor restaurant in this space, Cove Bar. The menu is definitely more varied and interesting for foodie parents than at many Disneyland restaurants, and the drink menu (both alcoholic and nonalcoholic) is full of whimsical selections.

Carthay Circle Restaurant

Where it is: Buena Vista Street

What’s on the menu: Rib eye, pork chops and mushroom ravioli

For a signature dining experience in California Adventure, Carthay Circle Restaurant is the top choice. It’s also priced accordingly, so save this for a special adults’ night out or budget accordingly.

Set within a replica of the Carthay Circle Theater, where Walt Disney’s “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs” debuted in 1937, this restaurant teems with Disney and Old Hollywood history and lore.

Menu items include pork chops, rib eye, fresh fish and pasta. Carthay Circle Restaurant’s menu is most extensive at dinner, but it has just added a less expensive pre-fixe menu for lunch.

If you don’t have the budget or the time for a fancier meal, the Carthay Circle Lounge downstairs in the same building offers lighter bites and delicious cocktails. Eating in the lounge’s outdoor seating section provides the added perk of five-star people-watching — you’ll probably even spot a character or two strolling by on the way to their next appearance.

Pym Test Kitchen

Where it is: Avengers Campus

What’s on the menu: Quantum pretzel, not-so-little chicken sandwich

The food at Pym Test Kitchen is not the best on a Disney property, but it is pretty fun. It made the cut based on sheer originality.

The concept of this counter-service restaurant in Avenger’s Campus is that Ant-Man and the Wasp’s Pym particles are being used to experiment with making food teeny-tiny or enormous.

On the menu, you’ll find an enormous pretzel, a not-so-little chicken sandwich with a tiny bun but a huge chicken patty, pasta with tiny noodles and oversized Impossible plant-based “meatballs.” Kids usually get a kick out of the pretzel, which is larger than their heads.

Pym Test Kitchen Avengers-Campus-Chicken-Sandwich-scaled — LESLIE HARVEY/THE POINTS GUY

Pym Test Kitchen is one of the few breakfast options open in California Adventure Park, and its offerings are also quite solid in the morning. The “Calculated Breakfast = E x 2 + (B+P)/T” is served with two eggs that are different sizes and prepared in different ways.

Lucky Fortune Cookery

Where it is: San Fransokyo Square (formerly Pacific Wharf)

What’s on the menu: Yaki udon with Karaage-inspired crispy chicken and pork wonton nachos

Lucky Fortune Cookery Exterior Disney California Adventure — LESLIE HARVEY/THE POINTS GUY

When Disney recently transformed Pacific Wharf into the city of San Fransokyo from the film Big Hero 6, the area’s restaurants definitely benefited from the refresh. This section of the park is now a dining destination with multiple cuisine choices, all sharing a single large outdoor seating area.

There are now several restaurant standouts worth trying anew, but my personal favorite so far is Lucky Fortune Cookery.

The restaurant has always been a go-to place for a reliable teriyaki rice bowl and some veggies for anyone looking for a healthier bite. It now also offers a mixture of pan-Asian cuisine featuring Korean, Chinese and Japanese flavors. I tried several menu items during a recent trip. The beef bulgogi burrito with rice and coleslaw was the best thing I ate all day, combining flavor profiles from multiple different cuisine traditions.

For dessert, the restaurant serves an adorable and very tasty Baymax macaron with buttercream and chocolate hazelnut filling. Boba fans can also get their fix with Thai tea.

Lucky Fortune Cookery at Disneyland - New 2023 San Fransokyo Menu Items — LESLIE HARVEY/THE POINTS GUY

Food festival marketplaces

Where it is: Grizzly Peak, Paradise Gardens

What’s on the menu: Changes seasonally

Disney California Adventure is home to multiple food festivals throughout the year. When these take place, food “marketplaces” pop up along the pathways of the park — usually at least from Grizzly Peak to the end of Paradise Gardens.

The food options at these festivals are fun and unique, and they offer a great opportunity for visitors to try new flavors. The always reliable Paradise Garden Grill restaurant usually serves festival food items as well, often in larger portions.

One of many marketplaces at the annual Disney California Adventure Food and Wine Festival. LESLIE HARVEY/THE POINTS GUY

The largest of these festivals is the Disney California Adventure Food and Wine Festival in the spring.

Look also for the Festival of Holidays during the November and December holiday season and the Lunar New Year marketplaces during the annual Lunar New Year Celebration. Families and groups can get a lot of value out of sharing a Sip ‘n’ Savor pass, which gives you tickets to redeem for a number of dishes for a single set price.

Best restaurants in the Disneyland hotels

Here are the best restaurants at Disneyland’s on-property hotels.

Related: Where to stay at Disneyland

Trader Sam’s Enchanted Tiki Bar

Where it is: Disneyland Hotel

What’s on the menu: HippopotoMai-Tai, zombie, pu pu platter, Hawaiian platter

Near the pool at the Disneyland Hotel, you’ll find one of the liveliest places to eat or drink on Disneyland property: Trader Sam’s Enchanted Tiki Bar. It’s a place where volcanoes explode, servers shout, and it’s easy to have a good time.

The poke bowl and Hawaiian platter are fun options here, but you can’t go wrong just coming in for a snack and a drink. Order the right one, and you may be a part of a shipwreck, explosion or other fun disaster.

Napa Rose

Where it is: Disney’s Grand Californian Hotel & Spa

What’s on the menu: Steak and fish

You won’t find any shipwrecks or screaming servers at Napa Rose within Disneyland’s Grand Californian Hotel. However, you will find a sophisticated (but not stuffy) menu of duck breast, steak and sustainably sourced fish, to name a few items.

Disneyland Grand Californian Hotel Restaurant — SUMMER HULL/THE POINTS GUY

This is a special occasion meal and one you don’t want to rush through, so don’t try to cram it in before catching that next ride on Radiator Springs Racers.

The restaurant also serves a premium character breakfast — Disney Princess Breakfast Adventures — Thursday through Monday. It’s quite expensive at $142 per person plus tax. However, it is routinely one of the better-reviewed meals and experiences at the resort because of the restaurant’s meticulous service.

Guests with a serious princess fan in the family should certainly consider it if the budget allows, particularly for a special celebration like a birthday or anniversary.

Additional tips for restaurants and dining at Disneyland

As with all things at Disneyland, guests who are prepared will have a less stressful and more enjoyable experience. Here are a few final tips you need to know before you make your Disneyland dining plans and restaurant reservations.

Make use of mobile ordering

Disneyland Galactic Grill Restaurant Mobile Order Pickup — LESLIE HARVEY/THE POINTS GUY

Over the past couple of years, Disneyland has rolled out mobile ordering to the vast majority of counter-service restaurants in both parks. You no longer need to wait in a physical queue just to place an order.

These days, mobile ordering is pretty much essential. Make sure you download the official Disneyland app and that you place your order in advance of the mealtime rush.

It’s not a bad idea to place your order an hour or two ahead in some cases if you know when and what you would like to eat. At popular spots and on the busiest days, available time slots begin to fill up, and guests are unable to order for immediate pickup on the mobile order system. Don’t wait until your stomach is growling to place an order, or you may be left hungry for a while.

Once you place your order, wait until the time you have selected to eat. Then click in the app again to indicate your arrival as you approach the restaurant. Your food is usually ready in a few minutes at a pick-up window. Look for the push notification to alert you in the app.

Make Disneyland restaurant reservations 60 days in advance

If you plan to visit a table service restaurant or a popular character meal buffet during your Disneyland vacation, reservations are a must. We recommend booking right at Disneyland’s 60-day reservation window before your trip if you can. Reservations open at 6 a.m. (Pacific time) daily and the top restaurants can book up close to instantly.

If you miss the chance 60 days out, a service like MouseDining can be handy in alerting you when an opening becomes available. Just act quickly, as choices disappear as fast as they appear.

Don’t forget about dining packages

Disneyland has a number of popular shows and parades that many visitors want to see. Finding a good seat for them may require camping out an hour or more in advance.

One solution is to secure reserved seating or standing areas for these shows by booking an associated dining package. These packages do come at a premium price, but they save substantial time in addition to providing a meal that guests would be paying for anyway. Check the Disneyland website or app for availability, as there are often changes to the offerings.

Think beyond the parks

Jazz Kitchen restaurant in Disneyland Anaheim Downtown Disney 2023 — Jazz Kitchen Coastal Grill & Patio serves up New Orleans-themed cuisine in Downtown Disney. LESLIE HARVEY/THE POINTS GUY

There are so many amazing restaurants within Disneyland Park and Disney California Adventure, but don’t forget to look beyond park borders for other excellent restaurants.

We’ve already highlighted some of the best options at a few of the Disneyland on-property hotels, but there are still more worthy restaurant choices at those properties. Scheduling a hotel character meal on your arrival or departure day at one of these hotel restaurants can be a smart choice, as it gives you a Disney experience without the cost of a park ticket on that day.

The Downtown Disney district adjacent to the two parks also features many quality restaurants and dining experiences. These restaurants are all just a very short walk or monorail ride from the parks. Options include a brewery, a restaurant specializing in over-the-top milkshakes, a bowling alley with excellent sushi, and restaurants specializing in Cajun, Italian and Mexican dishes.

The recently opened dim sum restaurant Din Tai Fung is already proving to be one of the toughest reservations to get at the Disneyland Resort. Even more new restaurants are expected in 2025 as construction in Downtown Disney continues.

Black Tap shakes Downtown Disney at Disneyland — Crazy Shakes at Black Tap Anaheim in Downtown Disney. LESLIE HARVEY/THE POINTS GUY

Bottom line

No matter who’s in your party or what your budget is, Disneyland has a wide variety of restaurants to enjoy on your next vacation.

If you are paying by card for these meals, use a card that rewards you with extra miles for dining, like the Citi Prestige® Card (5 points per dollar), American Express® Gold Card (4 points per dollar at restaurants on up to $50,000 in purchases per calendar year, then 1 point per dollar), Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card (7 points per dollar on eligible purchases at U.S. restaurants) or Chase Sapphire Reserve® (3 points per dollar). (Learn more about the best credit cards for dining.)

The information for the Citi Prestige Card and Hilton Aspire Amex card has been collected independently by The Points Guy. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer.

Alternatively, you can also pick up some discounted Disney gift cards before your trip to save on meals at the best restaurants in Disneyland.

If you’re planning a family vacation to Disneyland, here are additional articles to help you craft the perfect trip: