New Uniforms, New Seats and More: The Most Popular Posts of 2014

Looking back at this year, it’s been truly extraordinarily to look at the growth of this blog, thanks to you as readers. Each month since the blog’s start on Boarding Area in July has seen an increase in traffic, sessions and users, which I’m very thankful for.

Top Blog Posts (by Readership)

There’s a lot of posts that you found helpful this year, so I’ve decided to compile a list of the most popular posts in terms of readership. The most popular post is listed first, and continuing down the list:

1. The New American Airlines Uniform – Early in December, American released images of their new uniform as part of the “New American.” The uniforms are modern, but I still like the “old-school” style better. 🙂

2. The New Delta First Class Seat – In November, Delta began installing slip covers on their First Class seats to give them a refreshed look. I like the look of the new seats, and I think they not only look comfortable, but are as well.

3. Fee Free Gift Cards – In July, Gift Card Lab offered a code removing the purchasing fee off of Visa gift cards. Unfortunately, the cards did not contain PIN capability, and couldn’t be use to reload Bluebird, Serve, or other reloadable debit products.

4. A 10,000 Room Hotel That Never Had Any Guests – Here’s a cool piece of history, that even a non-history buff can find interesting. Hitler built a resort that was never finished. The pictures inside today are just stunning.

5. Earning American Airlines Executive Platinum Status for Under $2,000 – Back when US Airways offered a trial preferred status offer, it was possible to fly enough for under $2,000 to retain the status through February, 2016. Unfortunately, with the combined airline, US Airways has since pulled that offer.

6. Free Concerts Year-Round in Amsterdam – Amsterdam offers a free lunchtime concert every Wednesday at the Royal Concert Hall (Hat Concertgebouw), which features a rotating selection of classical singers, orchestras, and other ensembles.

7. Free Hilton Diamond Status and 25,000 AAdvantage Miles –  American had partnered with Hilton to offer select members free Hilton Diamond Status and 25,000 AAdvantage miles. The offer was targeted and only offered for a limited time.

8. You Can Buy an Airline Beverage Cart – Delta routinely offers beverage cart sales outside of their Delta Museum in Atlanta. While the sale in this post has past, you can probably expect another one coming up relatively soon. Purchase of the carts is by pickup only, though it would make a great conversation piece if you can bring it back to your house.

9. Barclaycard Launches New AAdvantage Card – With the merger of US Airways and American, Citi will soon become the sole issuer of AAdvantage credit cards. In the meantime, though, while they still can, Barclaycard is getting in on the action to pickup some last minute customers.

10. American Express Researches New Platinum Card Benefits and They’re Not Good – American Express surveyed Platinum Card customers to see how they could best provide offers where you could essentially convert points into cash used for travel. Such redemptions are never lucrative, which is why I think the new benefits, if ever implemented, are not good.

New Blog Updates and Features

• I compiled a list of the major airline award redemption programs, and provided an “ins and outs” guide of how to redeem miles on them. This includes the rules, routing restrictions, and redemption details for each. You can view the charts here for Air Canada, US Airways, United Airlines, Lufthansa, ANA, American Airlines, British Airways and Delta.
• Want to know if your next airline or aircraft is WiFi equipped? I compiled a chart listing all you need to know.
• I created a Beginner How To Guide for Airlines, Hotels, a Miles/Points.

 What’s coming in 2015?

• More hotel and airlines reviews, as well as trip reports. Stay tuned for reviews on the Park Hyatt New York, Park Hyatt Melbourne, Park Hyatt Sydney, Park Hyatt Milan, Qantas Business Class, Hawaiian Business Class, and Etihad First Class to name a few!
• More “how-to” guides to different aspects of traveling.
• More unique postings that aren’t covered in other blogs – such as airline meal reviews, unique experiences, etc.

Thanks as always for your continued readership! Make sure to follow me on Twitter for up to the minute postings and updates!