Loyalty Plans for Air and Accommodations

I need to investigate the savings to be made using loyalty plans like Star Alliance and Marriott Bonvoy. Star Alliance is connected with the loyalty plans of particular airlines, like Air Canada’s Aeroplan. When you fly on Air Canada you log the flight information at Star Alliance to gain their points.

To accumulate points, when booking through a booking service like Booking.com or Expedia, get the booking reference number then go to the airline’s website and enter that number. On their website you will be able to enter your loyalty plan number if the airline is a Star Alliance member.

Star Alliance members

• Aegean Airlines
• Air Canada
• Air China
• Air India
• Air New Zealand
• All Nippon Airways (ANA)
• Asiana Airlines
• Austrian Airlines
• Avianca
• Brussels Airlines
• Copa Airlines (Panama)
• Croatia Airlines
• Egyptair
• Ethiopian AirlinesEVA AirITA Airways
• LOT Polish Airlines
• Lufthansa
• Shenzhen Airlines
• Singapore Airlines
• South African Airways
• Swiss International Air Lines
• TAP Air Portugal
• Thai Airways International
• Turkish Airlines
• United Airlines

Marriott Bonvoy

The Ritz-Carlton

Ritz-Carlton Reserve

St. Regis

JW Marriott

W Hotels

Edition

The Luxury Collection

Marriott Hotels

Sheraton

Marriott Vacation Club

Delta Hotels

Le Meridien

Westin

Renaissance Hotels

Autograph Collection Hotels

Tribute Portfolio

Design Hotels

Courtyard Hotels

Four Points SpringHill Suites Protea Hotels Fairfield AC Hotels Aloft Hotels Moxy Hotels City Express Four Points Flex by Sheraton Marriott Executive Apartments Apartments by Marriott Bonvoy Residence Inn TownePlace Suites Element Homes & Villas by Marriott Bonvoy MGM Collection with Marriott Bonvoy citizenM Outdoor Collection by Marriott Bonvoy StudioRes Series by Marriott City Express by Marriott

Danger Zone

A IMB Piracy Reporting Centre tracks piracy reports around the world and has an interactive map to show where the latest acts of piracy have been reported with a description of each incident.

Piracy incident off the coast of Somalia, Fwbruary 26, 2026

Electronic Travel Authorization (ETA) Countries

Canadians can travel visa-free to many countries, but increasingly an Electronic Travel Authorization (ETA) is required to enter a country. It is usually done through a website or an app on a smart phone. Sometimes these can be completed on arrival (as I did in Taiwan), but it is best to do in advance. Typically this is to be done within 72 hours of arrival but no earlier. Here is a list of countries requiring ETAs as of January 1, 2026.

Asia
Bahrain
India
Jordan
Oman
Qatar
Malaysia
Maldives
Myanmar
Singapore
Sri Lanka
Taiwan
Turkey
United Arab Emirates

Africa
Egypt
Ethiopia
Kenya
Madagascar
Tanzania

Oceania
Australia
New Zealand

Europe
United Kingdom
EU Schengen countries will require the ETIAS in the 4th quarter of 2026 (Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czechia, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland).

Winter Stays

Possible winter (December - March) stays. Look at pros and cons. Look at temperature, humidity and sunny vs rainy days. And of course look at expats and activities including local and regional excursions - museums, architecture, culture, food and wine. Two general approaches: northern hemisphere near the equator or the southern hemisphere where it is summer.

For best locations in Southeast Asia for the winter see my Southeast Asia Winter Weather page. Northern Vietnam and Northern Thailand are the areas of lowest humidity in those countries.

Flight time from Buenos Aires to Cape Town is 9 hours.

NORTHERN HEMISPHERE

COUNTRY	TEMPERATURE				RAIN/HUMIDITY				CULTURE
	DEC	JAN	FEB	MAR	DEC	JAN	FEB	MAR
CENTRAL AMERICA
Belize City	28	27	28	30	7.00in	5.50in	2.75in	2.25in
Panama City	31	31	32	32	4.50in	1.75in	0.50in	0.50in
Guatemala - Antigua	22	22	23	25	0.25in	0.00in	0.00in	0.00in	Good temp & low rain
Nicaragua - Granada	31	32	33	34	0.75in	0.25in	0.00in	0.00in
Mexico City	22	22	24	26	0.25in	0.25in	0.25in	0.50in	Good temp & low rain
EUROPE & MIDDLE EAST
Cyprus - Paphos	17	16	16	18	4.00in	4.00in	3.00in	2.00in
Egypt - Cairo	21	19	21	24	0.25in	0.25in	0.00in	0.00in
Malta	15	13	13	14	3.75in	3.00in	2.75in	1.75in
Oman - Muscat	26	25	25	29	0.50in	1.00in	1.00in	0.50in	Good temp & low rain
Oman - Jebel Akhdar	18	17	18	22	0.25in	0.25in	1.75in	1.25in	Good temp & low rain
ASIA
India - Agra	24	22	26	32	0.25in	0.50in	0.50in	0.50in	Good temp & low rain
Laos - Vientiane	29	29	31	33	70%	70%	68%	66%	Very little rainfall
Malaysia - Kuala Lumpur	31	32	32	33	9.50in	6.50in	6.00in	9.00in
Malaysia - Penang	32	32	33	33	5.50in	3.25in	3.50in	5.25in	Humidity 80%
Malaysia - Ipoh	26	27	27	27	9.50in	5.25in	4.00in	5.00in	Humidity 80%
Philippines - Luzon									Driest area in Philippines
Philippines - Roxas City	28	27	27	28	85%	85%	84%	80%	Dry season but humid
Thailand - Chiang Mai	28	28	31	34	0.50in	0.25in	0.25in	0.50in	Moderate humidity
Thailand - Hua Hin	29	30	31	32	0 days	1 day	0 day	2 days	Good temp & low rain
Vietnam - Hanoi	22	20	21	24	1.0in	1.0in	1.0in	2.0in	Humidity 60–75%
Vietnam - Halong Bay	22	21	20	23	0.75in	0.75in	1.50in	1.50in	Humidity 60–75%
AFRICA
Ethiopia - Addis Ababa	23	24	25	26	53%	52%	51%	53%
Tunisia - Tunis	18	16	17	19	77%	76%	74%	73%

SOUTHERN HEMISPHERE

COUNTRY	TEMPERATURE				RAIN/HUMIDITY				CULTURE
	DEC	JAN	FEB	MAR	DEC	JAN	FEB	MAR
EAST ASIA & OCEANA
Australia - Adelaide	26	28	29	26	1.00in	0.75in	0.25in	1.00in
Australia - Hobart	20	22	22	20	2.25in	1.75in	1.75in	1.75in
Australia - Melbourne	24	26	26	24	2.50in	2.00in	2.00in	2.00in
Australia - Sydney	26	26	26	25	3.25in	5.00in	5.75in	6.00in
New Zealand - Auckland	22	24	24	23	3.75in	2.50in	4.00in	3.50in
New Zealand - Blenheim	21	23	23	21	2.00in	2.00in	1.25in	2.00in	Feb 13, 2027 - Wine Festival
New Zealand - Christchurch	21	22	22	20	1.75in	1.75in	1.50in	2.00in	Good temp & low rain
New Zealand - Queenstown	20	22	22	19	2.75in	3.00in	2.00in	3.25in
AFRICA
Botswana - Kalahari	31	31	31	30	2.50in	3.00in	3.00in	1.75in	Makgadikgadi Pans Park
Botswana - Okavango Delta	32	32	32	31	3.25in	4.00in	4.00in	2.25in
South Africa - Cape Town	24	26	26	25	0.00in	0.00in	0.00in	0.00in	Good temp & low rain
SOUTH AMERICA
Argentina - Buenos Aires	30	29	27	23	4.75in	5.25in	5.00in	4.75in
Argentina - Mendoza	25	26	24	22	1.00in	1.75in	1.50in	1.25in	Good temp & low rain
Bolivia - La Paz	17	16	15	16	3.50in	4.50in	3.75in	2.75in
Chile - Santiago	28	27	29	26	2.75in	3.00in	3.25in	3.50in	Good temp & low rain
Columbia - Cali	24	24	24	24	2.75in	2.00in	2.00in	3.50in	75% humidity
Columbia - Medellín	23	23	23	23	9.50in	5.50in	6.00in	9.75in	70% humidity
Ecuador - Quito	20	19	19	19	4.25in	4.75in	5.50in	6.75in
Ecuador - Galapagos	26	30	29	30	1.00in	3.00in	3.00in	2.75in	Good temp & low rain
Peru - Lima	25	26	27	27	0.00in	0.00in	0.00in	0.00in	Good temp & low rain
Peru - Cusco	24	23	23	23	0.00in	0.75in	1.00in	0.50in	Good temp & low rain
Uruguay - Montevideo	28	27	25	22	2.75in	3.00in	3.25in	3.50in	Good temp & low rain

Goodbye Passport Stamps

The joy of having a passport stamp as a souvenir of a trip to a new and exotic location is coming to an end. Countries are phasing out the passport stamp in favour of strictly electronic registration of entrance and exit from the country. According to this article in Time Out magazine, the following countries have already eliminated the stamp: the UK, Australia, Singapore, Malaysia, Hong Kong and Argentina. (When I travelled to South America in early 2025, I wondered why Argentina was the only country for which I didn't have a stamp in my passport. And New Zealand no longer stamps passports.)

The countries listed below are eliminating passport stamps in 2025.

Austria
Belgium
Bulgaria
Croatia
Czechia
Denmark
Estonia
Finland

France
Germany
Greece
Hungary
Iceland
Italy
Latvia

Liechtenstein
Lithuania
Luxembourg
Malta
Netherlands
Norway
Poland

Portugal
Romania
Slovakia
Slovenia
Spain
Sweden
Switzerland

Maritime Tour

Sites to See:

NEWFOUNDLAND

L'Anse aux Meadows National Historic Site

Gros Morne National Park

Fly from St. John's to Deer Lake then drive to Gros Morne then L'Anse aux Meadows.

NOVA SCOTIA

PRINCE EDWARD ISLAND

NEW BRUNSWICK

Central Asia Tour

The goal is the center trip around the “5 Stans” (see options on my Adventure Travel page). Possibly beginning in Turkey for a tour of Troy and other ancient sites, then on to Armenia and Azerbaijan before the 5 Stans. Could follow up with Pakistan, India, Nepal and Bhutan (see India escorted tour page).