Now that I've got two caps under my belt this year for Dynamo away games (Charleston and Dallas, although the latter is arguably really a home game), it's time to start looking ahead at the MLS schedule more closely. Every year when the MLS reschedule is released, I sit and plan. Admittedly, I am focusing more on USMNT this year versus Dynamo mainly because the USMNT don't play much every year, so might as well take advantage this year. I've also pretty much depleted all my free United miles on world cup qualifiers and Gold Cup (spent 97,500 miles), so this means I'll need to penny-pinch like a normal person (for once) when it comes to club games.
May 5th in LA - This will be my next Dynamo game, as I was able to schedule a site visit in Torrance, CA. [Conveniently, I have a site near Home Depot Center!] Thus, my flights and car rental are paid. However, I did have to scrounge for two nights of hotel (since understandably work will not pay for the extra nights I want to stay), so I used points for a free room at the Hampton right next to the stadium. It's the same hotel we used during MLS cup. Hamptons are probably on the lowest on the totem pole of the Hilton chain, but they have free breakfast and wifi. This particular hotel also only costs 12,500 points/night as opposed to the usual 25K, which helps immensely. I'll be hanging out with KH & MF; David will also drive from San Diego as well.
May 26th in KC - I am driving with MF and KH; it's about a 10-12hr drive from Houston. Could I have flown? Yes, but I didn't want to. Had I tried to schedule flights around a site visit I would've technically been working on a Saturday and a holiday, which I didn't want to do. I can ask for compensation time everytime I work weekends, but asking for too much compensation time raises management's eyes, so it's best that I don't. I also think it will be a fun trip this year with people who are easy to travel with. This is key when taking a road trip. If something goes wrong (God forbid), you need to have adaptable companions with pleasant demeanors. To give an idea of how long ago I planned ahead, I reserved a Best Western that provides shuttle service to the power and light district on 12Jan2013 (about $105/night including taxes). I should note there's a difference between "reserving" and "booking" a room in my mind. The former means you pay at check-out, and the latter means you've paid in advance. I typically choose the former, as it's not that much more expensive to do.
Sept 1st in Chicago - On Tuesday, I found a United round trip IAH to ORD flight for $258.30 (travel on Saturday, return on Monday, so no vacation time used), which is a great deal. Some have advocated the use of Spirit Airlines ($220 round trip), but by the time you add the $35 carry-on luggage fee each way and pay for an assigned seat, it's about the same price as United (even if you paid a check-in luggage fee on United). I have flown Spirit once and will never again unless forced. They're quite unorganized; one passenger was moved seats five times (so don't choose a random seat)! I reserved a Best Western near Michigan Mile on 08Jan2013 for $166.57/night (including taxes). I doubt I'll have enough hotel points to even try to get a free room by then, but we'll see. I can always cancel the hotel. Chicago is one of the few cities where I will not book a rental car, as they have an excellent public transportation system that will take you easily to the airport and Toyota Park. I always chuckle because you take the orange line to Toyota Park.
Those are the only Dynamo trips I have set in stone so far. I really wanted to go to Columbus and NY in June, but at this point, I don't know what site visits I can schedule. I am 80% certain I can schedule site visits so that I can attend the Philly and Boston games in September, as well as the DC game in October. That would make a total of 8 regular season caps, which isn't bad. I believe this was my total number of Dynamo away games last year (although I don't really keep count). Hopefully we'll make MLS playoffs; of course I will attend as many of those games as possible.
If you're a Houston Dynamo fan, feel free to contact me if you'd like to meet on the road!
Thursday, April 4, 2013
Monday, April 1, 2013
USMNT Gold Cup Plans
Many have asked, "Why do Gold Cup? It doesn't count this year." My response: "Why not? I can afford it." Gold Cup is a tricky tournament for the traveler, with four games across the USA, a semi-final (for which we have to qualify), and a final (for which we have to qualify). I'll be traveling with David (American Outlaws San Diego President); having someone to share the bills definitely makes it easier, although I am lucky I can also schedule work in between as well!
July 9th Portland: I have scheduled a couple of site visits in Washington already, so I am fortunate in that work will pay for my inbound and outbound flights, as well as the rental car (cheaper to fly me to Portland and pay for rental car versus coming home). I still need to book a hotel, although I have my eye on a Doubletree hotel downtown. Once I get about 900 more Hilton points, I'll be able to book. [Trying to get those last few points is always the hardest!] There's currently a Living Social deal available today only - $99/night is not a bad rate, and the hotel's less than 2 miles from the stadium. You could always take a cab and party downtown; I'm sure it'd be cheaper than parking at the stadium.
July 13th Salt Lake City: It's funny how I've never been to Salt Lake City in my life, but within a month's time span, I will visit twice. I am not sure what SLC did to get two USMNT games, but they were sure lucky (not that I am jealous or anything LOL). A rental car was booked using points, my inbound flight's paid for by work, and my outbound flight was paid using miles. I've booked a Homewood Suites downtown; for some hotels, Hilton lets you book a partial rate and points, so our rate is $40/night. For those who are unfamiliar with Homewood Suites, they're pretty decent. You get free breakfast, free light dinner and alcohol Monday through Thursdays (pending state law), a fully equipped kitchen, big fridge, dishwasher, and most importantly for us - coin laundry. Since we'll be on the road for 16 days (according to Worldmate - wonderful travel app!), easily accessible laundry is a must. Homewood Suites tend to be reasonably priced. Had I paid, the cheapest rate available is $84/night - not bad at all! This hotel also puts us about 5 blocks from the AO bar.
July 16th Hartford: From Salt Lake we go to Hartford. Thankfully I had miles to use or else the United airfare would have cost around $500! We made the decision to stay in Salt Lake City longer and leave for Hartford on July 15th (instead of flying into Hartford on the 14th) mainly because the hotel was cheaper in Salt Lake. Ten minutes walking distance from the AO bar, the Hartford Homewood Suites downtown is about $300 (thank goodness for points)!
At this point in the trip, the question is, what do you do? The next game, the quarterfinal, is in Baltimore on July 21st, almost a week later. It seems silly while on the east coast, to go home to Houston or for my San Diego companion, all the way back to the west coast. So what did I do? Schedule a site visit in Boston. Boston is less than a two hour drive from Hartford. This means work will pay for the rental car in Hartford, hotel/meals/ground transportation in Boston, and my flight from Boston to DC. :-)
July 21st DC - From Boston to DC, it's pretty cheap to travel. A one-way, 1.5 hour flight on US airways is $81 between the two cities. You can take the train, but the train is only $10 cheaper and an eight hour journey. In addition, the rental car (paid by work) has been booked for pickup at DCA; rarely do train stations have rental car companies on site. The Baltimore stadium is about 45 minutes away from DC. One may ask why I decided to fly into DCA instead of BWI, and the simple answer is that we are staying with a friend. Thankfully she has agreed to put up with us for a weekend, as I'm out of hotel points at this stage. She'll also have a washer/dryer in her apartment, which is definitely a plus. We'll arrive on a Friday and leave on the Monday after game day; I look forward to exploring DC. It's actually one of my favorite cities with lots of cheap, free things to do (thanks to my tax dollars!). I used miles to book my flight to Houston, my home.
For David, things are a bit trickier living on the west coast. He'll book his flight after the quarterfinal in Baltimore. If the USA wins, he'll book a flight to Houston so he can stay with me for free. If the USA loses, he'll book a flight home to San Diego. While this may seem like we are cursing the USA or have little faith, keep in mind, we were at the Olympics' semi-final and final in KC last year when the USA did not qualify.
Should the USA qualify for the semi-final on July 24th, it's an easy drive to Dallas from Houston (about 4-5 hours). At this time, I have not decided if I myself will drive and stay overnight at a friend's place. I am also working on a charter bus trip for the AO Houston chapter, so this is another option as well.
The final is in Chicago on July 28th. I am currently awaiting work, but most likely I will be able to schedule a visit on July 29th (which means work would pay for hotel, flights, etc). I would fly early into Chicago on game day mainly because there is a Houston Dynamo game on July 27th. Ironically, the Dynamo play Chicago Fire in Houston on the 27th. Too bad the game isn't in Chicago or else we could've had a potential double-header (reminiscent of Chicago 2009 when there was a Dynamo game on a Friday night & USMNT WCQ game on a Saturday night). Often, I am asked if I am club over country or country over club, and the answer is that I am equally both. I am a season ticket holder for Houston Dynamo, and I attended all USA domestic home games last year except one (Brazil friendly in DC). My actions speak for themselves.
In a nutshell, those are my gold cup plans. I look forward to seeing you at the games!
July 9th Portland: I have scheduled a couple of site visits in Washington already, so I am fortunate in that work will pay for my inbound and outbound flights, as well as the rental car (cheaper to fly me to Portland and pay for rental car versus coming home). I still need to book a hotel, although I have my eye on a Doubletree hotel downtown. Once I get about 900 more Hilton points, I'll be able to book. [Trying to get those last few points is always the hardest!] There's currently a Living Social deal available today only - $99/night is not a bad rate, and the hotel's less than 2 miles from the stadium. You could always take a cab and party downtown; I'm sure it'd be cheaper than parking at the stadium.
July 13th Salt Lake City: It's funny how I've never been to Salt Lake City in my life, but within a month's time span, I will visit twice. I am not sure what SLC did to get two USMNT games, but they were sure lucky (not that I am jealous or anything LOL). A rental car was booked using points, my inbound flight's paid for by work, and my outbound flight was paid using miles. I've booked a Homewood Suites downtown; for some hotels, Hilton lets you book a partial rate and points, so our rate is $40/night. For those who are unfamiliar with Homewood Suites, they're pretty decent. You get free breakfast, free light dinner and alcohol Monday through Thursdays (pending state law), a fully equipped kitchen, big fridge, dishwasher, and most importantly for us - coin laundry. Since we'll be on the road for 16 days (according to Worldmate - wonderful travel app!), easily accessible laundry is a must. Homewood Suites tend to be reasonably priced. Had I paid, the cheapest rate available is $84/night - not bad at all! This hotel also puts us about 5 blocks from the AO bar.
July 16th Hartford: From Salt Lake we go to Hartford. Thankfully I had miles to use or else the United airfare would have cost around $500! We made the decision to stay in Salt Lake City longer and leave for Hartford on July 15th (instead of flying into Hartford on the 14th) mainly because the hotel was cheaper in Salt Lake. Ten minutes walking distance from the AO bar, the Hartford Homewood Suites downtown is about $300 (thank goodness for points)!
At this point in the trip, the question is, what do you do? The next game, the quarterfinal, is in Baltimore on July 21st, almost a week later. It seems silly while on the east coast, to go home to Houston or for my San Diego companion, all the way back to the west coast. So what did I do? Schedule a site visit in Boston. Boston is less than a two hour drive from Hartford. This means work will pay for the rental car in Hartford, hotel/meals/ground transportation in Boston, and my flight from Boston to DC. :-)
July 21st DC - From Boston to DC, it's pretty cheap to travel. A one-way, 1.5 hour flight on US airways is $81 between the two cities. You can take the train, but the train is only $10 cheaper and an eight hour journey. In addition, the rental car (paid by work) has been booked for pickup at DCA; rarely do train stations have rental car companies on site. The Baltimore stadium is about 45 minutes away from DC. One may ask why I decided to fly into DCA instead of BWI, and the simple answer is that we are staying with a friend. Thankfully she has agreed to put up with us for a weekend, as I'm out of hotel points at this stage. She'll also have a washer/dryer in her apartment, which is definitely a plus. We'll arrive on a Friday and leave on the Monday after game day; I look forward to exploring DC. It's actually one of my favorite cities with lots of cheap, free things to do (thanks to my tax dollars!). I used miles to book my flight to Houston, my home.
For David, things are a bit trickier living on the west coast. He'll book his flight after the quarterfinal in Baltimore. If the USA wins, he'll book a flight to Houston so he can stay with me for free. If the USA loses, he'll book a flight home to San Diego. While this may seem like we are cursing the USA or have little faith, keep in mind, we were at the Olympics' semi-final and final in KC last year when the USA did not qualify.
Should the USA qualify for the semi-final on July 24th, it's an easy drive to Dallas from Houston (about 4-5 hours). At this time, I have not decided if I myself will drive and stay overnight at a friend's place. I am also working on a charter bus trip for the AO Houston chapter, so this is another option as well.
The final is in Chicago on July 28th. I am currently awaiting work, but most likely I will be able to schedule a visit on July 29th (which means work would pay for hotel, flights, etc). I would fly early into Chicago on game day mainly because there is a Houston Dynamo game on July 27th. Ironically, the Dynamo play Chicago Fire in Houston on the 27th. Too bad the game isn't in Chicago or else we could've had a potential double-header (reminiscent of Chicago 2009 when there was a Dynamo game on a Friday night & USMNT WCQ game on a Saturday night). Often, I am asked if I am club over country or country over club, and the answer is that I am equally both. I am a season ticket holder for Houston Dynamo, and I attended all USA domestic home games last year except one (Brazil friendly in DC). My actions speak for themselves.
In a nutshell, those are my gold cup plans. I look forward to seeing you at the games!
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)