hotel strategy

Choosing, valuing, and optimising hotel stays across cash, points, status benefits, credits, upgrades, and tradeoffs.

IHG

Jun 15, 2026

•

3 min read

An IHG Award as an Insurance Policy

Using IHG Points & Cash to solve a housing problem before an internship starts.

Expat Vista

Family Travel

Jun 4, 2026

•

4 min read

Scandic Solli Oslo Review

A practical family base in expensive Oslo, with strong breakfast value, workable room economics, and a better location than expected.

Expat Vista

IHG

May 31, 2026

•

3 min read

IHG Free Night Certificate Mistake

A rebooking error changed the redemption decision months later

Expat Vista

Amex Platinum

May 26, 2026

•

4 min read

Oslo Hotel Math

Why the expensive hotel belonged on the cheaper nights, why the family hotel handled the expensive ones, and why this was never going to be a one-hotel trip.

Expat Vista

Hotel Reviews

London Marriott Hotel Maida Vale, Revisited

May 24, 2026

•

2 min read

London Marriott Hotel Maida Vale, Revisited

We needed to be in northwest London anyway. The question became whether a nearby apartment, dinner, drinks, breakfast, and revision space could beat the normal weekend spend.

Expat Vista

Portfolio Management

How the Maida Vale Pub-Substitution Trade Played Out

May 11, 2026

•

4 min read

How the Maida Vale Pub-Substitution Trade Played Out

The math worked on paper. A week later, where we stand on all the rebates, points, and the stay experience itself.

Expat Vista

Hotel Reviews

May 9, 2026

•

3 min read

London Marriott Hotel Maida Vale Review

An upgraded Executive Apartment with far more usable space than expected

Expat Vista

Miles & Points

Free Night Certificates: How to Use Them Well

May 2, 2026

•

2 min read

Free Night Certificates: How to Use Them Well

Across Marriott, Hilton, and IHG

Expat Vista

Portfolio Management

Closing the Loop: Selling at 240k, Buying Back at 95k

Apr 7, 2026

•

2 min read

Closing the Loop: Selling at 240k, Buying Back at 95k

An Arbitrage in Hilton Aspire Free Night Certificates

Expat Vista

IHG

Crowne Plaza Utrecht Review: Next to the Station, Built for Short Stays

Apr 4, 2026

•

3 min read

Crowne Plaza Utrecht Review: Next to the Station, Built for Short Stays

A one-night stay around a hockey schedule, and what this hotel delivers

Expat Vista

Amex Platinum

Mar 30, 2026

•

3 min read

Hilton Credits in London: What Triggers

Testing how payments are processed across hotel bars and restaurants

Expat Vista

Hilton

Mar 25, 2026

•

4 min read

The 240k Hilton Point / FNC Swap Actually Worked

What was required, and what Hilton’s system allows

Expat Vista

IHG

Feb 25, 2026

•

4 min read

IHG and Me

A quiet but essential part of the hotel portfolio

Expat Vista

Amex Platinum

Feb 5, 2026

•

3 min read

Siem Reap: Using FHR as a Capped Rebate

Three nights, two tools, and why stopping early was optimal

Expat Vista

IHG

Kimpton Fitzroy London Review: When Pricing Logic Meets Taste

Jan 31, 2026

•

3 min read

Kimpton Fitzroy London Review: When Pricing Logic Meets Taste

A field report on pricing quirks, restraint, and why some hotels feel different

Expat Vista

IHG

IHG Awards: When Better Rooms Cost the Same Points

Jan 26, 2026

•

4 min read

IHG Awards: When Better Rooms Cost the Same Points

Using the Kimpton Fitzroy to illustrate a common pricing quirk

Expat Vista

hotel strategy

Jan 23, 2026

•

4 min read

Berlin, Planned Around One Fixed Date

East, centre, and west over three days

Expat Vista

Points Accounting

Jan 23, 2026

•

1 min read

The Berlin stay, in numbers

A clean ledger of hotels, points, and one structured experience

Expat Vista

Amex Platinum

Jan 21, 2026

•

2 min read

Grand Mark Prague Hotel Review

A boutique hotel stay timed for Sunday pricing, FHR value, and upgrade odds

Expat Vista

hotel strategy

Jan 19, 2026

•

4 min read

Buying Wyndham Points Too Early

And why it still worked anyway

Expat Vista

hotel strategy

Jan 18, 2026

•

4 min read

Wyndham Rewards: A Practical Explainer

How the program actually works, where it can make sense, and where it doesn’t (Jan 2026)

Expat Vista

Hotel Reviews

W Hotel Prague Review: Energy and Location in the Middle of the Trip

Jan 17, 2026

•

3 min read

W Hotel Prague Review: Energy and Location in the Middle of the Trip

The anchor stay that gave the weekend momentum

Expat Vista

IHG

Holiday Inn Prague Review: An Arrival Night That Just Works

Jan 14, 2026

•

2 min read

Holiday Inn Prague Review: An Arrival Night That Just Works

Late check-in, generous pours, and the value of a night that just works

Expat Vista

Amex Platinum

Jan 9, 2026

•

3 min read

When FHR Stops Being the Right Tool

Amsterdam, abundant luxury, and the limits of rebate logic

Expat Vista

Amex Platinum

Amex Fine Hotels & Resorts (FHR): When It Works (and When It Doesn’t)

Jan 8, 2026

•

4 min read

Amex Fine Hotels & Resorts (FHR): When It Works (and When It Doesn’t)

When the fixed credit works, and when the pricing cancels it out

Expat Vista

hotel strategy

An IHG Award as an Insurance Policy

Scandic Solli Oslo Review

IHG Free Night Certificate Mistake

Oslo Hotel Math

London Marriott Hotel Maida Vale, Revisited

How the Maida Vale Pub-Substitution Trade Played Out

London Marriott Hotel Maida Vale Review

Free Night Certificates: How to Use Them Well

Closing the Loop: Selling at 240k, Buying Back at 95k

Crowne Plaza Utrecht Review: Next to the Station, Built for Short Stays

Hilton Credits in London: What Triggers

The 240k Hilton Point / FNC Swap Actually Worked

IHG and Me

Siem Reap: Using FHR as a Capped Rebate

Kimpton Fitzroy London Review: When Pricing Logic Meets Taste

IHG Awards: When Better Rooms Cost the Same Points

Berlin, Planned Around One Fixed Date

The Berlin stay, in numbers

Grand Mark Prague Hotel Review

Buying Wyndham Points Too Early

Wyndham Rewards: A Practical Explainer

W Hotel Prague Review: Energy and Location in the Middle of the Trip

Holiday Inn Prague Review: An Arrival Night That Just Works

When FHR Stops Being the Right Tool

Amex Fine Hotels & Resorts (FHR): When It Works (and When It Doesn’t)

Get New Posts by Email

About

Subscription

Legal

Socials