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New York business class from £1154
Dublin has resurrected itself as a cheap place for business class to the US with the latest offer from Aer Lingus. Although you can’t earn tier points on Aer Lingus unless it is a BA codeshare, you can at least earn Avios. As Aer Lingus have different earning partners such as United, it could be worth joining Aer Club as well. You can find out how to transfer your Aer Lingus Avios to BA in this article. However, you can just earn the Avios straight into your BA Executive Club account if you wish.
Aer Lingus have very good business class seats including the throne seats which have wide tables on either side of some of the window seats. I shall be reviewing these seats later this year (I’m going to New York with them funnily enough)
The fares are perfect for some Christmas shopping in New York! This is one of my favourite times to visit New York to see all the beautiful Christmas lights and enjoy skating in Central Park or at the Rockefeller Centre.
The fare is available 19 November to 29 November and 18 December until 4 January for the transatlantic sectors. The fares are changeable and cancellable for a fee and must be booked 28 days in advance the minimum stay is 5 days or a Saturday night. You can book with Aer Lingus here.
Virgin Atlantic’s pop up pub
Virgin Atlantic and Delta Air Lines have come up with a novel way to promote their US routes with a pop-up pub in London. The pub will be called very aptly – The Joint Venture pub. If you are a craft beer fan you will be in for a treat with 230 craft beers sourced from the US destinations the airlines’ fly to.
From 10th – 19th August The Old Crown Public House will turn into The Joint Venture complete with a beer wall installation. The pub will be open to everyone from noon until 11pm, with beers from all over the US available from £4. There will also be themed nights celebrating US culture plus a pub quiz with flights as prizes.
Some of the beers available at The Joint Venture include:
- Seattle: Ruben’s Brew Pilsner (5.4% ABV)
Reubens Brew is a family affair based in Seattle. In just a couple of years, Grace Kim and Adam Robbings graduated from home brewing newbies to brewmaster and co-owner of one of Seattle’s most loved breweries: Reuben’s Brews, which was named after the couple’s son. Since opening in 2012, Reuben’s has won awards for its beers around the world including at the Great American Beer Festival, the World Beer Cup, the US Open and was named Mid-Sized Brewery of the Year at the 2015 Washington Beer Awards. - New York: Six Point Brewing Sweet Action (5.0% ABV)
Sixpoint Brewery was founded 2004, in Red Hook, Brooklyn, New York. It started as a draft-only brewery before moving on to release canned creations in 2010. The company’s motto is Beer is Culture, a play on the cultural significance of beer and brewing, as well as the point that yeast is, in fact, a culture. - Atlanta: SweetWater Brewing 420 Pale Ale (5.7% ABV)
A tasty West Coast-style Extra Pale Ale with a good hop feel to it and a crisp finish. First brewed on 20th April 1997 this beer has developed quite the following - Miami: Cigar City Brewing Jai Alai IPA (7.5% ABV)
Jai Alai, a game native to the Basque region of Spain, is played on a court called a fronton. Jai Alai players attempt to catch a ball using a curved mitt whilst the ball travels at speeds up to 188mph. Proving they have a sense of humour the Spanish dubbed this game, with its ball travelling at race car speeds, “the merry game”. The India Pale Ale-style of beer has its roots in the ales sent from England to thirsty British troops in India during the 18th century. - Boston: Spencer Brewing Trappist Ale (6.5% ABV)
Brewed by the Trappist monks of St. Joseph’s Abbey in Spencer, Massachusetts, the Spencer Brewery is one of only 10 Trappist breweries in the world, and the first in the Americas. Launched in early 2014, the beer has been well received by both connoisseurs and occasional beer drinkers.
New Dubai Hilton options
If you are a Hilton Honors member there are already plenty of options in Dubai such as the Waldorf Astoria the Palm, Hilton Jumeirah and Hilton Dubai Creek. Now there will be three more options. The former St. Regis, W Dubai Habtoor City and Westin Dubai Habtoor City hotels in Dubai are owned by the Al Habtoor Group and as of now, they are operating as generic Al Habtoor hotels. It has been announced that these will shortly be rebranded as Hilton hotels in August. You will be able to earn Hilton points at those hotels from today too.
The properties will become known as Habtoor Palace Hotel, LXR Hotels & Resorts, V Hotel, Curio Collection by Hilton and Hilton Dubai Al Habtoor City. LXR Hotels and Resorts is an old Hilton brand of hotels that appears to be being revived.
