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Pandemic travel! Chris’ post.

Flight details: KLM award tickets going, LifeMiles on Turkish coming back (connecting flights — what was I thinking!)

Hotel details: no hotels were planned this time around — privacy and safety were key. Detour in Amsterdam meant adding a Hyatt to the trip for 5000 points. To make this trip work for us, we worked from Venice which meant we needed at least a 1-bedroom suite. Booking a hotel suite would have been insane price-wise, so I tried out Marriott’s Homes & Villas. That reservation introduced us to Truly Venice and this wonderful, 2-bed apartment. Upon arrival in Rome, we were guests of friends who rented a 2-bed villa in the city.

Food details: Truly Venice also provided us with a private chef for one evening when we were working late (on US time!), which Chris blogged about. Restaurant highlight in Venice was Local, which was awarded a Michelin star the following year in 2022.

Other details: this was our first international trip during COVID. It did not feel normal, but it was good to get back in the air and exploring. My strategy for booking trips after March 2020 was to find award availability or a great bargain, cross my fingers that the destination would open up by the time the trip was scheduled, and become disappointed when it wasn’t. This trip was a brain-child of friends and I was fearing more disappointment. The trip wasn’t smooth, but we rolled with the hiccups and had a fabulous time.