The Best Public Transit Destinations

Greetings from New Jersey! I’m home, but already thinking about how I’ll satisfy my wanderlust after being grounded for six weeks later this summer, when my day job keeps me tied down during a major sporting event. Knowing that stretch is coming, I’ve been carving out time to plan trips for later in the year — both as an escape and as a way to get ahead of rising airfares and lock in hotel awards before looming devaluations hit later this month. It’s a great time to start thinking about summer and fall travel!

This week:

• 💺 Delta One to Colombia from 53K SkyMiles each way

• ✈️ You can now earn Delta SkyMiles on Airbnb Experiences, not just stays

• 🚆 World-class public transit systems that make skipping the rental car easy

• 📺 The White Lotus has new, points-friendly luxury stand-ins for season four

• 🏨 A dreamy canal-view upgrade for a friend visiting Amsterdam

Have a great weekend — and happy travels!

Disclosure: This post contains referral links, which may earn me a small bonus. I only recommend products I use or truly believe in.

Via Thrifty Traveler: Delta is running a rare Delta One award sale to Bogotá, with lie-flat business class seats available from as low as 53,000 SkyMiles each way for Delta American Express credit card holders. Travelers without a Delta card are mostly seeing pricing between 62,000–74,000 SkyMiles one-way.

Availability is unusually broad, with departures from dozens of U.S. cities including Newark, JFK, Boston, Atlanta, Chicago, Miami, and Washington, D.C., spanning much of summer 2026 and into next winter.

The flights are operated on Delta’s Boeing 767-300 with direct aisle access in a 1-2-1 configuration, and include Sky Club access, checked bags, meals, and lounge access. It’s also one of the few realistic ways to fly lie-flat business class to Colombia using points without paying astronomical rates.

Delta and Airbnb expanded their long-running partnership this week, adding 3x SkyMiles earnings on Airbnb Experiences and Services. Travelers already earned 1x SkyMiles on Airbnb stays, but can now also earn miles on things like tours, cooking classes, spa treatments, and local activities booked through Airbnb.

To earn, travelers need to link their Airbnb and Delta SkyMiles accounts through Delta’s Airbnb portal before booking. One catch: the connection only stays active for 10 days before it needs to be refreshed.

It’s a small earning opportunity, but an easy way to stack additional miles on travel spending that otherwise wouldn’t earn rewards.

One of the most underrated considerations in trip planning: How easy is it to get around once you arrive? A destination with great transit changes the experience entirely. You move spontaneously, cover more ground, and spend far less energy managing logistics.

A well-connected city also changes what’s possible for travelers with specific needs, whether that’s dietary restrictions, accessibility considerations, or simply wanting to stay flexible and let the day unfold. The less friction there is in getting from place to place, the more rewarding the trip tends to be.

The Shinkansen bullet train network connects the country’s major cities with a precision that still surprises even frequent visitors — a Tokyo-to-Kyoto journey takes just over two hours, and delays are measured in seconds. Within cities, the subway systems are extensive and logical, and a prepaid IC card handles everything from train fare to convenience store purchases. For clients who tend to over-plan trips out of anxiety about logistics, Japan is one of those rare places where you can genuinely trust the infrastructure to do the work.

The Swiss Federal Railways network connects virtually every town in the country and runs with clockwork precision — it’s the kind of system that recalibrates your expectations for what transit can be. For clients building a multi-city Swiss itinerary, the Swiss Travel Pass simplifies everything and often makes more financial sense than individual tickets. And some of the routes — the Glacier Express, the Bernina Express, the GoldenPass — are destinations in themselves.

Singapore’s MRT is as good as urban transit gets: clean, air-conditioned, and fully signed in English, which makes it uniquely accessible for first-time visitors. The city-state is compact enough that most major attractions sit within easy reach of a station, and I typically tell clients it’s one of the most frictionless cities in the world to navigate.

The Tube is one of the great urban transit systems, and for clients who know how to use it, it makes London feel remarkably manageable for a city of its size. An Oyster card or contactless payment handles every journey, and the network reaches most neighborhoods worth exploring. For clients who feel anxious about navigating a big city independently, London is a genuinely reassuring choice.

Copenhagen rewards a slower pace, and the combination of Metro, S-train, and harbor buses makes it easy to feel like you blend in with the locals. The city is also one of the most cycling-friendly in the world, and for clients comfortable on a bike, renting one for a day or two adds a dimension that public transit alone doesn’t. It’s a city that’s easy to move around and even easier to want to linger in.

Vienna’s U-Bahn is efficient and well-designed, but what makes the city exceptional is the combination of subway, tram, and walking — the inner districts are compact enough that you’re often better off on foot or by tram than underground. Worth flagging for clients who like to engage deeply with a city: several of Vienna’s subway stations feature significant art installations, and there are guided tours built specifically around the architecture and artwork throughout the system. It’s a genuinely unusual way to see a city.

Getting the transit question right at the start of a trip makes everything else easier. I’m happy to talk through the logistics of any of these destinations and more!

For the first time in the show’s run, HBO’s The White Lotus is stepping outside the Four Seasons family for season four, and one of its new filming locations is drawing major attention from points-and-miles enthusiasts.

I’m still giddy over helping a client book a stay at season two’s White Lotus: San Domenico Palace, Taormina – A Four Seasons Hotel in Sicily!

According to reports, filming has begun on the French Riviera at both Airelles Château de la Messardière in Saint-Tropez and Hôtel Martinez in Cannes, part of Hyatt’s Unbound Collection.

The Hyatt-affiliated property gives World of Hyatt members — as well as travelers holding Chase Ultimate Rewards or Bilt points transferable to Hyatt — a rare opportunity to book a newly spotlighted luxury TV destination entirely on points. Hôtel Martinez is currently a Category 8 Hyatt property, with standard award nights starting at 35,000 points on off-peak dates and reaching 45,000 points during peak periods.

The timing is notable as Hyatt prepares to roll out major award chart changes on May 20, including higher redemption pricing across many top-tier properties. Hotels expected to see increased demand and visibility, particularly luxury resorts tied to major pop culture moments, could become significantly more expensive to book with points.

Located along Cannes’ Boulevard de la Croisette, Hôtel Martinez has long been associated with the Cannes Film Festival and the French Riviera luxury scene. The hotel features more than 400 rooms and suites, beachfront access, a luxury spa, and a Michelin-starred restaurant.

Kika D. just completed a dreamy solo escape to Amsterdam, where she booked The Hoxton. Fora Reserve perks include a complimentary room upgrade based on availability, and this one definitely came through.

She landed an incredible canal-view upgrade overlooking Amsterdam’s iconic waterways, plus a welcome amenity kit that included a complimentary cocktail, a minibar stocked with kombucha and water, and even a cute little hand sanitizer.

Thanks for reading! As always, I’m here if you want help with cards, points, destinations, or hotel bookings — especially for friends who don’t have time to decode this stuff. Hit me up anytime.