New York Palace Archives

DONT MISS! The 100,000 points question!

New Triplex Suites atop the New York Palace hotel have huge outdoor decks w Jacuzzis (Chris McGinnis)

Triplex Suites atop the New York Palace hotel have huge outdoor decks w Jacuzzis. Sweet! But I’m not sure if this is where the President stays. (Chris McGinnis)

President Obama (Photo: Wikimedia)

Fair warning for New York or San Francisco bound travelers this week: Beware of traffic, sold out restaurants and hotels, long waits for taxis and Uber/Lyft surge pricing. Why? In New York, blame the meeting of the UN General Assembly (which will include a Sunday-Wednesday visit and address by President Obama, which makes traffic even worse). As we’ve reported here on TravelSkills, the President now stays at the Lotte New York Palace hotel (Madison and 50th) which means near constant gridlock in that part of town. When we checked, the few rooms left at the Marriott Marquis on Times Square were running $754 per night. Layer on the additional security in the city due to this past weekend’s bombings, and you have a recipe for for some big travel headaches.

In San Francisco, blame the huge Oracle Open World Conference this week, which fills the city and airports to the gills with techies- and everything is overpriced. Both Sting and Gwen Stefani will have private concerts for attendees. Airports (and airfares) will be most crazy on Sunday (start) and Thursday (end). Hotels are mostly full, but what’s left over is overpriced– like the handful of rooms left at the Hilton Financial District going for $600 per night. Also, since so many attendees extend their visits, both weekends will be pretty crazy. And a reservation at a top SF restaurant? Feggedaboudit! And it’s not over yet! The even larger Dreamforce 2016 conference packs the city similarly– It runs Tuesday Oct 4 – Friday Oct 7, and includes a concert by U2!

Headed to SF? Here are 8 Mistakes Every Traveler Must Avoid in San Francisco!

TravelSkills’ 10 most popular posts over the last week (descending order):

1 Gotta see this: Eye-catching maps explain the state of the world

2 A new way to London: Trip Report: British Airways 787 Dreamliner San Jose-London

3 Bummer! Are double-decker jumbo jets doomed?

4 Comments say “yes!” Would you fly a 737 transatlantic for $69?

5 Routes: AA, Air India, Cathay, WOW, Air Canada, Royal Air Maroc + more

6 Airport news: LaGuardia, Atlanta, Heathrow, Chicago Midway, Nashville

7 And the answer is… The 100,000 points question

Gorgeous light thru new stained glass inside the Sagrada Familia Cathedral in Barcelona (Photo: Chris McGinnis)

Gorgeous light in Barcelona’s Sagrada Familia Cathedral. A must-see on any trip to Barcelona, even if you’ve seen it before- because it’s always changing (Photo: Chris McGinnis)

8 New nonstop to Spain Bay Area to Barcelona, nonstop, $199 + more low fares to Europe

9 More than a facelift in La-La Land: An amazing upgrade for LAX- in pictures

10 Most drink more on trips than at home Are you a boozy traveler?

Last year CNN dropped by for some advice about traveling to the Bay Area– see this video to find out what Chris had to say.

Links to stories from other sources that we thought you’d like to read:

Details on Delta’s new SkyClub at ATL Concourse B

Another VERY easy 500 points from Virgin America

Apple headphone changes: a problem for airline inflight entertainment

American Airlines Assisted ‘Sully,’ But Won’t Show the Movie on Its Planes

Cathay Pacific pilot attempts round-the-world flight in home-made plane