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  1. Mattg

    Article: My Advice for Aspiring Travel Writers

    SEO is a very broad topic and there's a lot to learn - definitely too much to cover here. I'd suggest starting by having a look at the resources available here: https://yoast.com/get-the-most-out-of-yoast-seo/ If you don't already have Yoast SEO installed on your website, that would also be a...
  2. Mattg

    Australia to Europe from $684 return

    I'm not really sure where this comment came from, but 1. Most people fly Economy, and 2. 45% of AFF reviews in the past year have been for premium cabins.
  3. Mattg

    China Southern increases flights to Australia

    Looks like this is being weight-restricted on the southbound sector. https://www.aeroroutes.com/eng/251229-czns26drw
  4. Mattg

    Australia to Europe from $684 return

    For ~$700 return to Budapest or Geneva I'd put up with it :)
  5. Mattg

    The Flightradar24 appreciation thread

    NZ261 (ADL-CHC) on 22 December also took an odd flight path. Flight took an hour longer than usual. The inbound aircraft went a similar way, so presumably there was an MEL requiring them to remain closer than usual to an airport at all times...
  6. Mattg

    The Flightradar24 appreciation thread

    JQ888, already running a few hours late, took the long way around from BNE to MKY the other night: https://www.flightradar24.com/data/flights/jq888#3da01f74 Other departures from BNE were also heading south first. I wonder if a certain section of airspace was closed.
  7. Mattg

    Article: Matt's IHG Hotel Status Strategy

    You should be able to use the suite night upgrades on flexible/refundable points bookings, subject to all the other conditions. I think that was previously not the case, but changed a while ago so that this is possible. You can test this for yourself. Since points bookings are generally...
  8. Mattg

    March 2026

    4 Mar QF76 YVR CX lounge 1800 +1 6 Mar QF508 SYD QF dom J 0730 +2 10 Mar QF537 BNE QF dom J 1500 +2 11 Mar QF1523 SYD QF dom J 1500 +2
  9. Mattg

    February 2026

    3 Feb CX906 MNL CX lounge 0930 +1 3 Feb CX416 HKG Pier F 1400 +1
  10. Mattg

    January 2026

    24 Jan QF165 BNE QF Intl J 0730 Can guest 1
  11. Mattg

    Garuda massively increases miles required for domestic redemptions

    Did Garuda give any notice of this? Very poor if not. (And even with notice, those are huge increases.)
  12. Mattg

    Brisbane dinner - 20 January 2026

    It's been a little while since the last AFF meet-up in Brisbane. Let's have another one when I'm in town on Tuesday, 20 January 2026. I'm thinking of Wu Kong Kitchen & Bar in the Brisbane CBD as the location, with a start time of 6.30pm. Please RSVP in this thread if you would like to join. :)
  13. Mattg

    Article: My Advice for Aspiring Travel Writers

    @DejaBrew answered this question well. :) Understanding these concepts isn't just useful - they are crucial to the survival of a website like AFF - and most other content-based websites, too. Yes indeed, the traffic that all websites get from Google is declining ever since Google introduced...
  14. Mattg

    I'm stepping down from the AFF editor role

    That is not completely out of the question. ;)
  15. Mattg

    Pickpocketed in Bangkok: by Qantas

    It's also ridiculous that the refund is a "one-time exception" as a "gesture of goodwill", but at least this got resolved in the end. Thanks @FlyingScotsman for reporting back.
  16. Mattg

    Your 2025 year of travel in review

    Or if @rbjhan took the train there from continental Europe ;)
  17. Mattg

    Your 2025 year of travel in review

    I've ended this year on 94 flights, which is the same number as last year but I flew considerably further this year. I also feel like I'm ending this year a lot more tired from all the travel - but perhaps that's an accumulation of several years in a row of rather intense travel. This was also...
  18. Mattg

    No Business seats SYD-CBR

    There are also days now where Qantas is exclusively using Dash 8s (so no J available) on MEL-CBR. Not sure what's going on but even ADL-CBR, HBA-CBR and BNE-CBR are seeing Dash 8s now at times. I don't love this development as a CBR local.
  19. Mattg

    Flights that take off in 2026 and land in 2025

    An interesting list here: https://www.aeroroutes.com/eng/251221-2526flights If anyone wanted to do this, I think the Air New Zealand flight from AKL to RAR would be a prime candidate.
  20. Mattg

    I'm stepping down from the AFF editor role

    Thank you to everyone for your well wishes, they mean a lot. I'd say that's unlikely! 😝 To be clear, it was 100% my decision to move on. It has nothing to do with cost-cutting and no, I wasn't pushed out. This has been a great job for me for 11 years, but that's a long time in the same...
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