Art of Budget Travel - Travel Like Anna

While the nostalgic part of me misses the days of paper maps and film cameras, smart phones do make travel and life a lot easier. Here’s a recap of my current favorite travel apps – almost all of them are free!

A work trip to Egypt in January helped me earn American Airlines AAdvantage Platinum status thanks to a stopover in Dubai and flying oneworld alliance airlines.  This post was originally published in April 2024 and updated in March 2026 to reflect how I earned status...

Alfred the Gnome loves being part of my annual travel gift guide!  Every year, I compile a list of my favorite travel items that I’ve recently discovered that make my adventures easier, more comfortable or stylish. Several of these were suggestions from friends and...

A guide to Austin’s best hotels, organized by neighborhood for every style and budget. Whether you’re looking for boutique stays in South Congress or hidden gems in East Austin, this guide makes it easy to find a hotel for all budgets.

American Airlines recently changed its upgrade system, making elite status harder to justify. This post breaks down what’s changed and whether elite status still makes sense.

Accommodation and flights are often one of the biggest travel expenses. On my recent six-week trip to Japan (a combination of work and personal travel), I learned some new money-saving tricks that I wanted to share about how to find the best hotel deals.