Star Mega DO, Whaaaa?

What do you get when you mix 170+ frequent flyer junkies with one part Boeing 737-900, one part flight simulator, one part Randy Petersen, three parts alcohol, one part Hyatt, one part Gary Leff, four parts great food and one part Tommy? You get Star Mega Do 3…in all of its glory.

Most people in the world don’t know what StarMegaDo is. This is expected. Most people in the world also don’t know what a “Trekkie Show” is unless you’re into that kind of thing. But for those of us who have made flying a passion – everything from collecting miles and points to planning mileage runs – the Star Mega Do events hold a special place in our hearts.

The annual event is organized for members of the Star Alliance, the largest airline alliance in the world that facilitates flight-sharing between member airlines. The MegaDo was founded by Tommy Danielson at the end of 2008. His vision was to charter a plane and take 200+ airline enthusiasts all over the world to tour airports, airplane manufacturers, and basically experience all things flying. His vision was also to throw a big party – in the sky, in fancy hotel receptions hosted by sponsors of the trip, and in many of the events throughout the week. These parties facilitate connections between members who may only know each other from chatting on popular frequent flyer forums like Milepoint and Flyertalk.

It’s hard to understand why some people would spend thousands of dollars and use their coveted vacation time to go on a trip in which they spend most of their time up in the air. But for these flyers, it is a dream trip come true…and the best part? You earn miles throughout the entire trip! This year, all of these high-flyers earned miles AND were automatically granted instant Hyatt Diamond status, the highest level in Hyatt with the best benefits.

Highlights of the trip this year included touring the Frankfurt Airport and Bombardier factory in Canada, parties hosted by United, Lufthansa, Air Canada/Aeroplan and Hyatt, time for some in the United Flight Simulator, tours of the Wings Over the Rockies Air & Space Museum, and a beautiful afternoon at the Coors Stadium to watch a Rockies win!

UsingMiles was a proud sponsor of this amazing annual event. In fact, we paid for the busses. I know it doesn’t sound sexy, but somebody’s gotta do it and we were delighted to be involved. We launched a fun contest in coordination with eBags at the event (see pics below) and even gave away “Decoding Air Travel” books to help frequent flyers travel better.

At the end of the day, nothing explains this event quite like the pictures. Please take a moment to share them with us and don’t forget to book your ticket next year (and to renew your passport!)

This is THE MAN. Tommy Danielson is the founder of Star Mega Do and the visionary. He talks a lot. We love listening to him.

Mega Do'ers out in Chicago. Brian, "The Points Guy," Darin, Richard and Brad. These guys were awesome!

Kathy Klass won The Point Guy's contest and flew for free! Here she is with an eBag!

The Hyatt was an amazing sponsor. We all got instant Diamond Status, and chatting with Jeff Zydell, head of loyalty, was a treat.

Mega Do'ers boarding the bus to go to the airport, naturally.

Ed Pizza Man (part of Mega Do Exec team) just being himself…all smiles!

UsingMiles Contest: What Would You Do For Miles??

Yes, some of us would actually fly to Mars for miles.

Others would sell their first born…and other things…for miles.

Up in the air…this is what it's all about…

Susan DeBruhl (@miffSC) at Air Canada. Thanks for the pics, Susan!

Wings Over the Rockies Air & Space Museum in Denver, CO.

Amazing tour. Our tour guide actually flew some of these Air Force planes!

Lunch with the crew at Wynkoop Brewing Co. Nothing like a cold beer after looking at airplanes!

United Flight Simulators. I didn't get to do this, but many in the group said it was the real deal.

Check out what Will would do for miles. Yes, he did take this picture while inside of the Sim.

Star Mega Do 3 at the Rockies Game, club level seats! They won!

Randy Petersen, "the frequent flyer guru," enjoying some ball

Check out the Star Mega Do t-shirt. It was pretty fancy.

We even had an engagement at Star Mega Do 3! How cool is that? Congrats!

So how’s that for an event? Tired?

This entry was posted in Uncategorized and tagged , , , , , . Bookmark the permalink.

One Response to Star Mega DO, Whaaaa?

  1. Susan says:

    And a great time was had by all! Thanks for sharing the photos! Had a wonderful time at lunch and look forward to seeing you the next time I am in Denver…. or before

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

*

You may use these HTML tags and attributes: <a href="" title=""> <abbr title=""> <acronym title=""> <b> <blockquote cite=""> <cite> <code> <del datetime=""> <em> <i> <q cite=""> <strike> <strong>