Welcome to The Morning Shave for Sunday, December 21, 2025. Learn how to track your flights through this simple iPhone hack, why some airports charge departure taxes, and how to avoid this new Uber scam that charges you without actually picking you up. Visit BaldThoughts.com/tms to read all the stories.
We read a ton of travel articles each day for our research to share the best travel tips, tricks, and news with you. Here are the articles we think you should read.
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The Morning Shave
The Secret iPhone Flight Hack to Use on Your Next Trip.
I typically rely on TripIt to track my flights and other travel reservations. But this simple trick to track your flights doesn’t require downloading any apps or paying for any subscriptions. However, it’s only available to iPhone users, so Google/Android devotees are out of luck. Have you tried this free travel hack before?
Warning: What You Must Know About Connecting Your Device in a Rental Car.
I’m in Tampa, Florida, as I’m reading this article, and its message hits home. When I plugged into my rental car, Apple CarPlay asked to sync my phone numbers and other information. As I went through the car’s settings, the previous driver didn’t disconnect and erase his information. If someone with criminal intent rented the car after him, his personal information could have been at risk.
Why Do Many Countries Charge a Departure Tax?
Departure taxes always remind me of the Eagles song “Hotel California.” You can check in any time, but you can never leave (without paying a fee). The concept of departure taxes is similar to hotel taxes and extra fees on rental cars at airports. Cities want to collect additional revenue without upsetting voters. As long as you have a vibrant visitor base, you can tack on small fees to flights, hotel rooms, rental cars, etc., to fill in gaps in your budget without any political repercussions.
How to Use MCC Codes to Find Which US Bank Smartly Purchases Don’t Earn 4% Cash Back.
While this article focuses on a specific credit card, you can use its strategies to find the MCC codes on any purchase to determine which category a store fits into. This information helps you determine whether your purchases qualify for bonus points based on your credit card’s bonus categories. Knowing this information allows you to know which card to use, which could mean the difference between earning a flat 1x points or up to 6x points, depending on which bonus categories your card offers.
Uber Drivers Are Starting Trips Without Passengers And Charging Them. Here’s How To Stop It.
With Uber, Lyft, and other rideshare apps pushing wages down, drivers are getting increasingly creative about how they cheat the system to boost their rates. Unfortunately, the money doesn’t come out of the company’s pocket… it comes out of yours. Matt has some great tips on how to stop this from happening and keep your rideshare fare from costing you extra money.
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