Here we are – the end of 2019! As one of my last posts of the year, I am doing a roundup of the top 15 most popular posts here on Running with Miles for 2019. There are still some post topics that still are in the top 15 year after year and this year is no exception!
I like doing this kind of dive into the stats since I actually don’t really look at them much during the year (other than how a particular post is doing on that day). So, it is always a bit of surprise to find what people ended up reading the most here – and it is always a bit of a let down when I find that the posts I worked on the most didn’t make the list! 🙂
Top Posts of 2019 for Running with Miles
In 2019, there were almost 900 posts written here, covering everything from credit card reviews to flight reviews to hotel reviews to marathon reviews, travel news, and a whole lot of deals. I really appreciate the e-mails, comments, and interactions on social media that I had with many of you. It is always nice to interactive with people!
Several of these were written this year but the reason I am including posts that were not written this year is to provide some updates about those topics as well. I have marked the year next to each post so you can see when it was written.
15. Why the Apple Watch Series 4 and Google Fi are Great International Travel Companions [2019]
With Google Fi now natively working on the iPhone, it makes a perfect companion to the Apple Watch Series 4 – or Series 5 – for international travel. This is thanks to the fall detection that these watches have and the ability to always make sure someone knows if something happens. Prior to the Google Fi arrival on the iPhone, this was not possible since the cellular Apple Watch devices only have cellular service in their country of purchase.
14.American Express Cuts a Perk That Never Was an Official Perk [2019]
The American Express cards have several benefits and perks but one of the most loved ons on the Platinum card for years – airline incidental reimbursement – was severely devalued this year when they cut a perk that was never a perk.
13. 24 Hours with the New Garmin Forerunner 945 After 8 Months with the Apple Watch Series 4 [2019]
With ever Apple Watch that comes out, I try it out to compare it to that year’s mainstream Garmin watch. The Apple Watch Series 4 was the first Apple Watch I continued to wear and use after my review period. But, when the Garmin Forerunner 945 came out, it ticked many of the Garmin boxes I had been waiting for.
12. The Boston Marathon Qualifying Times Are Changing For 2020 and Beyond [2018]
Last year, the BAA announced the changing of qualifying times for the Boston Marathon. This next Boston Marathon will be the first one with the new times applied. While many are disappointed, it kind of just affirms ahead of time what was already happening with the registration process anyway.
11. The New Turkish Airlines Business Lounge at the New Istanbul Airport [2019]
Since I go through Istanbul more than any other connecting airport, I was really looking forward to checking out the new Istanbul airport and the new lounges. As it turned out, I was one of the first passengers to land at the new airport and to check out the new lounge as I landed a few hours after the new airport opened to the public (though only Turkish Airlines flights and Atlas flights were using the airport then).
Both this review and the accompanying YouTube walkthrough video were quite popular in the days following!
If you want to see the new Turkish Airlines business class on their Dreamliner, check out this post.
10. The Best Approach for the Chase Sapphire Reserve Now [2017]
This is a post that had a resurgence this year as people were searching about upgrading to the Chase Sapphire Reserve. Long story short – the best way to go is to get the higher bonus of the Chase Sapphire Preferred first and then upgrade to the Chase Sapphire Reserve after the first year.
9. Listen on the Run – These Garmin Watches Support Spotify [2019]
Garmin has done a great job of adding more of a smartwatch feel to their already awesome fitness watches. That includes Spotify coming to several Garmin watches this year (since this post was written, all the latest Garmin watches with music capability also have Spotify available).
8. The Apple Watch Series 4 (and 5) LTE Capability is NOT for International Travel [2018]
I believe this was a serious oversight by Apple (but it was not likely an oversight but more a regulatory/technical issue) in not allowing their LTE watches to be used outside of their original country of purchase. I had hoped it would be remedied for 2019 and the Series 5 but, nope!
7. National Car Rental Elite Status – the Why and How [2013]
Yes, 2013! This is a post that gained more attention this year as people were looking for more information about the great National elite levels. I have been an elite member for about 10 years and absolutely love it for many reasons!
6. How to Track the 2019 Boston Marathon and Check on Your Favorite Runners! [2019]
This post (or each version of it each year) is kind of funny to me – this post was viewed by almost as many people as there were runners in the Boston Marathon. This meant a large amount of people searched for this information and they did not know ahead of time about the Boston Marathon website! I am glad that I was able to help so many track their favorite runners!
5. Using Points for All-Inclusive Resorts – Hilton Edition [2013]
I keep saying I need to update this one and I have it on my list for this next month! All-inclusive resorts are a great use for points as those points cover everything at the property as far as food and even many activities!
4. The Garmin Forerunner 245 vs the Apple Watch Series 4 [2019]
Earlier this year, Garmin came out with an incredible slate of watches – including the somewhat surprising Garmin Forerunner 245. I say “surprising” because it included features that are normally present on much higher end running watches. At similar price points, here is a comparison of features between these watches.
3. Head to Head: Garmin Venu and the Apple Watch Series 5 [2019]
Here is a head to head of the more recent models from both Garmin and Apple. The interesting thing about the Garmin Venu is that it is the first Garmin device with an OLED display to be identical to the crispness and beauty of the Apple Watch. If you are a regular runner, the 245 is likely going to be more preferable but the Venu and Series 5 are good comparisons since they are largely lifestyle watches.
2. Non-Stop Flights to Greece from the US [2016]
I actually have a newer version of this for this year but this post continues to be popular as many people look at traveling to Greece. For more up-to-date information, check out this post on the non-stop flights to Greece from the US.
1. Apple Watch Series 4 vs Garmin Forerunner 645 [2018]
And the most-read post in 2019 was yet another Garmin and Apple Watch post! This likely could have been due to some great deals on the Garmin Forerunner 645 (still going on as of December 30). It is a really great watch and a better running watch than the Apple Watch.
The top post from last year was the Chase Sapphire Reserve upgrade post. Interestingly enough, this was the first year in several years that not one Southwest post came into the top post amounts!
One More from the Top 20
One more post that was in the top 20 but not in the top 15 that was a personal favorite was how Amazon sold items worth thousands on Prime Day for just under $100 each! I never ended up getting my Sony A6000 from this mistake.
Have a good ending to 2019 and see you all (and hopefully many more!) in 2020!
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