Lie Flat Club case study. A real 16-night itinerary designed for a party of 2 from New York in October 2026, shown as the client-ready trip book we deliver. Traveler details, confirmation numbers, and prices paid are removed. Points prices are from published award charts as of Oct 2026 and must be re-verified for any real booking.
The brief
- Travelers: 2 adults from New York
- Dates: early to mid October, 16 nights
- Vibe: design hotels, skyline bars, serious food, great shopping (menswear, eyewear, fragrance), one festival weekend, one adrenaline moment, and a "main character" night in Shanghai
- Pace: balanced, with real recovery after long flights and late nights
- Hard rule: every travel day is protected. No big plans the night before an early flight.
At a glance
| Nights | City | Stay | Signature moment |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Seoul | Signiel Seoul (Lotte World Tower) | Sunset drinks on the 81st floor |
| 2 | Incheon (Yeongjong) | Resort hotels near the festival site | Two-night music festival weekend |
| 2 | Osaka | Conrad Osaka | Omakase in Kitashinchi |
| 3 | Tokyo | The Tokyo EDITION, Toranomon | Tandem skydive with Mt Fuji on the horizon |
| 4 | Chongqing | Riverside hotel, then Conrad Chongqing | The monorail that runs through an apartment building |
| 4 | Shanghai | Andaz Xintiandi, then The Langham Xintiandi | Chauffeured Maybach night along the Bund |
Flights
How this case study trip flew
Positioned NYC to Toronto, then Air Canada premium economy Toronto to Seoul (cash), short regional hops inside Asia (cash, cheap), and a nonstop Shanghai to New York home.
How Lie Flat Club would build it on points (illustrative, verify live)
| Leg | Best points option | Published price (one-way, per person) | Pay with |
|---|---|---|---|
| New York to Asia | ANA business, New York to Tokyo, booked through Virgin Atlantic Flying Club, then a short hop to Seoul, OR reorder the trip to start in Tokyo | 60,000 Virgin points + taxes and fees (Virgin Atlantic ANA chart) | Amex MR or Chase UR, both 1:1 to Virgin |
| Alternative | Star Alliance business to Seoul or Tokyo through Air Canada Aeroplan (distance-based chart) | Check Aeroplan's current chart for the exact routing | Amex MR or Chase UR, both 1:1 to Aeroplan |
| Seoul to Osaka, Tokyo to Chongqing, Chongqing to Shanghai | Pay cash | Short regional fares are usually cheaper in cash than in points | Cash |
| Shanghai to New York | Search Star Alliance and SkyTeam partner space on seats.aero; ANA via Tokyo is a fallback | Priced per segment on most partner charts | Amex MR or Chase UR |
Pro move on this trip: open the outbound ANA search the day space opens (Virgin's calendar runs about 331 days out (about 11 months); ANA awards through Virgin are booked by phone). Couples need 2 seats on the same flight, so set alerts and book the moment it appears.
Hotels
| City | Hotel | Why | Points angle |
|---|---|---|---|
| Seoul | Signiel Seoul | Floors 76 to 101 of Lotte World Tower; the view is the experience | Not a major points chain. Book cash, ideally through a prepaid luxury program for breakfast and late checkout. Points alternative: Park Hyatt Seoul, about 25,000 Hyatt points per night (reported Oct 2026) |
| Incheon | Resort hotels near the festival site | Walkable or short taxi to the venue, with a pool to recover | Cash, book early. Festival weekends sell out |
| Osaka | Conrad Osaka | 40th-floor lobby and bar, Nakanoshima riverside, quick taxi to Kitashinchi | Hilton dynamic pricing, reported around 95,000 Hilton points per night (Amex transfers to Hilton 1:2). Often better in cash |
| Tokyo | The Tokyo EDITION, Toranomon | Moody design hotel with a great bar; central for Roppongi, Azabudai, Ginza | Marriott dynamic pricing, recently reported around 116,000 to 127,000 points per night, usually poor value. Points alternative next door: Andaz Tokyo, Hyatt Category 8, about 40,000 points standard |
| Chongqing | Riverside design hotel, then Conrad Chongqing | First stay for the skyline views, second for the pool and gym reset | Conrad is Hilton; compare points vs cash, China cash rates are often low |
| Shanghai | Andaz Xintiandi, then The Langham Xintiandi | Two very different vibes in the same walkable neighborhood; The Langham houses T'ang Court | Andaz is Hyatt (check the current category); Langham is cash, consider a prepaid luxury program |
Day by day
SEOUL
Day 1 | Land in Seoul - Evening: Incheon to Signiel by car (about 60 to 90 minutes). Check in, shower, reset. - Signature moment: Bar 81 at dusk, on the 81st floor of Lotte World Tower. One drink, city lights, early night. - Backup: room service and sleep. Jet lag wins tonight.
Day 2 | Seongsu, then the coast - Morning: hotel breakfast, then Seongsu-dong, Seoul's warehouse design district. Walk into Gentle Monster HAUS NOWHERE for the sunglasses flagship and its installation art. - Afternoon: transfer to Yeongjong Island near the airport for the festival weekend. Eat a real meal before doors open. - Evening: Festival night 1. Hydrate, plan a meeting spot, keep phones charged.
Day 3 | Festival night 2 - Sleep in, slow brunch, optional coastal walk only if energy is green. - Evening: Festival night 2. Leave after the headliner; tomorrow is a travel day.
OSAKA
Day 4 | Seoul to Osaka - Late morning: short flight to Kansai (about 2 hours). Pre-book a private airport pickup to the hotel. - Evening: pool or sauna, then one drink at the Conrad's 40th-floor bar. In bed by 1.
Day 5 | Architecture and omakase - Morning: easy run along the Nakanoshima riverside. - Late morning: Tadao Ando's Children's Book Forest in Nakanoshima Park (free, timed entry; reserve ahead). - Afternoon: menswear in Amerikamura and the Umeda flagships. - Signature moment: omakase dinner in Kitashinchi, Osaka's grown-up dining district. Book 30 to 60 days ahead through OMAKASE, TableCheck, or the hotel concierge.
TOKYO
Day 6 | Bullet train to Tokyo - Midday: Nozomi shinkansen, Shin-Osaka to Tokyo in about 2.5 hours (about ¥14,720 reserved; a JR Pass doesn't fully cover Nozomi without a supplement, so a single ticket is usually better for this one ride). - Afternoon: check in at The Tokyo EDITION, Toranomon. Walk to Daikanyama for a car-culture café and the Le Labo shop. - Evening: dinner booked in Azabujuban.
Day 7 | Tokyo, full send - Morning: hotel gym, then coffee near Shiba Park with the Tokyo Tower sightline. - Afternoon: Minami-Aoyama flagships, then the Azabudai Hills exterior for architecture. - Evening: chef's counter dinner in Nishiazabu, then a Shibuya bar before the clubs. Nightlife note: Shibuya's best rooms open late; cap the night by 3.
Day 8 | Signature moment: skydive with Mt Fuji views - Morning: tandem skydive with Skydive Azul in Nirasaki, Yamanashi, which goes up by helicopter with Mt Fuji and the Southern Alps in view (from ¥99,000 per person in 2026; camera add-ons extra). Strict height and weight limits apply, it's weather-dependent, and it books out. Always have a rain plan. - Rain plan: Koenji vintage and Ginza flagships. - Evening: Gold Bar at the EDITION, then a big final Tokyo night, early enough for tomorrow's flight.
CHONGQING
Day 9 | Tokyo to Chongqing - Early car to Narita, then a connection via Hong Kong. A pure travel day: lounge, shower, nothing else. Late check-in at a riverside hotel with a skyline view. - Before you go: Alipay and WeChat Pay set up with a foreign card, Didi installed, a roaming eSIM or VPN for Google and Instagram.
Day 10 | The cyberpunk city - Late morning: easy run, then get comfortable with the metro around Jiefangbei. - Signature moment: Liziba station, where the Line 2 monorail runs straight through a residential building. Watch from the viewing deck below. - Evening: serious Chongqing hotpot (go mala, not mild), then Hongyadong lit up at night and the Nanbin Road skyline.
Day 11 | Hotel swap and reset - Midday: move to Conrad Chongqing. Pool and gym. - Afternoon: curated vintage hunting in Guanyinqiao. - Evening: one drink at the hotel bar, early night.
Day 12 | Slow day - Morning: strength session. - Optional: Huangjueping graffiti street OR Danzishi old street. Pick one, not both. - Evening: pack. Tomorrow is a flight.
SHANGHAI
Day 13 | Chongqing to Shanghai - Midday: flight to Pudong (about 2.5 hours). Car to Andaz Xintiandi. - Evening: soft landing in the Xintiandi lanes. Light dinner, early night.
Day 14 | West Bund and the Maybach night - Morning: run along the Huangpu. - Afternoon: the West Bund art corridor (museums in old aircraft hangars and oil tanks). - Signature moment: 4-hour chauffeured Mercedes-Maybach evening, from Xintiandi to dinner on the Bund, then a slow cruise along the waterfront and Lujiazui skyline. Book through a licensed Shanghai chauffeur company. Get a written confirmation with the hours, mileage cap, and what's included. - Late: Shanghai nightlife around Fuxing Park, or a cocktail at Speak Low.
Day 15 | Suzhou day trip, then The Langham - Morning: high-speed train from Hongqiao to Suzhou (about 30 minutes). Book on 12306 or at the station counter with your passport. Third-party sites sometimes auto-cancel foreign bookings, which happened on this trip, so we now book direct. - Afternoon: back to Shanghai, check in at The Langham Xintiandi (club lounge). - Evening: optional Le Labo Xintiandi stop on the walk back.
Day 16 | Signature dinner - Late morning: Anfu Road and Wukang Road, plane trees, boutiques, and the best people-watching in the city. - Lunch: sushi counter in Xintiandi. - Signature moment: T'ang Court, the Cantonese dining room at The Langham (three Michelin stars at the time of writing; verify the current rating). Book directly with the hotel.
Day 17 | Home - Morning: car to Pudong with 3+ hours of buffer. Nonstop to New York.
Reservations tracker
| What | Book how far ahead | How |
|---|---|---|
| Award flights | As soon as space opens (about 330 to 360 days) | Airline program; set seats.aero alerts |
| Festival tickets + nearby hotels | 3 to 6 months | Official ticketing; refundable hotels |
| Kitashinchi and Nishiazabu omakase | 30 to 60 days | OMAKASE, TableCheck, hotel concierge |
| Tadao Ando Children's Book Forest | When the timed-entry window opens | Official site |
| Skydive Azul | 1 to 2 months | Official site; read the height and weight limits first |
| Shanghai chauffeured Maybach | 1 to 2 weeks | Licensed chauffeur company; written confirmation |
| Suzhou train | When sales open | 12306 or the station counter (passport) |
| T'ang Court | 2 to 4 weeks | Hotel directly |
Pre-trip checklist
- Korea: check K-ETA or e-Arrival requirements for your passport on the official site
- Japan: Visit Japan Web for faster arrival
- China: check current visa or visa-free transit rules for your passport, set up Alipay and WeChat Pay with a foreign card, Didi, Amap, a roaming eSIM
- Apps: Google Maps (Japan, Korea), Naver Map or KakaoMap (Korea), Papago (translation), Suica in Apple Wallet (Japan)
- Cash: some yen for small Tokyo bars, vintage shops, and club doors
What the client gets
This full trip book as a PDF, a live reservations tracker, award alerts until flights are booked, and (on Concierge) text support during the trip.
Want a trip like this? Lie Flat Club plans it, you just pack. Trip Design from $450, Concierge from $1,500.