Just like US News presented a highly flawed ranking of frequent flyer programs that was mostly a ranking of the airlines themselves, they have also put out a ranking of hotel programs that is as much about “how big is the hotel chain?” as it is “do they provide any value in their loyalty program?” As a result the biggest chains, for the most part, win. (As before, a hat tip to the indispensable Terry Maxon.) Here are their rankings:
Monthly Archives
Monthly Archives for August 2014.
Hyatt Offering Many Members Opportunity to Buy Points With 40% Bonus
Hyatt Gold Passport is offering up to a 40% bonus on purchased points through August 18. The bonus is targeted. Emails are going out to Diamond members and to Platinum members, “As a [Status level] member, you can enjoy an exclusive bonus when you purchase points:” I do not know if all members with status are getting this or not, or if anyone without status in the Gold Passport program is receiving it. But the system they’re using to verify eligibility looks exactly like the one US Airways uses:
Which Frequent Flyer Program is Best? Don’t Be Fooled By US News!
US News has come out with a ranking of best frequent flyer programs. (HT: Dallas News Aviation Blog) Here are the rankings:
Window Shuts on 75,000 Bonus Miles But 50,000 and 60,000 Still Possible
Citibank’s 100,000 mile signup bonus for its American Airlines Exzecutive card was like the Kenneth Branagh / Emma Thompson film Dead Again. Except that no one murdered anyone in a past life. That offer ended on July 15 after first ending earlier on June 25. It was a sad day (for the second time) as it was the very best signup bonus out there ever since it appeared at the beginning of January. And it topped my list of card offers that wouldn’t last. It didn’t. First the landing page for the offer disappeared but a direct application link still worked. It went away and came back before it died. That left the 75,000 mile offer for the card as the biggest one around. Sadly the 75,000 mile offer has died, too. The best remaining…
An Inflight Cell Phone Ban Is On Its Way, and That’s Not a Good Thing
The Department of Transportation’s General Counsel says they plan to introduce formal rules by the end of the year which would ban inflight cell phone calls. (HT: Alan H.) This is precipitated by the FCC’s merely talking about the prospect of lifting its rules since it no longer believes there is any technical justification for them. And that the idea of inflight calls are highly unpopular. Is Inflight Cell Phone Use Even Bad? Lots of consumers think that it would be really annoying if their seat opponent got on their phone. I don’t like talking on the phone when I’m on the ground, so inflight cell phone use doesn’t excite me either. But I also don’t see the harm. But passengers elsewhere in the world use phones on planes and terrible things don’t happen In…
Comprehensive Guide to Tipping Plus Bonus Starwood, Hyatt, and American Points
News and Notes from Around the Interweb: A Comprehensive Worldwide Guide to Tipping. And here’s my simpler approach to tipping no chart to memorize.. The hotel whose contract includes $500 fines per negative review? Likely enforceable. Register to earn 1000 – 3000 bonus Hyatt points for every 3 nights stayed in Las Vegas. You can now earn American AAdvantage miles for Groundlink car service bookings. Double Starwood Starpoints for stays in Europe, Middle East, and Africa for stays this month. You can join the 40,000+ people who see these deals and analysis every day — sign up to receive posts by email (just one e-mail per day) or subscribe to the RSS feed. It’s free. You can also follow me on Twitter for the latest deals. Don’t miss out!
Why Frequent Flyers Will Want to Use the Royal Jordanian Website for This One Simple Trick
About six weeks ago I explained how to manage your British Airways Avios award bookings to make sure you get your elite status benefits. The idea is that when you book an award using British Airways Avios (and short-distance non-stop awards are a fantastic value in the British Airways program, any flight under 650 miles in length costs just 4500 points each way), your BA frequent flyer account number gets added to the reservation. But you might be a US Airways or American Airlines elite frequent flyer. So you will need to get to know the Royal Jordianian website.
More American Meal Changes: Warm Nuts Are Leaving Some Flights, But Warm Cookies Are Safe For Now
Last month I shared American’s new meal service standards which begin September 1. Basically, as much discussed, US Airways gets a bit more generous with meals and American gets less generous. The two airlines are sort of meeting in the middle. The first step was more meals on US Airways. That happened back in April. Now we’re getting cutbacks on the American side, as part of aligning service between the two airlines. That’s not new information, I encourage you to see the full details on which flights will and will not have food going forward, plus what standards will apply when they do. Basically flights need to be ~ 1150 miles or 2 hours 45 minutes to warrant a meal, unless it’s an “exception market” like Charlotte or Philadelphia – Minneapolis and Dallas – Detroit.…
Signing Up for and Cancelling TV Service to Earn (Hundreds of) Thousands of Miles
You can earn 25,000 American Airlines miles for signing up for DirecTV. You can also earn 30,000 United miles for DirecTV. Both offers have been extended through October 1 (they were scheduled to expire in July but keep getting extended). You need to choose a ‘select’ package or above and take a 24 month agreement. While the offers specify ‘new customers only’ I spoke to one participant at the recent Frequent Traveler University event in Seattle that had earned well into the six figures in miles by signing up for DirecTV offers. Digging into the terms, the eligibility is: Customers who have a current DIRECTV account, or have been a DIRECTV customer within the last 24 months are ineligible. Mileage is posted after the account is kept current for 60 days, and then you have…
Am I Wrong About United? Financial Results Getting Better
I’ve been hugely critical of United Airlines’ operation, so in the interest of fairness it’s worth pointing out that second quarter financial results were much improved. Cranky Flier had a good, albeit too-enthusiastic take on United’s performance in the second quarter. They made $900 million for the quarter, a huge departure from the first quarter in which they lost $600 million. The second and third quarters are the strongest for the industry. Everyone else is making today. And United still substantially lagged. American, which suffered far greater effects from Venezuela. But this is a big deal for United anyway, even if they aren’t outperforming the industry, because another quarter like the first one (which was never in the cards) would have meant the Board of Directors would be pretty much forced to oust current executive…
