Monthly Archives

Monthly Archives for September 2018.

How – and Why – You Can Almost Always Get Four First Class Award Seats to Europe

by Gary Leff on September 2, 2018

airline cabin first class

Sep 02 2018

I absolutely hate fuel surcharges. They’re a scam which is basically just a tax on frequent flyers’ loyalty. On some itineraries they can amount to $1000 roundtrip. Although bear in mind that you may pay lower fuel surcharges when you book two one way awards than a roundtrip.

When I’m in an absolute pinch I can talk myself into paying fuel surcharges for a first class award. I think of it as a discount coach ticket which doesn’t earn points but where I’m spending miles for a confirmed triple upgrade.

Great Award Availability If You Want to Shower in the Sky: Emirates First Class, Many Cities

by Gary Leff on September 2, 2018

emirates airline cabin

Sep 02 2018

Emirates has one of the world’s best first class products. Their business class wouldn’t come close to ranking, and their new first class is only on a limited number of planes. But their decade-old first class, while a bit tight on space for its fully enclosed suites with doors, is still a marvel with great amenities, good alcohol and catering, and generally good service.

It’s very very available using miles. Perhaps that’s because there are so many first class seats on so many flights and very few people know how to redeem for these seats at a reasonable price.

How to Avoid Crowds at Popular Paris Spots and Boeing’s 737 Problem

by Gary Leff on September 2, 2018

airplane in hangar

Sep 02 2018

A roundup of the most important stories of the day. I keep you up to date on the most interesting writings I find on other sites – the latest news and tips.

Air France Premium Economy Awards Half Off, New York – Paris From Just 22,750 Miles

by Gary Leff on September 2, 2018

flight chart

Sep 02 2018

Routes are often discounted when flights aren’t full, suggesting that there should be good availability which is what we’re seeing for New York JFK – Paris Orly premium economy.

You can connect elsewhere in Europe if you wish. American Express, Chase, and Citibank points all transfer to Flying Blue.

Two Points Currencies Have 30% Transfer Bonuses to Virgin Atlantic at the Same Time

by Gary Leff on September 1, 2018

virgin atlantic

Sep 01 2018

Virgin Atlantic miles aren’t worth as much as other miles. However they do have strategic uses and I believe the single best one is ANA first class roundtrip from the Central U.S. and East Coast for just 120,000 miles per person. (San Francisco and Los Angeles is just 110,000 miles roundtrip, while business class runs 90,000 or 95,000 miles depending on the city.)

Another strong use of Virgin Atlantic miles is Delta business class between the US and Europe for 50,000 points each way, which becomes an amazing deal witht he 30% tansfer bonus. There are other award chart sweet spots, like Australia and New Zealand.

Check Out These Great Hotel Auctions Going Way Too Cheap This Weekend

by Gary Leff on September 1, 2018

hotel lobby

Sep 01 2018

I’ve written in the past about the great auction values at Luxury Travel Diary, many of which seem to go for 30% – 70% off, probably because there just aren’t that many people bidding so you can scoop up bargains. Folks who already know about these auctions won’t like the added attention.

The Star Alliance Routes to Asia That Have 4 Business Class Award Seats Every Single Day

by Gary Leff on September 1, 2018

people in airline seats first class

Sep 01 2018

If you want to go to Asia with the family in business or first class, there’s one airline that’s got you covered and even one best route though there are several good routes.

Star Alliance member Asiana simply offers fantastic award space. The United website is great for seeing this quickly at a glance. Their award calendar will show you which dates have availability — in this case non-stop availability from Los Angeles to Seoul for four passengers. Dates with solid lines have coach award space and dates with dotted lines have premium cabin award space.

Alert: United Business Class Saver Awards Wide Open to Australia (May/June)

by Gary Leff on September 1, 2018

shot from helicopter

Sep 01 2018

One of the toughest award redemptions for US-based frequent flyers is Australia. It’s a long flight. It’s a premium route. Airlines are loathe to make saver award space available up front. So when it opens up I try to alert you.

United is Raising the Price of Checked Bags, But What Do We Get for Our Money?

by Gary Leff on September 1, 2018

hand holding hundreds of dollars in cash

Sep 01 2018

It seems to me that if checked bags are going to be separately charged, then customers should be refunded if their bags are lost and offered compensation if their bags are delayed. But it’s a special type of gall to raise the price of checked bags and not offer such basic assurances in return.

Marriott Updates: When They’ll Fix New Loyalty Program IT Issues

by Gary Leff on September 1, 2018

outside marriott hotel

Sep 01 2018

At the beginning of the week I spoke with Marriott’s Senior Vice President for Loyalty David Flueck for an update on the integration of Starwood accounts onto the Marriott IT platform as they launched their new loyalty program on August 18th.

I reached out to Marriott for another update on where things stand fixing issues.

Gary Leff is one of the foremost experts in the field of miles, points, and frequent business travel -- a topic he has covered since 2002.

Co-founder of frequent flyer community InsideFlyer.com, emcee of the Freddie Awards, and named one of the "World's Top Travel Experts" by Conde' Nast Traveler (2010-Present) Gary has been a guest on most major news media, profiled in several top print publications, and published broadly on the topic of consumer loyalty. More About Gary »