One thing I love about the British Airways Visa 100,000 point signup bonus offer is how it makes the program really focal and has folks figuring out how to make the most of the points. The British Airways program was pretty much gutted back in November. They promised that 97% of routes would have the same points cost after they revamped the program but it turned out the part they didn’t say was that would apply only to non-stops from London. Each flight is now priced as a separate award, with longer distances more expensive. And like most non-U.S. programs, fuel surcharges can be a killer. My own take on maximizing the credit card signup bonus is to set up a family account and then have multiple people sign up for the card so that…
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Virgin Systemwide Bonus for Flights through June 15
Virgin Atlantic is offering up to 15,000 bonus miles for flights taken through June 15. These bonus Flying Club miles are on top of all the usual miles that you’d earn: 5,000* bonus miles in Economy (2,500 per sector) 10,000* bonus miles in Premium Economy (5,000 per sector) 15,000* bonus miles in Upper Class (7,500 per sector) Register by May 13, and oddly the Accra and Shanghai routes are excluded from the offer. Not a huge bonus, but worth registering if you’re going to fly Virgin anyway, and nice that the offer includes economy bookings.
bmi’s Exit from Star Alliance and Transferring Points and Status with British Airways
All pretty much as expected: bmi is no longer a member of the Star Alliance. Star Alliance benefits such as lounge access continue through May 31. Star Alliance earn and burn (excluding Lufthansa group airlines) continues through May 31. Can credit British Airways flights to bmi accounts effective today. Redemption on BA will come soon. BA lounge access for bmi elites starts today. On May 1, bmi elites will be offered equivalent elite status with British Airways. I’ll become a British Airways Gold member, which will get me access to American’s Flagship lounges regardless of class of service when flying domestically in the U.S. bmi miles will transfer 1:1 into British Airways Avios, and points can be moved back and forth between the two programs online effective July 3. Assuming the bmi award chart doesn’t…
I’m So Glad Spirit Airlines Exists, Even if I Don’t Want to Fly Them
Via Matthew, they’re running a “More Bang or Your Buck” sale to Cartagena, Colombia. Upfront payment is required. They are also running a “GSA Sale” with “scandal-free fares” because “you don’t have to spend lavishly to travel in style.” Oh, and GSA stands for “Great Savings Always.” Heh. This of course is the airline that ran an Anthony Weiner sale and invited customers to check out the (suntan) oil on their beaches after the Gulf oil spill.
Through May 11 Get a Bigger Signup Bonus from the Hyatt Visa
The Hyatt Visa has a pretty good signup bonus, I used it recently on my trip to Singapore and the Maldives — Base members receive 2 free nights at any Hyatt in the world as a signup bonus, for use within a year. That means the Park Hyatt Paris, in the Maldives, or Sydney are all possibles. The card comes with a $75 fee, but this link which I found advertised on the Hyatt website offers a $75 statement credit after first purchase, effectively making it first year free. And the signup bonus is actually better than it appears at first blush. Existing Platinums get 2 free nights at any Hyatt in the world and two confirmed suite upgrades valid on paid stays. And through May 11, anyone can be a Platinum, instantly. Just enter…
Starter Tips for Collecting Miles and Points
Over on Conde’ Nast‘s blog, I offer six tips for folks just getting started with miles and points. The basics are: Start with a goal, that motivates you and also helps your choice of program. Nothing worse than finding out you want to go to French Polynesia, but United miles only let you get there flying to New Zealand first. Never pass up miles, always sign up for frequent flyer programs even when it’s not your primary program. The miles add up eventually. Lots of programs become easily manageable at a site like AwardWallet.com. Choose a card that earns flexible points which transfer to miles (Starwood, Amex Membership Rewards, Chase Ultimate Rewards) and then earn miles for everything you do, I note Gary Steiger’s Free Frequent Flyer Miles is a good resource o make sure…
Traveling with Business Attire in Your Carryon
How to pack without wrinkles: I hate checking bags, though a checked bag maybe a large garment bag would probably be the best way to pack suits and avoid wrinkles. If I had to wait around half an hour on each end of a trip, did just two trips a month, then I’m literally wasting more than a month of my life at baggage claim. And that’s if the bag is delivered each time instead of lost. A large carryon is ideal, most airlines allow 22″ (Alaska Airlines actually allows 24″). But I prefer to go smaller, I really don’t need to travel with that much stuff on a trip that’s four days or less, and I prefer to be as flexible as possible fitting my bag into an overhead bin, whether sitting on the…
Qatar Airways Awards Now Bookable on United Website
Dan L. emails to ask why, in my recent discussions of the Maldives, I didn’t mention flying Qatar? The context was that I had taken very much ‘the long way’ to get to the Maldives, I actually wanted to go to Singapore first, but I probably shouldn’t have returned back through Singapore given that I wasn’t looking for a stopover on the return. And I decided given my preferences for in-flight product and the miles at my disposal that when I go back I’ll probably fly Etihad — they’re a new partner with American, award availability is generally excellent, especially for first class (suites with doors) on the New York JFK – Abu Dhabi route. They’re also adding DC-Abu Dhabi service a year from now which may work out great for me. The connections aren’t…
$50 Mail-in Rebate on 2-Night Weekday Stays through August 2 from IHG
Stay at any Intercontinental Hotels Group property (your Intercontinental, Crown Plaza, Holiday Inn, etc. family of hotels) for 2 weekday nights in a row – Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday nights count – and earn a $50 gift card. The offer is open to US residents only, and registration is required prior to stay. The rebate form must actually be mailed in, with postmark by September 1. Once you get your rebate Mastercard in the mail use it right away, after 6 months from issue date it draws down $3 per month automatically. This has been covered extensively elsewhere, it wouldn’t influence my stay decisions so I didn’t jump on posting it a couple of days ago, but still figured worth flagging because it’s definitely worth registering for in case you wind up with qualifying…
Best Lemon Poppyseed Pancakes Yet at the Andaz 5th Avenue
I’ve certainly written my thoughts ad nauseam on the Andaz 5th Avenue in New York, my usual go-to for overall combination of price and value, for instance here, here, here, and here. (I promise I don’t write about the place every time I stay!) I’ll simply add to the pile by noting the first time I’ve gotten a suite here without balcony, I didn’t realize how much I enjoyed that feature before given that I don’t actually spend time outside on it! I was actually originally assigned a balcony-less suite that was smaller than an XL King (non-suite here), the room didn’t seem to get cell coverage with AT&T. After some initial pushback on assigning a different room (and an offer to buy up to the Presidential Suite), they offered a different suite that worked…
