Southwest Airlines will give you two Rapid Rewards credits for filling out a survey. Thanks to Gary Steiger of Free Frequent Flyer Miles for the pointer.
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American Airlines announces elite changes
American has announced changes to its elite program for 2004. It would seem that benefits stay the same. Qualification stays the same on the lowest fares, and gets easier for customers flying on higher fares. What’s more, the new qualification rules apply retroactively to 2003 as well — anyone who would earn a higher tier status based from their 2003 flying based on the 2004 earning chart will have the higher status in 2004.Thumbs up!
10,000 United miles for checking
Open a BankOne online checking account and get a debit card ($25 annual fee) by the end of the year for 10,000 bonus miles for signup.Update: offer may be targeted.
500 Free Starwood Points
Sign up for meeting planning information from the Four Points Norwood.
USAirways bonus to Europe
Earn 10,000 bonus miles for USAirways operated flights to Europe between February 1 and May 31, 2004. The unique thing is that the bonus is good on any fare. Registration is required.
Air Canada Elite Changes
Air Canada has announced changes for its elite levels in 2004. I haven’t digested all the changes yet. One interesting item seems to be that only 30,000 flown miles are required for Star Alliance Gold status.
United First Quarter Flight Bonus
United has a pretty interesting promo to stimulate first quarter travel that you must register for. Fly 10,000 miles on any fare. If you do it by January 31st, you earn triple miles on all flights in qualifying classes for the rest of the quarter. If you do it by February 29th, you earn double miles on all flights in qualifying classes for the rest of the quarter. If you do it after February 29th, but before the end of the quarter, you earn 5000 bonus miles.
Think MasterCard is the same as Visa? Think again.
Mastercard is getting aggressive. As if Hyatt’s faster free nights promotion wasn’t reason enough to carry a Mastercard, comes news that you can earn bonus miles by booking American Airlines flights with a Mastercard. That’ll make a nice followon to the Continental Airlines/Mastercard promotion.It’s no longer enough to have just Visa.
In Seattle, your cab driver may be Elvis
Fresh from the the defeat of the latte tax comes another gem from local government in Seattle: the city council has voted for legislation specifying under what circumstances a cab driver can dress in costume. Under the new law, any driver choosing to wear a costume must pick a “readily identifiable and generally well-known public figure, personality or fictional character.” Outfits can’t include masks, can’t depict police officers or firefighters, and can’t be skimpy. They also have to be approved by the cab association for which the driver works, and drivers have to post photos of themselves inside their cabs in and out of costume. Certainly better than the old rule that cab drivers were required to wear “black pants and a crisp shirt.” But that Seattle City Council sure gets preoccupied with strange things!
Hotels and Privacy
The city of Reidsville, North Carolina has passed an ordinance that allows police access to hotel and motel guest records without a court order. The police chief wanted this power to pursue drug investigations. The local lodging association is opposed. I’m not a legal expert, and I make no judgment as to the permissability of this type of ordinance under state or federal constitutional protections. I am skeptical of state power and prefer at least the formal protection of requiring a court order to compel private individuals and businesses to provide information to the police.What concerns me the most, though, about this is the cavalier attitude that the City Attorney takes towards important questions of liberty and government power.Reidsville City Attorney Bill McLeod said that any constitutional questions were for the courts to decide. “Laws…
