General

Nov 13 2017

You can frequently buy points for $0.006 or less, you’re better off doing that than transferring Chase points or pushing for bonuses. The IHG Rewards Club program is great for top tier elite member rebates, weak on elite benefits, weak for its inability to redeem anything other than a base room. Pick up bonuses for stays you’ll make anyway, but the low per point value is something they count on members not understanding when it comes time to putting actual spend on one of their credit cards or choosing their program over another for partner points-earning.

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Nov 13 2017

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.

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Nov 13 2017

Chase has just added two transfer airline partners. These are both Avios programs, and you already could transfer from Chase to British Airways and from British Airways to Iberia or Aer Lingus, however to do so your Iberia or Aer Lingus account had to have been open for 90 days and have had some points-earning activity.

No longer.

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Nov 12 2017

Planes are full with huddled masses of all sorts bringing their personal baggage, their behaviors and preferences, into a small metal tube that mixes us all together. That’s great for diversity, not so great for social cohesion, but amazing for people watching.

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Nov 12 2017

Marriott will give you 1000 points for answering a simple question on Twitter.

And here’s the answer.

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Nov 12 2017

It’s been a long time since we’ve seen a good partner promotion. These can be fun, picking up activity credits and earning progressively more miles, trying to do it at the cheapest cost by finding eligible partners you can buy something from for very little month — or partners you can transfer points from and earn credits — all while generating a big bonus.

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Nov 12 2017

Citibank keeps adding airlines as transfer partners for the ThankYou Points program so that your Citi ThankYou Premier Card and Prestige Card’s points are getting more useful. They don’t have any of the major US airlines as partners, but those are diminishing in value, they have niche carriers which offer value if you pay attention and look.

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Nov 12 2017

The new Emirates first class launches December 1 flying to Geneva and Brussels. The cabin was revealed this morning at the Dubai Air Show after a long wait.

It’s a gorgeous suite. It’s far more understated than the current bright golf motif.

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Nov 12 2017

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.

Continue Reading »

Nov 11 2017

A couple of days ago I wrote that Hyatt cardmembers can now get 10,000 points for successfully referring friends to the card. I think it has a nice signup bonus, albeit arguably not as nice as when they offered 2 free nights at any property, and the annual free night with renewal is worth the card’s fee. And all reports are that it isn’t subject to 5/24 for getting approved.

But issuer restrictions on card approvals and signup bonuses that have been introduced over the last couple of years make us pickier about which cards to get, and more strategic.

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