Bank of America Worldpoints offered one and only one redemption option of reasonable value per point — transfers to Aeroplan. With the right card you could earn 2 Aeroplan points per dollar. Unfortunately it appears that this option will be ending on January 31. You will still, however, be able to hire an Elvis impersonator for about 17,000 points. Or redeem for 2-D glasses, a spermbike, a McWedding, or even ice cream made from breast milk if you must.
Rumors of Bluebird and Vanilla’s Death are Greatly Exaggerated
Several commenters have mentioned here on the blog, several folks have e-mailed me today, and I’ve also checked over at my local Office Depot which had Vanilla Reload cards yesterday, but it does seem like Office Depot is withdrawing those cards from sale. Even stores that still had some, many are removing the cards from their shelves. And there’s much hand-wringing and teeth gnashing over it, of course. There’s no question that this was one of the great, albeit short-lived opportunities: to buy money with a credit card, earn points, and use that money to pay off the credit card. It was the U.S. Mint (buying coins by credit card, depositing the coins, paying off the credit card) without the hassle of physical coins which were heavy and required transporting. Except… even if Office Depot…
How Google Could Become Your New Travel Agent, if Orbitz, Expedia, and Travelocity Can’t Get The Government to Stop Them
The Federal Trade Commission has been investigating Google for 18 months and is apparently close to a decision. The allegations, while generally about their search practices, whether they’re a monopoly, and whether they ‘unfairly’ use their search engine to benefit their own complementary businesses versus directing traffic to other companies (and implicitly whether there is a ‘right’ to traffic on the part of those businesses, and whether Google should be thought of as a public utility), are in many ways about how Google has entered the travel space and how they are trying to transform the future of online travel. The FTC has focused on claims that Google’s search results have emphasized its own products, such as online shopping or travel services, while giving less prominence to smaller competitors in those fields. I do start…
Minimum Spend is No Longer an Issue for Credit Card Signup Bonuses
The advent of the American Express Bluebird card has been a huge development for frequent flyers in the miles and points game. It’s a product for the ‘unbanked’, American Express has partnered with Walmart and that should provide insight into the target market for the product. It’s a prepaid American Express card (for folks who aren’t getting credit cards) combined with an online bank account — it holds money, accepts direct deposit, and allows you to pay bills by check through its bill pay system. And you can even withdraw funds from an ATM machine. The key feature though is the ability load funds into the account by buying Vanilla reload cards with a credit card. You’re basically buying money with a credit card for a fee of $3.95 per $500 card. And then you…
Accor Hotels 50% Off Sale
Lots of blog readers are now instant top tier platinum members of Leclub Accor Hotels (and as of this morning this was still available). Many new platinums will be interested in the return of Accor’s 50% off sale. The booking period will start for Le Club Accorhotels members on November 13th. Bookings must be made by November 22 for stays between December 15 and February 10, except that in the following countries stays can be booked farther out: Austria: through February 28 Belgium and Luxemburg: through March 31 Netherlands: through March 28 Italy: through March 31 France: through March 31 These rates are pre-paid, non-refundable, and non-changeable.
American and its Pilots Union Have Reached an Agreement
American announced this afternoon that it had reached an agreement with its pilots union. The Dallas News Aviation Blog writes that the document which was agreed to was a ‘comprehensive counter proposal’ prepared by the pilots union itself. As a document that the union put forward, one imagines that the union members will vote to ratify it. But the last time a contract was forwarded by the union to the pilots, the pilots rejected it. I wrote on Monday that an agreement was close but that the union was apparently worried about putting it forward, probably worried for their jobs since they’re the ones who ousted the previous union leadership after it had failed to get the membership to ratify a contract. So nothing is done until it’s done. Still, I suspect the pilots realize…
Expert Flyer Introduces an Android App to Help You Get a Better Seat
Expert Flyer, a subscription service that I reviewed over the summer, has a new Android app for seat alerts. You can set up a single seat alert for free, meaning a flight where you don’t have the seat you want they will keep checking for better seats and ping you when one becomes available. Say you are a united elite and there’s no economy plus seating available when you book. Or you want an exit row on American or Delta. Seats open up when someone cancels, or most likely close to departure when another passenger’s upgrade clears. Expertflyer lets you know when the seats you tell it to check for become available, and you can then go online or call and change your seats. Often the best seats are gone close to departure, I booked…
US Travelers With Expedited Immigration Can Now Benefit in Australia, Too
Via Milepoint and also reader G.B., U.S. citizens with ‘Global Entry’ as well as NEXUS or SENTRI can now use Australia‘s expedited immigration SmartGate. You have to be 16 years old or older and have a e-passport (passport with embedded chip) to be eligible. Global Entry requires an interview and background screening, and there’s a $100 fee. United’s Platinum and 1K members get their Global Entry registration fees refunded. So do American Express Platinum and Centurion cardholders and Loews Platinum members. This is a great move, surprising reciprocity and something I’d love to be extended — and not just to expedited immigration but also security and to visa procedures.
United Extends the Useful Life of Top Elite Confirmed Upgrades
United has announced that the confirmed domestic and international upgrade instruments they give to their 1K members will be valid longer — instead of 1 year from date of issue, they will last through the end of the next elite membership year. I wanted to let you know that over the course of the next couple weeks, we’ll be making a change that will give those of you who earn Global Premier Upgrades (GPU) and Regional Premier Upgrades (RPU) more time to use them. Specifically: Newly-earned GPUs and RPUs will be valid longer. Starting later this month, when newly earned GPUs and RPUs are deposited into your account, they will be valid through the end of the following Premier program year instead of just one year from the date of issue. So, for example, all…
Virgin Atlantic Bonus for Purchased, Gifted, and Purchased-With-Ticket Miles
Virgin is running several bonuses through December 5th on purchased, gifted, and transferred miles and also on their new ‘miles booster‘ that lets you buy miles in conjunction with the purchase of paid travel. The bonus on purchased and gifted miles (up to 30,000 miles received per account) is 25%. The bonus for purchasing miles in conjunction with a paid ticket is 15%. There’s also a permanent bonus of 1000 miles with each purchase. These bonuses strike me as interesting because they seem like a continuation of the ‘Amerification’ of world frequent flyer programs, historically the programs themselves began in the states and have been the most aggressive in the States in printing miles and monetizing them. Miles are a big business. It’s always seemed odd to me that airlines offer additional — very expensive…
