I wrote this morning that several readers have been commenting that some American Express Platinum card web pages have stopped referencing lounge access with American Airlines as a benefit. Some readers report that they’ve even seen paper applications, not just web pages, that make reference to US Airways and Delta lounge access but not to American lounge access. And I’ve even gotten concerns from Business Platinum cardholders and Mercedes-Benz Platinum cardholders that they’ve been told they would not have access. This last bit about people being turned away seemed wrong to me — a given rogue agent can make a mistake of course, and at the very least several American Express websites still do list the benefit. I figured it was an error, but it was possible these agents had heard something they had just…
Really Good Frequent Flyer Advice from The Onion
The Onion tries to be funny but actually dishes some pretty good miles and points advice. Check this: Conversing with teammates during practice Friday, Spurs center Tim Duncan urged San Antonio’s players to be smarter with their frequent-flyer miles by accumulating the reward points for one big trip rather than squandering them little by little. “I can’t stress enough how important it is to practice restraint and never cash your miles for a domestic flight, even if it’s for a vacation,” Duncan was overheard telling guard Kawhi Leonard, at one point bringing the 22-year-old over to a whiteboard to explain how it was more prudent to save the frequent-flyer miles for a trip to an international destination. “Just remember to keep your composure and wait. You never know when an emergency might pop up and…
Understanding What Awards Are Possible With Virgin America’s New Partnership With Emirates
Virgin America has introduced a mileage earning and redemption partnership with Emirates. That makes sense. When Emirates lost their relationship with United they went looking for new partners to feed them U.S. traffic. It helps fill their planes to have a marketing relationship that takes passengers beyond their destinations in the U.S., and that brings passengers from other U.S. cities to their international flights. A couple of years ago I expected that Emirates might connect up with American, I do know they had some discussions at the time, but then American brought on Etihad as a partner… and subsequently Emirates Mideast rival Qatar has become slated to join oneworld (in a matter of days). That’s left Emirates hustling up bilateral relationships such as with Qantas and Alaska Airlines. This announcement fits their current strategic pattern.…
Milepoint Premium 10% Discount on Hyatt Gift Cards Still Earns Gold Passport Points
Milepoint Premium Membership About a week and a half ago frequent flyer community Milepoint.com came out with a premium membership package. $49 buys you: Hilton Gold status through early 2015 National Car Rental Executive status 1000 United miles In addition to those headline benefits, there’s also: Free parking day at the Parking Spot parking lots (reusable coupon, no minimum stay) One year of ad-free viewing on Milepoint.com Free 1-year subscription to InsideFlyer.com PointsHound Level 2 Status through 2014 (earn more points on hotel bookings made through their site) Free UsingMiles Premier membership Free upgrade to AwardWallet Plus 20% discount on Expertflyer.com 10% discount on the KVS Tool One of the less-discussed benefits is the ability to buy Hyatt gift cards at 10% off. Buying a single $500 gift card saves $50 and alone pays for…
IHG Rewards 24 Hour Flash Sale Up to 75% Off Points Required for an Award Night
As I mentioned on Saturday, the hotel loyalty program formerly known as Priority Club — which includes Intercontinental, Crowne Plaza, Holiday Inn, and other brands — is offering a 24 hour flash sale on award nights. This reduces the number of points required for an award night between 50% and 75%. Book by 10am Eastern Tuesday morning for stays between October 23 and November 22. If there’s a hotel that’s participating which you think you even might need a night at, it’s worth booking, as award nights are generally cancellable for full refund of points up to a cancellation deadline. Even if you don’t have IHG Rewards points, you can more or less buy all you wish instantly (with a few steps involved) for seven-tenths of a cent per point. I’m not in love with…
Is American Express Platinum Losing American Airlines Lounge Access?
Several folks in comments to various posts have noted over the past few days that the application page for the American Express Platinum cards no longer list American Airlines lounge access as a benefit. The benefit for both Platinum and Centurion cardholders, as it stands, is access to: American and Delta lounges when flying those airlines same-day US Airways lounges (does not require same-day US Airways travel) Priority Pass lounges via complimentary Priority Pass Select membership American Express Centurion lounges, in the U.S. (currently Las Vegas and Dallas) and abroad But American is now conspicuously absent on the Platinum card’s benefits page. The omission is not universal, however, for instance this page describing lounge benefits for the Business Platinum card still includes American’s Admirals Clubs. Business Platinum Card Access1 To gain admission, simply present your…
Using Elite Security Lines When You Aren’t Entitled to Do So
When readers shared their own travel tips and several really stood out as worth highlighting. This one simply amused me, I’ll explain why in a minute. Jacob said, If you don’t have status flash expired airline status cards at security to go through elite lane It brought back memories of perhaps the most controversial travel-related blog post I’ve ever seen, when Million Mile Secrets wrote about how to fake an entitlement to priority security lines. In the US, I’ve been able to go through the airport elite status line just by showing a card – sometimes a regular frequent flyer card which I got for free just by signing up for a program – to the agent manning the shorter elite lines!… Sometimes it is just a regular frequent flyer card for an obscure foreign…
Saudia Business Class Trip Report: Award Availability (Delta Miles!) is Amazing, But Should You Fly It?
I’ve written about how easy it is to find award availability on Saudia using Delta miles. I’ve even walked through making a booking on Saudia live, in front of hundreds of people. There’s a reasonable question that comes up, objection even, Saudia? What is that like to fly? A co-worker flew Saudia on miles — the fruits of her signup bonus for an American Express Platinum card and a small amount of additional spending — and I asked her to share her experience. The trip was to Lahore, Pakistan to visit her family — departing from New York, and returning to Washington DC. She prefers to remain anonymous, but she provided a great trip report that I think is a fascinating window into an airline that isn’t frequently written about. We’ll call her my Pakistani…
Bits ‘n Pieces Part Deux for October 19, 2013
News and notes from around the interweb: Wyndham Rewards is offering a 20% bonus on purchased points through November 30. (Must log into your account to see the offer.) Not that compelling, but it allows you to transfer points to airline miles at a cost of ~ 2.3 cents per mile, and they have some oddball airline partners like the Hainan Airlines Fortune Wings Club, Saudia, and Qatar. Vanilla Reloads can be purchased with a credit card at Family Fare grocery stores. None of those near me, and I’ve never seen one in my travels either. Qatar will be launching service from Philadelphia and from Miami next year. I’m betting that if the US Airways-American merger doesn’t go through that the Philadelphia route won’t make sense, but that Qatar’s entry into oneworld will provide the…
How a $12 Compact Power Strip Can Make Travel Easier
When readers shared their own travel tips and several really stood out as worth highlighting. Menashe said, Take a portable powerstrip with you. Monster Outlets-to-Go includes a USB outlet. Aside from the obvious benefit of having extra outlets, you also only need one adapter when in a foreign country, to plug in the adapter itself. “This room has just way too many power outlets” – said no hotel guest, ever. For past four years I’ve traveled with a power strip in my laptop bag. The one I use is compact, has three plugs well-spaced apart, and also has a USB charging port as well. And it’s just $12 at Amazon and eligible for Amazon Prime shipping. It’s the first thing I take out of my bag whenever I get into a hotel room, since almost…
