Taking a page from Starwood’s SPG Flights, Priority Club has introduced a new pay for airline flights with points option. Frugal Travel Guy thinks it could be a decent deal if you could get the cost of points down low enough. There’s a Flyertalk thread on the new benefit. Bottom-line is that while more new options, without taking away other benefits, are always welcome. But the Priority Club flight redemptions generate a point value of about a third of a cent apiece. I generally value Priority Club poins at about two-thirds of a penny each. So while the tickets purchased with points are mileage-earning, they don’t get enough bang for the buck such that I could ever envision using the option. A $400 ticket is going to cost about 115,000 points!
Starwood to Make Award No-Show Policy More Reasonable
The Wall Street Journal‘s Middle Seat Blog reports that in response to criticisms on Flyertalk, Starwood will no longer charge a customer who no shows (or cancels past the deadline) an award night the hotel’s rack rate. Instead, they’ll charge the hotel’s prevailing rate. I still wish they would just forfeit the award points that would otherwise have been used for the stay, but at least this is less egregious than their previous practice.
The Growing Importance of Credit Card Spend to Airlines, All Over the World
Earning points towards elite status via credit card spend is mostly a US phenomenon. But the practice is spreading. The Global Traveller reports that you can get halfway towards your Air New Zealand status with their Global Plus co-branded credit card. I’ve written many times in the past (e.g. here) about how fundamentally important credit card spend is to an airline’s bottom-line, often much more important than frequent flying customers.
Starwood Double Qualifying Nights and Elite Rollover Nights
Taking a page from Delta’s ‘elite rollover’ play, and making it doubly valuable, Starwood hotels is offering current Platinum members the ability to have their nights between October 1 and December 31 count both for 2009 (requalifying for status valid next year) and for 2010 (requalifying for status in 2011). Registration begins September 9, and the FAQ is here. Meanwhile, Starwood is offering double night credits from September 15 through December 15. This offer is open to Platinums (who have to choose between this offer and the ‘nights advance’ offer above), Golds, and select non-elite members who are close to Gold. Registration for this offer will begin on September 9 as well, and the FAQ is here.
I Charged For An Award Booking
I’ve written in the past about how frustrating it is to offer help to people who don’t appreciate it. And for awhile I became disenchanted with doing the legwork for all of the folks contacting me that I didn’t know, whose awards I would make possible, but whom I would never hear back from with even a simple thank you. (Frankly, if I help a party of four book premium award tickets to Asia, a “hey, can I send you a nice bottle of wine?” might be an appropriate response.) I think readers of this blog will agree that I give away plenty of information for free. There’s very little that I know that is truly ‘secret’ or unique to me, though some certainly has been. I’ve just accumulated knowledge and through practice have learned…
I’m the Lead in an Austin Woman Magazine Article!
Of all the places I’d expect to be featured..! Five-Star Style on a Two-Star Budget Living rich does not have to cost a lot of money. Those words are the philosophy that I live. I may like fancy, but I also like frugal. So when my husband called me at work to let me know about an offer from the fabulous and opulent Wynn Las Vegas Resort and Country Club offering American Express card holders two complimentary nights and all of the cardholder benefits which included an upgrade if available, breakfast for two each morning, a complimentary lunch and a 4 p.m. late check out, I screeched, “Why are you calling me? Book that now!” He had just gotten an email from our travel-savvy friend who follows Gary Leff’s BoardingArea.com blog and posted about the…
Enterprise Orders Cars Without Airbags
As if I needed another reason not to rent from Enterprise (besides the fact that their paperwork always takes longer to fill out, and the annoying walk around the car looking for dents and scratches in a lame attempt to sell extra insurance), via Upgrade: Travel Better apparently Enterprise managed to save $175 per vehicle on the 66,000 Chevy Impalas they ordered by buying them without side curtain airbags, a standard safety feature. I’ll stick to my elite benefits with a proper rental chain that doesn’t squeeze me looking for dents and dings when I return the car, and offers me a decent points-return to boot, thank you very much…
United Offers Double Elite Qualifying Miles Again
Once American announced the same thing today, it was inevitable that United had to match. And they did — Registration required for your choice of double qualifying miles or double qualifying segments, you have to pick and you can only choose one. The offer runs through December 15, just as with American’s. Tickets purchased prior to the promo count as long as they are flown September 3rd or later. Now just wait, you’d think that Delta would have to match. Plus, since they have a new 125,000 qualifying mile level, they can overflow that one too! Time to pick up a second top tier membership for several of you out there…
American Double Elite Qualifying Miles and Additional Rewards for Flying Past Requalification
American brings back double elite qualifying miles through December 15 — the second time this year — registration is required. The same registration page will also let you sign up for elite rewards for stretching beyond the minimum qualification for an elite level…. a choice of benefits like extra systemwide upgrades for Executive Platinums, bonus miles, or 500-mile upgrades for Gold and Platinum members. Signing up for both offers is a no-brainer of course, a few incremental unplanned trips and you may find yourself in a higher elite tier or qualifying for a bonus award. Randy Petersen points out that the ‘elite rewards’ are a response to Delta’s rollover miles, both of which encourage members to continue flying the respective airline after hitting their requalification needs.
Star Alliance Status Match for Residents of Hong Kong
Got any friends in Hong Kong whose address you can borrow? All Star Alliance programs are offering a status match to residents of Hong Kong, through December 15. Normally only United and British Midland, out of all Star Alliance programs, offer regular status match programs. In addition to requiring that the address on file of your frequent flyer account be in Hong Kong, there’s also a requirement that you show you’ve booked a flight which will be credited to that program during the period of September 1 – December 15 (this can be in a refundable booking class…). Status will be valid for at least 12 months, which is better than the usual status ‘challenge’ being offered by United. Presumably Asiana status will be valid for at least 2 years (Asiana status usually lasts two…
