Priority Club Award Glitch: Presidential Suite Available

by Gary Leff

priorityclub
Apr 25 2005

The Intercontinental Grand in New Delhi is showing all of its room types available for 30,000 point redemption — not just the basic room. This is your opportunity to get the Presidential Suite on an award booking. Not all nights are available, and this will not last. August 3rd was first identified at Flyertalk.com in the Priority Club Suite Redemption Alert thread. I see most nights available, presumably except those where the Presidential Suite is already booked. KING PRESIDENTIAL SUITE KING BEDROOM LIVING ROOM DINING ROOM PRIVATE SAUNA AND JACUZZI GUEST BEDROOM 3TVS BROADBAND INTERNET ACCESS SAFE

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Some recent offers that are still valid

by Gary Leff

bouquet of flowers
Apr 23 2005

One thing about a blog, you really do need to check it every day or at least every couple of days. Sometimes the really great offers last only a few hours, like airfare glitches or incredible mileage offers (10,000 Delta miles for playing a short online game, 100 Delta miles per dollar spent at 1-800-Flowers.com). But sometimes offers are around awhile — but if you don’t check the site frequently they’ll scroll down past the bottom of the page. Naturally you should come to this website everyday. But if you don’t, or if you’ve just found it, you’ll want to be aware of some recent offers posted such as free Gold status with Hilton HHonors, 20% off from Independence Air, and $25 free for opening an ING Direct savings account. There are also some classic…

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Air Canada to Spin Off Aeroplan

by Gary Leff

air canada
Apr 23 2005

Air Canada has confirmed its intention to spin off its Aeroplan frequent flyer program as a separate unit. Mr. Milton did not close the door to selling part of Aeroplan to a private buyer. But he said buyout firm Onex Corp. is not in the picture as a potential purchaser. Onex had a deal with Air Canada to buy a 35% stake in Aeroplan for $245-million before that fell apart with the airline’s bankruptcy protection filing. Onex said recently that it was still interested in the unit. Mr. Milton offered no specific timing for the sale. He said the company is working on legal and regulatory issues to ready its public debut. Aeroplan is worth in the range of $1.3-billion to $1.9-billion. In January Randy Petersen wrote that Air Canada would likely be the first…

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$8 Million in Free Electronics

by Gary Leff

free electronics
Apr 22 2005

The ever-controversial Gratis Networks has given away over $8 million in free products. I’ve gotten everything they offer except the free digital camera — I’m still working on that one. It all started with the free iPod, of course, but since then I’ve gotten the flatscreen TV, photo iPod, iPod shuffle, desktop computer, Mac Mini, and Xbox. I just did the required marketing offer for the Sony PSP this morning, completing that one as well. I signed up for a free trial with Napster. The free period is 14 days and the offer should post within the next 3 — so there’ll be plenty of time to cancel before I get charged anything. It’s nice to have a totally free option back. I’ve gotta say that Gratis Networks has no customer service whatsoever. More often…

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Independent Hotel Reviews

by Gary Leff

This Seattle Times piece (hat tip Tripso Daily) discusses internet web sites that allow travelers to post reviews of the hotels they’ve stayed at. Sites like TripAdvisor.com are absolutely invaluable for getting a window into a hotel property. Reading what past travelers have had to say can be very useful. The piece observes, though, that reviews are posted anonymously. I haven’t found that to be a problem so much as the other observation in the article, that individual’s standards vary greatly. The best thing to do in reading internet reviews is to read through several of them and look for consistent themes and patterns. Those are most likely to provide a window of truth about a property. And then it’s important to read between the lines: one resort where I stayed last year had several…

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Fare Alert

by Gary Leff

Forbes carries a piece on airfare pricing glitches like the recent $52 Fiji deal, last summer’s $60 Iceland fares, and the $20 flights from the US to anywhere in Europe in World Traveler Plus. The piece mentions Scott Carmichael’s fare alert email list which has been reactivated. I subscribe to my work email, my Yahoo account, and my cell phone.

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Seeing myself in print

by Gary Leff

Denver Post
Apr 20 2005

View from the Wing was mentioned in Sunday’s Denver Post. It’s nice to learn that you helped someone earn the miles for a trip of a lifetime, in this case case to Africa. Thanks for the shout out! This blog has been covered in the Washington Post and I’ve been quoted in the Financial Times, San Francisco Chronicle and many other places. But it always feels kinda good. Even if I do get just a bit mention this time.

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Renting Cars Off-Airport

by Gary Leff

rental car
Apr 20 2005

Business Travel News carries a piece on corporate travel departments pushing travelers to rent cars from off-airport locations in order to save on skyrocketing fees associated with airport rentals (hat tip to Tripso Daily). While the piece documents the high taxes, some at truly bizarre heights, it mentions only a couple of companies pushing travelers to rent off-airport in a couple of circumstances — which seem to me about as much as convenience than cost savings, or at least both married together. The trend that bothers me most is airports with ‘on-airport’ car rental facilities that are really off-airport, where you have to take a shuttle bus off the airport facility to a car rental facility. As long as off-airport rental companies pick you up at baggage claim as frequently as on-airport buses, or at…

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