Hyatt Starts Cancelling Mistake Rate – After Waiting 3 Weeks

by Gary Leff

Nov 09 2022

I’d have been fine with the reservations being cancelled within a few days of bookings, and not several weeks after those reservations have been made. Simply cancelling reservations after this much time without further accommodation is unacceptable. At a minimum offer a discount rate at the hotel for a standard room or suite, or some points by way of apology – and find a way to address costs that customers are actually incurring as a result of the property’s long wait to decide to cancel the bookings.

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$0 Base Fare Frontier Airlines Tickets, Act Before Midnight Eastern

by Gary Leff

frontier
Nov 08 2022

The discount applies only to base fare and Frontier pricing is mostly about taxes and fees, including mandatory booking fees. So you may not be saving as much as you think in percentage terms. Fronter base fares aren’t most of the cost of a ticket, after all.

But this is a very good deal indeed for those with status, including those who took advantage of status matches and who have free Frontier status (and likely won’t pay add-on fees as a result).

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Finally! The World’s Most Honest Resort Fee, Hotel Says It Includes ‘Nothing’

by Gary Leff

Nov 08 2022

Hotels really stretch to list amenities of value that are included in their resort fee, like the Hyatt which claimed it gave you access to the bathroom mirror or the Hilton which included use of the in-room TV.

These backflips are disingenuous at best. So it’s refreshing when a hotel is honest that the resort fee is nothing but an add-on, and provides literally no value to the guest.

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Big Changes To United Airlines Elite Status Qualification

by Gary Leff

Nov 08 2022

While United Airlines made elite status easier to earn in 2022 they’re returning to their harder revenue-based spend requirements for 2023, while giving existing elite frequent flyers a small head start towards status, allowing award travel on United to count towards status, and increasing the credit members can earn by spending on United co-brand credit cards.

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Qatar Airways Has Started Flying A Domestic Route Inside Australia That Nobody Wants To Fly

by Gary Leff

qatarplane
Nov 07 2022

There’s no brand that’s been tarnished as much in Australia over the past year as Qantas. They don’t have enough seats to meet demand, and their operations have been awful as they’ve returned to international service. Stories are rampant of passengers with cancelled flights, where the airline stranded them abroad telling them they couldn’t return home for weeks.

Yet the Aussie government still protects Qantas from competition, limiting flights and keeping prices high. Citizens there should be outraged at the crazy stunts Qatar Airways has to engage in just to provide more flights in and out of the country.

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Marriott Changing Airline Transfer Bonuses: Add Another Airline To The Devalued List

by Gary Leff

Nov 07 2022

Marriott has myriad airline partners – at 38 it’s way more than bank transfer programs. We’re now seeing a change to the Marriott points-to-miles transfer bonus. Specifically, the hotel chain informed customers this morning that the bonus would no longer be available on transfers to American AAdvantage, Delta SkyMiles, or Avianca LifeMiles effective October 31. Transferring 60,000 Marriott points will yield only 20,000 AAdvantage miles going forward – not 25,000.

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Two Marriotts Introduce New Employee Protection Surcharge

by Gary Leff

Nov 07 2022

Surcharges have exploded at Marriott hotels, as well as other chains. Whether it’s fees to cover the light bulbs in your room, extra charges to cover a hotel’s property tax or gotcha charges for paying a bill by credit card (even Marriott’s own credit card).

Still a fee per night that guests now have to pay to protect housekeepers at the Marriott LAX still surprised me.

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