A roundup of the most important stories of the day. I keep you up to date on the most interesting writings I find on other sites – the latest news and tips.
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.
A roundup of the most important stories of the day. I keep you up to date on the most interesting writings I find on other sites – the latest news and tips.
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.
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.
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.
A roundup of the most important stories of the day. I keep you up to date on the most interesting writings I find on other sites – the latest news and tips.
Airbnb makes sense in towns where there aren’t suitable hotels. It makes sense to rent a full house for a large family or when traveling with a group of friend. But the current homesharing model is very broken, and as a result choosing Airbnb makes no sense for most stays.
The company understands that and wants to change that. It’s updating how prices are shown, and shaming hosts that impose bizarre conditions on guests. In fact, the co-founder and CEO of Airbnb is shaming owners who make guests do laundry before they leave.
Most people have gotten back to normal. That includes the airlines, judging from the photos all over twitter of dirty planes. Pandemic travel waivers are over, and basic economy fares are back.
Orlando International Airport’s new terminal C has only been open for about six weeks. The new Plaza Premium lounge in the terminal is now open, and it looks fantastic.
Plaza Premium lounges can be accessed with American Express Platinum and Centurion cards and Capital One Venture X cards can access the lounge, too. It’s also available as a pay-in.
Gary Leff is one of the foremost experts in the field of miles, points, and frequent business travel -- a topic he has covered since 2002.
Co-founder of frequent flyer community InsideFlyer.com, emcee of the Freddie Awards, and named one of the "World's Top Travel Experts" by Conde' Nast Traveler (2010-Present) Gary has been a guest on most major news media, profiled in several top print publications, and published broadly on the topic of consumer loyalty. More About Gary »
