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.
When the Marriotts and Hiltons of the world actually owned the hotels that they marketed, there was better alignment of incentives for maintaining and extending their brands (and they found it much easier to deliver promises to guests on-property). An ‘asset light’ model where the chain simply rents out the brand can work – but needs a laser-like focus on defending and growing the value of the brand, not merely living off of and depreciating it.
Shockingly someone is selling ConciergeKey status on eBay! They’re asking $2000 and say that there are 10 available.
This is actually for a ConciergeKey challenge offering 3 months of status, and keeping the status through the end of the current member year (March 31, 2023) for $15,000 spend with the airline in those 3 months.
This has to be the most absurd fee ever charged by an airline. Startup carrier Breeze Airways, founded by the creator of JetBlue and several other airlines around the world, will hit you with a $27 “technology development fee” when buying a ticket. The reason why – and how to avoid it – will really take you beyond the looking glass of the U.S. airline industry.
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.
You can earn 20,000 Etihad Guest miles per 3+ day Avis rental. This is in addition to the usual base miles earned renting cars. I’m not sure I’ve seen a richer rental car offer since 2008.
The member was completely locked out of their account while the account was placed under audit. They thought their account might get closed through no fault of their own.
In the end it didn’t take 45 days for the investigation as they were told to expect. Their account was taken of of audit, and points were returned, after 44 days.
Uber is terminating its rewards program. They’re dropping elite status. Customers who earned benefits – even just earning them this month – won’t receive their promised extra points, better customer service, or priority on airport pickups effective September 1. In fact there won’t even be any more points-earning.
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.
American Express is running several offers to encourage spending on their own-branded (Membership Rewards) cards like the Gold and Platinum cards. These can be found when logging into your account, under Amex Offers. And you have to add them to your card with the click of a button in order to register and earn the bonus for your spending.
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 »
