The elimination actually happened on Oct 1, 2017, when JAL chose to not renew the generous discount that had been going on for several years. It was a great option for getting around SE Asia, as exemplified by this article from Amol K. The discount page has since been taken down, though Google cache has a copy that reminds us of the deal: One of the routes I … [Read more...]
Reminder: LifeMiles Reduced Rate for some Intra-USA Flights
Many of you will have read about this a few months ago, when the rate reduction took place. I did, and I even noted it in my list of redemption sweet spots, but still I completely forgot about it - until I went to lifemiles.com to look for an award ticket, expecting the old price of 12,500 miles each way. I'm now a proud owner of the same ticket for 15,000 lifemiles … [Read more...]
Amex Hilton Surpass 75k Upgrade Offer – No Lifetime Clause
I just upgraded my no-fee Amex Hilton card to a Surpass, with 75,000 bonus Hilton points after spending $3,000 in 3 months. Annual fee is $75. My offer did not have a "once in a lifetime" clause, meaning I can get the bonus even if I've had a Surpass card before. There are two ways to check if you're targeted: Go to the official Surpass card page. … [Read more...]
Best Western: Crappy Website, Good Customer Service
Thanks to the current promotion, I had the chance to dip my toe into the world of Best Western - my first post-hobby experience with them. I just want to report my experience, since there's not much info about them in the miles and points blogosphere. The title says it all - the website is crappy, while customer service exceeded my expectation (n=2). Crappy … [Read more...]
Barclay Wyndham 45,000 Offer is Back ($2,000 Minimum Spend, $75 AF)
Direct link to offer. I received an invitation to apply as a general Wyndham Rewards member. I don't see it in the Barclay credit cards page, so it may not be public. In any case, I stripped any identifying info from URL and it seems to work. I'll update post if better public URL is found later. Personally I have no hesitation to use a non-public link … [Read more...]
35,000-75,000 Avios OR $600-$750 Air Ticket with HSBC Premier Card
Here's a credit card opportunity I hadn't noticed until Doctor of Credit exposed a 35% transfer bonus from HSBC to British Airways through Jan 4, 2018. After some research, I think it's worth a look, though get ready to digest some details. First, let me first give you the summary. Option 1 - Premier World Mastercard ("PWM", $0-95 annual fee): signup … [Read more...]
The Great Paradox of My Travel Aspirations
I have two fundamental travel aspirations: See the world. Get good value out of miles & points. The 2 goals were in unison in my early days of the hobby. Seeing the world meant flying premium cabin to a major destination, staying in a high-value points hotel, and sightseeing in the vicinity. I did this in Hong Kong, Sydney, Bangkok, Paris, Banff - to … [Read more...]
Barclay Aviator Red 60k Offer – Generous, (Likely) Churnable
Direct link to offer (NOT an affiliate link, if that wasn't obvious) One of the best sign up boni right now is the Barclay Aviator Red card. You get 60,000 AA miles after 1st purchase and paying annual fee of $95. In other words, almost NO minimum spending requirement (more on that later), you're basically buying 60,000 AA miles for $95 - a very, very good … [Read more...]