American Express

Frontier Airlines No Longer A Membership Rewards Partner Effective March 2015

Posted on January 5, 2015 by 2btravel

Over the weekend I got my monthly statement for my American Express card that earns Membership Rewards points and it had this notice at the top of the statement:

Effective March 5, 2015 Frontier Airlines will no longer be a point transfer airline in the Membership Rewards program.  Any Membership Rewards points transfers for Frontier Airlines must be made by March 4, 2015.  These transfers will be considered final, non-refundable, and subject to the EarlyReturns program terms and conditions.  To transfer points to Frontier, please visit membershiprewards.com/travel.

This doesn’t impact me as I haven’t flown Frontier in years and only once.  Back before the recession they had daily service between Memphis and Denver.  Now, the service is no longer daily and not on Saturdays, which is when I’d want to travel them for ski trips, which is disappointing.  My one experience with them was flying to San Francisco (via Denver) and I quite liked the leather seats in their regional jets.  But that was many years ago and now, of course, I much prefer to fly up front or at least in an Economy Plus-style seat with more legroom.

So if you’d plan to transfer your Membership Rewards points to Frontier, now’s the time to do so!

Categories: Frontier, Membership Rewards | Tags: , | Leave a comment

Starwood Preferred Guest Credit Card from American Express

Posted on December 13, 2014 by 2btravel

2014-12-13 SPG Referral

What’s better for airline points than the credit card tied to a particular airline? The Starwood Preferred Guest Credit Card from American Express. While it doesn’t have bonus categories for everyday purchases (though you do get 2x points at SPG hotels) the great thing about SPG points are their versatility.

For some airlines you can transfer SPG points to the airline at a 1:1 ratio. BUT, if you transfer 20,000 points they’ll give you a 5,000 point bonus and you’ll end up with 25,000 airline points! There’s a huge list of airlines including: AeroMexico, Aeroplan (Air Canada), Air Berlin, Air China, Air France/KLM, Alaska, Alitalia, All Nippon Airways (ANA), American, Asia Miles (Cathay Pacific), Asiana, British Airways, China Eastern, China Southern, Delta, Emirates, Etihad, Gol, Hainan, Hawaiian, Japan (JAL), Miles & More (Lufthansa/SWISS), Qatar, Saudi Arabia Airlines, Singapore, Thai Airways, US Airways, Virgin Atlantic and Virgin Australia.

They also transfer to LAN Airlines at a rate of 1:1.5. Do not transfer to United (2:1) or Air New Zealand (65:1) as they have bad (UA) or horrible (NZ) transfer rates.

Of course since Starpoints are the currnecy of SPG hotels, they can also be used for free or discounted rooms. Category 1 hotels are just 3,000 points per night, meaning this card could get you a free room for 8 nights just with the signup bonus! SPG properties include: St. Regis, The Luxury Collection, W Hotels, Le Meridien, Westin, Sheraton, aloft, element and Four Points. Don’t have enough points to cover your stay? No problem with the cash + points option where you can use points to discount the cost of the room. You can also use points to upgrade to larger rooms or suites, or even for nights at Caesars Entertainment hotels like Caesar’s Palace, Harrah’s, Bally’s, Flamingo, Harvey’s, Nobu Hotel, Paris Las Vegas, Planet Hollywood, The Quad and Rio hotels.

If you’ll allow me to refer you for this credit card you’ll get 10,000 Starpoints after your first purchase and 15,000 Starpoints when you spend $5000 in the first 6 months of owning the card. (As always, if you do not pay off your credit card bills each month, DO NOT apply for a new card!) In addition, I will receive a bonus of 5,000 Starpoints.

To do the referral I’ll need your first and last names and your email address. You can email them to me at 2btraveling@gmail.com. I appreciate your support!

Categories: Credit Cards, SPG Amex, Starwood | Tags: , | Leave a comment

Even More Promos

Posted on October 8, 2014 by 2btravel

Can you tell that we’re right in the midst of shoulder season?  There are all kinds of promos coming through every day.  Here are recent ones I’ve seen, in no particular order:

2014-10-08 IHG Purchased Points Bonus

IHG Rewards Club is featuring a bonus on purchased points this month.  The bonus depends on how many points you’re purchasing.  I’ve got a nice stash of points at the moment so I’ll sit this one out.

2014-10-08 Club Carlson Bonus

Club Carlson is having a sale at select hotels when you book by this Friday, October 10 and stay on select dates through the end of the month.  Talk about restrictions!  Since I just returned from vacation I won’t take advantage of this either.

2014-10-08 New AF A380 Route

I’m not an aviation geek by any means but one of the few planes I can recognize on sight is the Airbus A380, since it’s a full-length double-decker.  Air France is starting a new route, Miami to Paris (CDG), on December 1st.  Remember Air France is part of SkyTeam which means you can use Delta miles on this flight.  Sadly, Delta will not allow you access to La Premiere (first class) and if you book before the end of the year a one-way ticket will cost as much as a round-trip.  However, Air France’s Flying Blue program is a transfer partner of both Starwood and Amex Membership Rewards, so that’s the way to book first class on the new bird.

2014-10-08 Hilton Purchased Points Promo

And finally, if you hold one of the Hilton co-branded credit cards (Amex has two, Citibank has one) you should have received this offer via email.  The link in the mail is specific for each recipient but you can buy or give Hilton HHonors points until October 22 and get a bonus, depending on how many points you buy or give.  Might be a nice way to top off your account if you’re just a little short.

Categories: Air France, American Express, Citibank Hilton Reserve Visa, Club Carlson, Hilton, Hilton Amex, Hilton Surpass, Hotel, IHG, SkyTeam | Leave a comment

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