How Low Can Your Mileage Balance Go?

I recently made a change to a complicated award reservation which involved merging two reservations...one that used miles from my account and the other that used miles from Emily's account.

It took about 30 minutes on the phone with a very nice and devoted United rep to get everything figured out.  In the end, the merging of two different one-way reservations saved me 35,000 miles and about $150 in taxes so it was definitely the right move.

Once everything was ticketed and the call was complete, I logged on and looked at both of our United balances.  Emily was +70,000 miles...I was -35,000 miles.  That actually made sense I just didn't realize when I was on the phone where the miles originally came from.

At the moment, I'm currently sitting in United MileagePlus jail.  A place I have never been before.  I am actually shocked that their systems allowed the change since I technically "owe" them 6,826 miles!!

I don't anticipate any issues with the ticket since I will be out of jail after a few flights in May but pretty crazy that United's infrastructure is so bad that it allowed something like this!

How to Book an Award Ticket with United Miles

Since starting this blog, I've spent a lot of time writing abut how to earn miles and points.  I've spent less time showing how to actually redeem miles and points which is where this hobby starts to pay real dividends.  So here is my first post in a series on how to redeem United Miles for an award flight.

If you already have sufficient mileage in your United account, great.  If not (and you plan to transfer miles in from Chase Ultimate Rewards or purchase them) it's a good idea to wait until you find flight availability before making the transfer/purchase.

Let's say you live in Denver and want to go to Tokyo over the summer.  You are flexible on dates and want to go for a week with your spouse/friend/etc...You have 240,000 United Miles and 80,000 Chase Ultimate Rewards Points which you have been diligently saving/building up in advance of this trip.  You want to fly business class to fly in style if possible and want to minimize connection time.

United & Starwood Selling Points at a Discount

United & Starwood are both selling miles at a discount this week.  If you're been reading my blog, you know I am pretty loyal to both brands. 

Starwood will sell you up to 20,000 SPG points at a 25% discount through May 31st while United will sell you miles at a 30% discount when you purchase more than 12,000 through April 23rd.

I don't think either of these are especially good deals but if you are close to an award, the "marginal" value gained by buying a few thousands miles/points can be pretty huge.  You can read my primer on buying miles here.

How to Get 50% Off at Neiman Marcus

The United MileagePlus Shopping Mall just launched a pretty outstanding deal.  Purchases (through Thursday at 11:59 PM EDT) at Neiman Marcus will earn 12x miles.  That is the best earning ratio I've ever seen.  If you are new to online shopping and earning points/miles through shopping portals, please read this post first.

12x United Miles at Neiman Marcus

In addition, Neiman Marcus is running a promotion where you can earn a $50 gift card (for a future purchase) after spending $200 through Wednesday at 1PM EDT.

These deals are stackable and include free shipping.  I will definitely be taking advantage of this deal.  Not to buy crap I don't need but to pick up a few gifts for upcoming celebrations and something for our house.  I'm sure the gift card will come in handy in the future as well.

Just to recap...if you spend $200 you will earn 13x United miles, (including regular spend) receive free shipping and a $50 gift card.  I value the United rebate at 26% (2 cents a mile).  Assuming you can actually use the $50 gift card for something in the future, your effective rebate would be 51% off.  

How the United Mobile App Saved our Vacation

So we had quite the morning trying to leave Denver for a week in Playa Del Carmen, Mexico.

It's a bit of a long story but worth telling for a couple of reasons.  First, to reiterate the huge benefits of having the United (or your favorite airline) mobile app downloaded on your phone.   Second, this is my blog and I can write about whatever I want.

We woke up this morning with plenty of time to shower, pack, have breakfast and head to DEN for our 10:15AM direct flight to Cancun.  In the middle of packing, Emily noticed there was a pretty strong odor in our laundry room and shower.  It smelled like gas.  Our first thought was "this can't be good" but we weren't exactly sure what to do other can call the gas company and get their thoughts.  We called the emergency line and they said that we should get out of the house immediately and they would send someone out "within the next hour or so."  So we left the house essentially in our pajamas with the lights on and walked across the street to get some coffee.

A long day but it will certainly be worth it

Point Transfers: Chase Ultimate Rewards

I've written about how Chase Ultimate Rewards are one of my favorite point currencies.  If you are new to UR points, read these posts on how to earn them via the Chase Sapphire Preferred card and how to combine points between cardholders.

Once you have accumulated a stash of points, you're going to want to redeem them.  That is the point of this whole game/hobby anyway.  Here's a quick overview of how to redeem/transfer points to one of the UR travel partners:

1. Login to your Chase Ultimate Rewards Account
2. Mouse over the "Point Transfer" menu on the top navigation bar
3. Select the travel partner (in this case I've selected United) you want to transfer points to
4. Select the number of points/miles you'd like to transfer (in 1,000 point/mile increments)
5. Enter your United MileagePlus number twice
6. Enter your First and Last Name
7. Click "Continue" and then confirm the transfer

I've found that most transfer points (I've used United and Hyatt most often) transfer immediately so Ultimate Rewards points are awesome if you find availability and want to book something while it's still available.

Select the point transfer partner

Enter the transfer amount and your personal information

Flying with Chelsea Clinton on Singapore Airlines: Exploring Singapore

Booking
Exploring Singapore
Conrad Centennial Singapore
Singapore Airlines 777-300ER First Class Singapore to San Francisco

We arrived off Singapore Airlines flight # 11 which lands in Singapore at 3:00AM local time.  Singapore Changi Airport is often regarded as the world's best airport.  At that hour, it was mostly deserted.  We were both a bit tired and groggy after nearly 19 hours of flying and were ready for a shower and bed.  Luckily, the airport is hyper efficient and we were reunited with our checked bags and in a cab within 15 minutes.

It took a bit of searching for our cab driver to find the hotel entrance in the dark but once he found it, we were checked in and up in our room.  After a three hour snooze, we woke up to a gorgeous Singaporean sunrise.

Singapore Sunrise on Day # 1

Flying with Chelsea Clinton on Singapore Airlines: Introduction

Introduction
Exploring Singapore
Conrad Centennial Singapore
Singapore Airlines 777-300ER First Class Singapore to San Francisco

This is a bit of a long story but it's a good one so please bear with me...

It all started the morning of July 8th, 2012.  Emily and I were in Boulder preparing for our wedding which was slated (and actually happened) the following Saturday.  On Sunday mornings, she likes to sleep in as long as possible and I like to wake up at 6:00AM and try to wake her up.  Usually she finds this incredibly annoying but this was different.

Singapore Airlines First Class Singapore to San Francisco

United Offering Double Miles for Completing a Survey

I recently completed a quick survey after my United flight to San Diego.  The survey took about three minutes and included an NPS (Net Promoter Score) question at the end. 

Today, I received an email from United offering double miles on select flights (after registering and on certain fare classes).  Whether the survey and targeted double miles are actually connected I'm not sure.  But this is a great offer and one that I will certainly be taking advantage of.  I have seen offers like this before but I've never personally been the recipient of one.

United 2x Miles Offer

Here are the details:

• Be targeted for the promotion (I tried to register Emily's account but received an error message)
• Double miles only account for RDM (Redeemable Miles) and not PQM (Premier Qualifying Miles)
• Register for the promotion
• Book my 5/31
• Travel between 3/1 and 5/31
• Fare classes (basically expensive fares) F, A, J, C, D, Z, P, Y, B, M, E and U

This is a great promotion.  Kudos to United.  I will definitely make sure to keep filling out post flight surveys if it means I receive offers like this in the future! 

How to Find Out if Your United Flight Will Have Wi-Fi

Inflight WiFi has literally changed flying.  Business travel is more productive, flights go by quicker, and kids can stay entertained for hours without crying.  Of the major US airlines, United is pretty late to the game with their inflight Wi-Fi rollout.  But they are catching up quickly.  As a general rule, if you're flying on an A319 or A320, your flight will have WiFi.  The Boeing fleet only has 34 planes configured and most of them are long haul 747s.

Inflight Wi-Fi on yesterday's flight from SFO to DEN

For a variety of reasons, it's often helpful to know if your flight will have internet access prior to boarding.  There's a super easy way to figure this out.

• First, download the United iOS or Android app to your phone.
• Log in to your app and tap "Flight status"
• Either enter your flight number or city pairs (i.e. DEN - SFO)
• Select your flight if applicable
• Scroll down to the bottom of the page and tap "Amenities"

The "Inflight Entertainment" section shows if Wi-Fi is available.  Even if the amenities include Wi-Fi, there's always the possibility that Wi-Fi is available and doesn't work or the aircraft gets swapped prior to your flight.  But spend ten seconds before your flight and check it out.

I find that the service ($6.99 on most domestic flights) is really valuable for the price.  I'm able to be productive/entertained for the entire flight (checking email, writing a blog post, working, reading the news, etc...) and look forward to the day United has Wi-Fi installed fleet wide and I don't need to check prior to my flight.

Avicii in Toronto Booked!

Emily and I are both pretty big Avicii fans.  After a couple of failed attempts last year, we wanted to make sure we caught him on the upcoming North American tour.  There are only 7 shows and most of them are on Thursday or Sunday nights.  We both have limited vacation days so needed to make one of the Saturday night shows work.  Our options were DC, New York, or Toronto and Toronto worked best.  Emily hasn't been and I've spent limited time there so we decided to make a weekend out of it.  Not to mention, we get to go stamp collecting.  Flights were running over $700/person so I checked out our award ticket options. 

This is a situation where points and miles can enable experiences not previously possible.  I was able to grab two nonstop economy tickets on United for the outbound for 25,000 miles $5.00 leaving after work on Friday.  Paid economy tickets on United weren't terrible coming back from Toronto on Sunday afternoon so I paid for those with cash.

The show is at the Rogers Centre downtown.  There were several great hotel options but we decided on the Westin Harbour Castle which is a short 15 minute week from the venue.  Starwood is great in that paid, points, and cash and points stays all count towards elite status.  So this trip, I'll pick up 1 stay and 2 nights towards re-qualifying for Platinum status.

Westin Toronto Harbour Castle

Paid rates were going for $252 AI per night.  Points (10,000) and cash and points (5,000 + $75) were both available.  So I could either use points and receive 2.52 cents/point.  Or use cash and points and get 3.54 cents/point.  I opted for the latter and we were all set.  I find that SPG cash and points redemptions usually deliver the most value and 3.5+ cents/point is really, really good value.

I've heard the weather in Toronto in May is pretty good.  If anyone has been there and has suggestions for stuff to do/places to eat, please comment below.

Introduction: San Francisco for the Weekend

After re-qualifying for Starwood Preferred Guest Platinum (25 stays total with 4 coming from the Amex SPG card) status last year, I received a choice of two gifts.  Either double Starpoints for a month or 35% off an award booking good for up to 5 nights within the next 6 months.  The choice was easy - 35% off an award is a great deal!

Our calendar was already pretty full but we found a weekend (this weekend) to sneak in a quick trip to San Francisco.  And we seem to have incorporated all of the best practices around a weekend trip.

35% off a Starwood redemption

United Selling Miles for 40% Off

United is selling miles at a 40% discount perhaps reacting to American's 40% mileage bonus from last week.  Buying miles is a great way to top off an account for an award and since many of you are probably planning travel for this summer, it might make sense to pull the trigger during the sale. 

For a primer on buying miles, read this post.

The sale ends 2/17/14 and you have to purchase 40,000 miles to get the 40% bonus.  The 40,000 miles will run you $903 and is enough to redeem for a one way first class ticket between Australia and Asia.  So not a bad deal if you have a specific redemption in mind.

Earning Free Marriott Gold Status with United RewardsPlus

Over the past couple of years, a number of US airline and hotel chains have "hooked up."  Delta with Starwood and Marriott with United are the most notable.  For the United/Marriott deal, United Premier Gold (and higher) elite members are able to get free Marriott Gold by signing up here.  It normally takes 50 nights per year to qualify for Marriott Gold so this is a great benefit of flying 50,000 miles per year on United.

United Gold equals Marriott Gold

2014 United Elite Status Update

After spending the last 14 months as a United Premier 1K (for flying 107,000 miles in 2012), the elite status year was reset on Saturday morning and I'm now officially United Premier Gold based on 2013 activity.  Emily also qualified for Premier Gold for 2014 after being Gold in 2013.  United sent me an email last week with a link to review my status (and associated features and benefits) for 2014.

I will likely try to qualify for Gold again this year but it won't be as easy given the new revenue requirements (Gold now requires 50,000 miles and $5,000 in United spend).  That said, you can get a waiver on the spend requirement by putting $25,000 in spend on the United Explorer Card which is something I plan to do leveraging Amazon Payments.

His & Hers 2014 Premier Gold Packages

United Gold gets me three benefits (Economy+ at booking, complimentary upgrades, and reduced award booking fees) that I value enough to try to re-qualify.  I already have 25,000 miles flown/booked in 2014 so don't see a problem getting to 50,000 by the end of the year.  There are a lot of reasons not to be loyal to an airline but United has treated me well over the years and living in Denver, they are really the only game in town that allows me to earn and redeem miles for international travel.

Earning Miles for Valentine's Day

Valentine's Day is less than two weeks away and you're probably going to end up sending flowers to someone (your significant other, parent, grandparent, etc...).  You might as well earn miles/points for your purchase so here's a recap of the best earning offers I've seen thus far:

• Earn 30 United miles/dollar through FTD which could be stacked with the American Express offer to receive 25% off your purchase.  
• While not as good of a deal, you can earn 15 AA miles/dollar through FTD.  If you're an elite member, you'll earn an additional 200 bonus miles
• Earn 9 AA miles/dollar through ProFlowers plus receive 20% off 
• Earn 30 AA miles/dollar through 1-800FLOWERS which is stackable with the Amex offer providing a $15 statement credit after spending $50

Earn 30 United miles/dollar through FTD

The best deal is the combination of the United promotion through FTD and the American Express offer.

If you spend $75 AI ($50 on flowers and $25 on tax/delivery/service fees) you would pay a net total of $56.20 and receive 1,500 United miles.  I value the miles at $30 thus reducing your total "spend" to $26.20.  The AA 1-800FLOWERS promotion would net you the same number of miles but cost roughly $3 more. 

Obviously the flowers and the thought are more important than the cashback/miles but it's always nice to get a bonus when doing something you were going to do anyway.

United Devaluation Postponed until February 3rd

Yesterday (1/31) was supposed to be the last day to book flights with United miles under the "old" award chart.  United has extended the deadline by 2 days (until Monday, 2/3) so if you are sitting on United miles, this weekend would be the time to use them.  Most awards outside of the US are going up, awards on non-United carriers within the Star Alliance are going up the most.  Non-premium routes in the US are either staying the same or going up slightly.

At this point, the schedule for most carriers is open through the end of 2014 so you can book something for summer, Thanksgiving, Christmas, etc...

Deals We Like has a great summary (easy to read) on the routes that are increasing and by how much.

Earn 8 United Miles per Dollar at Sephora

Through the United Shopping Mall, Sephora is offering 8 points per dollar until Monday evening.  I recently wrote a post about how to earn miles through the various online shopping malls so read that first if you haven't already.  This is the highest Sephora earnings rate I've seen in a long time.  I don't shop at Sephora often (Emily takes care of that for us) but in addition to being a "makeup store" they do sell a wide variety of everyday stuff for men (shaving cream especially travel sizes, cologne).

I have had success going through the United mall (Your Mileage May Vary - YMMV) and buying an eGift card first.  Then using that e-gift card to redeem for the actual products.  This may or may not work everytime (the terms explicitly say it won't work) but it is worth the extra five minutes to potentially earn 16 United miles per dollar.  Just make sure you spend over the e-gift card amount the second run through (so buy a $50 eGift card and spend $55 total so $5 ends up on your credit card) as this tends to ensure your miles post properly. 

I value United miles at 2 cents each so if you get miles for both the e-gift card and your purchase, that would be 32% off at Sephora...a store that rarely has discounts or sales.  This is a great deal especially if you were planning on buying something at Sephora this weekend anyway.

Getting Started: Buying Miles & Points

This is the fifth in a series (post one, two, three, and four) of posts on getting started earning, managing, and redeeming points and miles.

One easy way to “top up” your accounts is to buy miles direct from the airline.  Many of you likely have accounts with many of the major US carriers.  From time to time they will sell you miles at a discount.  I recently purchased a few miles from United to top up my account for an award for about 2.1 cents (I value them at 2 cents each so paid only a small premium) apiece. 

United miles are expensive but are often sold at a discount

It costs (until 2/1/2014) 100,000 miles to redeem for a roundtrip United business class ticket to Europe.  Let’s say you currently have a total of 80,000 miles (easy to rack up quickly) in your United and Chase Ultimate Rewards (transferable to United) accounts and want to go to Paris.  You need 20,000 additional miles for the award ticket in business class.  In this example, you could purchase the incremental miles needed for $420 and fly business class or shell out roughly $1,250+ for a roundtrip coach ticket.  Seems like a no-brainer, right?

Right now, through January 31st, American is running a promotion where you can purchase (buy 45,000 get 15,000 free) miles for 2.27 cents each.  It costs 67,500 miles to fly (one-way) from Chicago to Hong Kong in Cathay Pacific First Class.  In most cases, this is a $5,000 - 10,000 ticket.  As you can see below, you can outright buy the American miles for $1,457.50 and redeem them for a Cathay one-way First Class award. Cathay First is supposed to be fantastic.  Ben has a great review over at One Mile at a Time.  We haven't flown it yet but hope to in 2014.

Not a reality for everyone as that is a pretty big cash outlay and you still need to get back from Asia.  But it's a great illustration of how buying miles from time to time can be a great deal!

Buy 68,000 miles from AA for $1,457.50

Keep an eye out (on this blog) for notifications about new "buy miles" promotions.  There is rarely a price in which I would speculatively purchase miles but if you have a desire to go somewhere and are short miles, this is a great way to get you there.

Sometimes a Cancelled Flight Can Be a Good Thing

During our recent trip to London, we received an email from United at 11:40PM on New Years Eve.  Our 9:20 AM flight from London to Houston had been cancelled.  Well that sucks.  A few minutes later, we received an email informing us that we had been re-booked on the 11:40 AM flight.  That was good news but now we were going to have a super tight 1:10 connection in Houston.  There wasn't much we could do so we enjoyed the rest of 2013, set our alarms for two hours later, and "slept in" a bit.

Our flight to Houston was fine (review coming) except for the fact that Emily has a gluten allergy and I had requested a gluten free meal.  But that meal was sitting on our originally scheduled flight...back in Houston.  So she was kind of out of luck in terms of food.  Thanks to Global Entry, we somehow made our connection even with checked bags.  The flight from Houston to Denver was on an internationally configured 767-300 so we had lie flat beds for the two hour flight.  Pretty sweet...except the entertainment system didn't work and had to be constantly reset by the crew.