April 10, 2015

Earning Starpoints with Uber

I've been meaning to write a post about Starwood's partnership with Uber but just haven't gotten around to it.  If you're not familiar with the details, you can check them out here.  The partnership enables SPG members to earn 1 Starpoint per dollar spent with Uber.  Double that if you ride during a Starwood stay.  Triple it if you are staying with Starwood and are an elite member (I am).  You'll see your Uber bonus points post on your SPG account within 1-2 days.


Remember - to earn the SPG points, you'll need to have at least one SPG stay.  This is an awesome way to earn extra Starwood points which are both extremely valuable and difficult to obtain.

April 9, 2015

On the Way to JFK

Hey that title rhymes.  I'm sitting comfortably at the American Airlines Admirals Club at ORD (thanks to the Citi Executive Card) waiting for my flight to JFK after a great conference in Chicao.

The weather is absolutely terrible - with strong thunderstorms impacting a wide swatch of middle America.  Somehow my flight is on time (T-55 at the moment).  However there are scores of flight cancellations and a lot of upset people in the lounge.  But we're all lucky to be inside safe from damaging winds, hail, and tornadoes.

ORD storms
Hopefully we'll get some clearing soon and we can all make it to the our destinations safely.

April 5, 2015

1,000 Free Honors Points for Changing Your Password

Hilton's loyalty program (HHonors) is offering each member 1,000 points for changing your password by 4/22/2015.  Hilton is moving away from their PIN based system (4 digits) for security purposes.


This will literally take 1 minute of your time.  I value HHonors points at half a cent each so this is like getting $5 for free.  I've changed my account and Emily's and both of our points have already posted.


60% Bonus on AA Miles Purchases

Continuing on the theme of American this morning, AA is offering a substantial bonus on purchased miles through 4/30.  If you aren't familiar with purchasing miles direct from airlines, read this post.

If you max out the promotion (100,000 miles) you will receive a bonus of 60,000 additional miles.  The total cost (including taxes and fees) comes to $3,201.25.  Through the promotion, you're able to buy miles for 2 cents each.  That is the best deal I've seen in a long time.


So how could you leverage this promotion?

Let's say you currently have 110,000 AA miles and you want to fly to Asia.  And you want two tickets.    You could totally buy two coach tickets on AA or any other carrier.  And that would probably cost you about $3,200.


Or you could spend $3,200 and max out the current AA miles bonus (which runs through 4/30).  You'd have a total of 270,000 AA miles which is enough for two roundtrip first class tickets.  You could redeem those AA miles for a first class on Cathay Pacific!

Buying miles is an easy (and fast) way to fill in the gaps if you are looking to take a trip and don't have sufficient miles to redeem for the award you want.  $3,200 is clearly a lot of money but if you were going to spend the cash on coach tickets, you might as well fly in style.

AAdvantage eShopping Mall Bonus

The Advantage eShopping Mall is offering some pretty great deals at the moment.  If you aren't familiar with online shopping portals, read this post first.  Here's one of the best examples where you can literally quadruple dip on your earnings.


First, spend $155 at eBags (buy that new suitcase you've been eyeing) through the AA eShopping Mall.  You will earn:

  • eBags is now offering 12x AA miles through the portal through 4/11/15.  That is 1,500 AA miles after the discounts below.  You'll also earn 250 bonus miles based on the AA eShopping Mall current promotion
  • American Express Offers is offering a $15 statement credit after spending $75
  • eBags will give you $20 off a purchase of $100 or more
  • eBags will also give you 5% back on this purchase to redeem 


Pretty unbelievable.  For $155 in spend, you will receive $35 off so you'll actually spend $120.  You will also earn 1,750 AA miles which I value at $35.  Plus 5% back from eBags gets you another $6 to use in the future.   That is nearly 50% off your purchase!!!

Earn 10% Off at Restaurants with Chase Freedom

Chase Freedom is one of the best "fee free" cards on the market.  While the card is marketed as a cash back card, if you have another Ultimate Rewards earning card (such as an Ink business card or a Chase Sapphire Preferred card) you can transfer the cash back points earned to your Ultimate Rewards earning card.  You can then use those points to transfer to a variety of travel partners (British Airways, United Airlines, Hyatt, etc..) which provide far more value then simply redeeming for cash back.

Chase Freedom also provides a quarterly bonus where you can earn 5x cash back (and ultimately 5x Ultimate Rewards) on up to $1,500 in spend per quarter.  Q2 2015 happens to be restaurants.  So you can spend $1,500 on restaurants throughout the quarter and earn 7,500 Ultimate Rewards points.  I value UR points at $.02 each so ultimately you're earning 10% off your restaurant spend during the quarter.

Earn 5x Ultimate Rewards this quarter

This quarter, the bonus also includes spend at Bed Bath & Beyond, H&M, and Overstock.com.  You do have to activate your cad each quarter but it takes all of 10 seconds to do.  Chase will even send you several reminders throughout the quarter to ensure you don't forget.

Because the card does not carry an annual fee, there's no reason to cancel...ever.  And because the rotating categories provide so much value, Freedom will always have a place in my wallet.

March 29, 2015

Long Weekend in Vancouver: Planning & Booking

Introduction
Planning & Booking
Cathay Pacific 777-300ER First Class New York (JFK) to Vancouver
Fairmont Pacific Rim
Shangri-La Vancouver

We're just a couple of weeks away from our long weekend in Vancouver.  This was a really easy trip to book (most weekend trips are) as there was plenty of availability for both the flights and hotels we wanted.


Cathay Pacific 777-300ER

First, I booked our flight from JFK to Vancouver in Cathay Pacific First Class.  I was able to book the flight online using 65,000 British Airways Avios for both of us.  There were also taxes of $44 USD.  The flight is a quasi redeye leaving New York at 10PM and landing in Vancouver at 1AM PDT.  Luckily, we'll have great pajamas and a bed to get some rest on the way there.

As a reminder, British Airways Avios is a transfer partner of both Chase Ultimate Rewards and American Express Membership Rewards...so it is really easy to accumulate a ton of BA points.  Not a bad redemption for a flight which would have cost a few thousands dollars.

I am headed to a conference before our trip so I'll be making a stop for a couple of nights in Chicago prior to heading to meet Emily in New York.


My routing courtesy of the Great Circle Mapper

I paid cash for our United tickets home from Vancouver at a cost of around $400 for both of us.  Yes this is a roundabout way of getting to Vancouver.  But it will be a fun weekend adventure flying one of our favorite first class products.

In terms of hotels, I used the free nights from my Chase Fairmont card for the first couple of nights  at the Fairmont Pacific Rim.  I was able to upgrade us to a suite and we'll have $100 to spend on breakfast and $50 to spend on dinner.  Not bad.

For the third night, I booked a paid rate ($220 USD) at the Shangri-La Vancouver through American Express Fine Hotels & Resorts.  The rate includes wi-fi, breakfast, and a $100 on-property credit which we'll put to good use at the bar.

All in, we booked a long weekend in Vancouver for under $700.  That includes 3 nights in luxury hotels, free breakfast, $150 in dining credits, and 6 hours in Cathay Pacific First Class.  Follow the blog and Instagram for updates on the journey!