Frequent Miler on the Air

Greg and Nick have a LOT of cards between the two of them and they can't possibly carry all of them in their real-life physical wallets. What happens instead is that they tend to rotate the cards in their wallets based on what the current bonuses are, whether or not there are cards they're trying to reach a spend requirement on...and...whether or not they can find the physical card. In this episode, they'll cover the major real-life spend categories and which cards they're carrying for those purposes. (01:19) - Which cards do Greg and Nick carry for Grocery spend?

Learn more about the Savor card here.

(02:06) - Learn more about the Amex Gold card here.

(03:31) - Which cards do we carry around for Gas?

Learn more about the Wyndham Business Earner Card here.

(04:09) - Learn more about the Amex Business Gold card here.

(05:24) - Which cards do we carry around for dining?

(08:28) - Which cards do we carry around for Travel?

Learn more about the Sapphire Reserve card here.

(12:27) - Which cards do we carry around for Pharmacy?

Learn more about the Chase Freedom Unlimited card here.

(14:30) - Which cards do we carry for spend everywhere else?

Learn more about the Bank Of America Premium Rewards card here.

(16:50) - Learn more about the Bank Of America Unlimited Cash Rewards here.

Visit https://frequentmiler.com/subscribe to get updated on in-depth points and miles content like this, and don’t forget to like and follow us on social media.

Music Credit – Beach Walk by Unicorn Heads

In this episode, Greg and Nick will look at 4 ways to access Delta Sky Clubs, they'll reveal a hot reader tip for a free stay in Atlantis in the Bahamas, and they'll discuss the Air France / KLM Flying Blue devaluation. Check out the full episode below.

(01:28) - It seems like a lot of people are running into issues lately with using the $200 platinum credit for Fine Hotels and Resorts. 

(07:03) - United TravelBank glitch (now resolved) [Reported on Reddit]

(09:50) - Air France KLM Flying Blue award prices increase by 15-25% to/from Europe

Read more about this price change here.

(18:02) - It's not too late to book Atlantis even if your Caesars Diamond status is about to go away.

(20:28) - Sky Clubs vs other airport clubs

Read more about how to get into Delta Sky Club Lounges here.

(23:01) - Overall Requirements

(24:12) - #1 Premium Credit Cards

(24:27) - Amex Platinum (not to be confused with Amex Delta SkyMiles Platinum)

Learn more about the Amex Platinum card here.

(31:31) - Delta Reserve consumer or business

Learn more about the Delta Reserve card here.

See: How to get Delta Sky Club access for you and your family here.

(39:58) - #2 Fly Delta One; or any Sky Team airline in business or first class

(42:56) - #3 Elite Status Check out our blog post: Shortcuts to Delta elite status here: https://frequentmiler.com/delta-elite-shortcuts/

Or check out our episode "Easy path to Delta Elite status in 2024 Ep281" here: https://frequentmiler.com/easy-path-to-delta-elite-status-in-2024-frequent-miler-on-the-air-ep281-11-15-24/

(45:51) - #4 Sky Club Membership

Learn more about Delta Choice Benefits here: https://frequentmiler.com/delta-choice-benefits/

(55:16) - Many times when I'm booking stays, there's only availability for standard rooms. How do approach getting an upgrade if there's no availability?

In today's podcast episode Greg and Nick will talk about the things they wish Marriott would add to their program to make it a really great program. They argue these things shouldn't even have to cost Marriott that much to implement.

Read more about our Marriott Bonvoy Wishlist here.

(01:24) - Fix the Platinum Elite free breakfast benefit

Find our resource for figuring out whether or not you get free breakfast here.

(05:00) - Clear Nightly Upgrade Awards from the time of booking

(08:21) - Remove the 15K limit on free night certificate top-offs

(11:11) - Waive resort fees on free night stays

Visit https://frequentmiler.com/subscribe to get updated on in-depth points and miles content like this, and don’t forget to like and follow us on social media.

Music Credit – Beach Walk by Unicorn Heads

There are a few ways now where you can earn elite status on airlines entirely through hotel stays! This is sort of a new development that we're excited to discuss in today's podcast.

(01:32) - Whoops: Forgot United offers elite earnings on award tickets (UA flights only)

Find episode 288 here.

(04:09) - IHG Choice Benefit annual lounge membership trick worked this year

(05:58) -  One reader finds a way to get an offer to upgrade back to Amex Platinum for 50K bonus points after 2K spend.

(08:03) - Alaska Biz Card 70K offer is back: 70K miles and Companion Fare™

Learn more about the Alaska Business card here.

(09:27) - Costco card goes up to 5% at Costco Gas on 1/19/25. All other gas/EV will stay at 4%

(12:32) - US Bank Altitude Go: beginning on April 15, 2025, cardholders will be limited to earning 4x on the first $2,000 in dining, takeout and restaurant delivery purchases each quarter. Learn more about that update here

(13:45) - Sonesta credit card taking a siesta

Learn more about the Sonesta siesta here

(15:34) - Pay1040 fees up, down, all around

(21:42) - Hyatt promo: Earn double elite night credits for stays at Under Canvas properties Read more about that Hyatt promo here

(28:21) - Marriott Choice Benefit 40K expiry

(33:30) - BA goes revenue-based (Read more about that change here

(34:45) - Daily Getaways Dead: The program has been discontinued

(36:29) - Marriott ->> United Premier Silver AND Air Canada Aeroplan 25K Read more about that here

(40:59) - Hyatt ->> American Airlines Read more about this option here

(50:49) - Hyatt Explorist/Globalist elite members can trade Hyatt points for status for a day

(53:33) - Not as many shortcuts with Hyatt as with Marriott Read more about this here

(1:03:00) - Should I mattress run with Advantage Hotels the rest of my way to AA Executive Platinum status?

(1:06:14) - How do you value your time, for example when an hour of effort will save you a small chunk of change?

You can book Preferred Hotels with Choice Privileges points, (which has a 1:2 transfer rate from Citi Thank You points), or Preferred Hotel points (which has a 1:4 transfer rate from Citi Thank You points). There are reasons to book with one points over another, but is this worth doing? Greg's recent experience booking a Preferred Hotel with Choice points can help shed some light on the question.

(01:24) - The Seagate Hotel & Spa Delray Beach Florida

(01:48) - Different booking options...

(05:17) - Booking experience...

(12:17) - Hotel stay experience (the good and bad)

Visit https://frequentmiler.com/subscribe to get updated on in-depth points and miles content like this, and don’t forget to like and follow us on social media.

Music Credit – Beach Walk by Unicorn Heads

(00:00) - It's a new year and we're excited about all the "point-y" things happening for us in 2025! Give this episode a listen to find out what we're looking forward to.

(01:07) - One reader's interesting experience disbanding a United miles pool highlights a possible hack and brings up a few questions.... Learn more about miles-pooling here: https://www.united.com/en/us/mileageplus/miles-pooling/

(04:17) - Can a pool leader leave a miles pool?

(04:35) - Can I leave a miles pool after joining?

(07:25) - Chase United card devaluation: TravelBank credits instead of statement credits

(11:10) - Chase Aeroplan PYB (Pay Yourself Back) Travel limited to 200K

(13:51) - Marriott Choice Benefit 40 night selection expiry Read more about this update here: https://frequentmiler.com/marriott-bonvoy-choice-benefits/

 (16:27) - IHG Ends Annual Lounge Pass Loophole In 2025

(19:52) - Pay taxes via credit card slightly cheaper (starts at 1.75%) but down to 2 processors PayUSATax gone ("We are no longer processing federal tax payments on behalf of the IRS.") Learn more about paying taxes with a credit card here: https://frequentmiler.com/pay-taxes-via-credit-card/

(25:21) - Greg and Nick’s "Bonvoyed" pick: Hyatt breaks our hearts with Mr & Mrs Smith Read our "Bonvoyed of the year" post here: https://frequentmiler.com/frequent-milers-peoples-choice-bonvoyed-awards-2024-edition/

(26:47) - Readers' "Bonvoyed" picks...

(28:10) - Our picks for for Deal of the Year Read our "Deal of the Year" post here: https://frequentmiler.com/2024-deal-of-the-year-and-readers-choice-vote/

(29:02) - Readers' picks for Deal of the Year

(31:01) - Small Luxury Hotels SLH

(33:07) - Preferred hotels & Resorts

(35:30) - Alaska Mileage Plan mixed partner awards

(40:13) - Earning Alaska elite status through award bookings

(42:51) - Alaska premium card

(45:00) - Digging into SAS awards

(47:17) - Finding a great Vacasa redemption (I bought points)

(49:17) - Finding great Capital One Miles deals See the "Deal of the Year" episode here: https://frequentmiler.com/deal-of-the-year-2024-frequent-miler-on-the-air-ep287-12-27-24-podcast/

(52:09) - Getting back into the swing of bank account bonuses

(54:05) - Trying out the AA bus from PHL-ACY.

(58:57) - Would a Delta Gold status be useful for a Korean Air flight booked via Delta miles?

The Smartly Credit Card (with opportunity for up to 4% cash back everywhere) has us wondering...when should you value cash back over other points and miles or transferable currency rewards?

(00:26) - Smartly Credit Card: Up to 4% cash back

Learn more about the Smartly card here.

(01:21) - Using 2x everywhere points card is like buying points for 2 cents each

(05:12) - So, is cash the final answer? No!

(09:07) - So what's the ideal strategy?

(13:36) - Learn more about the Hyatt milestone spending here.

Visit https://frequentmiler.com/subscribe to get updated on in-depth points and miles content like this, and don’t forget to like and follow us on social media.

Music Credit – Beach Walk by Unicorn Heads

What are the best miles and points deals we've seen in 2024, and which deals came out above the rest? In today's episode of Frequent Miler on the Air, we'll decide what we think the best miles and points deal of 2024 was.

(01:05) - Feedback about Greg's "Frequent Miler’s 2024 State of the Business Report"

Read Greg's "Frequent Miler’s 2024 State of the Business Report" here.

(08:12) - Additional datapoints regarding possible Atlantis stays for after February 1st

(12:14) - Greg's Marriott Mattress Run

(20:48) - Capital One Offers

(26:18) - Easily extend National Free Day

(28:41) - Catch our "Bonvoyed of the Year" episode from last week to see which loyalty snafus we thought were the worst in 2024.

(29:11) - Buy Aeroplan miles for 1.14cpp: Read more about buying Aeroplan miles here.

(30:41) - Big payouts via Capital One Shopping

(36:35) - Virgin goes dynamic & lowers surcharges Read more about Virgin's dynamic pricing here.

(40:00) - Bilt transfer bonus up to 150% to Flying Blue, Virgin Points, and IHG One Rewards (Jan 1)

(42:19) - Bilt transfer bonus up to 100% to Alaska (July 1)

(44:05) - Amex +10x restaurants referral offer Read more about this Amex referral offer here.

(47:11) - 120K Ink Business Preferred offer + 40K referral

(48:27) - Hilton SLH

(53:20) - Alaska's awesome shorthaul AA pricing Read more about the Alaksa award chart winners and losers here.

(57:41) - SAS Eurobonus Millionaire

Read more about the SAS Eurobonus Millionaire challenge here: https://frequentmiler.com/sas-eurobonus-millionaire-promo-frequently-asked-questions-million-mile-madness-2024/

(1:00:02) - Which did we actually take advantage of? (Or which didn't we?)

(1:01:59) - So...which was the best?

(1:11:10) - Read more about this story here: https://loyaltytraveler.boardingarea.com/2015/05/25/frequent-flyer-history-latinpass-million-miles-mileage-runs-that-bankrupted-a-company/

(1:13:17) - Can you swap a cash seat you've already purchased with Southwest with a companion seat with your companion pass instead?

In today's episode, we're going to be considering the Alaska / Hawaiian credit card strategy and asking the question: which card should you get now, if any?

(01:38) - Current lineup of Alaksa / Hawaiian credit cards

(02:17) - Learn more about the Bank of America Alaska Consumer card here: https://frequentmiler.com/AS/

(02:34) - ...and the Bank of America Alaska Business card here: https://frequentmiler.com/ASbiz/

(02:46) - Learn more about the Barclays Hawaiian Consumer card here: https://frequentmiler.com/HA/

(03:15) - ...and the Barclays Hawaiian Business card here: https://frequentmiler.com/HAbiz/

(04:35) - Considering Hawaiian cards

(06:02) - Considering Alaska cards

(07:40) - What's the best strategy?

Visit https://frequentmiler.com/subscribe to get updated on in-depth points and miles content like this, and don’t forget to like and follow us on social media.

Music Credit – Beach Walk by Unicorn Heads

Today we'll take a look back at the year and talk about what loyalty programs have done to us instead of for us. This is for the loyalty grinches!

(01:07) - Revisiting a question we'd answered previously about whether or not several domestic flights a month would be enough for earning status.

(06:18) - One reader has some information to share about the Atlantis property they booked now (before their Caesar's Diamond status disappears) for a stay in the future...

Read more about booking the Atlantis hotel here.

(10:12) - Flying Blue: Sends emails saying "Congratulations you are now a Flying Blue Ultimate member"

(11:44) - IHG: Purchase EQPs. 120K price: $640, no... $800, no... $1000, back to $640...

(16:27) - Nick flies to Mexico but doesn't leave the airport

(21:12) - Greg and Nick forgot about Bilt

Find our podcast episode about the upcoming Alaska Premium card here.

(23:42) - Preferred Hotels: Greg's ongoing Preferred Hotel booking saga

(29:48) - AA: Can now use miles to book Hawaiian flights from mainland US

(31:39) - Aviator Silver companion cert ain't all that

Read our Aviator Silver companion cert first impressions here.

(38:14) - Hilton Aspire resort credit-eligible hotel list un-shrinks

(39:40) - Marriott Upgrade Awards now clear five days out (again)

(43:27) - Southwest: assigned seating

Read about Southwest's upcoming assigned seating here.

(46:31) - 2023 Bonvoyed Awards Recap...

2024 Dis-Loyalty Nominees...

(51:38) - Chase & Capital One priority pass drops restaurants

(55:56) - Virgin goes dynamic

(59:08) - Virgin devalues Delta One to Europe

(1:02:36) - Wyndham Vacasa devaluation

(1:06:19) - BA & Qatar raise prices for short-haul partner awards (AA, Alaska)

(1:09:54) - Etihad nerfs award cancelations and point expirations

(1:15:43) - Bilt reduces Rent Day earnings to 1K bonus points

(1:18:50) - Wyndham Biz kills free cruises

(1:21:20) - Hyatt integrates Mr & Mrs Smith

(1:23:14) - Final picks

(1:30:20) - Why are there so many pop-up ads on your site?

Us Bank's Smartly Visa Signature card has no annual fee but also no welcome bonus. Even so, because of a benefit from their savings account which can increase earnings on the card, it's worth a discussion on today's Card Talk episode.

(00:21) - What are the basics of the U.S. Bank Smartly™ Visa Signature® Card

Learn more about this card here.

(01:06) - You can increase earning with a U.S. Bank Smartly Savings account and have certain amounts deposited w/ US Bank...

(02:53) - You'll need a Smartly Savings Account

(04:13) - But you can point your money toward Self Directed Investing

(08:03) - Be careful how you redeem rewards

(10:08) - How does the US Bank Smartly Card compare to Bank of America's Platinum Honors?

Alaska has announced that a premium card is coming in the Summer of 2025. They've given us just little bits of information so far, but in this episode, we'll talk about what those details are.

(01:03) - Pre-register by 12/31/24. Get 500 miles now, 5K extra miles later if/when you sign up for card.

(01:44) - Basic details...annual fee of $395 and earn Global Companion Award Certificates

(05:20) - Receive waived award ticket fees ($12.50 partner award fee, not surcharges)

(05:42) - Earn 3x miles on eligible foreign purchases

Visit https://frequentmiler.com/subscribe to get updated on in-depth points and miles content like this, and don’t forget to like and follow us on social media.

Music Credit – Beach Walk by Unicorn Heads

In this episode, Greg and Nick review some of the hotel and flight awards that stood out for each of them in 2024 so they can determine the best of the best for their 2024 award travels.

(01:06) - Bilt buy house benefit correction

See the previous episode where Greg talked about the Bilt buy house benefit here.

Read more about the Bilt Buy House benefit here.

(02:42) - Greg's latest experience booking Preferred hotels with Choice points

See the previous episode here.

(10:17) - Greg: "You’re a SAS EuroBonus Millionaire!”

(11:56) - Nick: Yikes!

(19:24) - Stephen: 1 more needs to be credited

(21:32) - Business Platinum gains $200 Hilton credit!

(29:48) - IRS temporarily displayed lower fees for paying taxes by credit card

(32:04) - Should Greg mattress run 1 Marriott night?

(37:24) - Alaska news

Read more about Alaska Airlines launching premium card here.

(41:48) - Waldorf Astoria New York now bookable with points and free night certificates.

(44:22) - Greg's candidates for top awards in 2024 - flights

(52:20) - Nick's candidates for top awards in 2024 - flights

(56:59) - Best flight pick overall

(1:00:32) - Greg's candidates for top awards in 2024 - hotels

(1:11:07) - Nick's candidates for top awards in 2024 - hotels

(1:21:05) - Beat hotel pick overall

(1:22:54) - Other top experiences in 2024

(1:30:07) - Which airline would you prioritize to fly and earn miles with: American, United, or Southwest? 

Citi recently announced that they will become the exclusive issuer of American Airlines AAdvantage credit cards in the United States, starting in 2026. What does that really mean for points and miles enthusiasts, and how can we take maximum advantage? (Or shall we say "AAdvantage"?)(

Read more about the AA / Citi news here.

(00:26) - Citi will become the exclusive issuer AAdvantage credit cards in the U.S. starting in 2026.

(01:41) - We wonder if maybe AA will become a transfer partner of Citi ThankYou Rewards

(02:54) - We wonder if maybe Citi will create Aviator cards that are ONLY available to those who are transitioned over from Barclays

(05:07) - Listen to our recent podcast about credit card predictions here.

(06:01) - Are AA miles valuable now?

(07:27) - Will AA miles be valuable later?

(10:56) - Should you get the Aviator Red now?

Learn more about the AviatorRed card here.

(14:07) - Should you upgrade to the Aviator Silver?

(19:11) - Listen to our podcast episode about amassing Citi ThankYou Rewards here.

Visit https://frequentmiler.com/subscribe to get updated on in-depth points and miles content like this, and don’t forget to like and follow us on social media.

Music Credit – Beach Walk by Unicorn Heads

There are a lot of things in the points and miles world that kind of come to a head at the end of the year, so you'll want to know what you should be taking care of here at the end of 2024. And of course, read our end of year checklist for 2024 here.

(01:30) - What happens when a Choice Rewards hotel booking has no record of your reservation, but the points are missing?

(07:32) - Preferred Hotels now bookable with iPrefer points

(16:34) - Amex 40% transfer bonus to Virgin Atlantic

(21:31) - Earn elite status

(23:05) - Do you have enough MQDs for Delta elite status? Check out our post here.

(24:48) - Remember to time your SouthWest companion pass properly Read our Complete Guide to the SouthWest companion pass here.

(28:37) - Marriott Bonvoy: Easiest option is Bonvoy Brilliant, but you can read about the many other options here.

(44:11) - Use airline incidental credits by December

(47:42) - Platinum $200 calendar year. See Amex airline fee reimbursements. What still works?

(56:19) - Apply for cards with annual credits

(57:47) - Transfer / pool points

(1:02:19) - Redeem points or miles for annual rebates

(1:03:48) - With the Caesar's Diamond status match ending, is there anything Wyndham Earner Business card-holder's should take advantage of now?

Read more about this status match ending here.

Visit https://frequentmiler.com/subscribe to get updated on in-depth points and miles content like this, and don’t forget to like and follow us on social media.

Music Credit – Beach Walk by Unicorn Heads

There are credit cards out there which are not available new, but are still supported for those who already have them. In this episode, we have a prediction about a few cards that will soon be this kind of "collectible" card.

(00:26) - What is a credit card collectible?

(01:20) - Chase IHG Rewards Club Select Credit Card Learn more about the Chase IHG Rewards Club Select Card here.

(02:15) - Citi Prestige Learn more about the Citi Prestige card here.

(04:43) - Capital One Venture One card

(08:02) - Ritz Card Learn more about the Ritz Card here.

(09:57) - US Bank Altitude Reserve Learn more about the US Bank Altitude Reserve card here.

Read about updates to the US Bank Altitude Reserve applications here.

(13:05) - Barclays Aviator Silver? Learn more about the Barclays Aviator Silver card here: https://frequentmiler.com/aviatorsilver/

In the spirit of Thanksgiving, we're chatting about the 10 "Frequent Flyer-ish" things we're thankful for!

(01:01) - A reader shares all the ways their recent trip was impacted by Frequent Miler tips!

(02:58) - It in the hands of SAS now!

(05:50) - Wyndham Biz drops Caesar's match

Read about changes to casino status-matching for free cruises here.

(09:38) - Avianca LifeMiles Elite Card: Up to 120K miles

Read more about this card bonus here.

(12:10) - Bonvoy Brilliant cardholder “Luxury Experience Rate” at participating properties

Read more about this new Luxury Experience Rate here.

(16:09) - Citi Double Cash & Custom Cash: 24-month extended warranty

Read moe about the Citi Double Cash & Custom Cash 24-month extended warranty here.

(17:11) - U.S. Bank Smartly Credit Card: Up to 4% cashback

Read more about the US Bank Smartly card here.

(22:03) - C1 Shopping targeted deals

(26:46) - Bilt - earn points when buying a home & using an eXp Realty agent

(29:41) - Huge welcome bonuses continue

(31:37) - Awesome category bonuses continue

(33:01) - The Amex points parade marches on

(34:48) - Paying taxes great way to meet min spend

(36:13) - PayPal waives credit card fees when doing good

Listen to our Coffee Beak Episode about Kiva loans here.

PayPal Giving Fund Fundraiser Hub.

(39:25) - Transferable points programs keep expanding

(43:42) - Award chart sweetspots live on

Find AA's excellent partner award chart here.

(50:06) - Free changes and cancelations continue for US airlines (except for basic economy types of fares)

(52:09) - Status matches create opportunities

(55:00) - Airlines continue to make business and first class more aspirational

(58:22) - Loyalty partnerships create sweet opportunities

(1:03:41) - See our how-to video for Rooms.aero here.

(1:06:26) - When you get a new card, what's the checklist of tasks you do to keep it all organized?

Visit https://frequentmiler.com/subscribe to get updated on in-depth points and miles content like this, and don’t forget to like and follow us on social media.

Music Credit – Beach Walk by Unicorn Heads

Greg, Nick, and Stephen are spent the last two weeks competing to satisfy the SAS EuroBonus Millionaire promo with the most style, affordability, and speed. If you've been following along by reading their journal posts, you know that this was a much harder task than they bargained for and they relied on reader input along the way. We've got some cool prizes planned for the reader who was most helpful including certificates to cover five free Hilton hotel nights and more! But to determine that winner, we need your help deciding which traveler achieved the goal with the most SAS! Cast your vote here!

(00:22) - SAS offering 1 million miles to anyone who registers and flies 15 qualifying SkyTeam airlines

(01:00) - FM turned it into a team challenge:

(02:50) - During the challenge the team met live on Youtube a couple of times. There we recapped what we'd achieved to-date and the judges awarded us interim scores.

(03:30) - Catch up on the live check-in recordings during the Million Mile Madness challenge

Cast your vote here!

(1:21:00) - Wrap up of Nick's final travel days after the last live check-in

(1:24:38) - We will host a final livestream on Tuesday November 26th PM ET where final scores will be announced.

Subscribe and Follow

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Music Credit – “Ocean Deep” by Annie Yoder

Rewards credit cards are often most valuable for their welcome bonuses, but many of them also have very valuable perks just for having the card. So which credit cards have the best perks for a variety of categories? (Learn more about all the best current credit card offers here.)

(00:40) - Best airport lounge benefits?

(07:34) - Best Automatic Elite status

(10:45) - Best award discount/rebate

(12:59) - Best Automatic Free Night (no spend required)

(15:57) - Best Companion Ticket

(18:45) - Best miscellaneous perk

Visit https://frequentmiler.com/subscribe to get updated on in-depth points and miles content like this, and don’t forget to like and follow us on social media.

Music Credit – Beach Walk by Unicorn Heads

United recently announced an increase in elite requirements for 2025. Will Delta follow suit? Luckily, for this year, there's still time...

(02:18) - A reader has a datapoint for us about the Equinox credit saying: "My wife successfully used the equinox credit for a massage. She enrolled in an equinox plus membership that came with a 7 day free trial. She was able to book and complete her massage within the 7 day trial period. The credit posted within 2 days and she canceled the membership."

(06:17) - Last year Delta announced a drastic increase in elite requirements in 2024 for the 2025 elite year. After a public outcry, they reduced the requirements so much that in 2024 it is easier than ever to earn Delta elite status.

Read more about the easy path to Delta elite status here.

(08:05) - Multiple elite levels...

(13:44) - Besides paying big $ for flights, how can you get status?

(19:02) - Delta Status match, which you can read more about here.

(23:03) - In summary, what are the easiest paths...

(24:48) - Delta cards may be expensive but offer a lot of value

Learn more about the Delta Platinum card here, and the Delta Reserve card here.

(31:17) - What's the best way to do a long-haul holiday flight for a family with young children? 

See which award search tools are best here.

Kiva is a clearing house for microlenders to help them find funding for microloans. You don't earn interest on these loans, but this can be an interesting way to accumulate spend on reward cards without fees...

(00:37) - Kiva is like a clearinghouse for microlenders to help them find funding Read more about Kiva loans here: https://frequentmiler.com/why-i-love-kiva-for-earning-rewards-and-doing-good/

(01:32) - You choose which loans to fund and how much to fund. (You do not earn interest. At best: 100% of money back.) But you can pay with credit card with no fee!

(03:33) - How much $ can you float? (And how long can you float?)

(04:22) - No guarantee of pay back

(05:00) - Avg default rate: 1.82% (mine: 1.73%)

(06:03) - Tool to make it easier to find safe loans: KivaLens

Read about KivaLens here: http://www.kivalens.org/

And read about updates to KivaLens here: https://frequentmiler.com/kivalens-resurfaces-better-than-before/

(06:40) - KivaLens gives you an ability to filter loan types

(07:48) - KivaLens also gives you an ability to sort

Visit https://frequentmiler.com/subscribe to get updated on in-depth points and miles content like this, and don’t forget to like and follow us on social media.

Music Credit – Beach Walk by Unicorn Heads

The SAS EuroBonus Millionaire promotion may turn out to be 2024's Deal of the Year. We just have to fly 15 SkyTeam airlines before the end of the year to earn 1 million miles. However, if for some reason SAS doesn't honor the promotion, they'll make it to our 2024 naughty list for sure. As you listen to this, Nick, Greg, and Stephen are in the air somewhere in the world trying to complete this promotion in 2 weeks or less. Learn all about the promotion and how we're going about tackling it in today's main event.

(02:43) - A reader has a tip about the US Bank Travel Portal allowing AR point redemptions at 1.5c for Disney theme park tickets, at the Disney retail pricing...

(04:34) - Trick for finding Finnair Avios award availability Read more about our solution for finding Finnair award availability here.

(06:44) - Opportunities to buy miles cheaply (can be great for people who can't get USA credit cards)

(07:27) - Read more about Flying Blue's subscriptions to buy miles here.

(07:50) - Alaska/Hawaiian for 1.25c per mile Read more about buying Alaska / Hawaiian miles for 1.25 c per mile here.

(09:01) -What is Million Mile Madness?

Follow the Million Mile Madness challenge here.

​​(15:39) - Hi FM Team, do you have any backup or contingency plans in place if one of your flights is cancelled or severely delayed? Good luck on your adventure!

(19:12) - Departing soon? Best wishes to all the contestants

(24:07) - Will there be a live wrap up show for the challenge?

(26:50) - What have you done ahead of time for tight connections during your challenge? Like buying seats in the front of plane, familiarize the airport layout, etc…

(31:11) - ​​Which airline are you most and least looking forward to flying as part of the challenge?

(37:11) - What is each contestant most confident they'll be the "best" at?

(44:29) - ​​I was trying to book a flight on AA using Alaska taking off in 2 days, and their website said that the itinerary is "too close to departure." Is this phantom award space?

(46:05) - You know “player 2” is a common topic among the hobby. Would anyone here consider having their spouse joint one podcast explaining their thoughts of their significant other engaging in the hobby?

(48:06) - ​​My Hyatt globalist expires soon. Can/should I make bookings after expiration and guest of honor myself?

(51:33) - ​​Hawaiian biz card only offers 50k after $4k spend now (used to be 80k after $2k spend) Considering it may go away, should we jump on it now?

(53:41) - Greg, Delta Amex companion certificates terms are very restrictive. Any best practices to find eligible fare class for non-holiday weekends far in advance?

(54:58) - ​​Is their a resource for which Hilton Resorts accept pre-payments?

(55:47) - What is each contestant's personal mission?

(1:00:44) - Does booking yourself a Hyatt GOH earning an additional elite night?

(1:01:59) - Did you get confirmation that SAS will allow you to award the miles to the helpful readers?

(1:02:41) - Do you think you'll run into each other during the challenge?

(1:005:46) - The Amex Platinum card offer requires a lot of spend so one reader made an $11K estimated tax payment to meet that spend, but an agent later told them that kind of expense is not eligible for meeting spend requirement, outlining a few other ineligible expenses as well. Is this true?

A Southwest Companion Pass can be massively valuable if you use it a lot. In this episode of Coffee Break, we'll break down how you can fly with a friend for free using the Southwest Companion Pass.

(00:26) - Overview - read our complete guide to the Southwest Companion pass here.

(00:46) - What is the Southwest Companion Pass?

(03:36) - What are the requirements to earn a Southwest Companion Pass?

(04:28) - Which points count?

(13:02) - Online Shopping for the Southwest Companion Pass through the Southwest Rapid Rewards shopping portal

(14:25) - Hotel partners, or book hotels through Rocketmiles

(15:03) - Rental Cars

(15:09) - Referring businesses for SWABIZ (25K per business)

Visit https://frequentmiler.com/subscribe to get updated on in-depth points and miles content like this, and don’t forget to like and follow us on social media.

Music Credit – Beach Walk by Unicorn Heads

If you learn a few advanced tricks, you can book awards for less miles than you'd think, and for better products or flights than you might think as well.

(01:07) - About our Coffee Break: Earn miles while saving and paying for college | Coffee Break Ep31 | 10-28-24 | Podcast

See episode 31 of Coffee Break "Earn miles while saving and paying for college" here.

(01:36) - Giftcards dot com added fee - it still seems to be earning GCdotcom rewards, but might not last

(02:14) - One reader says as of 2024, you can rollover 529s into Roth IRAs.

Learn more about our ongoing challenge at https://millionmilemadness.com

(05:44) - Quick recap

SAS Eurobonus allows points pooling (Read more about SAS points pooling here.)

(06:52) - Stephen is all booked!

Read Stephen's Million Mile Madness journal here.

(08:35) - Read Nick's Million Mile Madness journal here.

(11:36) - Greg: "Speed and Style"

Read Greg's Million Mile Madness journal here.

(17:05) - Marriott Homes & Villas promo: Stay 2+ nights & spend $1k+ to earn 30K bonus points

Read more about the Marriott Homes & Villas promo here.

(18:24) - Choice enhances program in 2025

Read about Choice Privileges improvements coming in 2025 here.

(20:19) - Virgin Atlantic's dynamic award pricing is live

Read more about Virgin Atlantic's dynamic award pricing here.

(23:03) - United increasing elite requirements for 2025

(24:41) - DOT Refund Rule

(26:56) - JetBlue's excellent status match Find our episode about JetBlue's status match here.

(27:39) - Last minute bookings/changes

(29:53) - Same day changes

(32:09) - What is Skiplagging?

(35:37) - Mix cabins for lower prices

(39:25) - Start to End Distance based pricing

(43:37) - Weird pricing

(45:50) - Distance based award tricks...

(51:59) - Avoid sucky programs

(1:01:33) - How can I time an Amex Platinum consumer card downgrade to gold card in order to get maximum credits from each, and what happens if I upgrade again later... would I get the benefits again?

In today's coffee break, we'll talk about how to earn miles while saving for, and paying for college. There are mileage earning strategies for contributing to college savings, paying for college, or paying towards student loans.

(01:23) - Use rewards credit cards to buy "gift of college" gift cards

Read more about earning miles for college here: https://frequentmiler.com/miles-for-college/

(02:26) - Best options for buying Gift of College gift cards

(06:06) - Best online option for buying Gift of College gift cards

Visit GiftCards.com here

(07:56) - Use either of above to earn welcome bonuses with ANY card

(08:37) - The Great Double Dip for earning while saving for college, and then again while spending for college

Visit https://frequentmiler.com/subscribe to get updated on in-depth points and miles content like this, and don’t forget to like and follow us on social media.

Music Credit – Beach Walk by Unicorn Heads

Have you heard about our newest team challenge yet? The good news is we have some prizes to share this time, and the bad news is...it is proving to be way more challenging than expected!

(01:25) - One reader sends their appreciation for the fresh look of our podcast on YouTube.

(02:47) - You can find all our how-to videos on our Resources page here.

(03:41) - Waived award redemption fees / surcharges, even on one-way tickets – with Cardless Qatar Card

(08:02) - Citi adds Preferred Hotels iPrefer at 1:4 ratio [new transfer partner]

(13:24) - Amex launches 200K Biz Gold / 250K BizPlat referral offers

Learn more about the American Express Business Gold card here.

Learn more about the American Express Business Platinum card here.

(17:42) - Hawaiian Business Card duplicate account number issue resolved...and more thoughts about Hawaiian / Alaska merger

(21:15) - Chase reduces travel protections

(31:45) - What crazy thing . . . .did Air France do this week?

(36:37) - Transfer bonuses from Citi to Virgin and Wyndham: Yay or nay?

(39:23) - Million Mile Madness!

Find out more about challenge updates and details here.

(40:20) - SAS EuroBonus Millionaire basics...

(42:29) - Is the SAS EuroBonus Millionaire promo worth it?

(52:12) - Million Mile Madness 2024 - how you can participate and what you could win!

(1:03:08) - Stephen's challenge status so far...

Help Stephen with some tips (and potentially win an awesome prize for your tips) here.

(1:05:14) - Nick's challenge status so far...

Help Nick with some tips (and potentially win an awesome prize for your tips) here.

(1:09:51) - Read our post on what still works for Amex airline incidental credits here.

(1:12:25) - Find frequently asked questions about the SAS challenge here.

(1:15:44) - Greg's challenge status so far...

Help Greg with some tips (and potentially win an awesome prize for your tips) here.

(1:26:15) - Check out Nick's FAQ post about the SAS EuroBonus promo (and our Million Mile Madness challenge) here.

(1:28:08) - What are some best practices to make sure points don't expire?

In a lot of ways, American Airlines and Alaska are similar programs - both in the One World alliance for example, with some reciprocal elite benefits as well. But they're plenty different as well. We'll discuss how these programs differ and why you mind find one better than the other.

(00:26) - Comparing AA to the new Alaska program (starting 1/1/25)

(00:34) - American Airlines and Alaska are Similar programs in a lot of ways...

(01:48) - Why AA miles might be more valuable...

(05:30) - Why Alaska miles may be more valuable...

(08:36) - Free stopover on one-way award

Learn how to book a stopover on Alaska award flights here: https://frequentmiler.com/how-to-book-alaska-mileage-plan-stopover-awards-video/

(10:57) - So which one do we think is best?

Visit https://frequentmiler.com/subscribe to get updated on in-depth points and miles content like this, and don’t forget to like and follow us on social media.

Music Credit – Beach Walk by Unicorn Heads

Alaska Airlines is making some big changes in 2025! We'll talk about why we think these changes are exciting...(and will share an exciting announcement of our own!) 

(01:20) - Greg was recently curious about if the Hawaiian Miles personal card would be getting elevated offers and one reader says the answer is yes! Check your emails for higher offers!

Listen to our episode about the Hawaiian / Alaska merger here: https://frequentmiler.com/podcast-alaska-hawaiian-airlines-wedding-planning-frequent-miler-on-the-air-ep269-8-23-24/

(03:25) - Fly 15 SkyTeam airlines (and credit to SAS or redeem SAS miles) by end of year and get 1 MILLION MILES... you all had ideas for us related to this challenge...

(05:29) - Greg's post "Catching up on 2 weeks of big miles & points news" (Read the post here: https://frequentmiler.com/catching-up-on-2-weeks-of-big-miles-points-news)

(07:04) - For the first time ever, the FM team will do 2nd challenge within 1 year...and we want you to participate!

Read more about our newest challenge here: https://frequentmiler.com/start-your-engines-for-frequent-miler-million-mile-madness/

(19:47) - Alaska / Hawaiian transfers live

(22:28) - Spirit Airlines adds free WiFi and ditches award fees for Free Spirit members.

(23:56) - Virgin Atlantic to go to dynamic award pricing - companion and upgrade vouchers may become more usable

(28:33) - Choice Privileges max award pricing for Preferred Hotels reduced from 118k to 87k. Only 9 out of 310 are currently priced 80K or higher. Meanwhile, 68 properties are priced 30K or lower.

(30:43) - Bilt adds Accor Live Limitless and TAP Air Portugal as transfer partners.

(36:18) - Marriott & Aeroplan launch reciprocal status match opportunity.

(42:42) - Huge mostly positive changes to Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan coming 2025...

Read more about the changes to Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan here: https://frequentmiler.com/alaska-mileage-plan-updates-earn-status-with-award-flights-credit-cards-shopping-portal-spend-more-other-changes/

(43:03) - Earning Elite Status with Alaska Airlines

(53:59) - Mileage Plan Milestones

(1:04:46) - Other changes

(1:13:11) - Some more negative changes

(1:15:14) - Summary of our assessments

(1:17:46) - Someone wrote in asking if the Alaska changes change our mind about whether it makes sense to earn Alaska miles when paying rent through Bilt

Recently news broke that Hyatt and American Airlines plan to change their partnership with each other. Was the partnership "deepened" like we suggested when we wrote this post, or was it "devalued" like our readers thought in the comments? (Or is it somehow both?)

(00:41) -  Read our post "Hyatt & American Airlines deepen partnership, add more reciprocal earning opportunities" here.

(02:49) - What is the current Hyatt / AA relationship like? (Until 12/31/24)

(03:39) - New AA benefits for Hyatt elites...

(08:33) - Comparing Old vs New

(13:27) - Stephen's thoughts

(14:21) - Nick's thoughts

(16:57) - Greg't thoughts

Visit https://frequentmiler.com/subscribe to get updated on in-depth points and miles content like this, and don’t forget to like and follow us on social media.

Music Credit – Beach Walk by Unicorn Heads

In today's episode, we'll look at how Nick booked his baller family of 4 a round-the-world adventure featuring Taylor Swift in Europe, a free Mediterranean cruise, tropical beaches in Mauritius, and DisneySea in Japan!

(01:28) - Beware of agents erroneously telling you your free night certificate is not applicable at SLH properties!

(05:30) - What is this segment even about? (And how should you evaluate opportunities?)

(11:42) - Amex airline fee reimbursements

Learn more about airline fee reimbursements here.

(19:05) - Read more about Nick's incredible trip here.

(22:22) - Getting to Europe on JetBlue in Mint (business) class via Qatar Avios

Read how to book JetBlue Mint via Qatar Avios here.

(27:25) - Getting around Europe

(35:04) - “Free” MSC cruise from Venice to Montenegro, Croatia, Greece, and Italy

Read how to get free cruises through casino status matching here.

(39:45) - Venice to Paris: Air France Business Class via Virgin Atlantic for 9,000 points + ~$22 each

(45:19) - Big Air Canada Aeroplan award from Paris to Japan

(1:01:40) - Train to Tokyo

(1:10:49) - Tokyo to Hawaii to New York

(1:24:45) - Amex Gold card now has a coupon for a $7 Dunkin' credit. Does it work for Baskin Robins too?

Not to be confused with the Preferred card, the Chase Ink Business Premier card is different in a few very important ways - most notably, it is a charge card and does not transfer directly to travel partners.

(00:10) - The Chase Ink Business Premier is quite different from the Chase Ink Business Preferred, discussed in episode 4 of Card Talk here.

(01:28) - This is a Visa Signature Business Charge Card

(02:23) - Earning with the Chase Ink Business Premier card

(02:53) - Points are best used by cashing out (unlike other Chase Ink cards, which earn Ultimate Rewards points that can be transferred to partners.)

(05:37) - Purchase protections include Cell phone protection (up to $1K per claim) and Travel protections

(06:58) - Watch our video tutorial for how to apply for Ink cards here or read the blog post here.

In addition to our regular weekly podcast, we also host an Ask Us Anything Live on YouTube once a month where the Frequent Miler team answers listener questions about points, miles, rewards cards, and whatever else comes to mind. This episode originally aired on October 2, 2024. Greg was busy vacationing, but the rest of the gang answered a broad range of listener questions about points, miles, and rewards cards.

(00:35) - Is the Maldives worth it?

(06:25) - Nick, how painful will the virgin dynamic pricing be?

(08:03) - Is anyone finding it harder to use debit cards for money orders?

(10:45) -Why is award availability to Asia so bad right now, and is there any relief in sight?

(15:13) - Which US airport hub do you like to transit through (ie ease of traveling through terminal, number of connecting destinations, lounge access, etc)

(18:40) - Miles and Earn Burn is saying that the recently AMEX Biz Gold to Plat upgrade offer links may not be "safe" to use. What is your take?

(20:44) - When do you think the strata elite or wells beyond will come out?

(24:37) - In general, what services do you rec for big or ongoing purchases that don’t usually take credit cards? Other than the % fee, should we be careful using these services?

(29:40) - Delta Amex companion certificates terms are very restrictive. Any best practices to find eligible fare class for non-holiday weekends far in advance?

Read Greg's post about companion certificates here: https://frequentmiler.com/travel-companion-tickets/

Watch our How To video about using Delta Companion Certificates here: https://frequentmiler.com/how-to-use-delta-companion-certificates-video/

(31:42) - What has been the most outstanding deal so far in 2024 and will you do a coffee break if an outstanding deal happens?

(36:33) - Hi FM Team, what was your most difficult / challenging travel experience and what did you learn from it?

(49:25) - What do you guys think about Aero plan card in the context of them extending the PYB for travel at 1.25 Cpp especially with possible transfer bonus from Chase. Good way to cash Chase UR Points ?

(51:32) - Does Amex allow stacking of offers? Specifically, looking to stack a $100 credit with a 15k MR point bonus for a Leading Hotels resort in Rome. The hotel is listed on both Amex offers. Thanks

(52:47) - ​​If the Barclays Aviator red converts to Citi Strata, can I product change to a Custom cash and immediately apply for Citi Strata for the SUB?

(54:10) - Is there any airline proram where if i buy my ticket with miles I can still earn miles? TY 4 all you do!

Last week we talked about how to earn Citi ThankYou Rewards, but now we'd like to discuss some of the best (and worst) ways you can use your Citi ThankYou Rewards.

Catch last week's episode about accumulating Citi ThankYou Rewards here.

(01:17) - In a recent podcast Greg stated that United hadn’t before offered discounted business class awards to elites. One listener writes in with a correction that Platinum and 1K have had expanded access to saver awards in business class.

(04:06) - How to evaluate credit card welcome bonus offers

Compare all the best credit card sign up offers here.

(11:57) - Counting down the best uses of ThankYou Rewards from least favorite to most favorite...

Learn more about the Citi Premier card here.

(13:40) - 10. Transfer to Wyndham to book Vacasa, Cottages, etc.

(15:30) - 9. Transfer to Emirates. Book Emirates 1st class for 102K (JFK to Milan, or Newark to Athens)

Learn how to find and book Emirates first class awards here.

(17:19) - 8.Transfer to Turkish to book 10K one-way to/from Hawaii

(18:12) - 7.Virgin: fly AF/KLM Business class to Europe starting at 48,500; also intra-Europe as low as 4K

(19:55) - 6.Transfer to Avianca LifeMiles to book business class to Europe for 70K without surcharges (LifeMiles+)

(22:11) - 5.Transfer to Choice 1 to 2. Book Nordic hotels, Japan, Preferred, etc.

(24:19) - 4.Transfer to Leaders Club. Book Leading Hotels of the World for 1.6cpp

(25:24) - 3.Transfer to Qatar Avios. Book Qatar QSuites for 70K

Learn more about finding award space for Qatar QSuites here.

(27:30) - 2.Transfer to EVA Air Infinity MileageLands. One-way business class flights from the US to Taipei cost 75K to 80K miles

(30:27) - 1.Transfer to Qatar Avios then to Iberia. Book Iberia biz class from east coast to Spain for 34K off-peak or 50K peak

(33:42) - BEST USE: Transfer to Flying Blue. Book Air France/KLM biz class to Europe for 50K

Learn more about viewing the Flying Blue award calendar here.

(36:31) - Find out about current point transfer bonuses here.

(40:18) - WORST 5: Counting down from best of the worst to worst of the worst

(40:34) - 5.Buy gift cards

(41:46) - 4.Book travel through Citi

(43:46) - 3. Transfer to AeroMexico (or transfer to ANY program to book low-value award)

(44:59) - 2. Pay with Points (0.8 cpp value)

(46:44) - 1. Shop with Points (usually: 0.8 cpp value)

(49:38) - Do you have tips about rental car programs and how to maximize value with car rental rewards?

This is one no-fee, cash back card that's worth talking about because of a few unique features, which we'll discuss in today's Card Talk.

(00:34) - Basic details of the US Bank Altitude Connect card

Read more about the US Bank Altitude Connect card updates here.

(01:19) - Other (more unique) card perks (like complimentary Priority Pass Select with 4 free visits)

Learn more about the US Bank Altitude Connect card here.

(03:23) - This card also comes with up to $100 in credits for TSA PreCheck or Global Entry

(03:40) - US Bank Altitude Connect also comes with "GigSky" through November 15, 2025. GigSky advertises that you can "stay connected in over 125 countries with complimentary GigSky global mobile data plans."

(08:11) - Important note: points cannot be moved from the Altitude Connect card to the Altitude Reserve card

Visit https://frequentmiler.com/subscribe to get updated on in-depth points and miles content like this, and don’t forget to like and follow us on social media.

Music Credit – Beach Walk by Unicorn Heads

We all get especially excited when we use our points for knock-your-socks-off hotel properties. The Travel and Leisure's Top 100 list can be a useful way to get ideas about which properties have this wow-factor. Every year, Greg likes to go through this list and find which hotels can be reasonably booked with points. In this episode, he'll discuss his findings.

(00:49) - The Best Points-Bookable Hotels in the World (2024) [based on Travel & Leisure Top 100]

See Greg's analysis of points-bookable hotels on the Travel & Leisure's top 100 list here.

(03:40) - How to book the Hyatt, Marriott, and IHG hotels

(04:43) - How to book Hilton/SLH hotels

(06:13) - Leading Hotels of the World / Leaders Club

Learn more about booking Leading Hotels of the World properties via Citi ThankYou points here.

(08:02) - See our How To video for using Rooms.aero for finding difficult award availability here.

(10:09) - Choice Privelages and Preferred Hotels

(13:42) - The Citi Rewards+ advantage

Read more about the Citi Rewards+ card here.

Visit https://frequentmiler.com/subscribe to get updated on in-depth points and miles content like this, and don’t forget to like and follow us on social media.

Music Credit – Beach Walk by Unicorn Heads

We've been talking a lot lately about unique uses for Citi ThankYou points  such as transferring to Leading Hotels of the World, but how do you accumulate these points? That's what we'll talk about in today's episode of Frequent Miler on the Air.

(01:20) - During Ask Us Anything, Greg said that Amex to Hilton transfer bonus would have to be 70% to match standard Chase to Hyatt transfer value. One reader thought of a situation where a 1.7 cents per point value could be reached via Bilt to Virgin Atlantic 125% transfer bonus for Platinum members.

Watch our recent Ask Us Anything here.

(07:53) - Hilton Aspire resort credit-eligible hotel list shrinks

Read more about the Hilton Aspire resort credit eligible hotel list changes here.

(09:29) - Targeted 120,000 Membership Rewards points Business Platinum upgrade offers

Read more about the 120K Membership Rewards points Business Platinum upgrade offers here.

(13:36) - Venture X and Venture X Business Cards: Hertz President's Circle status NOT ending 12/31.

Read more about the Venture X card here, and the Venture X Business Card here.

(14:50) - What crazy thing did Nick and Greg do? (They missed the 70K Hawaiian card bonus change to 50K, hours before discussing it on the podcast.)

(15:10) - Listen to our conversation about the Alaska / Hawaiian merger here.

(17:21) - What crazy thing did Barclays do?

(21:15) - Targeted IHG double elite night credits on up to 2 stays through 12/31/24 (Read more here.)

(28:01) - Wells Fargo Rewards® points now transfer to Virgin

(29:02) - Targeted Avianca LifeMiles sale - 200% bonus (through MONDAY 9/30) (Read more here.)

(31:46) - AA Targeted promo to get Loyalty Points when spending AA miles

(32:37) - Melio business bill payment service now has paid membership tiers Read more about Melio here.

(35:28) - Pepper Rewards adds point history and pending point information

Learn more about Pepper here.

(39:23) - Spirit updates, including removing redemption fees and free wifi for Gold members

(40:55) - ThankYou Rewards quick overview and basics

Find out about unique rewards you can get with ThankYou points here.

(46:23) - Welcome bonuses

Learn more about the Strata Premier card here.

Learn more about the Double Cash card here, and the Custom Cash card here.

(50:54) - Earn through spend...

(1:01:02) - Targeted Bonuses

(1:02:44) - Retention Bonuses

(1:07:19) - 2 person (or "2 player") strategy

(1:10:10) - A reader won 50K American Airline miles from a work event and is considering accumulating more...

There are two issuers of American Airline's credit cards - Citi and Barclays. But recent reports suggest American Airlines may be considering an exclusive arrangement with Citi as their only credit card issuer.

(00:10) - Citi is in talks with American Airlines to become the sole issuer of American Airlines credit cards.

Read more about the Citi / American Airlines news here.

And read the original source article here.

(01:33) - Why might this be bad news?

Read more about the best American Airlines credit card (the Silver card) here.

(05:10) - Why might this be good news?

(08:58) - What should we do now to get ready for a Citi-only American Airlines credit card world?

Read more about the Aviator Red card here.

(13:09) - Read about how to application rules for cards like this here.

Visit https://frequentmiler.com/subscribe to get updated on in-depth points and miles content like this, and don’t forget to like and follow us on social media.

Music Credit – Beach Walk by Unicorn Heads

Leading Hotels of the World is a hotel loyalty program with loose affiliation to 400 luxury hotels around the world. You may recognize the name from Greg's recent post about the best points-bookable hotels in the world here.

(00:07) - What is Leading Hotels of the World

Read Greg's recent post about the best points-bookable hotels in the world here.

(01:35) - Citi standard Transfer to Leading Hotels of the World

(02:35) - Leading Hotels of the World Details (and "Leader's Club" points)

(04:05) - Greg's experience sampling Leading Hotels of the World using Citi ThankYou Rewards

Read about Greg's experience with Leading Hotels of the World here.

(06:41) - Learn more about the Citi transfer bonus to Leading Hotels of the World here.

(07:41) - Who do we think this Citi transfer bonus is (and isn't) for?

Visit https://frequentmiler.com/subscribe to get updated on in-depth points and miles content like this, and don’t forget to like and follow us on social media.

Music Credit – Beach Walk by Unicorn Heads

Alaska has announced that their merger with Hawaiian Airlines is complete! So what are the details, and what does this mean for us? We'll discuss this in today's episode.

(01:36) - What's with the stupid virus pop-up on our website?

(03:40) - Greg's update on the Pacific Northwest Points Travel Festival and some of the folks he met

(09:04) - Read about 10-year old Walker's first place win at the USA Mullet Championship here!

(11:57) - Learn more about the next Points Travel Festival here.

(12:50) - Big offers from Delta, Amex Marriot, IHG and more...

Read more about the Delta card offers (up to 110K miles) here.

Read more about the Amex Marriott Bonvoy Business Card offer here.

Read more about the new IHG card offers here.

Read more about the Ink Business Unlimited 90K offer here.

(25:22) - Read "The Points Parade marches on thanks to a new round of targeted 250K offers" here.

(30:00) - Read more about Amex Uber credits here.

(31:39) - Read "Downgrade paths: How to keep your card but break up with your annual fee or find a better fit" here.

(33:14) - Read more about buying groups here.

(33:39) - Chase 50% transfer bonus to Marriott through 11/15.

Learn more about this transfer bonus here.

(37:15) - Rental car deals with Avis and National...

(42:42) - Citi Transfer bonuses through Oct 19

Learn more about Citi's 25% transfer bonus to Avianca here.

Learn more about Citi's 25% transfer bonus to Leading Hotels of the World here.

(44:28) - Hilton adds over 100 additional SLH properties

Read more about Hilton's 100 additional SLH properties here.

(46:59) - In case you missed it, you can find our "Debate: 30% Amex to Hilton Transfer Bonus. Should we do it?" Coffee Break Ep26 here.

(47:26) - Read more about the Alaska / Hawaaiin merger green light here.

(47:54) - Quick facts

(48:20) - Earn and redeem miles across both airlines (early 2025)

(48:31) - Single loyalty program coming (Details mid 2025)

(49:09) - Huaka'i by Hawaiian (for Hawaii residents)

(50:16) - Seamless miles transfer

(52:14) - We still have questions!

(57:39) - Listen to Podcast episode 269 about the Alaska / Hawaiian merger here.

(1:01:39) - What are the short term opportunities to consider?

(1:03:27) - Combine Alaska miles into one account for free!

(1:06:10) - Apply now for Hawaiian Airlines cards before its too late...orr wait for better last-gasp offers?

Learn more about the Hawaiian Airlines personal card here, and the Hawaiian Airlines business card here.

(1:25:43) - A reader used their Amex Platinum to pay for the tax on an award ticket, then got a charge for trip delay. Doesn't this card already have travel delay covered, though?

Learn about what makes the Chase Ink Business Unlimited card a popular business card, and learn how to apply.

(00:10) - Learn more about the Chase Ink Business Unlimited card here.

(00:24) - Quick facts about the Chase Ink Business Unlimited card

(00:43) - Chase Ink Business Unlimited earning rate: 1.5X on all purchases

(01:17) - Sometimes you can earn more on specific categories: Currently you can earn 5X on Lyft through March 2025 for example

(01:38) - Who can sign up for a business card like this?

Learn about how to apply for Chase Ink Business cards here.

(02:40) - The Chase Ink Business card earns Chase Ultimate Rewards Points

(03:15) - This card has slightly more lenient rules than other Chase cards

Visit https://frequentmiler.com/subscribe to get updated on in-depth points and miles content like this, and don’t forget to like and follow us on social media.

Music Credit – Beach Walk by Unicorn Heads

There's a 30% transfer bonus through September 30th from American Express to Hilton. This means during the transfer bonus, 1,000 points would. become 2,600 Hilton points. Is this a good transfer bonus? Greg and Nick debate that point in today's Coffee Break.

(00:26) - Quick facts about the transfer bonus...

(01:28) - Past bonuses

(02:10) - Nick says "No" to the 30% Hilton bonus

(07:55) - Greg says "Yes" to the 30% Hilton transfer bonus

(12:23) - But what about the "joy of free"?

Read our post about "the joy or myth of free travel" here.

(14:24) - Conclusion

Visit https://frequentmiler.com/subscribe to get updated on in-depth points and miles content like this, and don’t forget to like and follow us on social media.

Music Credit – Beach Walk by Unicorn Heads

Now that you've amassed a huge stash of Ultimate Rewards points after listening to Episode 271, how what? Today, we talk about the top 10 best (and bottom 5 worst) uses of Chase Ultimate Rewards points.

00:00 Intro

01:10 Announcements

01:12 New "How to" series on Youtube

02:54 Using buying groups to increase spend

04:10 Giant Mailbag: Online grocery is more broadly useful than you think

07:43 Card News

07:45 Increased offers on the Wyndham cards

https://frequentmiler.com/increased-welcome-offers-on-all-3-wyndham-credit-cards-earn-up-to-80k-bonus-points/

https://frequentmiler.com/how-to-get-free-cruises-by-gaming-casino-status-matches/

11:39 What crazy thing.....did Wyndham Rewards do this week?

https://frequentmiler.com/apparently-wyndham-credit-card-points-never-expire-positive-change/

17:00 Mattress Running the Numbers: Aeroplan to Marriott to MGM

23:41 Award Talk

23:47 United vs Aeroplan https://frequentmiler.com/united-vs-air-canada-which-is-the-better-chase-transfer-partner/

29:59 Discount partner awards for United Premier status

https://frequentmiler.com/united-giving-award-flight-discounts-to-premier-members-cardholders-even-on-partners/

33:12 Which award search tool is best? https://frequentmiler.com/united-vs-air-canada-which-is-the-better-chase-transfer-partner/

37:50 Graduate Hotels via Hilton Honors (earn & redeem is now live)

38:47 Main Event: Top 10 best and 5 worst uses of your Chase points

39:21 #10: Booking travel through the Chase Travel portal with the Sapphire Reserve at a value of 1.5c per points

40:40 #9: 70% transfer bonus to Marriott

42:07 #8 Transfer to Emirates and book first class from New York JFK to Milan or Newark EWR to Athens for 102,000 points + ~$130 https://frequentmiler.com/how-to-find-and-book-emirates-first-class-awards/

44:41 #7 Transfer to United for positioning flights

48:10 #6: Transfer to British Airways Avios to fly Qatar Qsuites to Doha for 70K https://frequentmiler.com/how-to-find-qatar-q-suites-award-space/

49:58 #5: Transfer to Iberia Avios to book business class from the east coast to Europe from 34K Avios one-way https://frequentmiler.com/best-uses-of-avios-british-airways-iberia-qatar-aer-lingus-finnair/

53:33 #4: Transfer to Hyatt to book a suite https://frequentmiler.com/how-best-to-book-hyatt-luxury-suites/

56:10 #3: Transfer to Air Canada Aeroplan and book a multi-partner award with a stopover for just 5,000 additional miles https://frequentmiler.com/nicks-6-country-5-airline-award-ticket/

01:00:36 #2 Transfer to Flying Blue to book Air France or KLM Business Class for only 50K one way https://frequentmiler.com/air-france-klm-flying-blue-lowers-business-class-award-cost-from-the-us/

01:05:33 #1 : Transfer to Hyatt to book hotels for great value

01:12:18 In-between: Cash out for $0.01 per point

01:14:18 The worst of the worst uses of Chase points

01:14:23 #5 Transferring to any program to book a low-value award

01:16:23 #4 Buying gift cards with your points

01:17:16 #3 Transfer to Marriott without a transfer bonus

01:18:45 #2 Using your points to shop at sites like Amazon

01:20:54: #1 Transfer points to IHG One Rewards

01:23:59 Question of the Week: How do you protect your miles and points?

Beach Walk by Unicorn Heads

This time Tim was on vacation, but the rest of the Frequent Miler crew got together on YouTube for another Ask Us Anything, Live. (On the first Wednesday of every month, we host a live YouTube to answer your points and miles questions in real time!)

(00:30) - How did TeamLabs "Borderless" compare with "Planets"?

Read more about our TeamLabs experience here.

(04:57) - ​​What are your thoughts on new U.S. bank smartly credit card?

(07:08) - Hi team! If I downgrade my Ritz card to get the Amex Brilliant sign up bonus, then upgrade again to the Ritz card, will that affect my Ritz 85k certificate? Anything to be careful of so I don’t lose the 85k Ritz certificate?

(08:56) - ​​What is one place (non-US) destination that has a bad reputation for tourists and doesn't deserve it or alternatively is very overrated?

(16:45) - Hi Greg, I was 0 for 3 on my CC applications for Barclays Hawaiian Airlines Personal, Barclays Hawaiian Airlines Biz, and Bank of America Sonesta. Did you have better luck with your CC applications?

(18:16) - ​​Any suggestions on how to improve odds on getting targeted for useful Amex? offers?

(20:28) - I want to stay at Hilton Tokyo Bay for Fam of 5 - Disneyland and Disney Sea…. what card should I get first? Are there specific rules to follow like Marriott?

(26:04) - ​​I have big spend coming up, capacity for ~20k in spend, but I can’t get business cards. Any recommendations on sign up bonuses/big spend bonuses?

Read more about who can apply for business cards here.

(27:57) - Have you ever had issues with gift card fraud? How would you deal with it?

(31:13) - What parts of Japan besides Kyoto and Tokyo do you enjoy

(33:07) - How much of a transfer bonus from Amex to Hilton would you find to be on the same level as the normal 1:1 transfer from Chase to Hyatt?

(34:38) - I have United Silver, is booking basic economy on United and/or Star Alliance partners still going to give me the free checkin luggage?

(35:34) -What’s the best bet for a new card or downgrade to keep Amex points when cancelling a Gold? My husband has a Business Platinum and it's too hard to get all the benefits/offsets for a second one.

(39:16) - ​​What is the best use of Avios after all the short-haul devaluations?

(40:16) - ​​What is your favorite hotel ecosystem for long term commitment?

(42:42) - Nick, I got the surpass on July 31 and close to meeting spend. want to work towards the 15k spend for 2nd free night certificate but need to pause since I got approved US Bank Altitude Reserve. Will spend in 2025 before anniversary count?

(44:13) - ​​What's your best guess on how long the JetBlue status match offer will be active? I have JetBlue cash flights booked in October (domestic) and December (Mint to London). Trying to time it right.

(45:24) - ​​Can’t book JetBlue economy via Qatar? I tried using the article for finding mint via Qatar using ITAmatrix. I used “P” fare class for economy Got the calendar, but Qatar website doesn’t show the flights.

(47:44) - what's the best award booking using Lufthansa miles without the exuberant taxes and best way to find availability?

(49:43) - ​​Planning trip to Ghana or Kenya next June. Would like to use Flying Blue and Qatar to stop in Ams and Doh. Is it worth it to transfer points now hoping award prices come down closer to the trip?

(51:17) - Why don't you guys have a (paid) service for your subscribers to help make award bookings? I've been following for almost a couple of years. I know you teach us to do it on our own, but...

(54:36) - NICK and Greg shared an amazing video about finding award availability on Jetblue and booking via Avios. I believe They used Matrix.Ita. Is there a way to find united availability using same process

Watch the JetBlue Mint via Qatar how to video here.

(56:25) - ​​Should I go for the Hilton Surpass now for the 150k sign up bonus that I can find via incognito browser or wait for a better offer?

It seems like we report a new loyalty program devaluation each week. Awards cost more, fees go up, etc.. But the U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg wants that to stop, sending letters to America's 4 largest airlines demanding information about loyalty program devaluations. In this Coffee Break episode, we'll discuss what this might all mean!

(00:26) - U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg wants that to stop.

Read more about this airline rewards probe here.

(01:11) - Let's hear the press release...

(03:15) - AA, Delta, Southwest, and United were ordered to submit information by Dec 4. Here are the categories of information requested...

(09:17) - Details indicate a fairly deep understanding of loyalty program issues.

(10:28) - What good might come out of this?

(14:08) - What bad might come of this?

(17:13) - Will anything happen at all?

Visit frequentmiler.com/subscribe to get updated on in-depth points and miles content like this, and don’t forget to like and follow us on social media.

Music Credit – Beach Walk by Unicorn Heads

We love Chase Ultimate Rewards primarily because of the ability to transfer to partners (and we specifically love the ability to transfer to Hyatt.) Chase Ultimate Rewards is actually one of the best ways to get Hyatt points, in fact. We'll talk more about amassing Chase Ultimate Rewards (and why you would want to) in this episode of Frequent Miler on the Air.

(01:18) - A reader experiences an issue with a price on his Etihad award that was not as advertised...

(08:43) - Read more about the Chase Ink Business Unlimited card here.

(10:21) - Read more about the U.S. Bank Smartly credit card here.

(19:47) - Read our Guide to Credit Card Application Rules by Bank here.

(21:29) - Double Elite Night Credit on Marriott Homes & Villas (Targeted, Book by 9/20, stay by 12/31)

Read more about the double elite night credit here.

(32:34) - 30% transfer bonus from Amex Membership Rewards to Hilton Honors (thru 9/30)

(33:24) - Reminder: 30% transfer bonus from Amex Membership Rewards to Avios (thru 9/30)

(33:40) - 20% transfer bonus from Capital One to Air France / KLM Flying Blue (thru 9/29)

(35:20) - Preferred Hotels now up to 118,000 Choice points (not long ago 55K max!).

Read more about great value preferred hotels, bookable with Choice points here.

(40:03) - We all know that Chase Ultimate Rewards points are super valuable...

Learn more about Chase Ultimate Rewards sweet spots here.

(41:55) - How to get the Chase Ultimate Rewards points...

(42:04) - Chase Ultimate Rewards welcome bonuses

Read more about Chase's best credit card sign up offers here.

(42:22) - What are the rules for applying for Chase cards? (What is the 5/24 24 month, 48 month, etc): See our Complete Guide to Credit Card Application Rules by Bank here.

(42:59) - There are lots of Chase cards available...

Again, you can learn more about Chase cards here.

(45:29) - Which Ink Business card is not like the others (and will not earn you points that can be transferred to partners)...

(48:59) - Earning Chase Ultimate Rewards via referral bonuses

(51:06) - 2 Player Mode for Chase Ultimate Rewards

(54:28) - What can you earn as you spend on Chase cards?

Learn more about spending options here and here.

(1:05:12) - Chase's shopping portal (and other miscellaneous ways to earn Chase Ultimate Rewards points)

(1:07:12) - When does it make sense to credit paid flights to a different airline's frequent flyer account (within the partner airline)?

(1:10:23) - Learn more about our 40K to Far Away challenge here.

(1:11:59) - Learn more about wheretocredit.com here

You can read more about the World of Hyatt Business card here or listen to this episode of Card Talk to hear a quick but useful summary on the World of Hyatt Business card.

(00:15) - World of Hyatt Business Card Earning rate and card fee

(00:56) - World of Hyatt Business Card Perks

(02:03) - What does the "elite qualifying night credit" perk mean?

(02:36) - Hyatt Leverage membership

(05:01) - Do we like this card and who is this card good for?

(10:15) - Find podcast Ep270 "Hyatt Elite Milestone spending vs Mattress running" here.

JetBlue is out with an opportunity to earn status for 3 months by matching from Delta, United, American Airlines, or Alaska elite status. Don't worry if you don't have status in any of those yet - in this episode we'll also talk about how to get some of these statuses quickly and easily to do this match.

(00:00) - Read more about JetBlue's status match here.

(01:23) - Match to Mosaic 1 or 2 for 3 months. What is Mosaic 1 or 2?

(03:57) - Details about the challenge

(04:23) - "Tiles" may be earned for this promotion in only three ways...

(09:10) - What if you don't have one of these statuses yet?

(10:28) - How to get status quickly with Delta (2024)

(11:30) - How to get status quickly with American Airlines

(12:18) - How to get status quickly with Alaska (2024)

(13:09) - Listen to podcast episode 225 "Delta's big flip-flop" here.

(13:20) - Listen to podcast episode 242 "Which Delta card is best?" here.

(14:42) - A somewhat risky idea for possibly getting almost two years status

Visit frequentmiler.com/subscribe to get updated on in-depth points and miles content like this, and don’t forget to like and follow us on social media.

Music Credit – Beach Walk by Unicorn Heads

CORRECTION NOTE:  We've got a correction to add to this episode! In this episode Greg says with the Hyatt Business card you can get back $100 per year on spend at Hyatt hotels: $50 in first 6 monhts and $50 in second 6 months, but we need to correct that! In truth, you can get up to $100 back per membership year, $50 at a time, but you don't have to wait 6 months: you could make two payments in rapid succession to get the full $100. Thanks for your patience with this correction!

Hyatt's elite program can be really valuable - for instance when you reach certain milestones you can get valuable perks, and there's multiple ways of reaching those milestones. In this episode, Greg and Nick debate the best way of getting there.  

(01:21) - Multiple readers (coincidentally named both forms of "John") chime in with feedback from recent podcast episodes...

(01:42) - Find podcast Ep269 Alaska/Hawaiian Airlines Wedding Planning here.

(04:21) - Find podcast Ep262 How to get great value from you Platinum card here.

(07:34) - Nick experiences a crazy Hilton resort fee for using the pool

(11:42) - Bilt's September 1 Rent Day promo. Should Greg transfer his points?

Read more about Bilt Rent Day promos here.

(20:58) - Bilt adds Walgreens FSA & point earning

Read more about Bilt rewards adding points-earning at Walgreens here.

(28:34) - Delta (probably gone) : US to Taipei on Delta One from 98,000 SkyMiles (83,300 for Delta cardholders)

Read more about finding this US to Taipei deal here.

(33:26) - Find our World of Hyatt Complete Guide here

(35:10) - Read Greg's post "Hyatt milestone spending -- what's my X?" here.

(36:59) - Read Nick's "Hyatt Milestone chasing: should we all mattress run to Globalist status?" here.

(39:49) - Hyatt Milestone Details: Earn valuable benefits after every 10 qualifying nights starting at 20 nights (but real value starts at 30)...

(47:20) - First let's talk about mattress running...

(52:54) - Credit card spend options...

(52:56) - Learn more about the World of Hyatt card here.

(53:43) - Learn more about the World of Hyatt Business card here.

(56:26) - Which is better - mattress running or credit card spend?

(1:07:33) - A reader just discovered you can redeem Cathay Pacific miles for hotels and wonders if we've heard of anyone doing this?

Chase Ultimate Rewards points are a valuable transferable points currency, and the Chase Ink Business Preferred card is a great card for earning this valuable currency. In this episode, we discuss what makes this a great card, and if it's a good card to keep year after year.

(00:30) - Learn more about the Chase Ink Business Preferred card here.

(00:34) - The Chase Ink Business Preferred card earns Ultimate Rewards points

(00:48) - Usually has great welcome bonus

(01:30) - Earning rate: 3X travel, shipping, internet, cable, phone, and advertising with social media sites (up to $150K spend per year)

(02:44) - Other noteworthy perks of the Chase Ink Business Preferred card

(04:34)- What are the approval rules for this card? (For example, what is the 5/24 rule and how does it apply here?)

(07:19) - Is this a keeper card?

We know occasionally you may have to actually pay for a hotel night (instead of using your points and free night certificates.) In this episode we'll dissect how to even go about deciphering how rewarding your paid stays are.

(01:28) - How do we go about even calculating which hotel program is most rewarding on paid stays?

Read more about which hotel loyalty programs are most valuable here.

(03:17) - There are a few things our analysis did not consider...

(03:59) - Which programs are most rewarding when you're not using a hotel credit card and don't have elite status?

(06:11) - If you have top tier status, (but not necessarily a hotel credit card), which hotel program rewards you most for your paid stays?

Learn more about the Sonesta program here.

(08:56) - If you have both hotel status and the hotel branded credit card, which program is most rewarding for your paid stays.

(09:49) Learn more about the Wyndham Business Earner card here, and the Wyndham Earner Plus card here.

(10:51) - Lear more about the World of Hyatt card here.

(10:55) - Learn more about the Hilton Aspire card here.

(10:58) - Learn more about the IHG Premier card here, and the IHG Premier Business card here.

(11:54) - Learn more about the Bonvoy Brilliant card here.

(12:09) - Learn more about the  Hilton Surpass card here, and the Hilton Business card here.

(13:22) - Consider elite programs and promotions

Visit frequentmiler.com/subscribe to get updated on in-depth points and miles content like this, and don’t forget to like and follow us on social media.

Music Credit – Beach Walk by Unicorn Heads