My chance to give back. I got in the game in 2003 with a "mistake rate" in Bora Bora and since then I've collected literally millions and millions of frequent flyer miles and hotel points. I've flown around the world in first class seats that would cost $29,000 using frequent flyer miles and a few bucks in tax. And I've stayed in some of the finest hotels - all for free! I've hosted two seminars on miles and points at South By Southwest in Austin, and have been quoted in the Wall Street Journal, published on Bravo TV's JetSet site, and spoken on the Condé Nast Traveler podcast series.
A few years ago I realized many of my friends actually thought I was paying for my flights!! So I started sharing my tips. My favorite thing in the world is helping others have the experiences I do, so please follow along and help me help you. Don't forget to sign up for the free email newsletter on the right side of the page so you don't miss anything.
Here’s what you need to know heading in to this weekend: Tomorrow, August 18th, is Marriott cutover day. This means your SPG and Marriott apps will be down. Award booking is *planned* to be online at 2pm ET –…
The miles and points world is abuzz about a post on Reddit’s /churning channel which led to this OMAAT post, saying that KE may become a Membership Rewards transfer partner. It was based on a screenshot showing a Korean Air…
It’s easy to forget that to most folks, it’s hard to discern points and point valuations. That’s why I wrote the article: A point is not equal to a point… or a mile. So I’d like to quickly address a question…
Sometimes you just want plain old cash back. Sure, we know we can get more than a 4% “yield” on our dining spend. But that requires redeeming points for travel. And while that’s usually our goal, the more I talk…
Apparently, and with fairly short notice, Chase is ending transfers from Ultimate Rewards to Korean’s frequent flyer program. The last day to transfer Chase Ultimate Rewards points to Korean Air’s SkyPass program is August 24th 2018. This is pretty sad…
Flyertalk reader Maxcalls shares a very detailed discussion he had with a Marriott call center employee in India regarding what will happen to Travel Packages after August 17th. You can read his post here. The gist of it is that…
I do not, as a rule, get too worked up about Delta’s SkyMiles “Flash Sales” because often they are strictly correlated to sale prices using cash, meaning the “miles” are still not being used for very good value. Today, Delta…
There has been an amazing flurry of conjecture the last couple of months about what would happen to Marriott Travel Packages booked before August 18th (at the current rates. A lot of speculation on the blogs, at FlyerTalk, and on /r/churning…
Since the “Starriott” merger, I’ve found myself staying with Marriott whenever possible to take advantage of my new found Marriott Platinum Elite benefits. Lounge access and breakfast is a nice perk that can really add up. And of course, upgrades…
There are certain bucket list flights on any travel hacker’s checklist. Things like Etihad’s First Class Apartment, for the closing suite doors and onboard shower. Some bucket list items are tougher than others. One item on the list, that is…
