Frequent Miler on the Air
Earn miles without flying. Frequent Miler is all about getting the most out of the loyalty game. You can easily earn hundreds of thousands of points and miles without traveling, then learn how to use those points towards luxury travel. In this podcast, Frequent Miler founder Greg, and senior author Nick debate current topics in the points & miles world.
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How to gift free hotel nights | Frequent Miler on the Air Ep265 | 7-26-24
07/26/2024
How to gift free hotel nights | Frequent Miler on the Air Ep265 | 7-26-24
(00:00) - Ever wanted to gift a free hotel night to someone else? In today's episode of Frequent Miler on the Air we'll discuss the ways you can do this! (01:18) - In response to Greg's post "Hilton Honors is winning me over, but I’d like one more enhancement…" one reader wonders, "Does Hilton pay influencers to do this?" (Read that post here: (Mailbag) (03:55) - Updating Card Talk (05:40) - American Express Gold Card changes go live, including increased annual fee, new "white gold" option, Dunkin' and Resy credits, and more... (Card News) Read more about the American Express Gold Card here: Catch our episode about the "rumored" Amex changes here: (10:08) - Wells Fargo Attune gives 4% for Amazon.com purchases! (Card News) (11:38) - "Southwest Airlines Redeye Flights Coming… Finally!" (Crazy Thing) (14:31) - Southwest will soon offer assigned & premium seating (Crazy Thing) (17:04) - What is the "Vacations by Marriott Bonvoy" promo? Earn 25k bonus points on 4+ night packages Read more about this Marriott Bonvoy promo here: (Mattress Running the Numbers) (23:51) - What are the Citi transfer bonuses through August 17th, 2024? (Award Talk) (27:53) - Find award space for incredible SLH properties like Calala Island and Grand Hotel Victoria Lake Como, using tools like Rooms.Aero or MaxMyPoint to set alerts (Award Talk) Read more about using these tools to find availability at properties like the Grand Hotel Victoria Lake Como here: (30:21) - Autoslash triggers Altitude Reserve's Real Time Mobile Rewards RTMR (Award Talk) Read more about Altitude Reserve's Real Time Mobile Rewards here: Main Event: How to gift free hotel nights (32:51) - How to gift someone your free hotel night certificates or award nights Read more about gifting hotel nights here: (34:19) - Can you gift someone your hotel points? Which programs allow it and which programs don't? (39:39) - Can you book a hotel night for someone else, using your points? Which programs allow it and which programs don't? (46:52) - Can you gift a hotel free night certificate to someone else? Which programs allow it and which programs don't? (52:17) - Which hotel rewards program is the best for gifting nights with someone else? (55:44) - If someone hears something on the podcast they want more information about, where do they find more information? (Question of the Week) Subscribe and Follow Visit 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 – “Ocean Deep” by Annie Yoder
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Rumored Amex Gold Card Changes: Good or Bad? | Coffee Break Ep19 | 7-23-24
07/23/2024
Rumored Amex Gold Card Changes: Good or Bad? | Coffee Break Ep19 | 7-23-24
The Amex Gold Card is about to change. In this episode we'll review the current details for this card, the changes we predict to see, and whether those changes are good or bad. (01:05) - Current card details Learn more about the (02:13) - What's (allegedly) changing? (04:50) - What might be good about these changes? (07:51) - Is it still worth recommending? (15:20) - Which card do we recommend instead for good rewards on grocery and dining? Read more about the and the (18:09) - But don't necessarily go out and cancel the card after you hear this... Visit , and don’t forget to like and follow us on social media. Music Credit – Beach Walk by Unicorn Heads
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Hot Hotel Card Offers | Frequent Miler on the Air Ep264 | 7-19-24
07/19/2024
Hot Hotel Card Offers | Frequent Miler on the Air Ep264 | 7-19-24
There are a bunch of hotel credit card offers that are bigger than usual right now, some of them pretty surprising. That's what we'll discuss in this episode of Frequent Miler on the Air. (01:20) - Booking Hilton stays with a mix of points and a free night award - just watch for a 3 night minimum. (Mail Bag) (05:32) - Read (06:29) - At least TWO FM followers got the Wyndham Hotel Pass! (What Crazy Thing) (09:48) - Marriott Bonvoy promotion for credit card holders (Mattress Running the Numbers) (15:51) - Hertz hurts so good (Award Talk) (19:52) - Virgin Atlantic points can't book Air France / KLM "due to a system issue" (Award Talk) (22:22) - JetBlue to introduce Mini-Mint (regional first class). 2026 (Award Talk) (24:45) - Cancelling SLH stays booked via Hyatt: You have to email (but even though they responded after the deadline, I had no penalty and got points back) (Award Talk) (29:30) - RRVs (Award Talk) (42:10) - Hotel Credit Card Big Offers (46:19) - Sonesta - Read more about the (49:26) - IHG - Read more about the (56:07) - Bonvoy Bold - Read more about the (57:30) - Find our " (1:00:20) - Hilton offers - Read more about the , and the fee free (1:08:13) - Choice - Read more about the and the (1: 12:06) - How to max amex multi referrals (Question of the Week) Visit 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 – “Ocean Deep” by
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Frequent Miler origin story - Carrie's story | Coffee Break Ep18 | 7-16-24
07/16/2024
Frequent Miler origin story - Carrie's story | Coffee Break Ep18 | 7-16-24
(01:37) - Carrie saw Greg speak at Chicago Seminars in 2013 - the topic was Million Mile Madness. (02:10) - The next summer (2014) Drew and Carrie were invited to the "Ann Arbor Art Fair Do". While in Ann Arbor, they met Greg for kayaking. (05:02) - Over the next few years, Carrie periodically did freelance projects for Greg (including an infographic about Redbird, layout design for the card page, editing YouTube videos for Greg's Necker Island visit, etc.) Read more about Greg and Carrie's Necker Island video partnership here: and read about how Greg booked Necker Island on points here: (07:33) - After selling TIF in 2019, Carrie half-jokingly (but not joking at all), asked Greg if FM needed a web designer. (09:12) - Greg decided he was actually interested, but by then Carrie had started a UX/UI course and was considering that. The indecision was brief - by early 2020 she was part of the team. (10:17) - Here's a link to our Best Offers Page: https://frequentmiler.com/best-credit-card-sign-up-offers/ (14:19) - Carrie's first impressions Visit , and don’t forget to like and follow us on social media. Music Credit – Beach Walk by Unicorn Heads
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Hilton delivers luxury through SLH | Frequent Miler on the Air Ep263 | 7-12-24
07/12/2024
Hilton delivers luxury through SLH | Frequent Miler on the Air Ep263 | 7-12-24
Hilton has brought on their partner Small Luxury Hotels of the World which has been a bit more exciting than we expected it would be. In today's Frequent Miler on the Air episode we'll discuss more. (01:07) - a note about the alliteration in "pop-up prison" vs "pop-up jail" (Mail Bag) (02:56) - IHG Premier 60K certs (Card Talk) Read more about the : https://frequentmiler.com/chase-ihg-premier-card-best-ever-offer-5-60k-free-night-certificates/ (08:37) - Greg booked AA to fly to London and it didn't go very smoothly... (Crazy Thing) Read about : https://frequentmiler.com/my-aadventures-aatempting-to-fly-aa-to-london/ (21:38) - Escape lounge on arrival (Award Talk) (26:19) - Digging in to fare class info when booking via Chase (Award Talk) Main Event: Hilton delivers luxury through SLH (32:28) - Overview: ~400 SLH hotels bookable through Hilton (38:09) - Some SLH hotels have suites defined as standard rooms (39:30) - Gold and Diamond members: space-available room upgrades and continental breakfast for up to two guests. (42:01) - Excellent Hilton point value possible through SLH (44:19) - Free night certs & 5th Night Free awards apply to SLH (47:21) - How to get points (1:01:50) - How to get free night certs Read more about the : https://frequentmiler.com/AmxHiltonAspire/ (1:04:25) - Read more about the : https://frequentmiler.com/hilton-honors-american-express-surpass-card/ (1:09:08) - How to find SLH award availability (1:12:21) - Visit : https://rooms.aero/ (1:20:59) - Does the Chase Freedom Unlimited card double offer calculate even points that were transferred out? (Question of the week) Visit 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 – “Ocean Deep” by
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How do you travel with young kids? | Ask Us Anything Ep68 | 7-3-24
07/09/2024
How do you travel with young kids? | Ask Us Anything Ep68 | 7-3-24
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. (01:25) - How do I know how much my points and miles are worth (and are all points and miles worth the same?) (06:04) - I switched an upcoming trip to take a better flight the next day, which means I have to change Hilton/Hertz reservations. Both of them will re-price to higher costs than before. Any way to avoid? (08:07) - What’s your prediction for the next points devaluation? (10:33) - Thoughts on new turkish card? (12:22) - question for Nick I am product changing from my Marriott Boundless to Ritz carlton card. I receive my fna on August 3rd each year. when is the best time to product change? Hoping to get both certs. (15:45) - If I rent a car with VentureX annual credit (at C1 portal), do I get the VX primary rental insurance on this rental? (16:03) - When is good time to upgrade Hilton Surpass into Aspire in order to receive FNC from Surpass and then from Aspire? (18:40) - Hi FM Team, which recent miles and points devaluation (Virgin Atlantic, Choice, etc.) has been the most disappointing for you? Happy Fourth of July! (25:25) - Are there any Hotel programs that combine Personal & Credit Card Nights together to get you Elite Status? (28:05) - Re: the new Schwab rule of only 1 million points cashed out at 1.1 and then .08 after. Are there good strategies for those who have high Rakuten spend turned into AmEx? (30:36) - Most banks have been declining my credit card applications, mostly citing too many hard pulls on the credit report. What should my next move be to maximize points earnings? (35:02) - how is Wells Fargo household sharing works? can I share between P2 cashback to P1 Autograph points? (37:37) - How would you guys book business class award tickets from the US to Vietnam, I am on the east cost but happy to go to the west coast. (40:50) - a while back on the podcast a mailbag e-mail asked about a resource/deep dive on downgrading paths for cards. Any update on when that might be coming?? (42:08) - I have Southwest companion pass and 170k points. Can you guys recommend me any good destination(s)? (47:08) - Nick, any tips for enjoying traveling with young kids? Our kids are 3 years and 3 months, and we feel like all travel outside family visits is on hold for at least a few years. (52:37) - have you guys ever take a chance of ANA waitlist? (54:02) - Flying Blue: can you reprice your flights if they go down in price due to promo rewards? can you add a free stopover on KLM operated flights as well? (55:44) - Any thoughts on the new Attune card from WF? There are some interesting categories, such as bookstores (Amazon), Sporting good stores (gun stores, ammo, shooting ranges), Barbers, nail salons, Ski... (58:12) - Any recs for backpacks/luggage? Appreciate your tips and credit card advice!!
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How to get great value from your Platinum card | Frequent Miler on the Air Ep262 | 7-5-24
07/05/2024
How to get great value from your Platinum card | Frequent Miler on the Air Ep262 | 7-5-24
The Amex Platinum card has had great welcome bonuses for a while now, but it's a very expensive card. Are there reasons to keep the card once the annual fee comes due? That's what we'll discuss in today's Frequent Miler on the Air episode. (01:36) - Online chat for immediate Avios refunds? (Mailbag) (05:26) - Wells Fargo Attune Card (Card Talk) Read more about the (17:49) - Hyatt promo: Earn 1k bonus points + double elite nights at 15 Florida properties (Mattress Running the Numbers) (23:46) - Virgin kills Delta One deal (Award Talk) (28:39) - Interesting notes about Spirit awards (Award Talk) Read more about Read more about the . (34:25) - Become elite (37:01) - Enhance your travel experiences (40:57) - Earn $200 back on prepaid hotel bookings each year Read more about FHR credits here: https://frequentmiler.com/maxfhr-an-awesome-new-way-to-help-use-your-200-fine-hotels-resorts-credits/ (44:28) - Earn $200 in Airline Fee Credits each calendar year (46:08) - Use $200 in Uber credits each calendar year (48:53) - Get $20 per month back in rebates on select digital entertainment services (51:27) - Earn up to $100 per year in rebates at Saks Fifth Avenue (55:18) - Get Walmart+ for Free (56:53) - Earn 5x for airfare and prepaid hotels (57:21) - Refer friends (1:05:37) - Hyatt dummy-booking offer... why is no one talking about this offer? Visit 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 – “Ocean Deep” by
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Don’t take a siesta on Sonesta | Coffee Break Ep17 | 7-2-24
07/02/2024
Don’t take a siesta on Sonesta | Coffee Break Ep17 | 7-2-24
Sonesta is a hotel chain with more than 1100 properties that we haven't paid much attention to until , a program that sort of came out of nowhere. In this week's Coffee Break episode, we'll chat more about why you shouldn't siesta on Sonesta! (01:24) - Sonesta Travel Pass Basics (04:04) - Elite Status (06:49) - Shortcuts to elite status (11:22) - Points from paid stays (13:08) - Sonesta Travel Pass credit card (15:58) - Final thoughts... are we excited about this? Visit , and don’t forget to like and follow us on social media. Music Credit – Beach Walk by Unicorn Heads
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Navigating Amex’s Welcome Bonus Family Rules | Frequent Miler on the Air Ep261 | 6-28-24
06/28/2024
Navigating Amex’s Welcome Bonus Family Rules | Frequent Miler on the Air Ep261 | 6-28-24
Amex has long had rules against getting a new welcome bonus for a card you’ve had before. Now, they’ve expanded those rules to include "families" of cards. In this episode we'll help you navigate this confusing and tedious concept. (01:31) - With pointsyeah a reader found an interesting redemption for ANA first class... but found a great discount for “suffering” in economy to HND. (Mailbag) Read more about (05:15) - Southwest Companion Pass with one business card (Card Talk) Find out more about the Find out more about the (18:14) - Bilt rent day promo (Award Talk) (19:42) - Alaska Airlines transfer bonus, up to 100% (Award Talk) Read more about the (24:18) - Alaska Airlines status match (Award Talk) (29:20) - Bilt Neighborhood dining (Award Talk) (32:09) - Hilton adds more SLH properties (Award Talk) (37:50) - Choice removes 35K cap on their points prices in the US (Award Talk) (39:22) - We've updated some of our RRVs (Award Talk) (44:46) - Use Virgin points to book AF/KLM (Award Talk) (50:23) - Fiji airways to adopt AAdvantage miles (Award Talk) (52:09) - Read more about (2024 Predictions Half-Way Check Point) (54:55) - Read more about (2024 Predictions Half-Way Check Point) (56:27) - Read more about (2024 Predictions Half-Way Check Point) (58:38) - Read more about (2024 Predictions Half-Way Check Point) (1:01:27) - Read more about (2024 Predictions Half-Way Check Point) Main Event: Navigating Amex’s Welcome Bonus Family Rules (1:03:24) - About Amex's "Pop-Up Prison" (1:06:58) - Family types (1:09:08) - How to find the rules. Look for "Offer Terms" (1:12:16) - Skirting the pop-up prison (1:18:01) - What sites do you like the best, apart from your own? (Question of the Week) Visit 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 – “Ocean Deep” by
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Frequent Miler origin story: Nick’s story | Coffee Break Ep16 | 6-25-24
06/25/2024
Frequent Miler origin story: Nick’s story | Coffee Break Ep16 | 6-25-24
On a previous Coffee Break episode, we talked about the . This week, we'll learn about Nick's origin story with the Frequent Miler team. (00:47) -Super quick recap of next 5 years from the start of the blog Greg posted a (02:21) - How Nick got into miles and points (12:09) - Nick discovers Frequent Miler at an FTU (13:58) - Greg and Nick meet in person at another FTU (16:37) - Nick's wife convinces him to apply for the Frequent Miler position (17:10) - More details about Greg's help wanted post and the hiring process (20:42) - Greg was hoping to find someone who knew more about redemption than he did Visit , and don’t forget to like and follow us on social media. Music Credit – Beach Walk by Unicorn Heads
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Best ways to get to Hawaii | Ep260 | 6-22-24
06/21/2024
Best ways to get to Hawaii | Ep260 | 6-22-24
(00:00) Intro: There are a multitude of ways to fly to Hawaii using miles and points (and even many ways to get a deal on cash tickets). On this week's show, we discuss ways to fly to Hawaii from around the US from as few as 10K or 13.5K points each way. (01:06) New FM intro (03:22) Card Talk: Sonesta World Mastercard -Card Details -What are points worth? (16:00) What crazy thing . . . did Marriott and Starbucks do this week? (19:51) Mattress running the numbers: Wyndham Rewards Hotel Pass (27:48) Award Talk (27:55) New Reasonable Redemption Value for Hotel Points (30:29) Aeroplan promotion with Miles4Migrants) (34:19) 15% transfer bonus from Citi to Cathay Pacific Asia Miles (27:03) Enterprise Rent-A-Car Status Match (30:29) Amex referral bonuses now as high as 45,000 points for targeted cardholders (42:44) Main Event: Best Ways to fly to Hawaii (43:04) Cash deals (43:30) Delta companion certificates (44:55) Alaska Companion Fare (46:13) Southwest Companion Pass (47:32) Vacation packages (49:15) Award deals: Economy (49:24) United flights via Turkish Miles & Smiles for 10K each way (50:48) Finnair Avios for American Airlines (15K) or Alaska Airlines (13.5K) (52:52) Alaska Mileage Plan for Alaska from 15K (53:35) Singapore Krisflyer for central/Western US to Hawaii (13-14K) (54:33) Using Alaska miles to fly AA for 17.5K from Dallas and west coast (55:32) Use United to fly United from 11.1K from the west coast (56:42) Aeroplan for 12.5K from the west coast to Hawaii on United (58:00) Qatar Avios for 13K one way from the west coast (59:00) Flying Blue for Delta from 18K (59:16) Virgin Atlantic for Hawaiian Airlines for 20K each way from the west coast (1:00:16) JetBlue for Hawaiian Airlines for 20K each way from the west coast (1:00:48) American Airlines miles for AA from 20K each way (1:01:39) Southwest Airlines when cash fares are cheap (1:02:00) "First class" flights to Hawaii with miles (1:02:57) Turkish miles for United: 15K miles each way (1:05:35) Finnair Avios for American Airlines" 38K miles each way (1:07:00) Alaska Miles for Alaska from 40K miles each way (1:07:21) Hawaiian miles to fly Hawaiian: 40K one way or upgrade from 25K. Possibly more availability with status or as a cardholder. (1:09:25) Virgin Atlantic miles to fly Hawaiian: 40K one way from the west coast (1:09:48) Alaska Mileage Plan for American Airlines: 35K one-way from as far east as Dallas (1:10:10) Air Canada Aeroplan for United for 25K from the west coast (1:10:50) Qatar Airways Avios for American or Alaska for 38,750 Avios from the west coast (1:11:50) Example for how to find award availability (1:19:33) Question of the Week: Is reselling a good low-energy way to generate points? Music credit: Annie Yoder
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Bilt is costing Wells Fargo dearly. Should you duck & run or double down? | Coffee Break Ep15 | 6-18-24
06/19/2024
Bilt is costing Wells Fargo dearly. Should you duck & run or double down? | Coffee Break Ep15 | 6-18-24
(00:00) The Wall Street Journal reported friction in the relationship between Wells Fargo & Bilt. What was reported and what do we make of the details? Find out in this episode of Coffee Break. (01:16) What the Wall Street Journal Article says (02:01) Digging into article details a bit about the Bilt / Wells Fargo relationship (06:34) Fraud and Money Laundering Concerns (09:44) The Wells Fargo and Bilt response (10:34) WSJ article key points quick summary (11:12) Our take about what this all means 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
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Top 10 Tips for Last Minute Award Travel | Frequent Miler on the Air Ep259 | 6-14-24
06/14/2024
Top 10 Tips for Last Minute Award Travel | Frequent Miler on the Air Ep259 | 6-14-24
Greg and Nick have been consumed with last-minute travel the last week and a half so it's great timing for them to summarize 10 important tips for last-minute award travel. (01:17) - Standing ovation for the annual challenge! (Mailbag) (06:43) - Annual Challenge recap and overview Watch the : https://youtu.be/bMt_NfuuINI?feature=shared Watch the : https://youtu.be/gyJPtTZN1EE?feature=shared Watch the : https://youtu.be/HTmEAicB3dw?feature=shared (34:15) - Curve overview (Card Talk) Find out more here: (37:56) - Hilton SLH integrated testing phase (Award Talk) (40:26) - Preferred Hotels / Choice devaluation (55K to 87K) (Award Talk) (42:34) - Aero plan credit card & elite members status match to iPrefer Titanium (before June 28) (Award Talk) (44:18) - Book Oman Air w/ Flying Blue miles (Award Talk) (44:30) - Book El Al with Virgin points (Award Talk) (44:51) - Points Path adds support for Air Canada & Alaska Airlines (Award Talk) Main Event: Top 10 Tips for Last Minute Award Travel (47:00) - General advice (52:38) - Great awards often open last minute (ex: Lufthansa first) (57:16) - Diversify. Having different types of points and miles helps. (58:28) - Become adept at award search tools. Huge time saver. (1:00:26) - Don’t rely entirely on award search tools. They don’t catch everything (no Virgin Atlantic on a couple, no BA / QR Avios, didn’t see LifeMiles for my redemption, etc) (1:03:41) - Consider keeping stashes in programs you use often. This only applies if you have a lot of points and miles, but it could help avoid a failed transfer. (1:05:27) - Watch out for transfer times (1:08:10) - Get a good VPN. I wonder if some of my problems could have been averted if I’d used one all along. (1:11:22) - Know that Aeroplan’s contact center isn’t 24/7. This can be a big pain when you’re overseas. (1:12:37) - Beware the phantom menace. Tons of Swiss space that isn’t real. (1:17:02) - Have some tricks up your sleeve. This could alternatively be called "persistence pays off". Don’t give up right away. Examples include searching Avianca’s site multiple ways, forcing a stopover with Aeroplan to get a flight to show up, booking a refundable something as a backup, etc. (1:20:10) - How do you go about finding activities while you travel? (Question of the Week) Visit 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 – “Ocean Deep” by
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Highlights and lowlights from the Last Minute Travel Challenge | Coffee Break Ep14 | 6-11-24
06/11/2024
Highlights and lowlights from the Last Minute Travel Challenge | Coffee Break Ep14 | 6-11-24
Greg and Nick are busy returning home from a jam-packed week competing in our 2024 annual team challenge "Flying by the Seat of our Points". For this coffee break episode, we've highlighted a portion of the final livestream from Kuala Lumpur where the team reflects on the highlights (and lowlights) of their individual journeys. You can find out all kinds of details about this challenge here: https://frequentmiler.com/2024-annual-challenge/
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Catching up with the Last Minute Travel Challenge | Frequent Miler on the Air Ep 258 | 6-7-24
06/07/2024
Catching up with the Last Minute Travel Challenge | Frequent Miler on the Air Ep 258 | 6-7-24
This episode is a little different because Greg and Nick are busy competing with eachother for the Flying by the Seat of our Points Challenge! If unfamiliar, every year we put together a team travel challenge designed to force us to reach challenging and entertaining goals with our points and miles, and showcase what can be done with these tools. It's a fun way to stretch the limits of points and miles and show you all what that actually looks like. For this year's annual challenge, Stephen and I have given Greg, Nick, and Tim surprise destination assignments for a travel challenge testing our team's last-minute travel booking skills. The first "domestic convergence" destination was revealed on Monday night during a live checkin on YouTube where the contestants learned of a domestic location they'd need to reach by Wednesday 6pm local time, when we had another live checkin to reveal another series of surprise destinations. By the time this challenge wraps up, we'll have had 4 live checkins. For this podcast episode you'll watch and listen to a summary of the first two checkins, the Monday night reveal of our domestic launch point, and the Wednesday night reveal of each contestant's individual international assignments. You'll also hear our contestants review the booking decisions they made to meet their first assignment, and you'll hear stephen and i break down our scoring decisions. This recap will bring you up to speed so you can head over to our YouTube and catch the third live checkin which will have just wrapped up by the time this podcast goes live, and will tell our contestans of their final destination assignment. Check out this link for more!
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Our worst travel challenge moments | Coffee Break Ep13 | 6-4-24
06/04/2024
Our worst travel challenge moments | Coffee Break Ep13 | 6-4-24
(00:00) - You know that sinking feeling when you know things are going wrong? With , we've got our past travel challenge snafus in mind. Coffee Break: Our worst travel challenge moments (02:53) - 40K to Far Away Learn more about the 2019 . (03:09) - Greg: Train breaks. Bus breaks Read . (06:18) - Nick: Asleep on bus, can’t enter Bangkok, bike ride to nowhere Read about (11:20) - 3 Cards, 3 Continents Read more about the 2022 . (11:46) - Nick: Canyoneering (12:48) - Greg: Air Canada married segment problem, then wouldn’t let me check in Read more about . (16:22) - Party of 5 Read more about the . (16:52) -Greg (and Nick): Santiago, arriving at the Ritz w/out a backpack Visit , and don’t forget to like and follow us on social media. You’ll find all other Music Credit – Beach Walk by Unicorn Heads
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Learning to Love LifeMiles | Frequent Miler on the Air Ep257 | 5-31-24
05/31/2024
Learning to Love LifeMiles | Frequent Miler on the Air Ep257 | 5-31-24
Nick has loved LifeMiles for a long time but Greg has traditionally been less convinced. Recent changes make Greg curious to hear more about Nick's long-time love of LifeMiles. Can Nick convince Greg to become a fan? (01:33) - On Ep 255: Strategizing Hilton cards, credits, and free nights, Greg’s podcasted plan left people with questions about family language for Hilton cards (Mailbag) (05:12) - Hilton cards with new welcome bonuses (Mattress Running the Numbers) Learn more about the And learn about the (12:27) - Southwest now on Google Flights (Award Talk) (16:09) - Finnair Avios now combinable (Award Talk) (18:20) - AA NOT eliminating mile & loyalty point earnings through OTAs (Award Talk) (19:22) - Cardless Avianca LifeMiles Cards (Card Talk) Read more about the . Read more about the . (28:33) - Easy miles to get (31:51) - LifeMiles+ subscriptions (49:30) - Using LifeMiles, standard pricing (53:43) - Hidden sweet-spots (59:30) - Mixed cabin pricing Read . (1:04:47) - How to search for complicated awards (1:11:14) - How to search for awards (less complicated) (1:22:10) - Downsides... (1:25:32) - Pop Quiz for Greg about quadruple dip opportunities for a Hilton Curio Collection hotel Visit 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 – “Ocean Deep” by
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World of Hyatt’s decline by a thousand cuts | Coffee Break Ep12 | 5-28-24
05/28/2024
World of Hyatt’s decline by a thousand cuts | Coffee Break Ep12 | 5-28-24
You know we're fans of Hyatt...but some of their recent behavior has been downright painful! That's what we'll discuss in today's Coffee Break episode. (01:28) - Hyatt introduced Category 8, claiming it would only be for SLH (03:05) - Introduced peak pricing (04:26) - As feared, they moved Hyatt properties into that Category 8 (04:43) - Introduced a separate (way more expensive) award chart for all-inclusive properties (05:35) - Created Homes & Hideaways at poor value...then later moved a number of "Destination Residences" properties to Homes & Hideaways (07:53) - Ended MGM partnership (08:34) - Ended SLH partnership (09:54) - Introduced Mr & Mrs Smith dynamic pricing Still plenty to love: (13:03) - Best-in-class top tier status benefits (you know you’ll get breakfast / lounge, free parking on award stays, meaningful upgrades, etc). (14:17) - Best milestone rewards (confirmable suite upgrades, Guest of Honor awards, valuable free night certificates) (16:04) - Lots of sharing options: share free nights, upgrade certs, globalist status (via GOH awards), points, etc. (17:09) - Ability to supplement elite earning with credit card spend (18:08) - Generally very good value for points for properties that adhere to an award chart Visit , and don’t forget to like and follow us on social media. You’ll find all other Music Credit – Beach Walk by Unicorn Heads
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Best cards for grocery, dining, gas, travel, Costco, and more | Frequent Miler on the Air Ep256 | 5-24-24
05/24/2024
Best cards for grocery, dining, gas, travel, Costco, and more | Frequent Miler on the Air Ep256 | 5-24-24
Everybody loves a one-size-fits-all answer, but today we're discussing which cards are best for which kinds of purchases: grocery, dining, gas, travel, Costco... Sure you can just keep one card in your wallet and earn on that card exclusively, but many of us switch it up depending on what we're purchasing. That's what we'll discuss in today's episode. (01:45) - Datapoints about AA companion certificates (Mail Bag) (05:32) - Hertz charging people to refill Tesla gas tanks (Crazy Thing) (12:07) - Frontier and Spirit eliminate change fees (Award Talk) (13:41) - Cool Alaska trick (Award Talk) (17:31) - Current Kimpton Hotel Secret Password May 24, 2024, to September 2, 2024. (Award Talk) Main Event: Best cards for grocery, dining, gas, travel, Costco, and more (18:54) - Best cards for grocery, dining, gas, travel, Costco, and more (19:45) - Big box stores including Costco, Sams Club, Target, etc Read more about the US Bank Altitude Reserve here: (22:55) - Grocery Stores Read more about the Citi Custom Cash here: (23:44) - Read more about Amex Gold here: (24:49) - Read more about the Citi Strata Premier here: Read more about the Capital One Savor card here () and the SavorOne here () (25:28) - Read more about the Aeroplan card here: (26:18) - Dining / Food Delivery (27:38) - Read more about the Amex Business Gold card here: (29:13) - Read more about the Bank of America Customized Cash Rewards card here: (31:06) - Gas Read more about the Wyndham Rewards Earner Business Card here: (33:36) - Read more about the Wyndham Rewards Earner Plus Card here: (38:38) - Travel: Many cards offer enhanced rewards for travel booked through bank portal (39:03) - General Travel (39:50) - Read more about the Chase Sapphire Reserve here: Read more about the Chase Ink Business Preferred here: (39:58) - Read more about the Amex Green Card here: (40:00) - Read more about the Wells Fargo Autograph card here: (41:37) - Airfare Read more about the Amex Platinum card here: (43:33) - Hotels (43:44) - Read more about the Wells Fargo Autograph Journey card here: (45:44) - Read what Greg keeps in his wallet here () and what Nick keeps in his wallet here () (46:07) - See our Best Category Bonuses resource here: (46:54) - Other notable category bonuses (47:08) - Read more about the Ink Business Cash card here: (47:58) - Read more about the Chase Freedom Flex card here () and the Freedom Unlimited here () (50:35) - One of our readers is interested in becoming a content creator and has questions about things to consider. If we were starting out today, what would we do differently? (Question of the Week) (54:20) - Check out our Coffee Break episode on the origin story of Frequent Miler here:
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When points wag the dog | Coffee Break Ep11 | 5-21-24
05/21/2024
When points wag the dog | Coffee Break Ep11 | 5-21-24
Sometimes points and miles wag the points-collector dog... which is to say, sometimes the hobby changes your travel behavior. In episode 11 of Coffee Break, we'll talk about how. (01:40) - Rent day date nights (Greg) (03:32) - Going to baseball games / event tickets (Nick) (06:54) - Helicopter into NY (Greg) (09:15) - Vacationing where the award space is (Nick) (13:37) - "Forced" to travel due to expiring free nights (Greg) Read about the Kimpton Seafire here: Read about the Ritz Carlton Dove Mountain Tucson here: Visit , and don’t forget to like and follow us on social media. You’ll find all other Music Credit – Beach Walk by Unicorn Heads
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Strategizing Hilton cards, credits, and free nights | Frequent Miler on the Air Ep255 | 5-17-24
05/17/2024
Strategizing Hilton cards, credits, and free nights | Frequent Miler on the Air Ep255 | 5-17-24
Hilton's SLH partnership is stirring up some excitement over Hilton, even for people like Greg who haven't bothered with Hilton cards for awhile, so this week we're discussing Hilton credit cards, credits, and free nights. (02:07) - We forgot about Qpoints last week... (Mail Bag) (05:10) - Citi Strata Premier (Card Talk) (10:33) - Citi accidentally made Strata Premier details public (Crazy Thing) (11:56) - Citi accidentally published FAQ showing that it may be possible to upgrade to Prestige card (Crazy Thing) (14:10) - Earn Delta MQDs on hotel bookings & car rentals (Mattress Running the Numbers) (16:58) - AutoCamp now bookable with Hilton points Main Event: Strategizing Hilton credit cards (20:40) - Hilton is the only major hotel program with easy to get, uncapped free night certificates (28:28) - Read about the Hilton Honors American Express Card here: (28:40) - Read about the Hilton Honors American Express Business Card here: (29:19) - Read about the Hilton Honors American Express Surpass Card here: (30:00) - Read about the Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card here: (31:18) - Earning free nights (43:51) - Earning rebates to keep cards net free (51:22) - Greg's strategy (1:01:00) - Nick's thoughts (1:05:01) - Is booking anything better than booking nothing? (Question of the week) Visit 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 – “Ocean Deep” by
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Announcing the 2024 Team Challenge | Ask Us Anything Ep67 | 5-8-24
05/14/2024
Announcing the 2024 Team Challenge | Ask Us Anything Ep67 | 5-8-24
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 special episode (67) was streamed live on May 8, 2024 and introduces our 2024 annual team challenge! (06:10) - Hi FM Team, now that we are approaching Summer, what you are most looking forward to this Summer? (13:35) - how do you plan on handling the requirement for onward travel that many countries have in this challenge? (15:37) - What's the "budget" for the contestants in this challenge? (18:09) - Scoring? (And) Will the judges share their scoring criteria in advance? (19:06) - Will there be any opportunity for reader/viewer engagement at the convergence points? (24:00) - I hope you plan to document via Instagram stories this time! That's been my favorite way to watch along with the previous challenges in real time (28:48) - Can you guess where you're each getting sent? (32:17) - What is a place you are hoping you aren’t sent to? (35:39) - Thoughts on the strata? And the strata elite? Do you think there will be family language? (37:40) - Do you think that citi rebranding the premier signals a much better chance of a prestige replacement/csr comp coming in the next year or so? (40:30) - Thanks for all the awesome content! Citi has denied P2 and I premier 3 times in the last 2 years, should I product change my DC to Premier since it’s going away or try for Strata Elite? (42:13) - hi team! what's going on with transfers to Virgin? are points getting stuck in transit lately? would you advise holding off on transfers to virgin? (44:11) - Can you speak on the capital one VX business priority pass rumors? My newly issued card is a visa and I’ve read on other blogs that the visas won’t have restaurant access. Is this true? (46:46) - FHR Points question please - My Platinum AU is getting a points cost 33% higher than I get for the same stay, ideas on the reason? (49:29) - Question: what are the most rewarding ways to get 529 gift of college gift cards? (51:21) - Name your 6 must hit destinations if you were booking an ABA around the world trip (55:39) - Is it worth to move 100k out of Fidelity to Meryl to get platinum honors ? Did FM team saw any inconvenience on maintaining 100k in Meryl (58:36) - hi. I was recently informed by an Air France representative that it's permissible to forgo the first leg of a reward ticket and still utilize the second leg. Can you confirm this?" Visit to get updated on in-depth points and miles content like this, and don’t forget to like and follow us on social media. You’ll find all other . Music Credit – “Into the Never” by
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Our favorite big spend bonuses | Frequent Miler on the Air Ep254 | 5-11-24
05/11/2024
Our favorite big spend bonuses | Frequent Miler on the Air Ep254 | 5-11-24
Some credit cards offer extra perks or progress toward elite status for big spenders. On this week's episode, we talk about which of those bonuses might be worth the spend. But before we get into that, this episode is full of news you can use and tips to keep in mind in regular segments like Card Talk and Mattress Running the Numbers. (00:00) Intro (01:26) A tip we neglected to mention regarding positioning flights (Giant Mailbag) (05:33) Card Talk (05:46) Venture X Business card losing Priority Pass restaurant access for new Visa cards (Card Talk) (08:57) Qatar Airways Cardless Cards (Card Talk) (15:16) What crazy thing . . . did Cardless do this week? (19:32) Mattress running the numbers: Is it worth spending to Qatar Airways elite status? Note: The Qatar Club Infinite card also comes with bonus Qpoints in the first year, which reduce the path to renewing status for your second year. The spend we discussed regarding renewal of status really applies to status for year 3 and beyond. (28:17) Award Talk (28:20) Flying by the Seat of our Points: Frequent Miler's 2024 challenge (31:33) You can now use JetBlue points to book Etihad and vice versa (35:30) Bilt adds a new transfer partner....Hilton Honors (37:32) Use Finnair Avios to book Nordic & Scandinavian hotels for great value (40:30) Amex Travel positive experience honoring a fare (46:04) Our favorite big spend bonuses (46:45) Alaska Airlines companion certificates (48:16) Hilton Surpass card free night certificate (49:14) Hyatt consumer & business cards (57:39) IHG Premier & Premier Business cards (1:01:47) Barclays Aviator Silver Loyalty Point bonuses & companion certificate (1:06:20) Aeroplan (1:09:25) Question of the Week: How did Greg build up capacity for his player 3? Music credit: Annie Yoder
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4 Cool things Nick learned at the Toronto Travel Summit | Coffee Break Ep10 | 5-7-24
05/07/2024
4 Cool things Nick learned at the Toronto Travel Summit | Coffee Break Ep10 | 5-7-24
Nick just came back from a weekend in Toronto at the Toronto Travel Summit. In today's Coffee Break episode, he'll share 4 cool things he learned there. (2:00) - Air France is working on upgrades using miles that sounds like it might be very reasonable. (07:30) - Aeroplan intends to bring back family pooling the same as it was. (09:17) - Aeroplan is actually working on getting partner space back up and running. (12:56) - Hotels could be a good use of Finnair Avios (18:08) - Networking at these things continues to be great! Lots of interested / interesting people & creators with different angles. Visit , and don’t forget to like and follow us on social media. Music Credit – Beach Walk by Unicorn Heads
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Tips for booking Positioning Flights | Frequent Miler on the Air Ep253 | 5-3-24
05/03/2024
Tips for booking Positioning Flights | Frequent Miler on the Air Ep253 | 5-3-24
Sometimes you book an award ticket that requires you to do some positioning in order to catch that flight - for instance if the flight doesn't depart from your home airport. There are a few best practices to keep in mind when booking these "positioning flights", which we'll discuss in today's Frequent Miler on the Air episode. (01:08) - One reader writes in: "If you have Platinum Honors, I would rank the BofA Premium Rewards Elite card the highest for Priority Access by far. The airline credit offset is very easy to use and you get them all at once so there's no obnoxious coupon book"... (Mail Bag) (03:20) - BOA Premium Rewards (not elite) card (Card Talk) Learn more about this card: Revisit Frequent Miler on the Air Episode 204 here: (04:57) - Bank of America Premium Rewards Elite card (Card Talk) Learn more about this card: (11:17) - Cardless launching two Avianca LifeMiles cards (Card Talk) (12:35) - Marriott Homes & Villas 50K (Mattress Running the Numbers) (16:12) - Transfer bonuses (Award Talk) (21:29) - United increases prices on partner biz class awards within Europe & Asia (Award Talk) (24:06) - Nick: able to change Aeroplan award (Award Talk) (29:50) - Daily Getaways (Award Talk) Main Event: Tips for booking Positioning Flights (32:26) - Award discovery tools like PointsYeah DayDream Explorer tool and Seats.Aero make it easy to find awards such as "business class for 4 from "North America" to "Europe" (36:22) - Avoid checking bags! (37:37) - Departure positioning tips: what NOT to do Read Greg’s mad dash story (What NOT to do) here: (40:33) - Day before is best (41:36) - Non-stop is best (less chance of delay) (41:56) - If not night before.... book primary positioning flight with long airport layover (43:15) - Useful to have lounge access for layover (46:02) - Book freely cancelable alternate positioning flight (49:20) - If back-up positioning flight isn’t an option, consider booking back-up for entire one-way trip (50:18) - Best options for free last-minute cancelations (56:48) - Back to Greg’s story. How he somewhat protected myself: (1:08:29) - Are there any certificates (like companion certificates) that disappear when you cancel the card? (Question of the Week) Visit , and don’t forget to like and follow us on social media. You’ll find all other Music Credit – Beach Walk by Unicorn Heads
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Frequent Miler origin story - Greg's story | Coffee Break Ep09 | 4-30-24
04/30/2024
Frequent Miler origin story - Greg's story | Coffee Break Ep09 | 4-30-24
Today's Coffee Break episode was inspired by a recent email we got asking... how did Frequent Miler get started? Since our Coffee Break episodes are 20 minutes or less, we started but telling Greg's side of the Frequent Miler origin story. (01:47) - in 2011 Greg first learned about this points and miles hobby when his current employer at the time issued a "no travel" decree... (04:22) - Greg started a blog for his friends...because it was easier then emailing everyone about what he'd learned. (05:29) - Greg almost immediately became intrigued with stacking opportunities. (07:06) - Greg was also very focused on increasing spend on his credit card which he later learned was called "manufactured spending." (08:17) - Before long, Randy of Boarding Area discovered Greg and invited him to join. (10:38) - Greg meets some other Boarding Area bloggers and learns how to monetize his blog. (14:15) - In early 2012 Greg's "real job" restructures and he gets laid off, inspiring him to set an earnings goal for the blog. (16:02) - Greg discovers Vanilla Reload cards... Visit , and don’t forget to like and follow us on social media. You’ll find all other Music Credit – Beach Walk by Unicorn Heads
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Luxury lodging... on points | Frequent Miler on the Air Ep252 | 4-26-24
04/26/2024
Luxury lodging... on points | Frequent Miler on the Air Ep252 | 4-26-24
There are many ways to book luxury hotels (credit card points, hotel points, etc) and this can be a great way to stay in some amazing luxury accommodations you'd never justify paying cash for. We'll dive into this today. (01:43) - Please share an experience when a positioning flight had not gone to plan, perhaps share a "Positioning Flight From Hell" type of experience. (Mailbag) . (06:23) - On our Instagram post, @marriottbonvoy's account trolls Hyatt by saying "Fortunately for our guests, we don’t play games with welcome gifts, points, and awards at Luxury locations such as St. Regis, JW Marriott, W Hotels, The Luxury Collection, and more but that’s just us." (Crazy Thing) See our post: (12:12) - 30% transfer bonus Amex to Virgin (Mattress Running the Numbers) (15:17) - MaxFHR.com (Award Talk) (17:09) - Equinox credit for massages (Award Talk) (21:10) - Bilt’s new Rent Day snoozer (24:27) - Bilt BLADE (30:01) - Hyatt’s sad rollout of Mr & Mrs Smith Main Event: Luxury lodging... on points (41:52) - Find our (42:54) - Major hotel chain luxury brands (43:34) - Hyatt (45:53) - Hilton (47:55) - Marriott (54:03) - IHG (58:12) - Wyndham (59:10) - . (59:34) - Choice Privileges (1:01:36) - Small Luxury Hotels of the World (SLH): Book with Hilton points (coming soon). Read more about the . (1:05:49) - Preferred Hotels & Resorts (1:09:05) - Leading Hotels of the World (LHW) (1:11:23) - Fine Hotels & Resorts & The Hotel Collection (1:13:28) - What's the best way to start on the Marriott credit card journey? (Question of the Week) Visit 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 – “Ocean Deep” by
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Hilton Takes on Small Luxury Hotels (SLH) | Coffee Break Ep08 | 4-23-24
04/23/2024
Hilton Takes on Small Luxury Hotels (SLH) | Coffee Break Ep08 | 4-23-24
Until recently, Hyatt had a relationship with Small Luxury Hotels (SLH), but it was recently announced that Hilton will now be the one integrating SLH hotels. We'll talk about what that looks like in this week's Coffee Break episode. (0:58) - Background: What is SLH? Read more about this SLH update here: (02:15) - Hilton’s approach to SLH (08:40) - Why Hilton 120K isn’t so different from Hyatt 40K (14:56) - Favorite SLH properties Visit , and don’t forget to like and follow us on social media. You’ll find all other Music Credit – Beach Walk by Unicorn Heads
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Shortcuts to AA elite status | Frequent Miler on the Air Ep251 | 4-19-24
04/19/2024
Shortcuts to AA elite status | Frequent Miler on the Air Ep251 | 4-19-24
American Airlines status isn't as easy as it used to be, but there are some shortcuts for those who think they'll be flying American Airlines enough to really want it. We'll discuss those shortcuts in this episode of Frequent Miler on the Air. (00:58) - Reader, Matt has been frustrated by Bilt's customer service... (Mailbag) (07:16) - AAdvantage® Aviator Red World Elite MasterCard (Card Talk) Find out more about this card here: We covered these a year ago in the show: Amassing American Airlines Miles | Ep199 | 4-22-23, which you can find here: (10:22) - AAdvantage® Aviator Silver World Elite MasterCard® (Card Talk) (19:01) - Capital One switches Venture card from Visa to MasterCard...but switches Venture X Biz from MasterCard to Visa (Crazy Thing) (22:03) - Transfer bonus from Citi to Accor (Mattress Running the Numbers) (26:26) - Strawberry Hotels (formerly Nordic Choice) Summer Pass (Mattress Running the Numbers) (33:42) - Etihad A380 first class apartment awards available New York to Abu Dhabi (Award Talk) (37:48) - Qatar cards from Cardless (Award Talk) (39:56) - Daily Getaways (Award Talk) Read more about the Daily Getaways here: Main Event: Shortcuts to AA elite status (45:26) - American Airlines Elite Overview (48:40) - Loyalty Point Rewards (50:42) - Shortcuts to American Airlines Elite Status (1:04:03) - What is the role of AI in the travel-hacking space? (Question of the Week) Visit 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 - "Ocean Deep" by
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United blocking partner awards | Coffee Break Ep07 | 4-16-24
04/16/2024
United blocking partner awards | Coffee Break Ep07 | 4-16-24
Tragically, United appears to to be blocking saver award space from Star Alliance partner bookings. In this coffee break episode we'll talk about what that means. (0:59) - Overview of United's recent changes Read more about these (01:09) - Why it matters (07:11) - Research findings - what we've found out digging a little deeper... (09:50) - Are United miles now more valuable? (14:19) - Are United credit cards now more valuable? (extra award space) Visit , and don't forget to like and follow us on social media. You'll find all other Music Credit - Beach Walk by Unicorn Heads
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