TRAVEL: Points, Miles, Discounts, Tips, Advice & Questions

[Gil Bang 25,944]

 

[Spankytoes 1,739]

On 10/4/2021 at 1:33 PM, Chopper said:

The amex plat doesn't give you free luggage but each year you are able to designate on airline for a travel credit that credits you back for up to $200 annually when you charge luggage or food/drinks on the flight of the airline you've chosen. AA is one of the airlines you can choose to designate for which to receive the benefit.

The amex plat doesn't give you AA lounge access. If the airport you're at has a centurion lounge you can use the centurion lounge. You can also use certain other airline's lounges through the (I think it's called) Priority Lounge program. However you have to be flying on that airline in order to use that airline's lounge. For example, Delta at AUS is available if you're flying Delta.

There are only 13 centurion lounges. AUS doesn't have one but DFW and IAH do. However amex is working on expanding the network.

You can buy a day pass for the AAdmirals club and it counts towards your $200 reimbursement credit.

[Longhorn94 2,448]

we are heading to Italy next month. Cost me 60k in points per person for the main cabin, auto-upgraded to comfort + and have been upgraded to first / AF business throughout the trip.

Using our Marriott points for all of the hotels. It should work out to be a "free" trip.

[ZB'Tejas 593]

On 10/7/2021 at 10:35 PM, Chopper said:

 

I have a sl of amex points and i fucked up and forgot to take advantage of the last bonus for transfer to avios. I hear British avios are also good to use for purchasing short, domestic AA flights.

 

Where was this deal advertised? I have 150K or so AMEX pts and need to do something valuable with them.

[ZB'Tejas 593]

On 10/7/2021 at 5:13 PM, Chopper said:

Holy crap. I thought the current published mileage charge is about 240k miles round trip and that a saaver is just 120k. I think the only way to avoid the massive fees they charge for biz class flights to europe is to avoid flying into LHR. But there's probably only one nonstop a day scheduled right now. Either DFW, ORD or JFK to FCO, or JFK to MXP.

I was looking at either DFW or JFK to FCO... still have the massive fees for some reason.

[ZB'Tejas 593]

28 minutes ago, Longhorn94 said:

we are heading to Italy next month. Cost me 60k in points per person for the main cabin, auto-upgraded to comfort + and have been upgraded to first / AF business throughout the trip.

Using our Marriott points for all of the hotels. It should work out to be a "free" trip.

Very nice. How did you get upgraded?

AA is giving me some opportunity to spend on their AA card a certain amount and keep my platinum status since I have not flown. Maybe I need to by something big to reach for that.

[VABuckeye 2,472]

1 hour ago, ZB'Tejas said:

Where was this deal advertised? I have 150K or so AMEX pts and need to do something valuable with them.

Just look at the points transfer section.  Generally the ones with transfer bonuses are listed first.  Right now Avios are 1000:1000.  Bonvoy is 1000:1300 and Hilton is 1000:2600.

 

 

[DallasGatr 216]

Someone upstream was asking about elite status club access at AA. The answer is that CK gets you into any AA lounge (including Flagship) regardless of destination. I’m not sure even Exec Plat gets any club access.

Another nice CK service is that a concierge staffer meets you in the jetway when you have a connecting flight. They then escort down to the ramp, put you in a suburban and whisk you off to your next gate (or club on a long layover.) This service has been brought back (post COVID) at least in PHL and CLT.

But my favorite CK perk is when you land in certain foreign ports a staffer meets you at the airplane and walks you to the taxi stand, pulling ropes all the way. (No delay longer than about 20 seconds at immigration. Thank you cute little Asian girl in Paris.)

This long winded humble brag has been brought to you by someone that spends way to much of his life (and company’s money) on AA.

And yes you need to be international First or biz to get club access (that includes Flagship). And it’s not international BS like Canada or Mexico. It’s a trans-oceanic flights or Deep South America flights.

[thunderlounge 7,816]

1 hour ago, DallasGatr said:

Someone upstream was asking about elite status club access at AA. The answer is that CK gets you into any AA lounge (including Flagship) regardless of destination. I’m not sure even Exec Plat gets any club access.

Good info. 
 

If you’re ck on aa, different game for sure. 
 

You’re right though. Unless you buy an AC membership or are on INTL F/J long haul, no domestic lounge access for AA exec plat on down.

 

Pretty much was my point above and one reason why BA is a good alternate program. Access to the angels in the lounge if something goes wrong.

 

[VABuckeye 2,472]

The Citi Executive Platinum card gets you Admiral's Club access.

[Chopper 17,230]

Amex offered me 55k MR points to keep my platinum card after I chatted with them on Monday that I was exploring my options about cancelling it due to not getting much out of the card any longer due to lack of travel. YMMV. This was my first retention offer and the first time I've "threatened" to downgrade.

[midtown 3,345]

Amex offered me 55k MR points to keep my platinum card after I chatted with them on Monday that I was exploring my options about cancelling it due to not getting much out of the card any longer due to lack of travel. YMMV. This was my first retention offer and the first time I've "threatened" to downgrade.

I tried that and got nowhere. Probably because I've shifted so much of my daily spend to other cards chasing bonuses the last two years. You must put a good amount of money on your card

[Chopper 17,230]

21 minutes ago, midtown said:

I tried that and got nowhere. Probably because I've shifted so much of my daily spend to other cards chasing bonuses the last two years. You must put a good amount of money on your card

True. It's amazing/pathetic what 2 new houses in 5 years will do to your monthly spend. At least I can see some light at the end of the tunnel. Also I haven't done much chasing of bonuses yet but the time may be coming.

[Ag with kids 581]

Just saw earlier that the AMEX Plat and Plat Bus were offering 20-25K MR points for adding authorized users (and they each spend $2k in 6 mo).  First 3 AUs cost $175.

So, for $175 you could get up to 75K MR points.

Not saying it's a great offer, but it's an offer...if anyone was looking at adding AUs...

[VABuckeye 2,472]

I think I got a notice for the same for adding AU to my Amex Business Gold.  I’ve added six in the last month but gave them all green cards.  I still get MR points for their spend. 

[thunderlounge 7,816]

Got same type deal for my hilton amex and cash magnet.

Tossed em. 

[Grimas 669]

I have 200+K Avios miles/points and want to take the wife to Barcelona for a long weekend - what's the best way to book a flight/use the miles?  I went to BA website and can't find options to use the Avios points.  Iberia had Houston to BCN flights for about $500/per R/T ticket in e.December but I figured I've got a ton of points that I should be able to get some free seats in either premium economy or business with the points but for $100k r/t for 2 of us, I might just buy the tickets...

[VABuckeye 2,472]

Transfer BA Avios to Iberia Avios.  Get on the Iberia site and look at their mileage bookings.  Not sure about your neck of the woods but we have Miami to Madrid direct flights here.

NOTE:  You have to have an Iberia account and you'll need to purchase a small amount of Iberia Avios to fund the account.  Once you do that transferring Avios between the two is simple.

[Chopper 17,230]

13 hours ago, Grimas said:

I have 200+K Avios miles/points and want to take the wife to Barcelona for a long weekend - what's the best way to book a flight/use the miles?  I went to BA website and can't find options to use the Avios points.  Iberia had Houston to BCN flights for about $500/per R/T ticket in e.December but I figured I've got a ton of points that I should be able to get some free seats in either premium economy or business with the points but for $100k r/t for 2 of us, I might just buy the tickets...

Iberia doesn't fly direct out of IAH. So if you are trying to book one of their rewards, you're not only dependent on finding IB award inventory, but AA as well, in order to take you to one of IB's airports. If you can't find any comprehensive reward flights with all the necessary flights included, consider looking for flights from one of Iberia's departing airports (ORD BOS MIA JFK would be the best geographic options) and then figure out how to get to the departure point separately. 2 step process.

[thunderlounge 7,816]

100k avios for 2 r/t in J?

 

Take it.

 

BA should be able to show you award flights, but also look through Iberia. 
 

Join their FF program, link your BA account, and after 30 days you can transfer avios from BA to IB if you need to.

Don’t forget those avios go further on domestic flights too. 
 

Picked up two one-ways from las to phx for 5k + the $5.60 each. AA miles would have been more like 20k, and if they had availability. I checked for shits and grins and they weren’t showing anything that week under saver, and anytime is dumb unless in an emergency or something. 

[Chopper 17,230]

2 hours ago, thunderlounge said:

100k avios for 2 r/t in J?

That would be an unbelievable deal but I don't think that's what he's saying.

[bluto 4,916]

Need help before I apply for this SWA 100k card. Currently have a rapid rewards plus card and have for a couple yrs. No 5/24 issues. Am I ok to apply for the swa PRIORITY card or do I need to shut down the plus first? Kthxbye

[midtown 3,345]

Can't have received a bonus in the last two years and can't have a swa card currently per the offer

And I think it needs to be closed for 31 days

[Redneck Mutha 7,954]

And I think to secure that 100k it is:

50k for hitting $3k spend within first 3 months then

50k for hitting $12k spend within first 12 months

[thunderlounge 7,816]

"Fresh" from AA... (we're going the BA route!)

 

 

 

Short of it, now you earn "points" towards status. No EQM/EQS/FuQ/EABOD/DIAF/FO.

Not sure of the dirty details, but somebody may know more for AA status chasers.

 

[ZB'Tejas 593]

4 minutes ago, thunderlounge said:

"Fresh" from AA... (we're going the BA route!)

 

 

 

Short of it, now you earn "points" towards status. No EQM/EQS/FuQ/EABOD/DIAF/FO.

Not sure of the dirty details, but somebody may know more for AA status chasers.

 

What's old is new again. This was how they did it years ago and then they changed it to only using BIS miles for status since everyone and their brother were Exec Platinum. I'm indifferent as I don't fly very much anymore but I wonder if this just continues to water down the perks.

[Ag with kids 581]

1 hour ago, thunderlounge said:

"Fresh" from AA... (we're going the BA route!)

 

 

 

Short of it, now you earn "points" towards status. No EQM/EQS/FuQ/EABOD/DIAF/FO.

Not sure of the dirty details, but somebody may know more for AA status chasers.

 

I can see this driving people to their credit cards, since you get 1 Loyalty Point for every dollar spent.  That could get you a decent amount towards status without even getting on a plane.

[Mo Horn 8,832]

Currently, you get bonus miles for dining out and gas. It doesn't say anything about that, so I assume that's going away and it will be 1:1 for everything. 

[Ag with kids 581]

48 minutes ago, Mo Horn said:

Currently, you get bonus miles for dining out and gas. It doesn't say anything about that, so I assume that's going away and it will be 1:1 for everything. 

https://aadvantagestatus.com/

Here's the link to the update

[Mo Horn 8,832]

44 minutes ago, Ag with kids said:

https://aadvantagestatus.com/

Here's the link to the update

Thanks. It looks like it's still 2x the miles on restaurants and gas. Sweet. 

[Js1 85,311]

So nothing is going to happen to my 160k points, right? 

[Ag with kids 581]

4 minutes ago, Js1 said:

So nothing is going to happen to my 160k points, right? 

According to everything I've seen, this change just affects how status is earned, not reward miles.

[Ag with kids 581]

Interesting...I just got an offer in the mail from AMEX to activate their Pay Over Time plan on my Platinum card.  If I activated it, I'd get 20K MR points.  I read through the paper work and saw no spending/paying requirements so I signed up.

Says 8-12 weeks after activation to see the MRs in the acct.

Hope some of y'all can be so lucky to get free money for doing nothing.

[midtown 3,345]

I got that a year ago. Didn't cost me a dime

[Chopper 17,230]

On 10/26/2021 at 3:34 PM, Ag with kids said:

According to everything I've seen, this change just affects how status is earned, not reward miles.

Yep. No changes "for 2022" they specified.

Category bonuses like dining will get you the bonus multiplier for miles. But not for the loyalty points.

You can achieve status through credit card spend only but the higher status like exec plat will require 30 flight segments.

This article is helpful Starting in 2022: How to qualify for American elite status from credit card spending alone

 

Edited October 28, 2021 by Chopper

[Ag with kids 581]

3 minutes ago, Chopper said:

Yep. No changes "for 2022" they specified.

Category bonuses like dining will get you the bonus multiplier for miles. But not for the loyalty points.

You can achieve status through credit card spend only but the higher status like exec plat will require 30 flight segments.

This article is helpful https://thepointsguy.com/news/requalify-aa-elite-credit-card/

 

You need to fix the link...clicking it redirects back to this page...

[Chopper 17,230]

21 minutes ago, Ag with kids said:

You need to fix the link...clicking it redirects back to this page...

Thanks. Fixed.

[gmr548 16,576]

AA is a credit card marketing company that happens to fly airplanes so no surprise they want to nudge people that way.

[Constant 6,731]

Not sure if already posted, but Resy.com has a good AMEX welcome bonus offer going on.  
https://resy.com/amex-offers?date=2021-10-29&seats=2

Platinum: 125,000 points for $6000/6 months, 15X points on Shop Small purchases. 
 

Gold: 75,000 points for $4000/6 months, up to $250 cash back on restaurant purchases for 12 months. 

[wild_turkey 3,159]

I had the CSR for 4 years and canceled last year before my AF was due, partly because of the AF increase and partly because I wanted to get 85,000 UR bonus points from a CSP offer.

I’ve had the CSP just under a year now and I’d like to go back to the CSR. When I subtract out the $300 travel credit and $120 Peloton credit, the remaining AF is only $130 which I think is worth it for increased earning on travel, dining, and Peloton, increased value of UR points, and the Global Entry credit which I’ll need to renew soon.

Problem is, Chase won’t let me switch back right now. They won’t tell me why or when it might be available again, but they said I can call again at some arbitrary point in the future and try again. I’m not asking for a new signup bonus, just want to pay the higher AF for the card with better perks.

Anyone know how to get around this or do I just have to pester them monthly?

[VABuckeye 2,472]

Sounds like 5/24 rule.  Have you opened 5 credit card accounts in the last 24 months?

[Telegraph_it 3,357]

I just completed my CSP 100k bonus after moving back from the CSR. I believe you cannot switch between the Sapphire cards if it’s within 48 months. 
 

I’ve done a lot of traveling this year. Between United, CSP, Amex, and Marriott I have 2.5mm points. I should go somewhere. 

[wild_turkey 3,159]

Sounds like 5/24 rule.  Have you opened 5 credit card accounts in the last 24 months?

No and I’m not applying for a signup bonus.

[wild_turkey 3,159]

I just completed my CSP 100k bonus after moving back from the CSR. I believe you cannot switch between the Sapphire cards if it’s within 48 months.

I thought that was true for the bonus offers but not the cards. Why would Chase want to limit their customers to the lower tier card and risk losing people to competitors like Amex Plat?

[thunderlounge 7,816]

15 hours ago, VABuckeye said:

Sounds like 5/24 rule.  Have you opened 5 credit card accounts in the last 24 months?

5/24 doesn’t apply for a “product change.”

That is the phrase to use when talking to them. Sometimes these agents can’t put 2 and 2 together to make 4. 
 

Unless they instituted some rule that had affected their product change guidelines. 
 

If you’ve had the CSP for a bit, I’m not aware of any limitations preventing you from upgrading to the CSR when no bonus is involved. 
 

However you may be inclined to check out the Freedom Unlimited. 3x dining, no AF.  Pool point over to CSP, and xfer to where you want, when you want. 

[Grimas 669]

On 10/22/2021 at 11:18 PM, Grimas said:

I have 200+K Avios miles/points and want to take the wife to Barcelona for a long weekend - what's the best way to book a flight/use the miles?  I went to BA website and can't find options to use the Avios points.  Iberia had Houston to BCN flights for about $500/per R/T ticket in e.December but I figured I've got a ton of points that I should be able to get some free seats in either premium economy or business with the points but for $100k r/t for 2 of us, I might just buy the tickets...

Typo - $1000 round trip for 2.  I'm in Houston and normally fly BA for business but to use Avios points, I avoid using points where I have to fly through LHR because of the stupid taxes so I need to either pass through Dallas to use miles with AA or Miami to use them with Iberia and fly direct to the desired Europe location and skip LHR...

[elfenix 34,230]

chase is showing me a completely different website trying to use points through CSR than with the freedom cards.  freedom cards group all the flights into one option but let you upgrade from basic economy to the rebookable option.  CSR cards let you pick individual legs but you're stuck with either basic economy or refundable economy at 3x the price.  there's enough uncertainty around that rebookable feels worthwhile.  kinda makes me want to book with united. 

[Ag with kids 581]

On 10/10/2021 at 11:41 PM, Spankytoes said:

You can buy a day pass for the AAdmirals club and it counts towards your $200 reimbursement credit.

I usually buy 500 mile upgrades with my reimbursement so I always have some in my bank - can't get that free upgrade if they're not there at boarding time.

[mycox 582]

3 hours ago, elfenix said:

chase is showing me a completely different website trying to use points through CSR than with the freedom cards.  freedom cards group all the flights into one option but let you upgrade from basic economy to the rebookable option.  CSR cards let you pick individual legs but you're stuck with either basic economy or refundable economy at 3x the price.  there's enough uncertainty around that rebookable feels worthwhile.  kinda makes me want to book with united. 

I'm not a fan of CSR for this reason. It's almost always better to book with directly with United or transfer points to United and then book.

[thunderlounge 7,816]

You have to really hunt around. Sometimes you can find a deal through chase, sometimes not. 
 

Sometimes better to transfer points to an airline program.