Educational Posts on Loyalty Programs

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JAL Upgrades its Japan Hawaii Fleet

The Honolulu to Tokyo route is hotly contested as Hawaii is a very popular destination with Japanese tourists. It’s been long served by Air China, ANA, Delta Air Lines (Northwest Airlines had the route), Hawaiian Airlines, Japan Airlines, Korean Airlines and United Airlines. To distance itself from the competition, Japan Airlines has upgraded its Boeing 777-200ER service on the route.

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New Routes to in 2017 and How to Fly Them for Free

Many airlines have announced new routes for 2017. Some are to sunny international destinations like Cuba and Key West, while others increase travelers’ options at busy hubs. Below are the most exciting new offerings announced so far this year and a rundown of the cards to get so you can fly those routes for free.

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New Amex Centurion Lounges in Hong Kong and Philadelphia

American Express recently announced that it will open Centurion lounges in Hong Kong and Philadelphia later this year. That will increase the number of these exclusive airport lounges from seven to nine. Find out what they have to offer and how you can get in.

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Delta Elites Have a New Benefit to Enjoy and American and Flying Blue Puts Awards on Sale

It’s not always good news for Delta flyers, especially since SkyMiles is known for constant devaluations with little notice. This time, there’s something to celebrate, at least for its top-level elite members. Plus, don’t miss the award discounts being offered by American and Flying Blue.

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Help Kids Get the Medical Care They Need by Donating Delta Miles to CMN Hospitals

Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals is a nonprofit that raises funds and awareness for children’s hospitals across North America. Since its inception in 1983, the organization has raised over $5 billion for its 170 member hospitals. Those donations help provide medical care for the 62 children who enter a CMN Hospital every minute. You can support this important work by donating your Delta SkyMiles.

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Best Credit Cards For Hotel Elite Status

There are few travel experiences as annoying as arriving at a hotel after a long trip, and being forced to wait in a line to check in. On the other hand, it’s gratifying to bypass the line and receive immediate service when you have elite status with a major hotel chain.

On top of that, guests with elite status can enjoy other perks like room upgrades, late check-outs and even free breakfast. Finally, having elite status means that you’ll earn more reward points for every dollar you spend.

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Tips for Dealing with Airline IT Problems

mobile app

Delta became the latest airline to succumb to a massive IT failure last month. It was a total meltdown for all platforms as Delta.com and the Delta app were both inaccessible which led to a nationwide grounding of all Delta domestic flights. Late that night, operations gradually came back online, but updates were being announced individually for each airport, still leaving many travelers confused and without flight options.

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Vacasa: Vacation Rentals Made Easier

Modern travelers have more lodging options than ever before. Hotels, resorts, B&Bs and private homes around the world are all just a few clicks away. But with all that variety comes a lot of uncertainty.

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New Airlines Added to TSA PreCheck

precheck programs

There are a variety of programs that allow travelers to get through security more quickly at the airport. One of the most widely used is TSA PreCheck. The TSA just announced that 11 additional airlines have been approved to participate in the PreCheck program. Previously there were 19 airlines in the program, so the total has increased to 30.

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Best SPG Transfers for Select Foreign Carrier Awards

There is no such thing as a perfect airline frequent flyer program, which is why rewards programs like Starwood Preferred Guest are so great. They allow you to transfer points to the airline of your choice when the need arises and when an award ticket you’re looking for costs less with one airline program than another. Here are a few examples of some goal-oriented transfers that can save you a great deal of miles.

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The Ultimate Guide to Booking International Awards with a Lap Infant

Most people who have ever taken a baby on a plane are probably familiar with the cheap and simple treatment U.S. airlines have for lap infants. For children under two years old who will not be occupying their own seat, an adult may take one lap infant for free (other than possibly some small taxes and fees). What’s also great is that lap infants don’t even have to be declared at the time of booking – only at the time of check-in.

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Starwood and Uber Downgrade Co-Earning Potential, American Upgrades Planes and More

Hilton HHonors has announced its newest promotion for the winter season, and American is finally stepping up and adding power outlets to the majority of its fleet. But, it will take until 2020 to have the majority outfitted so power up for your next flight, just in case. Don’t miss the latest updates to the Starwood and Uber partnership.

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Vacatia: Family-Friendly Resort Rentals

Resort advertising often features couples frolicking in the surf and gazing into each other eyes and enjoying romantic moments. But families make up an important segment of resort visitors too.

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Best Award Charts for Short Haul Redemptions

For many years, the standard price for a round-trip domestic economy award has been 25K miles for the legacy airlines. This continues to be the case for United, American, and to a lesser extent, Delta.

However, there are many alternatives available which allow us to book round-trip domestic economy awards for cheaper prices than this when the flights are short enough to fall under certain mileage thresholds. In this post, we will lay out some of the best options for cheap short-haul award bookings.

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Barclaycard Arrival Plus Generous Sign-up Bonus: 50,000 Miles

Barclaycard has one of the best bargains available for credit card signups at the moment offering 50,000 miles for being approved for the Arrival Plus World Elite MasterCard and spending $3,000 within the first 90 days of holding the card. For those not familiar with the bank’s mileage program, there are lots of perks to take advantage of whether using them for miles or everyday purchases.

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Travefy: Group Itinerary Planning Made Easier

Group vacations to iconic destinations sound like a dream, but the work to make it happen can become a nightmare. Travefy aims to take the pain out of planning with apps that coordinate group travel.

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Korean Air Partner Awards Now Bookable Online

One of the highlights of the year so far in the points and miles world was a recent revelation with Korean Air. Even though they’re late to the party, you can now book certain SkyTeam partners online, a much-needed improvement over the previous system.

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The Cathay Pacific Inflight Experience

Cathay Pacific dining program

Cathay Pacific is known as one of the world’s great airlines. Its unending list of awards prove that, and it is a highly sought after travel brand that people are often willing to pay a premium for when traveling long-haul.

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The Ultimate Guide to Buying Miles and Points

Earning points and miles through flying on planes, staying in hotels, and credit card spend are all ways to rack up points. But in addition to those methods, most major loyalty programs allow you to buy points directly from the airline or hotel chain. Here’s our guide on the ins and outs of buying points and miles.

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When to Apply for a Travel Credit Card to Get the Biggest Sign-Up Bonuses

The recent 50,000-point drop in the Chase Sapphire Reserve’s sign-up bonus shows how important timing can be when applying for a new card. One day can make the difference between getting a great sign-up bonus or none at all. And nearly all of the major rewards programs and many airlines had cards with fluctuating sign-up bonuses last year.

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