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Earning a Southwest Companion Pass will get more difficult at the end of March 2017, but luckily you still have a chance to earn it one of the easiest ways possible. Here’s what you need to know.

If you’ve worked hard and earned elite status at one airline, you may be able to use that as leverage to quickly earn status with another carrier. Find out what status match and challenge offers are available from regional and low-cost carriers and how to take full advantage of them.

Among the major U.S. airlines, Delta has long had the best economy class product. In fact, their major competitors, United and American, really aren’t close at this point.
However, in the premium cabin market, things aren’t as clear cut, and competition has been heating up lately. One key item to note up front is that while the name Delta One sounds like a name for a first-class product, Delta One is actually a business class product. This applies to both the transcontinental and international versions. Therefore, when making comparisons to other premium cabin products, business class is the proper benchmark.

Delta is a transfer partner of the American Express Membership Rewards program, but it is not a partner of either Chase Ultimate Rewards or Citi ThankYou. You can still use TY or UR points to fly on the airline though by booking the carrier through a partner airlines. We will show you how.

Elite status with an airline can get you some fantastic benefits: free upgrades, discounts, bonus points and more. While status is generally limited to those who earn the hard way—through flying and spending—you shouldn’t forget about status matches and challenges. These offers can be a quick way to get status with an airline, particularly if you plan to do a lot of traveling in a short period of time.

This month, there are several bonus offers for those with specific credit cards; don’t miss out! And learn how Best Western elite members are getting some extra perks for their loyalty.

Priority Pass hit a milestone last year by offering members access to over 1,000 lounges worldwide. That makes it the most comprehensive independent airport lounge network available, all but guaranteeing that you’ll have a comfy place to relax, snack or get a little work done at any major airport in the world. The best part? You can get a free membership with the right credit card.

It might be hard to believe, but there was a time when you could check a bag on any airline for free. These days it will cost you at least $25 per bag on nearly all domestic flights. Each airline has its own policies, and some will even charge you for carry-ons. We have some suggestions for getting around those fees.

In a rare win for travel hackers, recent changes to the Delta Medallion program actually increase the value of top tier Diamond elite status, without reducing benefits for lower levels of status. The main change was that for the 2018 Medallion year they substituted an automatic Sky Club membership for a third Choice benefit, whereas before Diamond members only got two Choice benefits.

American started rolling out its basic economy fares this month, joining the other two major legacy airlines in their attempt to compete with ultra-low cost carriers. That means service aboard domestic flights has taken another hit, but there are ways to get around at least some of the drawbacks of flying.

Hilton Honors is about to add its newest feature with cash and points redemptions, which is exciting for many travelers. Plus, there are some new routes for mileage earning and redemption that are worth exploring, but beware the basic economy fares that seem to be expanding from third-party sites.

Stopovers and open jaws are great way to see more of the world for less money. Some airlines allow you to add a stopover to your award ticket itinerary on the way to or from your final destination. So what exactly is a stopover and an open jaw and which carriers let you take them? Read on for the airlines and their rules.

The clock has reset on frequent flyer elite status qualification in January so this is a good time to evaluate your loyalties to various programs and consider if you should jump ship to new programs. In a world full of devaluations, mergers, and new reciprocal status benefits, opportunities abound to maximize value in 2017 and beyond. This is the first in a series of posts evaluating the cost and benefits of obtaining elite status with various programs. Let’s start with Delta.

If you’re looking to breeze through airport security, then you may want to consider signing up for Clear.
Similar to Global Entry, in the sense that you’ll be able to verify your identity at a kiosk and avoid waiting in line to have your ID checked by the TSA, this program is expanding to several new airports nationwide.  Clear allows members to leave their ID at home as your identity is used by verifying either a fingerprint or iris scan.

Who Is the Cathay Pacific Visa Signature Credit Card Good For?

There is a new travel credit card in the market. Read on to learn more. Also, hotel companies are awarding big bonuses for upcoming stays. See which ones and where in the latest offerings in this week’s report.

The first quarter of the year is a great time to re-evaluate your loyalties to frequent flyer programs. You have the rest of the year to reallocate your flights and credit card spending in order to earn elite status for the rest of the year as well as 2018. With so many devaluations, mergers, and new reciprocal elite benefits you may be inclined to change the programs which you prioritize.

Transcontinental flights from the New York City area to LA and San Francisco are among the most grueling domestic routes in existence, with flight times of approximately six hours depending on the direction of travel.
Fortunately, all the major airlines that fly these routes offer premium products that go above and beyond traditional domestic premium cabin service. In addition to the big three legacy carriers, there is competition provided by smaller airlines such as Jet Blue and Virgin America. We will compare quality of product, award availability and costs, and note a few things to consider when booking these flights.

We focus so much on securing the top elite statuses to take advantage of the prescribed benefits that we forget that hotel staff is often empowered to help us even when we don’t have status. Fancy extra bottled water or more toiletries? A simple phone call can be the answer. And even a few dollars as a tip can score some nice perks.

Whether you need to top up your account for an award flight or you have a few unused miles that could be put to good use by someone else, pooling miles is a great way to maximize your buying power. There a number of frequent flyer and credit card rewards programs that allow you to transfer points to other members, but each loyalty program has its own rules.