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In an era when airlines keep cutting perks and charging for everything, Alaska Airlines has some good news for its passengers. Earlier this month the carrier announced that its Visa Signature cardholders can now check their first bag free of charge.

Lisbon might not be as popular as Rome, Paris or London, but it’s rich with culture, architectural beauty and history. The capital of Portugal is built on seven hills and has a lot to offer to visitors. And it’s much more budget-friendly than most of Europe’s capital cities.

Finnair, the flag carrier of Finland, dates back to 1923, making it one of the oldest airlines in the world. From its main hub in Helsinki Airport, the airline flies to 88 destinations in Europe, Asia and North America. In the United States, it serves Chicago, Miami and New York.

Air India is the country’s flag carrier, and its third-largest airline, after IndiGo and Jet Airways. It flies to 60 domestic and 31 international destinations in 19 countries across Australia, Asia, Europe and North America. In the United States, Air India flies to New York and Chicago.

Who Is the Virgin Atlantic Black Card Good For?

The Virgin Atlantic Black Card is a great source of miles for anyone who flies on Virgin Atlantic. While Virgin Atlantic’s White Card has a lower annual fee, the Black Card has more benefits.

“Change is the law of life. And those who look only to the past or present are certain to miss the future.” Those words from the venerable John F. Kennedy, 35th president of the United States, must have recently resonated with United Airlines.

Mont Saint Michel, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, is often called the Wonder of the West. During high tides, its slender towers and sky-scraping turrets, encircled by stout ramparts and battlements, appear to rise out of the middle of the bay. In addition to being home to the abbey that is its namesake, this feudal town once served as an impenetrable fortification and jail.

TAP Portugal flies to 88 destinations in 38 countries, including New York and Miami in the United States. The airline has received several awards over the years for its excellent service, including the World’s Best Airline from Condé Nast Traveller magazine. Because it’s a Star Alliance member, its frequent flyer program, Victoria, can get you almost anywhere.

Who Is the Virgin Atlantic White Card Good For?

Virgin Atlantic offers two credit cards to loyal flyers in the United States: the White Card and the Black Card. The White Card is good for those who are collecting Virgin Atlantic miles but don’t want to pay a big annual fee. The Black Card comes with a few more benefits, but also a higher annual fee and more conditions.

A travel report from Expedia and Airlines Reporting Corporation (ARC) predicts that plane ticket prices will continue to decline over the next year. Popular destinations, including Europe and Latin America, will likely see price drops of 4 to 6 percent.

In the first half of 2015, ticket prices dropped an average of 2 percent across Europe and North America, and about 7 percent in Asia-Pacific.

The report, Travel Check-Up: Air Travel Trends 2015, looked at global travel trends, ticket prices, consumer demand and the potential to save through travel packages. It was released in early June and is available here.

Top 10 Travel Bargains

The report predicts the top 10 routes that will be the best deals in air travel during the remainder of 2015. Analysis of pricing trends suggests that these routes will have the biggest percentage drops in average ticket prices:

• Malaysia to Australia
• Italy to Portugal
• Brazil to the United States
• Spain to Thailand
• Germany to Portugal
• Japan to France
• United States to Dubai
• Mexico to France
• Malaysia to Thailand
• Sweden to Spain

Packages Offer the Greatest Savings

One of the report’s biggest takeaways is that package deals offer the biggest savings. ARC and Expedia found that, on average, consumers saved up to $648 across all destinations when booking plane tickets and hotel rooms together instead of separately. The data was gathered on bundled air and hotel package prices for June through September 2015.

Trip Length Is Shortest From the United States

The report also studied how long people stayed when they traveled to various locations. Flights originating in the U.S. led to the shortest stays. In June and July, people tended to stay longer when they flew from North America to Asia-Pacific.
Travelers originating in Asia-Pacific and heading to Europe in August had the longest average stays. The report’s authors surmised that this could be because the Chinese yuan is gaining strength against the U.S. dollar, causing a surge in outbound travel from China.

About the Agencies Behind the Report

ARC provides services and products to the U.S. travel industry and has information on more than 9 billion passenger flights, providing a detailed view of air travel. Expedia encompasses Expedia.com, an online travel agency with localized sites in 31 countries, and also Hotels.com and discount travel sites Hotwire, Travelocity and CarRentals.com.

Taiwan is an island nation probably best known for its modern cities, but it also has beautiful tropical beaches, sea-skirting cliffside roads, mountain peaks, hot springs and tranquil lakes. Portuguese sailors who saw it for the first time in the 16th century were so impressed with its natural beauty that they called it Ilha Formosa, which means Beautiful Island.

There are a few promos offering big bonuses in the six-digit range this summer. Here’s an overview of how to get those massive miles, and some ideas for spending your earnings. What would you do with that many miles?

Aeroflot, Russia’s flag carrier and largest airline, flies between Moscow and four U.S. cities: New York, Washington, D.C., Los Angeles and Miami. It also has an extensive network of routes in Europe and Asia, making the airline a convenient choice for connecting flights beyond Moscow.

You may not be familiar with it, but Malaysia Airlines is one of the largest airlines in the world. It’s a member of the oneworld alliance, and flies to 60 destinations in 28 countries. Unfortunately, its four U.S. routes were recently eliminated because of financial issues and restructuring.

Who Is the Citi Prestige® Credit Card Good For?

Citi Prestige® Credit Card is an upscale premium travel reward card that is comparable to the American Express Platinum Card®. It has many similar travel benefits, and quite hefty $495 annual fee. The Citi card is no longer accepting new applications, but current cardholders still enjoy its outstanding perks, particularly those who travel a lot.
For starters, cardholders are reimbursed for Global Entry application fees. If you fly frequently, Global Entry will save you a lot of time in airport security lines. It guarantees you a coveted spot in a TSA Precheck line, and you will be able to skip immigration lines on your return home from international destinations.
Cardholders also receive a Priority Pass Select membership, which gives you free access to one of the best airport lounge programs available today. It’s good for you plus your family or two guests, and membership can be extended to authorized users for $50 each.
The Prestige card comes with some other great benefits, such as a $250 annual credit toward air travel and a free fourth hotel night. In addition to the airlines listed below, you can transfer points to your ALL – Accor Live Limitless, Choice Privileges®, Leaders Club, and Wyndham Rewards® account.

AIRLINE TRANSFER PARTNERS	Aeromexico Avianca LifeMiles Air France KLM Cathay Pacific Etihad Guest EVA Air Emirates Skywards JetBlue TrueBlue Qantas Qatar Airways Singapore Airlines Thai Airways Turkish Airlines Virgin Atlantic
ANNUAL FEE	$495
Recommended Credit Score	750+
Type of Card	World Elite MasterCard
ISSUER	CitiBank

Sign-Up Bonus:

Although the Citi Prestige isn’t currently available to new applicants, previously, the card’s sign-up bonus was 50,000 points after spending $4,000 in the first three months.

Miles Earned:

• 5 points per dollar on restaurants and air travel
• 3 points per dollar spent on hotels and cruise lines
• One point for everything else

What Do Your Points Get You?

Citi ThankYou is an incredibly flexible program. It’s the only major travel reward program that allows you to share points with other members.

This is a fantastic benefit, especially considering that other reward programs are adding more restrictions to prevent people from sharing points and miles. Shared points expire in 90 days, so don’t transfer unless you or your friends or family are ready to use them.
You can redeem your points for air travel online through the Citi ThankYou Travel Center at a value of 1.33 cents per point.

While none of the airline transfer partners are based in the U.S., each carrier is either a member of a major alliance or has powerful partners of its own. That means you’ll be able to redeem miles on dozens of airlines all over the world, including all of the major U.S. carriers.
Some of the airline partners are also the most desirable and luxurious carriers in the world, including Cathay Pacific, Singapore Airlines, Etihad and Qatar Airways. These are an excellent option if you want to fly in business or first class.

Usage Perks

• $250 annual credit for airline purchases
• Points can be transferred to anyone with a ThankYou account
• Free airport lounge access
• Points can be earned through banking
• Multiple airline transfer partners
• A 35 percent bonus when redeeming points for flights through the ThankYou Travel Center
• $100 credit toward Global Entry application fees
• Free fourth night at hotels booked through ThankYou.com
• Three free rounds of golf annually when booked through Citi’s golf portal

Usage Quirks

• High annual fee
• Shared ThankYou points expire in 90 days
• No major U.S. airline partners
• Most airline partners add fuel surcharges to award flights

How Far Do Your Points Go?

If you’re interested in premium class travel, one of the best ways to experience ultimate luxury is with Singapore Airlines’ First Suite. It’s best to transfer your ThankYou points to Singapore’s loyalty program, KrisFlyer, because it offers a 15 percent discount to members booking award flights online.With the discount, you can fly one way between New York and Frankfurt, or Houston and Moscow, in the carrier’s extravagant First Suite for 57,375 miles and $203 in taxes and fuel surcharges.

Additional Cardholder Benefits:

• Special bonuses for Citi banking
• 24/7 customer service
• Citi® Concierge
• Citi Entertainment®
• Zero liability
• No foreign transaction fees

You probably have a short list of favorite airlines for free award flights. That’s all well and good, but it pays to have a cursory knowledge of a lot of different programs. That way, when the time is right, you’ll be ready to take advantage of terrific deals that will help you travel the globe. If you don’t know about Flying Blue and its monthly Promo Awards, which offer up to 50 percent off award flights, you need to read this article.

Hyderabad sits at an ancient crossroads of commerce, and was once famous as a pearl and diamond trading center. Still known as the City of Pearls, its centuries-old shopping bazaars offer modern and exotic goods from all over India. This 400-year-old city on the banks of the Musi River is full of striking Qutb arches, royal palaces and minarets.

Thanks to partnerships between airlines and charities, you have the opportunity to reap reward miles for your generosity. Call it aviation altruism, if you will.

Air New Zealand is a global airline based in Auckland. It flies to four cities in the United States: Honolulu, Los Angeles, Houston and San Francisco.

Saudia, the flag carrier of Saudi Arabia, is the third-largest airline in the Middle East. Its main hub is Jeddah, with secondary hubs in Riyadh, Dammam, Medina  and Abha. The airline flies to 80 countries, including destinations in Europe, Africa, Asia and North America. In the U.S., it flies to Houston, Los Angeles, New York, Orlando and Washington, D.C.