Starwood cash and points stays is one of the best ways to use Starwood points. Last week, Starwood announced that it was making some changes to the Starwood cash and points program, including adding the ability to book suites and upgraded rooms with points. They also announced that they will be increasing both the number…
Variability is inherent in air travel. Missed flights, traffic, TSA, and luggage are only some sources of travel delays. However, there are some aspects of variability that you can control. The commute to the airport – Use rail transit where available. During my summer living in Chicago, I lived downtown and regularly took an 8:00am…
Registration for the Starwood Power Up promotion is now open. Most business travelers who stay at Starwood will earn 20,000 Starpoints without modifying their travel patterns. Go to http://spg.com/powerup to register. Details on the promotion, as I posted previously: With the SPG® Power Up promotion, you’ll earn 2,000 bonus Starpoints® for every four eligible nights you stay (up to 8,000 bonus…
A few months back, I posted about Delta trialing a concept called Basic Economy, a basic economy fare that doesn’t allow you to select your seat or earn frequent flyer miles. One of my readers emailed me asking if he should be concerned about this. It appears that Delta has largely dropped the Basic Economy…
I posted a few months ago about employee theft at New York’s JFK airport, but airline and airport employees aren’t the only ones stealing bags. The NBC affiliate station in Atlanta reported earlier this year that luggage theft happens quite often in Atlanta, from the baggage carousel. The full story is here: http://www.11alive.com/news/article/262389/40/Looting-your-luggage-thieves-may-know-loopholes Have you ever…
The US Bank Cash+ Visa is probably the most lucrative credit card product that you haven’t heard about. The card allows you to earn 5% cash back on three categories of your choice, 2% back on either gas, groceries, or drug stores, and 1% back on everything else. I find this product compelling for two reasons:…
If you’re looking to get away from the winter weather, the folks at FlyerTalk found some attractive fares to Hawaii for February and March. Just searching now, I found plenty of availability in February and March for weekends. Details are on the FlyerTalk thread: http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/mileage-run-deals/1421400-aa-dl-phx-hnl-298-ai-rt.html Edit: Now apparently available from the San Francsico area as…
Marriott just announced their first quarter MegaBonus promotion. Every second stay will earn you a free night at a category 4 (or lower) hotel. You can only earn a total of three free nights, so this promotion isn’t quite as exciting as Starwood’s, but if you are a Marriott person, you should definitely register. To…
Starwood has just announced their first quarter promotion, which will be quite lucrative for the consulting crowd: With the SPG® Power Up promotion, you’ll earn 2,000 bonus Starpoints® for every four eligible nights you stay (up to 8,000 bonus Starpoints and 16 nights). You earn an additional 10,000 bonus Starpoints when you hit 20 eligible nights between January 15th…
For almost every airline, hotel, and credit card program, there are myriad ways to earn and spend points. Some are much better than others. Over the next few months, I will be examining all of the major programs and posting the best ways to earn and spend points in each program. Best use of Starpoints:…
The Flying Consultant 