Post: #251

Haha, I was just about to post on this...nice looking out SPK.
To participate in this promo, you must be at least 21 years old, have a valid US driver’s license, and be an AAdvantage member. To register, schedule an appointment for one 10-minute test drive of any Cadillac vehicle at your local dealership by calling a Cadillac Concierge at 844-469-2234 or visiting the “Chat With Us” section of the contact page at Cadillac.com and clicking the red “Chat Now” button. Be sure to provide your AAdvantage account number when you schedule your test drive.

(10-17-2014 06:56 PM)speakeasy Wrote:  I've got an appointment with a Cadillac dealership tomorrow to test drive a car. They are running some promotion with American Airlines where you get 7500 AAdvantage points just to test drive a Cadillac for 10 minutes. If you have an AA branded credit card that's enough for a one way cross-country flight.

Post: #252

I applied for the AAdvantage CitiCard, is that a good card? I had planned to return to South America with it to rack up some miles for Europe, but I think they changed their flights out of MIA and now it looks like the cheapest is Copa/United.

Also, they want proof of income, residency and somehow I have to prove telephone when I use a prepaid cell account, this will be fun to prove.

Post: #253

I wanted to point out something else. I just used Hertz this week for my rental car. Hertz gold status is the line-skipping stattus, You go straight to your car, and there are some other perks. I'm no expert. But what I did want to point out is I got it for free. They run frequent promotions giving away Gold for free, and I just googled it, clicked through a link, and got free Gold status. Strangely, I still got a better price booking the car in connection with the Delta RT ticket SLC-LAS, but the status gave me the other benefits. Anyway, if you're renting a car soon, its worth checking. I'd say its likely to get it.

Post: #254

Texas, I am not familiar with that card. Can you copy/paste the offer details into the thread?

I believe Miami is still the major hub for flights to SA, so I am not clear what you mean. In any event, it doesn't necessarily follow that the card would be unuseful even if you don't use it to by AA flights - just like airline awards programs, cards have various uses and sweetspots, and that's how you want to use them. It makes sense you don't want to overpay for a ticket just to get points. Do the calc and see if its worth it.

Post: #255

It's the standard Citi Platinum AAdvantage card. If I book through a discount broker, I guess I can't get those points either? Actually what I meant was american doesn't go to Asuncion when I want (I've applied for residency) but I can leave for a few hundred cheaper by flying through Panama City from Houston.
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Post: #256

...

Post: #257

I have an economy class ticket on Philippine Airlines from Manila to Los Angeles, any tips on trying to upgrade? I have no cards or miles that I'm aware of.

Post: #258

Not really, other than to be really charming at check-in (especially if its a ladyboy flight attendant, Fisto). Maybe they'll bump you. They're often quite empty in Biz class, at least on the few flights I flew biz on.

Airport wifi in MNL sucks, so add load to your phone if you tend to get bored waiting.

Dried mango makes a nice small gift

One thing would be to get, at least, a PAL frequent flyer number so you can get credit for the flight.

Post: #259

Fingers crossed on the ladyboy. Thanks

Post: #260

Got my Chase Ink Plus business CC. I was approved despite listing the business as having $0 income.

GE....I may race you to see who flies first on the SQ suites!

SIN-JFK is 120,000. With 70k bonus on 5k spend, plus 5x on certain purchases and my somewhat frequent use of Star Alliance banked to KrisFlyer, it doesn't seem all that unrealistic to accumulate enough miles pretty quickly.

Post: #261

(10-20-2014 09:03 PM)MaleDefined Wrote:  Got my Chase Ink Plus business CC. I was approved despite listing the business as having $0 income.

GE....I may race you to see who flies first on the SQ suites!

SIN-JFK is 120,000. With 70k bonus on 5k spend, plus 5x on certain purchases and my somewhat frequent use of Star Alliance banked to KrisFlyer, it doesn't seem all that unrealistic to accumulate enough miles pretty quickly.

Were you instantly approved online? I applied for it, and it said they'll review my application and they'll get back to me. I have the feeling I won't get it.

Post: #262

I got mine a few weeks ago, couldn't pass up the 70K Chase Reward points.

I probably have enough between various accounts and upcoming spending to book it right now. Make sure you maximize spending portal activity if you can. I should probably do a portal spend activity write-up soon, as I am finding it to be easily the strongest way to aggregate chunks of miles. And Singapore has a decent portal. I couldn't use portals very well b/c the mail service in my building was fucked up, but now that I'm in Park City, i'm maximizing use of the Alaska portal to aggregate mileage to get future Cathay awards.

But Singapore, well, if there's a reason, I'd do it. Perhaps the leg that goes to Frankfurt from the USA, I could use to go to Cannes next May for work.

(10-20-2014 09:03 PM)MaleDefined Wrote:  Got my Chase Ink Plus business CC. I was approved despite listing the business as having $0 income.

GE....I may race you to see who flies first on the SQ suites!

SIN-JFK is 120,000. With 70k bonus on 5k spend, plus 5x on certain purchases and my somewhat frequent use of Star Alliance banked to KrisFlyer, it doesn't seem all that unrealistic to accumulate enough miles pretty quickly.

Post: #263

I had to wait as well, and didn't even get notified I was approved. But I was, it arrived, and I've begun chopping away at the first 5K to get the bonus points.

(10-20-2014 09:14 PM)speakeasy Wrote:  

(10-20-2014 09:03 PM)MaleDefined Wrote:  Got my Chase Ink Plus business CC. I was approved despite listing the business as having $0 income.

GE....I may race you to see who flies first on the SQ suites!

SIN-JFK is 120,000. With 70k bonus on 5k spend, plus 5x on certain purchases and my somewhat frequent use of Star Alliance banked to KrisFlyer, it doesn't seem all that unrealistic to accumulate enough miles pretty quickly.

Were you instantly approved online? I applied for it, and it said they'll review my application and they'll get back to me. I have the feeling I won't get it.

Post: #264

(10-20-2014 09:15 PM)Global Entry Wrote:  I got mine a few weeks ago, couldn't pass up the 70K Chase Reward points.

I probably have enough between various accounts and upcoming spending to book it right now. Make sure you maximize spending portal activity if you can. I should probably do a portal spend activity write-up soon, as I am finding it to be easily the strongest way to aggregate chunks of miles. And Singapore has a decent portal. I couldn't use portals very well b/c the mail service in my building was fucked up, but now that I'm in Park City, i'm maximizing use of the Alaska portal to aggregate mileage to get future Cathay awards.

But Singapore, well, if there's a reason, I'd do it. Perhaps the leg that goes to Frankfurt from the USA, I could use to go to Cannes next May for work.

(10-20-2014 09:03 PM)MaleDefined Wrote:  Got my Chase Ink Plus business CC. I was approved despite listing the business as having $0 income.

GE....I may race you to see who flies first on the SQ suites!

SIN-JFK is 120,000. With 70k bonus on 5k spend, plus 5x on certain purchases and my somewhat frequent use of Star Alliance banked to KrisFlyer, it doesn't seem all that unrealistic to accumulate enough miles pretty quickly.

Yeah, my biggest issue is going to be putting this to use while living in a foreign country. I'm having the physical card shipped to me as we speak, but using many of the 5x bonuses are impossible for me at the moment.

I'm sure I can cover the 5k spend just on air, hotels and vacation, but may have to make a luxury purchase to cover it. I've been meaning to buy a couple tech things, and a new suit, so this might be a good excuse to do it.

Post: #265

Before I repatriated (god, that sounds awful), I was definitely interested in the possibilities of manufactured spending overseas, especially in Asia (as I was in China and close to HKG). Because there isn't much of a points incentive with credit cards in Asia (not on any kind of scale like in the USA) or Europe, I would think that there would be ways to take advantage of manufactured spending more broadly. The way that occurs to me most would be using gift cards in some way, buying them in HKG and cashing them out someway. But the more off-the-beaten-path you get, like in Hanoi, where the economy is truly third world, those types of options may not exist. In HKG, MNL, and BKK, you have large scale malls and department stores, and I'm thinking there must be some route to getting points while in Asia other than on tickets and hotel rooms.

Of course, MD, you could do what I suggested and get your dear old mom a duplicate card for your account. I gave both my parents my SPG card, as the more points we collectively earn, the more benefits become available. They pay the card for their spending (they weren't getting many usable points on their Delta Amex anyway) and I'll use the points they earn to book tickets for them.

One other thought is to potentially barter with a landlord or something. If you've a trip back to the US, and you have a landlord or someone you deal with and they want some US tech, perhaps you can do a trade out - bring them an iPad for x months of rent. Gotta be creative with this stuff. Bringing one in isn't the buy and sell, but I'd worry about seizure of goods entering Vietnam a little bit.

(10-20-2014 10:45 PM)MaleDefined Wrote:  

(10-20-2014 09:15 PM)Global Entry Wrote:  I got mine a few weeks ago, couldn't pass up the 70K Chase Reward points.

I probably have enough between various accounts and upcoming spending to book it right now. Make sure you maximize spending portal activity if you can. I should probably do a portal spend activity write-up soon, as I am finding it to be easily the strongest way to aggregate chunks of miles. And Singapore has a decent portal. I couldn't use portals very well b/c the mail service in my building was fucked up, but now that I'm in Park City, i'm maximizing use of the Alaska portal to aggregate mileage to get future Cathay awards.

But Singapore, well, if there's a reason, I'd do it. Perhaps the leg that goes to Frankfurt from the USA, I could use to go to Cannes next May for work.

(10-20-2014 09:03 PM)MaleDefined Wrote:  Got my Chase Ink Plus business CC. I was approved despite listing the business as having $0 income.

GE....I may race you to see who flies first on the SQ suites!

SIN-JFK is 120,000. With 70k bonus on 5k spend, plus 5x on certain purchases and my somewhat frequent use of Star Alliance banked to KrisFlyer, it doesn't seem all that unrealistic to accumulate enough miles pretty quickly.

Yeah, my biggest issue is going to be putting this to use while living in a foreign country. I'm having the physical card shipped to me as we speak, but using many of the 5x bonuses are impossible for me at the moment.

I'm sure I can cover the 5k spend just on air, hotels and vacation, but may have to make a luxury purchase to cover it. I've been meaning to buy a couple tech things, and a new suit, so this might be a good excuse to do it.

Post: #266

The counterintuitive world of Star Alliance.

I've been doing some reading and some things in the travel game make no sense.

Here's one.

Asiana awards to fly on United are often cheaper than United's own awards to fly on United.

Asiana, a Korean airline and a transfer partner of SPG Awards points at 1:1 (and 1:1.25 in blocks of 20K), has among the best rewards chart in Star Alliance.

As players know, we're always looking for the sweet spot. This beautiful Korean (airline)'s sweet spot is booking United flights with no fuel surcharges often 33 percent cheaper than United's own award chart. South America, Alaska and Hawaii all have large discounts against United's own chart.

The other sweet spot seems to be booking RT or one way awards on Lufthansa in a premium class. 50K from USA to Europe, in first, with 450 USD in fuel surcharges. Not much to pay, actually for the top first class experience in the western hemisphere (a western airline) by many commentators. Some players reject any award with fuel surcharges, but I prefer to look at the full picture. Of course, you'll have to weight this against the 70K in Suites Class on Singapore to Frankfurt, right MD (I think thats the right number).

Problems include that you cannot do your award pricing without the miles in your Asiana account, and they take two weeks or longer to transfer from SPG. But if you've a load of points, this isn't such a problem.

Here's a link to Mile Value's detailed article on gaming Asiana's for Lufthansa and (gulp) United.

Post: #267

This is a ridiculous good arb.

2700 Accor brand hotels are offering a bonus of 5,000 AeroMiles (Air Canada) per stay. Some Accord hotels in Asia, like the Ibis Phuket, cost less than $30 dollars per night. Here's a link to a discussion...here.

At a conservative valuation of 1.4 cents per mile, that means each stay is worth 70 USD. If you fly premium, and AeroPlan has some good partners and a pretty good chart, then its worth more than that.

Stay at a hotel in Phuket, pay 28 dollars and get 70 back. I'd basically spend one night in each hotel in the area. I bet Bangkok has three or four Accor hotels just by itself.

I'm wrong, 22 came up in the search. 22 Hotels. One in Nana is 36 USD per night and another in Sathorn is 31 per night (midweek stays). Do both, pay 67 plus taxes, and bank 140 USD in miles.

I wish I was in BKK right now. I'd be switching hotels every other day and gaming the shit out of this. There is a Novotel Shenzhen for 71 USD a night, and I'll need a hotel anyway, I'll have to consider this as an option. Hard for me to pass up platinum benefits at the Four Points SZ or Sheraton, but free breakfast in China vs. 5K miles...

Edit: I just created my Accor Hotels loyalty account. Took 30 seconds.

Post: #268

I might need a tropical break from winter hell in January. Any advice on the best airline using points on economy class getting from the states to Thailand during high season? I'm still pretty new to this world of mileage hacking. I have 126000 AA points, 40,000 USAir points and 49,000 Chase UR points(maybe another 70k coming in if I can get approved for the Chase Ink Bold) and a spattering of point on Delta and United that will barely get me a magazine subscription. Unfortunately AA doesn't seem to have any partners that would get me to BKK, at least when I tried to look at awards on the AAdvantage site.

Post: #269

AA sure does, they just make it hard to find them.

AA can book into Cathay and DragonAir, both OneWorld Airlines. You might also find flights on JAL, via Tokyo and onto BKK. Those would both be options, and you have more than enough AA points to get there and back in economy (you've enough for business). Keep in mind that the incremental cost of going biz over economy isn't very high, so consider whether your comfort is worth it.

Also consider that if you cannot find a complete ticket to BKK, you can always book to HKG on either of Cathay or JAL, and then buy a cheap revenue ticket that will get you to and from BKK. With an advance purchase it won't be terribly expensive.

(10-21-2014 12:31 AM)speakeasy Wrote:  I might need a tropical break from winter hell in January. Any advice on the best airline using points on economy class getting from the states to Thailand during high season? I'm still pretty new to this world of mileage hacking. I have 126000 AA points, 40,000 USAir points and 49,000 Chase UR points(maybe another 70k coming in if I can get approved for the Chase Ink Bold) and a spattering of point on Delta and United that will barely get me a magazine subscription. Unfortunately AA doesn't seem to have any partners that would get me to BKK, at least when I tried to look at awards on the AAdvantage site.

(10-21-2014 12:31 AM)speakeasy Wrote:  I might need a tropical break from winter hell in January. Any advice on the best airline using points on economy class getting from the states to Thailand during high season? I'm still pretty new to this world of mileage hacking. I have 126000 AA points, 40,000 USAir points and 49,000 Chase UR points(maybe another 70k coming in if I can get approved for the Chase Ink Bold) and a spattering of point on Delta and United that will barely get me a magazine subscription. Unfortunately AA doesn't seem to have any partners that would get me to BKK, at least when I tried to look at awards on the AAdvantage site.

Post: #270

This is a very useful overview repost from Milevalue.com. have a look.
How to Book Two Trips for the Price of One

One of the best arguments for using miles instead of cash to book your flights is that the routing rules are so much more flexible for award travel. Many loyalty programs offer the chance to add connections, stopovers, and open jaws that enable you to combine multiple trips into a single award.

Using miles is frustrating for many people due to limited availability, and these tricks can make that puzzle more complicated. Most airlines’ search tools are designed to find simple round-trip awards. It will be your responsibility to find award availability and piece together the complete itinerary, which might then require calling an agent to book. But you should fee comfortable attempting these strategies knowing they are well within most programs’ official rules.

Use Stopovers to Visit Cities along the Way

The easiest way to visit more cities on a single trip is to add free layovers and stopovers. Stopovers are connections that exceed four hours on domestic itineraries or 24 hours on international itineraries. Anything shorter than that is called a “layover.” You can have as many layovers as you want and even leave the airport for a brief tour of the connecting destination. Some cities, such as Zurich, Hong Kong and Singapore, offer convenient transit options to the city center. Stopovers are restricted, but you can spend several days or weeks before you continue onward.

Each airline has its own rules for stopovers. For example, Alaska Airlines permits a stopover on one-way awards — even for domestic travel — but United Airlines only allows a single stopover for international travel booked as part of a round-trip itinerary. But in general, all carriers require that travel be complete within 330 days of the original booking date, and visa limits may apply for any city you visit.

The green lines are round-trips while the red lines are one-ways.
Stopovers on Alaska Airlines. The green lines are round-trips while the red lines are one-ways.
Award travel is typically priced according to the geographic regions of your origin and destination, and going out of your way to make extra stops doesn’t usually cost extra. Some carriers are particularly generous by, for example, allowing travel from North America to Asia via Europe. Combined with a stopover, that would allow someone in New York to add a free trip to Paris as part of an existing trip to Bangkok.

Use Open Jaws to Return to a Second Destination

Carriers tend to be more flexible in permitting open jaws compared to stopovers. This is simply where you “return” to a city other than the one you departed from. It gets its name from the gap created when you draw the itinerary on a map, and the jaw can usually be at either end of the trip. Assuming you still want to go back home, it’s a great way to explore a destination by land without returning to the exact city where you started (e.g., a tour of Europe).

Combining Rules for “Free” One-way Flights

Combining stopovers with an open jaw creates interesting opportunities. You are not necessarily required to use a free stopover at your destination. Some people instead choose their home airport — or depending on the award rules, another airport nearby. (A stopover in the same airport. They still get to fly from home from their destination, except that in the context of this itinerary “home” is really just a stop on a longer return journey.

Imagine creating an open jaw itinerary to Asia. San Francisco is the origin, and Shanghai is the destination, but you know you need to go to New York a month later. That return journey from Shanghai can be arranged to have a stopover in San Francisco, moving the actual “return city” to New York. After landing from Shanghai and going home, you can return to the airport and continue on to New York for the second journey at no extra cost.

You would still need to book a one-way flight back home from New York to San Francisco. But many domestic fares are priced on a one-way basis anyway. You’ve saved half the cost of your future New York visit thanks to planning ahead.

Nest Awards to Create Complex Itineraries

Stopovers and open jaws create opportunities to nest one award ticket within another. Cities that get infrequent service, like Siem Reap, may have limited or no service depending on the network of airline partners available. As a result, it might make more sense to book an additional ticket, either paying cash or as a second award.

Intra-Asia
Here’s a different example of nesting multiple awards within Southeast Asia. The original itinerary arrives from the U.S. via Seoul, has a 24-hour layover in Singapore, and Bali (DPS) is the destination. Three separate one-way awards are used to fly from Bali to Bangkok, Phuket, and Hong Kong. Finally, an open jaw is used to pick up the original award, returning home from Hong Kong without the need to return to Bali.
Consider a round-trip from San Francisco to Bali via Bangkok using miles from United Airlines. You could be flying any of United’s partners and making additional connections as needed. Bali is the destination, but Bangkok can be added as your one free stopover. Now you’ve got a chance to visit two destinations for the price of one. You can add a third destination by booking a round-trip fare on discount carrier Bangkok Airways from Bangkok to Siem Reap. In this scenario you would fly to Bangkok, see the sights, and return to the airport. But you would fly to Siem Reap on a different ticket before flying back to Bangkok and continuing the original journey to Bali. (Note: the picture above represents a different, even more complex scenario that I actually booked last year.)

Routing Rules Affect How Miles Are Valued

These tricks don’t work on every airline. American Airlines recently changed its rules to prohibit stopovers even though their policies weren’t very generous to begin with. British Airways prices its awards separately for every individual segment, so it’s impossible to game the system.

For those programs that allow it, however, such rules can add exceptional value to your frequent flyer miles. It’s not as simple as saying that one program charges more miles than another for a given award. Sometimes a few extra miles are well worth the added flexibility in deciding where you stop along the way.

Post: #271

Maybe we should race and see who gets to flu Etihad the residence first instead since the suites are too easy.


quote='MaleDefined' pid='858170' dateline='1413856987']
Got my Chase Ink Plus business CC. I was approved despite listing the business as having $0 income.

GE....I may race you to see who flies first on the SQ suites!

SIN-JFK is 120,000. With 70k bonus on 5k spend, plus 5x on certain purchases and my somewhat frequent use of Star Alliance banked to KrisFlyer, it doesn't seem all that unrealistic to accumulate enough miles pretty quickly.
[/quote]

Post: #272

Well I just got approved for the Chase Ink Bold Plus Business card! Now I have to figure out how to spend $5000 right away. Damn, can't wait to get 70,000 Ultimate Reward points!

Next on the agenda is the Barclay's Arrival Plus card. I don't want to apply for too many cards at once. That's the one I really want as my every day spending card for non-categorized bonuses.

Then after that I'll try for the 50,000 Avios on the British Airways card. Then I think I'll be good for awhile.

Post: #273

I agree with the first two choices as solid cards from which to build a collection and points. Why the BA card? What's driving that decision over, say, the SPG card.

(10-23-2014 09:09 PM)speakeasy Wrote:  Well I just got approved for the Chase Ink Bold Plus Business card! Now I have to figure out how to spend $5000 right away. Damn, can't wait to get 70,000 Ultimate Reward points!

Next on the agenda is the Barclay's Arrival Plus card. I don't want to apply for too many cards at once. That's the one I really want as my every day spending card for non-categorized bonuses.

Then after that I'll try for the 50,000 Avios on the British Airways card. Then I think I'll be good for awhile.

Post: #274

Sitting in the OneWorld biz lounge at LAX, getting a slight "swerve on" with some champers and a coffee/grand marnier. Sixth US - Asia trip this year, a new record. This should be the last one this year, nine days, split between HK (one night), Siem Reap (4 nights) and Shenzhen (the rest).

A little overview.

Booked revenue ticket for 2K roundtrip in Premium Economy on Cathay (CX) when they had a fare sale last month. I know there are cheaper LAX-HKG flights, but I try not to do economy and this one is work-reimbursed. Sitting now in biz class lounge because I have One World Sapphire (soon to be Emerald, which means a different lounge next time).

Upon arriving in HK, going to a Holiday Inn in Kowloon to meet my fiancé, who's still in China. I'm doing the IntoTheNights promotion for IHG, and will ultimately get an extra 30,000 IHG points as a bonus assuming I complete all the hurdles. I'm close, and have til Dec 15 to do so. That should come out to two free nights at an Intercontinental somewhere, and these are all night I'd be spending regardless.

In Cambodia, I booked the Meridien Angkor Wat, a Starwood hotel. I book a regular room, for 90+, and I should get upgraded to a mini-suite or a suite as a platinum, as well as both us getting free internet and free breakfast in either the restaurant or the business lounge (if they serve breakfast there). In fact, when I stayed at the Sheraton Palo Alto last week, they have breakfast to a travel companion who stayed in his own room because I booked his room. Double platinum.

Then back to China after four days, and I'm thinking I'll book an Accor Hotel, in the Luohu district (I think it was a Novotel). 5000 bonus Aeroplan miles for a one night stay. Perhaps do one night there and move, or stay there the rest of the trip (three more nights). If there was more than one Accor Hotel, I might actually even move around to double or triple dip on that promotion. Hotel is about the same price as the SPG choices like 4 Points (Shenzhen's Grand Sheraton is overpriced and almost next door to my old apartment, so I'm not really that into staying there).

That's a points player trip. I could definitely travel cheaper, but bang for the buck, I don't think I could travel much better.

Post: #275

(10-24-2014 01:11 PM)Global Entry Wrote:  I agree with the first two choices as solid cards from which to build a collection and points. Why the BA card? What's driving that decision over, say, the SPG card.

(10-23-2014 09:09 PM)speakeasy Wrote:  Well I just got approved for the Chase Ink Bold Plus Business card! Now I have to figure out how to spend $5000 right away. Damn, can't wait to get 70,000 Ultimate Reward points!

Next on the agenda is the Barclay's Arrival Plus card. I don't want to apply for too many cards at once. That's the one I really want as my every day spending card for non-categorized bonuses.

Then after that I'll try for the 50,000 Avios on the British Airways card. Then I think I'll be good for awhile.

BA partners with AA and I've heard that Avios are a great way to make short haul flights within the USA because their points are zone based as opposed to price based, IIRC.

I don't know to much about the SPG card yet, I've been meaning to research it. You may be right.