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Reader Giveaway: TPG Swag Bag and 10,000 Southwest Rapid Rewards Points

On March 7, 2014 · 187 comments

in Appearances, Southwest, Thursday Giveaway, TPG Maximizer

TPG Swag

Last weekend, I had the opportunity to speak at the 2014 New York Times Travel Show for the third year in a row, and it was a great opportunity to connect with readers about some of the exciting new changes in point valuations, frequent flyer programs (I’m looking at you Delta!) and credit card… Read More

American Airlines Reveals New 767-300 Business Class – And It Looks Great

On March 7, 2014 · 10 comments

in American

The new American 767-300 business class cabin.

American Airlines has been revamping its fleet for a while now, what with the introduction of new 777-300ER’s, A319′s, and the transcon A321. It also has plans to retrofit its aging 767-300′s with an all-new business class. The airline just unveiled what the new cabin would look like, and it’s… Read More

Flight Review: Hawaiian Airlines Business Class Sydney-Honolulu and Air New Zealand SYD Lounge

On March 7, 2014 · 14 comments

in Australia, Club Lounges, Hawaiian Airlines, Trip Reports

HA Lounge and immig pass

So far in my series on my trip to Australia with TPG Managing Editor Eric, I’ve covered how I used miles to book my award ticket, my flight from LAX-MEL in United GlobalFirst, the day I spent wine-tasting out in the Yarra Valley, a restaurant review roundup of all the fantastic places we ate… Read More

Reminder: Chase Sapphire First Friday 3X Points on Dining Today

On March 7, 2014 · 11 comments

in Chase, Dining Programs

First Friday feat

It’s almost lunchtime on the east coast, which means you’re probably thinking about where to eat and hopefully which credit card to use to maximize the points on your dining purchase, so I wanted to post a reminder that today is the first Friday of March and you can earn 3X points per $1 at… Read More

American Airlines Transcontinental JFK – SFO Bonus Miles Up To 15,000

March 7, 2014

American Airlines has been hyping the arrival of its new transcontinental A321 service since it started taking delivery of the planes, and has been offering bonus miles on JFK-LAX flights from January 7-March 31. Now that it is launching service on the new plane on its transcontinental route from San Francisco SFO to New York […]

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Destination of the Week: San Francisco

March 7, 2014

Known as the City by the Bay, San Francisco is a compact, seven-by-seven-mile collection of steep hills, panoramic views, cultural pursuits and farm-to-table cuisine. For today’s Destination of the Week, TPG Assistant Editor Melanie Wynne and TPG contributor Brian Houtz take us to Northern California’s historic and progressive city of San Francisco. WHAT TO DO The heart of San Francisco is […]

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Is Delta Not Honoring Platinum Medallion Offer For New York Flyers?

March 7, 2014

Back in January, Delta announced a drool-worthy offer for New York-based flyers with a fast-track to Platinum Medallion status. Whereas Platinum Medallion status normally requires you fly 75,000 miles or 90 segments (and starting in 2014 that you spend $7,500 on airfare or $25,000 on a co-branded Delta Amex), those flyers targeted for the offer […]

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5,000 Point Sign-Up and Fly Bonus For New JetBlue TrueBlue Members

March 6, 2014

To celebrate that time-honored institution of excess, sunburn and shenanigans – Spring Break! – JetBlue’s TrueBlue loyalty program is offering new members who sign up, book a flight and fly by April 30, 2014, 5,000 bonus points. To sign up and register, here’s what you do. Fill out the form on this page to join […]

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Delta Releases New Details on 2015 SkyMiles Redemptions And I Am Cautiously Optimistic

March 6, 2014

Last week, Delta dropped a bombshell that it would be massively overhauling its SkyMiles program with a new revenue-based earning structure and a new redemption schedule that would include new features like cash & miles awards and one-way awards. While the airline released all the details on its new earning structure – you basically earn […]

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Garuda Indonesia Now Official SkyTeam Member Airline

March 6, 2014

Back in December, SkyTeam announced that Garuda Indonesia would be joining the alliance in March, though given Garuda’s until-recently spotty record, the actual join date that was set for March 5 seemed like more of an estimate. But lo and behold, March 5 came, and SkyTeam posted the announcement that Garuda is now officially the […]

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Amex Daily Getaway Deals Coming May 2014

March 6, 2014

American Express and the US Travel Association (a non-profit dedicated to promoting US travel) have teamed up to offer various discounts and deals with travel brands and loyalty programs including hotel packages, points/miles purchase promos, rental car deals and more over the course of a month or so. The last time they came around was […]

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Current Mileage Purchase and Share Bonus Promos: American, Avianca, JetBlue, US Airways

March 5, 2014

There are several promotions where you can buy or transfer miles and get a bonus of anywhere from 25-100% right now, so I thought I’d put them all together in one place for a handy reference. Here are the current promos. American Airlines 30% Discount on Shared Miles Now through March 31, American Airlines is […]

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Social Media Recap-News, Contests, Promos, Trends and More

March 5, 2014

Social media is increasingly becoming the method airlines, hotels, credit cards and consumers get in touch with one another about the latest news, deals and promotions. Here’s a look at the latest interesting trending topics and more on social media from the week. I’ll be combing through Facebook posts, Tweets, Instagram pics and more to […]

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Last Day For Southwest 50,000 Point Offers Plus Flight Schedule Extension to October 31, 2014

March 5, 2014

Update: the Southwest 50,000 point offers have been extended through Sunday, March 9. With the Southwest devaluation date looming on March 31, 2014, now’s the time to take a few very important steps to make sure you maximize the program while you still can. Back in January, Chase relaunched limited-time offers of 50,000 bonus Rapid […]

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Hotel Review: Park Hyatt Sydney City Harbour Deluxe and City View Rooms

March 5, 2014

So far in my series on my trip to Australia with TPG Managing Editor Eric, I’ve covered how I used miles to book my award ticket, my flight from LAX-MEL in United GlobalFirst, the day I spent wine-tasting out in the Yarra Valley, a restaurant review roundup of all the fantastic places we ate in the city, my review of […]

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Flight Review: Virgin Australia Hamilton Island – Sydney in Economy

March 4, 2014

So far in my series on my trip to Australia with TPG Managing Editor Eric, I’ve covered how I used miles to book my award ticket, my flight from LAX-MEL in United GlobalFirst, the day I spent wine-tasting out in the Yarra Valley, a restaurant review roundup of all the fantastic places we ate in […]

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The Best Current Airline Credit Card Offers

March 4, 2014

One of the big questions that came up both days at the New York Times Travel Show, was how airline credit cards play into an overall points and miles strategy. While I personally spend more on credit cards that accrue transferable points like the Sapphire Preferred, or the Premier Rewards Gold, since transferable points give […]

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Top 10 Reasons Why I Dumped Delta

March 4, 2014

I was a loyal Delta flyer (and enthusiast) for years. I had top-tier Diamond Medallion status (and used to love it), I was able to use SkyMiles to fly all over the world, I frequented SkyClubs throughout the US and abroad, I appreciated the (relatively) good service and domestic fleet-wide WiFi, and even I defended […]

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My Second NY Times Travel Show Presentation: Tips For Traveling In First Class on a Budget

March 4, 2014

Yesterday I shared my first New York Times Travel Show presentation on Maximizing Credit Cards for Free Travel. For my second Travel Show seminar on Sunday afternoon, I expanded on that concept to include other strategies for my talk on “Travel Pointers for a First Class Lifestyle on a Budget.” In it, I included all […]

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My New York Times Travel Show Presentation: Maximizing Credit Cards For Free Travel, And Reader Meet Up

March 3, 2014

It was a busy weekend in New York! What with all the major airline news last week from Delta and American, I had plenty to talk about at the New York Times Travel Show on both Saturday and Sunday. My talk Saturday was titled, “Maximizing Credit Cards for Free Travel,” and in it I discussed the […]

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Hotel Review: Hamilton Island Reef View Hotel Coral Sea View Room

March 3, 2014

So far in my series on my trip to Australia with TPG Managing Editor Eric, I’ve covered how I used miles to book my award ticket, my flight from LAX-MEL in United GlobalFirst, the day I spent wine-tasting out in the Yarra Valley, a restaurant review roundup of all the fantastic places we ate in […]

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Taking a Deeper Look at Delta’s New Mileage Earning Structure for 2015 and Beyond

March 3, 2014

Delta made a huge announcement last week that its SkyMiles program would institute a new revenue-based mileage-earning structure aimed at frequent business travelers and those customers who purchase premium fares. As a reminder, here are the new rules. Earning The major changes here – at least the ones Delta has released details on so far […]

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United’s Strict New Carry-On Baggage Rules Go Into Effect

March 3, 2014

United put its new carry-on baggage sizing policy into effect yesterday, so we asked TPG Contributor Jason Steele, a Denver-based United flyer, for his take on the policy and its enforcement. If you’ve flown on United Airlines recently, you might have noticed that they have deployed new carry-on baggage sizers at all of their gates, […]

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Which Credit Card To Get: Chase Sapphire Preferred Or Barclaycard Arrival?

March 2, 2014

TPG reader Lance sent me a Facebook message this week to ask me about which credit card he should get. “I already have an American Express Platinum and Starwood cards, but I want to get another card that allows me to use points for travel expenses and statement credits. I’m deciding between the Barclaycard Arrival […]

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