Earn Southwest Companion Pass in 2017, United Retiring 747s Early, Saving Thousands with Citi Prestige and More

Jan. 14, 2017

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5 min read

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Each Saturday, we round up news stories that you may have missed from the week before, including several that already appeared on The Points Guy, and some more that we haven’t covered yet. If you’re an avid TPG reader, scroll down for the new stuff. Here’s the top miles, points and travel news you may have missed this week:

Find out how to earn the Southwest Companion Pass through the end of 2018.

How to Earn the Southwest Companion Pass in 2017

Southwest's Companion Pass is one of the travel industry's most lucrative rewards. Find out how to earn it this year despite hotel point transfers no longer being valid after March 31.

United's retiring its Queens of the Sky earlier than was previously thought.

United's Retiring Its 747s Much Sooner Than Expected

If you've been wanting to have one final ride on one of United's 747s, you're going to have less time than we thought. The airline shared this week that it'll be retiring all of the 747s left in its fleet by the end of 2017.

The Citi Prestige can save you tons of money on hotel bookings.

One Citi Prestige Cardholder Saved More Than $4,500 on a Single Hotel Booking

The 4th Night Free benefit that comes with the Citi Prestige card is one of the best credit card perks out there. Read about some of the card's highlights, including one cardholder saving $4,554 on a single hotel stay in Greece.

If you were just approved for the Chase Sapphire Reserve, follow these steps.

4 Things To Do Once You Get Chase Sapphire Reserve

If you applied and were approved for the Sapphire Reserve card, you'll want to follow these four steps once you get your card to start maximizing the benefits right away.

Redeem Alaska Mileage Plan Miles for Virgin America Flights

This week, Alaska Airlines made it possible for its Mileage Plan members to redeem their miles for Virgin America flights — and there's a ton of availability!

Consider applying for Amazon's co-branded cards if you shop with the retailer often.

Up to 5% Back With the New Amazon Prime Rewards Visa Signature Card

This week Amazon unveiled the Amazon Prime Rewards Visa Signature Card from Chase. It will be available exclusively to Amazon Prime members and will replace the current Amazon Rewards Card for existing cardholders with an eligible Prime membership, and Prime members will earn 5% back on all Amazon purchases.

In Other News...

Has your Hilton Diamond status been extended? Image courtesy of the Hilton Seychelles.

Check to See If Hilton Extended Your Diamond Status Through March 2018

Some Hilton Diamond members have reported that the chain has renewed their status to be valid for another year. If you qualified for Diamond in 2016, you'll want to check to see if your status has been extended through the end of March, 2018.

You're no longer able to redeem Alaska Mileage Plan miles for AeroMexico flights.

Alaska Removes AeroMexico Awards From Its Award Chart

This week Alaska Airlines updated its award charts and in the process has removed AeroMexico award flights. However, you can still earn Alaska miles on AeroMexico-operated flights for the time being.

Club Carlson's new promo is lucrative, but requires some advance planning. Image courtesy of the Radisson Blu Stockholm.

Earn Up To 100,000 Bonus Points With Club Carlson's Latest Promo

Club Carlson has shared the details of its latest promotion, called Earn Bigger Rewards, in which you could earn up to 100,000 bonus points. The promotion is tiered, meaning you'll earn a specific number of bonus points once you reach that level's required nights. However, you can only register for one level, meaning you're going to have to do some thinking about how many nights you'll actually stay during the promotional period, which runs from now through March 31, 2017.

Image of Minsk, Belarus courtesy of Getty Images.

Belarus To Offer Free 5-Day Visa-Free Entry for 80 Countries

Former member of the Soviet Union Belarus has shared that it will allow residents of 80 countries (including Americans) to enter the nation without a visa for a 5-day period. When the new program begins in mid-February it will apply only to those people arriving on flights to the the capital, Minsk (MSQ).