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Our site may earn compensation when a customer clicks on a link, when an application is approved, or when an account is opened with our partners, and this may impact how or where these products appear. While we don't cover all available credit cards, our editorial team creates and maintains all of the analysis of these cards, and our content is not influenced nor subject to review by any credit card company, bank or partner prior to (or after) publication. Please view our advertising policy and product review methodology for more information.
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Targeted: Earn up to 7x bonus miles on your next flight
Benji Stawski is a former reporter for the site, covering all things points, miles, credit cards, travel and aviation.
July 14, 2020 • 7 min read
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Quick summary
Several major airlines are offering limited-time bonus miles promotions to encourage summer travel, with some deals providing up to 7x miles on eligible bookings.
Promotions vary by airline and may be targeted, requiring registration before booking or travel to qualify for extra miles.
Bonus miles earned through these offers generally do not count toward elite status or lifetime status programs.
Some promotions are capped, and specific eligibility criteria or booking windows apply.
What to consider
Certain offers are targeted and require registration before booking and travel; check eligibility on each airline's website.
Bonus miles typically do not apply to previously booked reservations, partner-operated flights or award tickets.
Some promotions have maximum earning limits and do not contribute to elite or lifetime status qualification.
What you'll miss from the article
A detailed breakdown of each airline's promotion, including earning rates, registration steps and how to maximize bonus miles this summer.
Generated by AI with support from our editorial team.
Update: Some offers mentioned below are no longer available. View the current offers here.
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American Airlines, Southwest and United are currently offering anywhere from 2x to a whopping 7x bonus award miles on summer travel. Some of the promotions are targeted and may require registration prior to booking or flying.
Here's a rundown of all of the bonus miles promotions airlines are offering.
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American Airlines
American Airlines is currently offering Barclays’ AAdvantage Aviator credit cardholders 3x bonus miles on paid flights booked by Aug. 13 and completed by Sept. 30, 2020.
If you register and book your flights by Aug. 13 for travel through Sept. 30, you’ll earn an extra three miles for every dollar you spend on the base fare of your ticket — up to 5,000 miles in total (which equates to about $1,667 in spending). TPG values AAdvantage miles at 1.4 cents apiece, so this equates to an extra 4.2% return. If you max out the promotion, the 5,000 miles you’d earn are worth $70.
The 3x miles are in addition to the bonus miles you earn for using your Aviator card for American Airlines purchases. So, those with the AAdvantage® Aviator® Red Mastercard and AAdvantage® Aviator® Blue Mastercard® would earn a total of 5x bonus miles per dollar spent and those with the AAdvantage Aviator Silver World Elite Mastercard would earn a total of 6x bonus miles.
This promotion doesn't apply to previously booked reservations,AAdvantage award tickets or flights operated by American's partners. Also, the bonus miles don’t count toward AAdvantage elite status or Million Miler status. However, keep in mind that AA is granting one mile toward Million Miler status for every $1 spent on a cobranded credit card between May and the end of the year.
Eligible members can find the full details and register for the promotion at this link.
The information for the Barclaycard AAdvantage Aviator Red, Aviator Blue and Aviator Silver card has been collected independently by The Points Guy. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer.
Southwest Airlines is currently running a promotion where summer travelers will earn double Rapid Rewards on all flights between May 12 and Aug. 31, 2020.
Rapid Rewards points are calculated using the base fare. So with this promotion, general members will earn the following:
24 points per dollar spent on Business Select® fares
20 points per dollar spent on Anytime fares
12 points per dollar spent on Wanna Get Away® fares
United is offering one of the most rewarding — but also highly targeted — promotions. With the Multiply Your Memories promotion targeted MileagePlus members can earn up to 7x bonus miles on paid flights booked and completed by Aug. 31, 2020.
To check what bonus is available to you, visit promotions.united.com/offers/multiplyyourmemories and enter your MileagePlus account number. Based on what we're seeing, targeted members can earn either 3x, 5x or 7x miles. It doesn't seem like elite status or cobranded cards play a role in determining eligibility.
Targeted members must register, book and fly by Aug. 31 to earn bonus miles with this promotion. Regardless of which bonus you were targeted for, you can only earn up to 50,000 miles. TPG values United MileagePlus miles at 1.3 cents apiece, so this equates to a 4.2% to 9.1% return. If you max out the promotion, the 50,000 miles you’d earn are worth a stellar $650.
While Alaska Airlines isn't offering bonus award miles, it deserves a mention in this list as it's offering a bonus on elite-qualifying miles. Through Dec. 31, 2020, Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan members will earn 50% bonus elite-qualifying miles on all Alaska Airlines flights.
This promotion only applies to Alaska-operated flights — not flights operated by one of its global partners. This includes previously-booked flights and registration is not required for this promotion.
You can earn even more miles by booking your flights with one of the best cards for airfare purchases, like The Platinum Card® from American Express (5x on airfare booked directly with the airline or through American Express Travel; starting Jan. 1, 2021 earn 5x points on up to $500,000 on these purchases per calendar year), Citi Prestige® Card (5x on airfare) or the Citi Premier® Card, Chase Sapphire Reserve® (3x on airfare), American Express® Gold Card, which each earn 3x on airfare (when booked directly with airlines or on amextravel.com on the Amex Gold).
The information for the Citi Prestige Card has been collected independently by The Points Guy. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer.
Comments
By commenting, you agree to our Community Guidelines to help create a positive space for conversation. The responses below are not provided or commissioned by the bank advertiser, our partners, or The Points Guy (“TPG”). They have not been reviewed, approved, or otherwise endorsed by any of these parties. All responses are submitted by individual contributors, and neither the bank advertiser, our partners, nor TPG are responsible for ensuring that all posts and/or questions are answered.
