Author Archives: Grant

About Grant

Grant is an expert in frequent flyer miles, hotel loyalty points, credit card rewards, and cash back deals. He also has a pretty cool travel blog. Find him on Twitter @travelwithgrant.

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How to Search & Book an Avianca LifeMiles Award Ticket (SFO-LPB in Business Class)

Good morning everyone, greetings from beautiful Saint Kitts and Nevis in the Caribbean.  A quick thank you to those of you who provided helpful trip recommendations on my earlier post.  I am enjoying my time at the Marriott Saint Kitts Beach Club (timeshare property) with my family and I wanted to wish everyone a happy Mother’s Day, especially my mom – thank you Mom for everything you’ve done for me (and for letting me use some of your miles and points from time to time).

Back in December 2016, I was approved for the Avianca Vuela Credit Card that offered 60,000 Avianca LifeMiles after your first purchase.  The 60,000 LifeMiles posted to my account in January 2017 and I just booked an award flight for January 2018 to fly to La Paz, Bolivia.  In this post, I will show you how I searched for the award space and booked the business class award ticket.  First, sign into your LifeMiles account, click the Use tab, and click Airlines under the Travel header.

Search Redeem Avianca LifeMiles SFO-LPB 1

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Trip Recommendations for Saint Kitts and Nevis in the Caribbean

Good morning everyone, happy Friday!  Tonight, I am going on a family vacation with my parents and brother to Saint Kitts and Nevis (which is in the Caribbean).  Here is the routing for my flight (thanks to Great Circle Mapper):

  • San Francisco (SFO) to Atlanta (ATL) to Saint Kitts and Nevis (SKB) on Delta Airlines using 27,500 Delta SkyMiles + $15.60 in taxes/fees
  • I will visit the SFO Centurion Lounge tonight and then visit a Delta Sky Club Lounge in ATL in the morning (both free since I have the American Express Business Platinum Charge Card)
  • Saint Kitts and Nevis (SKB) to Miami (MIA) on American Airlines using 10,000 British Airways Avios + $53.46 in taxes/fees
  • I have a long layover and need to go from MIA to FLL – I think I will stop by the beach for some lunch before going to FLL
  • Fort Lauderdale (FLL) to San Francisco (SFO) on Virgin America using 8,094 Virgin America Elevate Miles + $5.60 in taxes/fees

Unfortunately, I did not write down the flight prices at the time I booked these flights, but I remember getting pretty good value out of my miles when I booked these flights.

SFO-SKB RT Great Circle Mapper

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Book One Way Award Flights to Hawaii on Delta for 15,000 KLM / Air France Flying Blue Miles

Good afternoon everyone, I hope your week is going well.  A few nights ago, I was helping a friend find and book award tickets from the Bay Area to Kauai, Hawaii (LIH – Lihue, Hawaii).  She is a teacher and wanted to travel over Spring Break next year. Her Spring Break is the first week of April and Easter is on April 1, 2018, so she wanted to leave right after Easter.  I went to Google Flights to see what flight options were available but their flight calendar doesn’t show any flights past April 1, 2018 (if you are reading this post after May 8, then it should show you later dates).

Google Flights SFO-LIH Map No 4-2-2017

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My Missing Discover It Credit Card Apple Pay Promo Cash Back Just Posted (All $326 Worth)

Good morning everyone, I hope your week is going well.  A few days ago, I received the following email from Discover titled “Important information from Discover” (could they think of a more generic title for an email?).  In the email, Discover said that they underpaid me for my participation in the Discover It Apple Pay promo from 2015.  In the email, Discover promised to award the missing cash back within the next 2 billing cycles.  Luckily for me, my cash back just posted… all $326 worth :)

Discover It Apple Pay Promo Email Announcement

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Downgrading US Bank FlexPerks Travel Rewards Visa Signature & American Express to FlexPerks Select+ and Cash 365 Credit Cards

Good afternoon everyone, I hope everyone is having a great weekend so far.  A few months ago, my $49 annual fee posted on my US Bank FlexPerks Travel Rewards Visa Signature Credit Card.  Since I had spent down the majority of my FlexPoints, I decided to convert my US Bank FlexPerks Travel Rewards Visa Signature Credit Card into a US Bank FlexPerks Select+ American Express Credit Card.  This credit card has no annual fee and earns 1 FlexPoint for every dollar spent with no bonus categories.  This is by no means a good credit card, but it will keep your FlexPoints alive and you can continue to redeem 20,000 FlexPoints for an airline ticket worth up to $400.

US Bank FlexPerks Select Plus American Express Credit Card Landing Page

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