Tag Archives: Hotel Loyalty Points

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The 7 Miles & Points Tools / Services that I Pay For

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Good afternoon everyone, happy Friday!  I love free stuff as much as the next person, but there are a few miles and points tools and services that are so incredibly useful, they’re definitely worth paying for. Keep in mind, this isn’t a complete list, so there may be other fantastic tools out there that I haven’t discovered or used yet.

AwardWallet Plus – $49.99 / year

I can’t imagine a world without AwardWallet.  They track all my credit card programs, airline programs, hotel programs, shopping portal balances, dining rewards, and much more.  I love that they constantly check my accounts, display the current balances, and display expiration dates for all my rewards.  The flight schedule change notifications (which sometimes come days / weeks / months before official airline notifications) and upcoming expiration alerts are well worth the cost to me.  If you are interested in trying it out, here is my AwardWallet referral link.

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My 2024 Travel Recap: Elite Statuses, Flights & Hotel Nights

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Good afternoon everyone, I hope your week is going well.  I thought it would be cool to share the hotel and airline elite statuses I earned (and matched to) in 2024 along with the number of flights I flew and the number of nights I stayed in hotels.  Fun fact: I might be the only travel blogger without Hyatt Globalist Elite Status (I actually don’t have any Hyatt status).  Read on to learn more interesting facts about my 2024 travel recap.

2024 Flights & Airline Elite Statuses

  • Alaska Airlines is the only airline status that I earned (and care about).  I took 14 flights and earned 13,658 elite miles.  I also earned 8,000 elite miles from spending $20,000 on my Bank of America Alaska Airlines Credit Card.  I am looking forward to earning Alaska Airlines MVP Elite Status in 2025 with several Companion Fare flights and awards booked with Alaska Airlines miles.
  • SFO is my nearest international airport, but I only flew United Airlines 3x last year.
  • Before the end of 2024, I status matched to Hawaiian Airlines Pualani Gold (allows better seat assignments on Hawaiian Airlines) and Southwest Airlines A List, but I don’t have any Southwest Airlines flights planned in 2025 since all my favorite routes were moved from SFO to OAK.
Loyalty Program Status Status from Credit Card Notes Flights
Alaska Airlines MVP – 13,658 Elite Miles from flying + 8,000 Elite Miles from credit card spend 14
Delta Airlines – – 3 trips: SFO-ATL-DAB, DAB-ATL-SFO, and MIA-JFK 5
United Airlines – – 3 trips: SFO-SNA, SNA-SFO, and SFO-DEN 3
Air France / KLM – – 1 Business Class Award: ARN-AMS-LAX 2
Avelo Airlines – – 2 trips: STS-BOI and BOI-STS 2
Finnair – – 2 trips: DUB-HEL and HEL-ARN 2
Aer Lingus – – 1 Business Class Award: DEN-DUB 1
JetBlue – – 1 trip: SFO-FLL 1
Hawaiian Airlines Pualani Gold – Status matched from Alaska Airlines MVP Elite Status (Dec 2024) 0
Southwest Airlines A List – Status matched from Alaska Airlines MVP Elite Status (Dec 2024) 0
Total Flights:  30

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Marriott Vacation Club Shadow Ridge Timeshare Vacation Package: $249 for 4 Nights + 15,000 Marriott Bonvoy Points (Targeted)

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Good afternoon everyone, I hope your weekend is going well.  Today, I received a targeted timeshare vacation package offer via mail for the Marriott Shadow Ridge in Palm Desert, CA (near Palm Springs).  The cost is $249 for a 4 night / 5 day stay, plus you have your choice of 15,000 Marriott Bonvoy Points or a $75 Marriott gift card.  If you value 15,000 Marriott points at $150, that brings the cost down to $100 for 4 nights or $25 / night.  You need to attend a 90 minute timeshare sales presentation, but that seems like a pretty good deal.  I have experience with timeshare sales presentations and they are not too bad.  I will go through the booking process to show you what it is like, what is included, and how much it costs.

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Image source: https://www.marriott.com/en-us/hotels/ctdsr-marriotts-shadow-ridge-i-the-villages/overview/

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8 Buy Miles / Points Promos Ending Soon: Avianca (160%), JetBlue (130%), Hilton (100%), Southwest (50%), Wyndham (45%), United (30%), Air Canada (30%), & Hyatt (25%)

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Good morning everyone, I hope you had a great weekend. I was working on my Buy Miles & Points Page and found 8 offers that end in the next week.  Always check the math to make sure that buying miles & points makes sense for you.  Do not buy miles & points speculatively unless you have a use in mind.  With that said, here are 8 offers that end soon.

Up first, Avianca Airlines is offering up to a 160% bonus, depending on the number of Avianca Airlines LifeMiles you purchase. This offer expires on December 31.

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My Overly Ambitious 2025 Airline, Hotel & Credit Card Predictions

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Good morning everyone, happy Sunday!  Not to be deterred by my abysmal 2024 results (How Right (& Wrong) were my 2024 Airline, Hotel & Credit Card Predictions?), 2025 is a fresh year and the year all most some a few of my predictions will come true.  Without further ado, here are my predictions for 2025:

My 2025 Airline Predictions:

  • Alaska Airlines or Southwest Airlines will bring back their “convert travel funds to airline miles” feature.
  • Alaska Airlines will let you use the Companion Fare to book Hawaiian Airlines flights.
  • American Airlines will return as a Citi ThankYou Points transfer partner.
  • British Airways will lower their partner redemption prices for American Airlines and Alaska Airlines.
  • Delta will increase the annual fee on their credit cards and increase the Delta SkyMiles discount to 20%-25%.
  • JetBlue will allow you to redeem points on a new partner airline (besides Etihad Airways, Hawaiian Airlines and Qatar Airways).
  • Southwest Airlines will do a status match once they start selling seat assignments.
  • United Airlines will bring back their “family pooling” feature.

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