Stay ConnectedEarn miles without flying. Frequent Miler is all about getting the most out of the loyalty game. You can easily earn hundreds of thousands of points and miles without traveling, then learn how to use those points towards luxury travel.
In this podcast, Frequent Miler founder Greg, and senior author Nick debate current topics in the points & miles world.
Copyright: © Frequent Miler
Want a companion to fly with you for free? There are many different companion tickets on the market, but some are far better than others. This week, we discuss which ones are worth it, how to get them, and they they are special.
00:00 Intro
01:08 Giant Mailbag
03:33 What crazy thing . . . did Bilt Rewards do?
https://frequentmiler.com/no-official-bilt-welcome-offer-after-all/
07:07 Award Talk: Booking Turkish via email within 6 hours
https://frequentmiler.com/yes-you-can-still-book-united-flights-through-turkish-miles-smiles/
13:12 Main Event: Two for the price of one: How to get a free companion ticket
https://frequentmiler.com/travel-companion-tickets/
15:28 British Airways Companion Ticket
21:05 Iberia Companion Ticket
22:27 Aer Lingus Companion Ticket
24:13 Cathay Pacific Companion Ticket
25:06 Virgin Atlantic Companion Ticket
29:30 American Airlines Companion Tickets
34:02 Alaska Companion Ticket
https://frequentmiler.com/alaska-airlines-companion-fare-guide/
41:18 Delta Companion Tickets
46:46 Southwest Companion Pass
https://frequentmiler.com/complete-guide-southwest-companion-pass/
https://frequentmiler.com/no-southwest-airlines-is-not-a-valuable-transfer-partner/
59:37 Air Canada Companion Ticket
1:00:56 Question of the Week: How did you earn a Companion Pass through a shopping portal in a month?
Music credit: Annie Yoder
Get your pen and paper and get ready to play along and see if you can beat the blogger as Nick tries to score at least 75,000 points revealing 10 tricks for spending fewer points on your flight and hotel awards.
00:00 Intro
01:52 Giant Mailbag
04:05 Card Talk: Amex Platinum card changes
10:51 Mattress running the numbers: Stand Up to Cancer and earn 50x
14:15 Award Talk
14:20 IHG suite upgrades now apply on award stays
16:41 Finnair is joining Avios
https://frequentmiler.com/finnair-to-start-using-avios-in-early-2024/
19:49 Main Event: 10 tricks for spending fewer points for flights and hotels (gameshow edition)
21:19 How can a person get 1.5 cpp for travel booked directly with travel providers?
https://frequentmiler.com/us-bank-real-time-mobile-rewards-what-works-where/
23:52 How can you get 2 cents per point buying flights with Amex Membership Rewards points?
26:29 Describe two tricks that guarantee lower award prices by flying farther
https://frequentmiler.com/avianca-lifemiles-awesome-mixed-cabin-award-pricing-first-class-for-less/
https://frequentmiler.com/cathay-pacific-asia-miles-mixed-cabin-award-pricing-first-class-for-less/
28:59 Name three ways to incur lower surcharges when flying BA
https://frequentmiler.com/british-airways-adds-option-to-use-more-avios-less-money/
https://frequentmiler.com/business-class-to-london-for-less-with-this-asia-miles-hack/
33:59 How is it possible to fly within Europe for as few as 4,000 points one-way?
https://frequentmiler.com/air-france-klm-across-europe-for-less-sweet-spot-spotlight/
36:32 How can fly business class across the Atlantic Ocean for 55k United miles?
40:38 Name three ways to pay for a regular room award stay but confirm a suite instead
https://frequentmiler.com/incredible-hyatt-suites-bookable-with-points/
43:31 What type of lodging would cost me 67,500 points per night?
https://frequentmiler.com/wyndham-vacasa/
45:43 How could one pay avg of only 67.5 pct of the original award cost for a hotel? (32.5% off)
50:11 How could one pay 55% fewer points for a hotel award?
54:49 Bonus: What are Delta miles worth in SkyClub for premium drinks?
56:42 Question of the Week: What if any are the best ways to book Airbnbs or 2 hotel rooms with points at a reasonable rate?
Music credit: Annie Yoder
Don't settle for mediocrity - get great value from your credit card points by utilizing some of our favorite techniques to save big on both economy and business class airfare and hotels ranging from simple to simply luxurious.
00:00 Intro
00:48 Giant Mailbag: Trouble with the Schwab debit card and a workaround
06:14 What crazy thing . . . did Bilt Rewards do this week?
14:29 Mattress running the numbers: Frontier's GoWild pass promotion
20:55 Award Talk
20:59 Nick's experience with a British Airways award via American Airlines
26:05 Greg gets the Bilt card
26:47 Alaska trick for saving miles
29:51 Southwest is adding free standby on all fares
33:32 Choice suites thanks to Radisson
34:32 Main Event: Chase Ultimate Rewards points: Best ways to get great value
34:48 Hyatt
40:00 Using Chase Ultimate Rewards points via airline programs
40:39 United Mileage Plus
43:23 Virgin Atlantic Flying Club
55:38 Air France / KLM Flying Blue
1:03:40 Air Canada Aeroplan
1:09:48 Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer
1:11:37 Avios
1:16:01 Question of the Week: Which comes first -- the chicken or the egg? Do you book the flight or hotel first to maximize value?
Music credit: Annie Yoder
Big wins start with solid strategy. This week, we talk about which cards you must have before you start applying with reckless abandon as well as which cards you should probably be considering that are all likely limited by the 5/24 rule. If you play your cards right, you can easily end up with all the cards you want and need before you get locked out of more.
00:00 Intro
00:55 Giant Mailbag: A "wea culpa"
03:41 Card Talk: Chase Freedom Unlimited & Chase Freedom Flex cards
https://frequentmiler.com/cfu/
https://frequentmiler.com/cff/
11:47 What crazy thing . . . triple header?
12:08 What crazy thing . . . did Wyndham Rewards do this week?
https://frequentmiler.com/how-to-prevent-wyndham-points-from-expiring/
15:32 What crazy thing . . . did Avianca LifeMiles do this week?
https://frequentmiler.com/current-point-transfer-bonuses/
https://frequentmiler.com/having-issues-booking-with-lifemiles-try-using-the-firefox-browser/
17:38 What crazy thing . . . did Avianca LifeMiles do this week?
https://frequentmiler.com/cancelling-a-lifemiles-award-ticket-maybe-less-painful-than-you-thought/
21:25 Award Talk
21:27 Air New Zealand Business Class wide open close-in
https://frequentmiler.com/air-new-zealand-business-class-awards-wide-open-close-in/
https://frequentmiler.com/avianca-lifemiles-awesome-mixed-cabin-award-pricing-first-class-for-less/
29:30 Contacting the hotel works out well
34:50 Main Event: Must-have Chase cards
36:37 Determining your 5/24 count
41:05 The Ultimate Rewards points cards
https://frequentmiler.com/chase-transfer-partners/
47:21 Fee-free UR cards
49:58 Which Ultimate Rewards cards are must-have keepers?
57:53 Which Chase airline cards are keepers?
1:03:30 Which Chase hotel cards are keepers?
1:10:44 Question of the Week: How do you audit and chase down your missing points?
Music credit: Annie Yoder
There are more than 8 million points and miles available via new credit card welcome offers. Here's how to score millions of points in your household.
Join our email list: https://frequentmiler.com/subscribe/
00:00 Intro
01:45 Giant Mailbag
09:05 Card Talk: JetBlue Plus and JetBlue Business Cards
https://frequentmiler.com/b6plus/
https://frequentmiler.com/b6biz/
15:37 What crazy thing . . . happened to Greg the Frequent Miler this week?
21:10 Mattress Running the Numbers: 50% transfer bonus from Chase to Marriott
https://frequentmiler.com/chase-ultimate-rewards-offering-50-transfer-bonus-to-marriott/
23:57 Award Talk
24:09 Nairobi to Cape Town....via Doha
27:15 Main Event: How to earn millions of points from credit card welcome offers?
https://frequentmiler.com/best-credit-card-sign-up-offers/
28:59 Won't this ruin my credit score?
32:53 High-level summary
https://frequentmiler.com/the-games-we-play/
36:56 How do you choose which card?
39:30 Start with 5/24 strategy
https://frequentmiler.com/must-have-chase-cards/
42:05 How do you find the best offers?
https://frequentmiler.com/best-credit-card-sign-up-offers/
50:08 Family referrals
58:35 If you get denied, it's not over
1:01:54 Meeting minimum spending requirements
https://frequentmiler.com/manufactured-spending-complete-guide/
1:02:40 Call for a retention offer
1:08:57 Downgrade options
1:17:12 Question of the Week: Why aren't we using Altitude Reserve points to pay for our car rentals?
Music credit: Annie Yoder
If you're flush with Delta SkyMiles, don't flush them on poor redemptions -- instead, listen to this week's show and learn how you can squeeze good value out of your SkyMiles. One quick update: During our Award Talk segment, we discussed the ability to book Starlux via Alaska Airlines, but that availability and pricing got pulled between the time we recorded and the time we published -- we were right that you had to jump on it quickly, but it died even faster than we expected.
00:00 Intro
00:56 Award Talk
01:07 Bilt: 75% to 150% transfer bonus to Virgin Atlantic Flying Club
https://frequentmiler.com/bilt-august-rent-day-up-to-150-transfer-bonus-to-virgin-atlantic/
07:31 Now book ITA via Virgin Atlantic
https://frequentmiler.com/ita-airways-bookable-with-virgin-atlantic-miles/
10:17 Alaska makes Starlux bookable*** Note that we discuss pricing for this award that Alaska has already pulled. See our post for more:
https://frequentmiler.com/alaska-airlines-fumbles-launch-of-starlux-awards/
12:59 Amex adds Qatar as a transfer partner
https://frequentmiler.com/amex-transfer-partners/
15:44 Aeroplan now allows awards to be changed online
https://frequentmiler.com/aeroplan-awards-can-now-be-changed-online/
17:27 Choice and Radisson finally merge
https://frequentmiler.com/radisson-to-choice-conversion-low-end-slight-deval-high-end-better-value/
21:47 Card Talk: Delta Gold SkyMiles and Delta Gold SkyMiles Business cards
https://frequentmiler.com/dlgold/
https://frequentmiler.com/dlgoldbiz/
28:34 Main Event: Wringing value from Delta SkyMiles
29:46 15% discount on Delta awards on Delta metal with several credit cards
30:17 Compare against the round trip prices
31:05 Unannounced sales
https://frequentmiler.com/delta-award-sale-40k-miles-in-economy-to-australia-and-more/
33:50 Westjet to Canada
36:18 Book awards that don't start or end in the US or Canada
https://frequentmiler.com/delta-skymiles-business-class-deals/
41:35 Finding partner award space on Delta.com
https://frequentmiler.com/a-great-new-way-to-find-delta-partner-award-availability/
46:29 Question of the Week: What's the best strategy to get rebooked when your partner award gets cancelled?
Music credit: Annie Yoder
If you're a loyal American Airlines AAdvantage customer, does this card make sense with the new structure?
00:00 Intro
00:42 Giant Mailbag #1
01:45 Giant Mailbag #2
03:41 What crazy thing . . .did Delta Airlines do this week?
06:13 Award Talk
06:15 MGM and Marriott to partner from October 2023
https://frequentmiler.com/mgm-to-partner-with-marriott-bonvoy-from-october-2023-onward/
10:40 Air Canada has access to more Singapore Airlines space
https://frequentmiler.com/an-air-canada-advantage-far-more-award-space-with-some-partners/
13:49 AAdvantage Hotels
21:00 Main Event: The new AA Executive Card: Is it worth the fee?
https://frequentmiler.com/aa-enhances-the-citi-executive-card-and-encourages-spend-elsewhere/
50:03 Question of the Week
Music credit: Annie Yoder
It takes two to tango -- and you can dance your way to plenty of points and miles to make those dream trips happen twice as quickly when you play the game with a partner. This week, we talk tips and strategies for collecting rewards with a travel partner.
00:00 Intro
00:33 Giant Mailbag
02:18 Card Talk: Chase Sapphire Reserve
frequentmiler.com/csr
19:41 Award Talk
19:44 PointsYeah
https://frequentmiler.com/pointsyeah/
22:28 Fiji Airways ticket refund update
24:38 Choice + Radisson merger news
https://frequentmiler.com/choice-radisson-loyalty-programs-being-combined-on-july-18/
27:01 Hyatt x MGM partnership ending 9/30/23
https://frequentmiler.com/hyatt-farewell-cheap-mattress-runs-status-matching/
29:53 Mattress Running the Numbers: Should you book MGM properties to earn Hyatt elite status?
37:03 Main Event: Partner up to maximize rewards
https://frequentmiler.com/3-inks-approved-again-420k-points-in-the-bag/
1:05:52 Question of the Week: Is it possible to buy Hyatt Globalist status? Are there any shortcuts?
Music credit: Annie Yoder
Ever wonder how you can possibly snag a reservation at a high-demand property that never seems to have award availability? This week, we discuss the tools you can use to make those impossible awards happen.
00:00 Intro
01:10 Giant Mailbag: Don't Hilton free night certificates have a big drawback?
04:25 Card Talk: Hilton Surpass and Hilton Business cards
https://frequentmiler.com/amxhiltonbiz/
https://frequentmiler.com/hilton-honors-american-express-surpass-card/#Goto
https://frequentmiler.com/why-i-paid-over-1000-dollars-to-upgrade-3-no-fee-hilton-cards/
12:20 What crazy thing . . . did Chicago Seminars do this week?
15:06 Award Talk Double Header
15:26 Cathay Pacific Asia Miles devaluation
19:38 JW Marriott Safari Lodge Availability
https://frequentmiler.com/jw-marriott-masai-mara-lodge-award-nights-available/
25:06 Main Event: How to find impossible hotel awards
https://frequentmiler.com/tools-for-finding-impossible-hotel-awards/
https://frequentmiler.com/go/maxmypoint
https://frequentmiler.com/go/staywithpoints
51:02 Question of the Week: Is the 95x / 95% back LifeLock deal worth doing for the Membership Rewards point
s?
Music credit: Annie Yoder
On this week's show Greg and Nick discuss the huge advantage of flying business class over economy or premium economy (and how airline miles make that possible at a reasonable cost), and debate the next step: is it worth paying more miles to fly international first class instead of business class?
00:00:48 Giant Mailbag00:03:14 What crazy thing did Amex do this week? • Amex sometimes claims that tax payments don't count... • See also: Pay taxes via credit card 00:09:54 Deal talk: Save 40% to 50% at Amazon.com 00:16:56 Award Talk • Lufthansa often releases first class award space near last minute • Aeroplan not always showing awards that are bookable with United and/or Avianca00:19:37 MAIN EVENT: Are first class awards worth paying more for? • 00:21:26 Comparing economy, premium economy, business class, and first class • 00:32:10 First class ground services (Lufthansa example) • 00:36:39 Award cost econ vs. prem econ vs. biz vs. first class (AA example) • 00:41:40 Special first class products that ARE worth paying a huge premium for • 00:47:33 Award cost econ vs. vs. biz vs. first class (Aeroplan example) • 00:51:04 Award cost econ vs. prem econ vs. biz vs. first class (Lifemiles example) • 00:55:00 ANA First Class vs. JAL Business Class • 00:58:22 Conclusion: Is it worth it? 01:03:07 Question of the week #1: Are Greg and Nick out of touch? 01:07:31 Question of the week #2: Status match to get international upgrade?
Music Credit: Annie Yoder "Ocean Deep"
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