Airline Rewards Programs & Deals Thread

[Iceman!]

So I got a couple of pass for the United Club passed that I can use once a year.
I've never been in one. How long can I be in there before I get board? Couple 3 hours.
Is anything "Comp" in there?

 

[MWard]

So I got a couple of pass for the United Club passed that I can use once a year.
I've never been in one. How long can I be in there before I get board? Couple 3 hours.
Is anything "Comp" in there?

They’re a nice place to just relax, but if you’re not a drinker, those finger foods get old quick. It is nice having more peace and quiet than waiting at the gate. A 3hr wait, I’d be looking up a lounge for sure.

 

[JB]

They’re a nice place to just relax, but if you’re not a drinker, those finger foods get old quick. It is nice having more peace and quiet than waiting at the gate. A 3hr wait, I’d be looking up a lounge for sure.

Agree. Im thankful when airports have Minute Suites. I will gladly pay for them, for the mini room for a few hours.

 

[MWard]

Agree. Im thankful when airports have Minute Suites. I will gladly pay for them, for the mini room for a few hours.

I don’t think I’ve ever seen one of those, or if I walked by one I never knew what they were. Basically like a 7x7 room all to yourself?

 

[JB]

I don’t think I’ve ever seen one of those, or if I walked by one I never knew what they were. Basically like a 7x7 room all to yourself?

Yup. More like 7x5. Small couch, tv, good wifi, silent, temp control, etc.
With Priority Pass, I get the 1st hour free and then a discount on additional hours. I have napped, just relaxed, grabbed lunch and worked. Its my favorite when available. I think only Philly, Charlotte and Atlanta for the airports I pass through.

 

[MWard]

Yup. More like 7x5. Small couch, tv, good wifi, silent, temp control, etc.
With Priority Pass, I get the 1st hour free and then a discount on additional hours. I have napped, just relaxed, grabbed lunch and worked. Its my favorite when available. I think only Philly, Charlotte and Atlanta for the airports I pass through.

That checks out. I’ve only wandered Charlotte a few times and it was like a kill 30min thing, basically look for any fun shop to look in. A 3hr kill, that may be the way to go if the costs are the same as a lounge. Left alone for 3 hours? Literally sign me up haha

 

[Iceman!]

They’re a nice place to just relax, but if you’re not a drinker, those finger foods get old quick. It is nice having more peace and quiet than waiting at the gate. A 3hr wait, I’d be looking up a lounge for sure.

My flight leaves at 4 and I plan to be at the airport at 12:30, so I figured this is the perfect time to use the passes.

 

[MWard]

My flight leaves at 4 and I plan to be at the airport at 12:30, so I figured this is the perfect time to use the passes.

Then heck yeah man use em and just enjoy a bit more peace and quiet.

 

[JB]

Love the last minute unexpected upgrade. Off to Chicago and had a good seat, my normal 7D, but got lucky with one seat open in the first.

Tablet in the place, time to watch something and get some work done.

 

[OITW]

Current Card is planning on increasing my annual fee - that is dumb.

Anyone have any good airline CC they would recommend?

I travel 10x a year mostly domestic - don't mind an annual fee, but nothing higher than $150 if the rewards are good.

 

[MWard]

Current Card is planning on increasing my annual fee - that is dumb.

Anyone have any good airline CC they would recommend?

I travel 10x a year mostly domestic - don't mind an annual fee, but nothing higher than $150 if the rewards are good.

Who do you use now, Delta?

 

[OITW]

Who do you use now, Delta?

Delta/Jetblue would be the ones I use the most - had Amex in the past (that is who delta has their card through) and am not too happy with them

 

[MWard]

Delta/Jetblue would be the ones I use the most - had Amex in the past (that is who delta has their card through) and am not too happy with them

Gravitate towards who flies out of your area the most. It won’t do much good saying go American for example if they never fly to where you need, or if they’re way more expensive than the rest.

 

[Parrot]

Delta/Jetblue would be the ones I use the most - had Amex in the past (that is who delta has their card through) and am not too happy with them

AMEX would've been my recommendation. Friends who have been with United and American ditched those affiliated cards and gone with Delta and AMEX.

My rec wold be to determine which airline offers the best service out of the airport you use and whether that airline's program and cards offers decent benefits. Delta offers the best service out of Memphis but not by a lot so that's what we fly.

 

[OITW]

Gravitate towards who flies out of your area the most. It won’t do much good saying go American for example if they never fly to where you need, or if they’re way more expensive than the rest.

AMEX would've been my recommendation. Friends who have been with United and American ditched those affiliated cards and gone with Delta and AMEX.

My rec wold be to determine which airline offers the best service out of the airport you use and whether that airline's program and cards offers decent benefits. Delta offers the best service out of Memphis but not by a lot so that's what we fly.

Thanks guys, I'm comparing the two airlines/cards now.

 

[JB]

Thanks guys, I'm comparing the two airlines/cards now.

Outside of frequent traveling, you must really weigh the pros and cons of airline specific card vs travel card.
Yes you get a checked bag free with airline cards, but for non-frequent travelers, you might find better rewards through non-specific programs. Especially when the little perks start adding up.

 

[Ottawaclo]

snaged the united card after talking to chef and secured the 40k in bonus miles. been a great use so far as i used it while traveling for work the last couple months


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[JB]

Making my way back to Hyatt from Hilton.
Loved my time at Hyatt, but when they changed the program, it wouldn't work for our travels. Lots of recent changes to Hilton had me looking back into Hyatt and there recent modifications made it easy to make the switch back and get back to enjoying my hotel stays more.

Getting stay credits on reward stays was a big part of it for me. Then their recent partnership with AA is fantastic for a frequent traveler.

 

[BoilerCLE]

Making my way back to Hyatt from Hilton.
Loved my time at Hyatt, but when they changed the program, it wouldn't work for our travels. Lots of recent changes to Hilton had me looking back into Hyatt and there recent modifications made it easy to make the switch back and get back to enjoying my hotel stays more.

Getting stay credits on reward stays was a big part of it for me. Then their recent partnership with AA is fantastic for a frequent traveler.

Welcome back! Only knock I have on Hyatt is that they're not everywhere, but it sure is hard to beat those 5,000 point Hyatt Places when you're in a pinch...

 

[JB]

Welcome back! Only knock I have on Hyatt is that they're not everywhere, but it sure is hard to beat those 5,000 point Hyatt Places when you're in a pinch...

Plus the early check in system is fantastic.
Plus the AA partnership is pure gold for someone like me.

I loved my time at Hyatt and would have never left when the new system came out if Reward stays had counted at the time. I couldn't get to 60 without them, and no longer could qualify on stays since they eliminated it. Now that it is in place, I am excited to come back as there are a few hotels that I genuinely missed.

 

[Space Bandito]

In my boredom, I decided to check out my travels thus far in 2019. Still have another 35,000 (actual travel) miles on the books before the end of the year, which will solidify my status for 2020 (1,037 PQDs away from renewing.)

Mileage balance is pretty low as I used a bunch of miles for award travel over the summer, as well as renewed my newspaper subscription.

Should get 6 more GPUs at the end of next week, and an additional 2 on Jan 1. Who knows how many RPUs I'll get.

 

[Girardcorp]

Actually looking to delve into World of Hyatt. I can stay pretty much anywhere for corporate travel so they are in many of the locations I need to go. Have some big purchases coming up, so easily could hit the minimum spend on the Hyatt CC. That would be good for about 10 nights. I havent looked real in depth at their reward changes recently. All I know is 12,000/night beats 50,000+ for mediocre Hilton properties.

 

[Space Bandito]

Actually looking to delve into World of Hyatt. I can stay pretty much anywhere for corporate travel so they are in many of the locations I need to go. Have some big purchases coming up, so easily could hit the minimum spend on the Hyatt CC. That would be good for about 10 nights. I havent looked real in depth at their reward changes recently. All I know is 12,000/night beats 50,000+ for mediocre Hilton properties.

Surely the rate of earning must be different between the two brands.

 

[Girardcorp]

Surely the rate of earning must be different between the two brands.

When I had the Hilton aspire card I was earning 12x so a week at the hotel across from my home office netted 9600 points. I believe standard Hyatt is 5x so maybe 1000 points per week roughly. Hilton points are about as worthless as they get. Top tier Chase Ultimate rewards or Amex points are only at best .02c a piece.

 

[BoilerCLE]

When I had the Hilton aspire card I was earning 12x so a week at the hotel across from my home office netted 9600 points. I believe standard Hyatt is 5x so maybe 1000 points per week roughly. Hilton points are about as worthless as they get. Top tier Chase Ultimate rewards or Amex points are only at best .02c a piece.

Yep, the key is to pair a Chase Ultimate Rewards card with your Hyatt stays... easy points if you play the game right. The difference between Hyatt and most other programs is that the lower tier properties are still nice. There are some really good hotels for 8k and even the 5k Hyatt Places aren't typically run down.