Monthly Archives for December 2016.
Following is our regular summary of the latest travel news and best frequent traveler promotions reviewed during the past week. If it was a good deal—or a notably bad deal—from an airline, hotel, or car rental loyalty program, you can read all about it here, and plan your travel accordingly. 3 Ways to Earn Bonus…
Las Vegas, it seems, wants to have it all. The Eiffel Tower. The Statue of Liberty. A sphinx or two. The canals of Venice. A pirate ship. And outposts of some of the world’s great restaurants. Nobu. Bouchon. Joel Robuchon. Mario Batali’s Carnevino. Hubert Keller’s Fleur. At the lower end of the food chain, there’s…
For the 19th consecutive year, Bank of America is reprising its popular Museums on Us program for 2017. The program entitles holders of credit or debit cards issued by Bank of America or Merrill Lynch to free entry to more than 150 museums and other cultural institutions on the first full weekend of every month.…
Award-price adjustments are a fact of life for participants in hotel loyalty programs. And the annual announcements of such changes are rarely good news. Inevitably, it seems, more award prices increase than decrease, resulting in a net devaluation of program members’ points. The latest from InterContinental’s IHG Rewards Club is a case in point. Related:…
When Assembly Bill 1785 takes effect, on January 1 of 2017, simply holding your phone while driving in California will become a ticketable offense, punishable with a $20 fine for the first offense, and $50 for subsequent offenses. The bill expands on the existing law, which prohibits phone use while driving, but limits that prohibition…
With Alaska Airline’s acquisition of Virgin America, it was just a matter of time before Virgin’s loyalty program, Elevate, was terminated and its members folded into Alaska’s Mileage Plan program. In the meantime, the programs were somewhat integrated, allowing reciprocal mileage earning. And beginning on January 9, 2017, Elevate members will be able to convert…
All shopped out? If not, and if there are still items on your wish list that can be purchased online, three of the largest airline e-shopping portals are offering bonus miles for purchases at any of their hundreds of participating online merchants. Alaska Airlines Between December 26 and January 8, Mileage Plan members can earn…
Enter the World Travel Holdings “Sweepstakes at Sea” sweepstakes by January 31, 2017, for a chance to win the grand prize: a $3,000 cruise voucher, and 500,000 American AAdvantage frequent-flyer miles. Five runner-up prizes of 100,000 AAdvantage miles each will also be awarded. To enter, provide the requested contact information (name, email, etc.) on the…
Following is our regular summary of the latest travel news and best frequent traveler promotions reviewed during the past week. If it was a good deal—or a notably bad deal—from an airline, hotel, or car rental loyalty program, you can read all about it here, and plan your travel accordingly. Americans Would Rather Work Than…
According to Airlines for America, the trade group representing the interests of most U.S. airlines, this holiday travel season extends over a full 21 days, from December 16, 2016, through January 5, 2017. That’s a long time to endure the indignities and discomfort of crowded airports and overstuffed planes. A4A expects U.S. carriers to transport…
When a planned $32 billion expansion is completed, Dubai’s Al Maktoum International Airport (DWC) will be the world’s largest. The airport, named for the emirate’s ruler, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, will eventually handle more than 200 million passengers a year, and be capable of accommodating 100 double-decker Airbus A380s at a time. For…