Taking your family to Hawaii is often thought of as a once-in-a-lifetime trip. If you’ve been following MileValue, you know that we strive to make those once-in-a-lifetime trips happen early and often.

Nobody enjoys tax season, but it’s one of those necessary annual pop-ups that we all go through together. While tax season blossoms in tandem with daffodils and tulips, we typically garner far less gratification from doing our taxes than we do from collecting a colorful bunch of flowers. 

Nevertheless, there is a sunny side to tax season. If done correctly, you may stand to earn a fair bit of points and miles by using a credit card to pay your taxes.

We’re excited to announce the new Capital One Venture X Rewards Card. We’ll keep this intro brief as we dive into the details and our take on this new travel rewards card.

Capital One Venture X Rewards Card Overview

The Capital One Venture X Rewards Card is Capital One’s new premium credit card.

Hyatt recently announced that more than 100 hotels will be changing categories on March 22, 2022. Unfortunately, it’s generally bad news, but there are a few bright spots, mostly for the European travelers. Nearly 150 hotels will change categories, with 70 properties shifting to a higher category, including some of our readers’ favorites. Sixty-nine properties are moving up one category, and one property is going up two categories.

A few Category 4 hotels where you currently can use the Category 1-4 free night certificates will be moving up a category.

Uzbekistan popped up on my radar as a possible destination a couple of years ago. The country has been at the crossroads of civilizations for millennia and is deeply infused with the most fascinating history of the Silk Road. Its ancient cities, famous hospitality and delicious food all had the makings of an unforgettable and affordable trip. 

Uzbekistan is a long way from home, so my goal was to find business class award space. I traveled with my friends, and we booked mostly local hotels, with the exception of the Hyatt Regency Tashkent.

Southwest, long the stalwart of leisure travel, is entering the realm of business travel with the launch of the new Rapid Rewards Business program. The program is designed to reward businesses by offering their travelers an opportunity to earn Rapid Rewards points. 

The companies can now earn Rapid Rewards points that can be applied toward travel on the company’s behalf.

The latest program to announce a complete revamp is American Airlines’ AAdvantage program. We were expecting a devaluation, because when an airline announces “enhancements” they usually aren’t in our favor, but this time AA is only changing elite qualification requirements and a new way to earn elite status through credit card spending. 

There Are No Award Chart Changes at This Time

Since we’ve all been expecting it, let’s get this out of the way. At this time American is not introducing any award chart changes.

LifeMiles is a frequent flyer program of Avianca, Colombia’s biggest and oldest airline. Avianca is one of the Star Alliance member airlines so when you earn or redeem LifeMiles, you have access to the biggest airline alliance in the world and its extensive networks. Theoretically, you can get anywhere in the world with LifeMiles. 

The program has lots of fans, but it’s not the easiest to use. Airlines don’t grant all of their partners the same access to award space, and LifeMiles’ website also leaves a lot to be desired.

If you’re looking for a solid, do it all travel card, then The Platinum Card® from American Express should be on your radar. This one card brings you great airport lounge access, hotel status, and more.

Let’s keep it short, because there’s a lot to get into with this great card and we’re going to take a deep dive into everything you need to know about the Amex Platinum.

The Basics of The Platinum Card from American Express

Before we dive deep into the perks of the Amex Platinum, we need to go over all the basics.

I’ve been a huge fan of card combinations that can really sweep you off your feet at the ability to rapidly earn tons of points without chasing a bonus. Combos like the Citi Premier® Card (Note from the editor: Citi Premier® Card is no longer available to new applicants) and the Citi® Double Cash Card, or the Chase Sapphire Reserve® and the Chase Freedom Unlimited®.

For the past few years, the Chase Sapphire Reserve® and Chase Freedom Unlimited® has been my absolute go to combo.