Frontier Airlines Will Now Charge $20+ for Carry On Bags
April 28, 2014
Frontier Airlines announced today that will begin charging $20+ to bring a carry on bag onto its flights. Personal items that fit under the seat in front of you will remain free.
Frontier, predictably, is spinning this new fee as a good thing the way that airlines always justify new fees: "only pay for what you use and get a lower base fare."
This change is bad for folks flying on award tickets.
Staples.com Selling $200 Visa Gift Cards Means Ultimate Rewards for 0.47 Cents
April 28, 2014
Staples.com is selling $200 Visa gift cards online. That's good news if you're not near a Staples that carries $200 Visa gift cards.
By purchasing the $200 Visa gift cards, you can earn Ultimate Rewards for only 0.47 cents each.
Lufthansa,Award Booking,US Airways
Did US Airways Leaving the Star Alliance Create Hidden Gold Mine Routes on Lufthansa?
April 28, 2014
US Airways left the Star Alliance for oneworld last month.
5 Ways Avios Have Gotten More Valuable
April 26, 2014
United miles got less valuable in 2014. Delta miles have gotten less valuable in 2014 and will get even less valuable in June. American miles got less valuable this month. US Airways miles got less valuable this month. British Airways Avios have gotten more valuable relatively and absolutely in 2014.
What are the five reasons Avios have gotten more valuable in 2014? 1. There has been no recent Avios devaluation, and none is likely.
While the big four American airlines have devalued this year, Avios hasn't. I don't think one is coming any time soon either.
Last Chance to Get $20 in Free Taxi Rides from Uber
April 25, 2014
Uber is the world's best taxi service because it has clean, courteous drivers and the easiest taxi-ordering app imaginable.
New Uber users can get $20 in free rides when they sign up through my referral link.
(I get $20 in free rides too. Feel free to post your own referral link in the comments.)
Today (4/25) is the last day to get the $20 sign up bonus.
British Airways Cash & Avios Option Quietly Got Much Better! (Now As Cheap As 1.1 Cents per Avios)
April 24, 2014
I have already written the ultimate guide to Cash & Avios redemptions.
The gist is that on some, but not all, British Airways Avios redemptions you are given a menu of prices like this:
You can spend the full price in Avios (plus government taxes and fuel surcharges on some partners) or you can pay fewer Avios and make up the difference by paying more cash directly to British Airways.
Not all awards offer Cash & Avios options--for instance American Airlines domestic flights don't--and the "price" of Avios varies widely on Cash &
Free Spreadsheet to Download of Category 1, 2, 9, and 10 Hilton Properties Plus the Only Two Good Hilton Strategies
April 24, 2014
Update: Super reader Dave made a map of the locations of the Category 9 and 10 properties for visual learners.
Super reader Jeremy has created the most valuable spreadsheet imaginable for the Hilton HHonors program that you can download for free here.
The spreadsheet lists:
all 34 Category 1 hotels
all 131 Category 2 hotels
all 46 Category 9 hotels
all 10 Category 10 hotels
For each hotel, the name, location, and a link to its Trip Advisor reviews are listed.
Jeremy took the information from Hilton's PDF of all its hotels' categories and made it much more useful and
How to Manufacture Spending with Visa Gift Cards and Walmart Money Orders
April 23, 2014
Over the weekend, I manufactured $506.23 in spending at a cost of $6.93 (1.37%) and 3 minutes of time.
The first step was to buy a reloadable Visa gift card with my credit card. I live in Hawaii where the options for this are bleak.
How and Why I Just Booked Myself an Allegiant Air Flight
April 23, 2014
Looking at my travel plans for 2014, I realized I needed a flight from Los Angeles to Honolulu in September.
I ended up booking myself a oneway flight on Allegiant Airlines instead of using traditional miles for the ticket.
I paid for the ticket with my Barclaycard Arrival Plus™ World Elite MasterCard®, and I plan to remove part or all of the flight charge from my credit card statement by redeeming Arrival miles for the flight.