Smart Points Newsletter

The British carrier currently offers 30% off all reward flights on specific routes in and out of London through May 31st. To take advantage of the discount, you’ll need to book before February 28th. The deal’s not quite as extensive (or as generous) as the 50% one last year, but 30% is nothing to be scoffed at.⁠ ⁠ The downside is that flying into the UK typically means high fees, and Virgin doesn’t have a way of using points to pay for those. A one-way flight from New York to London can cost as little as 7,000 points and $150, which is a pretty exceptional value, but a return would see that fee crank up to around $400.⁠ ⁠ If you have the points available, I’d recommend booking a one-way with Virgin, then booking a British Airways flight back. That would come out to 7,000 Virgin miles, 25,000 Avios points/miles, and $250 total – not bad.⁠ ⁠ Read more at the link in bio!

Spirit pretty much markets itself as one huge sweet spot, but anyone that’s flown with them knows this is far from the case. In many instances, flying with checked bags and a carry-on, picking your seats, and even checking in all add fees that eventually make it more expensive than flying with other airlines. Points can help make Spirit a useful airline, but you must keep some things in mind to keep value. Read more: https://dollarflightclub.activehosted.com/index.php?action=social&chash=1fdc0ee9d95c71d73df82ac8f0721459.6430&s=f458a7ba9a3093fad886ebbf60ebcb2c

Spirit pretty much markets itself as one huge sweet spot, but anyone that’s flown with them knows this is far from the case. In many instances, flying with checked bags and a carry-on, picking your seats, and even checking in all add fees that eventually make it more expensive than flying with other airlines. Points can help make Spirit a useful airline, but you must keep some things in mind to keep value. Read more: https://dollarflightclub.activehosted.com/index.php?action=social&chash=1fdc0ee9d95c71d73df82ac8f0721459.6430&s=f458a7ba9a3093fad886ebbf60ebcb2c

This is huge news for me personally, and can be for you too. British Airways is notorious for its high fees and surcharges, especially when flying into the UK. It’s not uncommon for the charges to skyrocket into the thousands if you fly business.⁠ ⁠ But BA has announced an amazing new workaround – Reward Flight Saver rates. Using this payment option, customers can choose to pay more miles at a fixed fee rate, far lower than the fluctuating typical ones. This does mean you’ll lose a significant amount of points compared to the other option, but you’ll keep more cash in your pocket.⁠ ⁠ I’m delighted at the news, as my specific goals are flying cheap and regularly as opposed to luxury tickets and the like, but it’s important for you to assess which is best for you. It’s still possible to choose the traditional method and hold onto more points for a later date. ⁠ ⁠ Read more: https://dollarflightclub.activehosted.com/index.php?action=social&chash=7b99efbc101a6013d2c710028bca5cbf.6310&s=f458a7ba9a3093fad886ebbf60ebcb2c

Long before I took a deep dive into the world of points, I was a road runner, staying in hotels for a few days each week for four months of the year for work. Hilton was the first hotel brand I stumbled into, and I stuck with it, realizing that the more I stayed, the more perks I received. But as I’d walk from my car to the lobby with each stay, I’d glance at the Diamond member parking spot, angered that I was limited to every other space besides that one. My nights tally fell short for two years, never quite getting past Gold. Of course, now I know I could just open the Hilton Aspire Amex Card, keep diamond status, and balance out the high yearly fee after just three stays. Read more: https://dollarflightclub.activehosted.com/index.php?action=social&chash=7bec7e63a493e2d61891b1e4051ef75a.6274&s=f458a7ba9a3093fad886ebbf60ebcb2c

How to find cheap flights using American’s off-peak saver rates: Search for flights during American’s off-peak dates. These usually fall from April 21st to May 20th and September 9th to November 18th. Check the monthly view, where you can see the lowest rate offered. Running searches from major airports for mid-April, I’ve found as low as 10,000 points each way. Select the MileSAAver off-peak rate, which will have added fees of $37.46. Repeat for the return leg of your choice. You’ll need to book them both separately. The fees coming back will be around $63, so you’ve got the whole trip for under $100.

United has gifted us an early Christmas gift: A slew of elevated intro bonus offers on each of their co-branded Chase credit cards. While airline cards are not as flexible as general travel cards like the Chase Sapphire Reserve or Amex Platinum, United’s points are still super valuable. In fact, the flights I suggested to Zach were all booked via United’s travel portal.⁠ ⁠ Cards and bonuses available:⁠ ⁠ - United Gateway: 30,000 points after spending $1000 within three months of opening the card⁠ ⁠ - United Explorer: 60,000 points after spending $3000 within three months of opening the card⁠ ⁠ - United Quest: 80,000 points after spending $5000 within three months of opening the card⁠ ⁠ - United Infinite: 100,000 points after spending $5000 within three months of opening the card. ⁠ ⁠ Read more: https://dollarflightclub.activehosted.com/index.php?action=social&chash=3ffebb08d23c609875d7177ee769a3e9.6242&s=f458a7ba9a3093fad886ebbf60ebcb2c

Southwest loyalists should act quickly to snap up the popular carrier’s limited-time intro bonus of 75,000 points on all three of its credit cards. That’s worth up to $1000, and if used on their cheapest “Wanna Get Away” rate, can cover as many as four domestic roundtrips or a couple to the Caribbean. You’ve got until December 5th to grab a card. The products utilizing the intro bonus are the Southwest Rapid Rewards Plus, Premier, and Priority cards, which have an annual fees of $69, $99, and $149, respectively. All three require the same $3000 worth of spending in the first three months to claim the award. The Priority Card is more than worth the little bit of extra cash per year. Holders get a $75 statement credit for travel on Southwest and an extra 7,500 points each, comfortably justifying the fee. Priority holders also get four upgraded flights a year where available. Read more: https://dollarflightclub.activehosted.com/index.php?action=social&chash=417fbbf2e9d5a28a855a11894b2e795a.6222&s=f458a7ba9a3093fad886ebbf60ebcb2c

Bad news for Delta SkyMiles holders, including myself. Your points have just been devalued again…possibly.✈️ Some are hoping it’s a temporary measure or mistake in the system, but multiple outlets have reported that partner flights booked through Delta using SkyMiles are now being matched with Delta operated costs. If you’re unsure what this means, here’s an example: Previously, if you wanted to book a flight with one of Delta’s SkyTeam partners, you could check Delta’s booking portal and find excellent deals using your SkyMiles. A hypothetical flight to Paris might cost 60,000 SkyMiles using a Delta operated route. The same route using Air France might only have costed 35,000 points. Now, it appears Delta have increased any partner flights to match their own, so that Air France route is now 60,000 miles, too. Read more: https://dollarflightclub.activehosted.com/index.php?action=social&chash=838aac83e00e8c5ca0f839c96d6cb3be.6207&s=f458a7ba9a3093fad886ebbf60ebcb2c

One of the biggest perks enjoyed by high-tier Hilton Honors members could be under threat, after guests have reported being upsold by the globally recognized hotel chain.⁠ ⁠ Gold and Diamond Hilton Honors members are traditionally promised a complimentary upgrade if available at check in. But in recent weeks, Hilton has been offering paid room upgrades when checking in on the Hilton App. This feature was generally only used on Silver or non-elite members in the past, but now appears to be rolled out to everyone.⁠ ⁠ Although the “space-available complimentary upgrade” system is still in place, hotels are not required to offer the benefit to Diamond or Gold members. While there are many factors in place that could impact a hotel’s decision to offer the upgrades for free, the potential profit has led many industry experts to speculate the benefit might disappear for many members.⁠ ⁠ Read more: https://dollarflightclub.activehosted.com/index.php?action=social&chash=593906af0d138e69f49d251d3e7cbed0.6175&s=f458a7ba9a3093fad886ebbf60ebcb2c

There’s a fair chance you’ve never flown Virgin Atlantic, but that doesn’t mean it can’t be incredibly useful for you. As mentioned above, the carrier’s rewards points are some of the most versatile out there! ⁠ ⁠ If you’re confused as to why someone would book another airline with Virgin Points, it’s because airlines have different systems for reward tickets. For example, a Delta flight from the US to Europe sometimes costs 150,000 points. The same flight booked with Virgin Points only costs 50,000. This is a great example of why Virgin points are so valuable.⁠ ⁠ Each of these fares can be booked on other airlines with Virgin Points: ⁠ ⁠ - One way business class, US to Japan for 55,000 points with ANA⁠ - One-way from JFK to the UK for 20,000 points⁠ - Round-trip from LAX to Auckland, New Zealand for 80,000⁠ - One way Delta One (business class) JFK to LAX

You may have heard in recent weeks about the new Bipartisan Bill named the Credit Card Competition Act that’s making its way through the US Congress. To summarize its contents, lawmakers are hoping to introduce legislation that would require major banks to process credit transactions on two or more networks. The kicker? One of those companies can’t be Visa or Mastercard. At first glance, this could be good. It might increase competition and in turn drive down credit card charges, passing on savings to the consumer and the retailer. But we’re a points newsletter, and it our take is that it could be disastrous for that side of things. Read more: https://dollarflightclub.activehosted.com/index.php?action=social&chash=010e406df2463597c58286a93f8b3160.6118&s=f458a7ba9a3093fad886ebbf60ebcb2c

Depending on how active you are with points, Delta’s decision to roll out a pay-by-points option for checked bags could be a nice way to save a few bucks on your next flight. A checked bag typically costs $30, but passengers will be able to use 3000 Skymiles instead. When you’ll have the opportunity is unclear, as the implementation is happening airport by airport until it’s available nationwide. The carrier had trialed the concept pre-pandemic but shelved it for obvious reasons in 2020. If you’re a serious points traveler, it’s almost never going to be worth your time to use this feature. But if you’re a more casual credit card user, you might have a few thousand points hanging around that you can throw toward making a flight a little bit cheaper.

Piggybacking on Alaska Airlines' offer above and combining it with the news that Japan looks to be fully open soon and even Hong Kong could be on the horizon, I thought it’d be a good idea to delve into a long-running sweet spot that’s there for those willing to put in the work.⁠ ⁠ Alaska’s mileage chart is one of the simplest ways to understand the value on offer. A quick glance at reward flights from the US to Asia shows one-way fares in economy to Japan, Singapore, and even Hong Kong for as little as 30 thousand points. These are great in themselves, but if you’re feeling like experiencing something special, the extra effort can get you a business or first-class ticket.⁠ ⁠ Read more: https://dollarflightclub.activehosted.com/index.php?action=social&chash=a8a427afafda854020c951467cc2b4b7.6091&s=f458a7ba9a3093fad886ebbf60ebcb2c