Tag: Major Updates

Finnair Devalues Finnair Plus Award Redemptions, Adds New Surcharges

July 15, 2023 0

Finnair award travel is now up to 33% more expensive, thank to a devaluation of Finnair Plus award charts. On top of that, the carrier added new fees on all award flights. Here's a look at these changes for the worse.

Max Prosperi

Cathay Pacific Asia Miles Devaluation Coming October 1. Here's What You Should Book Now.

October 2, 2023 0

Cathay Pacific's Asia Miles program may have easily-earned miles, but its award chart change is bad news. Book now to lock in current prices before both the multi-carrier and Cathay Pacific-operated charts change on October 1, 2023. Here are our recommendations of what to book.

Carissa Rawson

British Airways Cuts Award Rates, Slashes Sweet Spots on Qatar. Here's the Definitive New Award Chart.

June 10, 2023 11

AwardWallet searches show that British Airways recently standardized its award prices for Qatar Airways flights. This mixed bag of changes saw some award rates drop by 50% while others soared up to 483%. Here's a breakdown of the changes, along with the definitive award charts for Qatar-operated flights booked using British Airways Avios.

JT Genter

Plastiq Files for Bankruptcy: What This Means for You

May 25, 2023 0

We're big fans of putting all spending possible on credit cards to earn extra points and miles. When you have a bill you can't pay by credit card, third-party services may make that possible. One of the biggest of these services is Plastiq. However, Plastiq just filed for bankruptcy. If you use Plastiq to pay bills like rent, mortgage, or a car loan, here's what you should know about these proceedings.

Ryan Smith

United Makes Major Award Chart Devaluation. Here's What We Know So Far.

May 17, 2023 6

Overnight and without an announcement, it seems United MileagePlus made massive changes to its (unpublished) award chart. We haven’t yet had time to examine every route and every possibility, so expect that there will be changes and updates to this story. Here’s what we know so far.

Ryan Smith

AA Introduces Dynamic Pricing, Eliminates Saver and Award Charts

May 5, 2023 4

American Airlines recently announced a move to a dynamic award pricing model, eliminating its MileSAAver Off Peak, MileSAAver, AAnutime Level 1, and AAnytime Level 2 awards and rebranding its Web Specials as simply Flight Awards. Here's what these changes actually mean for travelers.

Sam Helmy

Hotels.com Ending Its Stay 10 Get 1 Free Rewards Program, Replacing With Much Worse 'One Key'

April 4, 2023 37

Hotels.com has announced that its stay 10 get one free rewards program will be coming to an end. The company announced that in mid-2023, the program would be replaced by the One Key program, which will be shared with Expedia and Vrbo. And it's much worse than the current program. Here are the details.

Sam Helmy

You Can Now Book Condos in the U.S. For 7,500 Wyndham Points per Night

March 28, 2023 2

After a recent change to the Wyndham Rewards redemption chart, we found that you can now book many U.S. Wyndham Vacation Club properties for just 7,500 points per bedroom per night. That's half of the previous minimum of 15,000 points per night. Locations include Kissimmee (near Orlando), Anaheim (near Disneyland), Las Vegas, and a golf resort near Phoenix.

JT Genter

Alaska Mileage Plan No-Notice Devaluation of Japan Airlines Awards

March 17, 2023 3

This week, Alaska Mileage Plan made unannounced changes to the mileage rates for awards on Japan Airlines. Award rates have now increased by as much as 100% than before. However, there's still some value to be found in this partnership. Here's a rundown of the changes — and the few award options that haven't been devaluation (yet).

JT Genter

Brex Makes No-Notice Devaluation to Cash Redemptions, Airline Point Transfers

March 11, 2023 5

Effective immediately and without notice, Brex devalued cash (and crypto) redemptions by 40% and slashed transfer rates to airline partners by over 40%. For now, accountholders can still get 1 cent per point in value from a couple redemption options. However, future cuts could be coming to the value of Brex Rewards. Here's a breakdown of today's changes.

JT Genter

New Etihad Guest Award Chart is Live and Loathsome for Partner Redemptions

March 9, 2023 2

Etihad's new award chart is unveiled, and it ain't pretty. The new distance-based award chart takes effect today, March 9, 2023. As feared, all of the sweet spots that we loved about the old, quirky award chart are gone. However, some award flights now cost less than half than before. Here's a breakdown of the Etihad award chart changes.

Jerod Morales

Marriott Eliminates 10% Bonus on Point Transfers to United, Boosts Bonus on 60k-Point Transfers

March 8, 2023 0

For years, Marriott Bonvoy offered a standing 10% bonus on all point transfers to United MileagePlus. In an unannounced change today, Marriott quietly killed off this transfer bonus. In its place, Marriott is offering a larger bonus on transfers of at least 60,000 Bonvoy points. These changes certainly create winners and losers. Here's a breakdown of the changes.

JT Genter

Virgin Atlantic Flying Club No-Notice Devaluation of ANA First Class Awards

March 7, 2023 3

Bad news award travelers: One of the best sweet spots in the points and miles ecosystem just got devalued. Effective immediately, Virgin Atlantic Flying Club is charging up to 42% more points for ANA first-class awards. Yet, somehow Flying Club might still be the best option for booking these awards. Here's a full breakdown of the changes — and the silver lining in the dark clouds.

JT Genter

Marriott Ending Bonvoy Points Advance Option on March 28th

March 2, 2023 1

Marriott is retiring a feature of the hotel chain's Bonvoy program. Effective March 28th, Bonvoy members will no longer have the option to book a Points Advance reservation if they do not have enough points in their account to cover a future stay. Here is what Bonvoy members should know about the end of Points Advance.

Max Prosperi

The Good, Bad, and Ugly of the Korean Air Award Chart Changes

February 21, 2023 7

Korean Air announced multiple changes to its program starting on April 1, 2023. Upcoming changes include new elite tiers and lower qualification requirements. In addition, some award pricing will be going up in price while others will be dropping. Here's a full breakdown of the changes.

Sam Helmy

Book Sweet Spots Now: Etihad Guest Announces Award Chart Overhaul

February 20, 2023 2

Buckle up because Etihad Guest is eliminating its current award charts and introducing a new “simplified redemption rate” award chart. That will likely eliminate many of our favorite sweet spots in this quirky program. From business class to Europe or Africa for 44,000 miles to business class to Asia for 54,000 miles each way, here are the sweet spots to book now - and how to gather the Etihad Guest miles to book them.

Jerod Morales

American Airlines Revamps Loyalty Rewards, Slashes Mileage Earnings Rate on Basic Economy

December 15, 2022 5

Today, American Airlines is announcing a slew of changes to how travelers earn rewards in the AAdvantage program. AAdvantage Gold requirements are increasing, mileage earnings on basic economy are decreasing by 60%, and American Airlines is adding several new rewards tiers — including a new one for members at just 15,000 Loyalty Points. Here's a breakdown of all of the changes.

JT Genter

JetBlue TrueBlue Announces Major Program Changes

December 10, 2022 3

This week, JetBlue announced a massive slew of changes to its TrueBlue loyalty program. The changes overhaul of how loyalty is earned, Mosaic tiers, and much more. Here's a full breakdown of what you need to know about the JetBlue loyalty program starting in 2023.

Sam Helmy

United Increases Elite Status Requirements, Adds Elite Earnings on Awards Starting in 2023

November 10, 2022 9

United MileagePlus announced some major program changes for next year. Beginning in 2023, United will implement changes to the MileagePlus program including significant increases to what's required for elite status, adding elite earnings on award flights, and removing award redeposit fees. Here's what members need to know about changes to the United MileagePlus program.

Max Prosperi

British Airways & Iberia Move To Revenue-Based Avios Earning

November 3, 2022 5

In an email to its members and a press release, Iberia announced that it is moving to a revenue-based system of Avios earnings effective immediately. In the same announcement, Iberia's partner British Airways also announced that it will move to revenue-based Avios earnings in 2023.

Sam Helmy

Details of the Massive Devaluation of Radisson Rewards Worldwide

October 26, 2022 6

Earlier this year, Radisson Rewards split in two. Now the Radisson Rewards Worldwide program (for hotels located outside the Americas) has devaluated several parts of the program. Members earn fewer points, points are worth less, etc. Here's a summary of changes, and what you can do about them.

Skye Class

Southwest Raises Requirements for Companion Pass, Program Changes

October 23, 2022 4

Southwest Airlines has implemented changes to the Rapid Rewards program, including increasing the requirements for Companion Pass, a Rapid Rewards cardholder bonus, etc. Here are the changes that took effect on January 1, 2023.

Skye Class

Marriott Bonvoy Ends Conversion Bonus to Four Airline Partners

October 18, 2022 2

Marriott Bonvoy sent out an email this week to select members notifying them that, effective October 31, 2022, the standing points conversion bonus will be ending. For now, the change only affects four of the more than 40 airlines you can transfer Marriott Bonvoy points. But it could be a bad sign of things to come.

Sam Helmy

Hilton Honors Drops 'Weekend' Requirement From Free Night Rewards

October 14, 2022 0

Great news Hilton Amex cardholders! Hilton Honors "Weekend Free Night Rewards" can now be used any night of the week. Going forward, these certificates will simply be called Hilton Free Night Rewards. Here's how to earn these valuable free night certificates.

Skye Class

Air France/KLM Flying Blue Lowers Mileage Requirements for Transatlantic Economy Awards

September 18, 2022 2

Air France/KLM Flying Blue recently adjusted its award rates between North America and Europe. But surprisingly this is actually good news. Standard transatlantic economy class award rates now begin at just 15,000 miles. These new, lower redemption rates vary by city. Here's a chart of the cheapest award prices we are finding on Flying Blue's 39 transatlantic nonstop routes.

Ross Denkin

Aeroplan to Update Some Award Pricing Effective September 1, 2022

August 12, 2022 0

Air Canada's Aeroplan award program has announced a series of tweaks to its award chart. Rather than overhauling the entire chart, pricing changes are affecting some routes between North and South America, North America and Europe/Africa, as well as some routes that don't touch North America. Here's what you need to know so you can lock in the cheapest rates.

Sam Helmy

IHG Hotels and Resorts Introduces New IHG One Rewards Program

April 27, 2022 4

IHG is finally launching its new IHG One Rewards program. The new program sees significant changes - including a new elite tier - while some tiers have been renamed and qualifying requirements have been tweaked. Also, there are brand new benefits for some tiers, and IHG has announced the upcoming introduction of its Milestone Rewards.

Sam Helmy

Details Released of Which 200+ Marriott Hotels are Moving to Dynamic Pricing March 29, 2022

February 26, 2022 0

Marriott Bonvoy just released the details on 200+ hotels that are moving to dynamic pricing on March 29, 2022. Here's the list of the hotels that will increase in price, plus how many extra points you will need. Other news includes what we can expect for 2023 and when you will be able to add points to free night awards for high-priced bookings. There's a lot to digest in here, so grab a drink and dive in with us.

Ryan Smith

Qatar Airways Will Adopt Avios, the Points of British Airways, Iberia & Aer Lingus

February 22, 2022 5

Major news out of Qatar Airways is that the airline has adopted Avios as its mileage currency. Avios is the points currency of British Airways, Iberia, and Aer Lingus. There can be some major implications for travelers with this shift. Here is what we know so far and what remains to be clarified in the coming weeks.

Ryan Smith

Changes to Expedia Rewards Starting on February 1, 2022

January 26, 2022 5

Expedia is relaunching its rewards program on February 1, 2022. Expedia's elite status will soon require earning "Trip Elements" and the earning rate for these elite status credits depend on what type of booking you make (flight, car, hotel, cruise). Here’s a quick briefer of the new rewards program, how you earn points, and the other details you should know about.

Ryan Smith