I’ve been lucky that almost all of my points and miles redemptions have gone off without complication. It seems that the only time I have any trouble is when it comes to redeeming Hilton Free Weekend Night certificates. I wrote about one bad experience here where Hilton charged my credit card $920 to buy points…
Al Maha Bookings Back to Normal?
Al Maha is one of those aspirational churning properties that people love talking about. Bedouin Suites are priced between ~$700-$2,000 per night depending on the season and feature a swimming pool, free meals, and two desert activities per day. Better yet, until March when the new Category 8 is rolled out, it can be booked…
Follow-up Re: My Marriott Business Card Debacle
Earlier this year, I applied for the Marriott Business Premier and the SPG Luxury card before the sign-up bonus rules changed on August 26th. In a prior post, I explained that it took me a while to get the Marriott card approved and when I finally did, they sent me the new version of the…
My Marriott Business Card Debacle
Chase and Amex implemented a new set of rules for the Marriott and SPG credit cards on August 26th. Prior to this rule going into effect, I decided to apply for both the Amex SPG Luxury card and Chase Marriott Business Premier on August 23rd when I was still eligible for both. I was automatically approved…
Check Existing Marriott and SPG Reservations for Potential Refund Opportunities
The Marriott-SPG merger has been a hot topic the past few weeks. I was so caught up trying to book a room at the St. Regis Maldives for only 60,000 points per night that I completely overlooked a points saving opportunity for an existing reservation of mine. Earlier in the year, I booked three nights…
Why I Got the New SPG Luxury Card
The new SPG Luxury credit card from American Express launched two days ago. I think it’s safe to say that the sign-up offer of 100,000 points after spending $5,000 in the first 3 months is a little underwhelming. Despite my disappointment with the offer and the $450 annual fee, I am now a proud(?) SPG…
Why Your Starwood to Marriott Transfer Isn’t Showing Up
As you probably know, you can move points between your Starwood Preferred Guest and Marriott Rewards accounts freely with each Starpoint equaling 3 Marriott points. Until recently, all of my transfers from SPG to Marriott appeared instantly. Today I transferred 40,000 Starpoints to Marriott. However, when I went to the Marriott website to complete my…
Honeymoon Update 9: Singapore Hotels
Check out the rest of our honeymoon plans! Honeymoon Update 1: Booking Conrad Maldives Honeymoon Update 2: Booking Singapore Suites Honeymoon Update 3: Japan Airlines Business Class to Tokyo Honeymoon Update 4: Tokyo to Singapore on Japan Airlines Business Class Honeymoon Update 5: Japan Hotels Honeymoon Update 6: Round Trip Singapore to Male Honeymoon Update 7: Itinerary Change…
If You’ve Been Eyeing the Hilton Cards from Amex, Now’s the Time to Apply
Now until June 27th, you can receive an increased sign-up bonus on three of the Hilton credit cards from American Express. You can read more about the benefits of each card here. Here’s a quick breakdown of the offers. Hilton Honors Ascend Card Earn 100,000 Hilton Honors points after spending $3,000 in the first three…
Honeymoon Update 5: Japan Hotels
Check out the rest of our honeymoon plans! Honeymoon Update 1: Booking Conrad Maldives Honeymoon Update 2: Booking Singapore Suites Honeymoon Update 3: Japan Airlines Business Class to Tokyo Honeymoon Update 4: Tokyo to Singapore on Japan Airlines Business Class Honeymoon Update 5: Japan Hotels Honeymoon Update 6: Round Trip Singapore to Male Honeymoon Update 7: Itinerary Change…