Tag: Frequent Flyer Miles

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United Airlines' Frequent Flyer Sale Knocks Off 25% to Europe or Africa

January 9, 2012 at 9:50 AM | by | Comments (0)

We know there’s plenty of people saving—or even hoarding—those frequent flyer miles in hopes of the next great redemption or value. Now just might be the best time to cash some in, as United Airlines is running a decent sale on redeeming MileagePlus miles for an award ticket.

The airline is offering up to a 25% discount on "free" flights—plus taxes and fees of course—to most destinations in Europe as well as Central and Southern Africa. The biggest savings are available on Mondays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays, as you’ll only get a 20% discount during other days of the week. There’s probably all kinds of permutations and calculations involved with your dream ticket, but a basic 60,000 mile coach ticket to Europe from the United States can now be had for as little as 45,000 miles round-trip.

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Finally! The British Airways Visa Signature Credit Card Goes Chip-and-Pin

November 30, 2011 at 5:07 PM | by | Comment (1)

YESSSSSSSSSSSSS!!!!!! Finally finally finally US credit card companies are getting wise to the need for cardholders to have EMV-enabled cards, which you may better recognize as the ones with the embedded chip on the left side.

We've been following the progress of this since earlier this year when both Wells Fargo and Chase began issuing limited amounts to their highest spending, heaviest traveling cardmembers. Now the technology has finally trickled down to the level of Chase's British Airways Visa Signature.

This card, thanks to generous past sign-up bonuses and the fact it has no foreign transaction fees, is now carried by many American frequent flyers who will no doubt benefit from being able to shop like the rest of Europe—with the chip-and-pin instead of a swipe-and-sign. Like us, who've felt the sting of being turned down because a register was no longer equipped for our archaic VISA (example: Amsterdam Schiphol train station).

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How Does a Red Kangaroo Say 'I'm Sorry?'

Where: Australia
November 15, 2011 at 4:09 PM | by | Comments (0)

We already talked about how the CEO of Qantas decided to counter industrial action by shutting down the complete worldwide operations. Since that weekend, Qantas is back up in the skies with a new motto, "Book with confidence and certainty," and a lot of explaining to do for the more than 70,000 passengers that were left stranded.

Leaving travelers stranded and with unanswered questions, Qantas had to do something. During the shutdown, the company offered to reimburse those who needed to re-book on different airlines, even pay the difference of airfares. For those who decided to stay in the city in which they were stranded, Qantas paid hotels, meals and phone calls up to a certain amount. If you were one of the unlucky passengers and you're still struggling to figure out what you get from all this, visit Qantas' website for more details.

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From British Airways Miles to Avios Points: Breaking It Down

November 10, 2011 at 11:27 AM | by | Comments (0)

This month means more than just the beginning of holiday travel season; it also marks the beginning of a new era at British Aiways with the re-branding of their frequent flyer program to "Avios." Say cheers to the former loyalty program managed by AirMiles on November 16th.

Basically, BA Miles used to be managed through AirMiles who has done the re-branding. BA is just using the program as a "currency" to redeem flights and hotels. This shift is to align with the frequent flyer programs of its joint venture partner, Iberia, and mirror other Oneworld partner airline programs. Executive Club is sticking around and its members will be accruing Avios points instead of BA Miles. Don't worry, if you have heaps of points in Executive Club, you won't loose them.

The move to Avios is not just a name change, but the program claims to make earning points and higher status levels, as well as redeeming points for flights and upgrades, far easier. Let's see if they're right.

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Mexico's Interjet Crosses the Border for New Flights to the US

November 8, 2011 at 12:12 PM | by | Comment (1)

There’s a new airline getting ready to land in the United States, and if all goes well it’ll save you a few bucks when trying to head south of the border. Interjet is a low-cost carrier based in Mexico, but they’re now planning to expand outside of the country into our backyard.

Their first flights will be a nonstop option between San Antonio and Mexico City, and the plan is to start flying back and forth beginning at the start of December. Flights will run each day of the week with a couple on weekdays, but there will only be single flights doing their thing over the weekend. Obviously the airline is excited about their expansion, so they’re even offering round-trip flights for around $250 to celebrate.

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United and PayPal Team Up to Help You Spend Those Frequent Flyer Miles

October 20, 2011 at 1:00 PM | by | Comments (0)

There are plenty of awful ways to redeem your frequent flyer miles, but United Airlines is partnering up with PayPal to add another. We might be a little harsh in our assessment, but seriously, you're going to get the best value redeeming for a flight—so keep saving up for the trip to Tahiti.

Anyway, beginning next year PayPal users&3151;thanks to some help from ezRez Software—should be able to utilize United MileagePlus miles at pretty much any retailer that accepts PayPal for payment. The plan is that you'll buy your stuff directly through online retailers and that your frequent flyer account will be deducted upon placing your order. You won't have to go through United or their online shopping mall, so it should be at least a more streamlined experience.

Like we said initially it might not be the ideal place to burn some frequent flyer miles. However, if you're just dying for the latest iPad—and already have completed your travel bucket list—having another option might be a good thing. Happy shopping!

[Photo: United Airlines]

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A Gold Star for Virgin Australia's Frequent Flyer Status Match

October 18, 2011 at 4:13 PM | by | Comments (0)


One of the old Virgin Blue Velocity Gold cards

Virgin Australia, the airline formerly known as Virgin Blue, not only changed their name back in May, but flipped the flying game in Australia.

More recently, the Aussie airline upped the ante competing with Qantas by offering a Velocity Frequent Flyer status match for other airline's frequent flyer programs. With a simple email and proof of your current status with a competing program, Virgin bellied up to the bar and automatically (not to mention quickly) upgraded any member to the corresponding status in Velocity.

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Last-Minute Upgrading at the Gate is Not for the Faint of Heart

September 13, 2011 at 8:35 AM | by | Comments (7)

Every frequent flyer worth his or her salt has a history of how-I-got-my-upgrade stories. We've got another one to throw on the pile, but it's also a cautionary tale for the next time you think you can swing a comfy seat at the very last minute.

Picture this: it's morning in Las Vegas and after a few days of taking care of business in Sin City and enjoying the nightlife, we've not slept and are facing three flights over a span of 20 hours to reach Southeast Asia, all in Economy. On top of it, we've got to spend at least a solid three hours working on our laptop on the flights. What to do?

Using the check-in kiosk as Las Vegas-McCarran, United popped up a sweet offer: Upgrade to Business Class for an extra $619? We'd already upgraded to Economy Plus for one leg, and were impatient to check in, so we turned down the offer and zipped through security to the gate. By then, the upgrade was looking pretty good and since United hadn't asked for any miles in addition to the money, it became a serious option. It's not like we'd have many United MileagePlus miles to offer anyway; we're not huge United flyers in general (though we do love us some Star Alliance).

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Pajama Party on American Airlines as First Class Gets New Turndown Service

August 29, 2011 at 6:07 PM | by | Comments (0)

American Airlines giveth and American Airlines taketh away. In case you missed it (and they probably hoped you did, AA announced on Friday that they'd begin charging "premium seat" fees. This means $4 and up on top of your airfare if you'd like to grab a window or aisle seat towards the front of the economy cabin. No, the seats themselves aren't nicer or the service better; they're just...closer to the front.

To counter this, today American came out with their "Fly Better. Feel Better." advances for First Class flyers. They will now be the first US airline to offer turndown service on flights, complete with a quilted bed topper for lie-flat seats, a light duvet, large pillow, revamped amenity kit, AA logo-embroidered slippers and a pajama set. There's even a new "day blanket" for cuddling up with your book or iPad, but not so cuddled up you'd drift to sleep.

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Steaks on a Plane! Frequent Flyer Tweets, Gets Special Delivery at Newark Airport

Where: Newark-Liberty International [map], Newark, NJ, United States
August 18, 2011 at 12:06 PM | by | Comments (0)

Sit back and listen to this tale of social media customer service gone right, where frequent flying combined with brand loyalty and humor equaled genuine surprise:

Peter Shankman is as frequent a flyer as you'll ever find; following him on Twitter you'll quickly get a sense of this, plus his preference for Continental Airlines and Newark-Liberty Airport.

Yesterday, as Shankman relates in his blog post, he flew to Miami for a business lunch and dreaded the hunger that would gnaw upon returning to Newark Airport that night. So he tweeted about it:

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Inside Amsterdam-Schiphol Airport: The Ginormous KLM Crown Lounge

Where: Amsterdam-Schiphol Airport, Amsterdam, Netherlands
August 12, 2011 at 5:27 PM | by | Comments (0)

Welcome to Amsterdam Week here on Jaunted! Each day, we're coming at ya with a Double Dutch of features: two stories on a city (and its airport) that stuns with its beauty and nearly overwhelms with everything there is to do. Got any Amsterdam tips of your own? Share with us in the comments!

Today at Amsterdam-Schiphol Airport, we're visiting the KLM Crown Lounge for international (non-Schengen) departures

Now we've reached the end of our week-long series on Schiphol Airport, but we're leaving you in KLM's international departures lounge for flyers with KLM or SkyTeam status. It's a perfect place to leave off, since this is where many travelers really begin their journeys and it's through these glass doors and beyond this KLM-blue desk that you really want to be.

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So, What Does a Frequent Flyer Get After Racking Up 10 Million Miles?

July 11, 2011 at 4:35 PM | by | Comment (1)

By now you've probably heard the story of Tom Stuker, the first man to fly 10 million miles on United. This past weekend, the man—who's made over 200 trips to Australia, 50 to Asia and 80 just to Hawaii—received the first-ever Titanium United Mileage Plus loyalty card and partied down at O'Hare Airport after achieving the milestone.

Of course we're wondering how all the travel effects his social and family life, but the bigger question is: what sort of perks does Tom Stuker now get to enjoy? Let's count up all we know:

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