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Summaries and links for all the posts which appeared on Traveling For Miles this week. Includes news of some unfriendly changes to the Hilton Honors program and to the IHG best rate guarantee, details of some amazing Business Class fares between Europe and Australia as well as some great SkyTeam fares to China and other parts of Asia, the latest “buy miles” promotions from American and United, a look at my “interesting” experiences with Uber in Los Angeles and a lot more.
Click on the headlines to read more
Monday
Introduction: Sydney For 3 Nights Using A Super Cheap Business Class Fare & Points
An introduction to a 3-night trip I recently took to Sydney flying Malaysia Airlines Business Class and staying at the Marriott at Circular Quay – this was great trip at a great price!
Hilton Honors Is Eliminating “Points & Miles”, Changing Elite Earnings & Adding New Bonuses
Changes are coming to the Hilton Honors program from 1 April 2018 and the news appears to be a mixture of good and bad depending on how often you stay at Hilton properties, what status you hold and what earning option you prefer.
Tuesday
AMAZING DEAL: Europe – Australia Business Class For Under €1,700 RT!!!
Qatar Airways is starting the new year with a bang with some truly mind-blowing Business Class class fares between Europe and Australia which seem to start at around €1,678 roundtrip. The icing on the cake is the fact that the fares appear to be available for large parts of 2018 and aren’t all that difficult to find (at the time of writing).
British Airways Is Improving Its Economy Class Food Offering….Sort Of….
British Airways has announced that it will be making improvements to its long-haul Economy Class food offering from 17 January 2018 but, despite what the airline is saying, it would appear that the improvements are not really that extensive.
American Airlines Is Now Selling Miles For 2.1 Cents Each
American Airlines is back with another offer of a bonus for anyone still willing to buy AAdvantage miles and in keeping with the recent trend the airline is repeating a promotion we’ve seen before – buy miles and get up to 50,000 bonus miles thrown in.
British Airways Confirms That It’s Scrapping Credit Card Surcharges
British Airways has confirmed that as of 10 January 2018 there will be no surcharges when a customer pays by debit card, consumer credit card or most other forms of electronic payment. Corporate credit cards will still be liable to a 1% surcharge.
Wednesday
I Don’t Understand What Hilton Is Doing With Its Loyalty Program
Hilton has been putting through a number of changes to its Honors loyalty program recently and, having sat back and taken a look at what’s been happening, I’m not sure I understand what Hilton is up to. From where I’m sitting it would appear as if a large portion of the chain’s customers no longer have all that much incentive to make more stays at Hilton properties than they may otherwise have done….and isn’t that what the Honors program is supposed to encourage?
Review: Malaysia Airlines A330 Business Class (KUL-SYD)
A review of the Malaysia Airlines A330 Business Class class cabin in which, as it turns out, it’s very important to choose the right seat – some are a LOT better than others.
IHG Changes Terms Of Its Best Rate Guarantee – No More Free Nights
IHG has altered the terms of its best rate guarantee (low price promise) to eliminate the free night that was once on offer in favor of issuing IHG Rewards points based on the room rate booked – chalk this up to another IHG devaluation.
Buy United Miles And Get A Bonus Through 22 January
The latest United miles promotion is now live and the airline is once again offering customers a bonus if they add miles to their Mileage Plus account. It’s unclear if the latest promotion is targeted but, for reference, the highest bonus I can earn is 60%.
Thursday
My Travels In 2017 – The Numbers
I’ve had a few emails from readers asking how my travels in 2017 panned out, what statuses I managed to earn for 2018 and a lot more so I thought I’d condense all that information in to one simple blog post….and here it is.
Review: Sydney Harbour Marriott Hotel At Circular Quay
An in-depth review of the Sydney Harbour Marriott at Circular key with a look inside the rooms, a walk-through of the drinking and dining options on site, details of the Executive Lounge together with the breakfast offered to Marriott elites and more.
Pet Peeve: I HATE It When Blogs Do This
There are a number of things that I occasionally see in the miles & points blogosphere that annoy me (like bloggers cozying up to airlines or hotel chains when they should be bashing them for some of their unfriendly practices) but there’s one thing above all others that seems to get me really, really annoyed and some blogs are a lot more guilty of this than others.
Friday
Why Marriott Flight And Hotel Packages Are Not Always The Best Marriott Rewards Redemptions
Marriott Flight & Hotel packages (or Marriott Travel Packages) can be a great use of Marriott Rewards points…but they’re not the always-amazing redemption some make them out to be.
UBER In Los Angeles: The Good, The Bad And The Ugly From A Recent Trip
Our experiences with Uber in Los Angeles on our last trip could definitely be described as mixed – drivers that refused to turn up and drivers who had no idea how to drive were low points while the value you can get out UberX when visiting LA was a definite high.
Excellent Business Class Fares Between Warsaw & China/Hong Kong/Thailand/India/South Korea
Blog posts about good Business Class sales between Europe and Asia usually center around Qatar Airways and, occasionally, Finnair….but this time neither of those airlines is involved. Surprisingly, at least to me, SkyTeam is currently offering a selection of excellent Business Class fares between Warsaw and various cities in Asia.
