New American Airlines Vacations Elite Credit: How Does It Work?

AAVacations can be a great deal, one thing I'd point out is you don't need to stay in the hotel for the 3 days you just have to book it. Pick the cheapest hotel option, often in Europe this can be very cheap, and throw it away. That only makes sense if the discount for the flight is large enough but IME at least to places like AMS it can be (Save 2000 on flights, throw away 200 in hotels). I've done 3 deals with AAV and never once stepped foot in the hotel I booked with the package.

One thing I'm unclear on is whether the minimum spend requirement refers to the total amount inclusive of all taxes, or only the base package price (which would make it much more difficult to reach $2500).

On my last AA Vacations booking, for example, the "Taxes and Carrier Imposed Fees" were higher than the "Package Price" itself.

Just confirming that EQDs are earned for flights purchase through AA Vacations, just at the 10% - 40% rate per mile flown depending on booking code. Is this correct?

https://www.aa.com/i18n/aadvantage-program/miles/earn/special-fares.jsp

@Lucky:

1. Does the airline portion earn EQM/EQS/EQD and are they at the normal rate? Or also discounted earnings? or only earning redeemable miles?

2. Can it include travel on OWA partners? or has to be all AA?

If yes to #1, I might consider, and if yes to both #1 and #2 then maybe even moreso.

One way or another, thanks for sharing this and thanks for all that you and the OMAAT team do.

@RobPHX
1. It depends, when booking if there's an '(*)' next to the booking code it is a special fare and earns at the rates in the link @AS posted above. The better discounts IME tend to be special fares.
2. It always books on AA code but you can use OW airlines, all of the times I've used it for example were BA metal AA marketed.

@ AS -- Yes, and you will often earn more EQDs this way than through a standard ticket purchase directly from AA, especially in premium cabins.

I assume AAV will be coded as travel for Amex Green or CSP/CSR/CIP card? Wish they have calendar search to find cheapest J, quite PITA to do manual search or throwing darts in the dark to find cheapest fares.

AA Vacations works best when you use it as the name implies -- for a vacation. I might earn my points at Hilton when I travel for work, but when I kick back in Cancun for a long weekend, then a flight & hotel package at an all-inclusive resort fits the bill. It's situations like these -- when I'm staying someplace where I don't have an opportunity to earn points or if I don't care about them -- that the vacation packages work best.

Question, can your outbound flight be after your hotel departure. For instance go somewhere for 3 weeks but only have a hotel for 3 nights and score the discount?