Weekly Review: January 26, 2019

Hello from Sri Lanka! While I’ve been to Colombo many times before, Ford and I are spending the week exploring the countryside of Sri Lanka, which has been incredible. I’ll have more thoughts on the experience in a subsequent post, but so far I have nothing but good things to say.

On the points & travel front, this week EVA Air was in the news regarding a rather disgusting passenger, Aircalin revealed they’d introduce a new business class seat, Lufthansa announced an award chart devaluation, we learned the details of Marriott’s new Bonvoy credit cards, and more.

With that out of the way, here’s a recap of this week on the blog:

Featured Stories

9 Reasons To Get The Citi Premier Card

When it comes to mid-range credit cards, the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card seems to be the most popular card. However, for someone looking for a mid-range card with a reasonable annual fee, the Citi Premier^® Card is seriously worth considering.

In this post, I wanted to look at nine reasons you should consider applying for this card, if you’re eligible.

How To Use Air Canada Aeroplan Miles

For the less familiar, Aeroplan is the once spun-off but now recently-acquired loyalty program for Air Canada. So if you are earning Air Canada miles, you are actually accumulating miles with Aeroplan.

I know many bemoan the devaluations we’ve seen with Aeroplan over the years — perhaps, rightly so — but there’s plenty of great ways to use Aeroplan miles if you know where to look. Value can be found in everything from complex sweet-spot awards to just leveraging the routing rules and partner network.

With that in mind, I wanted to put together some info to make redeeming Aeroplan miles a bit easier so you don’t have to dig for info when you have questions. We’ll cover how to book, award regions, stopovers and open jaws and more.

With that, let’s dig into it!

Where To Credit Hong Kong Airlines Flights

If you’re one of the people who was able to take advantage of the killer Hong Kong Airlines deals last August, your trip is likely approaching soon, and you might be wondering where to credit the miles. I originally wrote this post right after the fare was published, but a few things have changed, so I figured we were due for an update.

I personally booked tickets to Vietnam — a trip with our moms that my cousin Heather and I have been wanting to take for a few years — and did so without giving too much thought to the points accrual.

After all, this isn’t a fare you book for the miles you’re going to earn.

But it turns out there are some interesting possibilities.

TIPS: Earning Miles & Promos

Last Chance: $2,000/200K Mile Capital One Spark Card Bonuses
9 Reasons To Get The Citi Premier Card
Review: Savor Rewards Card From Capital One
Great Philippine Airlines A350 Business Class Fares To North America
One Week Left For Huge Capital One Spark Card Bonuses
How Soon Do Hyatt Elite Nights From Spending Post?
New Promo: Buy Hyatt Points With A Bonus
What Qualifies As Dining & Travel On The Chase Sapphire Reserve?
Where To Credit Hong Kong Airlines Flights
Zeel Offering $40 Off First Massage
Barclaycard Arrival Plus 70K Bonus With Annual Fee Waived
Great Deal: 10% Cash Back On Marriott Stays
Buy IHG Points With A Bonus
Get The SPG Amex Before It Closes To New Applicants
Alaska Offering Bonus On Purchased Miles
Alaska Adds Annual Limit On Buying Miles
Buy Choice Privileges Points For 30% Off

TRICKS: Redeeming Miles

Hyatt Guest Of Honor: How Does It Work? [2019]
Last Chance To Select Your 2018 Delta Choice Benefits
How To Use Air Canada Aeroplan Miles
Redeem Miles For American Airlines Premium Economy Starting Tomorrow
An Impressive New Award Search Tool From Juicy Miles
Lufthansa Miles & More Award Chart Devaluation

TRAVEL With Ben (Lucky)

Why I Bought IHG Rewards Club Points
Downgraded On ANA, And I’m Not Sure Why

REVIEWS & Trip Reports

Planning A Trip To Vietnam (And Maybe Beyond)
Review: Cafe By Mise En Place Tampa Airport (Priority Pass Restaurant)
Review: Delta One 757 Washington DCA To Los Angeles
Impressions Of SriLankan Airlines A330 Business Class

NEWS & Updates

Video: 15 Year Old Boy Tours Putin’s Plane
Ouch: United 777 Stranded In Goose Bay For 11+ Hours (And Counting)
Insane: EVA Air Passenger Demanded Crew Wipe His Butt (And A LOT More)
Aircalin Introducing New Business Class On A330-900neo
Emirates Reducing Economy Baggage Allowance
Should We Be Thanking TSA Employees For Working? Maybe Not…
Regent Hotels Joining IHG Rewards Club As Of February 1, 2019
Confirmed: Turkish Airlines’ New Business Class Seat
Rapper Azealia Banks Launches Online Tirade After Being Banned From Aer Lingus
Alaska Airlines Delays Paine Field Flights Due To Government Shutdown
All Nippon Airways Considering Investing In Philippine Airlines
How Many American Concierge Key Members Are There? We May Have Just Found Out…
Say Hello To The Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant & Marriott Bonvoy Boundless Credit Cards
Impressions Of Japan Airlines 787 Business Class
Video: Students Break Out In Song On Ryanair Flight
Air Tahiti Nui Wants To Launch The World’s Longest Flight… There’s Just One Problem
Parker New York Becoming A Hyatt
Centurion Lounge Las Vegas Reopened After Temporary Closure
Impressive: Air France Management & Pilots Reach Tentative Agreement
China Finally Bans Smoking In The Cockpit
Ouch: IAG Selling Stake In Norwegian, No Longer Interested In Takeover
Southwest Airlines Pulls Out Of Mexico City
Aeromexico Launching Flights To Barcelona (To Annoy Emirates?)
Air New Zealand Refunds Passengers After Severe Turbulence
Family Kicked Off American Flight: Body Odor Or Discrimination?
Video: Passengers Walk Through Water As LaGuardia Terminal Floods
Doug Parker’s Expectations Vs. Reality For 2018
Delta Delays A220 Service Due To Government Shutdown
Bahrain Submerging A 747 Underwater For Scuba Divers
Hilton Trialing Confirmed Suite Upgrades For Diamond Members
Ethiopian Airlines Cancels Los Angeles, Adds Houston