Weekly Review: May 25, 2019

Hi from Florida! I’m spending the long weekend with my mother and am having a great time with her. Later this coming week Ford and I are off to Japan, a trip we’ve been looking forward to for a long time. Ford has never visited Japan before, so I’m excited to see what he thinks.

On the points & travel front, Citi introduced a transfer bonus to Virgin Atlantic, LifeMiles rolled out a promotion for OMAAT readers, Hertz increased redemption rates with no notice, UK E-Gates became accessible to more passengers, and more.

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

Featured Stories

Amazing Deal: 47K Amex Or Citi Points For Delta One Suites To India

What’s the news here? When Delta’s flight to Mumbai first became bookable, there was no way to redeem Virgin Atlantic miles for it. That’s because Virgin Atlantic couldn’t price this flight, because it was Delta’s first flight to the region.

So I guess someone at Flying Club had to decide how much a Delta award ticket should cost between the US and India, and that took quite a while. That decision has now been made, and Virgin Atlantic is charging just 60,000 Flying Club miles for nonstop business class flights between New York and Mumbai, with no fuel surcharges.

When you factor in the 30% transfer bonus, this means you can redeem just 47,000 Amex or Citi points for a Delta One ticket between New York and Mumbai. That’s spectacular.

American Status Challenges For Hyatt Elites — Are You Eligible?

Last week American and Hyatt launched an exciting new partnership. When members initially registered to link their accounts, many American elite members reported seeing Hyatt status fast track promotions.

However, the American fast track promotions for Hyatt elite members seem less readily available… until now.

Not everyone will be targeted, though quite a few people are reporting seeing offers even though they haven’t been emailed about them.

Spark Miles Card Adds Credit For Global Entry Or TSA PreCheck

The Capital One Spark Miles for Business (Rates & Fees) is a really well rounded business credit card that I picked up late last year, after Capital One made some significant improvements to the card.

Now it’s getting even better.

This is a really flexible business credit card, given that for each dollar spent you’re essentially earning either two cents towards travel, or up to 1.5 airline miles (points transfer to partners at a ratio of up to 2:1.5).

TIPS: Earning Miles & Promos

Best Western Offering $20 Gift Card For One Stay This Summer
Capital One Savor: A $500 Bonus, 4% Back On Dining, Plus 5 Other Reasons To Get The Card
Citi Offering 30% Bonus On Points Transfers To Virgin Atlantic
Four Seasons Bora Bora Promotions
Last Chance: Buy British Airways Avios With A 50% Bonus
Great Qatar Airways Qsuites Fares From Montreal To Cape Town
Luxury Experiences At Rosewood Hotels
Save On Cathay Pacific Flights With Amex Offers (Targeted)
Spark Miles Card Adds Credit For Global Entry Or TSA PreCheck
LifeMiles Promo For OMAAT Readers – Buy Miles For 1.375 Cents Each!
American Status Challenges For Hyatt Elites — Are You Eligible?
Buy Choice Privileges Points For 30% Off
Hertz Gold Plus Rewards’ Massive No-Notice Devaluation
Amazing Iberia Business Class Fares From Spain To Mexico
Aegean Offering 40% Bonus On Purchased Miles
Radisson Rewards Offering Up To 3K Bonus Points Per Night
Buy $1,000 Orbitz Hotel Promo Code For $650
BLADE Promo: $120 Helicopter From Manhattan To Airport
Staying At A Kimpton This Summer? Don’t Forget The Secret Social Password
Great La Compagnie One-Way Business Class Fares
Last Chance: Buy Hilton Points With Up To A 100% Bonus

TRICKS: Redeeming Miles

Best Ways To Use Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan Miles
Amazing Deal: 47K Amex Or Citi Points For Delta One Suites To India
American’s Summer Business Class Award Sale To Europe
LifeMiles’ Star Alliance Award Sale (Including For Business Class)
Flying Blue Promo: Transatlantic Flights From 12,500 Miles
Lufthansa To Introduce Dynamic Award Pricing
Rare: Lots Of Air New Zealand Business Class Awards

TRAVEL With Lucky

Grand Hyatt Abu Dhabi Reopens After Mysterious Closure
Cathay Pacific’s Gay Ad Causes Controversy (But Shouldn’t)
Why American Airlines’ Upgrade Lists Cause Confusion
Dear American: This Is Why Inflight Entertainment Matters

REVIEWS & Trip Reports

Visiting Luang Prabang, Laos: Social Responsibility In A Tourist Mecca
Applying For A Cambodia E-Visa With A US Passport
Review: Park Hyatt Siem Reap

NEWS & Updates

Lufthansa Replaces Mercedes With Volkswagen For First Class Transfers
Emirates’ New First Class On US Routes — And You Can Redeem Miles!
La Compagnie’s New A321neo Business Class Debuts June 6, 2019
UK E-Gates Now Open To US Citizens (And More)
WestJet Reveals Additional 787-9 Routes
Air New Zealand Expected To Order Boeing 787 Or 777
Airbus Improves A220 Range, But Does It Matter?
One Online Travel Agency’s Bold Move Against Resort Fees
Virgin Atlantic Launching Flights To Mumbai
Great News: American Suspends 737 “Refresh” Program
Air Italy Will Sell You Top Tier Status For 500EUR
American Accuses Mechanics Of Causing Delays & Cancelations
Their A380 Lost Billions; Here’s Why Airbus Considers It A Success
Iceland Facing Economic Challenges Due To WOW Air Collapse
Lufthansa Introduces New Seats On A321neo — Yay?
United’s CEO Will Be On First 737 MAX Flight
Garuda Indonesia Cutting Europe Flights (Again)
OMG: American Mechanics Union Threatens “Bloody” Battle
Hyatt’s (Positive) Website Changes
Nigeria’s Air Peace Launching Long Haul Flights (Including To Houston?!?)
New Timeline For 737 MAX Returning To Service
Thailand To Add Mandatory Health Insurance Fee For Tourists
Virgin Atlantic Adds Benefits For Delta Silver Medallion Members
FlyBosnia, An Interesting New Airline…
Canada’s New Air Passenger Protections
Oops: Hawaiian Airlines Accidentally Charged Customers Up To $674,000 For Award Tickets
ANA’s Creative Solution For A380 Crew Communication

I hope everyone has a great rest of the (hopefully long) weekend!