Weekly Review: November 28, 2020

Happy Thanksgiving to everyone who is celebrating this weekend, in whatever modified form that may be.

On the points & travel front, this week we saw lots of great travel deals for Black Friday and Cyber Monday, ranging from award travel discounts to bonuses on purchasing points. We also saw Qatar Airways reduce award redemption rates, England announce an alternative to its 14-day quarantine, Brightline reveal expansion to Orlando, Delta have an operational meltdown, and more.

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

Featured Stories

Alila Ventana Big Sur Awards Nights Now Wide Open

There’s suddenly lots of free night availability with points at what’s probably my favorite Hyatt property in the US.

Great Deal: Virgin Atlantic Offering 50% Off Award Tickets

Virgin Atlantic has launched what’s being called its best Black Friday sale ever, and part of that is a discount on award tickets.

Virgin Atlantic Flying Club members can save 50% off the number of points required for award tickets

Citi Offering 5% Cash Back For Online Shopping

A bit over a week ago details were announced of a new promo that should be useful for anyone with a Citi credit card. This is a reminder of that, as the promotion is now live for purchases.

Eligible Citi cardmembers can earn 5% back as a statement credit for the online purchases they make over the coming week, which nicely coincides with Black Friday and Cyber Monday:

TIPS: Earning Miles & Promos

Radisson Rewards Selling Points With 100% Bonus
IHG Rewards Club Selling Points With 100% Bonus
British Airways Selling Avios With Mystery Bonus
Marriott Will Sell Gift Cards For 15% Off
Transfer Amex Points To LifeMiles With 15% Bonus
World of Hyatt Selling Points With 30% Bonus (Last Chance)
Buy LifeMiles For 1.1 Cents Each (200% Bonus)
Virgin Atlantic Selling Points With 50% Bonus
Citi Offering 5% Cash Back For Online Shopping
United MileagePlus Selling Miles With 100% Bonus
Southwest Selling Points For Up To 45% Off
American Selling AAdvantage Miles For 50% Off
Buy Marriott Bonvoy Points With 50% Bonus
Fairmont Selling Gift Cards With 20% Bonus
Marriott Offering Free Night After Two Stays For New Members
Alaska Mileage Plan New Member Bonus: Earn Up To 5,000 Bonus Miles
Recap: 14 Opportunities To Buy Points
Sign Me Up: Earn 100x Amex Points Per Dollar With LifeLock
Is A Club TAP Miles&Go Subscription Worth It? (Black Friday Special)

TRICKS: Redeeming Miles

Great Deal: Virgin Atlantic Offering 50% Off Award Tickets
Alila Ventana Big Sur Awards Nights Now Wide Open
Redeem Hyatt Points At Rawah Ranch, An All-Inclusive Dude Ranch
Staying At A Kimpton? Don’t Forget The Secret Social Password
Qatar Airways Lowers Award Redemption Rates

NEWS & Updates

Scary: Southern Air 777 Has Stall Incident On Takeoff From JFK
British Airways Selling First Class Service Items
Delta & WestJet Joint Venture Called Off: What Happened?
Qatar Airways Opens Mariner Lounge In Doha, Exclusively For Seafarers & Offshore Workers
Which Amex Centurion Lounges Have Reopened?
Sad: Retired British Airways 747 Catches Fire
Qantas Will Require Passengers To Be Vaccinated
Delta Creatively Adds Comfort+ To Airbus A350s
EL AL Will Fly 14x Weekly From Tel Aviv To Dubai
Alaska Airlines Swaps A320s For 737 MAXs
England Reducing 14-Day Quarantine With Testing
Brightline Is Coming To Orlando & Walt Disney World… But I’m Skeptical
Uh Oh: Could Japan’s ANA & JAL Merge?
Boeing 737 MAX Cleared By European Regulators
New German Air Force A350 Operates Epic Round The World Flight
White House Considering Lifting Europe Travel Ban
Emirates Launching A380 Premium Economy Shortly
Park Hyatt London River Thames Opening In 2022
Air India Plans Bangalore To San Francisco Route
St. Regis Chicago Opening In 2021
SpiceJet To Fly From Delhi To New York… With 737s?!
Avatar Airlines Wants To “Buy” Thai Airways’ 747s
Former Thai Airways Chairman Jailed Over Excess Baggage Fees
Delta’s Mysterious Thanksgiving Meltdown
Dangerous & Disgusting: Man Grills Steak In Lavatory On Delta Air Lines Flight

I hope everyone has a great rest of the weekend!