"Up Front" Blog Entries

Following are some of Tim's recent blog posts:

• United Discounts Domestic Award Flights
  New offer excludes many of United's best customers.
• Another Reason to Travel Now: Free Breakfast
  Marriott is offering free breakfast for weekend stays.
• Frequent Flyer Deals? Look Beyond U.S. Programs
  Foreign carriers are responding to the travel slowdown.
• The Top Five Award Destinations for March
  Best bets include L.A., Mexico, London, and Washington, D.C.

The FrequentFlier Forum - Hot Topics

As always, there's plenty of activity on the FrequentFlier Forum.

In the "Airline Programs" Forum, in the "Delta: Link Accounts" thread, Gary Steiger has some good advice for members of the Delta and Northwest programs on getting the most from this opportunity. And ronald has an update: "Looks like the offer was extended: Link your accounts by April 15, 2009 and earn 500 Bonus Miles."

Also in the "Airline Programs" Forum, the "AAdvantage: latest mileage purchase bonus" thread prompted the following observation from PolScrib: "To buy 20,000 miles, with the additional free 6,000 miles, would cost $567.50; simply buying an economy ticket from San Francisco to New York costs $328.80 (with fees and taxes)."

Questions, answers, opinions? Post them to the Forum!

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Delta, Midwest Will Link Mileage Programs

Later this year (exact date TBA), members of Delta's SkyMiles program will be able to earn and redeem miles for Midwest flights; and Midwest Miles members will be able to do the same on Delta flights. The tie-up will also include code-sharing and airport lounge privileges.

This is an extension of the relationship Midwest has with Northwest, which Delta purchased last year.

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More Airline Miles, Hilton Points for Hawaii Stays

Through December 20, Hilton HHonors members can earn double airline miles and 10,000 HHonors bonus points for stays of four or more nights at participating Hilton hotels in Hawaii. Book Plan Code H9 (Hilton, HGVC and Waldorf=Astoria Collection) or HH9 (Doubletree and Embassy Suites) to receive the bonuses.

The offer is not valid between June 16 and August 23.

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Earn More United Miles for Geneva Flights

Mileage Plus members can earn up to 10,000 bonus miles for flying United round-trip to Geneva between April 19 and June 30. Bonus is 10,000 miles for first class (F, A booking class), 7,500 for business (C, D, Z booking class), 5,000 for full coach (Y, B, M, H booking class), and 3,000 miles for other coach booking classes.

Booking must be made by April 19. Registration is required.

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Deal Alert from SmarterTravel.com

1) United Domestic Sale Fares From $74

United has joined American in offering domestic sale fares for travel into May. Fares start at $74 round-trip, and destinations include San Diego, San Francisco, and Washington, D.C.

Travel is valid on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Saturdays from March 10 through May 20, 2008. Book by March 16, 11:59 PM ET.

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2) Southwest Sale Fares at $39 Each Way

Southwest has announced a new deal for travel into late June. Fares start at $39 one-way or $78 round-trip, and Austin, Las Vegas, Oakland, and Orlando are featured.

Travel is valid on Tuesdays and Wednesdays from March 24 through June 24. Book by March 16, 11:59 PM PT.

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Win 1 Million Marriot Points, 500,000 Miles, $50,000

Enter Marriott Vacation Club's "Go Anywhere, Do Anything" sweepstakes by December 31 for a chance to win 1 million Marriott Rewards points, 500,000 airline miles, and a $50,000 Visa gift card. (This is one of the most lucrative sweepstakes we've ever covered.)

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[Visit FrequentFlier.com for more travel sweepstakes.]

Feedback from the Frontlines of Travel

We welcome reader feedback on issues related to travel generally and frequent flyer programs in particular. Please use this link to submit comments.

Consolidating Frequent Flyer Miles and Points

"I've accumulated a few hundred thousand points in Membership Rewards and a few hundred thousand points in Marriott and Hilton's frequent guest programs. I also have several hundred thousand NWA WorldPerks miles.

"Should I be thinking about consolidating these into a single program - hotel or airline?

"If not, what is a good strategy in maximizing these points for future use?

"If so, how does one go about consolidating miles and points? I seem to remember that, once upon a time, Diners Club was a good place to funnel miles or points through and to consolidate. That doesn't seem to be possible any more. What is?" [Rich K.]

[FrequentFlier.com replies - Whether and how to consolidate miles is a question that we get repeatedly. We haven't covered the subject in any depth since this article from 2006. It's too involved to address adequately here, but we'll make it a point to post an updated article soon.]

US Airways Change Fee

"I was unable to make my flight on US Air from Albany International Airport in Albany, NY to Chicago, IL, because on March 2 I was caught in the mega snow storm on the East Coast. I was in Maine and could not get to Albany in time.

"I was charged $176 to change the flight to the following day. Is this the usual charge.? It seemed very high.

"My original round trip ticket was only $325." [Adrien S.]

[FrequentFlier.com replies - That does seem high, although part of the surcharge might have been due to a change in the type of fare you were eligible to purchase in place of the original one. US Airways should have provided you with a complete breakdown of how the extra fee was calculated. No?]

Delta Seat Recline

"I have been aware for quite a while that when Delta 'improved' their seats in coach 777 planes last year they changed how far back they go. It appeared that when in the upright position they are more vertical. I have now measured.

"Delta 777 seats 'recline' about 3.5 inches. Continental 777 seats recline about 5 inches." [Victor S.]

Reduced Northwest Elite Bonus

"We just finished a flight on NWA but one segment was on Delta. When we checked our WorldPerks mileage on NWA.com, we noticed we had only been given a 25% bonus on the Delta segment. I called NWA and I was told from March 1 on, all Silver Elite would receive only the 25% bonus on NWA or Delta flights. Prior to March 1, NWA segments for Silver Elite would still receive 50%.

"I guess I missed the fine print." [Carol from SD]

Until next week...