U P F R O N T

As the Airlines Go, So Go the Hotels
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We reported in last week's Crier on the long-anticipated flood of mileage-related offers from the airlines, including double miles, special elite offers, and award sales.

This week, we're starting to see offers from the hotels, beginning with Marriott's double-points promotion, in conjunction with Visa, and Hilton's online booking bonus (see "Miles & Points").

Hyatt soon will be unveiling a special Gold Passport promotion to run Nov. 15 - Feb. 28. Starwood is working on something for Preferred Guest members. And that should create sufficient competitive pressure to insure that any remaining hotel groups mount their own counter-initiatives.

O N S I T E

Post-9/11 Airline Promotions (Updated)
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The summary of airline offers from last week's issue of the newsletter has been updated and posted online.

Miles for Relief (Updated)
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If you're interested in donating miles toward the 9/11 relief efforts, we've posted the updated list of available options on the FrequentFlier.com website.

New on the FrequentFlier Forum
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Ray wants to redeem SkyMiles for a trip to Australia (and NOT via Seoul). Greg suggests (and we concur) that this is "a great time to *fly* for miles." Hal implores: "You can earn AAdvantage miles for Lands' End purchases, can't you?" (Answer: yes.) And more...

Do you have questions, answers? Post them to the Forum!

> More...

M I L E S & P O I N T S

Marriott Doubles Points, Extends Deadline for Elites
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Marriott will award double points and double night credit toward elite status to Marriott Rewards members who pay for their stays with a Visa card between Oct. 15, 2001, and Mar. 31, 2002. Members begin earning double points with the second hotel stay paid for with a Visa card during the promotion period.

In addition, the deadline for achieving elite status has been extended to Mar. 31, 2002, an extra 3 months.

Registration is required, either online at http://marriottrewards.com or by calling 1-866-300-3055.

Happening at Hilton: Bonus for Online Bookings
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HHonors members who book their stays online at any of the Hilton hotel brands (Hilton, Conrad, Doubletree, Embassy Suites, Hampton Inn, Hilton Garden Inn, Homewood Suites) will earn 1,000 HHonors bonus points.

Offer is in effect for bookings made through Dec. 31, for stays completed by Mar. 31, 2002. Bonus will be awarded for bookings made at http://www.hiltonhhonors.com, or on the websites of any of the hotel brand sites.

America West Extends Elite Status
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America West is extending elite status for Platinum, Gold and Silver members through Feb. 2003.

> More...

Alaska Discounts Award Travel
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Following other U.S. majors, Alaska is offering Mileage Plan members award discounts up to 25%.

Mileage Plan members can fly coach to any Alaska or Horizon destination within the U.S. or Canada for 15,000 rather than the normal 20,000 miles, or to Alaska's 5 Mexico destinations for 25,000 instead of the normal 30,000 miles. Travel must be completed by Dec. 15. Mileage Plan members also receive 1,000 bonus miles by booking the award online at http://www.alaskaair.com.

Alitalia Joins SkyMiles
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Effective Oct. 1, 2001, Alitalia joined Delta's SkyMiles program as an earning and redemption partner.

Between Oct. 15, 2001, and Jan. 15, 2002, SkyMiles members traveling non-stop on Delta or Alitalia flights between Delta and Alitalia gateway cities in the U.S. and Italy will earn a bonus of 4,000 miles for BusinessElite/business class and 2,000 miles for coach class travel.

The bonus-mile offer is open to all SkyMiles members. Members in Canada, the Caribbean and the U.S. must register by calling 1-800-558-3358 and entering code 2010 prior to travel.

New Mileage Manager Launches
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There's a new mileage manager in town, and its name is MilePro.

Unlike other "account aggregators" currently available from Yodlee, Citibank, MaxMiles (whose parent company is in bankruptcy), and others, MilePro is a client-side application -- i.e. it runs from your computer. That should eliminate security or privacy concerns associated with passwords and sensitive information.

MilePro provides a single statement, showing current account balances for 17 of the major programs, plus weather from Accuweather.com for cities worldwide. Planned updates include recent program activity (where available), travel booking, scheduled information retrievals.

The software can be downloaded for free from the MilePro website.

> More...

MilePoint Rewards Survey-Takers with Magazines
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MilePoint members who complete a short online survey by Oct. 31, 2001, will be rewarded with a complimentary magazine subscription.

> More...

Amex Adds September 11th Fund as Rewards Option
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American Express has added The September 11th Fund to the Membership Rewards Program as a new charity partner. For every 1,000 Membership Rewards points donated by members, a $10 contribution will be made -- $5 from points redeemed by the member and $5 matched by American Express -- up to a total match of $200,000.

Members can donate in 1,000-point increments to other relief organizations as well, including the American Red Cross and the Salvation Army. Donations can be made through http://www.americanexpress.com/rewards or by calling 1-800-AXP-EARN.

Diners Offers Points-for-Relief Option
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Diners Club Rewards members can now donate their points to the Citigroup Relief Fund, the September 11th Fund or the American Red Cross National Disaster Relief Fund. For every 5,000 points redeemed, a $40 cash donation will go to the chosen charity.

To donate Club Rewards points, 1-800-234-4034, Monday through Friday, from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. ET.

For Sale at Miles4Sale: AAdvantage Miles
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American Airlines is the latest carrier to participate in the Miles4Sale program.

Miles4Sale sells frequent flyer miles for $0.036 - $0.04 each, in quantities of 500 to 20,000 miles. In addition to American, miles are offered from America West, Continental, Delta and Northwest.

Before rushing out to buy AAdvantage miles from Miles4Sale, remember that AAdvantage miles can also be purchased through American's buyAAmiles and giftAAmiles programs (http://buyAAmiles.points.com) for $0.025 - $0.0275 each, substantially cheaper than Miles4Sale's prices.

S T E A L S & D E A L S

Deal Alert from SmarterLiving.com
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This week's hot deals from SmarterLiving.com...

Fall and Winter Caribbean Savings Starting at $219 R/T
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Air Jamaica is offering sale fares for fall and winter travel between select U.S. cities and destinations in the Caribbean. Purchase tickets by Friday, Oct. 19.

> More...

Systemwide Fare Sale With Cross-Country Savings From $234 R/T
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National Airlines is offering a systemwide fare sale for travel through Feb. 13, 2002. Save an extra 10 percent by booking online. Purchase tickets by Sunday, Oct. 28.

> More...

S W E E P S T A K E S & F R E E B I E S

Book Online to Win 1 Million Marriott Points
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Marriott Rewards members who make reservations on http://marriott.com and stay before Feb. 28, 2002, will be entered into a monthly prize drawing for 1 million Marriott Rewards points.

Members will be automatically entered into the Nov., Dec., Jan. or Feb. drawings with each stay completed before Feb. 28, 2002. The member's Marriott Rewards account number must be included in the reservation at the time of reservation. Offer applies to residents of the U.S. and Canada (excluding Quebec) only.

> More...

Until next week...