Issue #120  --  Nov. 16, 2000

<< O N S I T E >>

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

OPHarbour alerted the group to the termination of the AltaVista Rewards program on November 15 (see the "Miles" section below for more on this). Ronald started another Igougo thread. William is looking for feedback on the SAS Eurobonus program. Doug wants suggestions on the best mileage card. And Linda (who just purchased 400 boxes of Kellogg's cereal to earn AAdvantage miles!!!) has an update on the miles-for-Nutri-Grain promotion.

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

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The FrequentFlier Forum

<< M I L E S >>

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Countdown to Elite: 6 Weeks to Go
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If you haven't yet accrued the necessary miles, segments or points to qualify for elite status in 2001, you have just over 6 weeks to do so.

For frequent buyers, rather than frequent flyers, elite status is a non-issue. And it's academic, since you won't attain it without a substantial amount of air travel anyway. But if you do travel, we think elite status is every bit as important as miles and free tickets.

Remember, if you're a Mileage Plus member, that United lowered its 2000 qualification requirements to reach elite status for 2001. See http://frequentflier.com/ffc-1026.htm for details.

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US Airways Offers Miles-for-Cars
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Dividend Miles members can now earn up to 15,000 miles when buying or leasing a new or used vehicle through US Airways' CarMiles Rewards.

Earn 15,000 miles when purchasing or leasing a new vehicle priced at more than $40,000, 10,000 miles for new vehicles priced between $20,000 and $40,000, or for previously owned vehicles, and 5,000 miles for new vehicles priced at $20,000 or less. Prices do not include tax, license and trade-in allowances. Earn additional miles when purchasing an extended warranty, vehicle financing, or spending a minimum of $100 on auto repairs and maintenance at participating dealerships.

DriveOff.com, which operates the program, claims its dealer network is available to more than 90% of U.S. car buyers.

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US Airways CarMiles

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OnePass Adds Ashford for Online-Purchase Miles
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Members of Continental OnePass can now earn 10 OnePass miles for every $1 spent on merchandise from online retailer Ashford.com.

To earn OnePass miles, transacttions must be made through a dedicated Ashford/OnePass website at http://Continental.Ashford.com. The site can also be accessed through Continental's home page (link below).

Ashford is a high-end retailer, offering over 20,000 items, including jewelry, personal accessories and home decor.

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Continental OnePass

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Hertz Triples Miles for AOL AAdvantage Members
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AOL AAdvantage Rewards members **who subscribe to AOL** earn triple miles on qualifying North American Hertz rentals of a mid-size car or larger through December 15, 2000. To earn triple miles, cite Promotion Code (PC#) 914642 and AOL AAdvantage Rewards Discount Plan Number (CDP#) 217692 at time of reservation.

Members of AOL AAdvantage Rewards **whether AOL subscribers or not** can receive 1 day free on designated Hertz' Leisure Weekly or Leisure Weekend Rate Rentals in North America now through January 31, 2001. The free-day offer applies to rentals of at least 3 days of full-size vehicles or larger. To receive the 1-day-free offer, members must request Promotion Code (PC#) 914616 and provide the AOL AAdvantage Rewards Discount Plan Number (CDP#) 217692 at time of reservation.

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AOL AAdvantage

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Montana Flights Earn WorldPerks Bonus Miles
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WorldPerks members earn up to 2,500 bonus miles when they fly Northwest between Minneapolis/St. Paul and the Montana cities of Billings, Bozeman, Kalispell, Great Falls, and Missoula between November 15, 2000 and January 31, 2001. All itineraries that connect through Minneapolis/St. Paul to/from the same Montana cities also are eligible to earn 2,500 bonus miles.

Receive 1,250 bonus miles each way, or 2,500 for roundtrip travel. You must register 7 days prior to travel, using Registration Number 2394.

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Northwest

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AltaVista Terminates Rewards Program
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As of November 15, 2000, members of AltaVista Rewards can no longer accumulate points on AltaVista Shopping. In other words, the program is kaput.

Rewards members have 2 options: transfer their accounts to ClickRewards at a rate of 1,000 AltaVista points to 40 ClickMiles, or spend your AltaVista points on items from the Rewards catalog. In either case, you must act before February 28, 2001. Thereafter, all points expire.

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AltaVista

<< S T E A L S & D E A L S >>

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Deal Alert from SmarterLiving.com
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Two hot deals from SmarterLiving.com...

>> 'Thanksgiving SAAles' from American

American Airlines has released savings on both domestic and international fares around Thanksgiving. Purchase tickets online only and by Tuesday, November 21.

For more details, go here.

>> Savings on International Travel

United has released a sale on travel to destinations in Europe, Asia, South America, and New Zealand. Delta, Northwest, and US Airways are offering additional international savings.

For more details, go here.

<< B U S I N E S S T R A V E L T I P S >>

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Surviving the Airport
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The following is part of a continuing series of business travel tips from Chris McGinnis's "The Unofficial Business Traveler's Pocket Guide--165 Tips Even the Best Business Travelers May Not Know."

>> Lost Bags

Most business travelers prefer to carry their bags on the plane. But with airline cabins increasingly crowded, you may find yourself checking bags. And as we all know, checked bags get lost, damaged, or misplaced. Below are some facts that may help to minimize the nightmare of lost or delayed bags.

o One little-known fact is that airlines will reimburse you for out-of-pocket expenses associated with baggage delays. This usually includes toilet articles and some articles of clothing or some petty cash to buy them. You must ask for these things. (However, the amount of money that you spend will be deducted from the airline's final payment if your bag has been destroyed or is never recovered.)

o Fully 98% of all "misplaced" bags are returned to owners within hours. DOT regulations state that if the airline loses your bag, it is only required to reimburse you a maximum of $1250 for the depreciated value of the declared contents. Standard operating procedure is for the airlines to automatically depreciate your claim by 30%. International travelers are reimbursed for lost baggage based on the weight of their bags (under the Warsaw Convention). Currently, a paltry $9.07 per pound is all you'll get if your bags are lost on an international flight. So if your bags are lost and you are asked to estimate the value of the contents of your bags, err on the high side.

o To minimize really big losses buy excess valuation insurance when you check your bag. This typically costs about $1 per $100 in value that you declare--in excess of the $1250 automatic coverage. However, many airlines claim no responsibility for many valuable items, including electronics, jewelry, or cameras, so always carry those items on board with you.

o If your bag is lost and you are traveling on a code-share flight, where you buy your ticket from one airline but get on the plane of another, the airline whose name is printed on your ticket is responsible for your compensation. However, the carrier that lost the bag should make a gallant effort to recover it first.

Chris McGinnis

Travel Skills Group
http://www.travelskills.com

<< R E A D E R R A N T S & R A V E S >>

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Value of MilePoint? (continued from last week)
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With respect to Milepoint I will make a few additional comments:

1) Even if you are using Milepoint to get 10% off, the value of your miles in many cases is not 2c/mile. This is because you lose the opportunity to get miles on your purchase.

For example buy through Greenpoints, get 4 miles per dollar on your purchase, so on a $100 purchase you get 400 miles. With Milepoint you spend $90 and use 500 miles. So the value of $10 is 900 miles, or 1.1c per mile.

2) Despite the claim in the Milepoint site that these miles are good as cash they are not. They are not combinable with other offers. For example Amazon has a free offer of $15 off a $100 purchase. You cannot use this free offer along with a Milepoint certificate. I learned this the hard way, and now I have a useless Amazon coupon which I could not use and I lost 750 miles. Milepoint has not answered my email.

 - Pankaj

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I would like to comment on Tim's response to Milepoint.com program.

He mentions that, "...MilePoint specifically, there has developed a groundswell of wishful thinking that miles can be used to purchase goods and services outright. That's simply not realistic." Isn't AOL-AAdvantage offering outright purchase with miles? I was very impressed with their launch (although the product selection is relatively small currently) and the fact you can purchase goods outright (electronics, appliances, movies, etc.) compared with Milepoint who are only offering discounts. I am in full agreement with Chris (have read your book by the way) that Milepoint.com is a waste of time!

 - James

<< S I T E 2 S E E >>

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PapayaKing.com
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At the risk of straying a few degrees off topic, we're recommending a website which sings the praises of combining tropical fruit juice with urban hot dogs, PapayaKing.com.

Papaya King has been a fixture in New York City since 1932. Its popularity rests on an unlikely culinary pairing: New York-style hot dogs (long, thin, slathered with sauerkraut and onions) and papaya juice. To hear the purveyors tell it (and tell it, and tell it), these are not only the world's finest dogs and P-juice, but their combined health effects should go far toward guaranteeing you life eternal, and bliss to boot.

Health benefits aside, the price is right: $4.99 gets you 16 ounces of freshly-made papaya juice, two "home run" dogs (with everything), and a substantial serving of curly fries. Even adding in the $12 cab fare I paid to get there, it was a bargain.

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Papaya King online or 86th and 3rd, NYC

Until next week...