Miles & Points Monday
Welcome to the next installment of Miles & Points Monday – your SIMPLE weekly breakdown of what you need to know in the miles and points world!
American Express Blue For Business Card
Via MommyPoints, there is an increased offer for this card that has been extended until Feb 22, 2017. This card should not effect your Chase 5/24 status since it’s a small biz card. Please see offer for all terms and conditions.
- 10,000 Membership Rewards points bonus after your first purchase in the first 3 months.
- 10x points on the first $2,000 spent at U.S restaurants for the first 6 months
- 2x points on all remaining qualifying purchases up to $50,000 in the first year
- No Annual Fee
The points earned on this card aren’t transferable to hotel and airline partners unless you also have a premium Membership Rewards earning card like the American Express Platinum or Amex Everyday.
American Express Centurion Lounges Are Going International
Via The Points Guy, American Express will open the first International Centurion Lounge in Hong Kong by the end of 2017. Access to these lounges is a perk of Amex’s premium cards including The Platinum Card from American Express, The Business Platinum Card from American Express OPEN and the Centurion Card. If you hold another American Express card, you can purchase a one day pass for $50, however these are subject to lounge capacity restrictions. American Express also recently opened a Centurion Lounge in Houston and announced plans for a Philadelphia location.
Increased Offer on United MileagePlus Explorer Card
Last week I wrote about the new increased offer for the United MileagePlus Explorer Card from Chase. The current offer includes a 50,000 point bonus instead of the normal 30,000! Log in to your account to check for a possible targeted offer of 70,000 points. You can also try making a dummy booking to trigger an offer with a $50 credit.
Hilton Honors Program Changes
Via Flyertalk, Hilton has announced some changes to their rewards program that will start later this month.
- Name changed from Hilton HHonors to Hilton Honors
- Hotel categories are being eliminated
- Points + Cash option will now be available. You will be able to choose nearly any combination of points and money to pay for your stay. According to Hilton, the maximum number of points needed for each hotel will not be increasing but the minimum could decrease based on demand.
- Use points to shop on Amazon. I’m guessing the redemption rate will be less than stellar so I’m not excited about this
- Starting in April, you will be able to pool your Hilton Honors points with up to 10 friends and family members.
- New Diamond benefit: Starting in March, current eligible Diamond members can choose a one time status extension for a year for any reason when they wouldn’t otherwise re-qualify. Eligible Diamond members must have 3+ years as a Diamond Elite with at least 250 nights or 3+ years as a Diamond Elite with at lest 500,000 base points since joining
Hilton 2K Everyday Promotion
You can now register for 2K Every Day through Hilton. This promotion is running through April 30, 2017 and allows you to earn an additional 2,000 points per night at over 4,700 Hilton hotels worldwide.
