Join Goldpoints by 11/2 to Earn 2,000-Point Sign-Up Bonus

Earlier this week, I reported on a US Airways bonus for new Dividend Miles members.

Suggesting what may or may not turn out to be a travel-industry trend, today's review is of yet another program sign-up bonus, this time for Carlson Hotels' goldpoints plus program.

Offer Details

Through November 2, first-time enrollees in the goldpoints plus program will earn 2,000 bonus points.

If the enrollment form is not pre-populated with it, enter promotion code 2K2010CIS to receive the bonus.

Deal or No Deal

Free nights in goldpoints plus start at 15,000 points, so the sign-up bonus is just a small step in the direction of a meaningful reward.

The Carlson portfolio includes more than 1,000 hotels, including the following brands: Regent, Radisson, Radisson Blu, Radisson Edwardian, Park Plaza, Country Inns & Suites, Park Inn.

So if those hotels work with your current or future travel patterns, you should be a member of the program. And taking advantage of the bonus to enroll is a no-brainer.

Otherwise, save your energy for more productive relationships.

Reader Reality Check

Comments on goldpoints plus, or on enrollment bonuses generally?

One Free Night After Three Overseas Starwood Stays

A free night after three Starwood stays?

Sounds good. But you'll have to travel pretty far afield to earn the bonus, as well as to use it.

Offer Details

Between November 1, 2010, and January 31, 2011, Starwood Preferred Guest members can earn a free weekend night after completing three stays at around 250 participating properties in Asia Pacific, the Middle East, and Africa charged to a MasterCard.

The free night may be redeemed on a Friday, Saturday, or Sunday night from December 2, 2010, through February 27, 2011, at Category 1-6 hotels in the Asia-Pacific region, the Middle East, or Africa.

Only one free night per member may be earned with the promotion. Registration is required.

Deal or No Deal

The good

• A free night after three stays amounts to a 25 percent discount if the three qualifying stays are one night each. Not bad.
• Three months is a decent qualifying period.

The bad

• For Americans, three stays outside North America is a high hurdle, no matter how generous the bonus.
• On the award side, requiring program members to use their free night within just three months limits its value, especially for Americans.
• By the same token, limiting the free nights to weekend stays further undermines the value of the incentive.

The verdict: Most North America-based travelers will be better served by Starwood's double/triple-points offer, which is in effect through December 15 (but registration must be completed by October 31).

Reader Reality Check

Three trips to Asia Pacific, the Middle East, or Africa? In three months? Anyone?

US Air Offers Sign-Up Bonus for New Dividend Miles Members

If you're not a member of US Airways' Dividend Miles program, and you've been meaning to sign up, this would be a good time to do so.

Offer Details

Through December 31, new Dividend Miles members will earn a 1,000-mile sign-up bonus when enrolling with promotion code NMCB.

And there's an extra 2,000-mile bonus for using a MasterCard (not necessarily the US Airways MasterCard) to book a flight and travel within 60 days of enrolling in the program.

Deal or No Deal

I don't recommend signing up for loyalty programs just because it's easy, or because there's a bonus in place for new members. Maximizing the value of program participation requires, among other things, intense focus on just a few programs, which takes time and energy. And enrolling in programs that aren't central to your core earning and redemption strategy dilutes that time and energy.

On the other hand, if you haven't had a compelling reason to join the program to date, it might be time to give Dividend Miles a second look. As I've discussed elsewhere, the program has been uncommonly generous recently, offering a slew of bonus offers, as well as its recurring 100 percent bonus for purchased miles.

Reader Reality Check

Is this bonus enough to give Dividend Miles a try?

New From United: Discounted Last-Minute Weekend Awards

In my coverage of United's "We Want You to Use Your Miles" ad campaign, I noted that the final verdict would rest with the airline's customers.

The reader comments on the blog post have been mixed. Some examples:

We've had a Mileage Plus card for a long time and find it more and more difficult to get to use the miles for the times and places I want to go.

The quality of service has deteriorated over the years to those using miles and those with Premier flying status. Recently we both used the new 'one-way' mileage saver ticket to book our flights because we couldn't get the right dates to do a mileage round-trip ticket. I made my return flight on Delta on a paid ticket because I couldn't get any date in the month I wanted to return, the paid ticket on United was triple what I paid on Delta. Keep in mind we are both very flexible with our dates and still can't spend the miles on a United award ticket. United is full of talk. No action.

I have used United's Miles and Money—what a deal. Can't get on all flights but best deal in the industry. I have tried to use my Delta miles many times and have never found a flight except for the highest level. I have also tried to use American miles in the past two years, found it totally impossible to use on the dates needed. United is the only carrier that had flights I could use at the lowest mileage level. United ROCKS.

I have never had a problem redeeming my miles with United or the Star Alliance when booking a trip to Europe.

It is not easy to get the flights using miles on United. It is next to impossible to get a 25,000 mile award even on domestic flights. On flights to Europe, they make it tough to use a minimum miles ticket unless they overcharge you with larger miles requirements.

Three years ago I used my United miles to fly to India and Bali business class for 90,000 miles. When I went to use my miles to go to Kauai last year, the only direct flight required 85,000. You could get a saver award of 45,000 miles, but it required you to go from SFO to Phoenix, then LAX and be in transit over 22 hours. What??? I am not satisfied and cancelled my Signature card on United. I can get better rewards for my money.

Bottom line: There's no clear consensus on whether United's claim to operate the most rewarding loyalty program is fact or fiction. But United does deserve credit for addressing the issue head on, and for offering an industry-leading assortment of award options, promotions, and policies, including:

• Hotel and car awards
• Mileage Plus Merchandise Rewards
• Miles & Money awards
• One-way awards
• Periodic award sales
• No last minute booking fee

Yet Another Mileage Plus Award Option

United has added yet another new award option to that list with the introduction of Weekend Saver Awards, last-minute weekend award trips to selected destinations for up to 40 percent fewer miles.

Here's how it works:

• On Tuesday, United publishes on its website a list of routes that will be available at discounted rates over the coming weekend. (If you've opted to receive Mileage Plus promotional emails, you'll also receive a weekly notice of eligible flights from your home airport.)
• Flights can be booked between Tuesday and Friday of that week.
• Fly on Saturday outbound, returning the following Monday or Tuesday.

So, for example, last Tuesday, I received an email from United, with the headline "Miles that love last minute getaways." Because United's records show Los Angeles as my city of residence, the email promoted five LAX-originating flights for the coming weekend: to Pittsburgh, for 19,000 miles; and to Salt Lake City, Reno, Santa Maria, or Bakersfield, for 15,000 miles.

This is hardly a new idea. Discounted last-minute weekend getaways have been a fixture of the travel landscape since the early days of the Internet. Think of American's Net SAAver Weekend Getaways, Delta's Weekly Web Fares, and United's own E-Fares, among others.

What United has done is extend that tried-and-true concept to frequent flyer award tickets.

As with the paid version of weekend web fares, United's Weekend Saver Awards are either great deals or non-starters depending on a) your interest in and ability to book within a week of travel; b) your ability to fit a meaningful trip between Saturday and Monday or Tuesday; and c) your interest in the destinations being featured during a given week.

And as with United's other award options, it will be up to Mileage Plus members to evaluate the value and convenience (and availability) of Weekend Saver Awards.

Reader Reality Check

Is this a significant addition to the Mileage Plus program? A baby step? A non-event?

More generally, how satisfied are you with United's Mileage Plus awards?

Deal or No Deal: $50 Gift Card for Purchases on AA.com

As discussed in my review of US Airways' new system-wide bonus offer, promotions linked to the use of a particular credit card are becoming increasingly common.

This one's from American, and also requires the use of a MasterCard.

Offer Details

Register and use a MasterCard to purchase flights, hotel stays, car rentals, or tours ("activities") by December 15 to receive a MasterCard gift card worth up to $50, as follows:

• Receive a $10 gift card for purchasing a round-trip flight on American, American Eagle, Executive Airlines, AmericanConnection, oneworld carriers, or AAdvantage-participating airlines.
• Receive a $25 gift card for purchasing a flight plus one other travel product (hotel stay, car rental, or tour).
• Receive a $50 gift card for purchasing a flight plus two other travel products.

All purchases must be made on AA.com, and qualifying travel must be completed by March 31, 2011.

Bonus may be earned only once per customer.

Deal or No Deal

This promotion raises a number of value questions.

First, there's the rebate itself. The average price of a domestic coach ticket is currently around $350. So getting $10 back represents a rebate of less than 3 percent. That's modest at best.

Then there's the form of the rebate. While gift cards are routinely promoted as cash equivalents, in practice they aren't as readily useable as cash and often go unredeemed or only partially used.

This promotion is designed to increase sales of non-airline services on American's site, a potentially significant source of extra revenue for American (and for other airlines). Which raises the question of price. The hotel rates, for example, quoted on American's website may or may not be comparable to the rates available on the hotels' own websites, or on other travel websites. Comparison-shopping is a must.

And even if the price is competitive, buying on American's website may preclude earning loyalty points in the hotel's frequent-stay program, as I pointed out in a recent review of a bonus promotion for hotel bookings made on AA.com.

On the other hand, travelers can earn one AAdvantage mile for every dollar spent when booking tours through AA.com—miles that they probably wouldn't earn if purchasing through other channels.

In all, this is an offer that is likely to appeal only to those who already planned to purchase flights or other travel services from AA.com.

Reader Reality Check

Do you find this offer compelling?

With a 20% Discount, Are Starwood Points a Good Buy?

Airlines and hotels are happy to sell you points or miles in their loyalty programs. It's a highly profitable side business for them.

For consumers, on the other hand, buying miles or points is almost always a bad deal.   Almost always.

There are two scenarios where buying miles may be the sensible thing to do. The first is in the case of limited need. You're just short of an award threshold, and purchasing the handful of miles still needed to qualify for that free trip is quick and easy.

The other case is when airlines or hotels discount the price of miles enough to fundamentally change the value equation.

How much discount is enough to make miles a smart buy? It depends on the loyalty currency, among other things. But US Airways' recurring 100 percent bonus for purchased miles is certainly a case where the value of the miles redeemed can exceed the price of the miles purchased—in other words, where buying miles in quantity might make financial sense.

Can the same be said of Starwood's newly announced discount for buying Starpoints?

Offer Details

Through December 31, Starwood points can be purchased at a 20 percent discount, either for a member's own account or as a gift for another Starwood Preferred Guest member.

There's an annual limit to the number of points that may be purchased of 20,000 per member.

Deal or No Deal

The normal price of Starpoints is $17.50 for the minimum purchase of 500 points, $700 for the maximum 20,000 points. With the discount, 500 points cost $14, and 20,000 points go for $560.

There are multiple options for redeeming Starpoints, including free hotel nights and airline frequent flyer miles. Free nights range in price from 2,000 points for a weekend night at a Category 1 hotel to 35,000 points for a night at a luxe Category 7 property.

A 20 percent discount isn't enough to move the needle from "No Deal" to "Great Deal." But if you're already planning to buy Starwood points, or you're on the fence, this offer makes the expenditure that much more palatable.

Reader Reality Check

Have you purchased Starpoints in the past? Will you now?

Where did you find the best value in redeeming your points?

Bank More Miles for US Air Flights Charged to a MasterCard

Among the largest airlines, US Airways has been among the most aggressive in its recent frequent flyer marketing.

In addition to its recurring 100 percent bonus for purchased miles, US Airways offered double miles—including elite-qualifying miles—on all flights between April 13 and June 15, and had an elite status promotion in effect through October 10.

In these days of route-specific bonuses and 10 or 20 percent discounts for purchased miles, US Airways' offers have been standouts.

The airline's latest offer is pretty generous as well, especially if you have a US Airways-affiliated credit card.

Offer Details

Between October 15 and December 15, Dividend Miles members will earn a 50 percent mileage bonus for flights charged to a MasterCard, and a 100 percent bonus for flights charged to a US Airways MasterCard.

Qualifying flights must be booked on usairways.com, and registration is required.

Deal or No Deal

As with another recent US Airways promotion, this one is for any US Airways flight, in any class of service, at any time during the promotion period.

The potential negative is the MasterCard requirement. If you already have a MasterCard, it's a non-issue. But if you don't, the offer is a non-starter, unless you stand to earn enough extra miles over the next two months that signing up for a new card is warranted. That's possible, but unlikely.

Promotions linked to specific credit cards are increasingly common, which is why many travel-rewards aficionados make it a point to keep a Visa-, a MasterCard-, and an American Express-branded card in their wallets.

Reader Reality Check

Bonus miles anyone?

United's Mileage Mall Adds Offline Merchants

Last week, among the usual glut of frequent flyer-related emails in my inbox was one from United with the following subject line: "Introducing Mileage Plus Shopping."

Of course, United already had a mileage mall—a network of online retailers, all of which award miles for purchases—as do all United's competitors.

So what's new about the current iteration, aside from the name? (It was the Mileage Plus Mall; now it's Mileage Plus Shopping.)

I put that question directly to United, and they provided me with the following list of new features:

• Members can now register a credit or debit card to earn miles at participating in-store retailers and catalogs.
• Mileage Plus Visa credit cardholders are automatically registered.
• More online retailers.
• Earn miles for dining reservations via OpenTable.
• No need for members to register to shop online anymore—they can just login to Mileage Plus Shopping using a membership number and password.

While a notable departure from the previous mileage mall, the addition of participating retailers' brick-and-mortar locations is sparse at best: Buca di Beppo and Claim Jumper restaurants, Golfsmith, Jos. A. Bank, Mori Luggage, Orvis, Sally Beauty, and Sunglass Hut. Presumably more stores will be brought into the network in the coming months.

Earning miles for making restaurant bookings at OpenTable is nice, but doing so yields a very modest 60 miles per reservation.

The other enhancements are similarly modest in value and scope.

There is a bonus to drum up interest in the revamp: 250 bonus miles for making at purchase of at least $50 by October 31, and another 250 miles for signing up to receive shopping emails and remaining subscribed for at least 30 days.

If Delta's miles-for-shopping email alerts are any indication, you can expect to receive at least one email per day, touting a limited-time bonus or discount from one or more of the Mileage Plus retailers. Long term, that's more information than most consumers want to bother processing—or at least it has been for me. It's also a lot of marketing effort being deployed behind shopping miles.

And it's not limited to Delta and United. JetBlue's latest program enhancement was the launch of its own ShopTrue online mall, boasting an industry-leading 800-plus participating merchants.

Perhaps that's the big story here. Mileage malls have become a fact of travel life. Or, more accurately, they've become a fact of travel-rewards life, expanding as they do the opportunities for consumers to earn free trips for non-travel activities. They're big revenue-generators for the airlines (who sell miles to the merchants), and a big mileage-generator for program members (who have significantly expanded opportunities to earn miles and rewards).

Frequent flyer programs have truly evolved into frequent buyer programs. And unlike changes to the names of the mileage malls, that's a distinction that marks a real difference.

United, Continental Flyers Share Elite Perks

With the merger of United and Continental completed, the work of actually merging the two airlines' operations begins.

For many frequent flyers, the consolidation of the Mileage Plus and OnePass mileage programs is the top concern. Among the outstanding questions:

• When will the programs become one?
• Which program rules will prevail in the new program?
• Will United's Economy Plus be retained?

Regarding the timing question, the latest information from United is that the two programs won't be "fully integrated" until some point in 2012. That's a long time to wait.

United and Continental customers will also have to wait for official word on the new program's final form, although many of the two programs' policies have already been brought into alignment, in the run-up to the merger.

But elite members of the two carriers' programs won't have to wait to receive reciprocal upgrade benefits. According to this week's news release:

United Continental Holdings, Inc. announces that Mileage Plus and OnePass elite members are now able to sit more comfortably on both United and Continental flights. The new reciprocal seating benefits give Mileage Plus elite members access to domestic first-class upgrades, extra legroom seating and preferred seating on Continental flights, while OnePass elite members can enjoy unlimited domestic first-class and business-class upgrades and Economy Plus seating on United flights.

Although the new benefits are good for members of both programs, Continental elites stand to gain more than their United counterparts. Continental's "extra legroom seating" and "preferred seating" are nothing more than exit-row coach seats, or window or aisle seats.

United's Economy Plus, on the other hand, is a significant upgrade from normal coach seating, offering between three and five extra inches of legroom, in a dedicated section toward the front of the plane.

Which brings us to the last question, regarding the fate of United's Economy Plus. There's no official word on whether it will remain in place long term.

While United may be up in the air about the matter, there's no such ambivalence among elite members of both programs. Keeping Economy Plus would a decided plus for the new program; and doing otherwise would be a major minus.

Hilton's 4th-Quarter Promotion: Double, Quadruple Points

When my most recent roundup of current hotel promotions published, Hilton hadn't yet announced its fourth-quarter bonus offer.

Here it is ...

Offer Details

Between October 12 and December 30, Hilton HHonors members will earn double base points for all stays, or quadruple base points if the qualifying stay includes a Sunday night.

Registration is required.

Deal or No Deal

If you're already a Hilton loyalist, the double-points bonus is icing on the cake.

But with double points on offer from several other hotel groups—Best Western, InterContinental, Starwood—Hilton's offer isn't a difference-maker unless the stay includes a Sunday night and the quadruple points kick in. And even with quadruple points, there may be more compelling offers from other hotel groups.

The promotions from Choice and Marriott, for example, feature a free night after two stays.

Bottom line: Shop around.

Reader Reality Check

With so many hotel offers to choose from, what's your pick for best value?