Happy Friday. Here’s your miles, points, travel, and deals news for November 1, 2024:
New Transfer Bonuses
Since today is a start of a new month, there are several new transfer bonuses:
American Express Membership Rewards: 15% bonus to LifeMiles (1 to 1.15) until November 30th; 35% bonus to Marriott Bonvoy (1.35) until December 31st.
Capital One Miles: 20% bonus to British Airways Avios (1 to 1.2) until December 1st.
Bilt Rewards: 50 to 100% bonus to British Airways for today only for Bilt Rent Day. I transferred my entire Bilt points balance to British Airways for a 100% bonus, for a future transfer to Iberia Avios.
Flying Blue Promo Rewards
Flying Blue’s November Promo Rewards features 25% discounts on economy flights between Europe and six North American cities through April 30, 2025. Air France routes include Denver (DEN), Ottawa (YOW), Seattle (SEA), and Vancouver (YVR), while KLM offers discounted flights from Boston (BOS) and New York (JFK) – all pricing at 15,000 miles one-way instead of the standard 20,000 miles.
This month’s promotion runs from November 1-30, 2024, offering an extended six-month travel window. Regular award pricing between Europe and North America typically starts at 20,000 miles for economy, 35,000 for premium economy, and 50,000 for business class flights.
Choice Hotels Updates Rewards Program
Choice Privileges unveils three major updates to their rewards program launching in early 2025. The most notable change introduces premium room rewards, letting you redeem points for upgraded features like better views, additional space, and enhanced room types at participating hotels.
The booking window expands dramatically from its current timeframe to 50 weeks ahead, giving you significantly more advance planning flexibility for reward stays. This extended window applies across all room types, including the new premium options.
Choice RewardSaver represents another significant improvement, lowering the minimum points requirement from 8,000 to 6,000 points for standard room rewards. This reduction makes reward stays more accessible for members with smaller points balances.
Premium room rewards add a new dimension to the program, offering options beyond basic rooms. You’ll be able to select specific premium features that matter most for your stay, rather than being limited to standard rooms only.
Points requirements for premium rooms will vary by property and room type selected. The feature rolls out at select hotels initially, with availability marked clearly during the booking process.
Deals and Points News
Chase Restaurant $25 Credit: Chase cardholders can earn a one-time $25 statement credit by spending $100+ at 60 select restaurants in NYC, LA, Chicago and Miami through December 31, 2024, after linking their eligible Chase card to an Infatuation account. The offer includes notable restaurants like Gjelina and Oxomoco, and applies to Freedom, Sapphire, and Ink cards.
ANA Amex Offer: A new Amex Offer for 30,000 Membership Rewards points (valued at approximately $660) after spending $2,000 on ANA flights through December 31, 2024.
Caesars Amex Offer: Get $40 back on $200+ direct room bookings through December 29, 2024, at Caesars properties across Las Vegas, Atlantic City, Reno, and Lake Tahoe when booking directly with Caesars.
Hyatt Amex Offer: New American Express offer for Destination by Hyatt properties gives cardholders a $75 statement credit after spending $300+ on room rates and charges between November 1 and December 31, 2024.
Hyatt Points Sale: Through January 4, 2025, World of Hyatt members can purchase points with a 25% bonus when buying 5,000 or more points through Points.com, bringing the cost to 1.92 cents each. Members can purchase up to 55,000 points per calendar year in 1,000-point increments, and must have been a World of Hyatt member for at least 60 days to participate in the promotion.
Lufthansa 50% Miles Bonus: Lufthansa’s Bundle&Go packages offer a 50% mileage bonus through November 7, with rates from 2.22 cents/mile for 4,500 miles ($100) to 1.33 cents/mile for 150,000 miles ($1,990).
Freedom Gift Card Deals: Chase Freedom cardholders can earn up to 15% cash back on gift card purchases through Shop Through Chase from retailers like Macy’s and Nike, while points redemptions for gift cards offer up to 15% discount through November 31, 2024. The promotion applies to all Freedom cards (Flex, Rise, Unlimited, and legacy Freedom), with enhanced earning rates ranging from 5-15% at major retailers.
Travel and Other News
AA Expands Italy Routes: American Airlines will launch two new routes to Italy in Summer 2025 – Chicago (ORD) to Naples (NAP) and Dallas (DFW) to Venice (VCE), both operated by Boeing 787-8 aircraft featuring 21 Business, 28 Premium Economy, 48 Main Cabin Extra, and 138 Main Cabin seats. The expanded service complements American’s existing Italy network, which includes flights to Milan (MXP) from JFK and PHL, Rome (FCO) from five hubs, plus existing Naples and Venice service from PHL and ORD, marking the airline’s largest-ever schedule to Italy.
CLEAR Launches Airport Escorts: Clear Plus introduces two new premium services – Curb-to-Clear starting at $49 and Curb-to-Gate at $149, offering personalized ambassador assistance through security and to gates at IAD, DEN, and MCO airports. Reservations must be made 10 hours before departure and include luggage assistance and escort services through security checkpoints, with optional stops at lounges and concessions.
