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Update: Some offers mentioned below are no longer available. View the current offers here.If you’re not a fan of checking in for your Southwest flight right at 24 hours prior to departure, Southwest offers a service called EarlyBird Check In that automatically checks you into your flight at 36 hours to departure. This ensures that you get the best possible boarding position — meaning a better seat selection — without the hassle of battling other travelers right at the start of the 24-hour check-in window....

Update: Some offers mentioned below are no longer available. View the current offers here.The St. Regis Maldives is easily the most appealing new resort in the Marriott portfolio. Naturally, it’s also one of the most expensive, with per-night rates climbing above $2,000 even for base suites. The property’s top villa, meanwhile, can run you upwards of $21,000 per night, and it goes way up from there.While the John Jacob Astor Estate is a bucket-list item even for the rich and famous, bookings for the “regular” overwater villas are much easier to attain, especially if you’re able to redeem points as part of Starwood Preferred Guest’s “Paradise is Closer” promotion, which runs through March 5, 2018....

After a Pegasus Airlines 737 nearly fell into the sea in Turkey last Saturday, engineers have started the process of recovering the damaged aircraft.Pegasus flight 8622 was traveling from Ankara (ESB) to Trabzon (TZX) when upon landing, the plane skidded off the runway and found itself hanging off the side of cliff — just feet away from the Black Sea. Fortunately no passengers or crew were seriously injured.After a few days precariously situated on the side of the hill, workers have started the complicated removal process of the 737-800....

Sign up for our daily newsletterEmail addressSign upI would like to subscribe to The Points Guy newsletters and special email promotions. The Points Guy will not share or sell your email. See privacy policy.Update: Some offers mentioned below are no longer available. View the current offers here.Last week, Uber celebrated five years in New York City. Each day of the week, the service offered UberPool rides for a flat $5 fee beginning and ending in the borough that was being featured that day....

Come 2021, United Airlines will have one less partner.For years, United and Amtrak have had a codeshare partnership, allowing you to purchase a flight to or from Newark with a connection on the Northeast Regional train to or from your final destination.As part of the tie-up, flyers could earn redeemable miles for the train segment. (Amtrak Guest Rewards members could credit United flights to Amtrak as well.) Plus, the two transportation providers offered reciprocal lounge access for certain premium passengers and elite members....

Update: Some offers mentioned below are no longer available. View the current offers here.United’s first-class magazine, Rhapsody, will be discontinued on board in the near future. Now, first-class passengers will only have one choice in reading material provided by the plane, Hemispheres, United’s other in-flight magazine.Rhapsody proclaims itself to cover “news and current events, business, travel, arts and entertainment, fashion and high-end consumables, from cars to Cartier watches” for “road-warrior businesspeople to card-carrying members of the global elite....

USAA Visa Signature cardholders will no longer have access to price protection as of August 31. USAA (United Services Automobile Association) offers a small selection of credit cards to members of the military and their families, including children whose parents joined USAA. Although the selection of cards is limited, all of them currently offer price protection and other benefits without an annual fee.But, Doctor Of Credit reported today — and I was able to confirm via my husband JT’s USAA Rewards Visa Signature Card — that the price-protection benefit is ending....

Update: Some offers mentioned below are no longer available. View the current offers here.TPG reader Tyler sent me a message on Facebook to ask about earning sign-up bonuses:“When does the clock start on the spending requirement for a credit card sign-up bonus?”I often get questions like this when a lucrative sign-up bonus pops up, like the one currently being offered for the new Chase Sapphire Reserve. Not spending enough or failing to meet the requirements in time can cause you to miss out on a bonus entirely....

Update: Some offers mentioned below are no longer available. View the current offers here.TPG reader Mark sent me a question on Facebook:“I’m a business owner and charge between $100,000-$200,000 per month. I’ve been using the Citi AAdvantage & Executive Mastercard, but they don’t have high enough limits. Any suggestions?“As a business owner, it’s awesome to be able to put all of your business expenses on a points earning credit card and then reap the benefits....

Update: Some offers mentioned below are no longer available. View the current offers here.To take advantage of Chase Sapphire Preferred’s lucrative offer of 3x points on dining on the first Friday of every month, we regularly round up the best in food and drink. To get a jump on your February 14/Valentine’s Day sweets shopping, TPG Contributor Michele Herrmann has put together an assortment of artisan chocolate shops across the U....

Update: Some offers mentioned below are no longer available. View the current offers here.Cardholders of The Platinum Card® from American Express are likely familiar with the issuer’s popular Platinum House initiative. Amex has opened pop-up Platinum Houses in places ranging from Coachella to Art Basel and more. Now, the Platinum House is going international.In time for London Fashion Week, the first international Platinum House will be open in London between Thursday September 13, and Sunday, September 16....

Got a few Delta SkyMiles burning a hole in your (virtual) pocket? By the end of January, you’ll be able to spend them in a new way with far less effort. Delta CEO Ed Bastian has become a vocal proponent of engineering more ways for Delta flyers to burn their miles, and during the company’s Q4 2018 earnings call he announced that in-app SkyMiles upgrades would be live “later this month....

Update: Some offers mentioned below are no longer available. View the current offers here.Didn’t quite re-qualify for Marriott elite status by the end of 2016? Well, the hotel brand is offering a workaround. Now through March 31, you can buy back your 2016 elite status starting at just 7,500 Marriott points. Subject to limitations, you can buy back Silver status for 7,500 points, Gold status for 25,000 points and Platinum for 40,000 points....

Delta Air Lines is offering Alaska Airlines elite frequent flyers the opportunity to match their status with Delta. Five years after starting a hub at Seattle-Tacoma (SEA), Delta is continuing to take on Alaska Air, the largest carrier at the airport, head on. This latest status match challenge promotion encourages loyal Alaska Airlines flyers to become loyal to Delta, the second-largest carrier at Sea-Tac, by offering elite flyers a higher tier with Delta....

Update: Some offers mentioned below are no longer available – View the current offers here.One of the things I love most about being The Points Guy is getting to hear stories from readers about how award travel has affected their lives — the exotic vacations they’ve planned, the trips they’ve made to be with family and friends, the premium seats and suites they’ve experienced and so much more, all made possible by points and miles....

There are upgrades, and then there are upgrades. What we’re seeing today falls squarely into the latter category, with Turkish Airlines showcasing one of the most stylish, privacy-focused business-class seats we’ve seen on any airline. With suites becoming more common in business cabins — including Qatar’s QSuite, Delta One Suites and over-the-top iterations from Singapore Airlines and Emirates — Turkish Airlines is showcasing a product that rivals the rest.In a fresh Australian Business Traveller report, it’s reported that the Aurora seat from Stelia Aerospace (which is shown here from Singapore Airlines’ new regional business class product) will be installed on Turkish Airlines’ incoming Boeing 787 and Airbus A350 jets....

On March 13, the United States and Canada both grounded the Boeing 737 MAX, among the last countries to make the move to ban the aircraft from their airspace. The decision was made, in part, from detailed “new data” outlining the final flight paths of Lion Air 610 and Ethiopian Airlines 302 that had been made available just hours before to Transport Canada and the Federal Aviation Administration.But where did that new data come from?...

Update: Some offers mentioned below are no longer available. View the current offers here.The Wells Fargo Cash Wise Card is one of the latest cash-back options to arrive on the market, and it offers users the opportunity to earn 1.8% on select purchases for the first 12 months. Below, TPG Senior Points & Miles Contributor Richard Kerr explains how to maximize this offer, and takes a look at whether this card is the best option for cash-back rewards....

Last year, Delta offset carbon emissions for passengers traveling on Earth Day. Beginning later this year, JetBlue plans to do the same — for every single day of the year.The carrier announced on Monday a massive program aimed at offsetting up to 17 billion pounds of carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions per year, which JetBlue states is the annual equivalent of removing more than 1.5 million passenger vehicles from the road.Carbon offsetting has become a focus for airlines around the world, but particularly those based in Europe....

The Indonesian government is close to enacting a new tax on all foreign tourists visiting Bali. The hope is that the tourist tax, which would likely be $10 per person, would help “tackle plastic pollution” — a major problem for the popular tourist destination.Bali’s governor, Wayan Koster, said that a “bylaw has been drafted” to tax oversees visitors, and that the money would be used to preserve the environment as well as Balinese culture by helping to not only tackle pollution but also waste management on the island, according to The Guardian....