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Update: Some offers mentioned below are no longer available. View the current offers here – Ink Business Cash Credit Card, Chase Sapphire Preferred CardLast Sunday, Chase announced limited-time higher sign-up bonuses including 60,000 points for the Ink Bold and Ink Plus that were supposed to end today, but Chase has extended the application deadline until Monday, June 24, 2013.If you need a quick reminder of the details, the sign-up bonus on the Ink Bold and Ink Plus cards each earns you up to 60,000 Ultimate Rewards points when you spend $5,000 in 3 months and the $95 annual fee is waived the first year....

Update: Some offers mentioned below are no longer available. View the current offers here.Want to see the latest flight deals as soon as they’re published? Follow The Points Guy on Facebook and Twitter, and subscribe to text message alerts from our deals feed, @tpg_alerts.Airfare deals are typically only available on limited dates. We recommend that you use Google Flights to find dates to fly, then book through an online travel agency, such as Orbitz, which allows you to cancel flights without penalty by 11pm Eastern Time within one day of booking....

Rumors have been flying around for months that Delta Air Lines is considering installing seatback screens on its fleet of Boeing 717s.During the opening ceremonies for the airline’s new concourse at LaGuardia Airport on Tuesday, Delta CEO Ed Bastian said that it might well be true.“We’re considering it,” Bastian said, when asked if the airline had any such plans.Delta’s 717s are leased, as opposed to owned outright by the airline, but they should be flying for up to nine more years....

Update: Some offers mentioned below are no longer available. View the current offers here.“Reader Questions” are answered three days a week — Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays — by TPG Senior Writer Julian Mark Kheel.The Chase Sapphire Reserve offers 3x points on travel expenses, and many other cards offer bonus points for travel purchases as well. So TPG reader Laura wants to know if a certain large upcoming expense will count…[pullquote source=“TPG Reader Laura”]I’m applying for passports for my family of 10....

Update: Some offers mentioned below are no longer available. View the current offers here.United’s MileagePlus X app is running a Cyber Monday promotion, offering up to 10 miles per dollar spent at certain retailers — double the normal best offer from the app. The promotion expires tonight (November 28) at midnight, and can be very useful especially if you’re trying to take advantage of retailers’ Cyber Monday deals.When you shop through the MPX app, you’re essentially buying a gift card to that retailer....

Update: Some offers mentioned below are no longer available. View the current offers here.Multiple airline shopping portals have launched new “Holiday at Home” bonus miles promotions. But, no matter the name, the important part is that you can score up to 6x the typical number of miles through various shopping portals for a limited time.Not sure what a shopping portal is? It’s a retail outlet that lets you make the most of each dollar you spend by clicking through an online portal to earn extra miles on purchases....

Update: Some offers mentioned below are no longer available. View the current offers here.Back in November, United followed Delta’s lead and announced it would soon begin selling basic economy fares. Although the product was initially offered only on select routes, United has been very aggressive about its rollout and now offers the product on all domestic routes. Given that all three major US legacy carriers have introduced their own versions of basic economy, I was curious to see what the new experience would be like on United....

Update: Some offers mentioned below are no longer available. View the current offers here.On the market for a lightly used Boeing 747-8? Well, you’re in luck. The Qatari royal family has decided that two 747-8 Boeing Business Jets is one too many, and they’re putting their newest “BBJ” (registration VQ-BSK) on the market.Built at the end of 2012, the jumbo jet underwent a multi-year “VVIP” interior installation before entering service with the Qatari royal family in 2015....

Update: Some offers mentioned below are no longer available. View the current offers here.The Starwood Preferred Guest program eliminated the option to status match to one of its elite status levels in 2011. However, last year it offered a status challenge for members, and 2018 is no different. As Loyalty Lobby reports, you can now register for SPG’s latest challenge for Gold or Platinum status.In order to complete the status challenge for SPG Gold or Platinum status, you must register by June 30, 2018....

In case you didn’t hear, we had (well, actually, are still having) an election here in the U.S. this week.While the outcome isn’t yet a foregone conclusion, it looks like the country may find itself with a divided government, meaning each party controls different facets of the system.For more TPG news delivered each morning to your inbox, sign up for our daily newsletter.To a group of major hotel CEOs, this is actually the best-case scenario for their industry....

Update: The 60,000-point pricing detailed below is no longer available as of March 5, 2019. For details on Marriott redemption options, please visit How to Redeem Points With the Marriott Bonvoy Program.Late yesterday, the SPG site went down as expected as Marriott and Starwood officially become one loyalty program as of today, August 18. Since many of us are very anxious to reprice or lock-in new reservations at properties where award rates are decreasing, we are keeping a very close eye on progress as the sites (hopefully) come back online today....

Months before Sunday’s fatal crash of Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302, US pilots flying the same plane filed five separate complaints about safety concerns involving the Boeing 737 MAX 8, according to The Dallas Morning News. The data came from NASA, which collects and files the reports as a neutral third party entity.At the crux of the complaints are accusations that Boeing installed an automatic stall-protection system unique to the MAX aircraft without educating pilots about how the new system worked and how it introduced differences from previous 737 aircraft models....

In January, we reported that a new partnership between OpenTable and Kayak would allow customers to use OpenTable Dining Points toward discounts on hotel stays.At the time, both brands publicly stated customers could save up to $200 per reservation on hotel stays booked via a dedicated Kayak portal using OpenTable points.It appears, however, that the maximum discount has been capped at $80 total per reservation — 40% of the original maximum discount promised....

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.The security check point in airports is normally a hectic place. Pulling out your belongings and putting them on display is normally one of the most stressful parts of air travel for most passengers. One passenger recently learned that keeping an eye on your items — the best you can anyway — is always a good idea....

You know you can’t carry scissors through security, right? If you need a reminder on what can and cannot go on board, visit Lithuania: Travelers passing through Vilnius Airport (VNO) this month can spot a cheeky Christmas tree made entirely out of confiscated items.Sign up for the free daily TPG newsletter for more travel tips!Photo by PETRAS MALUKAS/AFP via Getty ImagesThe handmade Christmas tree is primarily composed of scissors — hundreds of pairs of them — spray painted forest green to simulate an evergreen....

Want to join a fitness retreat that’s as good for you as it is for the world? Last May, personal trainer and FITNUT founder Josh Grimm launched fitness retreats for the LGBTQ community. In addition to twice-daily workouts, private excursions, seed-to-table meals and upscale resorts, the retreats also give back to local residents.“I developed a passion for [fitness] when I was traveling in Southeast Asia,” Grimm told TPG. “I started volunteering with a couple of organizations in Cambodia, and it inspired me to be a better person....

View this post on Instagram I’m in love with the @flypainefield terminal ???? #airportarchitecture A post shared by Ned Russell (@airbus777) on Aug 27, 2019 at 2:37pm PDT View this post on Instagram View this post on Instagram I’m in love with the @flypainefield terminal ???? #airportarchitecture A post shared by Ned Russell (@airbus777) on Aug 27, 2019 at 2:37pm PDT

When United shared the news that it had begun utilizing a new tool to help determine when to hold flights to avoid having passengers miss connections, I’m not sure Twitter is what the carrier had in mind. But, sometimes, good old fashioned social media is all it takes to get the job done.Last week, United flyer Laura Webb was making her way from Tampa (TPA) to Dublin, Ireland, (DUB) for a wedding, with a connection in Newark (EWR)....

The announcement that China Southern will exit the SkyTeam alliance came on Thursday. The signs of an impending exit from the alliance had been accumulating for months. Delta and Air France-KLM, the biggest players in SkyTeam, had entered joint ventures with rival China Eastern, and American Airlines, the biggest member of rival alliance oneworld, had bought a stake in China Southern.The 20 current SkyTeam airlines — soon to become 19, as China Southern leaves....

Back in November, we learned that an incredibly-exclusive resort — the North Island Resort in the Seychelles — would be joining the Marriott Bonvoy program under the Luxury Collection brand. This private-island paradise consists of just 11 villas, and with room rates of $6,000+ per night, there was rampant speculation of how this would fit into Marriott’s award chart — especially when language was added to the program’s terms and conditions that indicated it would be higher than the current top rate (100,000 points per peak night at Category 8 locations)....