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Reader Questions are answered twice a week by TPG Senior Points & Miles Contributor Ethan Steinberg.While the list of airlines to which you can transfer your flexible points changes over time, many airlines partner with more than just one program. This was especially true when Capital One added the ability to transfer its miles to airlines. The top three options — Avianca LifeMiles, Aeroplan and Etihad Guest — were already partners with Amex Membership Rewards....

Update: Some offers mentioned below are no longer available. View the current offers here.Delta continues to impress us with one award sale after another. Currently, you can book flights to Australia from 48,000 SkyMiles round-trip in economy, flights to South Korea for 50,000 miles in economy or 70,000 SkyMiles round-trip in premium economy and flights to Mexico (Los Cabos, Mexico City, Cancun) from just 12,000 miles in economy. While there’s still absurd pricing on some routes, these excellent offers justify retirement of the term “SkyPesos....

Update: Some offers mentioned below are no longer available. View the current offers here.American Airlines launched a new tiered bonus offer, letting AAdvantage members earn up to 5,000 bonus miles for completing tasks. While 5,000 miles isn’t going to get you a free flight, it’s worth registering for this promotion to at least earn miles for tasks you’d otherwise do.Here’s how the promotion works: Now through September 30, register to earn up to 5,000 bonus points for completing the following tasks:Fly on an American Airlines marketed and operated flight (1 eligible flight segment must be flown during the offer period, tickets may be booked through any source)Make any purchase with AAdvantage eShopping (must transact and earn miles at participating AAdvantage eShopping merchants during the offer period)Dine-in or carry out with AAdvantage Dining (must dine and earn miles with participating restaurants during the offer period)Rent and drive a car at aa....

Update: Some offers mentioned below are no longer available. View the current offers here.Editor’s note: This post is regularly updated with the latest promotion information.One of our favorite promotions is back, with Staples offering waived purchase fees on its $200 Visa gift cards plus the chance to score an additional discount via the Chase Offers program. Here are the details:Offer valid Feb. 23 - 29, 2020Limited to one gift card per customerWaived $7 purchase feeAvailable in-store onlyOne of the easiest ways to earn points is through buying gift cards — though be warned: banks have been known to claw back points if they think people are abusing the system....

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.Late last week, the Turkish military attempted to take power from President Erdoğan, with uprisings taking place in several major cities throughout the country — the coup has since failed and the Turkish government and its president are now back in power....

One of the best tools to find great airfare deals used to be the ITA Matrix. It had several useful features that allowed users to search for airfare between city pairs over several months using flexible date ranges for the duration of your trip, making it a great resource for finding some of those low-cost mileage run deals.The ITA Matrix has been one of the most useful airfare search tools out there....

Air travel is constantly changing, and airports are always adapting. From accommodating more and more airplane traffic to opening lounges and adding Wi-Fi and more and more amenities, airports are rushing to accommodate passengers’ needs with more outlets, more eco-friendly options, and friendlier public spaces. Or so do the best ones among them, like Singapore’s Changi, while others are struggling to keep up (looking at you, La Guardia, although things are changing for the better there....

PepsiCo is enormous. Worth over $150 billion, the multinational corporation owns Gatorade and Tropicana, Ruffles and Lay’s, Fritos and Cheetos, Mountain Dew, Aquafina, 7 Up, and, of course, Pepsi. Pepsi products are everywhere.Everywhere, that is, except in the air. Board a plane in Dulles, Dublin or Dubai, and the soft drinks served are almost certainly going to be those from Pepsi’s age-old rival, Coca-Cola. United serves Coke. Cathay Pacific serves Coke....

The 2020 TPG Awards are just weeks away, and if you haven’t already cast your vote for the 12 Readers’ Choice categories, today is your last chance to do so — and grab a chance at winning some terrific prizes as part of our special giveaway. And if you filled out a ballot prior to Oct. 26, you can still vote today!Read on for more details on how to get in on this promotion....

Update: Some offers mentioned below are no longer available. View the current offers here.LOT Polish Airlines has announced that it’s going to fly between Budapest, Hungary (BUD) and both Chicago (ORD) and New York (JFK), which will be the first nonstop service between the two nations since American Airlines stopped flying between JFK and BUD in 2011. Hungary’s now-defunct national airline, Malév Hungarian Airlines, ended flights to New York in 2008 and then shut down completely in 2012....

Things are not looking good for the Avianca LifeMiles program at the moment.The TPG team has discovered Friday morning that point transfers from the American Express Membership Rewards program to Avianca LifeMiles are unavailable. Points usually transfer instantly at a 1:1 ratio.For more TPG news delivered each morning to your inbox, sign up for our daily newsletter.Per a message on Amex’s website, the suspension of transfers is only temporary. However, some may speculate that this is tied to the airline’s struggling financial position....

Last weekend, British Airways had a massive system outage, causing over 700 flights to be canceled and affecting over 75,000 passengers’ travel plans. It’s estimated that BA is going to have to pay out compensation of around £150 million ($193 million). Turns out, the whole issue may have been caused by one simple error.According to The Times, inside sources believe that a “contractor doing maintenance inadvertently switched the [power] supply off....

Update: Some offers mentioned below are no longer available. View the current offers here.A dream destination for just about any frequent traveler, a visit to the Maldives can still be tremendously expensive, even if you’re redeeming points for your hotel room and miles for the flight.Airport transfers are always quite pricey, and paid for in cash, and food and drinks are hit with an outrageous markup, to the point where savvy visitors load up their suitcases with granola bars and other non-perishables, to help tide them over between free meals — breakfast, at most resorts, and an evening happy hour at the Sheraton Maldives....

We’ve heard rumblings that something along these lines might be in the works, but now it’s official: United is launching new fare bundles that include a variety of add-ons to enjoy before, during and even after your flight.United’s new travel packages.As you can see above, these new packages come in two tiers. The first, called Economy Plus Essentials, includes an Economy Plus seat plus one checked bag. Economy Plus Enhanced, meanwhile, includes an Economy Plus seat, a checked bag, expedited check-in/security/boarding, a United Club pass and 500 extra award miles for flights within the 48 continental United States, or 1,000 extra miles for flights to other destinations....

Following the collapse of British travel giant Thomas Cook Group, the UK has lost a significant player in the aviation market in its subsidiaries known as Thomas Cook Airlines UK, Thomas Cook Scandinavia and Thomas Cook Spain. The fourth airline, Frankfurt-based Condor, in which Thomas Cook owns just less than 50%, says it will keep flying.While many leisure airlines tend to operate a fleet with a single aircraft type, the overall Thomas Cook Group operated a mixed fleet of 85 Airbus aircraft and 31 Boeing jets for a total of 116 aircraft based across Europe....

There are many reasons to travel: food, sightseeing, relaxing. But for adrenaline junkies and athletes, partaking in an extreme sport can be the sole reason for booking a trip. In fact, according to a recent report published by Allied Market Research, the global adventure tourism market is expected to grow in value by more than 17% (from 2017 to 2023).And we’re not talking about running a marathon (unless, of course, that marathon is in the middle of the Serengeti) but rather activities like volcano boarding, heli-skiing, ultra-marathons and the Ötillö 47-mile swim-run....

Update: Some offers mentioned below are no longer available. View the current offers here.TPG reader Nik tweeted me to ask:@thepointsguy—“I’m taking my Chase Sapphire Preferred card to Japan in April. Does the whole trip count as travel for double points since it’s overseas?“Nik, heading to Japan in April will be a great trip. I was just there recently and had a wonderful time, and so will you. While taking your Chase Sapphire Preferred card is a great idea (thanks to no foreign transaction fees), not every purchase outside of the United States counts as travel (don’t we all wish)....

The opening of Disneyland’s Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge is just a few weeks away. While we know the opening dates, where to stay to guarantee you can get in during those early weeks, what they are serving (blue milk, amongst other things) and that yes, there will be bathroom passes available during the wait to ride the attractions (yes, really), there is plenty we don’t know.Luckily, this is the weekend of the Star Wars Celebration being held in Chicago, so a few more secrets have been unlocked from the vault....

Update: Some offers mentioned below are no longer available. View the current offers here.American Express just came out with an offer to earn 75,000 bonus Membership Rewards points when you apply for the Amex Business Gold charge card by June 26, 2012, and spend $10,000 within 4 months.You must apply using Bonus ID A2QQ though the code seems to be automatically factored into the application page. Though this isn’t one of my links and I can’t guarantee you’ll get the 75,000-point welcome offer, the terms of the offer are explicitly stated on the application, so I don’t think there should be any issues....

Update: Some offers mentioned below are no longer available – View the current offers hereAs you probably already know, the Chase Sapphire Preferred Card is one of the best travel rewards credit cards out there. Whether you’re a beginner or a more experienced traveler, the card offers exceptional value and special perks for an annual fee of $95, which is waived the first year. There are also a number of other factors that make this card an appealing option, like its sign-up bonus of 50,000 points after you spend $4,000 within the first three months — that’s worth $625 when you redeem points for travel through Chase Ultimate Rewards....