When it comes to ultra-premium credit card lodging credits, I’ve probably been least enthusiastic about The Edit credits from the Chase Sapphire Reserve card. There are not that many qualifying properties, and there are even fewer qualifying properties in a price range that appeals to me.
However, this week I was reminded of one of the great strengths of the edit credits: rather than being tied to a six-month period, they are valid for the entire calendar year. Chase was wise to differentiate from those premium cards offering a January-to-June and July-to-December credit. On the surface, an obvious advantage here is that you aren’t pigeonholed into needing to plan travel during two separate windows each year. More importantly, you have flexibility to change plans throughout the year or to re-book when that becomes advantageous.
Earlier this week, I ran into exactly that type of situation. I had booked a property through The Edit in June 2026 using my $250 Edit credit and Chase Ultimate Rewards points to pay the balance. At the time, that property was eligible for a points boost of 1.65 cents per point. Then, earlier this week, I noticed that the same property was now boosted to 2 cents per point. Meanwhile, the nightly rate had stayed the same. If this were an Amex credit, I would have been stuck since I couldn’t rebook without losing my January-to-June credit. Thankfully, since Chase’s The Edit credits are valid for the calendar year, I was able to easily cancel and re-book, using fewer Ultimate Rewards points for the same reservation.
I had noticed that the same property was boosted to 2c per point in May, then it was 1.65c per point in June, then back up to 2c per point in late July. I don’t love that variance or the need to monitor my Edit bookings for those types of changes. At the same time, I’m glad that when I do catch that kind of change, I have more flexibility to flex it and save some points.
On the blog this week, we discuss which points are on an upward trajectory and how you can amass many of them, Amex’s valuable new hotel transfer partner, Carrie’s tips for packing to visit more modest cultures, why I’m contemplating travel insurance, and more.
This week on the Frequent Miler blog…
Rent Day: ALL Accor status offer for Bilt members with points transfer
Today only, Bilt is offering the opportunity for members to get status with ALL Accor hotels by initiating a transfer of Bilt points to Accor (on August 1st, 2026 only). The level of status you’ll get with Accor depends on your Bilt status, with Bilt Silver and general members getting Accor Silver, Bilt Gold members being matched to Accor Gold, and Bilt Platinum members being matched to Accor Platinum, provided you meet the points transfer criteria. Accor’s elite benefits aren’t very exciting compared to other hotel programs. However, with Accor points having a consistent fixed cash value, you’re not losing much value by transferring a handful of points to Accor for this match. If you do think that you’ll likely stay at Accor properties over the next year, then the number of points you have to transfer seems pretty reasonable, particularly given the fact that those points will maintain their value and you can use them towards booking a room or towards things you charge to your folio like meals and spa services. Accor doesn’t have much of a presence within the United States, so many readers are less familiar with Accor’s 40-plus brands, but you’ll find very wide coverage in Europe and Asia.
Transferable Points Changing Fortunes: July 2026
The core strength of transferable points is the ability to be somewhat insulated from devaluations to specific individual partner programs. Even so, the relative value of one points currency as compared to another often shifts over time. Just a couple of months ago, Greg and I published a podcast episode where we discussed which transferable points programs were trending upward and which were trending downward, but some of those trends have already changed. See this post for a full rundown of the current landscape.
How to Amass Amex Points | Frequent Miler on the Air Ep369 | 7-31-26
If the addition of Leading Hotels of the World suddenly has you more interested than ever in building up a treasure chest of Amex points, this week’s Frequent Miler on the Air will provide you with a multitude of methods for amassing more Amex Membership Rewards points. I tend to find Amex points to be among the easiest points to amass, so listen to this episode for more on that.
How to maximize value with Amex referrals
One easy way to amass a lot of American Express Membership Rewards points is through referrals. My wife and I always refer each other to open new Amex cards in order to earn another 20,000 to 30,000 points per new card we open. The beauty of Amex referrals is the way they allow you to refer someone to almost any card, while earning the valuable referral bonus based on the card you use to generate the referral link. In other words, if you have an Amex Gold card and your account says you can earn 30,000 Membership Rewards points per referral, you can refer someone (like perhaps your spouse) for almost any Amex card, even a co-branded one like a Hilton Honors no annual fee card, and if the person you refer is approved, you’ll get your 30,000 Membership Rewards points regardless of which card they choose through your link. See this post for more details on how to maximize value with Amex referrals.
Leading Hotels of the World added as Amex transfer partner; 4:1 basis is better than Citi’s 5:1
One of the reasons Membership Rewards points have been trending upward has been the recent addition of transfer partner Leading Hotels of the World (LHW) Leaders Club. Not only does the addition of LHW draw interest on its own, but the transfer ratio of 4 to 1 is particularly compelling given that Leading Hotels of the World points are typically worth 8 cents per point. While that value isn’t quite fixed, it means that you’ll very often be able to get 2 cents per Membership Rewards point at Leading Hotels of the World. Even if you redeemed for some of the poorer redemption options, you’ll still get around 1.6 cents per point or more.
Many folks will find particular appeal in the fact that points can be used to book any room type while offering relatively consistent value. There are a number of luxury boutique properties in the portfolio that certainly draw my interest. That said, the comparatively tiny footprint of LHW vs most hotel programs limits the value of this partner to some degree. Still, if there are LHW properties where you’ll be traveling and you enjoy luxury hotels, this is certainly a partnership that you need to keep in mind.
How to pack for travel in “modest” cultures (A Carrie commentary)
I enjoyed reading Carrie’s take on how to pack for travel in more modest cultures. As a guy, I know I have it far easier when planning for this sort of thing, but it is still something I consider. When my wife and I spent the better part of a year living in Quito, Ecuador almost 20 years ago, I quickly learned that in many cultures, people only wear shorts when at or near the beach (or when playing sports). Ever since, I’ve been more comfortable in pants when traveling abroad (except when at the beach). I generally prefer to blend in more than stand out when I’m traveling in a foreign land, and few things immediately identify you as an American tourist quite as effectively as shorts and a baseball hat, so I tend to be more of a pants-and-fedora guy. Like Carrie, I appreciate having lightweight pants, so I have come to love both a pair of lightweight cargo pants that zip off at the knees to convert into shorts (which gives me versatility for when I do visit the beach) and a pair of very lightweight pair of pants I bought in Japan (almost like a parachute sort of material) that can pass for dressy but are incredibly comfortable (I dread the day when I manage to rip them!). Of course, Carrie has far more tips in her post here, so you’ll want to find out which lightweight items she always brings along for her travels.
Contemplating an annual travel insurance policy to complement credit card protections
I’ve long eschewed dedicated travel insurance since my credit cards cover most of my trip cancellation or interruption needs, as well as some more extreme things like emergency medical evacuation. However, credit card travel protections don’t offer much in the way of medical coverage, and there are times when I’ve booked trip components using a card that doesn’t offer best-in-class travel protections. I’ve recently found myself contemplating purchasing an insurance policy to cover medical emergencies or perhaps to complement existing trip cancellation insurance. In this post, I explain which coverages I’ve considered, but you’ll definitely want to read the comments to see tons of great reader opinions and recommendations.
American Express Platinum Card® vs. Robinhood Platinum | Coffee Break Ep116 | 7-28-26
Robinhood has recently launched its new Platinum card as an invite-only product. Given the high annual fee and coupon-like benefits, it invites comparison to the American Express Platinum card. On this week’s coffee break, Greg and I discussed the key differences. Despite the fact that I think the Robinhood Platinum card might not be completely unreasonable for some, it just doesn’t offer compelling value for most. Ironically, the Amex Platinum card has far more long-term appeal for a much broader audience, despite its significantly higher price tag.
AwardHelper: An awesome tool for finding places to use premium credit card benefits
One of my frustrations with Amex Fine Hotels + Resorts® and The Edit by Chase credits is that I don’t always know where I might find overlap between upcoming travel plans and places where there might be eligible properties, particularly when traveling to areas other than major cities. AwardHelper features easily scrolable maps that you can check for opportunities to use those credits and also Sapphire Exclusive Tables restaurants along with a number of other card-related benefits. I hope that the maps stay up-to-date, because as you’ll see in this post, AwardHelper is an awesome tool to have in your belt.
(Update) Your Lifemiles+ free award changes/cancellations may end sooner than you think
Last month, Avianca Lifemiles ended free changes and cancellations for all new Lifemiles+ members. Those who had and have maintained an active Lifemiles+ basic subscription or higher since before June 26, 2026 received free changes and cancellations “for 12 months”.
While some of us had interpreted that to mean that free changes and cancellations would last through late June of 2027, it seems that Avianca Life Miles is actually measuring the end of your subscription as a 12-month increment from when your subscription began. In other words, the date when you will lose free changes and cancellations will depend on your next 12-month anniversary after June 26, 2026. Even though Lifemiles+ is a monthly subscription membership, my own subscription shows that I’m two months into my membership year, so I expect to have ten more months of free changes and cancellations if I keep my subscription active.
I’ve updated the post since original publication with information about how to find where you are in your annual subscription cycle.
Hotel review: Glasgow Marriott, Scotland
Stephen recently visited Glasgow and stayed at the Marriott there using a combination of Marriott 35K free night certificates and some points. The hotel looks decent enough, and I always appreciate a decent lounge, so this looks like a place I’d consider if my travels brought me to Glasgow and it were offering a bit more value for the points or if, like Stephen, I had expiring 35K free night certs to use.
How do you decide whether to buy flights with cash or miles? | Question of the Week Ep10 | 7-26-26
This week’s Question of the Week was about deciding when to use cash to book flights and when to use miles. While the initial answer seems easy — use points when you’re getting good value for your points — it quickly becomes apparent that there are a lot of other considerations (Do you need flexibility? How easily can you replace the miles?). Listen to how Greg and I consider this type of thing in our ordinary bookings.
Best Credit Card Big Spend Bonuses: Elite status, flights, free nights and more
If you have big spend to do, it’s always worth checking our resource for the best credit card big spend bonuses. Which big spend bonus is best likely depends on what you value. Some will place more emphasis on airline elite status. Others will want to chase hotel status. Still others will want to prioritize free night certificates or companion certificates or a multitude of other things. This post contains all the cards that have notable big-spend bonuses.
That’s it for this week at Frequent Miler. Keep an eye on this week’s last chance deals to make sure you grab those ending early this month.
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