For one day only, on November 1, 2025, Bilt members can get a 25-100% transfer bonus, depending on their status with Bilt. While Etihad Guest has among the worst award cancellation policies in the business, they can sometimes be useful for booking close-in awards where you are highly confident of your plans (I’ve found Etihad useful in pursuit of JetBlue’s 25 for 25 promotion, for example).
The Deal
- On November 1, 2025 only, from 12:00am ET to 11:59pm PT, Bilt members can get a transfer bonus when transferring Bilt points to Etihad Guest. The transfer bonus varies based on your Bilt elite status:
- ● Blue: 25% bonus
● Silver: 50% bonus
● Gold: 75% bonus
● Platinum: 100% bonus
- ● Blue: 25% bonus
- Transfer in the Bilt app
Key Terms
- Available 11/1/25 only from 12:00am ET to 11:59pm PT
Quick Thoughts
I generally tend to recommend against booking awards via Etihad Guest because of the highly punitive cancellation policy. You’ll lose 25% of your miles if you cancel more than 21 days in advance, with that penalty increasing 50% of the miles if you cancel between 8 and 21 days in advance, 75% within 7 days of departure, and 100% within 24 hours of departure. As a family traveler, I generally find that unacceptable since I don’t want to lose 75% of my miles if one of my kids gets sick and we can’t travel.
Still, I did use Etihad Guest to book a couple of JetBlue flights this summer in instances where cash prices were high and Etihad’s pricing was excellent. And when I ran into a need to cancel a very cheap JetBlue award, my perspective on the penalty changed a bit since I only lost a little over 900 miles and less than $19 for cancelling an award that cost 6,000 miles. However, consider that award tickets to the Middle East cost more than 100,000 miles each way in business class, and those cancellation penalties become atrocious for those awards. And it is worth noting that while Etihad does offer some excellent deals for travel on JetBlue, it isn’t always easy to book those awards.
Personally, I still wouldn’t want to stockpile Etihad Guest miles, but if you can accept the risk of being hit with the high cancellation penalties, this transfer bonus could obviously lead to some great deals. Etihad Guest is often the best way to snag Etihad business or first class far in advance, so if you’re looking to plan a trip far in advance and you have a lot of Bilt points and status, and you can accept the risk of losing out in the event of a cancellation, then this could be a solid deal. And Etihad first-class apartments are indeed awesome. Greg and I have both flown Etihad first class a couple of times, and both of us very much enjoyed the experience, though neither of us booked through Etihad Guest.
I think this transfer bonus could be more broadly useful for those looking to book close-in awards, though in that case, if you’re looking to book on Etihad-operated flights, you might want to look at American Airlines for better award pricing.
Bilt Neighborhood Comedy
Bilt is once again offering its Neighborhood Comedy series in 16 cities as follows:
- 20 venues across 16 cities: Los Angeles, CA; New York, NY; Nashville, TN; Seattle, WA; Boston, MA; San Francisco, CA; Philadelphia, PA; Houston, TX; Austin, TX; San Diego, CA; Tampa, FL; Chandler, AZ; Somerville, MA; Santa Monica, CA; West Hollywood, CA; and Atlanta, GA
- There are two experience types:
- Comedy Club Experiences cost $40 or $30 (2,500 or 2,000 Bilt Points)
- Bespoke Comedy Experiences: $75-$125 (5,000-8,500 Bilt Points)
- Booking opens October 28 at 11am ET for Platinum and Gold members and at 12pm ET for all members
- Members may purchase up to 4 tickets
- All sales final
Bilt Neighorhood Dining experiences
Bilt is also once again offering Bilt Neighborhood Dining experiences at select restaurants in select cities as follows:
- Available on November 1, 2025 only (booking opens on October 28, 2025)
- 25 restaurants across 8 cities: New York, NY; Miami, FL; Washington, D.C.; Arlington, VA; Dallas, TX; Belmont, CA; San Francisco, CA; and Chevy Chase, MD
- Experience details: Multi-course tasting menus at premier neighborhood restaurants (2-4 courses or omakase depending on venue)
- Cocktail/wine pairing available at some venues and must be purchased at the time of booking
- Booking opens October 28 at 11am ET for Platinum and Gold members and at 12pm ET for all members
- Booking closes October 31 at 5pm ET
- Each member may purchase up to 4 seats
- All sales are final
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Has anyone done a Neighborhood Dining experience? I’d love to know if people think they are a good value.
Hopefully someone who has done one can chime in, but my guess would be that, like any fancy dining experience, it’s less about value and more about experience.
My wife and I did one of the first ones offered at Nobu in Los Angeles (Malibu), and it was fantastic. Special tasting menu of wonderful food, free cocktails, and good company of other points and miles folks around a table for 10 or 12 people. I don’t know if all are like that.
Still no word on the Rakuten partnership. I was sort of expecting that today, but perhaps that was irrational.
February will be the issuer transition. By then at the latest.