This week at Frequent Miler, see how you can turn a flat-out no into an “I guess so!”, learn about LifeMiles’ weird variable partner pricing, and ride the Marriott status coaster with us. All that and more in our Frequent Miler week in review.
When should you book a Prestige 4th night free?
The short answer: when it saves you money. See this post for some thoughts about when it will make sense to look to book a 4th night free versus when you’re better off booking through a portal.
Does LifeMiles play favorites?
You betcha they do — by charging more to fly on some partners than others. You can save miles with a mixed-cabin itinerary and save even more miles based on who you choose to fly, so it’s worth pricing out a few itineraries for your chosen route if you’re looking for the best deal.
Is the IHG sky falling? My take on variable point pricing.
Could variable-point pricing be a good thing for members? Greg makes the point here as to how a change like that could potentially make IHG Rewards more member-friendly than it is today. In case you missed it, this post eventually led to a second about how availability for credit card free nights may be significantly different than that of points reservations. Those holding free nights from the iold IHG Rewards Club card may find that post quite interesting.
Informed newbie turns Chase denial into approval. Here’s how.
Question for the parents: Has your child ever asked you for something and been told “no” only to turn around and ask the other parent? It’s a time-tested strategy that can work just as well with a bank. In this post, find out what our newbie did in preparation for his callbacks in order to position himself for success.7
No joy from Bonvoy: Ritz cardholders downgraded to Gold
One of the easy paths to Marriott elite status that we published last year was said to be opening a Ritz-Carlton credit card. While many folks who did that correctly maintained their first year of 50-night status when the programs merged, some recently got unexpectedly downgraded to Gold status. However, this led to the next post about how….
Bonvoy restores joy: Platinum status being reinstated
Thankfully, Marriott recognized the mistake with stripped status and promptly reinstated those who opened a Ritz card last year expecting 50-night status. Many existing cardholders (who opened prior to 2018) and who did $10K in purchases before the merger are still waiting for this to be fixed. We continue to communicate with Marriott about this and hope to have a further update soon.
That’s it for this week at Frequent Miler. Check back soon for our week in review around the web and this week’s last chance deals.
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