Bits: free in-flight books and magazines with Amazon Prime, Hilton Asia-Pacific flash sale

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• John says:

  25 May25 May 06:10

  Anybody noticed any good deals for Aus/NZ? Got my QR AKL trip in Nov but Hiltons still look very expensive

  • Hingeless says:

    25 May25 May 13:44

    Auckland and Wellington don’t have enough hotels, so they are often expensive.

  • James says:

    25 May25 May 17:14

    Ive been looking for a Sydney hotel.. Its like London prices. Definitely wont be staying luxury there.

    • Hingeless says:

      25 May25 May 18:20

      Sydney can be cheap last minute, so keep it flexible

      • Sam Goss says:

        26 May26 May 02:46

        I decided in the end the Four Seasons was actually not bad value (relatively speaking to the other options) if you use a booking service and get an F&B credit etc.

        It’s a bit tired and not up to usual FS “hardware” standards, but a good location, great breakfast, fantastic staff and decent pool area

        Otherwise Club Carlson points weren’t looking a bad option if you have any spare Amex MRs

• Nathan says:

  25 May25 May 06:50

  Having stayed in the Bangkok hiltons numerous times I would recommend the sukhhnvit hilton for location ad it is also very pleasant. The millennium hilton is amazing, great skybar and lounge etc but it is a bit of a trek from anywhere!
  They do however offer a free boat across the river to the BTS station which is nearby!

  • John says:

    25 May25 May 07:37

    The boat may be free but it still adds an hour to your travel time (because invariably you have just missed the boat when you get off the skytrain)

  • Andrew (@andrewseftel) says:

    25 May25 May 08:57

    The Conrad is pretty decent too, especially the Exec lounge (and it’s very inexpensive). Slightly awkward location though for sightseeing.

    • The Original Nick. says:

      25 May25 May 11:43

      The Conrad shuttle bus takes you to the sky train along the road..

  • The Original Nick. says:

    25 May25 May 11:42

    Conrad Bangkok is my preference.

• Empers says:

  25 May25 May 06:55

  For those that don’t have Amazon Prime or don’t mind paying for a wider selection of magazines, I have found Readly (website, ios, Android) an excellent service. For £7.99 per month you get unlimited access to 2190 different magazine titles (and all back issues) for 5 users. It really is like having WH Smiths on the iPad, as I browse far more magazines than I would normally ever buy. The search function is amazing, before a recent trip to Seattle I ran a search for the city and got some great tips from a back issue of Tatler!! Try the free 30 day trial https://get.readly.com/VsG-IeyLumn4AB0D (for clarity, this is my referral code, it gets me free days if people subscribe). I genuinely love there app.

  Another option is joining your local library, often they have free downloads for a small selection of the latest magazines.

  • Sussex bantam says:

    25 May25 May 07:51

    +1 for readly. Very decent selection of magazines

  • Janeyferr says:

    25 May25 May 12:40

    +1 for joining your local library for free eMagazines (see the link in my name for the titles my service subscribes to)

• roger says:

  25 May25 May 07:00

  LHR T2 has John Lewis.
  Can I buy GC at JL and would that spend count towards my £150 spend for Heathrow Rewards new account?

  • RIcatti says:

    25 May25 May 07:21

    If that JL sells gift cards, then why not.

• Nate1309 says:

  25 May25 May 07:12

  Hilton related, saw there latest Avios offer posted on loyalty lobby last night. 2000 bonus Avios per stay for your first 5 stays. Need your account to be set to points + miles. 10000 Avios not too shabby.

  • Sundar says:

    25 May25 May 07:50

    I have about 7 stays coming up in June. Would this be the best offer @10k avios along with the double-dipping with double/triple bonus base ? Or Would still points and points be better ? Usually use Avios for short-haul Europe flights and haven’t used Hilton for any redemption yet.

    • Genghis says:

      25 May25 May 07:59

      Depends on the value of your stays. On a one night stay points and miles prob a brainer. On longer stays need to do the math

      • Sundar says:

        25 May25 May 09:04

        Just 1 night stays @ avg of about 60 pounds per night. So points and miles ?

        • Genghis says:

          25 May25 May 09:13

          By far. c. 2080 miles vs c. 400 HH points

  • Brighton Belle says:

    25 May25 May 07:51

    I looked at Hilton Singapore for November. Amex was offering better pricing than the Hilton sale by a wide margin. Using Hilton points was no better even paying for them in their recent 100% bonus. Can’t see why Singapore is so pricey.

    • Genghis says:

      25 May25 May 08:00

      Singapore is just pricy. I do love it though

  • John says:

    25 May25 May 07:51

    But also a triple points for Diamonds going on and double points for everyone else. So for more expensive stays may be better to stick with that

    Not sure whether you can flip between them esp since sometimes whether you get points/points or points/miles depends on what the hotel pulled from your profile at the time of booking

    • Genghis says:

      25 May25 May 08:01

      I thought triple base points for Diamonds is irrespective of P&P or P&M?

      • Alex W says:

        25 May25 May 08:17

        The promos normally stack… don’t see why they wouldn’t this time.

    • Alan says:

      25 May25 May 10:01

      There’s no issue – the points promos always stack.

      Remember my standard advice re setting your preferred airline on the website not being enough if you’ve changed it since making booking, need to confirm at hotel…

  • Alex W says:

    25 May25 May 08:20

    Just updated my spreadsheet… a £100 stay would get me £43 back, including credit card points.

    • Rob says:

      25 May25 May 08:32

      Will look at this tomorrow. Can’t handle two complex articles in one day 🙂

    • JP says:

      25 May25 May 11:51

      Your spreadsheet?

      Might you benefit from getting out more?

      • Alex W says:

        25 May25 May 12:14

        So Mrs W would say. But she doesn’t complain when quaffing the champers in First etc 🙂

      • Genghis says:

        25 May25 May 12:48

        At least it’s not just me then that has proforma spreadsheets for calculating points from hotel stays that I then transfer to my other spreadsheet (essentially a list) and then tick off once received!

• mms says:

  25 May25 May 07:47

  Sorry for the OT, what’s the best way to get Tesco to refund the difference if an item goes down in price soon after purchase? I got it from an actual shop but its miles away so need the refund done over the phone/online.

  • John says:

    25 May25 May 07:52

    Call up and complain, but I don’t see why you would be due a refund. Otherwise Tesco should be calling you up and asking for extra money every time you buy something just before the price goes up

    • Genghis says:

      25 May25 May 07:55

      If bought online you have a statutory right to return within 14 days. I guess to avoid you returning the item and reordering (and save the associated logistical costs). But OP bought in store and Tesco give 28 days IIRC.

      • Genghis says:

        25 May25 May 07:56

        Worth a go though

        • Rob says:

          25 May25 May 08:33

          Tesco Direct has a policy that if the price drops in 28 days you can ring for the difference. This is handy when they put up the price in order to offer bonus Clubcard points then drop it immediately afterwards!

  • Genghis says:

    25 May25 May 07:53

    Erm. The phone

• Ro says:

  25 May25 May 08:55

  If anyone has a university email address (including staff) then you can sign up for student price amazon prime (think its half price).

  You also get free microsoft office

  • Genghis says:

    25 May25 May 09:14

    No need for a student email address. A student card will suffice.

    • Andy says:

      25 May25 May 09:32

      My wife has had the NUS extra card for years. Just go their site and put in any old uni and course. It used to cost £12 a year but they do a 3 year one now for £30

      • Alex says:

        25 May25 May 13:53

        They ask for a student email address as well during application. How do you get round that? I used to have one but can’t remember it.

        • Alex says:

          25 May25 May 14:01

          Sorry – I mean’t that the NUS extra card application asks for a student email address.

        • Genghis says:

          25 May25 May 14:05

          You sure? I got an NUS card when I was a trainee ICAEW student (listed as an official option) but did not have a .ac.uk address at the time.

        • Alex says:

          25 May25 May 15:01

          Yes, just tried it. You put in your current e-mail address and then the first step asks for a valid student email which it tries to verify. The alternative is to pick the card up from the place you are studying at.

  • lev441 says:

    25 May25 May 10:00

    How do you get free microsoft office?

    • Alan says:

      25 May25 May 10:02

      Through your uni – login to your email account (assuming they run Office 365) and you should be able to download your own copy)

  • Neil says:

    25 May25 May 13:54

    I am a university lecturer and looked into this as a couple of colleagues told me about it. It is not as simple as that. You do need to be a student and you are asked what course you are studying. You could lie and with a university email address would probably be fine. However, I value my Amazon account too much to risk being banned for fraud, which I suspect would happen if they noticed!

• Sundar says:

  25 May25 May 09:08

  OT, Android Pay has an offer of £10 Costa gift card for using it for 5 times before 6 June.

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