How to earn Avios points with a Financial Times subscription

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• Brandon says:

  15 Mar15 March 11:37

  Have i got this right?
  Ive booked 2 free nights at the Hilton Seychelles Northolme (thanks via HILTON VISA) and need to pay for a third night. The cheapest rate/room (june 28th) is £418 for a single night for 2 based on the current sale.
  I can buy 90k points for $us500 which is about £359.. so it seems buying points is the cheapest way to book a single night (and have more flexibility to cancel/change with a reward booking over a sale fare) – maybe ill even trigger the £50 amex offer (unlikely im guessing)

  Is my man math correct?

  • Genghis says:

    15 Mar15 March 11:39

    Doesn’t surprise me. Assuming you’d otherwise pay cash, seems reasonable but bear in mind you won’t earn any points from a points booking so you may want to take this into account in your calcs. Points purchases are not handled by Hilton so won’t trigger any amex offer I’m afraid…

  • Rob says:

    15 Mar15 March 12:07

    Yes (as long as reward nights are showing). It does make sense at certain hotels at certain times to buy everything you need.

  • TripRep says:

    15 Mar15 March 12:58

    Brandon – if the resort has taxes on cash stays I’d definintely go for the points, I know other resorts like the Conrad Rangali dont charge if all of your stay is a redemption.

    Interested to hear your feedback on the Seychelles

    • Brandon says:

      15 Mar15 March 15:36

      Looks like points are the way to go here…FYI I am only going to Seychelles on the back of Rob highlighting the new BA route and the fact redemption seats were wide open – it will be my first time in first. Ill report back on the Seychelles in July when ive returned.

• Scottydoggiom says:

  15 Mar15 March 12:15

  Is a 35% bonus from Starwoods the most they offer , or has it been known to offer even better bonuses in the past ?
  Its an avenue i’m looking to explore soon , SPG Points , just wanting to get a better idea

  • Rob says:

    15 Mar15 March 13:10

    Almost always 35%.

  • JamesB says:

    15 Mar15 March 18:08

    There was 50% at least once but individual offers varied with few of us getting the 50%

• Dale says:

  15 Mar15 March 12:37

  OT but has anyone had the bonus 5000 Avios from the BAEC/AVis Christmas promotion??

• Save East Coast Rewards says:

  15 Mar15 March 13:16

  I’ve just been informed on Twitter that BA1332 which is operated by G-MEDN has broken down. Not sure the details, just that the passengers are on board and it’s going nowhere.

  There was a delay to my flight yesterday caused by a technical issue and then compounded by a runway issue that affected all departures.

  • Rob says:

    15 Mar15 March 14:10

    Someone stuck in the small loo ….

• Jason K says:

  15 Mar15 March 13:37

  Anyone have any experience booking a Marriot travel package? What is availability like, and any downsides or things to watch out for? Im looking at the Ritz-Carlton, Grand Cayman. Points availability looks really good. Do you choose the package and then need to book the hotel, or do you book the hotel at the same time? I assume the miles are given after the stay? And does anyone know how the 10% daily service charge works on reward bookings?

  Also im thinking of transferring some MR to SPG points which I need to use now, any risk of a devaluation before the end of this year, or the travel packages being removed due to the merger? Thanks to anyone taking the time to answer these questions.

  • Peter K says:

    15 Mar15 March 13:55

    When you buy a package you get the airmiles very quickly, just days in my case.
    There is no limit to the package availability. Once bought your have a voucher with a year validity to use on a hotel. You will need to use heaps of Marriott points to book a Ritz-Carlton as they are a Tier 1,2,3 or 4 hotel, rather than than your Marriott level 1-9!
    To use there needs to be 7 days of reward availability in a row to use (or maybe with a small gap in between you will need to pay cash for, eg 5 days reward, one day cash, 2 days reward).
    Travel packages were there before the starwood merger so likely will stay but who knows. Likewise with a devaluation.

  • Genghis says:

    15 Mar15 March 14:25

    In terms of the mechanics, here’s my experience. Booked the Cat 1-5 last year when BA had the 35% bonus on last year (so 162k avios and the 1-5 voucher for 270k Marriott).

    Then yesterday I used the voucher. I called Marriott and they made the booking of the hotel. I was then transferred to another person where they then upgraded the travel package (to Cat 9) and I paid the 120k Marriott delta. The booking I made was after the Cat 1-5 expiry date, but as you might be aware, the date is extended when you upgrade / Marriott will do it as a goodwill gesture.

    You can do a normal booking (you don’t need to pay the points straight away on a Reward booking at Marriott) and then this can be changed to a travel package booking at a later date (so you get exactly what you want).

    It took a good 20 mins to make the booking yesterday but most of that time was spent on hold…

    • Jason K says:

      15 Mar15 March 14:39

      Perfect. Thanks for your replies.

      • Anna says:

        15 Mar15 March 15:03

        What does happen with the resort fee? I’m sure it’s around $75 per night at the GC Ritz-Carlton!

      • ankomonkey says:

        15 Mar15 March 20:22

        IME, pretty much all chains waive the resort fee charges for points bookings.

      • Genghis says:

        15 Mar15 March 20:39

        RC don’t waive charges on reward bookings I don’t think

      • Tom1 says:

        15 Mar15 March 21:04

        I just completed a redemption at Marriott in Dubai and I didn’t get charged anything at all – even the tourist taxes. Thats despite all these charges appearing on the TV bill throughout the stay.

    • Louise says:

      15 Mar15 March 16:05

      What hotel did you go for Genghis?

      • Roger says:

        15 Mar15 March 20:17

        I have also booked MTP at JWM Singapore.

      • Genghis says:

        15 Mar15 March 20:40

        JWM HK for a week of eating, hiking and relaxation in one of my favourite cities.

    • Steve-B says:

      15 Mar15 March 21:01

      Enjoy! Thanks for posting your experience Genghis.

• Liz says:

  15 Mar15 March 14:04

  OT: How long does it take for the IHG free night cert take to post to your account after your anniversary date. And does the earning status bar reset on the Creation credit card page for the 2nd year – I am assuming yes – mine is still showing last years numbers even though I am 5 days beyond my anniversary date.

  • Genghis says:

    15 Mar15 March 14:28

    IME for both myself and wife, statement date which was over 12 months since you had the card (not necessarily the anniversary statement date) was 22/23/24 or so of the month, the voucher then posted early in the following month.

    Yes, the 10k spend bar resets though I don’t recall exactly when.

    • Liz says:

      15 Mar15 March 15:18

      Thanks Genghis – my card Anniversary is 11/3 and statement date the same as you. Will wait and see what happens at statement time.

• N says:

  15 Mar15 March 14:40

  OT: A multi-layered OT re Qatar airways… please bear with me!

  Booked one way DOH-LHR in Qatar J. Am BA Bronze. Trying seat selection but no options on Qatar MMB. ExpertFlyer showing all seats either occupied or blocked and flight as “J1 C0 D0 I0 R0 Y9 B9 H9 K9 M9 L9 V0 S0 N0 Q0 T0 O0 W0”.

  Should I be ready to be bumped? Or make sure I’m at the airport v early?

  Plane is showing as a 777-300ER – do these have the Qsuites?

  • Kevin says:

    15 Mar15 March 19:22

    Some of the 777 planes have the Qsuite but not all. They are being refitted. You can tell if your plane is due to have it because the seat map is different. Do bear in mind that Qatar make frequent aircraft switches.

• Canuck says:

  15 Mar15 March 17:06

  With the Marriott Travel Packages, how often are the transfer bonuses to Alaskan? when was the last one?

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