Good Deal Alert

April 21, 2014

Free Hyatt Platinum Status! Sign up Now!

UPDATED: Offer is dead – Hyatt seems to have taken down the page.

The past few weeks we’ve seen offers for free miles but now we have an offer for free elite status, as Hyatt is giving away Platinum status! Hyatt Platinum status normally comes after 5 stays or 15 nights in a calendar year or for having the Hyatt credit card – but now for a click of a button, you can have it too!

The following are the benefits of Hyatt Platinum status:

  • 15% Bonus on Points earned on Hotel Stays
  • Room Upgrades to Preferred or Larger rooms, Based on Availability
  • Free Internet Access
  • 2pm Late Checkout
  • Confirmed Bed Type at Check-in
  • Dedicated Check-in Lines for Elite Members

I think the most valuable benefit is the free internet access which can easily cost $10 per night at most Hyatt hotels. And the opportunity to get upgraded while earning a nice 15% bonus isn’t too shabby either.

Now the landing page for this offer does say it is targeted towards Microsoft employees but many people have already reported it working as there is no restriction to stop anyone from signing up for this offer.

All of those benefits for taking 10 seconds to signup? Ya, I say this qualifies as a #GoodDealAlert.

(h/t Points, Miles & Martinis)

April 17, 2014

Good Deal Alert: $300 Flights to the Caribbean! Will not last!

Via the Flight Deal, there is a fare war right now on American and US airways offering $300 flights to the Caribbean, including Aruba, Cayman Islands, The Bahamas, Turks & Caicos, Punta Cana and much more.

The best part is most of these deals are good for travel this summer/fall in addition to over long weekends like Labor Day, MLK day and President’s Day. If your from NY you remember how bad the winters were this year – book your escape for next year now!

Another key benefit to book now and think later: American Airlines offers a 24 hour free hold on tickets while US Airways allows you to cancel for free within 24 hours.

These flights are usually a lot more especially around the long holiday weekends closer to $500-$600 if not more! You lock in cheap flights today, then book the hotel rooms later. In fact, if your flying to Aruba for example, you could pick up a Club Carlson or Hyatt Credit card and get 2 nights free there!

Aruba Palm Beach

Aruba Palm Beach

 

April 15, 2014

Good Deal Alerts: 15% off Frontier Flights, $400 Flights to Norway & 12,000 Free Melia Hotel Rewards Points

Tax day brings up a trio of good deals in the travel industry. Without further ado:

1) Frontier Airlines is celebrating tax day by offering 15% off most domestic flights flown by June 12th if travel is booked by April 17th. A 15% discount on airfare is pretty rare so you might be able to score solid airfares here.

2) Via The Points Guy, you can find flights from the NY area to Norway for only $407!  Availability is greatest for travel between November 2014 through March 2015 (skiing in Norway anyone?) for flights on United and Norwegian Air. If you have a choice, I’d choose United to earn miles for flying vs Norwegian which I don’t believe has a frequent flyer program.

3) Lastly, most of you have probably never heard of Melia Hotels, but they are currently giving away 12,000 points for signing up for their rewards program. The downside is you only have until April 30th to use the points but 12,000 points can be a free night at some of their locations in Europe or Asia. They do not have a big North American presence (only 3 hotels in the US and some in the Caribbean) but if your travel plans over the next year take you near a Melia hotel you might get a room for free! Or if the 12,000 points doesn’t cover a free room, you could use a points & cash option, effectively using those 12,000 points to lower the price of a room.

Hopefully some of you can take advantage of these deals!

April 7, 2014

Good Deal Alert: Flights to Europe from $426 – $481!!

There are some amazing airfares to Europe right now from the NY area starting at $426 to Norway, $481 to Denmark and higher for other locations. See this post from Just Another Points Traveller with more info on prices to other locations.

The flights are via Air Canada, United or Norwegian Air (depending on the route) valid for travel from October 26th – December 11th or December 25th – February, 2015. You might have to overnight in Toronto for the Denmark flights but you can also think of this as a way to fly to Toronto AND Denmark for just $481!!

The best deal here though is the non-stop United flights from Newark to Norway for only $426! If you interested in skiing, this is a great time to ski Norway – see below for an idea of availability.

Calendar of Fares...plenty of availability!

Calendar of Fares…plenty of availability!

 

Denmark for under $500

Denmark for under $500

I have no idea how long these fares will last, so act fast! If you book via United.com you have 24 hours to cancel if you change your mind.

(H/T to The Flight Deal, Just Another Points Traveler)

March 15, 2014

30,000 United Miles for Signing up for DIRECTV

Updated: See revised post where you could earn United or American miles until 10/1/14 HERE.

If you were interested in switching to DIRECTV, you can now earn 30,000 United miles for signing up with DIRECTV. 30,000 miles is equivalent to one domestic round trip flight (with 5,000 miles leftover) or a one way flight to Europe or South America.

I’m not a DIRECTV customer but the prices seem fairly reasonable (especially if you want NFL Sunday Ticket). I obviously wouldn’t go out of my way to take advantage of this deal but if you already had some thoughts of switching, maybe this is the icing on the cake to do so.