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Are Starpoints Getting Easier To Earn? How About Your Own Apartment At 35,000 Feet? Or a Co-Pilot Seat For An Awesome Voyage? Things I Find Interesting On Sunday, May 4, 2014

ByEdward Pizzarello

Can I tell you how excited I was to read this post on Hack My Trip talking about the possibility that the Starwood Preferred Guest American Express card may be getting some new benefits?  I just got through presenting at Frequent Traveler University on Hyatt and Starwood Preferred Guest.  One of the things I commented on was just how hard it is to earn large amounts of Starpoints.

Unless you travel quite a bit and pay higher rates, the only other option is the SPG AMEX.  And it only earns 1 point per dollar spent, regardless of category.  Now, it has a pretty cool annual benefit of 2 stays and 5 nights credit towards elite status, and you can double that up by getting both the personal and business version of the cards.  But, cards like the Chase Ink Bold card have numerous bonus categories to leverage larger points earning.

That might be coming, according to a survey and an inside source that Scott has.  As it stands now, I really want to use my SPG Amex to accrue more points.  But, if I get 5X on a category if I charge on my Ink Bold, I’m not willing to give up that kind of reward.  I’m really hoping for some category bonuses out of the SPG Amex in the future.  It would absolutely skew my spending back to Starwood in a big way.

How about a residence at 35,000 feet?  View From The Wing has the scoop.  Try a double bed, couches, dining room table, private shower and a dedicated butler.  If you can’t afford what will likely be a ticket about the same price as an affordable car, you can always opt for the smaller apartment Etihad will be offering.  Awesome.  Just awesome.

Can I tell you how jealous I was when I saw Wandering Aramean’s post on his seaplane voyage?  I was especially jealous about it because I was in Seattle at the same conference with him.  Hey, Seth!  Can I get a shout-out next time?  Those views are awesome.

Easier To

Seth wasn’t the only one in Seattle to forget my phone number when it came time for a fun trip.  The Heels First girls had a great day at Bainbridge Island.  This is another thing to add to your to-do list if you’re headed to Seattle when the weather is nice.

It was just last week I was talking about feeding and watering your reservations.  Well, Miles From Blighty has run into that problem.  Twice.

Hope it’s a great week of travel for you.  Where are you headed to next?

My goal in life is to fill my family’s passports with stamps, creating buckets of memories along the way. You’ll find me writing about realistic ways for normal people to travel the world, whether you’re on a budget or enjoy luxury. I also enjoy taking us on the occasional detour to explore the inner workings of the travel industry.

6 Comments

  2. The easier SPG points will be to earn, the quicker Starwood will devalue their redemptions. See Chase UR and United/Hyatt

    Reply

    1. Songer, it’s a good point but I’d expect the SPG Amex won’t ramp it up the way Chase did. And, Hyatt’s devaluation really wasn’t that bad. Not too far off from SPG over the past 3 years.

      Reply

  3. Ed, I enjoyed your talk at the FTU. Voted you my favorite speaker. But, FYI, Spg Amex has been offering the 2 free nights and 5 nite status for quite a while now. Always been a good perk. See you in July.

    Reply

    1. Sheri, thank you for the fantastic compliment. I really enjoy helping folks, so it’s great to hear when people enjoy my talks. I probably should have been clearer in discussing the current benefits of the SPG Amex. I’ve used the 10 nights the last two years that I earned from holding both cards to help qualify for Ambassador service from SPG. That’s been a benefit of the card for as long as I can remember. Pretty sure it was in my FTU presentation as well.

      Thanks again for your comments and for weighing in on my post today!

      Reply

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