A Night with Delta, American Express, and the Lakers

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When it comes to Delta, not only do I hold elite status on the airline, but I also hold a co-branded American Express card. The two go hand-in-hand … spending enough on the American Express earns me Medallion Qualification Miles that lets me earn higher elite status on the airline. And with the new Delta Medallion program beginning in 2014, I … [Read more...]

Free WiFi on Delta through June 30 (even without a Blackberry!)

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This deal has actually been alive for a couple of weeks, but I flew Delta for the first time in a while and was able to try it out for myself. After flying through 8 airports on Delta this past week, one thing is clear to me --- Blackberry is really trying to market their new Z10 phone to flyers, whether it's through airport kiosks or in-flight … [Read more...]

My New Hilton Strategy

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To be fair, I never really had a strategy with Hilton. I don't stay at their hotels very often. Usually it's just because I need a place for one, maybe two nights, and there's no Hyatt or Starwood property nearby. It beats a Holiday Inn. But I didn't even redeem the points I had because so often it seems that the number of points required for … [Read more...]

Mileage Runs for Fun and Profit

Amol explained yesterday why he doesn’t think mileage runs are worthwhile. Sure, he enjoys the benefits of elite status. But he also doesn’t think flying just for the sake of flying is the best way to earn miles. One reason is that Amol flies on Delta, which has a unique loyalty program among domestic airlines. Before we get any further, let me … [Read more...]

Side-by-Side Comparisons of Airline Elite Status

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As promised, I've finally combined my comparative reviews of different airline elite tiers into tables, which I hope you'll find easier to understand. (See the original posts on low-, mid-, and top-tier status. Note that revisions were made between then and now.) There is a lot of different information that goes into making these. Not all of it is … [Read more...]