by Sam Simon and Robert Dwyer
A Milenomics Production-- News related to Points and Miles. Tips & Tricks on how to Earn More miles, Maximize Credit Card Rewards, and Travel more than ever before.
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10/16/2018
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April 16, 2025
0:25 Chase Sapphire Preferred 100,000 Offer Direct Link $5,000 min spend in 3 months $95 annual fee (not waived first year) This is a higher than usual offer 05:14 Chase Referrals chase.com/referafriend 10,000 points for each approval (capped at 100,000 per year) 06:30 Sapphire Churning Restrictions Eligible for welcome bonus if it has been >48 months since you last got a Sapphire welcome bonus (Preferred or Reserve) 5/24 still applies: 5 credit card approvals in the past 24 months (from any bank) Can’t be approved for a Sapphire Preferred if you currently have a Sapphire card (recommend downgrading to Freedom and waiting a month before applying) 12:09 Two Player Mode If neither person has a Sapphire card, apply “head on” or through a referral from a friend Then refer P2 Being an authorized user on a card doesn’t prevent getting the welcome bonus This will leave you with > 210,000 Ultimate Rewards 13:50 Ultimate Rewards: Value and Utility Easy 1 cpp cashout Sapphire Preferred 1.25 of uplift for travel booked through Chase portal Sapphire Reserve 1.5 cpp of uplift for travel booked through Chase portal (and a $300 per cardmember year travel credit) Transfer partners: Hyatt, United, Southwest, and more Points can be co-mingled between household Inflation in the travel portal is very real. Prices for hotels and other activities get tough to compare Flights sometimes are pricing at a premium due to issues with fare classes and airlines wanting direct booking. It pays to do the math, because a poor redemption can tank the value of your earning, and points are not free. Cancellation terms not the same with Travel portal bookings vs. booking with miles sometimes. Pay Yourself Back: erase charges in specific categories at >1cpp. 23:31 CSP/CSR Earning Strategy Sign up Bonus aside, these two cards are relatively weak in earning. This creates a bit of an irony–they’re great cards to hold, but better in union with other UR earning cards Freedoms for 5x categories, some chase Business cards also earn 5x Over time a stable of chase cards become important Pooling of points means that the earning of 5x points can then be moved to your sapphire and redeemed for travel at >1cpp 5x at 1.25 = 6.25 cpp, 5x at 1.5 = 7.5 cpp. 28:47 United/Southwest: Opportunity Cost For some people these cards are taking up slots and spend they want to use on Southwest or United Cards Might be best to get those cards first, holding them long term, then getting the CSP. Changes to southwest might make you consider Southwest cards, but be rational, how many trips a year do you actually take? The travel landscape changes fast, the flexibility of UR allow you to change with it. Southwest points do not. 31:38 Q2 2025 “Point Offer” Targeted: Seeing increased uplift for United/Delta/Qatar premium cabin flights, and some (mostly nicer) hotels Sapphire Preferred 1.5-1.75 cpp Sapphire Reserve 1.75-2.25 cpp Upgrading from Preferred to Reserve seemed to retain the same “amount” of targeted uplift (ie, was getting 1.5 cpp on Preferred, then got 1.75 cpp on upgraded Reserve) Might someone be targeted for this shortly after approval? Hard to say. More datapoints needed. 37:10 Live Application.
April 11, 2025
Two Cruises Episode 56: Show Notes. This episode, we head back to the high seas to talk about not one, but two different cruises! Join us as we discuss our experience on Royal Caribbean’s Utopia of the Seas and Princess Cruise Lines’ Sun Princess. In this detailed discussion, we talk about everything from flight Irregular Operations (IRROPS) and loyalty rewards to dining, entertainment and more, drawing out differences, common features, and what we liked and didn’t like. To kick off our conversation, we talk about flights to Jacksonville and Orlando, and some of the unexpected obstacles along the way. Next, we touch on key aspects of the experience at Utopia of the Seas: facilities, dining, casino, and more, before diving into Thomas’s arrival on the Sun Princess. Comparing the demographics on each ship, Thomas shares what he liked about the dining setup and entertainment options, drawing a comparison with other cruise trips. Despite having been sick, Thomas shares a short review of what he was able to partake in, including a specialty European-style dinner. If you’re curious about the newest ships on two different cruise lines, this episode is for you! Key Points From This Episode: [00:45] What this episode will explore: two different cruises. [04:13] The journey to Jacksonville and Orlando. [12:05] Royal Caribbean’s newest ship, Utopia of the Seas. [15:02] Splitting up for lunch on day two before enjoying the ice and aqua shows. [22:32] Loyalty, points and miles in the cruise community. [26:39] How ‘Name that Tune’ in the Main Theatre exceeded expectations. [30:30] Dining on Utopia of the Seas. [37:04] The casino experience and final thoughts on the Utopia experience. [41:20] One feature both ships share that we agree all cruise ships should have. [44:46] Thomas’s arrival on Sun Princess, the buffet, demographic, and entertainment. [50:56] Ports on the itinerary and why Thomas only got to experience one of them. [51:26] The specialty dinner he got to enjoy: The Butcher’s Block by Dario. [55:44] Staff on the Sun Princess in comparison to Royal Caribbean. [59:30] Gaming and travel-hacking discussions that will follow in future Patreon episodes. Quotes: “One thing that really jumped out at me is, because it’s such a big ship, [there’s so much to do], there’s an ice show, there’s an aqua show, they have two different shows in the main theatre, they’ve got two different slides—you can’t do it all.” — @tmount [13:59] “I also suspect that putting their best product out there, their newest ship with all the newest bells and whistles and restaurants, they are converting a lot more who may not have been looking at cruises.” — @tmount [13:34] “For better or for worse, Royal Caribbean is actually pretty good at delivering a standardized product.” — @TktweetsKim [35:44] “This trip was trying out the newest ships on two different cruise lines. Utopia of the Seas is the newest ship for Royal Caribbean; Sun Princess is the newest ship for Princess Cruise Lines.” — @TktweetsKim [41:24] “They are taking every opportunity, on Royal Caribbean, to engage with you and make you feel special.” — @TktweetsKim [56:50] Links Mentioned in Today’s Episode: Sun Princess Star of the Seas Utopia of the Seas Royal Caribbean Cruises Carnival Cruises MSC Cruises Thomas Kim on X Trevor Mountcastle on X
March 28, 2025
Episode 55: Show Notes From COVID to cutbacks, there were a lot of reasons why airlines let go of some of their more luxurious offerings. Today, we dig into the airline products that no longer exist and reflect on the standout examples we loved, missed, or otherwise knew about. Join us as we take a trip down memory lane and discuss everything from exceptional service to the most comfortable sleep we’ve had up in the air! We describe our top first class experiences with Thai and Lufthansa, noteworthy changes at Doha, Qatar’s international airports, and our most memorable trips using JetSmarter, the Uber for private jets. You’ll also hear about our unique experience with Etihad Airways, the true premium cabin experience we both missed out on, our favorite economy products that no longer exist, and the amenity kits we prize above all others. Discover the joy of a massage at the Thai Royal First Lounge in Bangkok, the most exceptional ground services we’ve come across, and what services we miss the most! Key Points From This Episode: [00:37] Today’s topic: Past airline products that we loved, missed, or knew about. [01:32] Why airlines have let go of some of their more luxurious offerings. [02:06] What the Thai First Class and Bangkok Lounge experience used to be like. [06:34] A breakdown of the Thai First Class spa massage offerings. [09:14] Transport and escort perks in the heyday of Thai First Class. [11:45] Flying Lufthansa First Class and their unique wide-body experience. [16:51] The best ground service we had with Lufthansa (and why they should bring it back). [20:05] Takeaways from Hamad International Airport and how it has changed. [25:47] Past experiences with JetSmarter and the current jet-sharing economy. [33:39] The story of our unique travel experiences with Etihad First. [36:42] How we missed out on the true premium cabin experience with TAM Airways, now LATAM Airlines. [41:30] Our favorite economy products that no longer exist. [45:19] The amenity kits we love most, especially from Rimowa. Quotes: “We're talking about Thai Airways’ first class lounge, offering a full spa-caliber massage. – You have this oasis among air world, where for an hour you were just in the lap of luxury like no other.” — @tmount [06:48] “The overall experience [at Hamad International], I thought, was really exclusive, almost more exclusive than the current experience. But I think the current experience is more luxurious.” — @tmount [23:16] “JetSmarter was all about ‘How do we monetize all these dead legs, all these private aviation flights that they do just to position these planes to where they actually need to be.” — @TktweetsKim [27:04] “I'm still going to go give LATAM another shot. And if they announce a new business class product, I will be right in line to fly them again.” — @tmount [41:02] “If I was having to fly over the Atlantic in economy, I would not mind doing it on an A380 in Air France economy.” — @TktweetsKim [43:48] Links Mentioned in Today’s Episode: TravelStories Episode 53: Aspirational Flying with Han Chicago TAM 777-300ER First Class Sao Paulo To New York Thomas Kim on X Trevor Mountcastle on X
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