Earn 1000 Priority Club points for watching a 90 second video.

Step 1:Go to priorityclub.com/visa1000

Step 2:Enter in one of the promo codes
SKAEXGTNC4
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Step 3:Watch a 90 second video

thanks to Points Master for the tip

YES – I am on the mailing list of the St. George, Utah Holiday Inn. Who wouldn’t want to know all the latest news and notes from this happening place.

I did receive a very interesting email from them right before New Year’s informing me of the changing of the hotel brand from Holiday Inn to the New Lexington Hotel.

The best part of the email is the formatting and the weird sentences – similar to my ramblings on this blog.

Here’s the email:

My wife and I have planned our next dream trip to the Maldives many months ago.

We’ll be flying business class purchased with miles and staying at the Conrad Hilton Maldives using points.

For our overnight before we fly out to the Conrad, we are staying at the Holiday Inn in Male on points.

Today I just received the following email:

We are contacting you regarding your upcoming Priority Club® Reward Night reservations listed below. Unfortunately, this hotel changed its management on November 22, 2010 and is unable to accommodate rewards night reservations past this date.

Location: Holiday Male, Male Island, Maldives

Check-in date: XXXXXXX
Number of nights: 1

Confirmation number(s): XXXXXX

We will make every effort to arrange alternate accommodations for you at a nearby InterContinental Hotels Group property, where you may use your Priority Club Points. If you prefer, you may retain your existing reservation, pay for your stay, and have your points returned to your account. If you decide to cancel your reservation, and we are unable to make arrangements for you to use your points at another IHG property, we will immediately return your points to your account. Please contact our office at 1-800-462-6686 as soon as possible to make alternate arrangements for your lodging needs.

We sincerely apologize for any inconvenience this may cause, and thank you for your patience and cooperation. We look forward to serving you in the future.

Sincerely,

Hotel Help Desk Specialist

Priority Club Rewards Service Center

IHG

InterContinental Hotels Group

It seems curious to me that a change in hotel management would invalidate all reward bookings going forward. They make it seem that there won’t be an opportunity to book a reward night in the future either. Also, you can tell that it’s a form letter as there are no other IHC properties in Male. Has this happened to anyone else?

Unbelievable!

I just received my Priority Club Crack the Case offer – for 310,000 points.

The hurdles are also low.

1) Stay 20 nights
2) Stay at 3 Brands
3) Stay 2 Saturdays
4) Take a Survey
5) Get a Priority Club Visa

This will definitely be a promotion that I will be taking part in.

I love the creativity of the Priority Club marketing group. Last year they had the brilliant Hilton devaluation promotion. This promotion is a little more involved, but the bonus offered makes it worth it to go through all of the steps to earn the bonus.

My kids got their promotion offers, but for 200,000 and 180,000.

Rent a car through this link with Enterprise. Once your rental is complete, go to this link to register for your certificate.

You must rent the car by August 30, 2010 and keep it for at least one night.

This is not a bad promotion if you’re planning on renting a car.

My travels to Russia

I never, ever, thought I would travel to Russia. Russia is a gigantic country. The first time I flew there, it was the dead of winter and as cold as anything I had ever been to. The first time I stayed there, I stayed at the Marriott Royal Aurora hotel. The hotel is gorgeous – but we paid a premium. Over $600 a night – and it came with butler service. Having never had a butler, I was a bit taken aback when he called to my room to ask if I wanted help unpacking my bags. Er, no thanks. The restaurant was fantastic, but once again, we were paying a serious premium.

They use “currency units” at the hotel instead of rubles. What this means is that the exchange rate may be 30 rubles / $1 – but the hotel uses 36 rubles to one currency unit. You end up paying much more for everything.

You can’t beat the proximity to the Red Square, but taking a taxi anywhere was a nightmare given the location.

The second time I stayed in Moscow, I stayed instead at the Marriott Renaissance Hotel. The price was $450 a night, but the hotel is in the middle of nowhere (at least by walking distance). It does have three different restaurants on location which was very nice. However, they had no air conditioning, just a fan!!

The next time I stayed in Moscow, I found my favorite hotel by far. It’s the Holiday Inn Lesnaya. I got rooms at $250 a night or less. The hotel is brand new, and situated just off the main Tverskaya boulevard and right by the Belaruskaya subway station. There are plenty of top notch restaurants within walking distance of the Holiday Inn Lesnaya. I would highly recommend this hotel if you’re planning on staying in Moscow. Be sure and book well in advance as hotel space is at a premium for a good quality Western hotel.