Priority Club award rates are changing from 18 January 2012 with some new award categories and reclassification of some hotels between categories.

Hotel awards are generally fully refundable, so by booking awards now you have a bet each way – if award costs go up for that hotel you’ve saved the increase and if they go down you can cancel and rebook.

Priority Club’s email systems seem to have had a bit of a meltdown with this promo. Countless people targetted for the promotion did not receive emails. If you have any Priority Club status or participated in their “Hilton Luckiest Loser” promo and did not receive a “Crack the Case” email I’d get in touch with Priority Club.

The promotion has small amounts of bonus points for achieving certain targets and a much larger additional bonus if 4 out of 5 targets are met (or 4 out of 4 for those who live in a country without any Priority Club-aligned credit cards).  The targets include a (long) survey, getting a certain Priority Club credit card (where available), and numbers of nights, brands and Saturday nights stays between now and 31 May 2011.  The amounts of bonuses and the numbers for each target are personalised – for some it is very lucrative and for others not so much.

As usual, the promo is stackable with other general Priority Club offers as well as individual hotel offers.  For the period 20 September to 31 December there is also a “Sweet Dilemma” promo offering 1 free night every 2nd stay or double base points. (Asia-Pacific residents or stays at any Asia-Pacific hotels can only earn double base points but otherwise there is a choice to be made between these 2 options.)

In my case, I didn’t receive the email but following up with Priority Club I am targetted.  Including some hotel-specific promotions I should earn at least 1 free night for every night stayed at any Intercontinental Hotels Group hotel over the next few months, and as luck would have it I have a need for quite a few hotel nights.

There have been a lot of changes to hotel stay programs this year.  I don’t tend to pay as much attention to hotel program changes as I do to frequent flyer program (FFP) changes because I fly far more than I stay in hotels, and get much more value in total from FFPs.

Nonetheless Ric Garrido has done some handy comparisons between hotel programs lately – see Loyalty Wars posted on Loyalty Traveler, and Hotel Loyalty posted on Inside Flyer (free access article). The method Ric uses is fairly similar to that I use myself, although I also try to account for promotions and Point Stretcher/Points Break awards as these are material for me.

A few years ago Hilton HHonors scored highly in my own value tests with some great promos which allowed me to stay very cheaply in some fabulous hotels (eg Cavalieri in Rome, Hilton Budapest); but these days I do better with Intercontinental Priority Club. By following the relevant hotel forums on Flyer Talk I my earn:burn rates are at least twice as good as the standard you’d get ignoring promotions.

There was a period the other day when a Intercontinental Priority Club survey (for 100 PC points) meant to be for 1 time use was able to be repeated without limit.  Apparently some people racked up thousands of points by manually repeating the survey several times, or many thousands of points by use of a computer script.

Accounts of people who took the survey multiple times are currently locked and under review while Priority Club works out what to do about it.

The lack of proper controls puts Intercontinental into a difficult spot. I personally didn’t take advantage of the loophole but am interested in seeing the outcome.

I’ve mentioned before that one of my travel goals is to fly all the routes of an airline (over 100 routes). Naturally this is a shifting target as new routes get added from time to time, and old routes removed. I’ve achieved this goal twice, temporarily, and will do so again shortly.

Air New Zealand has a new route which I’ll be flying. There is also one current route I have not yet flown, although I’m undecided on whether it counts or not toward my goal. The reason – it is a special flight which combines two destinations from one origin, and thus flies between two small regional airports which normally would not have flights between them. The flight is once per week, and doesn’t operate all the time. Is it a regularly scheduled service if flights are this infrequent and sporadic?

Recently I decided that I would, after all, fly this route. The thing that helped me decide was the schedule requires an overnight stop at a nice regional place, and a hotel has been newly rebranded to a major chain. This the first international chain hotel at this tourist spot, only the second hotel of this chain in the country, and supposedly one of only a handful of 5 star hotels in the country. So I’ll get a nice weekend stay in a very pretty and interesting place, fly another odd route, and try out a newly refurbished and supposedly very nice hotel. I’m sold.

Oh yeah, I also get some hotel points which will prevent my modest balance in that program from expiring, so the “value” of the stay is really in excess of the points I’ll earn there.

Musings of the Global Traveller
Thoughts, advice and travel news from around the world by a seasoned frequent flyer.

Celebrating Friday with a short interview with a frequent flyer.

Brett – Cranky Flier

Brett is a proud airline dork who writes the popular consumer air travel blog, The Cranky Flier. He has worked for several airlines in revenue management, marketing and strategy. Through his blog he shares his industry insight with a snarky twist.

First, some questions to see what kind of frequent flyer Brett is.

What is your home airport?
Brett – Long Beach, but I fly out of Los Angeles LAX just as often.

What is the airline you usually fly?
Brett – At Long Beach it is JetBlue more often than not. My wife is from Indiana, so we usually take the Northwest, er, Delta nonstop from LAX on that trip.

Which of the following best describes your flying pattern?
- infrequent (eg annual) leisure trip
× jetsetting for pleasure
- frequent (eg monthly) business travel
- road warrior
- mileage runner- I live on planes

How do you mostly earn your frequent flyer miles?
- promos
× credit card spend
- business and leisure travel
- taking extra flights on trips I need to take
- mileage running

Please describe how you travel in 4 words
Brett – nonstop, good value, convenient

Travel would be very different today if it always matched those four words! Now for some advice from Brett.

What is inside your carry-on bag right now?
Brett – I’ve used the same bag for 5 years now – a soft-sided gym bag that can fit under the seat or in the bin. It’s mostly full of clothes, but you’ll also find my flight log, a book or a magazine or two, headphones, and a couple of ziploc bags with my toiletries.

Please give a tip on travel.
Brett – Pack light. That’s probably the best tip I have, because the tendency is always to overpack when you travel and its a waste. Just pack light and you’ll be just fine. It’ll make for easier travel.

What is your preferred airline for regular travel?
Brett – I like flying JetBlue because I can fly them out of Long Beach and that makes life much easier for me. Plus, I love the TV and the extra legroom. When it comes to the big guys, I like Delta these days. The TV on longer flights is nice, and the buy on board is really good. I’m looking forward to trying wifi sometime soon. They can also fly me from Long Beach, and connecting in Salt Lake City is fine. The nonstop to Indianapolis is a big bonus for us.

What is your preferred airline for a special trip?
Brett – One of my favourites is Air New Zealand. I’ve flown them once between London and LA, and it was a special experience. I really like the whole onboard product, the concierge, the more casual kiwi style, and the New Zealand wine. I like British Airways as well. I’m kind of an anglophile and the proper British service always appeals to me.

What is your preferred frequent flyer program?
Brett – I actually don’t have one. I keep my points with Starwood, and I have my SPG Amex by my side at all times. When it comes to airlines, I’m miles agnostic. I make my choices based on a combination of schedule, onboard product, and price.

Please give a tip on frequent flyer programs.
Brett – Don’t get hung up on them. If you’re a super frequent flyer, it makes sense to get elite status, but if you’re not then you’re much better off just looking for the best experience. Stick with a program like Starwood and you can use your points with tremendous flexibility.

Finally, I have to ask about some posts on your blog. You’ve given Alitalia the tagline of “worst airline ever”. What would it take for you to fly Alitalia?
Brett – That tagline is mostly about the way the airline is run and not necessarily their onboard product. I actually want to fly them in Europe just to say I’ve flown them. I don’t think I’d fly them over the Atlantic because there are better options. I prefer to fly with airlines that don’t experience random strikes.

Thanks Brett for sharing some great advice. I haven’t given up hope on reading a future Alitalia trip report on The Cranky Flier. Have a great weekend.

Editor’s note – SPG has a very wide range of airline partners. Gary Leff of View from the Wing describes SPG Amex as the single best all-round mileage earning credit card.

For other frequent flyer friday posts please check out the index. If you have any questions you’d like answered, or wish to nominate someone for an interview, please drop me a line using the please use the contact me link. For all sorts of reasons I can’t make any guarantees, but if you’re interested chances are others are too and so we’ll get some good interviews.

Musings of the Global Traveller
Thoughts, advice and travel news from around the world by a seasoned frequent flyer.

I requalified for Priority Club platinum last month and they’ve already mailed the 2010 card to me. Most of my frequent flyer programs mail out elite cards only near the end of the membership year rather than when I’ve requalified. Sometimes they send them out too close to the end of the year and it doesn’t arrive until after the following year has started – which can pose problems where partner lounges require sighting of the card as proof of eligibility (thinking of British Airways at London for example).

The oddest one I’ve come across so far, though, is Hilton HHonors, which used to mail out cards with an expiry date years ahead – ie assuming that you will keep requalifying. Which reminds me, I should get a new card from them soon.

Musings of the Global Traveller
Thoughts, advice and travel news from around the world by a seasoned frequent flyer.

Last month I blogged I was missing 70,000 odd points and miles from various flights and hotel stays. After some chasing up I am now down to 6 flights which I am missing miles for, or have been credited incorrectly.

With the sheer volume of travel I do, having a system to keep track of it all is the only way I can prevent missing out on a lot of points and miles. It is annoying that every year I have at least 25 flights or hotel stays fail to credit or credit incorrectly. That sounds like a lot, but over 90% credit fine. At the moment I keep track in a spreadsheet and mark off when the points are credited. A simple filter shows me which ones I still have to wait on or follow up.

How do readers keep track of their earning? Particularly if you have multiple frequent flyer programs and frequent stay programs?

Musings of the Global Traveller
Thoughts, advice and travel news from around the world by a seasoned frequent flyer.

I’ve been reminded again how important it is to check points and miles have been posted correctly, and to follow up if necessary. Those who travel frequently and don’t keep an eye out may be missing out on a lot.

In my case I have several flights on a few different airlines dating back to last October which have either not been credited at all to my selected frequent flyer programs, or have posted at the wrong rate. I am also chasing up some missing hotel stay points from recent stays.

When requesting missing mileage be credited, or an adjustment to the amount posted, it is important to have the information that the FFP or frequent stay program may need. Dates, paid fare or rate, booking class of flight, ticket or reference numbers, copies of the boarding pass or hotel receipt.

Assuming they all post as I hope, all up it will be about 70,000 miles/points. Well worth spending a bit of time following up, although of course it is annoying to need to – why can’t they credit correctly in the first place?

Musings of the Global Traveller
Thoughts, advice and travel news from around the world by a seasoned frequent flyer.

A little late, but here are my views on the travel landscape this year as it pertains to frequent flyers in particular.

The financial turmoil means flight and hotel bookings are way down overall, and particularly on some routes. As some bloggers have, correctly in my view, noted we can expect some good sales, and there are a range of other impacts.

First, the downturn in travel is uneven. Business travel will be much less than in recent years. This affects some aspects of travel more than others. Secondly, leisure travel is impacted through reduced discretionary spending.

What does this mean for savvy travellers?

Discounted fares and sales

Airlines that rely heavily on business travellers and premium leisure travellers will in general find 2009 hard. Expect sales and inducements to buy up to first or business class, particularly on certain routes most impacted. Normal wisdom is to book well ahead to get the best deals but this year year the reverse may be true. Not only are advance sales lower thus discounted fares will be available closer to departure than normal, but airlines will try to encourage demand through sales. Already some airlines have been offering last minute sales at very low fares.

Conversely low cost airlines may have less need for sales as people switch from perceived high fare full service airlines to perceived low fare reduced service airlines.

A similar logic applies comparing longhaul/expensive routes with shorthaul/cheap routes – demand drops on the former and may increase on the latter.

For some airlines or routes the impacts may be more subtle. People switching from business to economy travel may result in sales in premium cabins rather than the usual economy class sales.

Capacity reductions

Another airline response is to reduce capacity, through less flights and/or using smaller aircraft. This means schedules may change more than normal this year. For 2009 I’m being less aggressive on connection times and the long sequences of flights in a row that I sometimes do.

Frequent flyer status

Business travel is the bread and butter of many airlines. With business travel slashed, the airlines will be looking to retain as many customers as they can. So qualifying thresholds will not be increasing. It should be easier to get a status match, and frequent flyer programs may more readily requalify those who just fail to meet the requirements and/or fail to requalify but have a long elite history. Some FFPs may also offer inducements to their best customers to maintain the amount of flying – eg Air New Zealand has introduced a gift for a small proportion of top tier gold elite members based on a higher level of status earning.

Awards

As with discounted and sale fares it should generally be easier to nab awards in 2009, especially in first and business class. However, on heavy leisure routes it may be more difficult with people economising by using miles instead of cash to pay for their holiday travels. I also expect more awards to be available at short notice.

Will 2009 see Singapore Airlines finally making available their new/best first and business class on awards? Currently A380, 77W and A345 awards are not available in first at all, and only available in business class using expensive Kris Flyer awards.

Operational upgrades

Airlines should have less need to op-up passengers. However some exceptions come to mind. For example British Airways longhaul aircraft have a relatively high proportion of premium seats and some passengers who would have booked in business class choose instead to book into economy. Under pressure to fill seats and with more empty seats in premium cabins, airlines may oversell economy by more than currently, and on the more popular routes there may still be a reasonable number of op-ups required.

Upgrades

Mileage, voucher or complimentary status upgrades should be easier to obtain. Some airlines, such as Lufthansa, are managing op-ups by encouraging people at check-in to use their miles to upgrade.

Fees

In 2007 a number of airlines added new fees and increased existing ones to generate revenue. I see this trend continuing in 2008, but with perhaps more fee waivers for FFP elite members.

Packages

To try to induce demand there may be more extras thrown in for little or no cost to the air fares. Eg ground transport, cheap accommodation, sightseeing tours.

Hotels

Higher end hotels and those that normally do a lot of convention business will also be impacted. Expect more deals in 2009, and some hotels that haven’t yet opened may delay their opening until the economy improves.

Summary

I expect there will be lots of opportunities in 2009 for savvy travellers. However these will be much more in some areas than others. Those that adapt to the changed circumstances, and are the most flexible, stand to benefit the most.

Musings of the Global Traveller
Thoughts, advice and travel news from around the world by a seasoned frequent flyer.