Making "Cents" Out of Points for Budget Travelers

Posts in category Randomness

Mother’s Day Bonus Points Earning Opportunities

May1st
2013 Leave a Comment Written by Ken

This year Mother’s Day is on Sunday April 12. If you’re looking to buy flowers or some other gifts for your mom, be sure to check your favorite shopping portal to look for some bonus points, coupons or extra cash back opportunities. Here are some of the more generous offers for you to consider:

Chase Ultimate Rewards

  • FTD – Earn 15 Ultimate Rewards points per dollar and save 20 percent on all Mother’s Day flowers, plants and gifts. Purchase by May 7.
  • ProFlowers and Teleflora - Earn 15 points per dollar
  • Shari’s Berries – Earn 15 points per dollar plus save 15 percent on Mother’s Day gifts
  • Sephora – Earn 8 points per dollar
  • Godiva – Earn 7 points per dollar
  • Nordstrom and Lancome – Earn 6 points per dollar

Hilton HHonors Shop-to-Earn Mall

  • FTD and Teleflora – Earn 500 bonus Hilton HHonors points
  • Clinique – Earn 5 Hilton HHonors points per dollar

Southwest Rapid Rewards Shopping

  • Sephora - Earn 8 bonus Rapid Rewards points per dollar
  • Godiva - Earn 8 points per dollar
  • Teleflora – Earn 7 points per dollar
  • Nordstrom and Blue Nile - Earn 6 points per dollar
  • Crabtree & Evelyn – Earn 5 points per dollar

HawaiianMiles Partners

  • FTD – Earn 25 HawaiianMiles per dollar
  • 1-800 Flowers and Teleflora – Earn 10 miles per dollar

I haven’t had too much experience with any of these retailers. Actually, I’ve only used ProFlowers once and it was several years ago. On special occasions like Mother’s Day and Valentine’s Day (I’m not really a fan of this day but that’s a whole other blog post) where companies will ask for your firstborn child for shipping, I like to have the item shipped a day or two sooner. Yeah, it’s not on the actual day but it’s the thought (and the money you save) that counts. Flowers and gifts are nice but it’s the quality family time that’s really the most important thing.

Happy early Mother’s Day to all the moms!

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Why a AAA Automobile Membership is Worth it

Apr22nd
2012 Leave a Comment Written by Ken

The short answer is, it pays for itself (and then some) with all the discounts you receive.

The first barrier that people come across is the annual membership fee. For me, it costs $54. It’s really no different than paying an annual fee for a credit card but I believe the costs and benefits of annual fees need to be considered. In my case, I do not get reimbursed for my travel, so I’m looking for any discounts I can get. In general, the AAA discount at hotels is 10%. If you’re aiming for elite status, you could be saving upwards of $250. At this point, you’ll have received five times the value that you paid for.

While I put my AAA membership to good use, I’m quite sure that I don’t even use it to its full potential. Here’s a list of just some of the additional discounts and benefits you can get with a AAA membership:

  • Hotel discounts: As mentioned above, save up to 10% on hotel stays at hotels like Hilton, Hyatt, SPG, Marriott, Holiday Inn, etc. Some AAA rates even include full breakfast for 2 in addition to the 10% discount.
  • Discounted Theme Park tickets: Get discounted tickets to Disneyland, Disney World, Six Flags, Seaworld and more.
  • Get SPG Preferred Guest Plus status: This status is sandwiched between Preferred and Gold. It’s only available to SPG AMEX cardmembers and automobile association members. This status is for life without any re-qualification needed. Click the link for more details.
  • Car purchase discounts: Don’t like negotiating with car dealers? AAA members can receive a no-hassle experience plus members only pricing on the purchase of new, used or certified pre-owned vehicles.
  • Car rental discounts and upgrades: Get X dollars off of weekly or weekend reservations and/or class upgrades. Find discounts on AAA.com or on a site like RetailMeNot.
  • Restaurant discounts: Save 10% off your bill at restaurants like Hard Rock Cafe, IHOP and Pizza Hut. There are others, of course. Apologies to the foodies!
  • Shopping discounts: Save 20% at FTD or 5% at Sears.com. Click here to see more online shopping discounts.

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Happy Easter!

Apr8th
2012 Leave a Comment Written by Ken

I hope everyone is having a great Easter weekend!

I just returned home from a weekend of mattress running where I completed my first 4 nights under Hyatt’s current promotion. In my experience, Easter weekend means low occupancy and cheap rates at some of my local hotels. At both hotels I visited, they informed me that things would be really slow over the weekend. This makes it a great weekend to get out and accumulate some stays towards re-qualification.

Do you enjoy traveling during Easter?

Do You Know Who I Am??

Oct20th
2011 Leave a Comment Written by Ken

This a rhetorical question. I’m not really asking if you know who I am. “Do You Know Who I Am” (DYKWIA) is a term used for members of loyalty programs who have the highest (aka elite) status in that respective program. It refers to an attitude that someone exhibits when they have a heightened sense of entitlement due to the status they hold. They think that the hotel and its employees should bend over backwards to accommodate their every request. I suppose referring to the status as “elite” has something to do with the sense of entitlement but hey, I didn’t start it haha.

I’m sure this video has made the rounds but I wanted to re-post it because it’s so funny. It obviously takes some of the requests to the extreme but some of it is pretty accurate, especially when it comes to asking for the best room, late checkout and things like that. Overall, it does a good job about making fun of the subject.

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Don’t Let Customer Service Be a Thankless Job

Aug10th
2011 Leave a Comment Written by Ken

Whether you’re staying at a hotel or at the airport sitting at your gate, it’s a good idea to always take note of the employees who are on duty. It’s common to expect these employees to do certain things or act a certain way if we’re paying for some type of service but how often do we actually appreciate what they’re doing for us? More often than not, the employees who are trying to help us aren’t the source of the problem. Unfortunately, they’re the ones who take the biggest lumps.

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Booking Through Travel Sites vs. Mattress Running

May26th
2011 Leave a Comment Written by Ken

I recently had a conversation about why I chase status and points instead of using travel sites like Expedia, Travelocity, etc. The “argument” (for lack of a better word) against mattress running was that for the price I pay to get just status, I could be paying an equivalent price for airfare, hotel and maybe even breakfast. In other words, are the elite benefits that special that it’s a better option than being economical and booking through a 3rd party travel site?

I definitely look for every opportunity to save money but not only that, I try to spend it in a way that provides the most value. It’s really all about finding that balance between saving money and spending a little more for quality. As a Hyatt Diamond member, the quality is definitely there in my opinion. You’ll receive great customer service, great benefits, better opportunities to earn more points and, in the case of hotel loyalty programs in general, flexibility with your travel plans.

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