I came across this great offer from Delta and American Express today. From now until May 31, 2011 you can earn a 50% bonus on Membership Rewards points transferred to your Delta Skymiles account if you’ve never done a transfer between them before. You will also get 25,000 Medallion Miles when you transfer at least 50,000 points – enough for elite status. So, if you transfer 50,000 points you’ll get 75,000 miles plus Silver Medallion status for next year.

This is an excellent offer if you consider that AMEX points are valued at around $100 per 10,000. A transfer of 67,000 points would get you 100,500 miles which is enough for a first class ticket to Europe. That’s a ticket worth at least $6,000 for points worth $670! Add the elite status bonus and it’s worth even more.

Remember: This has to be the first transfer you’ve made between the two for you to be eligible for this offer. Also, you must REGISTER before you transfer the points on this page:

http://dmn.delta.com/offers/getmore/

In a bold move to improve their Skymiles program, Delta has eliminated frequent flier mile expiration effective January 1, 2011. That means if your miles were set to expire on or after that date, they no longer will. It’s nice to have one less thing to worry about when it comes to tracking miles, but it’s also worth noting that miles will always decrease in value over time due to increased award rates and fees. So use them when you can!

American Airlines and JetBlue Airways are allowing travelers to earn frequent flier miles in each others programs on select routes. TrueBlue members can earn miles on 17 American flights and AAdvantage members can earn miles on 35 JetBlue flights. For more info, go to aa.com/jetblue.

Updated June 2010

Below is a list of popular U.S. airlines and and how long you can go without activity on your account before losing your miles. Activity is defined as any miles in or out for any reason; miles earned or miles redeemed.

If you are getting close to your expiration dates, make sure to visit FreeFrequentFlyerMiles.com for earning opportunities or as a last resort, you can always buy miles directly from the airline. I try to make sure I have activity at least 2 months before my expiration dates to allow ample time for posting.

2 Years:
Southwest
Delta

18 Months:
United
Continental
American Airlines
US Airways
Virgin America

1 Year:
JetBlue

Before a recent trip to Las Vegas, Will received an e-mail with a great offer to stay at the Aria hotel in the brand new City Center complex. Although we all know that staying at a new hotel can be dicey, we figured a luxury property would have to be running relatively smoothly.

Date: December 2009

Parking: Since construction continues on City Center, parking was a mess. There was no back entrance to the self parking lot and we missed the entrance twice forcing us to circle back around the strip. Eventually we used the valet which we stumbled upon by accident. We figured this would make life easier, but the pickup is in a different location so getting our car back was as much a hassle as dropping it off had been.

Check-in/Check-out: We had no wait at the front desk and the woman who helped us was very nice. Although she didn’t have a record of the promotion we had booked, she called a manager over who was able to correct our account. Although it took longer than average, we were satisfied and were given a room on a high floor as requested. Check-out went smoothly and our bill was accurate.

Room: We stayed in a standard room and since we were the first or second guest to stay there it was very clean. Our view was not of the strip, but it was still nice from the floor to ceiling windows. Everything in the room was controlled via a small computer screen on the night table which was somewhat tricky to figure out. I knocked it over during the night causing the curtains to fly open and all the lights to turn on. Overall the room was decent and the bed was comfortable but it seemed unfinished. Wires dangled from the TV, our heat didn’t work, a handle fell off a bathroom drawer and one of the lights above the bed was dangerously loose. I was not impressed at all with the bathroom. The connected shower and bath were strange, the water pressure was horrible, and the sinks had little counter space and splashed water everywhere when used.

Overall Impression: It seemed like a lot of things were thrown together to get the Aria open ASAP even though it’s not really ready. Although all of the employees were very nice, many of them didn’t yet know how things work at the hotel. Hopefully, it will improve with time but I don’t think there should be such a steep learning curve at a 5 star accommodation.

Grade: D+

A lot of people will be flying over the holidays and many of us will be carry gifts which means more luggage. It’s hard to keep up with which airlines charge for bags and how much it costs but luggagelimits.com is a great resource to keep you well informed. Just type in your airline, departure and arrival airports and the site will list the baggage rules for your flight and any applicable fees.

Date: November 2009

Route: Newark-Lisbon Round-trip

Check-in: Although we were able to select our seats in advance by phone, there was no online check-in so we had to get to the airport early and do it in person. Since we were flying business class, we had a dedicated line and there was no wait but the coach lines weren’t crowded either. In Lisbon, we had access to a special security line and the TAP lounge which had a nice food spread but was crowded and noisy. TAP has no lounge in Newark, but we were given passes to the Virgin Atlantic lounge which was quiet but sparse with no food offered other than bags of pretzels and chips.

Plane: Boarding was fast and easy, even in Lisbon where we had to board by bus. Executive class was given a separate bus and entrance onto the plane which was very efficient as it allowed economy to board simultaneously on another staircase. The business class seats were comfortable to sit in but hard to sleep in. They are cradle-style seats that don’t lean back but slide forward and are angled flat so your head is up and your feet down. It was like sleeping on a hard seesaw with no back support. The cabin temperature was all over the map, sweltering one minute and freezing the next. Although I love being up front, I’ve definitely slept better in a coach seat. We had two bathrooms set aside for business class which meant we rarely had to wait for a turn.

Service: The attendants on both flights were cheerful and attentive. We were given great vanity kits that could hang from the seat back in front of you and were filled with lots of useful things to use during the flight like eye shades, socks and lotion. We were given plenty of drinks, bottled water and a meal service consisting of an appetizer, salad, entree, and dessert. The food was bland and only slightly better than you would expect in coach.

Verdict: Although the TAP employees try hard, top executive class feels more like premium economy than first.

Grade: C

JetBlue has announced some improvements to their TrueBlue frequent flyer program that make it more rewarding and competitive with those of other airlines. The changes include:

-Ability to use points for any seat on any JetBlue operated flight

-No blackout dates for JetBlue award tickets

-Points that don’t expire as long as you fly or use your JetBlue American Express card at least once a year

-Bonus points the more you travel

-Oneway Award Flights starting at just 5,000 points

-Six (6) points for every dollar spent when you purchase a flight at jetblue.com

-Up to eight (8) points for every eligible dollar spent when you purchase a flight at jetblue.com using your JetBlue Card from American Express

JetBlue is vague about a start date for these new benefits saying only that they will go into effect this coming fall.

TrueBlue Relaunch

A lot of people have been talking about JetBlue’s All You Can Jet Pass promotion. For $599, you can travel on as many JetBlue flights as you want from September 8 – October 8th. Passes are on sale while supplies last up until August 21st. Domestic taxes are included, but flights to Puerto Rico and international destinations are subject to additional fees. Flights must be booked 3 days in advance and only one flight per day is allowed. A $100 fee will be imposed for no-shows. If you already bought a Jetblue ticket for use during that time period, you can pay the difference and upgrade to the pass.

So, is it worth it? JetBlue flights are mostly domestic and generally inexpensive so if you are only taking one or two short flights it may not be. If you are going to fly 2 flights or more and at least one is a long haul, this might be a great deal for you. If you have the time and a bit of money, this would be a great chance to hop around the country visiting friends and family or just exploring for a month.

JetBlue All You Can Jet Pass

Members of the Hilton HHonors program can earn a complimentary ticket to a concert when with every stay at a Hilton hotel through September 30, 2009. Participants who enroll in the promotion will receive the ticket as a promo code redeemable on Live Nation after they complete their stay. If you are not yet an HHonors member, you can sign up online for free. For more information and a list of participating concerts please visit:

Hilton HHonors Rock n’ Roll Summer