Points and Miles: December

This month sees one insanely lucrative promotion and numerous other offers to kick off the winter holiday season.

To mark the opening of the new Radisson Blu in Chicago, Club Carlson is giving away 50K Club Carlson bonus points to the first 50,000 Club Carlson members to register and complete a stay at a Radisson by December 30. Even after the first 50,000 spots are gone, you can still earn 15,000 bonus points for the stay. What will 50K Club Carlson points get you? There are relatively few Carlson properties available at 9K points per night, but lots at 15K. So, stay once at a Radisson and earn 3-4 free nights at many Radisson or Country Inns and Suites locations. And if you book and stay on points at any Club Carlson hotel by January 31, you'll earn a 9K rebate, essentially staying for free at some properties. It looks like Carlson really wants to become a major player in North America.

With this offer code, enjoy a welcome credit at Hyatt Hotels of up to $150. Good for services such as drinks, meals, or spa treatments. Or, if you're a Costco member, get a 10% rate discount and $25 a day hotel services credit. Book with this code (tip of the hat to Ric, the Loyalty Traveler). And finally, CAA/AAA members enjoy a 10% discount and complimentary breakfast. The offer code is here. All offers are valid until February 29.

Starwood is offering special rates for Ontario and Québec residents for weekend stays before December 31. Here's the offer page. And there are other deals available, depending on the property. You can check them out here.

You could save up to 33% and earn 1,000 bonus Hilton HHonors points with Hilton's December Sale. Details are here.

I've not mentioned A Club, the loyalty program of Accor hotels, a European chain, before. Accor does have several Novotel properties in Canada as well as Sofitel locations in Montréal and in major U.S. cities. With this offer, get the third night free when you pay for two nights, plus earn triple points. And via this page, you can instantly become an A Club Platinum member, which entitles you to a host of elite benefits. If you're planning an Accor hotel stay in the next year, it would be worth the few minutes it takes.

Until December 12, when you convert hotel points to Aeroplan miles, earn a 20-25% bonus. This could be a good deal if you have an immediate need for Aeroplan miles, but as I pointed out in a post a few weeks ago (What's a Point or Mile Worth?), hotel points can be more valuable because, unlike flight redemptions, there are no taxes or fees payable when you redeem for a free room night. You do the math.

I'm sure when you're holiday shopping you're consoling yourself with the thought that, when the credit card bills arrive in January, at least they'll also bring a blizzard of points and miles. OK, maybe I'm the only one. But have you considered not only earning points and miles with your holiday gift-giving, but giving points and miles as gifts?

Petro-Canada is offering 50% more Petro-Points on purchases from its convenience stores. That includes items such as lottery tickets and gift cards. Guys, do your Christmas shopping when you fill up. Offer's good until January 2.

And when you order magazines as a gift, or even for yourself, from Rogers Magazine Service, receive up to 1,000 Aeroplan miles via this offer.

For yourself, or as a gift, you can buy Starwood Preferred Guest Starpoints for 20% off until December 31. Can be a good deal, because sometimes you can get a hotel room for less by paying with points than with cash. Also good for topping up an account to redeem for an award or to keep your account active.

You can also purchase Club Carlson points for yourself or to give for US$7 per 1,000 (plus GST/HST for Canadians).

And a final thought: one of the nicest things you can do with your points and miles is to give them away. While most plans either don't permit, or charge an exorbitant fee for, transferring points or miles to someone else, they do allow you to book rooms and flights for others. And most plans allow you to make a charitable donation from your points or miles account.

Merry Christmas.

Follow me on Twitter: @AeneasLane

Points and Miles: November

It's the middle of the fourth quarter and that means it's been a quiet month in the world of points and miles. But there have been a few worthwhile offers that have come my way.

Hilton Hotels (which includes such brands as Hampton, Doubletree, and Embassy Suites) is offering the choice of a free night after four stays, or double points on all stays booked and completed by December 31. And if you select Delta Airlines as your double dip option, you'll receive an extra 250 Medallion Qualifying Miles via this offer.

If you'd like to give to earthquake relief in Turkey, Hilton HHonors will reward you with 10 points for every US$ donated.

A two-night stay at a Priority Club Rewards property (Holiday Inn, Crowne Plaza, etc.) in major North American cities (including Toronto), earns a 7,500 point bonus via this offer. Combined with the base points and other bonuses available (see current bonus offers at Priority Club Insider), you could easily earn the 15K points required for a free night at most Holiday Inn or Holiday Inn Express locations. Since many Priority Club bonus offers are stackable, my advice is to sign up for every offer and see what you get.

Starwood Hotels and Resorts (Sheraton, Westin, etc.) is offering a variety of discounts and special offers at properties in the Southern U.S. and Caribbean to CAA/AAA members. Good until December 31, all the information is here. And until December 15, the Starwood Preferred Guest American Express card comes with a 20K point sign-up bonus. That's enough for between 2 and 5 free nights, depending on the category of hotel. Or you can convert the 20K points to 25K airline miles for a free flight in North America. The card carries a $120 annual fee.

Until January 15, Hyatt Hotels is offering triple American Airlines AAdvantage miles with each stay – 1,500 instead of the usual 500. Up to 15K miles can be earned. And in other news, Hyatt is renaming its Summerfield Suites brand Hyatt House. Hyatt House will consist of the existing 38 Summerfield Suites locations and 16 Hotel Sierra properties that Hyatt recently acquired.

With this code, get special rates from Hertz and earn bonus Delta SkyMiles. There are various expiration dates.

And finally, Patrick Sojka, on his Rewards Canada blog, has recently posted reviews of the American Express Gold Rewards card, the RBC VISA Infinite Avion card, and the American Express AIR MILES Platinum card. If you're looking for a point-earning credit card, or just curious how your card stacks up, check them out.

Follow me on Twitter: @AeneasLane

Points and Miles: October

All the major hotel chains have now launched their fourth quarter promotions. If you're planning a Thanksgiving getaway, or a cross-border shopping trip, you might also refer to Points and Miles: September for the chains that were first out of the gate with their offers last month.

Country Inn and Suites by Carlson offers a free night if you complete a two-night stay by December 1. Various terms and conditions apply, so read them carefully. And a car rental from Avis could get you 9K Club Carlson points. Here's the link with the code you'll need.

You're probably not familiar with Wyndham Rewards, but you may recognize many Wyndham Hotel brands: Ramada, Super 8, Days Inn, Howard Johnson, Travelodge. Every stay through November 18 earns double points or miles, and every second stay gets you a $20 VISA gift card. Registration is required via this link.

Priority Club is the loyalty program of Intercontinental Hotels (Holiday Inn, Holiday Inn Express, Hotel Indigo, Crowne Plaza). You earn 10 points for every dollar spent. To redeem for a free night at a Holiday Inn or Holiday Inn Express usually requires 15K points, but some hotels offer "Pointsbreaks" specials for only 5K points a night. Here's where to find hotels offering Pointsbreaks. Until December 31, Register to earn 500 bonus points per night. Your bonus will be doubled or tripled if you stay at more than one brand. There are lots of other bonuses available. Find them here. The bonuses can add up quickly: two paid nights at Holiday Inn can easily earn you a free night.

Unfortunately, there are few Hyatt Hotels in Canada. Until November 15, receive 5K bonus Hyatt Gold Passport points after every three nights you stay. Combined with the regular 5 points per dollar earned, that's enough for a free night at many Hyatt hotels.

The airline space presents a couple of interesting offers. If you're a Royal Bank customer and collect RBC Rewards points, until November 30, earn a 30% bonus when converting RBC Rewards points to American Airlines AAdvantage miles. And, only until November 15, RBC is offering up to $350 in WestJet dollars for signing up for its WestJet RBC MasterCard.

If you'd subscribe to the magazine anyway, and the price is right, Rogers magazine service is offering 250 Aeroplan miles when you add a magazine to your account. Gift subscriptions also qualify.

And finally, CIBC has taken over the Petro-Points MasterCard and is offering 15K as a sign-up bonus. Petro-Points aren't worth much: 15K points will get you a $10 gas card. You do save 2 cents a litre at the pump, earn points for your spending, and receive a monthly 5K ($3.33) bonus if you spend over $1,000.

The card is no-fee, and there is a calculator on the site to let figure out how you'd do. My own calculations show that I'd save about $4.00 a month on gas and earn a $10.00 gas card about every other month, giving the card a value of a about $120.00 per year, or a return of about 1%. That represents a lost opportunity of several hundred dollars compared to several other cards I know and use that offer a 2% return and whose points can sometimes be leveraged for even greater value.

If you spend a lot (over $25K per year), especially on gas, the 2 cent a litre discount could increase the card's value to the $250-$300 range. But there's still the lost opportunity cost to consider. If you're putting that much spending on a credit card, a travel rewards card that offers double points or miles for gas, grocery, drug store, and travel purchases could be worth your while, even if it comes with a fee.

It just goes to show that there's no one right rewards program for everyone. How much you spend, where you spend, and what kinds of rewards you're after all determine what's best for you.

You can now follow me on Twitter: @AeneasLane

Points and Miles: September

This is the first monthly summary of the best travel rewards points and miles offers that come my way. Look for it the first Thursday of each month. Now that the busy summer travel season is winding down, we're starting to see more lucrative offers from the airlines and hotel chains. The sputtering economy is also contributing to this.

Delta Airlines has a code, good through December 31, for up to 2,500 SkyMiles and 40% off a Hertz rental. And, also to December 31, beginning with your second stay, you'll receive thousands of bonus SkyMiles for stays at Marriott hotels. You must set your earnings preference to SkyMiles in your Marriott Rewards account.

Until September 18, you can earn as many as 5,000 bonus miles when you convert points from several hotel programs to Aeroplan. All the details are here. Purchases at Home Hardware earn double Aeroplan miles until September 10. And Air Canada will join the major U.S. carriers in charging $25 for the first checked bag, starting October 11.

The big news on the airline mile front is the annual "Grand Slam" promotion from U.S. Airways. Various activities earn hits. Hits earn Dividend Miles, as many as 110,000, if you earn the maximum 40 hits. Registration is open now. Play begins September 14 and continues until November 14. And until September 15, you can earn a 100% bonus on purchased or gifted Dividend Miles, up to 50,000 miles. This also counts as a "hit" if you do it on September 14 or 15.

Starwood Preferred Guest members can earn double the usual points (triple if the stay includes a Thursday or Sunday night) for stays through December 18 at Sheraton, Westin, and other hotels in the Starwood family. Registration is required via this link. And SPG members save 35% and get a free continental breakfast for city weekend getaways, until December 30.

Until November 3, register to get 4X ChoicePrivileges points for stays at Choice Hotels (Comfort Inn, Quality Inn, EconoLodge, etc.).

Here's a code for 15% off at budget chain Red Roof Inn, valid during September for those over 50.

It can sometimes make sense to purchase hotel points to redeem for a reward. For example, you may be only a few points shy of the number needed, or the room rate may be greater than the cost of the points. Until September 30, receive a 20% bonus when purchasing Hyatt Gold Passport points: 1,200 for US$24.

Points.com is not usually a good deal when swapping points among your programs, but until September 15, some swaps earn a 15% bonus, which softens the blow a little. Even with the poor exchange rates Points.com offers, there are times when it's worthwhile: you may have "orphan" points in a program that could provide some value somewhere else, or a swap into a program could count as activity to extend the life of your points in a program. And a swap into U.S. Airways counts as a "hit" for the Grand Slam promotion.

And finally, I don't think PETRO-POINTS have a lot of value (I buy gas at Esso to get Aeroplan miles), but until October 31, when you buy a coffee and swipe your PETRO-POINTS card, you could win free gas for a year.

You can now follow me on Twitter: @AeneasLane

Late Summer 2011 Travel and Points Offers

Now that August is here it's time to take a look at the travel and points offers available for late summer getaways. Summer being peak travel season, there aren't a lot of great offers out there right now: better offers will come along in the fall. But here are the best of what's available.

Instead of points, Hyatt Gold Passport members can register to receive 2,500 Aeroplan miles per stay. The offer is good until September 30.

Until September 30, earn double points or double miles for stays at Hilton hotels (including Hampton, Doubletree, and Embassy Suites). You must register here. If you're a Delta SkyMiles collector, you can earn triple miles with this link.

And you just might find a good deal, because participating Hilton properties are offering up to 40% discounts if you book by August 22 and stay by September 5. Here's the offer page.

Capital One is now offering a Delta SkyMiles World MasterCard to Canadians. There is a 25K miles first purchase bonus, and each dollar spent earns one SkyMile. The card has a $120 annual fee. There is also a no-fee Gold MasterCard which earns one SkyMile for every $2 in purchases. All the details on both cards can be found here.

Until the end of the year, Starwood (Sheraton, Westin, Le Meridien, Four Points, Aloft, W) hotels across Canada are offering the third night free when you pay for two nights during holiday long weekends. This link has the promo code you need when booking.

You'll receive 500 Continental OnePass miles for every $100 Best Western travel card purchased by August 31. All the details are here. And you have until September 30 to transfer American Express Membership Reward points to Continental OnePass. After that date, OnePass is ending its association with American Express as part of its merger into United's MileagePlus program.

Club Carlson (Radisson, Country Inn & Suites) lets you earn double points (40 points per $1 spent, including food and beverages) for stays up to September 15. Free nights begin at only 9K points, so a two-night stay could earn a free night. Registration is required.

Check back for the second part of A Week in Washington coming up in a few days and the regular summer cocktail recipe on Thursday.

More Spring 2011 Points Offers

Thought you might enjoy a break from all the election news, so here you are:

Until June 30, Hilton Hotels is offering 1,000 bonus Hilton HHonors points with each night's stay. That's in addition to the regular points and airline miles you earn. Hilton's plan is unique in that members "double dip", earning both for each stay. You must register for the promotion here.

If your plans include several nights in hotels over the next few months, Hyatt hotels is offering 10K bonus Hyatt Gold Passport points after you stay five nights, and an additional 5K bonus points for every two nights you stay beyond five. That's on top of the regular earning rate of five points per dollar spent. Free nights begin at 5K points, with most hotels being in the 8K and 12K point categories. So a week at a Hyatt property could get you two or three free nights. You must register here.

Goldpoints Plus is now Club Carlson and it's offering an excellent promotion until June 15: stay twice and earn a free night. This can be an economical way to stay in an expensive city. Two low cost Country Inn and Suites stays can get you that free night at a Radisson. You must be a Club Carlson member and register for the promotion. You have until December 31, 2011 to use your free nights.

Choice Hotels, in conjunction with MBNA Bank Canada, is offering a no-fee MasterCard that lets you earn Choice Privileges points for every dollar you spend on it. There's also an 8K point sign-up bonus. Details and application form are here.

And speaking of credit cards, back in the fall I told you about the Starwood Preferred Guest American Express card. The card is still available with a 10K point sign-up bonus, but unlike last year, American Express is no longer waiving the annual fee of $120 for the first year (or for renewals).

So, as intended, I cancelled my SPG Amex card (I keep all my Starwood points). But when I called American Express, they offered me their new Gold Rewards card with 15K points as a sign-up bonus and no annual fee for the first year. So I accepted that offer. I earn one point per dollar spent on the card, two for spending on travel, gas, grocery, and drug store purchases. Amex Membership Reward points can be applied directly to your Amex bill for travel related spending, or converted to points with several hotel and airline partners (for example, one to one to Aeroplan). I'll keep you posted on what I see is the best way to "earn and burn" these points.

To conclude, Niagara Spring Flings is offering Ontario and New York residents a chance to win a getaway in the Niagara peninsula. There's also a downloadable "Perks Card" offering such things as free wine tastings (yum!). Check it out here.

Have a Happy Easter.