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Competition over New York-based flyers is heating up this week with offers from both Delta and American for flyers who book premium international tickets to reach a higher elite status level plus a few other valuable perks.The Delta offer is hands-down the more generous of the two. Targeted folks who register before March 31, 2014, can receive:• 60 days of complimentary Platinum Medallion status.• 60 days of complimentary Delta Sky Club membership....

Fall is almost upon us, so we decided to investigate one of North America’s best leaf-peeping destinations: Halifax, Nova Scotia.A jumping-off point for folks looking to experience Maritime Canada’s amazing natural beauty, wildlife, fishing, dramatic coastline and more, Halifax is a quaint little city with plenty to offer, and plenty of opportunities to earn and redeem points and miles.The Victorian-era Halifax Public Gardens is one of the city’s most beloved landmarks....

Citi is a TPG advertising partner.Editor’s note: This post has been updated with new information.If you are a frequent American Airlines flyer, you have plenty of credit card options to help you earn additional miles and make the most out of every American Airlines flight. While Barclays and Citi both have a cobranded card partnership with American Airlines, Citi is the issuer with the largest number of American Airlines card options....

Airline investor earnings conference calls are always a fascinating look into the true motivations behind airlines. While carriers may say one thing to its passengers, it might be telling its investors something completely different. For example, AA focuses on customer choice when presenting basic economy to passengers. Meanwhile, airline management tells its investors in these calls of the $1 billion in incremental annual revenue the airline will get from charging customers more for the same product as before....

Sign up for our daily newsletterEmail addressSign upI would like to subscribe to The Points Guy newsletters and special email promotions. The Points Guy will not share or sell your email. See privacy policy.Following similar moves by Alaska, American and other travel service providers, United Airlines just became the latest US carrier to give a formal farewell to the plastic straw. That’s great news, in theory, but it doesn’t exactly seem like a tremendous sacrifice....

Sign up for our daily newsletterEmail addressSign upI would like to subscribe to The Points Guy newsletters and special email promotions. The Points Guy will not share or sell your email. See privacy policy.On Friday evening, the Trump administration Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) approved a “major disaster declaration for Hawaii” in the wake of the ongoing Kilauea volcanic eruption and earthquakes. This declaration clears the way for federal resources to supplement state and local recovery efforts....

Update: Some offers mentioned below are no longer available. View the current offers here - Chase Sapphire Preferred, Chase Sapphire Reserve, World of Hyatt Credit CardSome types of points are just easier to earn than others, which is important not only for racking up sizable totals for awards, but also crucial when you need to do something to keep your points active and prevent them from expiring. When I recently received a question about how to keep Hyatt points from expiring (Hyatt points expire after 24 months of no activity), it inspired me to write this post about the variety of ways to earn Hyatt Gold Passport points....

I read the Cranky Flier post “Is Delta the Airline Passenger Technology Leader?” yesterday and it got me thinking that Delta does have some pretty good technology in comparison to the other US legacy airlines. Delta certainly has its share of IT blind spots (online award booking calendar and a buggy website), but from a passenger experience perspective, I’ve been impressed: mobile boarding passes have saved me more than once; I’ve been more productive with in-flight wifi and I’ve been hooked up with automatic rebooking when faced with delays and cancellations....

As a kid, we traveled in a way pretty similar to the Griswold family. We moved fast, saw a lot and — due to the economics of purchasing four airline tickets in the 1980s — we almost always traveled by car.Once I became an adult booking my own travel, I maintained the philosophies from my childhood: move fast and see as much as possible. But I largely swapped the station wagon for airplanes....

Houston, we have a solution. Emirates is bringing back its A380 to Houston starting June 1. The superjumbo was taken off the Houston (IAH) - Dubai (DXB) route in 2016, and replaced by the Boeing 777-300ER.Why does it matter? The A380 is equipped with Emirates famous onboard shower, while the 777 flew without it.Plus, it means a whole lot more first and business class seats up for grabs. The A380 features 516 seats, with 14 in first, 76 in business and a whole 426 economy — a 160-passenger increase from the 777....

Sign up for our daily newsletterEmail addressSign upI would like to subscribe to The Points Guy newsletters and special email promotions. The Points Guy will not share or sell your email. See privacy policy.Apologies for anyone who has experienced slow load time or server errors in the past couple days. I am switching web hosting companies today, so hopefully we will be smooth sailing tomorrow. (PS: I do NOT recommend whois....

United States-based customers of the Bombardier C-Series will now have to pay almost 300% in duties to get their jets, a move that makes it all but impossible for the Canadian company to sell its flagship product in the biggest aviation market in the world. The US Department of Commerce announced on Friday that it’s adding another 80% levy to a 220% tariff imposed last week — any US carrier that wishes to add the CSeries to its fleet would have to shell out three times the price it pays to Bombardier in tariffs to the US government....

In the wake of the mass school shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, FL, which killed 17 people, numerous travel companies and one credit card issuer have announced the end of their partnerships with the National Rifle Association.Credit Card IssuersOn Thursday, First National Bank of Omaha announced it wouldn’t renew its contract to issue a NRA co-branded credit card. Doctor of Credit reports that the credit card isn’t accepting new applications....

The US government issued a health alert for China on Wednesday after a US official stationed in the country reported “abnormal sensations of sound and pressure” that experts believe are symptoms of a mild brain injury.The US government employee who became sick was stationed in Guangzhou, a city in China’s southern region. According to the US State Department, the employee reported numerous “subtle and vague but abnormal” symptoms beginning in late 2017 through April 2018 — when the official was sent back to the US to be medically evaluated....

Sign up for our daily newsletterEmail addressSign upI would like to subscribe to The Points Guy newsletters and special email promotions. The Points Guy will not share or sell your email. See privacy policy.Hyatt used to be promotion crazy, but lately they are dead silent. I have a ton of stays coming up and I’d like to book with Hyatt, but the dearth of solid promos has me scratching my head....

Check out this week’s travel contests and sweepstakes to try your hand at winning a safari through Tanzania, an 11-day extravaganza in Italy, a getaway to Nevada, a weekend in historic Boston or a chocolate-filled trip to New York City.Win a trip to TanzaniaWin Safari Through Tanzania From Kensington PhotosYou could win a grand prize, eight-day safari for two for submitting one of your incredible travel photos. The grand prize includes:One double occupancy standard hotel room for two for seven nights/eight days at Sanctuary Retreats$4,000 towards airfare to TanzaniaSafari tripsFour first prizes given to four winners (each can bring a guest) of a free flight to Australia from Air New Zealand....

A 66-year old woman with a history of sneaking past security and onto airplanes managed to make it from Chicago (ORD) to London (LHR) on a British Airways flight last week without a ticket, boarding pass or passport.According to CBS Chicago, Marilyn Hartman, a woman who has been arrested dozens of times over the last several years for entering restricted areas in airports and flying without a ticket, managed to slip past a checkpoint at domestic Terminal 3 at O’Hare, then spent two days wandering around the airport unquestioned before making her way to international Terminal 5 and boarding a Sunday afternoon British Airways flight to Heathrow....

We’ve seen a lot of crazy travel products come and go over the years. Between random travel apps (hello, Take Me Home, I’m Wasted) to ridiculous carry-on items (an axe gun, really?), we’ve seen it all. But this year, there are even wackier items to add to the list. Here, 10 of the most random travel products we’ve seen in 2017.1. PetflairBack in September, we talked about the Australian company Petflair, who not only makes customized beachwear (starting at $59), but beachwear with your pet’s face on it....

Perhaps the Maldives’ best-known attraction, Ithaa restaurant is located at the Conrad Rangali Island. TPG Editor-in-Chief Zach Honig had a chance to dine there last week.From overwater villas and five-star facilities to incredibly friendly staff and jaw-dropping natural beauty, there’s a lot to love about the Maldives. It’s a long trip from the US — my girlfriend and I took a very indirect route, flying United to Sydney to catch Etihad’s A380 Apartment to Abu Dhabi, but you can expect to spend at least 24 hours in transit, including the seaplane transfer from Male....

Amex Offers (limited, targeted, opt-in deals like this one for $200 after spending $1,000 with Delta) released a new hotel discount: Get $50 back after spending $250+ at Westin Hotels and Resorts.Log in to your Amex account to see if you’ve been offered the deal.And though Amex offers are targeted (so you won’t necessarily see this offer on all your accounts), the Westin deal is also available via Twitter:Tweet #AmexWestin with a Twitter account linked to your Amex to get $50 back on $250+ spent at Westin Hotels....