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By this time tomorrow, Marriott will be the proud new owner of Starwood Hotels. Since the news of this acquisition first broke almost a year ago, we’ve received countless questions about the future of Starwood Preferred Guest and Marriott Rewards. We know that big changes will be coming to both chains’ loyalty programs — and, eventually, SPG may be no more — but when will this process begin, and what adjustments might members expect?...

One of the most iconic aircraft in the world may be getting a makeover. US President Donald Trump wants to repaint Air Force One to look “more American,” Axios reports.In negotiations with Boeing CEO Dennis Muilenburg last February, when the President and CEO were discussing the terms for a $4 billion order for two new Boeing 747s to replace the current fleet — Trump told Muilenburg that he wants to get rid of the classic blue and white scheme for a “more American” look....

Venice has a new idea for controlling the amount of tourists that run rampant through the city of canals.In advance of the peak summer tourist season, Venice’s Mayor Luigi Brugnaro has signed an ordinance to separate the thousands of tourists from local residents throughout the city. Brugnaro called the new policies “urgent measures to guarantee public safety, security and livability in the historic city of Venice.”These temporary regulations — introduced for the upcoming holiday weekend in Italy and valid from April 28 until May 1 — aim primarily to manage pedestrian, water and vehicle traffic....

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.Several years ago, while waiting for an upgrade at the Air France ticket desk at JFK, I watched a fairly famous model lose her mind after she was told that the bag she had just checked — and which was whisked away 10 minutes prior via conveyor belt — couldn’t be retrieved....

Did you fly somewhere this Labor Day weekend? If the airport crowds seemed larger than usual, there’s a reason. Airlines for America estimates that 16.1 million Americans are taking to the skies this busy travel weekend. This is a 5% jump from last year’s record 15.4 million travelers over the same seven-day period.While the airports may feel as hectic as ever, you might actually feel less crowded once on-board. Airlines ramped up capacity to handle the onslaught of travelers; with 770,000 additional people expected to fly this Labor Day weekend, airlines added around 930,000 additional seats....

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 the heels of this week’s 2,000 Hilton point promo, Gilt announced another sign-up bonus for new members, this time for 1,000 JetBlue TrueBlue points with a first purchase of $50 or more, and 5 TrueBlue points for each additional $1 spent through the first six months of membership....

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.So yesterday was judgement day for most loyalty programs - March 1, when those who didn’t retain elite status either get dropped to non-status all together or sometimes you get lucky and only get bumped down a level, which is otherwise known as a soft landing....

Per this FlyerTalk thread, there are some amazing business class airfares from several US cities to European destinations this fall and winter. Reported itineraries include departures from West Coast cities on carriers in both SkyTeam (Delta, Air France, Alitalia) and Oneworld (American, British Airways, Iberia and US Airways). No Star Alliance price matching has been reported yet.You can score some great deals on Business Class flights including on British Airways.Departure cities include: Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Phoenix and SeattleDestinations include: Amsterdam, Barcelona, Helsinki, Madrid, Paris and RomeAirlines include: Air France, American, Delta, KLM and US AirwaysFinding Airfares Using the ITA MatrixOne of the most useful tools for searching airfares quickly is the ITA Matrix....

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.The 737, Boeing’s short- to medium-haul workhorse, broke another record today, as the aircraft manufacturer rolled out its 10,000th aircraft of the type.The rollout is quite the accomplishment for Boeing, particularly its engineering and design teams that have molded the 737 across more than 10 different versions, over the span of some 50 years....

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.Boeing is currently working to evacuate some of its Dreamliners from Charleston, South Carolina (CHS) ahead of Hurricane Florence, which is expected to make landfall later this week.One consequence, however, is that several of these aircraft are flying when they were intended to spend some time on the ground....

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.One major gripe with Delta’s complimentary upgrade system was that once Medallion members received an upgrade to a Comfort+ seat, they couldn’t select a seat or choose to downgrade back to regular economy if they landed in a middle seat in Comfort+....

This was the last leg in my “long way around” trip from Bogotá to Tokyo on Star Alliance carriers, which included a Bogotá to Barcelona trans-Atlantic leg in Avianca’s business class. After about 16 hours of traveling I was ready to get to Japan. I had heard many positive things about the business class experience on ANA and had high expectations for this 11-hour flight from Brussels (BRU) to Tokyo Narita (NRT)....

I just arrived in Sri Lanka, the second stop on my latest round-the-world tour, after a fantastic flight on Cathay Pacific’s new Airbus A350, followed by an exciting “solo” flight on one of the airline’s A330s, in which I had the rear business-class cabin all to myself. But my goal is really getting to Brussels — and if you get a little creative with flight bookings, you can do what I did and end up saving a substantial amount on a premium-class flight, by routing through the Sri Lankan capital Colombo....

As a new Intercontinental Royal Ambassador, I’ve been trying to figure out the ins and outs of the Priority Club and Ambassador programs so I can pay as little as possible for my stays and earn the maximum amount of points possible. While every hotel chain has its quirks, I’m finding that maximizing Priority Club to require a little more time and energy than I originally thought.The thing I find most annoying is that you have to click through special links to get special rates....

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.Donald Trump wants to be President of the United States, but for now president of Trump Hotels (and a bunch of other stuff) will have to do.There are currently 14 Trump Hotels.The Trump Hotels chain includes 14 properties, and they’re generally quite nice — Trump is one of my favorite hotels in Vegas, and it’s often very reasonably priced....

It looks like Starwood Preferred Guest has gotten tired of travelers taking advantage of delays in new hotel openings. A batch of emails went out this week to suspect members, suspending these members’ SPG accounts until the member acknowledged the warning. Here’s what SPG says the members are guilty of and how you can avoid similar scrutiny.The HackAs anyone who’s dealt with building construction likely knows all too well, delays happen....

Here’s a recap of the interesting points and miles news from the week:Choose a room upgrade or breakfast for two.Complimentary Upgrade or Breakfast And Bonus Points At Conrad Hotels: For stays booked before December 31, 2014, Conrad Hotels & Resorts (part of Hilton) are offering the “Luxury of Being Yourself” promotion, which allows you to select either a complimentary daily breakfast for two or a complimentary room upgrade. You can make your selection during check in....

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.Later this week, United will be changing the process for logging into your MileagePlus account. While the carrier had already begun requiring passwords to sign in online since February 11, as of this week, you won’t be able to use a PIN to authenticate your account over the phone either....

Happy Father’s Day to all of the dads, grandpas, stepdads, and father figures out there. If Father’s Day snuck up on you, but you don’t want the day to pass by without setting up something special for the dad(s) in your life, then we have you covered. The best gifts you can give are usually experiences that can be enjoyed together, so here are seven things you can spend your points on today and surprise dad just in time....

The Midwest and Great Lakes are covered in snow, the East Coast is hunkering down before a huge storm, the federal government shut down in anticipation of bad weather and over 2,000 flights are already canceled with 3,000 more delayed - it’s going to be a tough day for travelers across much of the US. If you have travel plans, chances are you’re biting your nails waiting to see if your flights actually get out, so I wanted to put together an updated list of the current travel advisories and flight change and refund policies of the major airlines in case you need to make some changes to your plans....