Frequent Miler on the Air

In today's Frequent Miler on the Air episode, Greg bypasses 5/24, Nick flies a donut plane towards earning status and 350,000 miles, and we run the numbers on Turkish's million mile promo. Giant Mailbag (01:58) - Virgin Atlantic substantially increases fees on award tickets. But one door closes, another opens. Read more about Virgin Atlantic increasing fees on award tickets here. Card News (04:17)...

What are "Chase points boosts"? In this episode, we'll explain and evaluate this new system for establishing the value of Chase Travel ℠ bookings. (00:21) - Explaining a few confusing elements Learn more about this here. (03:30) - Chase points boosts (flights) (04:50) - What does a points boost mean for flights? (09:19) - As far as flights are concerned, is this a good change? (13:59) - Chase poin...

JetBlue is offering 350,000 points plus 25 years of elite status if you fly JetBlue to 25 destinations before the end of the year. Today we'll look at that promotion a little more closely, but we'll also hear from a "nerdy dad", and will hear about some crazy credit card approvals.  (01:04) - John the Nerdy Dad sends a shoutout to his teenage kids (03:36) - Chase Sapphire Preferred offer (04:...

Updated new cardmember bonus offers just came out for the newly-refreshed Chase Sapphire Reserve card (consumer version) and the Chase Sapphire Reserve for Business. Everyone's talking about it...but are they worth pursuing for everyone? You can read more about these offers here. (00:52) - Chase Sapphire Reserve welcome offer: 100K points + promo credit good for up to $500 towards a single Chase T...

Today we'll talk about how Chase is breaking up the family (rule), we'll discuss whether American Express is high when introducing "as high as" offers, and we'll talk about how Chase has made the Chase Sapphire Reserve card harder to explain and harder and recommend. (01:27) -  How to move Avios between British Airways, Qatar, Iberia, Aer Lingus and Finnair (04:56) - Major refresh coming to T...

Chase is out with new details about their Sapphire Reserve for business card...and there are a few ways our predictions from last week were way off. Today, we'll talk about how we were wrong about the Sapphire Reserve for Business card. The real Sapphire Reserve for Business Find our predictions episode here: https://frequentmiler.com/predicting-the-sapphire-business-card-frequent-miler-on-the-air...

*Our apologies for the occasional connection issues with Nick's audio* What the heck does "Mattress Cycling the Hyatt Numbers" mean? We'll find out in today's episode. We'll also talk about using online chat with Hyatt to get your way, and we'll predict the details of the new Chase Sapphire Business card. (01:25) - Did we just beat a Pulitzer Prize-winning podcast? Listen to Tim's origin story epi...

What do you do when you don't have enough hotel miles? And why aren't we letting all 100K Vacay competitors use Chase points? We answered these and many other questions on the Ask Us Anything hosted live on YouTube which first aired on June 4th, 2025. (07:36) - ​​What is your favorite all inclusive you've stayed at? I've been to Punta Cana but want to try other locations. (10:14) - Do you keep the...

On today's Frequent Miler on the Air, we look at 2 cards offering 5 free nights, we recall the 5 ways we've been Bonvoyed recently, and we announce the 2025 Frequent Miler team challenge!  (01:41) - We learn how to pronounce Dugroz (02:53) - "...any tools or shortcuts you use to quickly size up a biz class product without opening 6 tabs and a YouTube black hole? I know equipment swaps happen,...

Greg and Nick recently both flew the same Etihad First Class route between Paris and Abu Dhabi in the first class apartments. Greg flew the morning flight from Paris to Abu Dhabi and Nick flew the reverse, an evening flight. Which one was a better experience? (00:51) - Why did Nick pick the evening flight that he picked? (01:40) - When using American Airline miles, availability is tough. (03:40) -...

Today we learn that we're all wrong about Wyndham, we discuss some miscellaneous tips to save on flights, we hear from someone who's traveling the world one day at a time, and much more... (03:07) - "I got the Chase Ink Cash last summer and immediately tested to see if YouTube TV would qualify for the 5x Ultimate Rewards points. ...it didn't." (05:07) - Use Walmart scan and go and it may code as a...

We've been gradually telling the "origin stories" of each team member in Frequent mIler. Today, we'll talk about how Tim came to join Frequent Miler. (00:52) - How did Tim get started in miles and points? (02:12) - Around 16 or 17, Tim and his brother planned out a series of roadtrips to try to see beyond their Midwestern home. (06:24) - To prepare for his honeymoon years later, Tim volunteered fo...

This week we'll lean about the "ultimate life hack", we'll gripe about how we're being Bonvoyed every which way, and we'll debate: is the points and miles game dead? (01:14) - Listeners respond to our "Points for the next generation" podcast Ep306 with some great life hacks... You can find our "Points for the next generation" podcast Ep306 here. (08:53) - Nick's schedule change story Read more abo...

Without warning, Hilton increased its top standard room rate for many hotels, which follows a big increase in December last year. Most increased around 5K points, but some much more, especially at the high end. (00:27) - Hilton increased top standard room rate for many hotels, which follows a big increase in December last year (05:23) - A few examples for high end properties impacted (06:30) - How...

In today's episode we'll talk about how you can still book Emirate first class awards, we'll discuss Spirit Airlines is going premium, and we'll look at how you can prepare your kids for points and miles. (01:29) - Does anyone else feel like American Express' customer service is above and beyond the rest? (09:33) - Chase Instacart benefits on many cards (17:07) - Buy Marriott Points for as low as...

How would we use that 100K bonus, and which vacation home rental platform has the best value? We answered these questions and more on the Ask Us Anything hosted live on YouTube on May 7th, 2025. (03:54) - ​​Hi! Q for Stephen: what’s your credit card strategy now that you’ve moved? For everyone: If you lived outside the US but could still have US credit cards, which cards would you keep? (06:45) -...

Takeaways: The Frequent Miler on the Air podcast has officially joined the Voyascape podcast network, which signifies a shift in a few ways. Listeners of the audio version will notice new network identifiers and advertisements, which were previously absent from the podcast. (Viewers via YouTube will not see any change.) The transition to Voyascape will not alter the core content of the podcast, as...

In today's episode, we'll talk about how The Standard is coming to Hyatt...(but we're too old for it). Nick will enlighten Greg about the fact that Air France flies to French Polynesia, and we'll talk through our recent award booking stories. (01:24) - A correction about the Delta Business Gold card (with a $150 hotel credit, not $200 as mentioned in the episode). (02:23) - Would a speculative Dis...

In today's episode, we'll talk about why we like the Rakuten shopping portal and also discuss a great new trick Rakuten has up its sleeve... (00:42) - What is a shopping portal? (01:15) - Choose cash back or Amex Membership Rewards points (must link Amex card) (02:55) - Great refer-a-friend promos ($40/4K) (04:08) - Frequent 10x, 15x, 20x promotions (04:43) - Portal includes travel sites like IHG,...

In today's episode, we're schooled about Wells Fargo cards, we learn about earning points on your mortgage, and we talk about how you can take the sting out of Southwest's customer unfriendly changes. (01:03) - Listeners give us more ideas about making a great Wells Fargo Wallet Find our episode "A World-Class Wells Fargo Wallet" here. (08:20) - Mesa Homeowners Card: Earn transferable points on mo...

There are credit cards that help make your points actually more valuable, just by having the credit card on hand. You can find all of the cards discussed on this show on our Best Offers page .  Coffee Break: Credit Card Power-Ups (00:40) - United: Discounted awards, ability to upgrade (01:38) - Delta: 15% discount (01:54) - JetBlue 10% rebate (02:20) - Aeroplan: 1.25 PYB, better award pricing (02:...

We tend to ignore Wells Fargo cards because there are so many other great credit cards out there, but they actually do have some compelling cards out there. In today's episode we'll discuss which ones you might want in your wallet. (01:47) - Re: Clarifying our "Beyond 100K Sapphire Preferred" episode, which you can read more about here. (19:33) - Bigger Capital One VentureX Business Card offer via...

The Capital One Venture X Business card is out with a   massive welcome bonus of 750K points...but the devil is in the details. Is this card really worth it? (00:27) - Capital One Venture X Business card details Read our Capital One Venture X Business card review here. (03:47) - The welcome bonus is broken down into two pieces: 150K after $30K in 3 months, then 200K after $200K ($170K more) in 6 m...

If you just got 100K points from a brand new travel rewards card, you should know a few things to help make sure you're earning even more points, saving money, and getting great value. Plus we'll also look at "Amex referral reformatory rescinded" and how to earn points on RENT with any credit card. (01:30) - One reader shares a success story using the "email the GM" strategy... (03:37) - Capital O...

On a recent podcast episode , we talked about all the important considerations when you're just getting start in the points and miles game. But in this episode, we'll go one step further and talk about which credit cards you might want to consider as someone just getting started. (00:10) - Listen to our "Getting started with points & miles" Ep298 here. (01:12) - Some of the things you might ideall...