Michael's Miles Round-Up

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Happy Friday Reader!

Listen to this segment on: Spotify or Apple Podcasts

I think I've made it clear that AwardTool and Seats.Aero are my two of my favorite award search tools and I've talked about them a lot recently. However, Seats.aero just released a couple of updates that I wanted to share.

One is super tiny, but one I've been looking forward to for a long time. That's the ability to "Select custom range" when selecting dates on their search page. I hated the "+/- x number of days" options I was forced to use because it made me think too much.

But the one I think everyone will find useful is the new calendar view. You can find it by changing the View Layout to Calendar on the Search screen.

What's cool is that there's three different parts to it. One is this "Price By Date" bar graph that you can expand. This will give you an overview of what availability looks like across a full year. You can slide the bar left or right to see more months.

Then you've got the calendar itself which you can choose to show availability pricing for whichever cabin you're interested in or All Cabins. Personally, I think the All Cabins view is a bit overwhelming, so I'd recommend looking at one cabin at a time.

It shows you the cheapest points price and the program offering it right on the calendar. Then, if you hover over a date, it will show you the route, taxes and fees, and when the availability was last seen.

But then if you click on the date, there's an additional feature where it will pull up the full list of results it found for you to view and it will also attempt to perform a live search on that date and update the results.

Now truthfully I've only kicked the tires on this feature, and haven't taken it for a full multi-lap test drive yet. So time will tell how useful this feature will really be, but it’s promising.

One thing to be aware of is that there are limited filters you can apply. For instance, you can’t filter out high-tax options. It will direct you to “Individual Flights Mode” if you want to apply more filters

And, of course, your results are limited by which programs are operating at a healthy status. I was comparing results with AwardTool and noticed that AwardTool had found a business-class flight on Air Canada that wasn’t showing up here. That led me to check the Seats.aero System Status page, where I saw they were experiencing an outage with Air Canada.

This isn't new of course, but just wanted to state - as always - that no tool is perfect.

Let me know your thoughts and happy booking!

P.S. Alaska has a big points sale + their monthly Global Getaways to check out below.

You've got the points.
Here's the process for actually turning them into the flight you want.

• Bank of America to add the ability to transfer points to Alaska Airlines in 2027 ​
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• American Express Business Gold’s $240 Flexible Business Credit removes FedEx as an eligible merchant, and adds UPS.com
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• Choice hotels has added free points sharing between member accounts, always a nice feature to have.
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• If you're looking for a last minute trip, you can fly one-way to Sydney for just 25k American Airlines miles in economy, but only good for flights through this month. Details.
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• Chase Marriott cardholders can see if they're targeted to earn up to 3,000 bonus points with $500 monthly spend for next 3 months. Register by 10/14.​
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• See if you're eligible for one of IHG's targeted offers: Diamond status after 10 nights or double elite night credits through December 31, 2026. Details.​
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• Southwest is giving free miles, up to 10,000. But I'm getting an "all points have been claimed for today" note. You can try to get some at 12pm ET/9am PT, details here.
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• Air France is adding flights to Nashville & San Diego for Summer 2027.
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• Chase Aeroplan card is now letting you use the "Pay Yourself Back" feature to cover the $195 annual fee for just 9750 points (a 2 cent per point value). Sweet.
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• ​Coming soon, American Airlines will let you use a combination of miles and cash to purchase flights.
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• Get a 20% off voucher when you register your interest by 10/31 for the Alaska Airlines Debit Card for travel from 1/6-3/10, 2027

Point Sales:

Purchasing points on sale is a way to access travel sweet spots at a cash discount, especially useful for those who can't earn points quickly through credit cards (those living outside the U.S.) or those who want to fast-track specific luxury redemptions.

I recommend only purchasing points with a redemption in mind, or if you're topping off an account. ​
​
Air Canada up to 30% discount as low as 1.90 cents each, exp 10/13
​Alaska Airlines up to 110% bonus as low as 1.79 cents each, exp 10/19​
American Airlines up to 40% bonus as low as 2.26 cents each, tiered
​Choice Hotels up to 40% discount as low as 0.62 cents each, exp 10/22
​Delta SkyMiles up to 50% bonus as low as 2.51 cents each, exp 10/31
​Hilton Honors up to 120% bonus as low as 0.45 cents each, exp 11/21
​Lufthansa up to 50% bonus as low as 1.39 cents each, exp unk.
​Marriott Bonvoy up to 55% bonus as low as 0.81 cents each, exp 11/23
​Southwest up to 50% discount as low as 1.50 cents each, exp 10/29
​Wyndham up to 90% bonus as low as 0.68 cents each, exp 10/21

Learn all about Alaska Airlines' free stopover program! There are some tips here you may not have heard before in other videos on the topic.

Here are some of the best sign-up bonuses that I've found. I've included referral links to the offers I have access to. For offers not linked, I'd recommend applying through other channels to support creators' work.

"***" = Different from last week

Flexible Points Cards:​
-Chase Sapphire Preferred $95 - 75k, after $5k spend.​
​-Chase Sapphire Reserve $795 - 100k after $6k spend.
-Chase Sapphire Reserve Business $795 - 200k after $30k spend in 6 months
-Chase Freedom Unlimited $0 - 20k/$200 after $500 spend in 3 months
-Chase Freedom Flex $0 - 25k/$250 after $500 spend in 3 months
-Chase Ink Unlimited $0 - 75k points after $6,000 spent in 3 months
-Chase Ink Cash $0 - 75k points after $6,000 spent in 3 months
-Chase Ink Business Preferred $95 - 100k points after $8,000 spent in 3 months.

​
-AMEX Gold $325 has an offer for "as high as" 100k
​-AMEX Business Gold $375 - "as high as" 200k Targeted Offer after $15,000 spent in 3 months. Try copying and pasting link into Private/Incognito browser. ​
​-AMEX Platinum $895 - "as high as" 175k after $12k spend
-AMEX Business Platinum $895 - "as high as 300k" after $20,000 spent in 3 months; Also here's a 200k No Lifetime Language link.
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-Capital One Venture X $395 - 75k points after $4,000 in 3 months.
-Capital One Venture $95 - 75k + $300 travel credit after $4,000 in 3 months.
-Capital One Venture Business $95 - 100k after $10k in 3 months.
-Capital One Venture X Business $395 - 150k bonus, after $30,000 in 3 months.
-Capital One Savor $0 - $250 cash back (25k points) after $500 in 3 months
-Citi Strata Elite $595 - 75k points after $6,000 in 3 months
-Citi Strata Premier $95 - 60k points after $4,000 in 3 months

Hotel Cards​
​-Amex Hilton Honors $0 - 70k + Free Night Certificate after $2000 spent in 6 months. Ends 1/13/27​
-Amex Hilton Surpass $150 - 130k + Free Night Certificate after $3000 spent in 6 months. Ends 1/13/27​
-Amex Hilton Aspire $550 - 200k after $6000 spent in 6 months. Ends 1/13/27

Airline cards:​
-Chase Southwest Premier Business - 80k miles after $3,000 spend in 3 months. Ends 10/26
- Citi AAdvantage Platinum Select $99, waived first year - 80k miles after $3,500 spend in 4 months.
- Citi AAdvantage Executive Mastercard $695 - 125k miles after $15,000 in 5 months.
-Delta SkyMiles Gold $150, waived first year - "as high as" 80k miles + $250 statement credit after $3,000 spend in 6 months. Ends 11/4.
(Business version also available)
-Delta SkyMiles Platinum $350 — as high as 90k miles + $300 statement credit after $4,000 spend in 6 months. Ends 11/4
(Business version also available)
-Delta SkyMiles Reserve $650 — 50k miles + two domestic round-trip Comfort certificates after $10,000 spend in 6 months. Ends 11/4
- Delta SkyMiles Reserve Business​ $650 — 200k miles after $20,000 spend in 6 months. Ends 11/4

Atlanta (ATL) - Beijing (PEK): Economy for 30k Miles
Austin (AUS) - Europe: Premium Economy for 30k Miles
Boston (BOS) - Europe: Economy for 18.75k Miles
Chicago (ORD) - Europe: Economy for 18.75k Miles
Chicago (ORD) - Europe: Premium Economy for 30k Miles
Chicago (ORD) - Shanghai (PVG): Business for 86.25k Miles
Houston (IAH) - Beijing (PEK): Premium Economy for 48.75k Miles
Houston (IAH) - Europe: Economy for 18.75k Miles
Las Vegas (LAS) - Europe: Premium Economy for 30k Miles
Miami (MIA) - Europe: Economy for 18.75k Miles
Miami (MIA) - Europe: Premium Economy for 30k Miles
New York (JFK) - Mauritius: Economy for 30k Miles
New York (JFK) - Nairobi (NBO): Premium Economy for 48.75k Miles
Raleigh/Durham (RDU) - Europe: Economy for 18.75k Miles
Seattle (SEA) - Europe: Business for 45k Miles
Toronto (YYZ) - Europe: Economy for 18.75k Miles

**New York (JFK) - Europe: Premium Economy for 30k Miles
​**Orlando (MCO) - Europe: Business for 45k Miles
​**Vancouver (YVR) - Europe: Economy for 18.75k Miles

**These awards are only available for Flying Blue Extra subscribers, this subscription starts at 379 EUR per year.

- Book by the end of October for travel dates up to March 31st, 2027. Includes reversed routing.
(Here's how to book it step by step.)

- Flying Blue Promo Awards are 25% discounted fares offered by KLM & Air France. Offer changes every month, and is released on the first weekday of the month. Above are U.S.-based routes, click here for other international-based deals.

American Express:​
​Aeromexico 20% - Ends 10/30​
Flying Blue 25% - Ends 10/30​
Hilton 30% - Ends 10/14​
​
Capital One:​
​British Airways 20% - Ends 10/31

Chase: ​
​Marriott 70% - Ends 10/15

Citi:​
​Avianca 25% - Ends 10/24
​JAL 30% - Ends 10/24
​Qatar 15-35% - Ends 10/31 (Offered by Qatar, may not get points until November)

Rove:​
​Japan Airlines 50% - Ends 10/31
Flying Blue (Air France/KLM) 40% - Ends 10/31
Qatar up to 35% - Ends 10/31

Have a good weekend!
​
​Michael​
​Nurse Michael Travels