Michael's Miles Round-Up

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Happy Friday Reader!

Listen to this segment on: Spotify or Apple Podcasts

I call the Leading Hotels of the World the "forgotten transfer partner" of Citi, literally because I forgot to mention them in my video ranking Citi's transfer partners.

This week, Citi announced a 25% transfer bonus to LHW, so I want to shed some light on what this partner can actually offer you.

Leading Hotels of the World is a collection of luxurious hotels around the globe. They're not concentrated in any one region, and they're much smaller in scale than the major chains you're probably used to thinking about.

A few things worth knowing upfront. Points are priced dynamically, so the points cost moves with the cash price of the hotel, though not in a perfectly rigid way.

Sometimes the points price works out a bit better than you'd expect given the cash rate, just never by a huge margin.

One thing I really liked: every points booking comes with free continental breakfast for two people daily, with no status required. You just need a free membership. That kind of automatic perk is increasingly hard to find at luxury properties.

The math on LHW points is a little unusual, but here's what you need to know.

LHW points are generally worth around 8 cents each, but Citi transfers at a 1,000:200 ratio. With the 25% bonus active right now, that becomes 1,000:250, which puts your Citi points at roughly 2 cents per point in value with the bonus. Yes I know, that's way too many numbers and math.

The easier way to think about it: find a hotel on lhw.com, look at the points price, and multiply by 4 to get your Citi points cost during this bonus. Without a bonus, multiply by 5.

Here are some examples of what I'd consider relatively reasonable rates.

A hotel in the Dolomites for 5,940 LHW points per night, which works out to just under 24,000 Citi points with the transfer bonus.

A resort in Greece on the island of Crete for approximately 24,400 Citi points per night with the bonus.

That said, for every moderately priced option, there are at least three that look like this: a hotel in Mykonos at 15,000 LHW points, or 60,000 Citi points per night. So keep your eyes open when you're browsing.

Since I do most of my hotel redemptions through Hyatt, I naturally benchmarked against that. Around 24,000 points per night is roughly what I'd expect to pay for a solid, upscale property through Hyatt, so it's encouraging to see that kind of value available through another program, especially with a transfer bonus making it more accessible.

If you have Citi points sitting around and a trip on the horizon, this bonus is worth 10 minutes of your time before it expires. Head to lhw.com, browse for wherever you're heading, and use the multiplier above to check whether the points price makes sense for you.

Are you getting a good deal with your points? ​
My Award Redemption Analyzer compares up to 3 redemption options side-by-side, so you never waste points again.

• Get 15% off an annual plan for Seats.Aero by using code APRIL, valid for new and returning users.
• Get 50% off children's fares, for Disney Cruises​​ booked by June 14 for voyages from October 2026 to March 2027.
• Earn 10k Flying Blue miles by booking a cash economy flight to or through Europe by May 3 on Air France or KLM. Terms.
• Chase's Points Boost valuations increased to 2.5 cents per point for select properties, but some brands within The Edit collection have devalued to 1.65 cents per point (e.g. Four Seasons & Kimpton Hotels)
• Chase Travel portal now offers luxury vacation home rentals through new partnership with Plum Guide.
• There are a few IHG promotions going on, one for 30% off stays another for earning 3x AA miles for cash stays.
• Japan Airlines and ANA are nearly doubling fuel surcharges on May 1.
• ​Pointsevents.com is a new tool that can help you find experiences that can be booked with points and miles.
• Some Capital One Quicksilver cardholders are being moved to the Discover card network, and those cards will gain the ability to earn 3% cashback at grocery stores and gas stations in addition to 1.5% on everything.
• Google now lets you track hotel prices with email notifications when they drop.
• Amex seems to be closing loopholes once available to use up your flight credits.

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 of 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.

​Learn more with my Points Purchase Playbook + Calculator.
​
Alaska Airlines up to 100% bonus as low as 1.88 cents each, exp 5/2​
American Airlines up to 40% bonus as low as 2.26 cents each, tiered.
​Avianca up to ​160% bonus​ as low as 1.27 cents each, exp 4/28
​British Airways up to ​40% bonus​ as low as 1.64 cents each, exp 4/27
​Choice Hotels up to ​35% bonus​ as low as 0.76 cents each, exp 4/28
​Hilton Honors 100% bonus as low as 0.50 cents each, exp 5/29.
​IHG up to ​80% bonus​ as low as 0.56 cents each, exp 4/30
​Lufthansa up to 50% bonus as low as 1.37 cents each, exp unk.
​Southwest up to 45% discount, as low as 1.65 cents each, exp 5/30
​United up to ​50% discount​ as low as 1.88 cents each, exp 4/30
​Wyndham up to 100% bonus, as low as 0.65 cents each, exp 5/1

Now I don't HATE Amex, but I don't like how good their marketing is.

In this video I share some of the ways Amex is built to work against you and what you need to know to come out on top.

If you're interested in supporting NMT via affiliate links here's how:

1) Create a Travel Freely account with my affiliate link.
2) Apply through their website on the app or desktop version using their Card Genie feature which has recommendations based on the cards you have. You can also search for any card.

Within the list below I always do my best to share the best offer that I'm aware of whether it's offered via Travel Freely or not!​
"***" = Different from last week
"**" = Apply through Travel Freely after signing up with my affiliate link.​

Flexible Points Cards:​
-Chase Sapphire Preferred $95 - 75k, after $5k spend​
​-Chase Sapphire Reserve $795 - 125k after $6k spend
-Chase Sapphire Reserve Business $795 - 150k after $20k spend in 3 months
-Chase Freedom Unlimited $0 - 25k/$250 after $500 spend in 3 months
-**Chase Ink Unlimited $0- 75k points after $6000 spent
-**Chase Ink Cash $0 75k points after $6000 spent in 3 months
- **Chase Ink Business Preferred $95 - 100k points, increased offer. (Sign-up through Travel Freely)

​
-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 copy and pasting link into Private/Incognito browser. ​
​-AMEX Platinum $895 - "As high as" 175k
-AMEX Business Platinum $895 - "as high as 300k" after $20,000 spent in 3 months. Try copy and pasting link into Private/Incognito browser; Also here's a 200k ***No Lifetime Language link.
​-Amex Business Blue Plus $0 - 75k, after $6000 in 4 months (Targeted offer). If it errors out when you click apply now, that means you’re not eligible.​
​​
-Capital One Venture X $395 - 75k points after $4,000 in 3mo.
-Capital One Venture $95 - 75k after $4,000 in 3mo.
-***Capital One Venture Business $95 - 150k, tiered, after $30k in 6 months
-Capital One Venture X Business $395 - 150k bonus, after $30,000 in 3 months. AF:$395
-Capital One Spark Cash $95 - $1000, or 100k if you have Venture Miles earning card, you can transfer cash into miles.
-Capital One Spark Cash Plus $150- $2000, or 200k if you have Venture Miles earning card.
-Capital One Savor $0- $200 cash back (20k points) after $500 in 3 months

-Citi Strata Elite $595 - 75k points, $595 annual fee
-Citi Strata Premier $95 - 60k points, $95 annual fee
​

Hotel Cards​
-AMEX Marriott Business Card $125 - 5 Free Night Certificate (up to 50k/night) after $6000 in 6 months, increased from 125k point bonus.
-AMEX Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant Card $650 - 200k points after $6000 spent in 6 months. Exp 5/13​
-**IHG Business Card $99 - 200k pts tiered bonus with $9000 in 6 months Exp 4/30​
-Wyndham Earner+ $75 - 75k pts tiered: 45k with $1000 in 90 days, 30k with $500 spend at Hotels by Wyndham.

Airline cards:
​- Bank of America Atmos Summit $395 - (Alaska Airlines Card): 100k + 50% Flight Discount after $6500 in 90 days
- Bank of America Atmos Ascent $95 - 80k + 50% flight discount after $4000 in first 120 days.
- Citi AAdvantage Business Card $99, waived first year. 75k miles after $5000 spent in 5 months.
-**United Club Card $695 - 100k after $5000 spent in 3 months, 10k for adding authorized user.
​-**United Quest Card $350 - 90k after $4000 spent in 3 months, 10k for adding authorized user.
​-**United Explorer card $0 intro, then $150 - 70k after $3000 in 3 months, 10k for adding authorized user.
-**United Business Card $150 - 100k after $5000 spent, 10k for adding authorized user

Atlanta (ATL) - Europe: Economy for 18.75k Miles
Austin (AUS) - Europe: Economy for 18.75k Miles
Boston (BOS) - Europe: Economy for 18.75k Miles
Detroit (DTW) - Europe: Economy for 18.75k Miles
Los Angeles (LAX) - Europe: Economy for 18.75k Miles
Miami (MIA) - Europe: Economy for 18.75k Miles
New York (JFK) - Europe: Economy for 18.75k Miles
Portland (PDX) - Europe: Business for 45k Miles
San Diego (SAN) - Europe: Economy for 18.75k Miles
Seattle (SEA) - Europe: Economy for 18.75k Miles

**Las Vegas (LAS) - Europe: Economy for 18.75k Miles
**Orlando (MCO) - Europe: Economy for 18.75k Miles
**Ottawa (YOW) - Europe: Economy for 18.75k Miles
**San Francisco (SFO) - Europe: Economy for 18.75k Miles
​**These awards are only available for Flying Blue Extra subscribers, this subscription starts at 379 EUR per year, details.

- Book by the end of April, for travel dates up to September 30th, 2026. 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.

Singapore Krisflyer Spontaneous Escapes

There are no deals to/from the U.S. this month, but you can find flights from Singapore to other cities in Asia. See details and blackout dates here.​
​
​Krisflyer Spontaneous Escapes are 30% off last-minute award tickets on Singapore Airlines on specific routes. Offers are typically released on the 15th of every month. Here's how to search on Singapore's website.

What do you think of the newsletter?
Tell me and get my hotel upgrade template...

American Express:​
None.

Capital One:​
​Japan Airlines 30% (1:0.975 ratio)- 4/30

Chase:
Air Canada 20% - Ends 4/30
​IHG 70% - Ends 4/30

Citi:​
​Leading Hotels of the World 25% - Ends 5/16

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

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