Park Hyatt London Expected To Open Late 2024

One Mile At A Time: "The opening of this property has been delayed considerably. The current projection is that the hotel will open in late 2024, though I imagine that has the potential to slip further. While the hotel isn’t yet bookable, we do know it will be a Category 7 World of Hyatt property, meaning that a free night redemption will cost 25,000 to 35,000 points per night."

Is Using Finnair Avios At Nordic Hotels Worth It?

Frequent Miler: "This opportunity is certainly one to be described as “niche”. The short story is that Finnair has a few hotel brand partners that offer the opportunity to get outsized value for Avios by purchasing a voucher (think like a free night certificate) for a fixed amount of cash and fixed number of Avios that can then be used on a night when a participating hotel is offering redemption."

Points Wire Note:

At a value of 2 cents per point, this can be a surprisingly good use of Avios if you need a hotel stay and don't feel like paying cash. Of course, you might find that you can get more value out of your Avios by booking business and first class flights.

Bilt Rewards Adds Hilton Honors As Transfer Partner

Disclosure: I serve on an advisory board for Bilt and may earn a commission if you use the links below.

Bilt Rewards has just added Hilton Honors as a new transfer partner which means they currently have 18 partners. However, they're splitting with American Airlines in June so they'll be at 17 next month.

While I don't see much value in Hilton as a transfer partner, I do like that Bilt continues to pursue additional airline and hotel transfer partners. At this point, they have all 4 major hotel transfer partners that people in the points community consider. I'll be curious to see if the pursue Choice, Wyndham, Accor, or Leading Hotels of the World going forward.

Those who have earned Bilt Silver, Gold, or Platinum status can transfer points in increments of 1,000 points starting with 1,000 points. If you have the entry level Bilt Blue status, you need to transfer at least 2,000 points.

All Bilt members can receive 1,000 bonus Hilton points if they transfer to Hilton Honors by June 8, 2024. This doesn't move the needle for me, but it's a nice bonus if you need to top off your Hilton account to book an award stay.

Learn about the Bilt Card

Waldorf Astoria Costa Rica Cacique Is Now Bookable

One Mile At A Time: "The Waldorf Astoria Costa Rica Cacique is now accepting reservations for stays as of February 1, 2025. The property will feature 190 accommodations plus 41 residences. It will be located in Guanacaste, on a peninsula with unobstructed ocean views, just a short drive from Liberia International Airport (LIR)."

"The good news is that you’re able to redeem Hilton Honors points at the Waldorf Astoria Costa Rica. Rates start at 120,000 Hilton Honors points per night (compared to 95,000 points when bookings first opened), and elite members get a fifth night free, lowering the average cost to 96,000 points per night. It goes without saying that redeeming points is a phenomenal value."

Points Wire Note:

If you're booking a cash rate, make sure you book with Hilton Impresario benefits which include daily breakfast for 2, a $100 property credit, room upgrade (if available), double Hilton points, etc.

Request A Hilton Impresario Booking

Unlock Extra Hyatt Award Space With Suite Upgrades

Travel on Points: "A fact that I am not sure everyone realizes, that they unlock extra award space. That is because all that matters in order to be able to use them is that a standard suite is available for sale for a cash stay."

Points Wire Note:

If you have Globalist status, this is a great bonus perk to keep in your back pocket!

United Devalues Regional Business Class Award Rates

View From The Wing: "It began last week watching the prices for Lufthansa and ANA first class awards skyrocket but apparently United wasn’t done devaluing its MileagePlus miles."

"Days ago business class intra-Europe over 800 miles was 27,500 miles. Now it’s 45,000 to 49,500. Short-haul business class is now 33,000 miles."

Points Wire Note:

When United removed their public award charts in 2019, I noted that this would lead to more regular no-notice devaluations. Since then, United devalued just as the world shutdown in 2020, devalued again last year, and have now rolled out two more devaluations this year. I wouldn't be surprised to see more.

United's co-branded credit cards issued by Chase were already pretty weak, but these stealth devaluations make using one of these cards an even worse choice.

Amex 20% Transfer Bonus To Aeromexico Rewards

Amex is offering a 20% transfer bonus to Aeromexico Rewards through May 31, 2024. While most Amex transfer ratios are 1:1, it's 1:1.6 for Aeromexico. With the 20% transfer bonus, the bumps the ratio up to 1:1.92.

While that's appealing, please keep in mind that while Aeromeixco Rewards has some decent award rates, the carrier-imposed surcharges they pass on to you can be steep. Personally, I haven't found the phone agents to be the best either.

Points Wire Note:

While I don't generally recommended transferring points speculatively, I definitely wouldn't make a speculative transfer to Aeromexico. The risk to reward ratio is way too low.

30% Chase Transfer Bonus To Virgin Atlantic

You can transfer Chase Ultimate Rewards points to Virgin Atlantic Flying Club and get a 30% bonus until 11:59pm ET on June 15, 2024. American Express is also running a 30% transfer bonus to Virgin Atlantic through May 31, 2024.

Here are some of the best ways to use Flying Club points for business and first class:

• Air France, KLM, or ITA Airways business class to Europe
• Delta One (business class) to Europe, but not to the U.K.
• Air New Zealand business to Auckland
• All Nippon Airways (ANA) business or first class to Tokyo

Points Wire Note:

In general, I would avoid speculative transfers as you lock up points with a specific airline. Speculative transfers increase the likelihood that you won't have enough points to transfer to another program when needed and put you at risk of being impacted by a devaluation.

Lufthansa First Class Bookable With LifeMiles Again

Award Wallet: "On April 11, data points started appearing on Reddit indicating that Lufthansa First Class was no longer bookable through LifeMiles. Our LifeMiles contact confirmed there was a temporary issue that eliminated this booking option. However, as of today, we are once again seeing Lufthansa First Class bookable through LifeMiles."

Points Wire Note:

Of course, Lufthansa has only been making first class award space available to partner programs within 3 days of departure - if at all.

Hyatt Adds Redemptions At Mr. And Mrs. Smith Properties

View From The Wing: "Hyatt is making any paid rate room at a participating Mr & Mrs Smith property available for redemption. In one sense, that’s better than some SLH properties, where availability was perennially a problem. But it suggests they’re really just using Hyatt points as a currency against prevailing room price – as opposed to offering outsized value like you can sometimes get redeeming a fixed number of points for a hotel when room rates are high."

"Many hotels offer their best rates when booking direct. You’ll need to book through Hyatt to earn points and stay credit, but Hyatt’s own Best Rate Guarantee doesn’t apply so you may pay more for Hyatt benefits."