Boost your mileage balance with these 7 frequent-flier promos this December
The busiest travel season of the year is upon us. Below are a few of our favorite current promotions to help you rack up bonus miles so that next year you can spend more time traveling for free and save your money to buy presents for your loved ones.
1. Flying Blue celebrates 10th anniversary with half-off award tickets. The frequent flier program of Air France and KLM puts various award flights on sale every quarter (usually up to 25% off), but this 10th anniversary sale can save fliers a massive 50% off award flights on various city paris. Book flights between Dec. 1 and 10, and travel between Jan. 15 and March 15, to take advantage of these mileage discounts. Flights include those between Atlanta, Boston, Houston, New York, or Washington D.C. and Europe.
2. United Airlines is having a sale for award travel to Europe. Travel between the U.S. (excluding Hawaii) or Canada and Europe will cost up to 25% fewer miles in economy class between Jan. 11 and March 10. Travel must be reserved by Dec. 8, and one-way flights do not count for a discount. No need to sign up for a promotion as the discount will be automatically applied if your itinerary is eligible. Watch out though: all segments must be operated by United and not its Star Alliance partners. If you live in Europe, don't fret; a similar offer is available for flights originating across the Atlantic.
3. Bonus miles for first RocketMiles booking. If you have never used RocketMiles to make a hotel reservation, now is a good time to consider signing up. First-time users can earn bonuses with a number of airlines: 3,000 Turkish Airlines Miles & Smiles,3,888 Cathay Pacific AsiaMiles,4,000 Etihad Guest,3,000 Southwest Rapid Rewards,3,000 Azul TudoAzul bonus miles for a booking between now and the end of the year (the Etihad promotion continues through the end of January). That's in addition to the miles you'll earn for your actual hotel stay. The third-party website awards bonus miles with a variety of airlines for booking a hotel, but users should know that hotel chains often do not award their own hotel points when using this site. Still, RocketMiles is great for booking independent hotels or upcoming stays that are not at your preferred hotel chain.
4. Air Canada or American Airlines bonus miles for Marriott stays. Even though Air Canada recently announced sweeping changes to its affiliated loyalty program, Aeroplan miles still offer value. Marriott guests that have their profile set to earn Aeroplan miles can earn 500 miles per night for up to five nights between now and Jan. 25 at participating hotels. No sign-up is required. American Airlines, which also announced changes to its own program, will offer 1,000 bonus miles with each stay between now and Jan. 31. For the American promotion, book a room by Dec. 23. Registration is required to be eligible for the bonus.
5. 1,000 SkyMiles per night for select Four Seasons hotel bookings. Delta is doling out 1,000 bonus miles per night for those that book through a special Four Seasons promotion at select hotels including those in Delta's hub cities of Atlanta, Los Angeles, and Seattle. Book through the promotion website, and stay by Dec. 15 to benefit.
6. Earn up to 90,000 miles for flying American or Qantas down under. To celebrate the American's soon-to-be-launched service between Los Angeles and Sydney, you can fly a qualifying roundtrip between Canada or the U.S. and Australia on an American Airlines-marketed flight, and earn bonus miles. Eligible flights can also be operated by Qantas, but must have an AA marketing code on the ticket. Register for the promotion first and then travel between Feb. 1 and May 31, 2016 to earn bonus miles based upon the type of ticket purchased.
7. Delta launches Black Friday weekend award ticket sale. Delta is putting award tickets on sale for those that make a reservation between now and the end of November. The tickets are for travel between Jan. 5 and Feb. 16 (except for a few blackout days) and start as low as 10,000 miles for various routes, including flights between Detroit and several Florida cities and between Seattle and several regional destinations. Reservations must be roundtrip, include a Saturday night stay, and made online. The restrictions, especially a Saturday night stay, will affect the number of people that may benefit, but when Delta throws customers a rare bone, it's always nice to take advantage.