Points and Travel Highlights
I usually take time away from points matters each summer. Winter break is a bit different, though. Late December and early January I blather a bit less on MtM, meanwhile staying busy enough with other hobby silliness. This past holiday season was no different. In addition to time with family and friends over the extended break, I got a fair amount done. Here are just a few of my points and travel highlights from the past couple weeks.
One More Marriott Stay
Straying from our normal routine, we actually traveled during this most recent holiday season. It was great to catch up with extended family while shamelessly accomplishing a few more items on the hobby to-do list. We spent the night of 29 Dec in a Fairfield Inn, using my final Marriott Nightly Upgrade Award (NUA) while – more importantly – hitting the 50-night threshold to choose five more of those in 2025 via Marriott’s Annual Choice Benefit. Not surprisingly, this 50th night took a few days to appear in my profile – into 2025, in fact. My Marriott Bonvoy account updated to 40 qualifying nights for 2025 first. But soon after, I followed this Annual Choice Benefit link and was able to select the NUA option. I’m now armed with five more NUA’s to relish, overanalyze, create false hope, and perhaps occasionally obtain an upgrade this year.
Hilton Credits Ahoy!
Against my true preferences, I ordered a stack of Hilton gift cards to trigger late 2024 Amex Business Platinum credits. Despite a card shortage, I somehow received each in the mail already. My great timing ends there, as inventory issues have put a complete stop to such orders. Back to travel, my wife and I triggered two more of these credits via points and cash bookings on a Hampton Inn stay. Bigger picture, I know I need to get better using these credits, especially in the new, maybe-temporary world of no Hilton gift cards. I’m up for this dorky task.
Top Tier Del Taco Status
Del Taco’s my favorite fast food joint, and I’m not alone, apparently. The chain offers an engaging loyalty program with a catchy name – Del Yeah! Rewards. Making things more intriguing, it offers – count ’em – four status levels. At the end of December, I reached Epic status and will enjoy said benefits for the next six months while hopefully requalifying for the following six. Was this worth accomplishing? I’m not quite sure, but I had fun along the way.
One Last Big Spend Bonus
I hit the $15k threshold on our final Surpass which qualifies us for one more Hilton free night certificate, which I still consider the best of its kind. Hilton certs based on big spending show up relatively quickly in my experience, in about eight to ten days. Given this reliable speed, I don’t mind waiting until late in the year to hit this threshold. I plan to wait even longer in the future – more on that in an upcoming article.
Hotel Point Transfers
I’m the most avid traveler in our family by a substantial margin. I take more solo trips, and I largely manage family travel, as well. So it’s optimal for surplus points and mileage balances to sit in my accounts, when possible. Toward the end of each year, my wife transfers Marriott and Hilton points to my respective accounts. She transferred her maximum-allowable amounts to my accounts this past year – 100k and 500k, respectively. Both of these transfer options are available online (better late than never, Marriott) and are instantaneous in our experience.
Maximizing Schwab Cashout x2
My wife and I had a busy end to last year in terms of Amex Membership Rewards earning and redemption. We each earned enough to max out the one million point redemption cap in place for the last quarter of 2024. This one-time opportunity was key for us, and many of you, given that this new cap for 1.1 cent per point cashout is in place for each calendar year moving forward. Of course, we’ll have other options to cash out Amex currency at higher value, but active hobbyists will get even more creative in 2025, if they haven’t already.
Way More Searching Than Necessary
While watching way too much college and pro football over the break, I mindlessly searched a variety of apps and sites, hoping to find hidden award gems. I’m fully aware I won’t get that time back. But, again, I enjoy the process and was able to find a few fun redemptions along the way. I’m pleased that deals still appear without too much effort, particularly with one airline.
Conclusion
As I raise my mug of warm gluhwein, here’s to a prosperous 2024, and an even more interesting 2025! Despite constant change, and obviously somewhat because of it, I’m confident this year will be another lucrative, engaging year of points and travel. And I can’t wait to lean into even more earning and redemption obscurity in 2025, but I say that each year. What are your recent points and travel highlights?
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