 WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW TODAY 01/15/2019 IN TODAY'S NEWS After an unusual airline mishap, one family's vacation ended on a very interesting note — the trio boarded to find that their assigned seats didn't actually exist, so they flew much of the way home on the floor. In other news, we have two interesting card offers to share — one with a big airline bonus, and another that lets you choose when to give your payout a boost. Also, in a rare look inside Apple, we learned that the company spends a whopping $150 million on flights each year — with United Airlines alone! -Zach Honig, Editor-at-Large Posts in this newsletter contains references to products from one or more of our advertisers. We may receive compensation when you click on links to those products. For an explanation of our Advertising Policy, visit this page.
 Worth $1,050 based on our valuations, a 75,000-mile bonus can get you far — three round-trip domestic flights, a round-trip coach trip to much of the world or even one flight in lie-flat business class, all the way to Europe or Asia. A very solid offer for United's popular biz card.
 The shutdown saga continues, and airlines and their passengers are paying the price. Security checkpoint wait times continue to increase at key airports, with some customers queueing up for an hour or more. It's likely to get even worse from here, unless TSA workers and other federal employees start getting paid soon.
 Many consumer credit cards now offer extra rewards on some purchases, but Bank of America's trying something new — card holders get to pick their own bonus categories, from online shopping to gas. Not a bad option if you don't want to deal with redeeming points.
 As one of the world's largest companies, Apple forks over a ton of cash to a variety of partners — including United, according to a recent airline leak. The company reportedly even buys business-class seats in bulk — some 50 a day between San Francisco (SFO) and Shanghai (PVG) alone, the top international market for Apple workers.
 Imagine forking over $1,600 for flights for your family of three, only to find that the row you selected doesn't actually have any seats. One unlucky UK trio wasn't willing to wait for the next flight, so the airline let them sit on the floor for part of the journey to Birmingham. It surely made for an eventful trip. TIP OF THE DAY When it comes to passport photos, cutting corners might be more hassle than it's worth. NEWS YOU CAN USE • How to Book ANA’s New A380 Service Using Points and Miles • Do You Get Elite Choice Benefits By Spending Your Way to Marriott Platinum Status? • Best Airline Elite Status Perks for Families • Maximizing Redemptions With American Airlines AAdvantage • India’s Improved E-Visa Policy Lets Travelers Stay Twice as Long • Are Wow Air’s $49 Flights to Europe Just Another Nail in the Coffin? • Turn Limited-Time Southwest One Card Companion Pass Offer Into a Two-Year Pass • Struggling Etihad Doubles Investment in Struggling Jet Airways • Norwegian Sale: Nonstop Flights to Europe From $232 Round-Trip • Stowaway Bird Snags Singapore Business Class Seat for Free       You are receiving this email because you opted in at thepointsguy.com. The credit card offers that appear on the website are from credit card companies from which ThePointsGuy.com receives compensation. This compensation may impact how and where products appear on this site (including, for example, the order in which they appear). This site does not include all credit card companies or all available credit card offers. Please view our advertising policy page for more information. Editorial Note: Opinions expressed here are author's alone, not those of any bank, credit card issuer, airlines or hotel chain, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of these entities The Points Guy © All rights reserved 2019 |