Travel Tuesday Deals, Delta's Loyalty Upgrade, and More

Hello from Sin City! I’m really getting the most out of my Travel Tuesday with a quick one-night jaunt to Las Vegas.

Can’t share more about what I’m doing here just yet (besides losing $150 last night at the Cosmopolitan’s blackjack table), but hey, what happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas.

On Friday, I promised to share a link to my first newsletter about why I left TPG for all the new subscribers who missed it. I finally figured out how to do that, so here you go.

Aside from playing IT support, a highlight of my Thanksgiving weekend was seeing Wicked with some friends.

The big lowlight: only finishing 90% of the movie before the fire alarm went off, and we had to evacuate the theater. No refunds given, and more frustratingly, I still want to see the ending.

Anyways, now it’s Travel Tuesday, and a lot is keeping me busy both today and this week.

The deals don’t seem to end. (Look no further than all the pitches I’ve been receiving.)

But at least I’m finding some serious value this Travel Tuesday, especially with my favorite travel tools and airlines.

Autopilot, the app that tracks your fares and helps you get a credit if it drops, is offering 3 months of free Pro membership with promo code TRAVELTUESDAY at checkout. Pro membership includes upgrade price tracking and award flight monitoring.

Note: I am an advisor to Autopilot.

Some of the best mileage redemptions I’ve ever made are courtesy of Thrifty Traveler Premium, an email (and text) service that finds and sends you the best deals — both in points and cash.

If you sign up today using my link, you can get 50% off your first year of Premium (down to $49.99 from $99.99).

The best flight-tracking app had its big breakthrough last month during the government shutdown.

Now, the trusty app is back with a Travel Tuesday deal: three free months of Pro for new subscribers.

Last week, I talked about how Rakuten is an awesome shopping portal offering additional cash back on big brands.

I neglected to mention that Hyatt is on the portal. Meaning you can click through Rakuten, earn loyalty credit and credit card points for your stays, and double dip with free cash back. Right now, Rakuten’s offering 10% back on Hyatt stays.

Plus, get free $50 for new Rakuten users — my increased referral link expires soon.

Airlines love promoting a fare sale, especially when it helps them fill seats that might go unsold during the peak of winter.

While that might be the case with many of the airline deals I’m seeing today, it’s still worth taking a look if you have upcoming travel plans.

We’re talking sub-$100 flights with American, 50% off Southwest flights, 35% off JetBlue, and rotating deals with Delta and United, among others.

These days, it’s rare to see a loyalty program make flyer-friendly updates with basically no downside.

Yet Delta just did that with the introduction of revamped Choice Benefits for top-tier elites.

The most significant change is the ability to gift status to four friends or family members (up from two) — making this a really compelling choice for those who don’t rely on upgrades to sit in business class (aka an airline’s favorite type of traveler).

The only perk being devalued is the Amex statement credit, while the bonus miles and Delta travel voucher are getting a nice increase.

No other changes are being made today. Truly a rare all-around win!

If you were stranded on the busiest travel day of the year, odds are you were flying JetBlue.

The airline delayed or canceled more than 600 flights on Sunday, and I’m sure there are travelers who still haven’t found spare seats to get home.

The thing is: it wasn’t exactly JetBlue’s fault. The major Airbus recall issued late Friday hit JetBlue the hardest, and I break it all down here.

It essentially boils down to the fact that JetBlue needed to source replacement flight computers from around the globe in 24 hours.

It’s like having a bricked iPhone, and the only way to fix it is to buy a new one. (Been there, done that).

One of the most frequent comments I receive when I post videos and pictures of first-class cabins is that I never sit “in the back.”

Well, maybe people just forget when I post about those experiences, because I’m indeed a frequent economy flyer.

In fact, yesterday was the second cross-country jaunt I’ve had in economy in a matter of weeks.

The truth is, yesterday’s United economy ride was about as good as it gets for economy. The crew kept coming up and down the aisle with drink and snack refills, and once the pilots reset the spotty Viasat Wi-Fi, I was able to be productive for the rest of the flight.

The chargers worked, and I even tuned into United’s new Control Tower view on the seat-back screen during taxi and takeoff.

If only the airline would bring back the live air-traffic-control audio feed (Channel 9 for the old-timers who remember this one), then United would become the carrier of choice for aviation geeks.

When I landed in Las Vegas last night, I was reminded of why I have a love-hate relationship with this city.

I get outside to the rideshare garage, and I see throngs of travelers waiting endlessly for their Ubers in the garage.

Maybe I should’ve taken a flat-rate taxi to my hotel, but I’m a creature of habit (and I love my bonus credit card points).

I’m not sure I’ve ever seen such chaos at the airport rideshare line in the U.S., maybe aside from LAX, but that’s in a league of its own.

The good news is that I’m in town for something fun. Stay tuned to my socials (and this newsletter) for the big reveal.