Time for travel?

It's June 1st.  This week starts the summer air travel season.  In 12 days I was supposed to be on my way to Leipzig though that trip has been cancelled.  It's been 3 months since my last boarding pass was issued. 

Has it really been three months???

Air travel will gradually pick up in the coming weeks/months, though I'm not sure it's going to look the same way it was on March 1st when I flew home from San Francisco.

If you believe the Newark data for upcoming departures compared to last June, trans-atlantic travel will only be 11% (link).

I suspect air travel is going to take quite a while to return to the normalcy we had earlier this year.  2020 is shaping up to be a year we won't soon forget.

Weekend is here

Happy weekend everyone - this was supposed to be a trip back to Maine, though the travel/Covid issues have prevented that from taking place this year.  Not happy about it though there's not much I can do to fix it.  Thank goodness United was able to refund the flight costs!

Citi Changing Premier Card Benefits this Fall

I've enjoyed using the Citi Premier and Double Cash as an option for points accrual to differentiate from Chase Ultimate Rewards.  The points transfer options to partners are more numerous and having that portfolio available can help with new and interesting travel ideas around the world.

In the last few weeks, Citi announced some points earning changes to the Premier card:

1x on Other Travel - starting April 10, 2021, all travel purchases (excluding air travel, hotels, and gas stations) will earn 1 ThankYou point per $1 instead of 3 points per $1

1x on Entertainment - starting April 10, 2021, entertainment purchases will earn 1 ThankYou point per $1 instead of 3 points per $1

Travel Redemption value - points redeemed for airfare, hotels, cruises, and car rentals through the ThankYou travel center will no longer get 25% more value


On August 23rd 2020, the following will be new:

- 3x points on Supermarkets and Restaurants (new), Air Travel, Hotels, and Fuel
- 2x points on Entertainment
- 1x points on everything else

Ugh.

I'm disappointed that "other travel" will no longer be a 3x option and the redemption value is being dropped - this has been a great choice to use for parking, tolls, and airport expenses.  I already get 3x points on the Sapphire Reserve for restaurants, so it's hard to use a new card for those purchases.  It's good they're giving plenty of notice for the changes, though I believe this devalues the card overall.

Hyatt Reward bonus for spend through 6/30/20

We are in a challenging time right now due to the coronavirus and that has seen travel screech to a halt.  Despite the economic impact being seen by many companies, there are still promotions being rolled out to mitigate the loss of travel.  Hyatt and Chase have implemented an increased reward structure for spend on Hyatt credit cards through June 30th:

From April 15 – June 30, 2020, your card purchases can earn more:

World of Hyatt Credit Cardmember Offer
3 Qualifying Night Credits
World of Hyatt Credit Cardmembers can now earn a total of 3 qualifying night creditstoward the next tier status for every $5,000 spent on their card between April 15, 2020 and June 30, 2020.¹That's 1 bonus qualifying night credit in addition to the 2 qualifying night credits Cardmembers already earn (credits may post a different times).

Hyatt Credit Cardmember Offer
2 Qualifying Night Credits
If you have a Hyatt Credit Card, you can now earn 2 qualifying night creditstoward the next tier status for every $5,000 spent on your card between April 15, 2020 and June 30, 2020.²


If you happen to have either of these cards, this is a nice bonus to keep in mind for any upcoming spend.  Since Hyatt has extended status until 2022, these extra nights could help you reach any milestone stay bonuses.

United extending Elite Status until 2022

Another round of thanks is in order as United has followed other travel companies and extended elite status through 2022.  You can find the full announcement here.

A brief highlight:

The big news: If you have current 2020 Premier status, it will be extended to January 31, 2022. At a minimum, you will enjoy the same published status next year that you have today, up to and including Premier 1K®. 

While many of us are not currently flying for good reasons, it's great to know that I'll have 1k status for all of next year.

I'm ready to fly!