Another point that I forgot to make was that most of the NW equipment is older than me...and I'm 35...c'mon with the DC 9's...they're tired!! Real tired!! NW has the oldest fleet in the industry amongst the big players in the US...CO has the YOUNGEST!!!

Indeed NW has one of the oldest fleet. I believe they are one of the two US carriers still flying DC10's to international destinations (CO is the other one, though they have 777's and 767's). I will avoid DC-9's like the plague and will agree that their food service is deplorable.

However, I find that their partnership with KLM is one of the strongest features in Worldperks and would redeem my awards by flying internationally on KL, ALITALIA and MALAYSIAN. As for domestic routes, they partner with MIDWEST EXPRESS and ALASKA, two excellent choices in my opinion.

Continental may be great for bonus miles through AX and such but that is a whole different topic. The question is what program(s) are the best to concentrate mileage on. AS has many more partners than CO does. AS works as the best catch all program that your primary (UA or AA) does not.

Delta is the weakest link becuase of how restrictive its program is.

I collect all my miles in AS precisely because of all their earning and redeeming partners. I fly AS or more often nowadays NW or AA and get straight flight miles, a 100% elite bonus and as often as possible, a 50% class of service bonus. If forced, I'll use CO, but only get flight miles and they aren't Q miles, so avoid them when I can. This covers most of my trips with the occasional UA, USA, and TWA flight when I have no alternative. My AS miles rack up very rapidly with the minimum double miles for every trip on AS, NW, and AA.

Well...we don't get much (any) chance to fly AS around these parts. Can I fly CO and put the miles in an AS account....do PLATS get 125% bonus and what are requirements for elite?

Well...we don't get much (any) chance to fly AS around these parts. Can I fly CO and put the miles in an AS account....do PLATS get 125% bonus and unlimited upgrades on CO?? what are requirements for elite?

You do not have to fly AS to be a member, and you can earn AS miles flying any of its partners. Alaska has one of the most generous award schedules out there.

Airlines: With AA and UA, you can pretty much reach any major destination in the world. United has recently lost my business - likely permanently - but I don't have any problems with the rest of *A. AA is a great airline for those who spend a lot of time in coach.

Hotels: Marriott and Hilton will give you the best coverage in terms of a wide variety of hotels in all service levels (at least in the USA). Hyatt and Starwood are good programs too, but they focus mainly on the big-city hotels.

Car: Hertz and Budget are the only two companies I've found that give you any real rewards (50 FF miles doesn't get me excited). Hertz earns you free rentals at a rate of about 19 cents on the dollar, provided you redeem for free days and take triple points as your promotion code. Budget earns you free rentals or free merchandise at a rate of about 15 cents on the dollar, provided you book/redeem directly through them (and not another travel site). In terms of coverage around the world, having Hertz, National, and Budget memberships is sufficient.

Charge/credit Cards: Diner's Club, Skymiles Amex, AA World Mastercard. By Sept. 2001, I will have earned approximately 77,000 Skymiles for around $16k in card spending and an $85 fee, thanks to signup bonuses. I probably won't keep the card long-term because I don't like too many annual fees and the customer service is simply at-level with other free Amex products (i.e., Golf card, etc.). I recently added the AA World MC for $50 and a 10,000 mile bonus. If the customer service at the World MC level justifies the $50/year, I may keep this one long-term.

I took a look at the reward schedule of AS and it didn't really impress me. It's certainly no better than NW or CO. I don't see how it could make sense to belong to the AS FF program unless you actually fly AS (you wouldn't get the generous bonuses NW and CO FTs have been getting lately).

Idomoneus: The question posed on this thread is for the best combination of FF programs that allow you to maximize miles into the fewest accounts and still be able to choose the widest range of flights and prices.

I agree that if you want the best bonus offers you should stick with CO but that was not the question. Bonus offers come and go but I will still stand by my original premise that the best combination for concentrating miles is AS and either UA or AA.

Show me another combination of two programs that gives you a greater mileage earning opportunity through flying--I do not think it can be done.

If you want to discuss the best bonus earning mileage programs then that should be posted in a new forum.

Here's what I do:

Accumulate all flight miles in AS. I fly AS as much as possible but since I'm in Chicago that only means the occasional trip to or from ANC to see my mom and dad, friends, etc.

For all non AS travel, my first choice is NW. I get the I get the % bonus for being an elite member of AS's Mileage Plan, status miles, pre-boarding, preffered seating and the occasional upgrade from their NW/AS relationship.

The first class bonus includes another 50% bonus, the nice thing about Alaska's program is that the 50% first class bonus applies towards elite status.

I also book my business related NWA travel through their eBiz perks system, thay way I get two points for every dollar spent towards flights.

Example redemption levels include:

Drink Coupons (5)
300

WorldClubs Pass - One Visit
400

Confirmed Upgrade One Way - Domestic, Any Fare
1,800

WorldClubs Membership - One year
4,200

Complimentary Ticket - Domestic, Coach Class
7,500

Confirmed Upgrade One Way - Europe, Full Fare
9,000

Complimentary Ticket - Domestic, First Class
10,000

Complimentary Ticket - Europe, Coach Class
10,000

Silver Elite WorldPerks Membership
12,500

Complimentary Ticket - Asia, Coach Class
15,000

Complimentary Ticket - Asia, or Europe, World Business Class
30,000

If NWA is too expensive, I can fly AA and get MRTC as well as the appropriate bonuses, minus the availablity to upgrade, preboarding, etc.

I accumulate bonus mileage in my WorldPerks account through car rentals, hotel stays, etc. so I can upgrade if I don't have a cert.

-Robert

Continental may be offering bonus mileage, but how easy is it to REDEEM the miles? I know that using AS miles to travel CO is difficult at best and nearly impossible if you want First Class.

I've never had a problem redeeming anything with CO...I've been flying and earning with them for years...infact just the other day..there was a small survey on percentages of seats reserved for awards by the different airlines and CO came in second with 7.6% only behing AA.

Here is my list...

Airlines
AA ( Most balanced program )
C0 ( Best earning bonuses )

Hotels
Hilton ( Keep It Straight & Simple )

RWINN:

What are your thoughts on EBIZ Perks? Do points post promptly and properly? Any problems?