craz

the main odd ball is Hilton, since they give only 850 miles so either Hilton will have to go up to 1000 miles per 10k or have a 1000 mile level for more then 10k in pts or no longer be a Transfer Partner. I think it will remain as is as it already tweaked from '10 to a min of 850 probably so as to include Hilton

Id say they will look elsewhere for the '12 tweaking. With HZ killing the hour rental program I dont see any tweaking with the cars either over what they did this year and Hotel stays will remain at 250 otherwise too many Programs wont qualify, could be they will make some others only count if theres a min # of miles earned

TheNoobTraveler

I learned that e-rewards and e-miles are a pain in the butt and that they should be started really really early. I have already started for next year.

iang000

For those who look forward to the 2012 GS: Wyndham hotels has a great deal now. Register and stay 2 stays at any of their (cheap) properties and get 6500 bonus points. Also if you book from the website you get 1000 bonus points for that and if you pay with their credit card you get 500 more bonus points. This will come to more than enough points for a GS hit if you just stay 2 times. Some properties are about $26 a night. I booked a Super 8 in PHX for $26 plus tax. Since you don't even need to show up to get the points this is a great deal.

synd

do you get points for no show at a super 8 as well? i thought it was only hawthorn suites and wyndham.

louie-m

All Wyndham group hotels - it's part of Wyndham Rewards t&cs. But hardly anyone used Super8 for GS because the miles would usually have been less than the minimum required (which was why Hawthorne and their 500 DM per stay were so popular this year).

iang000

The no-show policy is for Wyndham Rewards, which includes all of their hotel brands. This would be earned points and not miles which you would use to transfer to DM next year for the GS if they offer the same partner transfers as this year. I believe that 8000 Wyndham points converts to 3200 miles.

burmans

Does this include foreign Super 8's as well, with a quick search was able to find some as low as 22.50 and could possibly find some cheaper with time.

louie-m

You could always try doing a search, either on the thread about this offer on the Wyndham board or in the T&Cs themselves.

(The answer is not Chinese Super8s)

synd

for us europeans or all others with a european address on file, it might actually be an interesting promo value wise. now finding the cheapest wyndham hotel will be a pain.

30K points, provided you have or can get 2K more, you get 12,800 US DM miles, which under today's price including a 50% sale, will cost you 240 USD.

assuming you can get a hotel at 30 USD/night => 180USD all in, now if i can find anything under 25 USD all in ofc i am definitively a taker.

Diamondback

This was my first year doing the Grand Slam. Definitely learned some lessons:

1. Obey Flyertalk posts: in some cases I just read the instructions provided on the USAir site and did not get correctly credited. When I double checked the FT site, of course, it had specific details on how to get proper credit.

2. Start Early. I think I still have somewhere between 4 and 8 credits hanging. Very annoying. I really do not like the way USAir does this program (not being able to check specific hits) but starting early would surely help. I held off on some thinking about the ability to confirm hits by holding off on some but this really just muddied the process.

3. Consider whether this is worth all the work. This past year I applied for an AA Visa and Amex and got 150k miles. Paid for the majority of a trip to Jamaica. All it invovled was applying for two cards and making some charges. The points I eaned for the Grand Slam were MUCH harder to earn and I didn't earn half of what I earned on the AA promotion.

lwildernorva

Agreed. I don't know how US will adjust this, which is why I'll keep on the lookout for new partners who might become eligible for hits in the 2012 GS. Hilton was a major PITA (really, a transfer rate less than Club Carlson or Wyndham?), but fortunately for me, they've devalued their awards so much that I can't imagine hoarding enough points to get a decent number of award stays from them. 10K gets you a hit with GS; it gets you very little in the HHonors program. I'll stay enough with Hilton through 9/12 to replenish my miles for a GS transfer hit; I've reached the conclusion that Hilton offers little in its loyalty program that I can't find more satisfactorily from other programs.

lwildernorva

Definitely some work compared with credit card applications. But unlike credit card apps in the current climate, a renewable resource. We'd hope we can get a new set of Citi/AA cards as the eighteen-month rule plays out, but there's no guarantee. The best part of GS is that it resets itself every year

burmans

Agreed for emiles, still waiting on e-rewards invite. Maybe its because I am outside US and should adjust my address for a while in my profile.

burmans

Yes have done that now

Gamecock

There are two types of FF mile hoarders. That being said, I'll bet that most people out there are satisfyed plusing their accounts up by a few thousand miles. The vast majority of folks out there don't have the attention span to chase 36 hits.