I got introduced to British Airways through their generous credit card bonuses. Even if you didn’t, British Airways Avios points are good to understand because Starwood Preferred Guest points, American Express Membership Rewards points, and Chase Ultimate Rewards points can all be transferred to British Airways Avios points on a 1:1 basis or better. This makes it quite easy to gather enough BA miles when you need them to reach an award tier.

• British Airways Credit Card review – 50,000 Avios bonus with $3,000 spend in 3 months.
• Starwood Preferred Guest American Express Card review – 25,000 SPG point bonus (25,000 SPG points = 30,000 Avios).
• Chase Sapphire Preferred Card review – 50,000 Ultimate Rewards point bonus (50,000 UR points = 50,000 Avios).
• Ink Plus Business Card review – 60,000 Ultimate Rewards point bonus (50,000 UR points = 60,000 Avios).

Redeeming British Airways Avios points for free award flights is now distance-based, which made some awards more expensive and some cheaper. One important change was that you could now book an American or Alaska Airlines flight from a West Coast city to Hawaii for only 25,000 points roundtrip plus $5 or $10 depending on number of stops with no other fees and taxes. Most other airlines charge at least 35,000.

Now, I’ve gotten comments that British Airways Avios points are “impossible” to use on American or Alaska. If you only want to fly on major holidays and don’t have any flexibility, yes it is very hard because you need to find a “saver” and not an “anytime” ticket. But if you are either willing to book last-minute (less than 2 months) or plan ahead (6+ months) your odds will improve greatly. For example, let’s run a quick search for LA to Honolulu (LAX-HNL) for next month October. To find availability, I’m doing this on American Airlines’ website AA.com. This also works for finding Alaska Airlines flights. Here’s the availability for LAX to HNL:

(click to enlarge)

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Our partner Citi has refreshed their Citi ThankYou^® Preferred Card. Here are the highlights:

• Enjoy 0% Intro APR on purchases for 15 months from date of account opening and 0% Intro APR on balance transfers for 15 months from date of first transfer; after that the variable APR will be 15.49% – 25.49% based upon your creditworthiness*
• There is a balance transfer fee of either $5 or 3% of the amount of each transfer, whichever is greater*
• Earn 2X Points on Dining Out & Entertainment
• Earn 1X Points on All Other Purchases
• Points are redeemable for gift cards to popular retailers, restaurants, and department and home stores. 2,500 ThankYou^® Points can be redeemed for a $25 gift card at thankyou.com
• No expiration and no limit to the amount of points you can earn with this card
• No annual fee*

There have been a couple of new changes to this card. You now get 2 ThankYou points/dollar on purchases for dining and entertainment, and 1 point/dollar on other purchases. The card also added smart chip technology which improves security and acceptance internationally. Finally, don’t forget to use the Citi Price Rewind feature for any larger purchases, as it protects you against future price drops. You must register your purchase, and then if the same item is found with a price at least $25 lower than what you paid within 30 calendar days of your purchase, you can be refunded the difference.

Add in the fact that there is currently no sign-up incentive on this card, I am not excited about this card. Instead of just getting double points on dining out and entrainment, I would much rather earn 2% cash back on everything with the Citi Double Cash card.

• Citi ThankYou^® Preferred Card Application Page

“Disclaimer: This content is not provided or commissioned by the issuer. Opinions expressed here are author’s alone, not those of the issuer, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by the issuer. This site may be compensated through the issuer’s Affiliate Program.”

Perkstreet Financial started in 2010 as a plucky internet bank start-up that told us credit cards were dangerous and unethical, and you should use a trusty debit card instead. They offered attractive features like 2% cash back on all purchases and 5% cash back on special categories. But then new laws were enacted that limited debit card merchant fees, and Perkstreet took a hit to their main revenue source. On August 12th, they announced that they were shutting down. Oh, and all that cash back “Perks” that their customers earned? Gone with zero prior notice. *Poof*

Consistent with the terms of our Rewards Program Agreement, we have discontinued our perks program and cancelled all perks balances as of today, August 12, 2013.

Consistent with what terms? Wait, I thought you said you were trustworthy? They meant this part:

The Rewards Program and its benefits are offered at our sole discretion. We reserve the right to cancel, terminate, change or temporarily suspend the Rewards Program and to amend this agreement at any time without notice.

Translation: We can do whatever the %(#& we want. But you can’t.

I never had an account with Perkstreet and didn’t lose anything, but many people did. This is a good opportunity to talk about rewards programs in general. Some thoughts:

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