Some generous bonus offers in the last quarter of 2014 have boosted the balance of frequent flyer miles and hotel points in some of my favorite programs, and should help fund travel in 2015.
15,000 American Airlines AAdvantage Miles
I earned 7,500 AAdvantage miles for test driving a Cadillac, and 7,500 miles for two stays at Radisson hotels, for a total of 15,000 bonus miles. The test drive was actually a fun time, because I got to experience the Cadillac’s electric vehicle, with an $82,000 price tag, no less.
11,000 United MileagePlus Miles
The United Mileage Plus dining program was offering 10,000 bonus miles for ten dines at restaurants in the rewards dining program.
I purchased gift cards for some of my favorite restaurants, which earned me 3-5 times points per purchase, for a total haul of 11,000 miles. I can spread out the dines over a number of months next year. A number of the restaurants were offering bonus coupons with the gift card purchases — a nice additional incentive.
30,000 Club Carlson Gold Points
I had two nights paid stays at Radisson hotels which yielded 40 times bonus points thanks to a double points offer, plus 6,000 points for booking the two reservations via the mobile app, for a total of 20,000 points.
The Club Carlson Visa was also offering an extra 5,000 points for restaurant purchases, above their normal 5x points, so I earned an additional 10,000 Club Carlson gold points for participating in the United Dining Rewards program bonus offer.
Were you able to take advantage of any year-end bonus offers?