Miles and Points Recap: Increased Offers on Amex Hilton Cards, Reminder on MR/Avios Transfer and More

This is a brief news recap from last week. For faster updates, follow Miles For Family on Twitter or check the feed on the right side of the blog.

1) As I’ve mentioned yesterday, the offer on Hilton Honors Surpass from American Express has been increased to 100k points+free weekend night upon renewal. This is the richest bonus ever on this particular product, but whether you should apply or not will depend on your goals.

The offer on no-fee Hilton Honors card has been increased to 75k points, but it was as high as 80k points in the past. So, you may want to hold off on that one unless you have specific plans for Hilton points. Read more details on both cards here You have till 10/4/17 to apply.

2) Just a reminder that 40% bonus on transfers from Membership Rewards to Avios will end on 9/17/17. This is a pretty good opportunity to stock up on Avios, but it’s not without risks. For one, sAAver availability on American is extremely poor these days, and that’s the only kind bookable with Avios.

That said, using Avios points is still a great deal under certain circumstances. Recently, I was able to book Melbourne-Sydney flights for 4,500 Avios per person, so that’s a definite “sweet spot” in the program. Be aware, 4,500 Avios pricing is NOT valid on routes that originate or end in USA.

3) When you join Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan before September 30, 2017, and complete your first flight with them by December 31, 2017, you’ll earn 5,000 bonus miles. Details here

4) You may be able to get a 100k points offer on Chase IHG co-branded card by calling. YMMV, but it’s worth a shot. This is one of my favorite cards and one I keep renewing year after year. See all the details on Doctorofcredit

5) A new promo from AAdvantage program:

This deal is obviously worthwhile if you were planning on transferring SPG  points to AAdvantage anyway. I probably wouldn’t do it speculatively due to lack of sAAver availability, but those who live near AA hub may want to consider it. You should also look into Marriott travel package instead, which is a better deal under most circumstances. See my post How regular families can benefit from Marriott/SPG merger  for more details.

6) A reminder that new IHG Accelerate promo is up and you can register for it here  The stay has to take place  between September 1st and December 3rd. Depending on the offer, it could make sense to switch your stays to IHG for that time period.

Click here to view various credit cards and available sign-up bonuses