Sonesta is a hotel chain with more than 1100 properties that we haven't paid much attention to until Tim wrote a recent post about the Sonesta Travel Pass, a program that sort of came out of nowhere. In this week's Coffee Break episode, we'll chat more about why you shouldn't siesta on Sonesta!

(01:24) - Sonesta Travel Pass Basics

(04:04) - Elite Status

(06:49) - Shortcuts to elite status

(11:22) - Points from paid stays

(13:08) - Sonesta Travel Pass credit card

Read more about the Sonesta card here.

(15:58) - Final thoughts... are we excited about this?

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Music Credit – Beach Walk by Unicorn Heads

Amex has long had rules against getting a new welcome bonus for a card you’ve had before.
Now, they’ve expanded those rules to include "families" of cards. In this episode we'll help you navigate this confusing and tedious concept.

(01:31) - With pointsyeah a reader found an interesting redemption for ANA first class... but found a great discount for “suffering” in economy to HND. (Mailbag)

Read more about Avianca LifeMiles’ awesome mixed-cabin award pricing - First Class for less

(05:15) - Southwest Companion Pass with one business card (Card Talk)

Find out more about the Southwest Premier Business Card here

Find out more about the Southwest Performance Business card here

(18:14) - Bilt rent day promo (Award Talk)

(19:42) - Alaska Airlines transfer bonus, up to 100% (Award Talk)

Read more about the Alaska / Bilt transfer bonus here

(24:18) - Alaska Airlines status match (Award Talk)

(29:20) - Bilt Neighborhood dining (Award Talk)

(32:09) - Hilton adds more SLH properties (Award Talk)

(37:50) - Choice removes 35K cap on their points prices in the US (Award Talk)

(39:22) - We've updated some of our RRVs (Award Talk)

(44:46) - Use Virgin points to book AF/KLM (Award Talk)

(50:23) - Fiji airways to adopt AAdvantage miles (Award Talk)

(52:09) - Read more about Greg’s Predictions here (2024 Predictions Half-Way Check Point)

(54:55) - Read more about Nick’s predictions here (2024 Predictions Half-Way Check Point)

(56:27) - Read more about Stephen’s Predictions here (2024 Predictions Half-Way Check Point)

(58:38) - Read more about Tim’s Predictions here (2024 Predictions Half-Way Check Point)

(1:01:27) - Read more about Carrie’s Predictions here (2024 Predictions Half-Way Check Point)

(1:03:24) - About Amex's "Pop-Up Prison"

(1:06:58) - Family types

(1:09:08) - How to find the rules. Look for "Offer Terms"

(1:12:16) - Skirting the pop-up prison

(1:18:01) - What sites do you like the best, apart from your own? (Question of the Week)

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Music Credit – “Ocean Deep” by Annie Yoder

On a previous Coffee Break episode, we talked about the Frequent Miler origin story – Greg’s story. This week, we'll learn about Nick's origin story with the Frequent Miler team.

(00:47) -Super quick recap of next 5 years from the start of the blog

Greg posted a "Help Wanted" for full time employee, which you can read here

(02:21) - How Nick got into miles and points

(12:09) - Nick discovers Frequent Miler at an FTU

(13:58) - Greg and Nick meet in person at another FTU

(16:37) - Nick's wife convinces him to apply for the Frequent Miler position

(17:10) - More details about Greg's help wanted post and the hiring process

(20:42) - Greg was hoping to find someone who knew more about redemption than he did

Visit here to get updated on in-depth points and miles content like this, and don’t forget to like and follow us on social media.

Music Credit – Beach Walk by Unicorn Heads