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They cover that in the very last paragraph in the article. And I'm not sure it is feasible to make a category for every single configuration of traveller. There was also no category for someone who gets their status from classic award seats, for example.

Depends on the card issuer. Chase & Amex tend to charge a hidden spread in the ballpark of 0.5-1% on foreign transactions.

No forex fees on most US cards. US cards award sign-up bonuses that an Australian card user could only dream of.

Really interesting analysis. This will certainly be a tough pill to swallow for those in the Virgin status thread who think people are now going to leave Virgin en masse. The other thing this analysis really shows is why airlines love status: the non-gamer is paying tens of thousands of...

I totally get you. Two additional thoughts: 1. The only reliable way to get award flights to the US is to have QF Platinum and request award seat releases. Is it possible that you can devote some time/energy to working out if that can be attained for cheap? 2. Business class return cash fares...

What will you do if there's no award availability on the route? Currently, United is only releasing 'saver-level' award availability to its own card holders and elites. Qantas sometimes releases a little to LAX, but generally it is Platinum request only on routes to the US. American releases...

You can also think about spending on a card that gives you a spend bonus (eg a Hilton/Hyatt card that gives you a free night award after $X spend).

I think the first part of the project is possible (working out the optimal card portfolio given a certain spend profile), but I do think the second part (working out which gives the best points strategy on a particular route) is not. The main reason is that a lot of award availability is...

There's plenty of signs that they're struggling with retention of status members atm: multiple DSCs, handing out completely free SCs as a 'thank you for your loyalty', the ability to earn SCs on the ground promotion.

20% bonus on Citi TYP to Qantas through Nov 9.

Number of passengers only works for certain airlines, I believe.

You're probably searching for 2+ pax. The availability is there. Just for 1 pax.

It seems like this 'surprise and delight' op-up program is incredibly limited in its scope. Almost exclusively golden triangle routes and even then not overly common.

The problem is finding other routes for their widebody fleet. UA was heavily invested in the China market pre-COVID, and that has not yet returned to its pre-COVID levels. The big push into Australia (and elsewhere in the Pacific), especially in the Northern Winter, is a reflection of the fact...

What you don't understand is that these margins are interdependent. The reduction in interchange rates will decrease the attractiveness of credit cards as a product category. More consumers will simply choose debit. That means banks will earn less interest on balances and earn fewer fees...

You severely underestimate the importance of interchange to the points ecosystem. A reduction in interchange reduces the margins on credit cards as a product category for banks, so there is less incentive to offer sign-up bonuses to acquire new customers in the first place. Just look at the...

While they can lean more heavily into tying SCs to spend to keep people engaged with the program, as they're currently testing out, they're not quite equivalents: 1. SCs fail to incentivise spend after the thresholds are reached (eg where you've achieved a particular level for the year and have...

They can still be used on Virgin Australia domestically, but yes buying miles primarily with the intention of using them on partner flights is a risky maneuver that should only be done in full awareness that it could backfire. That's especially the case in the current environment where more and...

Can take up to 10 business days in my experience.

I wouldn't suggest doing this unless you have elite status with UA or are a Chase UA card holder as expanded award availability is restricted to them.