News and notes from around the interweb:
- Instant top tier platinum status with Le Club Accorhotels is still working.
- Turkish Airlines is still offering status matches, including to elite members of other Star Alliance programs. That means if you have Gold or higher status with United or US Airways, you can get a status match from Turkish and free lounge access when flying in the domestic U.S.
- Travel & Leisure‘s January issue quotes me in their “Most Important Travel Trends of 2013 piece — I argue that international award seats are easier to get than domestic, and they pick up the argument from me that airlines which block tools that help frequent flyer members manage their miles (like Award Wallet) reduce their own members’ loyalty.
- United is offering 2000 miles for joining a participating gym.
- Paid premium class travel on many United partners will no longer earn bonus elite qualifying miles in the MileagePlus program. The ‘new’ United program that launched last year (which combined United and Continental) was much more generous with premium cabin travel, but now is only more generous on premium cabin travel with some airlines like Lufthansa Group airlines, Air Canada, ANA, SAS and US Airways.
- LodgeNet has filed for bankruptcy. They haven’t made a full year profit since 2006. And with folks getting their own porn for free on the internet… I do like that their mobile app lets you use your phone as a TV remote, since some of those hotel room remotes are sort of gross.
Gary, I completed my app and never heard back from them. I’ve followed up and still haven’t heard back. Do you think calling is wroth the effort?
Still working – I also got Platinum – as of 9PM Pacific Time on 1/3/13. Thanks!
@beachfan – sorry who are we talking about?
Ooops, my bad.
Turkish airlines.
Any idea if the instant gold at Hilton is still working? I used it last march and my gold status will be running out at the end of march.
Hey Gary — Lucky may be wrong that this is a change. I’m pretty sure that’s how it worked in PMUA as well.
@David but in March the earn rates went up and now back down