This morning Alaska Airlines closed the acquisition of Virgin America. Starting today, Alaska Airlines will have:
So what does this mean for those flying on Alaska and Virgin America?
Check your email. Bank of America is offering $50 flight discount after you spend $1,000 or more in purchases on your Alaska Airlines Visa Signature Card from now until December 31, 2016. This isn’t a cashback offer but a discount code that will appear in your Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan.
One of the things I wanted to do this year was to reach MVP Gold status on Alaska. The biggest benefits of MVP Gold over my current MVP status are:
The most enticing of the benefits for me is the four first class upgrades. Even though I do get upgraded quite a bit on Alaska flights, it would make booking flights on the days I want easier.
Since Alaska Airlines announced that they were buying Virgin America, I’ve actually been paying attention to my Elevate account. I don’t have many points (less than 2000) and I noticed that my points expire 11/30/16. Not wanting to transfer AMEX MR points (they require a minimum of 200 points and I don’t want to waste MR points on an airline I probably wouldn’t fly), so I had really only choice, the Elevate shopping portal. That was my only choice until this morning.
Virgin America is currently running a Hawaii promotion called Hawaiiscape. The contest gives you a chance to win a trip to Hawaii and stay at a Starwood Hotel but the best part of the promotion for me is that by entering, you automatically earn 250 points. Given past experiences, I wouldn’t expect the points to post right away, my birthday was in February and my “Birthday Bonus” didn’t post until May. This is still a way to extend the expiration on your account fairly easily.
Enter by going to http://makeyourhawaiiscape.com/
Today I received an email from Alaska announcing that any excess elite qualifying miles will be able to be rolled over into 2017. Here is the text of the email:
Earn status with rollover miles. Here’s another reason to choose Alaska for all your 2016 flying – the trips you take this year can help you hold on to your elite status even longer. With this exclusive opportunity, each elite-qualifying mile you earn for Alaska Airlines flights beyond your tier requirement this year will go toward your 2017 qualifying miles.
This morning I received an email from Bank of America with a promotional offer for my Alaska Airlines visa card.
EARN 2 ADDITIONAL MILES FOR EVERY DOLLAR YOU SPEND ON QUALIFYING HOTEL AND CAR RENTAL PURCHASES through March 31, 2016
The offer further states
Activate this bonus offer and earn 2 additional miles (up to 2,500 bonus miles) for every dollar you spend on qualifying hotels and car rentals when you use your Alaska Airlines Visa Signature® credit card. Your bonus offer begins from the day you activate through March 31, 2016, so don’t delay.*
I recently got back from my vacation to Costa Rica. Instead of going on American’s or Delta’s website and inputting SEA->SJO like a normal person, I ended up booking 6 different legs, on 2 different airlines. Here are the legs for the trip:
SEA->BWI on Alaska
BWI->ATL on Delta
ATL->SJO on Delta
SJO->ATL on Delta
ATL->BWI on Delta
BWI->SEA on Alaska
One of the things I love about Alaska Airlines is how customer friendly they are both on and off the plane. In addition to offering free entertainment in January, Alaska will also be waiving the fee on your first checked bag. To take advantage of the deal all you have to do is sign up for their mileage plan.
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