Enroll in The Extra Mile program by Dec. 31, 2007 and receive 50 percent more miles for every eligible fare* you purchase.
The program lets you earn miles between Jan. 1, 2008 and Dec. 31, 2008.

Choose from three offers:
Offer 1 Pay $50 and receive a 50% mileage bonus on all flights up to 5,000 bonus miles.Register for Offer 1 using registration code AC8M01.

Offer 2Pay $100 and receive a 50% mileage bonus on all flights. Cap of 10,000 bonus miles.
Register for Offer 2 using registration code AC8M02.

Offer 3Pay $150 and receive a 50% mileage bonus on all flights. Cap of 15,000 bonus miles.
Register for Offer 3 using registration code AC8M03.

Pointswizard.com Spin: An inexpensive way to get extra OnePass miles. Click blue line aboveto get to the offer

Labels: Continental Airlines, OnePass Miles, travel

"Know if your carrier adheres to this rule — it could be your saving grace

Even though U.S. airlines have weakened the Rule 240 clauses in their contracts of carriage, it still pays to have a copy with you to show the airline's ground service agents what your rights are when your flight is badly delayed or canceled.

Before the deregulation of the U.S. airline industry in 1978, every U.S. airline had to follow the same set of rules — including those dealing with "irregularities" such as canceled flights.
In those days, airline fares and routes were regulated by the Civil Aeronautics Board, the predecessor to today's Federal Aviation Administration.
One of these rules, number 240, specified that if an airline couldn't get you to your destination on time, it was required to put you on a competitor's flight if it would get you there faster than your original airline's net flight. Airlines were even required to put you in first class if that's all that was available.

They rarely advertised this perk, however, since airlines naturally didn't want to fork over scarce cash to fly customers on a rival carrier. But seasoned road warriors have always known they could approach the counter and say the magic words "240 me" to be put on the next flight out.

Airlines formed after deregulation — such as JetBlue, Southwest, and Spirit — were never required to follow these rules. Even so, some of these newer airlines may attempt to put you on another airline if there's no other choice.
"While we don't have a traditional Rule 240, we will purchase confirmed seats as necessary on another airline to get customers to their final destination in the event of irregularities within our control," Todd Burke, JetBlue Airways' vice president for corporate communications, told Airfarewatchdog.com.
In addition, if there's a "significant delay," JetBlue's compensation may include a "partial or full refund," in addition to accommodation on another airline.

However, in recent years, as "legacy" carriers such as American, United, and Delta have struggled to remain profitable, and some have slashed costs to emerge from bankruptcy, many have quietly weakened their Rule 240s.

United Airlines, for instance, no longer states in its contract of carriage that it will fly you in first class on a competitor, if that's all that's available, although it will transport you in coach class on another airline.

Although Delta Air Lines still has a Rule 240 in its contract, it no longer makes any mention of transporting passengers on other airlines in the event of a flight disruption.

Continental Airlines will upgrade a delayed passenger only on its own flights—not on a competitor's—and only if doing so will get you to your destination earlier than would otherwise be the case.

US Airways has nothing in its terms of transportation concerning Rule 240, though spokesperson Amy Kudwa said the airline still applies the rule on all flights except international flights.

The good news is that Northwest Airlines still has a very traditional contract, little changed from the days of regulation. It will put you on another airline, in first class if necessary, if your original flight is delayed 60 minutes or longer.

It's important to emphasize that these rules generally apply to situations within the airline's control, such as mechanical problems. But if the flight irregularity results from a "force majeure event" such as bad weather, a riot, or a work stoppage, then all bets are off. And the legacy carriers may not have agreements with their newer competitors such as JetBlue and Southwest, so that they might not re-route you on those carriers.

Even if you are flying an airline that adheres to Rule 240, its employees may be reluctant to rewrite your ticket on a competitor because of the financial implications of doing so. So it pays to print out and carry a copy of the contract of carriage and present it to the gate agent if necessary." By George Hobica [Via msnbc.msn.com]

The Pointswizard.com Spin:
Know your rights. We did another post on this topic on April 7. 2007

Labels: Airlines, Continental Airlines, Delta Airlines, Northwest Airlines, rule 240, United Airlines, US Airways

Enjoy the savings and earn double miles on weekend rentals of 2 or more days, or rentals of 5 or more days, at a participating airport or off airport location in the U.S., Puerto Rico or Canada.

That’s 100 miles per day on weekend rentals and 1,000 miles on rentals of 5 or more days.

To reserve this offer online:
* Click on blue line above to go to offer page
Click on the applicable "Quote It" button
* Your Discount CDP Number 391867 and Promotional Coupon (PC) Number will automatically be applied to
your reservation.
* Select "Continental Airlines" from the drop down menu in the "Frequent Traveler" field,
and enter your OnePass number in the "Frequent Traveler Number" field.

Participating Locations in U.S., Puerto Rico & Canada

The Pointswizard.com Spin:
Save this one-good from Now through December 31, 2008

Labels: Continental Airlines, Hertz, OnePass Miles

Select from our list of over 6,000 stocks and ETFs
Schedule investments on a weekly, biweekly or monthly basis
Invest any dollar amount on Tuesdays exclusively online

Open a new OnePass ShareBuilder account and you’ll receive 2,000 OnePass miles after your first stock purchase.

Plus, get a free iPod® shuffle when you subscribe to the Advantage Pricing Program for the first three months.

Open a new OnePass® ShareBuilder account and get 2,000 miles after your first trade. Also, subscribe to the Advantage Pricing Program for three consecutive months, and earn an iPod® shuffle or $50 in holiday cash (good for movies, DVDs, music and books)

The Pointswizard.com Spin:
Offer ends 12/31/07.

Labels: Continental Airlines, iPOD, OnePass Miles

Plus receive 5,000 OnePass bonus miles.
Book a Continental Vacations package of three nights or more to Las Vegas by Dec. 17, for travel Sept. 20 through Dec. 20, 2007, and you will be entered to win:

* 1 Million OnePass Miles
* Round-trip tickets for two to Las Vegas on Continental Airlines
* Three-night stay at the Wynn Las Vegas
* Limousine transportation to/from airport
* Dinner for two at one of the Wynn's award-winning restaurants
* A $1,000 shopping spree at the Grand Canal Shoppes

The Pointswizard.com Spin:
Book your Las Vegas trip today.

Labels: bonus miles, Continental Airlines, Las Vegas, OnePass Miles, Vacation

Each month, the Global Trends in Travel video series airing on Continental Airlines takes passengers to exotic destinations around the world. Now you can visit one of these incredible destinations yourself by entering the FLY AWAY SWEEPSTAKES, courtesy of In-Flight Media Associates (IMA).

This month IMA and the China National Tourist Office invite you to visit China. And Continental Airlines - with more international destinations than any other U.S. airline - is the carrier that gets you there.

Enter the FLY AWAY SWEEPSTAKES now and get ready to experience your own trends in travel today!

The Pointswizard.com Spin:
All entries must be received by 11:59pm EST on September 30, 2007 to qualify for the Grand Prize.

Labels: China, Continental Airlines, free trip

This fall, Hyatt Gold Passport members will earn triple miles on every Hyatt stay, plus a free night after every two Hyatt stays paid for with a MasterCard® card.
These offers are valid from Sept. 1 through Nov. 30, 2007.

The Pointswizard.com Spin:
The number of Free Night Awards you can earn is unlimited

Labels: Continental Airlines, Hyatt Gold Passport, MasterCard, onepass

Here are the details you need to know

-Open a Chase checking with a $100 deposit and get 10,000 Continental OnePass Miles

-Get another 7,500 bonus OnePassmiles and earn 1 mile for every $1 in qualifying purchases with the Chase Continental Airlines Preferred Banking Card for a $65 annual fee per checking account or choose a lower annual fee option and earn 1 mile for every $2 in qualifying purchases with the Chase Continental Airlines Banking Card for a $25 annual fee per checking account.

That's 17,500 OnePass miles at the bottom of the webpage is this offer for 7,500 OnePass miles
-You can also add up to three additional cards for others on your joint checking account and pay no additional annual fees. Plus each new cardholder will receive 2,500 bonus OnePass miles for an additional 7500 miles

The Pointswizard.com Spin:
you must print out certificate on the webpage (click on blue line above)
this account can't be opened on the internet, it must be done at a Chase branch

Labels: bonus miles, Chase, Continental Airlines, onepass

"My wife's grandfather, Sam Valencino, had a wonderful saying that he'd repeat often with a deep Southern drawl and a large scoop of sarcasm: "Everything's up but wages."
The thing is this, however: We all know it's true. When it comes to travel, it seems no fuel surcharge is high enough. No rental-car tax is too high. No hotel "resort fee" will go uncollected. Never mind fares. Now we're seeing the same upward creep in frequent flyer mileage plans.
So here's the nagging question: Now that we've spent our way to the poorhouse to build up this big bank of miles, why can't I find "saver tickets" for the family to fly from Anchorage to Miami and back? Huh? Inquiring minds want to know.
Welcome to the hide-and-seek game of frequent-flyer redemption.
I spend most of my time trying to game the system over at Alaska Airlines, since that's where I have most of my miles. In fact, I just ordered a bunch of magazines with the remainder of my Delta miles, which were set to expire. My choices included Men's Health, Nursing Week, Teen Cosmo and Spin. Woo-hoo.
In case you didn't notice, the cost to call in to Alaska Airlines and book a mileage ticket went up by 5,000 miles. If you can massage the Web site, www.alaskaair.com, you still can nab some of those saver awards for 20,000, plus the obligatory taxes. But this is one example where Alaska is able to offset the millions and millions of miles people are earning by charging up their credit cards.
Oh, don't worry too much, though. Alaska and partner Bank of America actively push the credit-card deals, including having Alaska flight attendants hawk the cards on every flight.
The credit cards, the phone tie-in with GCI, the groceries at Carr's and the partnership mileage arrangements with other airlines all add up to a mileage-churning machine that adds thousands of people into the qualifying pool of travelers that have 20,000 miles and want a free ticket on Alaska Airlines. There are tie-ins with mortgage companies, wine clubs, florists and most hotels and car rental companies.
In fact, Alaska Airlines is offering 20,000 bonus miles if you sign up for one of its credit cards on their Web site. That's a free ticket. If you can find one.
Many travelers, myself included, have struggled to find the 20,000-mile tickets during the busy summer travel season. On two occasions this summer, I pulled the trigger and booked first class on Delta, which cost me 45,000 Alaska Airlines miles each.
But as we ease into the fall, more of these seats tend to open up. Just today, I found 20,000-mile tickets in August and September from Anchorage to Orlando and Newark. To Chicago and Boston, the total went to 25,000 miles because at least one segment was on Delta or American, two of Alaska's partner carriers.
If you're having trouble finding the right date weeks or months in advance, you might have better luck waiting until the week before you travel. Personally, I hate to play "chicken" with travel reservations. But it's true that more mileage-redemption inventory appears just a few days before departure. And since there's no advance purchase requirement on mileage reservations, that's a real option for flexible travelers." [Via Anchorage Daily News]

The Pointswizard.com Spin: To read the rest of the article click on blue line above

Labels: Alaska Airlines, Continental Airlines, frequent flyer, Mexico, Southwest, US Airways

"Holders of the most exclusive American Express cards get a new perk starting today – free access to American Airlines Inc.'s airport clubs worldwide.

American Express Co. and American will announce today that Platinum and Centurion cardholders can get into American's Admirals Clubs on days that they travel on American.

Holders of those American Express cards already get access to a number of other airlines' airport clubs, but until now, about the only way they could get into an Admirals Club was to buy their way in.

Simon Kahn, vice president of Platinum and Centurion marketing for American Express, said its cardholders let American Express know what they wanted.

"We talk to our card members all the time," he said. "One of the things we hear from them is that they want access to American Airlines lounges. In research study after research study, American Airlines has come out as one of the most popular carriers for our base. We just think this is a terrific additional benefit for those cardholders."

The Platinum and Centurion cardholders – whether consumer, business or corporate members – tend to spend a lot of money. American Airlines spokesman Charley Wilson said the relationship will work to American's benefit as well.

"It provides American Express' Platinum and Centurion cardholders access to our clubs, and it also provides American Airlines an opportunity to talk to them and expose our products and services to them," he said.

To gain access to an Admirals Club, a traveler must show an American Express Platinum or Centurion card and an itinerary showing that he is flying on American that day. The cardholder can bring two guests.

Normally, American charges $50 for a one-day pass or $300 to $450 to join for one year, depending on frequent-flier status, with renewal costs of $250 to $400 a year. Its AAdvantage frequent-flier club members can also trade in miles for Admirals Club memberships.

Of course, getting in through an American Express card won't be free, either. Holders of the Platinum card pay a $450 annual fee, and the more exclusive Centurion card reportedly costs $2,500 a year.

The free access applies only to the cards issued directly by American Express, not to cards issued by bank partners such as Citibank." [Via Dallas News.com]

The Pointswizard.com Spin:
It's good to see an expansion of benefits for Amex's two most expensive cards. Delta, Continental and Northwest Airlines also have this benefit already.

Labels: american Airlines, american Express, Amex, Continental Airlines, Delta Airlines, Northwest Airlines

Continental Airlines OnePass® 20th Anniversary Online Auction is in full swing. Be sure to check out their best-ever collection of merchandise, travel packages and once-in-a-lifetime experiences.

Labels: auction, Continental Airlines

If you've been holding your bid until the right package came along, get ready, because this month's Mileage Plan auction is about as good as it gets. Alaska Airlines has partnered with Air France and the InterContinental Paris Le Grand hotel to bring you this month's ultimate romantic retreat. Consider: you and a special someone, whisked away to Paris, the City of Light, the City of Love, of art, small dogs, and shoes-pick your cliché-because chances are, Paris has it. Art, history, culture, wine, food, decadence in countless flavors. And for six nights, Paris can be yours.

The extravagance begins with two First Class tickets on Alaska Airlines to Seattle, followed by two Business Class tickets on Air France's new nonstop daily flight from Seattle to Paris. Enjoy the attentive service, unique comfort of lie-flat seats, individual entertainment systems, exquisite cuisine and wines in Air France's L'Espace Affaires Business Class. Then, for the next six days you'll make your own Parisian history, exploring the Eiffel Tower, the Louvre, Musee d'Orsay, Arc de Triomphe, Sacre Coeur, Notre Dame, the Champs-Elysées, and more.

This Elegant Parisian Package for Two includes a 6-night stay at the InterContinental Paris Le Grand, the sumptuous "luxury liner" docked along the side of the magnificent Garnier Opera House. The Grand is just steps away from some of the capital's most well known tourist attractions, famous department stores, and the luxury boutiques of the Place Vendome.

The icing on the cake—you will be transported between Charles de Gaulle and the Intercontinental Paris Le Grand in style and luxury by Executive Car (providing chauffeur driven transportation with English speaking drivers-guide in France since 1952).

Complete Vacation Auction Includes:

First Class round-trip airfare for 2 from any Alaska Airlines/Horizon Air city to Seattle
Business Class round-trip airfare for two to Paris, France on Air France's new Seattle-Paris flight
6-night stay in an exquisite Executive-level room at the InterContinental Paris Le Grand
Round-trip airport/hotel transportation in an Mercedes Sedan with an English Speaking chauffeur from Executive Car service
Daily breakfast at the Cafe de la Paix
Spa voucher for two
Enjoy crepes from a street vendor, treat yourself to unparalleled shopping, stroll along the Seine River, dine in first-class restaurants, or witness world-famous architecture. And do it all in style. Hurry, bid today!

The Pointswizard.com Spin: HURRY!!-e June 29, 2007 at 12:30:00 p.m. PT. Click on blue line above to get details.

Labels: Alaska Airlines, auction, bid, Continental Airlines

Introducing continental.com Gift Account. It's easy to create your own gift account and then notify your friends and family of your registry. Simply sign up at continental.com and create your own gift registry account. You'll then be allowed to create and send announcements to several friends and family members, which will include instructions on how they can make deposits into your account. You can use the money in your Gift Account to purchase travel on Continental.

It's the perfect gift for any occasion, including holidays, birthdays, weddings, anniversaries and graduations. And with our global network of flights, the lucky-go-travelers can fly to more than 280 destinations served by Continental worldwide.


The Pointswizard.com Spin:
Only one continental.com Gift Account is allowed per OnePass member

Labels: Continental Airlines, graduation, wedding

You could be in the audience at famed Radio City Music Hall sharing in the anticipation, gasps and easy quips from Broadway's brightest stars. Later, recap the night's results with the stars themselves, as you sip from an elegant champagne flute.

The two highest bidders receive: a pair of tickets to the 2007 Tony Awards ceremony and After-Gala Party, a two-night deluxe stay at the Hilton New York, two tickets to The Pirate Queen - a new musical adventure at the Hilton Theatre, and roundtrip airfare for two on Continental Airlines® - the Official Airline of the Tony Awards.

Bidding begins at 12:00 p.m. (EST) on Monday, April 30, and closes at 12:00 p.m. (EST) on Monday, May, 14, 2007. The auction's two highest bidders will be notified via email on or about May 21, 2007. The total value of each package is US$2,620.

The Pointswizard.com Spin: The CBS television cameras might be picking you out during the live broadcast on June 10 at 8:00 p.m. EST. To get started click on blue line above and scroll down the page to bid

Labels: bid, CBS, Continental Airlines, HILTON, Hilton HHonors, Tony Awards

Continental Airlines Roadtrip Sweepstakes

Two (2) round trip Coach Class tickets on Continental Airlines
Two (2) game tickets to a 2008 away game
One night hotel accommodations

The Pointswizard.com Spin: Enter you might win-click blue line above

Labels: contest, Continental Airlines, free, road trip, Yankees

you can earn up to 750 bonus miles on your next qualifying rental at participating Avis airport locations in the U.S. and Canada.

Rent for 3 days and receive 250 OnePass miles. Use coupon number MUAA079.

Rent for 4 days or more and receive 750 OnePass miles. Use coupon number MUAA083.

The Pointswizard.com Spin: Now through Dec. 31, 2007. Click on blue line above, then click on Avis offer.

Labels: Avis, Continental Airlines, onepass

Auction Ends: 12/28/06 9:30:00 PM PST
Number of Bids so far : 22

The Pointswizard.com Spin:
Your chance to see the stars.
click on blue above to bid or see the other auction items

Labels: auction, awards, Continental Airlines, People's Choice, People's Choice Awards