PointsHoarder 22: Just how many points are you hoarding?

Welcome to episode 22 of the PointsHoarder podcast. Some of our listeners were asking our opinions of the recent hotel program devaluations and if that is changing our approach to holding our points versus burning them all. Not surprisingly, we all have similar views on the topic – burn more than not – though some of us are more successful at it than others. The high point of the group was over 800,000 points in a single account while the low point (me) was around 2,000 in my main program.

Beyond that, we also talked about the new Virgin America/Singapore Airlines partnership and how it can be useful. There are some very good deals on cheap awards intra-Asia and also from the USA to Asia, assuming you’re willing to fly in economy. The earning rates aren’t great, but if you get in to the credit card churning and manufactured spending game you can have some fun with the Virgin America credit card. Pending award inventory opening up, of course.

There was also some talk about the TSA changing the rules for carry-on screening starting at the end of April. Bats, golf clubs and small pocket knives will once again be permitted on board. Rational or ridiculous? Give a listen to hear our views.

Delta has announced that they are ramping up production of their oil refinery and they expect it to actually be profitable soon. Our Houston-based oil & gas expert has a few thoughts on that development.

Reviews of new lounges (EZE), discussion of new planes in service (British Airways A380) and some discussion of upcoming frequent flyer conferences round out the episode.

Enjoy!