✈️ Miles & Points Daily

☀️ TRENDING MILES & POINTS NEWS

• 🚨 Last Call: Southwest's elevated 90,000-point credit card bonuses expire tonight - this is genuinely the last chance

• 💳 Bilt now has three Mastercards, and the Palladium version quietly earns 2x on all spending - no categories required

• 🏨 Hilton points are worth just 0.35 cents each - readers are asking whether to stop collecting them entirely

• ✈️ Multiple transfer bonuses die tomorrow (Tuesday, June 30) - Amex to Flying Blue, Chase to Marriott, Rove to Turkish Miles & Smiles, and more

There's a window closing tonight that I think a lot of Southwest loyalists are sleeping on. The elevated credit card bonuses - up to 90,000 Rapid Rewards points - were always going to disappear quietly, and today is the day. If you've been sitting on the fence, this one is worth a decision before midnight.

But that's not the only thing happening. Tomorrow is a graveyard for transfer bonuses - at least five promotions expire on June 30, including some of the more meaningful ones. We'll get to all of it.

🤓 Miles & Points Trivia

Here's your question for today:

The Bilt Palladium card earns how many points per dollar on general, non-bonus-category spending?

• 🅰️ 1x on everything

• 🅱️ 1.5x on everything

• 🅲️ 2x on everything

• 🅳️ 3x on everything

Scroll down to find out - the answer is near the bottom of today's issue. 👇

🚨 Southwest's 90K Bonus Ends Tonight

Southwest's three personal credit cards are currently sitting at elevated welcome bonuses - up to 90,000 Rapid Rewards points depending on which card you pick. That offer expires tonight.

To be clear: Southwest points are genuinely useful for domestic travel, especially if you fly the carrier regularly. Unlike airline miles that require navigating award charts and blackout dates, Rapid Rewards points work on a revenue-based model - every seat that has a cash price has a points price. No fuel surcharges, no close-in booking fees.

The elevated bonus focuses purely on points rather than the flashier Companion Pass promotions Southwest has run in the past. That said, if you're building toward a Companion Pass anyway, a chunk of bonus points moves the needle. The math on 90,000 points gets interesting fast - especially if you pair this with Southwest's buy points promotion running at a 40% discount through July 22.

One thing worth noting: this is the last chance framing that's actually accurate. The offer rolls back after tonight. If you're eligible and Southwest flights are part of your travel life, the decision window is tonight.

💳 The Bilt Palladium Card - Stripped Down, It's Just 2x Everywhere

The Bilt Palladium card has developed a reputation for being complicated - tiered benefits, Points Accelerators, Rent Day bonuses, fee-free mortgage payments. And yes, if you want to squeeze every last drop out of it, there's a learning curve.

But here's the version most people should actually think about: ignore all of that. Use it as a flat 2x-everywhere card. That's it.

Why 2x Everywhere Is Actually a Big Deal

Most cards that earn a flat rate on general spending top out at 1.5x or 2x - but the currency matters enormously. Bilt Points transfer to some of the most valuable airline and hotel partners available, including Hyatt, United, American, and Virgin Atlantic. A 2x earn rate in a currency that transfers to Hyatt is genuinely rare.

If you pay rent or have a mortgage, the value proposition expands further - Bilt is the only card that earns points on those payments with no transaction fee. But even if you own your home outright and never think about Rent Day, the baseline earning rate on the Palladium card competes with anything else in the market.

Worth noting: Bilt also has an active transfer bonus to Hilton running right now at a 200% bonus - that ends this Wednesday, July 1. If you have Bilt points sitting idle, that's an unusual way to amplify Hilton balances quickly, even if Hilton's underlying value has been under scrutiny lately (more on that in the next story).

🏨 Are Hilton Points Still Worth Collecting?

A reader question landed this week that I think a lot of you are probably wrestling with: with Hilton Honors points now valued at just 0.35 cents per point, is it still worth accumulating them? Or should Hilton stays just go through a platform like Rove instead?

This is an honest question that deserves an honest answer. At 0.35 cents per point, Hilton points are on the lower end of the valuation spectrum. But the right answer isn't universal - it depends on how you're earning and how you're redeeming.

When Hilton Points Still Make Sense

The fifth-night-free benefit on award redemptions is real value that doesn't show up in a simple cents-per-point calculation. If you're booking a five-night stay and getting the fifth night free, you're effectively getting 20% more value than the headline rate suggests. For longer stays at high-category properties, this matters.

The Amex Membership Rewards to Hilton transfer bonus running right now - a 20% bonus through July 14 - also changes the math slightly. If you're converting Amex points to Hilton at a bonus rate, you're paying less per Hilton point than the standard transfer ratio implies.

That said, if you're primarily booking shorter stays at mid-tier properties and have no elite status benefits to consider, the case for prioritizing Hilton points over more flexible currencies gets harder to make. Use our Hilton Points Calculator to run the numbers on your specific redemption before you transfer.

✈️ Earning Points on Airbnb and Vrbo Stays

Short-term rentals are genuinely the right call for a lot of trips - larger groups, longer stays, kitchens, privacy. The points problem has always been that booking outside a hotel chain means leaving loyalty earnings on the table.

There are a few angles worth knowing about. Marriott Homes and Villas, Hyatt Homes and Hideaways, and the Apartment Collection by Hilton all let you earn program points on vacation rental stays while keeping you inside a loyalty ecosystem. These aren't always the cheapest option, but they bridge the gap between flexibility and earning.

For pure Airbnb or Vrbo bookings outside those programs, some airline shopping portals still let you earn miles when booking through their portal links. It's not a silver bullet, but stacking even a small earn rate on a $2,000 Vrbo booking adds up. Award Travel Finder tracks the best redemption opportunities across programs - worth checking before you finalize any booking.

🚨 Deal Alert: Transfer Bonuses Dying Tomorrow

Tomorrow is a hard deadline for several meaningful transfer bonuses. If you've been considering any of these moves, tonight is the night to pull the trigger.

The biggest one to flag: Chase Ultimate Rewards to Marriott Bonvoy at a 55% bonus expires tomorrow, June 30. If you have Chase points and Marriott redemptions on the horizon, this is a substantial amplifier. The standard transfer ratio already works in your favor for high-category properties - adding 55% on top changes the calculus significantly.

Also expiring tomorrow: Amex Membership Rewards to Flying Blue at a 25% bonus, Citi ThankYou to Qatar Privilege Club Avios at 30%, and Rove Miles to Turkish Airlines Miles and Smiles at 50%. The full picture of what's live right now is on our Transfer Bonuses tracker - but the June 30 deadline is real, and tomorrow it's gone.

🌎 Trivia Reveal

The answer is 🅲️ - the Bilt Palladium card earns 2x points per dollar on all general spending, with no category restrictions. That's the baseline earn rate before you factor in any Rent Day bonuses, Points Accelerators, or category multipliers. For a flexible points currency that transfers to partners like Hyatt and United, 2x everywhere is a genuinely strong proposition.

💬 Quick Question

The Hilton points valuation debate is one that comes up constantly in this community. I'm curious where you stand: are you still actively collecting Hilton Honors points, or have you shifted your strategy elsewhere? Hit reply and let me know - I read every response and the answers genuinely shape what I cover next.

The Southwest deadline tonight is the one I'd hate for anyone to miss by accident - if it applies to you, act before midnight. Everything else has a little more runway. See you tomorrow.

- Jack

Starlink Watch by SeatWiFi

We track airline Starlink rollouts, live equipped aircraft, and in-flight Wi-Fi details at SeatWiFi. If connectivity matters on your next trip, check the aircraft before you book.

• Wizz Air: Wizz Air signs with Starlink to provide fleet-wide Wi-Fi from 2027

• Wizz Air: Wizz Air to introduce Starlink WiFi

• Singapore Airlines: Singapore Airlines Selects Starlink To Deliver Next-Generation High-Speed In-Flight Wi-Fi

• 4Y: planned on Airbus A320 (0%)

• 4Y: planned on Airbus A330 (0%)

Flying soon? Check your exact flight on SeatWiFi before you board.

🗺️ Wallpaper of the day: New York (JFK)

New York (JFK) — from the US Hubs pack

Frequent flyer? Make every device look the part. 5+ hand-designed airport maps, formatted for iPhone, iPad, Mac and desktop.

💳 Best Card Signup Offers Right Now

These are the top credit card welcome bonuses we're tracking. Offers change frequently - see all cards.

1. Business Gold Card: 200,000 points after spending $15,000 in 3 months ($3.75/yr)

2. Business Platinum Card: 200,000 points after spending $20,000 in 3 months ($8.95/yr)

3. Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card: Earn 175,000 Hilton Honors Bonus Points after you spend $6,000 in purchases on t... ($5.5/yr)

✈️ Award Deals This Week

The Award Travel Finder team has been tracking these redemptions - here's what stands out:

Hotels:

• Residence Inn Maui Wailea - Wailea, HI, US | 1.6cpp value | 70,000 pts/night

• W Koh Samui - Koh Samui, TH | 4.1cpp value | 95,500 pts/night

• Oceana Santa Monica, LXR Hotels & Resorts - Santa Monica, CA, US | 1.5cpp value | 105,000 pts/night

• Calala Island, an SLH Hotel - NiCaribbean, NI | 3.0cpp value | 150,000 pts/night

• Six Senses Shaharut - Negev Desert, IL | 3.0cpp value | 500,000 pts/night

Status Matches & Challenges:

• Flying Blue Status Match - Air France / KLM | SkyTeam

• Flying Blue UK (BA Status Holders) - Air France / KLM | SkyTeam

• Flying Blue (Iberia) - Air France / KLM | SkyTeam

Live Transfer Bonuses:

• Amex Membership Rewards → Air France KLM Flying Blue: +25% bonus - ends June 30, 2026

• Amex Membership Rewards → Avianca LifeMiles: +15% bonus - ends July 15, 2026

• Amex Membership Rewards → Hilton: +20% bonus - ends July 14, 2026

• Amex Membership Rewards → Marriott Bonvoy: +20% bonus - ends June 30, 2026

• Amex Membership Rewards → Marriott Bonvoy: +20% bonus - ends June 30, 2026

• Amex Membership Rewards → Virgin Atlantic Flying Club: +30% bonus - ends July 31, 2026

Buy Points & Miles Deals:

• Air Canada (Aeroplan): 30% discount at null (ends June 30, 2026)

• Alaska Airlines (Atmos Rewards): 100% bonus at null (ends July 05, 2026)

• American Airlines (AAdvantage): 40% discount at null (ends July 29, 2026)

• Etihad Airways (Etihad Guest): 20% discount at null (ends July 29, 2026)

• Garuda (GarudaMiles): 25% discount at null (ends July 29, 2026)

• JetBlue Airways (TrueBlue): 125% bonus at null (ends August 09, 2026)

Full live tracker → milesandpointsdaily.com/buy-points-promotions

Browse every award deal we track at AwardTravelFinder.com →

🔥 Hot Cash Flight Deals

Friday Flight Deals finds the best flight deals when paying cash beats using points.

Browse all deals at FridayFlightDeals.com →