Bits: win a Trespass rucksack today, £50 off at eBookers, HfP feedback

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News in brief:

Win a Trespass rucksack – today only

Our sister site Shopper Points is giving away a Trespass hiking rucksack, worth £100 (albeit £57 in their current sale) in a prize draw today.

Entering only takes 30 seconds – all we need is your name and email address. If you want to enter, visit this page at Shopper Points before midnight tonight.

£50 ebookers discount

Ebookers is running a new promotion worth £50 off a ‘flight and hotel’ package costing more than £600.

The ebookers discount code to enter at check-out is the easy-to-remember AFFPKG0417.

You need to book by 7th May for travel before the end of the year.

Terms and conditions are here and you can book here.

PS. If you have your own travel blog, ebookers is offering free holidays in Barcelona as long as you agree to write about it afterwards. Details are here.

Hilton / OneRepublic gig

On Saturday night we were at the famous Abbey Road Studios in North London for the Hilton Honors / OneRepublic concert which was an excellent evening.

It was great to meet so many HfP readers. As you can probably imagine, sometimes you feel like the words you write go into a black hole. You never quite know happens afterwards.

Back in August 2015, I wrote that Small Luxury Hotels of the World was looking for hotel inspectors. One couple I met on Saturday had read that article, applied, and got the job. This year they will visit 11 luxury hotels entirely free of charge. Apparently they can spend as much as they want during their stay and it is all reimbursed by SLH later. The downside is that they have to make certain demands of the hotel during their trip. At no point does the hotel realise that the couple is undercover.

I also covered – with, I admit, some scepticism – the auction on eBay for tickets on the ‘preview flight’ to New Orleans by British Airways over Mardi Gras this year. I spoke to another couple who had bought this package after reading about it on HfP. It was, apparently, an amazing experience with BA delivering far more than promised, with excellent private seats for the Mardi Gras parade and a host of additional events running pretty much 24/7 over the weekend.

Thanks to everyone who came to say Hi, I appreciate it. FYI, the person who stood up at the start and introduced himself as ‘Mark from Hilton’ was actually the global head of Hilton Honors who had flown over especially …..

How to earn Hilton Honors points and status from UK credit cards (December 2021)

There are various ways of earning Hilton Honors points from UK credit cards. Many cards also have generous sign-up bonuses.

Do you know that holders of The Platinum Card from American Express receive FREE Hilton Honors Gold status for as long as they hold the card? It also comes with Marriott Bonvoy Gold, Radisson Rewards Gold and MeliaRewards Gold status. We reviewed American Express Platinum in detail here and you can apply here.

The Platinum Card from American Express

30,000 points and an unbeatable set of travel benefits – for a fee Read our full review

Did you know that the Virgin Atlantic credit cards are a great way of earning Hilton Honors points? Two Virgin Points can be converted into three Hilton Honors points. The Virgin Atlantic cards are the only Visa or Mastercard products in the UK which can indirectly earn Hilton Honors points. You can apply here.

You can also earn Hilton Honors points indirectly with American Express Gold (20,000 bonus points), the American Express Rewards Credit Card (5,000 bonus points) and – for small business owners – American Express Business Gold (20,000 bonus points) and Business Platinum (40,000 bonus points).

Click here to read our detailed summary of all UK credit cards which can be used to earn Hilton Honors points.

(Want to earn more hotel points? Click here to see our complete list of promotions from the major hotel chains or use the ‘Hotel Offers’ link in the menu bar at the top of the page.)

Category

British Airways and Avios, Hilton Honors, Tesco Clubcard, Virgin Atlantic and Flying Club

This article is closed to new posts. Discussion continues in the HfP Forums.

@mkcol says:

26 Apr26 April 12:55

Wonder how many people have gone back to https://headforpoints.com/2015/08/03/25-mystery-inspector-vacancies-at-small-luxury-hotels-of-the-world/ to see if they can apply to be hotel inspectors 😉
- Alan says:
  
  26 Apr26 April 23:35
  
  My folks applied but sadly didn’t hear back – my Mum is pretty diligent with her TA reviews so I think they missed a trick not taking them on!
Clive says:

26 Apr26 April 16:00

Seems like the Hilton point transfer for free begins today. If anyone wants to swap Club C let me know (I have Club C)
Stevie G says:

26 Apr26 April 16:15

I cannot use BA flight booking on any platform. Others have the same problem. No answer on the phone. Twitter BA advises to delete internet files
mart says:

26 Apr26 April 16:38

OT
Anyone used real transfers recently made a booking saturday ,no confirmation email.
Sent a follow up email ,no response?

Anyone recommend any reasonably prices transfers from central London to heathrow.
- Steve says:
  
  26 Apr26 April 18:13
  
  Quick question on the Amex Platinum. Have just upgraded from gold this now with latest offer.
  Do I need to book/pay with card for flights and hotels to cover for travel insurance.
  Do others also have there own separate travel insurance.
  It’s just that I have a few trips coming up.
  - TGLoyalty says:
    
    26 Apr26 April 22:47
    
    Car and Medical insurance no you are covered as long as you hold an AMEX and can pay with any card. Believe if they take AMEX for the car then you should use it but if it didn’t have it when booking / pre paying you’d be OK.
    
    Understanding on the other travel cover is it needs to be paid with an AMEX issued AMEX of any kind.
Roger says:

26 Apr26 April 19:23

ATM Withdrawal

One completely random question, what is the maximum amount one can withdraw from an ATM/Debit card. Assume no limit imposed by the card issued
- John says:
  
  26 Apr26 April 20:04
  
  You need to be more specific.
  
  It varies by bank, ATM provider and country. In the UK it’s usually £300 or £500, possible to raise the limit with your bank, but ATM may not accept.
  
  Highest I have seen is someone withdrawing 10000 AED several times in a row in Dubai, which is currently over £2000 (though it wasn’t at the time)
- Roger says:
  
  26 Apr26 April 20:24
  
  It is for a UK Issued card, to be used in UK.
  Just trying to see if some bank has higher limit then other banks?
  Or is there also some location based limit i.e. in City or central London ATM to have higher withdrawal limit compared to say a small town/village ATM
  - Genghis says:
    
    27 Apr27 April 00:53
    
    Depends on bank account type too. I have I think £300 with Halifax normal current account but £1k with Barclays premier
- Paul says:
  
  26 Apr26 April 20:37
  
  I know you can have £1500 with Natwest
- Gareth says:
  
  26 Apr26 April 20:41
  
  most uk cash machines allow 560 as max withdrawal then you have to put through as a second transaction. from there its card issuer depdenent. most bank cash machines high street will carry 40-80k so you will run out before they do 😉
Hostime says:

26 Apr26 April 19:27

RE: Hotel Inspectors. Starwood does this twice a month for their entire portfolio of hotels. They use an agency, and, in addition to reimbursing full travel (at least within Europe), pay a fee to their evaluators. I don’t want to share details publicly, so not for publication, but feel free to write to me offline if you want information on the agency (it is the same company which evaluates the Eurostar and a prominent Gulf airline).
- Sanya says:
  
  27 Apr27 April 09:55
  
  How can I write to you offline?
Andy S says:

26 Apr26 April 20:41

OT: Supercard.
I suggested a friend get one as he is going abroad soon, but the website says there’s currently problems processing orders. Anyone know more? Is this a temporary glitch or have they stopped doing them? Wouldn’t be surprised at the latter, can’t see how they make any money!
- Graham Walsh says:
  
  26 Apr26 April 21:25
  
  And it only works 1/2 the time for me in US, Europe and China. Really annoying. When I log a ticket they blame Creation (my IHG card it is linked to). Good when it works.
  
  Also I got the new IHG Premium card and tried to add that via the iOS app, fails with flying colours. They told me to call and get it resolved. Seems like they have IT issues.
  - Andy S says:
    
    26 Apr26 April 21:49
    
    I have made 44 successful transactions in Europe and USA, and can only think of 3 on top that failed.
- TGLoyalty says:
  
  26 Apr26 April 22:42
  
  Get Curve. 1% fee but it’s a very reliable card.
  
  Assuming it’s too late to get a Lloyds Avios or Halifax Clarity which are both 0%
- BigDave says:
  
  27 Apr27 April 07:44
  
  +1 get a curve instead – processing is better than ever and customer support and the app is getting better all the time – plus you get £5 free credit if you use Robs code or mine (AmcEn)
  - Graham Walsh says:
    
    27 Apr27 April 09:44
    
    Interesting, I had Curve when it was first released but got it refunded when Amex stopped. I have Santander Zero as backup too but that even fails at times too. Virgin Amex just works (plus high charges).
    - Genghis says:
      
      27 Apr27 April 09:50
      
      Curve has been very reliable on current travels. More reliable than Clarity at ATMs
      - Rob says:
        
        27 Apr27 April 10:51
        
        Agreed. I used Curve a lot in Asia (wasn’t planned, failed to notice my Post Office 0% card had expired …..) and it was never rejected. Even a £1,500 hotel bill went through first time.
John says:

26 Apr26 April 20:51

£2,000 daily with Barclays
£500 daily with Lloyds