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The HfP chat thread – Tuesday 18th May

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We are running this daily chat thread on Head for Points during the coronavirus outbreak.

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Category

General

Comments (397)

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

  • Ali says:
    18 May18 May 10:26

    I know to top-up Che using Solihull, you need to build a credit balance or pay back on the same day to avoid interest. Is it the same if I use Bendy Metal or does Metal leaves you with an option to pay back Solihull later?

    • TGLoyalty says:
      18 May18 May 10:43

      Using bendy makes no difference.

      You might aswell just go direct.

  • Oliver says:
    18 May18 May 10:28

    I’m late to the party but there was a discussion about rental cars yesterday, and whether prices are likely to fall before the summer.

    I am a big fan of renting cars through Expedia, because there is free cancellation up to 6h before collection. It’s a simple online cancellation process – no need to call. If rates drop after your booking, just rebook at the lower price, and then cancel your original booking.

    Expedia rates are different to (but often better than) direct with the main companies – especially on one-way rentals. You sometimes also find different prices on the expedia.co.uk and .com websites, so it’s worth checking both.

    • Louise K says:
      18 May18 May 11:25

      I am fan of Expedia car hire too but not all rentals have free cancellation as I found out!

      Was only £20 but still £20 nonetheless

      • Lyn says:
        18 May18 May 17:29

        @Louise K – just in case it was too late and you missed it, I replied to your LAX transit question in yesterday’s chat.

    • Eppleby Green says:
      18 May18 May 17:24

      Try Autoslash – autoslash dot com

  • James says:
    18 May18 May 10:30

    Anyone else been unable to use the Chat function in the Amex app for quite a few months now? I’ve deleted/reinstalled and still not avail.

    • Rhys says:
      18 May18 May 10:40

      I used it successfully last week on my iPhone

      • James says:
        18 May18 May 10:47

        I have an iPhone 12 and it keeps giving me the same error every time…

        “Our system is not responding. Please try again later, or call Customer Service”

    • Harrier25 says:
      18 May18 May 11:06

      I used it on Sunday and it was fine.

    • MW says:
      18 May18 May 11:37

      I use it on my Android every now and then (last time used last week) and works well, usually quick response.

    • Guernsey Globetrotter says:
      18 May18 May 12:08

      Used successfully this morning on an iPhone 11 Pro with latest iOS version.

  • Spaghetti Town says:
    18 May18 May 11:05

    Hello all

    Will belfast be safe on 8th-11th July?

    Battle of the boyne day is on the 12th.

  • Alex B says:
    18 May18 May 11:16

    Looking for a decentish hotel for a long weekend in Rotterdam, hopefully in the summer. Has anyone stayed on the Slaak? Looking for something a bit boutique/interesting as the gf hates big corporate hotels.

  • Josh says:
    18 May18 May 11:26

    Hey all,

    SO and I have 2x Virgin Atlantic 241 vouchers and trying to think about how best to maximise these for redemptions next year.

    Any hints? I don’t remember seeing a specific article on this topic

    Thanks!

    • DarrenS says:
      18 May18 May 11:57

      Same. Any advice most welcome.

    • ChasP says:
      18 May18 May 12:24

      are they just 241 or are they also upgrade vouchers ?
      if the latter and you arent gold or dont have lots of miles then buying Premium seats and upgrading to Upper class

      • Jonathan says:
        18 May18 May 12:34

        I’ve got an upgrade voucher that’ll expire around October 2022, unless they’re going to be a bit generous and extend the vouchers life given that nearly all their destinations are currently closed

        • ChasP says:
          18 May18 May 13:38

          Mght be worth checking to see if it has been extended mine have been to mar 2022
          Use whatsapp

      • Josh says:
        18 May18 May 12:40

        Both. Have around 300k miles between us however saving 2x 110k for ANA tokyo hopefully.

    • Travel Strong says:
      18 May18 May 12:54

      For the full run down:-

      https://hfp2022.headforpoints.blog/2020/08/20/how-to-virgin-atlantic-credit-card-vouchers-work/

      and

      https://hfp2022.headforpoints.blog/2020/09/01/virgin-atlantic-credit-card-voucher/

      As always, the ‘best’ value depends of how you value your points, and what you are actually prepared to pay as an all-cash booking.

      I am very happy using my voucher as a “2 for 1.5” on upper redemptions, even as a non-gold. But its a 241 voucher if you are gold (even better).

      Yet to hear many stories on here about how people are using them against cash bookings.

    • Gary says:
      18 May18 May 13:45

      Virgin vouchers can be used as 2-4-“1” or upgrade. If no silver/gold status, generally best value using as upgrade voucher. If have status, best use as 2-4-1 as other wise it’s 2-4-1.5 for red Members. They can be used for revenue tickets. Also if you only utilise upgrade voucher for a one way trip, you can use the other half remaining later!

      • Alex says:
        18 May18 May 15:07

        if you are saving your miles for an ANA redemption. I would recommend booking 2xPE seats for cash and then using 2 vouchers to upgrade to upper both ways. We did this to JFK and have also booked for HKG doing the same as the cash paid was only slightly more than the taxes alone of an Upper redemption. Also means we earn miles for said flights

  • HeadingForNoPoints says:
    18 May18 May 11:39

    Has anyone had refunds to an expired curve card? do they go into the account ok?

    My new card has same card number just new expiry date

    • Mr. AC says:
      18 May18 May 11:46

      Yup, no issue in my experience (even with a different number).

    • Lumma says:
      18 May18 May 12:23

      Had a refund of a Euro 2020 ticket and I got the money back as Curve Cash

  • chabuddy geezy says:
    18 May18 May 12:00

    Waldorf Maldives has wide open availability from Feb to May 2022. It pretty unprecedented in recent times.

    Fill yer boots and thank me later…

    • Patrick Cold says:
      18 May18 May 12:10

      I`d like to thank you now if I may. This is a brilliant find. I`ve booked.
      Thank you.

    • Aston100 says:
      18 May18 May 12:22

      1,129,000 points / £2141pn for Feb half term.
      Is that normal?

      • Patrick Cold says:
        18 May18 May 12:26

        Really? I`ve just booked 14th-19th for 480,000. Different half terms maybe?

        • Aston100 says:
          18 May18 May 12:27

          Probably.
          19th to 24th Feb.

          Though I can now see 150k per night availability if I go back a couple of weeks.

          • chabuddy geezy says:
            18 May18 May 12:31

            Some dates have no availability but still lots of 120K-150K nights.

    • Anna says:
      18 May18 May 12:34

      You are making me gnash my teeth a little, but I am holding out hope that the Kimpton Seafire in Grand Cayman will still be 70k points per night (as opposed to $1200 cash) next summer when we can do 2-3 weeks somewhere tropical. So far it doesn’t seem to have fallen victim to IHG’s “dynamic pricing” but that may be because it’s closed at the moment …

    • TicknBash says:
      18 May18 May 13:45

      Question….do you guys/ladies pay the transfers and board with cash on top or is there a way to build it in and pay by points ?

      • Ikaz says:
        18 May18 May 14:03

        You can use points on the hilton experiences portal, rarely worth it though at 280k+ points per adult

    • S says:
      18 May18 May 13:47

      Managed to book Valentine’s week! Just need to make sure I find a partner to go with before then 😉

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

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