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  • šŸ”„ Multiply your points by 2.6x with this transfer bonus

šŸ”„ Multiply your points by 2.6x with this transfer bonus

Plus, Singapore Airlines has launched a new Global Redemption sale with dozens of routes for 25% off.

Estimated read time: 4 minutes and 7 seconds

šŸ¤” Bags over legroom? A new study showed that free luggage allowance is the top priority for travelers when booking flightsā€”more than Wi-Fi, legroom, or seat selection. Check out the full results here

Goooooood morning, and welcome back to another week of Daily Drop, the most fun travel newsletter on the planet.

Speaking of fun, letā€™s talk points and miles:

šŸ”„ 30% transfer bonus to Hilton (itā€™s better than you think)

Hotel transfer bonuses are generally not as valuable as airline ones; thereā€™s no denying it.

Usually, thatā€™s because transfer ratios are almost always 1:1, and hotel points are worth way less than airline miles.

But this one is differentā€¦

A screenshot of the transfer bonus page to Hilton

Until September 30th, you can transfer MR points to Hilton with a 30% bonus.

The reason this is different from normal transfer partners, however, is that MR Points typically transfer to Hilton at a 1:2 ratio.

With this bonus, transferring 1,000 MR Points will result in a whopping 2,600 Hilton points, which is not shabby at all.

For example, both of these hotels in downtown Portland, Oregon, cost 37,000 Hilton points per night.

Examples of two Hilton hotels in Portland, each bookable for 37,000 points

With this bonus, youā€™d only need to shell out 14,000 MR Points per night, which is an excellent deal for a hotel in an otherwise expensive city.

When I did my road trip across the U.S. back in 2020, I stayed in plenty of budget-friendly hotels like this one in Elk City, Oklahoma, which costs just 25,000 Hilton points per night.

A screenshot from Hilton's site showing a Hampton Inn in Oklahoma bookable for 25,000 points per night

With this transfer bonus, a hotel like this would only run you 9,600 MR Points per night, which Iā€™d say is an excellent use of your points if youā€™re into domestic travel.

Of course, if you venture to some weird places abroad, you can get even more ridiculous deals, like either of these hotels here in Indonesia:

  • 15,000 points (or 5,700 MR points with the bonus) for a budget airport hotel

  • 50,000 points (or 19,200 MR points with the bonus) for a luxury Conrad beach resort in Bali

An example of a budget and luxury hotel in Indonesia bookable for reasonable numbers of points

Anyway, if youā€™re a Hilton fan and looking to cash in on this deal, here are two options Iā€™d recommend for racking up some quick MR Points:

  1. Get this card, which currently has an elevated welcome offer, which will easily give you enough points to book at least a few nights at higher-tier hotels or more at budget ones.

  2. This card not only has a much higher welcome offer but also offers Hilton Gold status as a perk. So when you do transfer your points and stay, youā€™ll also get free breakfast.

One caveat to this offer is that it seems to be targeted, meaning not everyone will see it in their account.

However, I personally have it in my account, and everyone else Iā€™ve asked about it has it, tooā€¦ so there you go. šŸ¤·šŸ¼ā€ā™‚ļø

Anyway, donā€™t immediately disregard this transfer bonus; itā€™s actually deceptively good!

āœˆļø Singapore Airlines launches Global Redemption Sale

One of the best airlines in the world is back with a massive saleā€¦ and this is completely separate from their typical Spontaneous Escapes sales which happen on a monthly basis.

My friends, Iā€™m talking about Singapore Airlineā€™s latest Global Redemption Sale which is offering up to 25% off award tickets.

KrisFlyer Global Redemption Sale

We last saw a sale like this about a year ago, so itā€™s always a happy day when they bring it back šŸ˜Ž

Here are the deets:

  • Valid for bookings between now and September 22, 2024

  • Eligible for travel between January 15 and May 29, 2025 (nice!)

  • Valid for ALL Singapore Airlines destinations in economy (with some award sales for premium economy and business)

  • You must make the booking via Singaporeā€™s website or mobile app

  • There are some blackout dates which you can find here

This particular promotion is great because I know many of you arenā€™t often able to take advantage of all the last minute sales and redemptions that happen.

This gives you plenty of time to lock in a discounted award price for a flight that is months away from now.

This is especially lucrative if youā€™re down to fly in economy as there are dozens of different routes available, even to/from Europe.

Some economy routes to/from Europe showing discounted rates

Just a handful of the MANY routes offered.

However, the discounted award rates for the premium cabins is much more restrictiveā€”mainly sticking to routes within Asia.

But hey, if youā€™re in that part of the world or are looking to connect to another destination, there are flights from Seoul, Shanghai, Hong Kong (and MANY more) to Singapore for anywhere from 25,000 to 39,000 miles for business class.

Not bad šŸ˜

And fortunately for us, itā€™s super easy to get some KrisFlyer miles into your account, as most major banks transfer to the airline.

Overall, this is a nice promo from Singapore Airlines that includes discounted rates for all flights in economy. Plus, it offers a much bigger travel window which I think will be applicable to a lot more of you!

šŸ¤“ Travel Trivia Tuesday

How many weekly flights operate between the two most populous countries in the world?

Login or Subscribe to participate in polls.

Surprisingly, there is a grand total of ZERO FLIGHTS between China and India, despite being home to 36% of the worldā€™s population and many of its largest cities.

Prior to the pandemic, there were well over 500 weekly flights connecting the two countries.

But since March of 2020, not a single flight has connected them.

This is primarily due to COVID-19 and mainly related to Chinaā€™s slow and prolonged border opening relative to the rest of the world.

Still, China has resumed flights with many of the worldā€™s countries, including places like North Korea and even Afghanistan, so itā€™s still very surprising that India has remained unconnected for more than four years.

Anyway, these countries are complicated and have a long, complicated relationship, so thereā€™s obviously a lot we could unpack.

If youā€™re interested in learning more about this aviation conundrum and the relationship between the two countries, check out this amazingly well-done YouTube video on this exact topic:

Hey yā€™all, if you havenā€™t checked out our Facebook community, the Daily Drop Lounge, youā€™re missing out on asking travel questions, sharing answers, and celebrating othersā€™ travel wins! šŸ‘‡

A pot from the DD Facebook group

Come join us there, eh? šŸ™‚

Thatā€™s all for today, folks! I hope you enjoyed the newsletter, and Iā€™ll see you tomorrow for another edition.

Cheers,

Mike Dodge
Head Writer, Daily Drop

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