Get airline status from one flight

Top o’ the morning to ya, and welcome back to Daily Drop, the newsletter coming to you straight from Dublin - where the Guinness is fresh, the accents are dreamy, and somehow everyone’s just a little too good at storytelling.

Here are a couple of stories for you to enjoy:

• ✈️ Earn Alaska status from one trip

• 🏨 Earn 70k hotel points from one stay

• 💳 Current Transfer Bonuses

✈️ Earn Alaska status from one trip

As you know, Alaska Airlines’ new loyalty program is the best thing since sliced bread.

In fact, I just used my Alaska status a few days ago to get a complimentary first-class upgrade on my American Airlines flight from Dallas to Nashville.

But I do a LOT of flying and strategizing to get my Alaska status…

Thankfully, there’s a way for you all to get Alaska status without having to really do anything at all.

For the rest of the year, if you book certain flights on Alaska and Hawaiian, you’ll get Alaska MVP status for an entire year (or more).

Here is how this works:

If you book a flight from the continental U.S. (excluding Hawaii) to Auckland (AKL) or Sydney (SYD), you’ll get Alaska MVP status through December 31, 2026.

This might be a bit confusing, so let me break down the finer points:

• You must book a round-trip

• You must start and end in the continental U.S. and connect through Hawaii

• Only cash flights count

• No registration is required

• You can fly anytime between now and December 31, 2025

So essentially, you need to fly from the mainland U.S. to Auckland or Sydney.

The first flight can be on either Alaska or Hawaiian, but the connecting flight must be on Hawaiian (since Alaska doesn’t fly between Hawaii and the South Pacific).

For example, this itinerary from Long Beach (LGB) to Sydney would be eligible for the offer:

Flying from the U.S. to the South Pacific for less than $500 each way is an excellent deal, in my opinion.

The fact that you get more than a year of Oneworld status on top of it is a no-brainer if you were already thinking of booking a trip like this.

Alaska MVP status isn’t the craziest thing, but it does come with some nice perks:

As you can see, you’ll even be eligible for complimentary Preferred Seat selection on Alaska, and complimentary first-class upgrades on American.

So here’s the bottom line:

This is a pretty specific offer… But considering how valuable Alaska status is, it’s a great way to turn a single round-trip flight into over a year of continued value.

🏨 Earn 70k hotel points from one stay

Speaking of ways to get a ton of value from minimal effort…

Choice Hotels is currently offering a way to earn 70,000 bonus points for doing basically nothing.

In case you’ve never heard of it, Choice owns a brand called Bluegreen Vacations, which is basically a timeshare business.

And because nobody wants a timeshare, they offer crazy incentives just for attending a timeshare presentation (regardless of whether or not you actually buy anything).

With this current offer, you can buy a three-night stay at seven different Bluegreen properties around the country for just $279.

During that three-night stay, you’ll be required to attend a two-hour timeshare presentation.

No matter what happens, you will then be given 70,000 Choice points.

So as long as you can survive two hours of aggressive sales tactics (which is easier said than done), you’ll get a cheap three-night hotel stay and a ton of points.

Choice points aren’t the most valuable hotel points out there, but you can book properties for as few as 8,000 points per night:

So 70,000 points could book you as many as eight nights (and you’ll have some points left over in the end).

So here’s the bottom line:

This is a great deal. Getting a three-night hotel stay for $279 is already a good deal, but getting up to eight more bonus nights on top of it makes it a no-brainer.

Check out this page to see if you’re eligible for the offer before it goes away!

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That’s gonna finish off the week, folks! I hope you enjoyed today’s quick tips for getting maximum value from some simple flights and hotel stays.

Have a great weekend, and make sure to tune in first thing on Monday for some exciting travel tips I’ve got on deck for you.

Cheers,

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