Swiss First Class: two for one

Swiss International Air Lines is running a special companion promotion with insane fares on Swiss First Class tickets, starting at 2000 EUR per person when flying from Brussels Airport (BRU) to Shanghai (PVG), Beijing (PEK), Dar es Salaam (DAR), Delhi (DEL), Dubai (DXB), Mumbai (BOM), Muscat (MCT) or Nairobi (NBO) via Zurich Airport (ZRH).

Swiss First Class companion fare conditions:

Fare per person valid only if at least 2 passengers travel together on the same outbound and inbound flights
Book by 29.06.2017
Purchase by: 29.06.2017
Departure period: 01.07.2017 – 15.01.2018
Rebooking: Not possible
Not refundable
via: Zurich

It’s a great opportunity to experience excellent Swiss First Class product, even though most of the routes are operated by smaller airplanes, like A330 and A340-300, which do not provide exactly the same experience as B777 or A340-600.

Funny, that on some dates Swiss Economy Class tickets are more expensive than First Class. Like this case of a flight to Beijing:

Clearly, if you don’t care about the destination, flying to Beijing is the most valuable option. It is one of the longest flights available under promotion and gives you enough time to enjoy Swiss First Class product up in the sky. For the same price you can go to Dubai, but it will be almost twice less flying time.

You can also play with departure options from Brussels to Zurich to enjoy maximum time in Swiss First Class lounge.

And remember, First Class (A) booking with Swiss will give 150-300% mile accuracy on most of Star Alliance frequent flyer programs.

Betalo summer campaign

Betalo service, which allows to pay bills in Sweden using credit cards, is running summer campaign from June 27th until August 31st.

During promotion period all transaction fees to Swedish bank accounts will be reduced to:

Visa and MasterCard – 1% (instead of 1.9%)

American Experess – 2% (instead of 2.5%)

Remember, Betalo is a great service if you live in Sweden and try to maximize your spendings with SAS Eurobonus American Express or any other credit card with benefits.

I’ve been Betalo customer for several years and have never experienced any issues, so I can strongly recommend Betalo service. 

Aklamio review – how to maximize cash back on travel & holidays

Aklamio.com is an online cash back (or rebate) service, or as the company calls it “word-of-mouth recommendation service”.

Surely, it is not the only cash back service available online, but I find it to be the best one. It has completely free membership, one of the most intuitive user interfaces, huge selection of categories and partners, high cash back rate and friendly support team.

How to maximize Travel & Holidays by using Aklamio

First of all, you need to register in Aklamio using Facebook, Google or PayPal. Registration is fast and simple.

After registration, you will have access to 12 different categories, including Fashion, Travel & Holidays, Home & Beauty, Electronics & Software and many more. Lets focus on Travel & Holidays.

After selecting Travel & Holidays category, Aklamio provides an option to select shops from 7 different countries: Germany, Austria, Spain, Italy, UK, France and Switzerland. Selecting different countries will show different shops, sometimes including very attractive offers from local partners.


Tip: Most of the major travel websites, such as Expedia, Hotels.com and Booking.com, are available for all markets, but offer different cash back %. For example, Hotels.com UK offers 6% cash back, while all other countries get only 5.4%. Just compare several countries for the website you are interested in, and choose the highest cash back rate. Your location does not need to match the country you select.


Remember to Turn off your ad blocker! Cash back services rely on browser cookies for tracking. Active ad blocker will prevent your purchase of being tracked by Aklamio, thus preventing you from getting reward for that purchase.


Aklamio step by step

Here’s an example of how I got additional 45 EUR back from a 6 nights stay in Novotel Singapore.

Say you’re a member of Accor Hotels Le Club loyalty program and you value accumulating status points and benefiting from top tier status with Accor. In this case, booking with third party websites, such as Expedia or Hotels.com, is not an option as those bookings will not give benefits with Accor Hotels.

Before, I would just go directly to AccorHotels.com and make a reservation. However, with Aklamio I made it as a rule to make reservations using their cash back service. It only takes few minutes longer, but saves a lot of money at the end.

Here is how it works.

    1. Register or login to you Aklamio account
    2. Go to Travel and Holidays categoryaklamio travel category
    3. I usually select Spain as a country for Accor Hotels. It gives the highest rewards based on hotel group you choose, in case of Novotel 5.1% back:Rewards per recommendation or cashback
      PRODUCT DESCRIPTION REWARD
      Reservation of Sofitel, Lucien Barriere, Pullman, MGallery, Grand Mercure, The Sebel 6,8%
      Reservation of Novotel, Mercure, Suite Novotel, Adagio, Mama Shelter, Associated Hotel 5,1%
      Reservation of Adagio Access, Ibis, Ibis Style, 2,55%
      Reservation of Formule 1, HotelF1, Ibis budget, Formule 1 India 1,27%
    4. Select Get cashback option and proceed to AccorHotels.com website for a regular booking process (remember to have “accept cookies” on and “ad blocker” off)
    5. You can also recommend Aklamio cashback to a friend. You’ll have three options “Keep”, “Share” or “Give away”. It will determine the % of cashback you would like to share with a friend.
    6. After the standard booking procedure, Aklamio will send a confirmation email looking like thisThis means your cashback has been properly tracked by Aklamio and your reward will stay in pending status until it is confirmed. My Novotel Singapore booking was around 1000 EUR and it was rewarded accordingly 5.1%.
    7. Complete your hotel stay. It normally takes few weeks to confirm it (depends on the store, Accor Hotels confirms the stay within 3-4 weeks)
    8. After the reward has been confirmed, you will get another email from Aklamio It means your cash back is ready to be payed out by PayPal or Bank account transfer. I use PayPal and usually get cash back within several days or faster.

After using Aklamio for several months this is how my rewards are looking like (pending is upcoming summer vacation that I yet have to enjoy 😉 ):

 

It is really an easy way of saving money on each flight and hotel booking you make online. Given that in total Aklamio has more than 3000 shops and services, you don’t have to limit Aklamio just to travelling.

The great part is that Aklamio does not increase prices on partner websites if you use their link. I have done several comparisons, and some time ending up in offers from Hotels.com or Expedia being cheaper than booking directly with them.

In addition to using Aklamio to save money on travel bookings, there are many other ways to maximize your travel experience. One great resource for travel inspiration and advice is the blog bookonboard.com. With its extensive database of travel information and recommendations, this blog is a fantastic tool for planning your next adventure. Whether you’re looking for the best local cuisine, hidden gems off the beaten path, or unique cultural experiences, bookonboard.com has you covered.

By using Aklamio in conjunction with resources like bookonboard.com, you can ensure that you’re getting the most out of your travel budget. With Aklamio’s vast selection of partner merchants and bookonboard.com’s expert advice, you can plan unforgettable trips that won’t break the bank. So why wait? Start exploring the world today with Aklamio and bookonboard.com as your trusty travel companions.


Are you using any other cashback service? Do you think it is worth the effort or not?

Leave a comment with your experience!

 

Lufthansa Surprise is reintroduced

Lufthansa has reintroduced Surprise concept for spontaneous  getaways from Munich and Frankfurt airports.

If you are flexible with your destination, you can choose among nine different travel topics and enjoy a direct Lufthansa flight starting from 69 EUR return including taxes and fees.

Lufthansa Surprise

  • You get better prices when you are flexible
  • Flight is in Lufthansa Economy Light class
  • The price of your ticket is calculated according to number of deselected cities and time parameters
  • All LH Surprise flights are nonstop flights
  • You can book 1 to 42 days before departure (minimum stay of 18 hours for one overnight and 36 hours for 2 overnights)
  • Your Destination will be revealed at the end of the booking process, so you have time to prepare for your trip
  • Passengers are responsible for valid documents and issued visa to their destinations

Destinations from Frankfurt Airport

[tabs]
[tab title=”Go East”] From 69.00 €

Bydgoszcz
Katowice
Poznan
Riga
Tallinn
Vilnius
Wroclaw

.[/tab]
[tab title=”Sightseeing and Culture”] From 79.00 €

Basel
Bilbao
Billund
Gothenburg
Helsinki
Luxembourg
Sofia
Valencia
Warsaw

[/tab]

[tab title=”Nature”] From 89.00 €

Belgrade
Copenhagen
Faro
Gdansk
Geneva
Oslo
Stockholm
Toulouse

[/tab]

[tab title=”Sun and Sand”] From 89.00 €

Alicante
Faro
Gdansk
Ibiza
Lisbon
Malaga
Malta
Marseille
Naples
Nice
Palma de Mallorca
Porto
Stockholm – what the hell is it doing in this category?

[/tab]

[tab title=”Bromance”] From 99.00 €

Amsterdam
Berlin
Budapest
Dublin
Hamburg
Krakow
Manchester
Prague
Warsaw

[/tab]

[tab title=”Cities”] From 99.00 €

Amsterdam
Athens
Berlin
Brussels
Bucharest
Budapest
Dublin
Istanbul
Madrid
Paris
Prague
Rome
Zagreb

[/tab]

[tab title=”Partying”] From 99.00 €

Amsterdam
Barcelona
Berlin
Birmingham
Dublin
Krakow
Lyon
Prague
Warsaw

[/tab]

[tab title=”Romance”] From 99.00 €

Athens
Bologna
Budapest
Florence
Paris
Prague
Rome
Venice
Vienna
Zurich

[/tab]

[tab title=”Shopping”] From 99.00 €

Amsterdam
Barcelona
Bologna
Dublin
Florence
Hamburg
Istanbul
Madrid
Milan
Paris
Rome
Turin
Vienna

[/tab]

[/tabs]

 

And the same travel categories, but with slightly different cities are available from Munich Airport

[tabs]
[tab title=”Go East”] From 69.00 €

Bucharest
Dubrovnik
Krakow
Poznan
Sibiu
Sofia
Split
Timisoara
Wroclaw

.[/tab]
[tab title=”Sightseeing and Culture”] From 79.00 €

Basel
Belgrade
Brussels
Helsinki
Lviv
Madrid
Milan
Toulouse
Wroclaw

[/tab]

[tab title=”Nature”] From 89.00 €

Copenhagen
Gdansk
Gothenburg
Larnaca
Luxembourg
Oslo
Stockholm

[/tab]

[tab title=”Sun and Sand”] From 89.00 €

Ancona
Bilbao
Gdansk
Genoa
Izmir
Marseille
Naples
Nice
Stockholm
Triest

[/tab]

[tab title=”Bromance”] From 99.00 €

Amsterdam
Dublin
Hamburg
Manchester
Prague
Sarajevo
Warsaw

[/tab]

[tab title=”Cities”] From 99.00 €

Athens
Berlin
Bucharest
Budapest
Dublin
Lisbon
Rome
Warsaw
Zagreb

[/tab]

[tab title=”Partying”] From 99.00 €

Amsterdam
Barcelona
Berlin
Birmingham
Dublin
Lisbon
Lyon
Prague
Turin

[/tab]

[tab title=”Romance”] From 99.00 €

Barcelona
Budapest
Lisbon
Paris
Pisa
Prague
Rome
Vienna

[/tab]

[tab title=”Shopping”] From 99.00 €

Amsterdam
Barcelona
Berlin
Hamburg
Manchester
Paris
Rome
Turin
Vienna

[/tab]

[/tabs]

How does Lufthansa Surprise work?

It is quite simple. Select departing airport, travel theme and dates. In case you completely do not want to visit one of the possible destinations, like Stockholm under Sea and Sand theme, you can exclude it, but it will increase the price of the flight. Minimum 3 cities should be selected, but in some cases it almost doubles the price.

Lufthansa Surprise Booking – Lufthansa - Germany

Lufthansa Surprise Booking

And after you complete the booking, the destination city will be revealed by Lufthansa so you can prepare and plan your visit.

Regular prices for some of the destinations on direct flights are at very least twice higher, so it is a really great saving offer, if the end destination is not that important.

It is a cool concept, which I wish was introduced by more airlines, especially SAS. During most public holidays, flights anywhere from Copenhagen airport are ridiculously expensive. I would be more than willing to pay 100 euros to escape Scandinavia for some sun in most of the European destinations operated by SAS.

Would you use Lufthansa Surprise for a random getaway or vacation?

Skytrax world’s top 10 airlines airlines in 2017

Skytrax just released updated for 2017 list of the best airlines in the world, to a big surprise, Qatar airways is on the top of the list, given the current shaky situation around the country.

All other airlines did not come as a surprise, given they are leading the industry for many and many years.

Skytrax top 10 airlines in  2017

  1. Qatar Airways
  2. Singapore Airlines
  3. ANA All Nippon Airways
  4. Emirates
  5. Cathay Pacific
  6. EVA Air
  7. Lufthansa
  8. Etihad Airways
  9. Hainan Airlines
  10. Garuda Indonesia

Big congratulations to my beloved Lufthansa, their first class cabin is still one of my most favorite ones. It is also remarkable that 4 members of Star Alliance are in the list.

Hilton summer sale

Hilton is running summer sale promotion with up to 25% off in Europe, Middle East and Africa.

You can access the sale here and book directly with Hilton is order to benefit from discount. There are many interesting offers, especially for high priced Hilton resorts. Promotion is targeting Europe, Middle East and Africa properties and starting price as low as 70 EUR a night!

I have personally booked brand new Hilton Dead Sea Resort & Spa for a bit more than 90 EUR a night in July, which is an amazing deal!

Full terms and conditions:

Offer is subject to availability at participating hotels within the Hilton portfolio of brands in Europe, Middle East & Africa. For participating hotels in the Middle East & Africa, stays must be booked between May 16, 2017 and September 4, 2017 and completed on weekends between May 19, 2017 and October 8, 2017, except as otherwise indicated. For participating hotels in Europe, stays must be booked between June 20, 2017 and September 4, 2017 and completed on weekends between June 23, 2017 and October 8, 2017, except as otherwise indicated. Full prepayment required at the time of booking. Rates are not refundable; in case your contract with Hilton is governed by German law a refund of 10%, of the paid rates applies upon cancellation. In such case you may however prove that no or a significantly lower damage has been incurred for Hilton. Discounts are up to 20% off the Best Available Rate and Best Available Bed & Breakfast Rate and vary by property. The Sale Hilton Honors member rates are an additional 5% off of the Best Available Rate and the Best Available Bed and Breakfast Rate (indicated above) i.e. up to 25% off for participating hotels, as outlined above. Best Available (Flexible) Rate (“BAR”) is a specific rate type that varies depending on time of purchase, is unrestricted, non-qualified and excludes discount rates. Other blackout dates may apply. Additional restrictions apply. Any currency conversions provided are as a guide only. Before booking, and for further details on the additional discounts for Hilton Honors members,

Lufthansa will start flying Airbus A380 from Munich

Lufthansa will transfer five Airbus A380 from Frankfurt to Munich airport in 2018.

Destinations that are moved to Munich are Los Angeles, Beijing and Hong Kong. Lufthansa will also reintroduce Munich to Singapore route 5 times a week. At the same time, Lufthansa will offer more additional flights from Munich to Chicago, USA, increasing number of flights from seven times a week to ten times per week.

It is great opportunity to experience Lufthansa’s A380, especially in First and Business classes. Increased number of flights to Chicago shall make award booking a bit easier, especially during the peak seasons. Also, Munich airport has very nice and cozy Lufthansa First Class lounge, which is my favorite.

New SAS EuroBonus Mastercard Premium card

SAS (Scandinavian Airlines Systems) introduced a new credit card offer in addition to current SAS Mastercard World card. Is it worth getting it?

SAS EuroBonus World Mastercard Premium

New SAS EuroBonus World Mastercard Premium could be a great choice as the main credit card, or a very nice backup option for everyone, who is maximizing SAS EuroBonus American Express card. Continue reading