|
🛳️ 7-night cruises selling for under $200
|
|
|
I know this headline probably sounds too good to be true right off the bat.
Before you ask, the answer is no - you don't need to sacrifice your firstborn child or sit in the broom closet for seven days to get these prices.
European cruise company MSC Cruises is currently offering cruises all over the world for as little as $180 for seven nights, with some other even cheaper deals for shorter cruises.
How could a cruise possibly make money from charging people $25 per night?
Well, they probably don't, really. It seems that some cruise companies have been struggling to fill their cabins in the post-pandemic travel surge and are incentivizing people to join their cruise ecosystem with amazing deals.
The only catch is that these prices tend to be for more last-minute cruise dates. Even with that restriction, this could still be an amazing opportunity for people with some flexibility who want to take a week-long cruise for less than the price of one night at a mid-range hotel.
Here are a few of the most exciting options I found, with plenty of availability in the next couple of weeks:
|
|
|
|
|
|
Of course, most of you probably can't book a last-minute trip to Europe to hop on one of these cruises next week. Although, getting last-minute cheap flights is one of the perks of miles and points... just saying.
Anyway, this cruise company also has some excellent deals on cruises in the Caribbean, including 4-day cruises departing from Miami for only $119, which is also pretty ridiculous.
|
|
|
|
Overall, this is actually a surprisingly easy, flexible, and obviously ridiculously good value deal to take advantage of. I'm not a big cruise guy myself, but if I was back home in Canada I might consider popping down to Miami to try out one of these dirt-cheap cruises.
|
|
|
|
✈️ Amazing KLM/Air France offers with Amex
|
|
|
Last month many of us received a pretty epic Amex offer to receive 20,000 Membership rewards points for making a $1,000 purchase with KLM or Air France.
Well, if you're an Amex cardholder you should check your account(s) for Amex offers immediately. That's because Amex has sent out another round of offers to earn 20,000 Membership Rewards points after making a purchase of $1,000 or more with KLM or Air France. Additionally, some people have received a similar offer to receive a $200 statement credit instead of the 20,000 points, which is still a great return.
If you received the offer last month (like the one below), you probably will not get another one. For those of you who do get these new offers, the expiration date will vary, so be sure to check the fine print.
|
|
|
|
This is actually an incredible offer, especially given the new November Promo Rewards that I mentioned in last Friday's newsletter. Here's why:
20,000 Amex points are worth roughly $400 in value, depending on how you use them.
Right off the bat, you're looking at a 40% return on your purchase if you were to spend exactly $1,000.
But here's where things get extra awesome.
If you were to get this offer on a certain card that earns 5x points on airline purchases, you'd also earn 5,000 points from the purchase itself, netting you 25,000 points for the transaction.
That's enough points to transfer to KLM/Air France and book an additional round-trip flight to Europe using the promo rewards.
The alternative version of this offer which will give you a $200 statement credit will yield a 20% return if you spend exactly $1,000. Because, you know, math.
Both of these are certainly good offers, but as a frequent traveler, the 20,000 points is definitely more valuable and appealing to me personally.
Want to see this deal in action?
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
You could book this round trip from Boston to beautiful Bergen, Norway in Premium Comfort class for $1,023 round trip.
After enjoying the fjords, reindeer steak, and Gudbrandsdalsost-covered waffles, you would earn as many as 5,115 points (again, depending on which card you get this offer on), and barely trigger the 20,000 point bonus, thus earning you enough for another round-trip flight on either KLM or Air France using their November promo rewards.
Now before you get TOO excited, here is some fine print:
-
Not everyone will have this offer. If you DO have the offer, it is likely on the Amex card you spend the most money on. As I mentioned, if you received this offer last month, it's unlikely that you'll see it again.
-
You must register for the offer on your card before making the purchase.
- This is only valid for flights departing from the U.S. and charged in USD.
- The offer has a booking expiration date that varies by cardholder, but you can travel anytime in the future.
Overall, this is a very worthwhile offer to take advantage of. If you don't have a specific trip in mind but still want to reap these rewards, you could book a flexible ticket for a random trip in the future and then use the flexible change policy to change it to a trip you do want to take later on.
|
|
|
|
🏔️ Free entry to U.S. National Parks this week
|
|
|
|
All this talk about flying around the world on points is great, but for many readers in the U.S., some of the best travel destinations in the world are right in your backyard.
To celebrate Veteran's Day this Friday, the National Parks Service is offering free entry into all National Parks for EVERYONE.
This could be a great opportunity to enjoy the beautiful Fall weather around the country and save a few bucks in the process. Some of the more popular parks could charge as much as $35 per vehicle to enter the park, so there is an opportunity for some real savings here.
You can check out the full list of National Parks on this website. Be advised that many parks require reservations ahead of time, which you can also do on that same website.
So go enjoy a nice weekend in nature - you might be surprised by how close you live to some stunning National Parks!
|
|
|
|
That's all for today! I don't know about you, but if feels like this week is taking forever. I'm not complaining, i'm having a great time here in Kathmandu. So time can be as slow as it wants to be 😋
Do you live near any National Parks (in the U.S. or abroad)? Are you going to book a last-minute cruise for less than $200? Let me know by replying to this email or reaching out on social media.
Have a great day 💜
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|