​Read Online​

by Julian Kheel Julian is the Founder and CEO of Points Path.

Hi Reader, it's Julian from Points Path. This week, Hyatt ended its partnership with one airline, then turned right around to team up with another one instead. Meanwhile, Amex has refreshed its lineup of Delta cards with bigger bonuses and a rare flight certificate offer, while Hilton added free night certificates to all four of its Amex cards.

Plus, American's shopping portal is dangling a shot at 100,000 miles for anyone who takes 30 seconds to enter its free sweepstakes, and Alaska just made it a lot cheaper to fly internationally with a lap infant on an award ticket. Here's everything worth knowing before you book your next trip.

1. Hyatt swaps American for Delta in loyalty shakeup

After years of diminishing perks, American and Hyatt are officially going their separate ways. But the hotel giant didn't wait long to find another partner.

This week, Hyatt announced that it will end its enhanced partnership with American in the coming months. Members who link their accounts by November 15th can still earn American awards through December 31, 2026, or Hyatt awards through February 28, 2027.

But it didn't take long for another airline to step into the empty spot. A few hours later, Hyatt revealed that Delta would be its new airline partner, with elite members from both programs earning points on the other's flights and stays. However, the full details, including earning rates, haven't yet been announced.

Hyatt swapping American for Delta won't automatically mean better value. Delta's SkyMiles have never matched American's AAdvantage miles for redemption quality. So even though the perks of the Hyatt/AA partnership had deteriorated over time, earning Delta miles isn't likely to result in a huge increase in value. But we'll have to see how the details end up looking.

2. American's shopping portal offers a shot at 100,000 miles

American's shopping portal, AAdvantage eShopping, is running a limited-time contest that gives members a chance to walk away with a serious mileage haul, and entering costs nothing at all.

The AAdvantage eShopping Sweepstakes is awarding one grand prize of 100,000 AAdvantage miles plus a $2,500 check. Three first-prize winners will each receive 50,000 miles.

There's no purchase required to enter — you can just go to the sweepstakes page and log in using your American AAdvantage account, which takes about 30 seconds. But if you want a better chance at the prizes, there are other ways to earn more entries.

Here are all the options that become available for earning additional chances to win once you've registered for the sweepstakes:

• Email opt-in: Agree to receive marketing emails and stay opted in through the end date, 500 entries
• Browser extension: Install the AAdvantage eShopping browser extension, up to 3 different browsers, 500 entries per browser
• Qualifying purchase: Spend $10 or more with one merchant through the portal in a single day, up to 10 merchants per day, 150 entries per purchase
• Mail-in entry: Print your name, address, phone, email, AAdvantage number, and date of birth, and mail it in, up to 20 envelopes, 1,450 entries per envelope

All entries must be submitted by September 25th, and the odds of winning will depend on the total number of entries received. Obviously, lots of people will enter, so snagging one of the prizes is a long shot.

But I personally know the guy who actually won 100,000 miles when American did a similar contest for its 100th birthday celebration in April, so it's definitely not impossible to win. And since it costs nothing, you might as well give it a shot.

3. New Delta Amex offers include flight certs and bigger bonuses

Amex has refreshed its lineup of Delta cards with a mix of bigger bonuses and unusual perks that go beyond the usual pile of miles.

Now through November 4th, the personal Delta Gold and Delta Platinum cards are offering as much as 80,000 and 90,000 bonus miles, plus statement credits of $250 and $300 respectively. Meanwhile, the Delta Reserve card pairs 50,000 bonus miles with two roundtrip Comfort+ certificates, a first for a Delta welcome offer.

Or if you're a small business owner, the Delta Business Gold, Delta Business Platinum, and Delta Business Reserve cards are offering 90,000, 100,000, and 200,000 bonus miles, respectively. But the spending requirements are higher, with the Business Gold spending threshold at $6,000, the Business Platinum at $8,000, and the Business Reserve at $20,000.

The personal Delta Reserve's flight certificates are novel, but they come with real restrictions — a 21-day advance purchase requirement, no multi-city bookings, no miles or MQD earning on tickets booked with them, and travel must be completed by January 15, 2028. I would only chase this particular offer if you already plan to fly Delta domestically twice before then.

4. Free night certificates land on every Hilton Amex card

If you're looking for a hotel card instead of an airline one, Hilton has refreshed all four of its Amex cards at once, pairing bigger bonuses with a perk that rarely comes standard on every tier.

Each of the four Hilton Amex cards now includes a free night certificate alongside its points bonus. The no-annual-fee Hilton Honors card offers 70,000 points and a certificate after $2,000 in spending in six months, while the Hilton Surpass card is offering 130,000 bonus points and a cert after $3,000 in spending.

At the same time, the premium Hilton Aspire card has jumped all the way to 200,000 bonus points plus its usual annual certificate after $6,000 in spending, and the Hilton Business card is offering 150,000 bonus points plus a certificate after $8,000 in spending. All four offers expire January 13, 2027.

Hilton certificates still work at nearly any property regardless of nightly rate, which is what makes them valuable even as luxury pricing climbs. If you only have room for one of these cards, the Hilton Surpass is the easier sell, since it only has a $150 annual fee and can earn a second certificate with additional spending.

5. Alaska's frequent flyer program drops its lap infant award fee

Finally, families flying internationally with a lap infant on points just got a reason to look more closely at one loyalty program before booking their next award ticket.

Alaska's Atmos Rewards now charges only government-mandated taxes and fees for a lap infant on long-haul international award tickets. This includes all award tickets issued by Alaska or Hawaiian, including flights operated by partner airlines. Lap infants must still be added by phone.

When it comes to award tickets for infants, most programs charge 10% of the adult cash fare, which can add hundreds of dollars to a premium cabin redemption. A few exceptions include Air Canada, which charges a relatively modest flat rate of CAD$25 or 2,500 miles, and United, which caps its 10% fee at $250.

Alaska now joins Air Canada among the most lap-infant-friendly programs in the industry, with a partner list that includes British Airways and Japan Airlines. So if you already have a long-haul trip planned with a baby in tow, it's worth checking whether Atmos points can get you there.

That puts this week's roundup of points and miles news officially in the books. But check out our new guide on how the Bilt credit cards can actually be very simple, especially if you've been putting off understanding them. Have a great weekend! ✈️