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This is going to be so much fun. Who says you cannot START the year with a Delta Elite Mileage run, cuz I am. I have already booked my flight and I will be starting out of PHX but the price I got is long gone. But fear not there are others and I am more than happy to help you find the cheapest price I can or the max crazy MQMs I can to have you come join us.
First things first. I have worked out a negotiated rate so low with the Alegria hotel that I am not allowed to publish the prices. While not exactly “cheap” they are substantially lower than published rates for our dates, that is, the weekend of the 7/8th of January 2017 (you can arrive 6th and depart 9th FYI). You can check the original post for the hotel contact info and booking your room.
On to how to get there. The “cheapest” and “fastest” way to get there is just from JFK-SXM-JFK and the direct flights right now are sub $400 so you could simply book with 20,000 FlexPerks TRAVEL Points and be done. Or, you could have some fun with a crazy run and first fly a sorta long-ish way from SXM, that is, starting in PDX. Redeye and meet up with several of us in MSP and end up down at Maho Beach. HERE is the link for that one.
Another one, that does not include the non-free medallion upgradeable JFK-LAX leg is via ATL and then back to PDX. That one is HERE if you want that one.
How to make this trip almost free. It really is quite simple if you are willing to work at it a bit and get a few cards. The Barclays Arrival+ TRAVEL card, after spend, gives you 50,000 points and that is enough for $500 credit, after the fact, if you charge the hotel room to this card. Then your lodging is free. What about air?
Well the PDX run is sub $600 so if you happen to have 30,000 US Bank AMEX TRAVEL FlexPerks points you can pay for the ticket that way (you may have to call for the routing).
What about positioning costs to and from PDX? There is always PWM or Pay with Miles if you have a Delta AMEX Gold or Platinum or Reserve card to book from your home airport to make it out to PDX with a LONG layover to make sure you make the connection to start the run to SXM (please at least 4 hours). Or, if you don’t happen to need 10,000+ MQMs to start your 2017 year, just PWM direct-ish to SXM from where you live (happy to help if you need it to get lower prices).
Bottom line is if you have always wanted to visit Maho Beach, and chat about all things Delta with yours truly one-on-one, this could be a great chance to do just that! – René
Advertiser Disclosure: Eye of the Flyer, a division of Chatterbox Entertainment, Inc., is part of an affiliate sales network and receives compensation for sending traffic to partner sites, such as CreditCards.com. Some or all of the card offers that appear on the website are from advertisers. Compensation may impact how and where card products appear on the site. This site does not include all card companies or all available card offers. Opinions, reviews, analyses & recommendations are the author’s alone, and have not been reviewed, endorsed, or approved by any of these entities. Some of the links on this page are affiliate or referral links. We may receive a commission or referral bonus for purchases or successful applications made during shopping sessions or signups initiated from clicking those links.
Responses are not provided or commissioned by the bank advertiser. Responses have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by the bank advertiser. It is not the bank advertiser's responsibility to ensure all posts and/or questions are answered.
Rene,
Do you do these meet ups every year? I’m new to your blog and all of this mileage/points/rewards stuff, but I’ve quickly fallen in love with all of it. Unfortunately I am unavailable the weekend of your meet up or I would definitely be there. I am intrigued by the “crazy run” route you posted from PDX (my home airport). As I said I’m new to all of this, so this may be a silly question, but is the point of the crazy run to acquire mileage for the MQMs? How much mileage would you acquire on that particular run?
Thanks.
@Travisli – See the screen shot of the route and how many MQMs you would earn. Yes, if you want status, you still need MQMs and a “fun run” can be a way to top off.
Sadly I don’t think I can make this one. Looks like I will be on road for work. If things change I might buy a last minute flight just to come have dinner and hang out for one day. Not a MR (gasp) just as direct as I can find.
I can’t wait !
Who else is going