This week had a lot of negative news
There were a handful of devaluations across multiple programs, and Saks only had 2% cash back on Rakuten on Cyber Monday (was 15% last year! and 12% on Black Friday). I got a bit greedy and waited - now I have a bunch of unused gift cards ☹
On a positive note, in another made up holiday, Rakuten has up to 15% off many retailers for “Green Monday”. It’s green because retailers see 🤑🤑🤑
Editor's Note: I will likely not publish the weekly recap until January 2026. I’ll still send out deals sporadically though. A lot of personal things have been keeping me extra busy and will likely keep me busy until the new year. Hope you have safe travels, a happy holidays, and a fruitful new year.
-Find Flights for Me
This week's highlights
A week of devaluations
I am counting four major devaluations that occurred or were announced this week and a handful of smaller ones as well.
It does feel like it is harder to participate in this hobby, and this trend will likely continue. Don’t blame the bloggers! American Express spent $6 billion on marketing spend in FY24, up +16% over FY23. Also, I have lost count of how many Jennifer Garner commercials I have seen for Capital One. Don’t forget about Chase as well.
Points in the ecosystem are growing exponentially. There’s a limit on how they can be redeemed for flights. Points inflation 101. Spend them and enjoy what you can when you can.
British Airways announces more points and fees needed (~10%) to book their own flights. Starts December 15 (Smart with Points)
Capital One announcing transfer ratio to Emirates going from 1:1 to 4:3 starting January 13, 2026. (One Mile at a Time)
American Express announcing transfer ratio to Cathay Pacific going from 1:1 to 5:4 starting March 1, 2026 (Frequent Miler)
Turkish devalues domestic Star Alliance awards (Loyalty Lobby)
Air France joins the EasyJet, Spirit, Ryanair, Frontier model and is charging for bulkhead seats except for those with Ultimate status (One Mile at a Time). Also Air France/Flying Blue started to “expand” (I interpret it as restricting) award space and even offer discounts to those subscribed to a subscription program (Loyalty Lobby). What will they charge for next?
Hyatt lasted less than a week on the cashback portals Rakuten and Capital One…
Air France expanding La Première first class service to Atlanta, Boston, and Houston in the U.S.
Air France is expanding their first class service to more cities! Atlanta (ATL), Boston (BOS), and Houston (IAH) will soon see Air France 777s service their cities. Tel Aviv (TLV) will also get first class service.
New La Première. Source: Air France
Planned dates
TLV/CDG starting December 15, 2025
ATL/CDG starting March 29, 2026
IAH/CDG starting July 6, 2026
BOS/CDG starting July 20, 2026
Can you book with points?
Generally, only Flying Blue Platinum and Ultimate status members can book with points. However, there’s some debate around if you can upgrade to first class with points booking in business class. I will say my own personal experience x2 that I was offered a cash upgrade at check-in to La Première when I booked business class with points (both through AF/KLM and through Virgin Atlantic). My experience was back in 2024 but data points indicate this is still possible in early November as well (FlyerTalk).
Source: Air France online check-in
Klarna to introduce points transferability, premium subscriptions
Klarna is a fintech player offering buy now, pay later (BNPL) services. They’re introducing four new memberships ranging from $5-45/month (how convenient) that provide varying level of perks. Interestingly, members in the U.S. will be able to redeem Klarna cash back to airlines or hotel partners including AF/KLM, British Airways, and SAS along with Accor, Radisson, Global Hotel Alliance, and Wyndham (to start). All the details can be found in their press release here.
The two highest-tiered memberships, Premium ($19.99/month) and Max ($44.99/month) aim to compete with luxury credit cards with travel-realted perks and their very own coupon books! Details on memberships here (not an affiliate link).
This will be an interesting one to watch. One thing that caught my eye was 2% cash back on every debit purchase for the Max tier.
I wasn’t even familiar that you could earn cash back on the Klarna app. It looks similar to the Rakuten set up where you get cash back whenever you shop online. The FAQs indicate you don’t even have to use Klarna to pay (just shop through the Klarna portal). However, in a weird Capital One-like warning, they recommend using Klarna to pay to receive better support if things don’t track… More details on Klarna’s cash back offering can be found here (not an affiliate link).
When some doors close, others open I guess?
Source: Klarna
Deal of the week
Fly between Boston and Amsterdam on JetBlue’s Mint for as low as 67.2k or 79k JetBlue points one-way from late January through February. Book directly with JetBlue. There are no change/cancel fees but tax/fees will be refunded as JetBlue travel bank instead of to your card.
BOS-AMS (79k + $5.60 tax/fees)
Pretty wide open from January 26 to February 28.
AMS-BOS (67.2k + $115 tax/fees)
Pretty wide open from January 27 to February 28
Transfer partners
Chase is 1:1
Amex is 5:4
Citi is 1:1
Capital One is 5:3
Review of JetBlue Mint business class here (One Mile at a Time)
Need help finding deals? (affiliate link)
Check out seats.aero, a search engine for all things award travel. View award availability for flights for the next 60 days for free. Subscribing unlocks a full year of availability and helps you get the edge over others. You can also set alerts, get access to an invite-only Discord community, and find hotel award availability (this one is free for all).
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Other news to highlight
TSA will charge you $45 if you don’t have a Real ID. Starts Feb. 1, 2026 (TSA site)
Year end checklist, Frequent Miler edition (Frequent Miler)
Desperate for World Cup tickets? BofA will give you a chance to buy them with a unique sub. Open a Customized Cash or Unlimited Cash card and get a chance to buy a WC ticket (BofA)
AA members can get World Cup tickets redeeming AA points again starting Dec. 17 (The Points Guy)
Qatar Privilege Club will let you redeem Avios at some point for World Cup experiences (Qatar Airways)
10-15% award stay discount at IHG. Book by December 11 for stays between January 4 to February 28 (One Mile at a Time)
New! AA shopping portal now lets you earn from in-store shopping at select retailers (AAdvantage Shopping)
Andrew Ross Sorkin is a skip lagger 😆 (View from the Wing). If you read this, invite me on your show!!
ITA launching Houston/Rome flights (One Mile at a Time)
Targeted: Amex has 15% transfer bonus to Cathay Pacific. Right before the upcoming devaluation!
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About Find Flights for Me.
I started the idea of Find Flights for Me back in 2023 to help educate and inspire people to use their credit card points more effectively, with a focus on using points to fly business and first class flights.
When I’m not working on Wall Street or searching for flight deals, you can find me planning for my upcoming wedding, enjoying local restaurants, helping my parents book their next trip, traveling internationally, or visiting friends/family in NYC, Philadelphia, or DC.
Why is Saks only 2% on Rakuten?
