Hey {{first name | reader}},
Happy Friday! Coffee's ready, but I'm running on fumes — I landed back home at 4:00am today, and I'll write a proper trip recap soon (spoiler: do not expect business class this time 😅).
For now, 3 things worth knowing:
Rumor watch: Hyatt could raise award prices soon
Rakuten promo: still a strong way to rack up American Express points (even at 75x)
Cash deal: Qatar Airways business class from Rome to Southeast Asia (Qsuites angle)
Rumor watch: Hyatt could raise award prices soon
I woke up and read that rumors are circling that World of Hyatt may be about to make meaningful changes — including higher award pricing for some redemptions. Nothing is confirmed yet, but if this happens, it's the kind of change that can quietly make your points less powerful overnight.
What's being rumored (high impact, unconfirmed):
Hyatt increasing award costs (adding category 9 and 10 / which hotels is still the question).
Potential additional bigger-picture changes (one report mentions a possible new ultra-premium credit card with a $795 annual fee, plus other program changes). Again: rumor, not a press release.
What you should do right now (no panic, just smart positioning):
If you've been sitting on a specific Hyatt award booking you know you want (especially high-end properties / peak dates), book it now and lock the price.
If your plans aren't 100% fixed: still consider booking if the rate is reasonably cancelable, because the point is to lock the current chart (and you can always adjust later).
If you don't have a concrete redemption in mind: don't speculatively book random stuff — just be aware this could be coming, and keep your powder dry.
My promise: If this goes live, I'll recap it immediately with exactly what changed and what to book first.
Rakuten promo: still a strong way to rack up American Express or Bilt points (even at 75x)
There's a shopping-portal angle that's worth understanding because it's one of those rare "this feels like cheating" moments when the math works.
The mechanism: Rakuten lets you earn either cash back or (if you switch your settings) Bilt or Amex Membership Rewards points instead of cash — so portal payouts can become transferable airline points.
Right now the promo is on Incogni via Rakuten. At first it was 100% cash back / 100x, but now I am seeing it has been reduced to 75x.
How the Incogni promo works (exactly): you click through Rakuten to Incogni, and Rakuten pays elevated cash back (or points if you've set your account to earn Amex Membership Rewards or Bilt instead). The rewards are only for new Incogni users and only on the first payment of a subscription plan (and it won't track on gift cards / gift card payments).
If the rate you see is 75x, the math is simple: you're effectively earning ~75 points per $1 spent (or 75% cash back). On the max-price play (Incogni annual plan pricing at $275.88), 75x would return ~20,691 points, and 75% cash back would return ~$206.91.
New user bonus (worth it if you're not already on Rakuten):
If you're new, there's a new-member bonus when joining via a referral and completing qualifying spend — of $50 (which becomes 5,000 points if you've set your account to earn points instead of cash). You can use the referral link below to earn these extra 5,000 points.
Action step: If you're going to do this, do it clean:
FIRST confirm your Rakuten account is set to earn points instead of cash (if that's your goal). If you don’t do this, you will not earn the points.
Check the portal rate
Only buy something you'd be comfortable paying cash for anyway
I did buy it myself, and managed to get close to 30k Amex points, which is really good. I don't plan on using this Incogni service, I just bought it for the points, but if you can use it that is even better! These points are SUPER VALUABLE!
Cash deal: Qatar Airways business class from Rome to Southeast Asia (Qsuites angle)
A fare popped up that's basically: Rome → Asia in business class starting around ~$2,000 round-trip, and the reason anyone cares is obvious: you can book Qsuites on at least part of the routing.
Qatar Airways Qsuite
So instead of pretending it's guaranteed, here's the useful way to think about it:
Why this is worth watching:
Rome is a sneaky-good origin city for premium cabin sales (especially on Middle East carriers).
When these Qatar Airways fares appear, you're often getting:
A top-tier business class experience (especially if you hit Qsuites), and
A clean way to reach Southeast Asia without playing points games.
How to actually hunt it (fast):
Search Rome (FCO) to:
Singapore (SIN)
Jakarta (CGK)
Phuket (HKT)
Try flexible date bands (a few weeks at a time).
If you see ~$2k-ish round-trip in business, book first, think later — these don't usually hang around.
I will leave you an example of these that can work for you!
That's it for this week. Enjoy the weekend, and I'll see you Monday with more deals, routes, and strategies (and hopefully a proper trip recap).
Catch you in the clouds,
Tomi