u/i_cant_do_this_

contemplating booking LAX-SFO-TPE: alaska to SFO then starlux to tpe. how does luggage transfer and security work? do i stay airside and everything will be done for me? or do i have to leave airside and recheck in + security. i assume i gotta get my bag, leave, then redo security because im transitioning to international. thanks!

on track for OW emerald next year and visiting HND JAL first class lounge during japan trip. researched a bit and people mention cathay HKG pier and wing, qantas sydney, and HND JAL first as top ranking OW lounges.

what are other top ranking OW lounges (first or business) around the world, based on the following?

S tier- absolute must go, flagship

A tier- honorable mentions/unique experience

hoping to plan a few more trips to take advantage of the status. please include airport and airline, thanks!

edit: status will be through alaska plat.

booking starlux biz via alaska. during check out at the last step "book now," i noticed a new section/toggle that says "complimentary upgrade, subject to availability: first class, premium class." is this new? does it actually mean anything?

on another note, what happened to all the TPE SFO starlux alaska redemptions? it's all gone. another thread a few days ago mentioned it may be an IT issue, but was wondering if any new updates or news came out since then. thanks

booking starlux biz via alaska. during check out at the last step "book now," i noticed a new section/toggle that says "complimentary upgrade, subject to availability: first class, premium class." is this new? does it actually mean anything?

on another note, what happened to all the TPE SFO starlux alaska redemptions? it's all gone. another thread a few days ago mentioned it may be an IT issue, but was wondering if any new updates or news came out since then. thanks

go to taiwan frequently, so thought about signing up for egate through my GE. during the sign up process, i couldn't login through my computer, and could only log in through my phone. recently got the notification that my egate application has been approved, and to sign up an interview time.

when i tried to log in with computer and phone, the page just does a refresh loop. i tried chrome, incognito, firefox, firefox private, and deleting cookies. anyone else experience this?

i tried resetting password, and it says my email or birthday are incorrect, even though i know it is because i received their notification email...

also, how necessary is signing up for an interview time? i know there are multiple egate counters at the airport. can i just walk up when i land and do the interview there?

thanks!

title. if im alaska plat, and i book starlux biz via alaska with miles, ill have access to qantas biz lounge (from the ticket). but i wont have access to qantas first class (even though alaska platinum is ow emerald) because the flight im on (starlux) is not part of ow alliance, right?

sorry, not too familiar with these alliance benefits. thanks!

have a trip next year, and wondering if i can use the H2 2026 and H1 2027 $200 hotel credits to book two 2-day back to back stays at the same hotel, but then have the hotel combine the reservations so i dont have to check out and re-check back in.

has anyone tried it yet?

are there cajun seafood places where the shrimp is already peeled for you? my only experience with cajun seafood places is boiling crab. i know the flavor and stuff will be different, but sometimes, im lazy and don't want to deal with all the work. im in north hollywood, so the closer the better. thanks!

been only using BC for rent/mortgage redemption and accelerator. based on earn and burn rate, seems like ill have some BC leftover at the end of the year, after accounting for the 100 rollover.

read around and it seems like for lyft, the algorithmic pricing changes depending on whether you redeemthe $10 BC lyft credit. so got a few questions:

1. has anyone figured out a way to toggle the $10 credit after locking in the lyft price? or is there no way around it; you have to toggle/redeem the credit before initiating the lyft order?

2. does this sort of dynamic pricing practice also occur with other redemption options, such as grubhub, $100 monthly hotel credit?

thanks

looking to maximize alaska miles, already have all three alaska cards and palladium. checked all three credit bureaus to tally up everything. current status is as following:

opened accounts: 3/6 (summit, ascent and palladium jan 2026), 3/12, 3/24 (didn't include 2 mortgages, assume they don't count)

hard inquiries: 1/6, 1/12, 5/24 (3 are mortgage pulls all on same day)- not sure how why my hard inquiries are like that when i did 2 boa cards in jan, but listing them as shown

looking to maximize alaska miles, so my remaining options are hawaiian, hawaiian biz, boundless, bold, bevy, brilliant, marriot biz, and rakuten.

read around about barclay’s sensitivity and velocity restrictions, amex family rule, chase family rule, and amex-chase marriot restrictions. at this point, im confused on how i should order, pace, and structure my applications. i know ill have to forego some of the marriot ones.

any suggestions? thanks

like many here, got some kick tail cards in the mail from SW. searched online, and can't seem to find a consensus on whether these tangibly benefit the employees in any way.

most say no (other than a gesture of appreciation), others say it goes into a raffle, and a few mention claiming gifts (but seems to have been phased out?).

so just want to confirm before deciding if i should bother with these since ive only got one flight remaining. if these actually help the SW employees, ill keep it and pass them out then. thanks!

got sentri back in 2016 to fast track walking across US mexico border (coming back to US). sentri renewal coming up, and thinking of switching to GE because it gives me e-gate access at taiwan while maintaining fast track walking border crossing at US mexico border. so got a few questions:

1. during renewal, it asks me to choose program. i chose GE, and now it says application pending. does that mean this is a new application and ill have to go through the whole process again? such as interview and stuff?

2. GE still gives me the ability to fast track walk through the US mexico border right (coming back to US)? i dont want to wait in the long line. reading online, it seems that there's a line for sentri/GE, so it should work, but just want to make sure

thanks!

is there a calculator that calculates the annual spend needed to generate enough BC for my annual housing redemption, while taking into account the extra $50 BC per 25k points?

i did some basic calc and want to make sure it's correct before deciding if i should divert spend elsewhere. thanks

looking to activate 10k milestone reward, and was reading the terms. got some questions/clarification:

1. to qualify and trigger the 2x, do i need to book my hotel stay through alaska portal, or can i book directly with the hotel?

2. it has a 6 month deadline from date of activation. if i activate today (june 2026), book hotel within 6 months (dec 2026), but the hotel stay is over 6 months (feb 2027) away, will that still count? or does the whole transaction and stay need to occur within the 6 months?

3. it says points earned through atmos summit are not eligible. does that mean i need to book my hotel via another card? i can't use my summit card to book the hotel to get the normal summit multiplier and the 2x milestone points?

thanks!

current have starlux biz for date x, but looking to change to day y if availability opens up. how reliabile is alaska's online change system for partner awards?

if i use change flight function, everything is free, but im worried that it might glitch out at checkout, making me lose out on the new date.

if i book new and cancel old, it's safer but requires me to pay new fees and eat the old fee.

what's everyone's experience with alaska's change flight feature for partner award tickets? what would you guys suggest? thanks

sentri renewal is here, and have a credit card that gives GE/TSA credit. wondering if sentri will trigger the credit. some have said nexus triggers the GE/TSA credit, but i haven't found anything online about sentri. hoping to get some DPs. thanks

saw the rakuten sofi invest $150 promo, so hopped on it. opened a self directed brokerage account, but there was also the active robo investing option. do both count for the promo?

also, for account funding, i funded via my sofi account. does it have to be external account funding?

i plan on doing one trade then immediately selling to cover my bases, but do we actually need to trade? or is funding enough to get the bonus?

nothing in the T&C specifically mention account type to select, type of funding, or whether a trade is needed. thanks

s9, android 10. opened the tonal app and got "update required, this version is out of date and must be updated to continue using the tonal app." when i click update, im brought to tonal's google play page that says "this app isn't compatible with your device anymore. contact the developers for more info."

bummer, but i guess it's inevitable. second app for me to be phased out; first was costco. i only use the app when im traveling and want to keep my "streak" alive by doing some body weight or mobility workouts.

just did 10k transfer for flying blue gold. points are in, but status still shows explorer. never done cross alliance status benefit matching, so sorry for the dumb questions:

1. how long did it take for the status to update to gold? im seeing 3 days and 2 months in different threads

2. can i book a CI flight today using my fb number (currently explorer) and have the gold benefits apply automatically once the status updates before travel?

i assume i can book today with fb number and as long as the status reflects gold by travel date, benefits will apply according, but just want to be sure. thanks

thinking about doing the 10k bilt transfer for flying blue gold status to get skyteam elite plus. got at least two one way CI TPE-LAX flights within next 12 months (june 26-june 27), decent chance of 3, low chance of 4.

i will use the following skyteam elite plus benefits:

1. CI lounge- i get basic priority pass lounge access at TPE T2, but it's always packed

2. 3 luggage- will be used if i get the status

3. priority luggage- due to global entry, i always wait forever for my luggage at LAX

i don't usually fly flying blue at all, so i dont put a lot of value in their points. but i also dont fly CI enough within 12 months to get any status, and it's not a guarantee that i accrue enough miles within 36 months to get a PE -> business upgrade. but i am thinking about going to korea, so having some points in flying blue for the unicorn KE redemption may be useful, but i dont think i should include that in the calculations due to its rarity.

with all that in mind, would you guys do the 10k transfer? thanks