The question to earn an entry for the blog's giveaway is, "what is the craziest thing you have ever done for points?"
You can enter the giveaway here by answering that simple question. I thought I would write about my 5 craziest things I have done for points.
5) Travel via Metro, my feet, and a cab to do a Mattress Run
In 2011, Club Carlson made a big splash in the points & miles community with the Big Night
Giveaway The promotion gave you 50,000 points for spending one night at any Radisson Hotel
in the United States, Canada or the Caribbean.
I decided to participate in the promotion. The closes Radisson to Washington, DC is located
in Largo, MD. Without a car, I had to take a 45 minute train ride and then walk a mile to the
hotel, because I could not find a cab.
This was my first mattress run, but I didn't know the term at the time. My friends didn't
understand why I was doing it, but the 50,000 points sure have come in handy.
4) Rent Cars for 5 Minutes
In the Fall 2012, US Airways had a promotion called Grand Slam which gave you hits for
completing partner offers.
You could earn up to 6 hits for renting cars. Luckily, I was able to find car rentals for $15.00
all-in on most Saturdays throughout the promotion. However, I had no use for a rental car. The
first Saturday, I picked up the car and drove it home where it stayed over night. The next
Saturday, I decided to check-out the car, drive it around the block, gassed it up, and returned
it 5 minutes later.
The first time I did this, the staff didn't know what to say about me returning the car within
5 minutes. The next four Saturdays, the check-in attendant would welcome me back, wish
me a safe trip and they look forward to seeing me in 5 minutes time.
3) Buy and Ebook
I wrote about this more
here.
Short Story, I bought an eBook from SkyMall to get bonus points from Delta's New
Member bonus. I have no intention of reading the book, actually, I still have not downloaded it.
2) Bought A Phone Charger For A Phone I Didn't Own
One night the blog community was a buzz about a mistake in the American Airlines Shopping
Mall. The company who host the AAdvantgae eShopping Mall (Caritas) had a phone charger
earning 83,871 miles for a purchase. The cost of the charger was about $5.00 + a few bucks
for shipping.
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| Thanks to Matthew @ Upgrd.com for still having the pic |
I knew that we would never see the 83,000+ miles, but I had a feeling that Caritas would offer
some points for the mistake. So, I went ahead an purchased the charger. A few days later,
reports of Caritas offering 2,500 AA miles for the mistake were surfacing. I emailed Caritas
and was offered 2,500 miles for the mistake and 2,500 more miles if I made another purchase
in the mall in xx amount of days. The offer was better than I though. Quickly, I ordered face
wash from Walmart through the portal and banked another 2,500 miles.
5,000 miles for $12 isn't to shabby.
1) Send a FEDEX Package To Myself
As I have written previously, I have been participating in the Delta New Member bonus. I
needed one partner award to get my last 500 miles. My partner options were dwindling.
After looking at the partners that were left, I saw that FEDEX was still an option. So, it was
time to think outside of the box.
FEDEX and Delta have
partnered up to offer miles per every $1 spent on shipping. In
addition, your first and fourth shippings will earn 500 bonus miles each.
I shipped a package from my office to my home. The shipment cost me less than $9, but netted
me 1,000+ miles (500 miles from FEDEX & 500 for the new member bonus)
In the pursuits of miles & points, we all do crazy things. Instead of being embarrassed, we should
celebrate these antics. Otherwise, this game can get quite boring.
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