Alaska and Hawaiian merger and how to benefit

What I'm booking

Hawaiian and Alaskan Airlines merged in 2024, which opens up a fantastic opportunity to get more Alaska miles. Alaska miles have been coveted for their sweet spot redemptions around the world, but historically they have been hard to earn. One of those sweet spots is flying Air Tahiti Nui to Papeete. I've always wanted to go to Moorea to snorkel with the humpback whales (July to October is peak season for the migration), and many want to lounge in the beautiful over-water bungalow hotels of Bora Bora! You can get from LAX to PPT for only 60,000 Alaska miles, so I'm keeping my eye on this deal. Always check all cabins, as sometimes the premium seats are priced lower than economy.

Tip: How to book it

Alaska still has a useful calendar where you can search a whole year at a time. When you go to the booking page, click on "Redeem Miles" and "Flexible Dates". Then view by "Calendar" and filter by "Business." A calendar will pop up with all business class availability that you can sort by month! Look for the lowest rates. This is a very quick way to search an entire year at once.

Now that Hawaiian and Alaska have merged, you can transfer points between the programs 1:1. Hawaiian is a transfer partner of American Express Membership Rewards, so you can transfer your points to Hawaiian, and then transfer your points to Alaska. What a deal! You can also combine Hawaiian points within families, and then transfer them to Alaska. This opens up so many possibilities.

Credit Cards: The points parade

American Express is known for being very generous with welcome offers, and you don't even have to look further than the offers in your own account! Log in to your account and click on "Menu", "Cards", and then "View All Business Credit Cards." These aren't present all the time, but one year I received offers for 250,000 on the Amex Business Platinum and 200,000 for the Amex Business Gold. I took advantage of these offers for property tax payments when they were due.

Want to get flight alerts and see when Alaska drops award space? Sign up for The Points Analyst Premium Passport email list! It's free to sign up, but get more alerts and an award search tool when you upgrade to a Premium Passport Plus subscription. Use my code MILESDOC30 to get 30% off for life.