News You Can Use – Star Alliance Fast Lanes, 2,000 Marriott Points, & More

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Happy Mother’s Day to our Moms!  Thank you for always being there and turning us into the people we are today!  We don’t know where we’d be without you!

If you’re looking for last-minute gift ideas, check out the new AMEX Offers and my list of gifts that will also earn you extra points.

1.   Star Alliance Adds Security Fast Lanes

Via TravelSkills, Star Alliance wants to save you time getting through the airport.   So they’re setting up Gold Track lanes at hub airports.

Folks with Star Alliance Gold status will have access to Gold Track lanes, whether they fly in First Class or coach.

The lanes will also be open to passengers without Gold status who have a First Class or Business Class ticket.  Another reason to love award flights booked with points!

Star Alliance includes ANA, EVA Air, Lufthansa, Singapore Airlines, and United Airlines.  Here’s the full list of Star Alliance airlines.

You can earn Star Alliance Gold status when you’ve achieved elite status with a partner airline.  For example, with the following types of United Airlines status you’ll get Star Alliance Gold:

• Global Services
• Premier 1K
• Premier Platinum
• Premier Gold

Check the Star Alliance Gold page for more information on benefits and how to earn this status.

Remember, you can also skip long security lines if you have Global Entry and TSA PreCheck!

2.   Refer Friends to Marriott Rewards and Earn 2,000 Points When They Stay

Refer up to 5 new members (per calendar year) to Marriott Rewards and you’ll earn 2,000 Marriott points (up to 10,000 points per member) each time they complete a paid stay at participating Marriott and Ritz-Carlton hotels.

Marriott defines a stay as consecutive nights in the same hotel.

You can earn up to 50,000 points total (10,000 per member x 5 members)!

For you to earn the bonus points, your friends sign-up must register through the link they’ll receive in the referral email or by calling 800-450-4442 and mentioning the Refer A Friend program.

New members must also provide your name and Marriott Rewards account number when they register.

The folks you refer will also earn 2,000 bonus points, in addition to the base points they earn, each time they complete a paid stay (up to 10,000 bonus points).  They’ll have 365 days from the date they enroll to complete up to 5 paid stays.

New members must select Marriott Rewards points as their earning preferences.  Miles earning does NOT count towards this promotion.

3.   Earn 5,000 Points for Each Friend You Refer to Chase Ink Plus (Targeted)

Refer a friend to the Chase Ink Plus card and you’ll earn 5,000 Chase Ultimate Rewards points when they sign-up and use their new card.

Check your email to see if you were targeted for this offer.

You can check which Chase referral offers you’re eligible for by entering your account details on the Chase Refer-a-Friend website.

To earn the bonus points, you must refer your friends by May 15, 2015, and they have to sign-up and use their card by August 25, 2015.

And they’ll earn 60,000 points for spending $5,000 on purchases within the 1st 3 months of opening their account.

You can refer up to 10 friends for a total of 50,000 Chase Ultimate Rewards points.  But you can only earn a maximum of 50,000 bonus points per year across all Chase referral offers.

4.   Silvercar Coming to Fort Lauderdale

Deals We Like reports, you can rent from Silvercar at Fort Lauderdale airport starting May 15, 2015. Silvercar is a rental car company that rents only silver Audi A4s (and an Audi SUV in Denver).

Rates are $59 per day through June.  But you can save $50 on a 2-day rental with code “FTU50”.  This code works for new and existing customers.

But if you’re renting for 1 day or 4 or more days, you’ll save more by using promotional code “FLLE27” for a 27% discount.

And if you’re new to Silvercar, you can save $25 on your 1st rental.  To get the discount, use my referral link and enter referral code “DDUBASH”.

I tried out Silvercar on my trip to Big Bend and the entire process was seamless.

5.   Now You Can Order 1 of the Best Airport Sandwiches From Your Phone

Tortas Frontera is a Mexican-style sandwich shop that has locations in Chicago O’Hare airport.  They make sandwiches fresh and if you want to get your hands on 1, you’re likely in for a long wait.

But now, via View From the Wing, you can skip the lines by using Tortas Frontera’s mobile app.  You can place your order from the iPhone or Android mobile app as soon as the wheels touch the ground.

Then hopefully your sandwich will be ready to go by the time you arrive.

I love these sandwiches and I may even schedule layovers at Chicago O’Hare Airport, just to get my fix!