Breaking Points: Credit Card News

SimplyMiles has a new offer for 1,395 American Airlines miles and 1,395 Loyalty Points when you spend $250 or more on an Avis rental. You must activate the offer before purchasing, it expires October 31, 2026, and it requires payment with a Mastercard linked to your SimplyMiles account. You do not have to link an American Airlines-branded card. Since SimplyMiles offers are card-linked, this can also stack with other Avis promotions or card benefits. If you have the Citi AAdvantage Executive card, one of its benefits offers up to $120 back annually on Avis or Budget rentals. Since it’s also a Mastercard, an eligible rental could trigger both the credit and the bonus miles and Loyalty Points. This probably isn't worth changing your rental plans for, but if you're already booking Avis, it's an easy way to pick up some extra AAdvantage miles and Loyalty Points.

The Chase Ink Business Cash and Ink Business Unlimited cards have had elevated 100,000-point signup bonus offers for most of the summer, but those offers are ending soon. Chase has not announced an official end date yet, but when we get the "ending soon" message, it usually means there are only a few weeks left. Chase typically follows with a firm end date rather than pulling the offers without warning, but if you’ve had your eye on either card, now would be a good time to apply. These are fantastic offers since neither card has an annual fee, and if you have an eligible Chase card that transfers to travel partners, you can combine your Ultimate Rewards points. If you’re playing two-player mode and one of you has never had a Chase Ink business card, the referral bonus is a stout 40,000 points, so make sure you take advantage of that as well for a potential 140,000-point haul from a no-annual-fee card.

Eligible cardholders can save 10% on up to $500 in spending, for a maximum of $50 back, with a new Chase Offer for Caesars properties. The offer is valid through September 30, 2026, at participating Caesars properties in Las Vegas, Reno, and Lake Tahoe. The discount applies to room rates and room charges booked directly with Caesars. Caesars currently has targeted offers available from both Amex and Citi as well, so the potential stacking opportunity is what makes this more interesting. Some Amex cardholders have a targeted offer for 20% back on eligible Caesars spending, while Citi is offering some cardholders $25 back. These offers can't technically stack on the same charge, but you may be able to take advantage of more than one by splitting payment across eligible cards. We wouldn't go out of our way to plan a trip around these, but if you already have a Caesars stay planned and are targeted for any of the offers, they could create meaningful savings.

While it doesn't appear to be rolled out to everyone yet, some existing Wyndham credit cardholders can now upgrade to the recently refreshed versions of their cards directly through their Barclays account. Wyndham revamped its card lineup earlier this year, and when it did so, Barclays allowed existing cardholders to keep their old benefits while promising the option to eventually product change to the new versions. Some cardholders can now see this functionality under the Offers section of their Barclays account. Based on the data points we've seen so far, there don't appear to be any bonuses or other incentives for upgrading, so whether it makes sense will depend entirely on whether you see the new card's benefits as more valuable. But being able to make the change online is very convenient, and a product change generally won't add to your Chase 5/24 count.

IHG has refreshed its monthly list of new and recently updated hotels available for 15% off award stays, adding another batch of eligible properties through February 28, 2027. Booking deadlines now range from October 31, 2026 through February 28, 2027, depending on the hotel. Highlights this month include new voco properties in Budapest and Guadalajara, a Vignette Collection hotel in Hainan, China, and new Hotel Indigo and Crowne Plaza properties, along with a Holiday Inn Express in Kanab, Utah, near Zion and Bryce Canyon National Parks. If you hold an IHG free night certificate, the discount could also bring some properties below the 40,000-point cap, making them eligible for redemption. You can view the full list of participating hotels here.