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Airline miles intelligence, loyalty program strategy, and the sharpest thinking in travel rewards.

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Deals6 min read

5 Loyalty Deals Worth Booking This May 2026

The math on five May 2026 loyalty deals: a 55% Chase-to-Marriott bonus, Flying Blue promo awards, and three others with real cpp calculations and booking deadlines.

MileIntel

May 27, 2026

Recent

37 articles

A united airlines plane flying in the sky

01News

United's 737 MAX Transatlantic Move Looks Like Its Azores Play. Here's What Happened Then.

United launches EWR-Santiago de Compostela on a 737 MAX 8 starting May 27, 2026. Economy saver awards start at 40,000 MileagePlus miles. Here's the full breakdown.

MileIntel

6 minMay 26

palm tree near swimming pool during daytime

02Guide

Book Hyatt Awards Before May 20, 2026: The 6-Step Targeting Path

Hyatt's May 20 overhaul raised Category 8 costs by 67%. The real story is the mid-tier squeeze and certificate erosion. Six steps to target the right properties now.

MileIntel

6 minMay 25

white and blue airplane under white clouds during daytime

03Deals

5 BA Avios Deals Worth Booking Before May 27, 2026

BA raises Avios cash fees up to 33% on May 27. The math says skip BA long-haul; book partners instead. Five deals that survive the surcharge explosion.

MileIntel

11 minMay 24

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04Deals

5 EVA Air Award Deals Worth Booking This Summer 2026

EVA Air business class to Asia runs $4,000–$6,000 cash. These 5 award paths show you exactly how to close that gap, including the group-booking angle most guides skip.

MileIntel

6 minMay 23

A southwest airlines jet flying over a city

05News

Why Southwest's 20 New June Routes Miss the Real Story

Southwest launches 20 new routes on June 4 and June 6, 2026 — but overall capacity falls 1% YoY, 11 international routes are cut simultaneously, and dynamic pricing means award costs will exceed the 1.3¢ baseline on high-demand new routes.

MileIntel

9 minMay 22

06Guide

Is the KLM Flying Blue Transfer Bonus Still Worth It in 2026?

Flying Blue's 20% transfer bonus from Chase expires May 27, 2026. Before you transfer, read why the 2025 devaluation may have already spent it for you.

MileIntel

10 minMay 21

07Analysis

MileIntel vs Seats.aero: An Honest Comparison

Seats.aero is the best award search tool on the market. Here is where it wins, where MileIntel wins, and why most serious travelers want both.

MileIntel Team

6 minMay 20

08Deals

VIP-VIP, IPS-NEW, OXO-OXO: Why These Fare Codes Don't Exist

VIP-VIP, IPS-NEW, and OXO-OXO are not real airline fare codes. Here's how actual fare basis codes work and what frequent flyers should track instead.

MileIntel

14 minMay 20

09Analysis

MileIntel vs Point.me: The Honest Comparison

Point.me is the concierge service for points redemptions. We cover where it works well, the documented accuracy complaints, and how MileIntel takes a different approach.

MileIntel Team

6 minMay 19

10Analysis

MileIntel vs Roame: Search vs Full-Portfolio

Roame is the best-designed points search tool on the market. It is also strictly search. Here is where MileIntel fills the larger gap.

MileIntel Team

6 minMay 18

11Analysis

MileIntel vs AwardWallet: The Incumbent vs the Modern Tracker

AwardWallet is the original miles tracker. We cover the documented sync problems, the password-sharing model, and how MileIntel takes a different approach.

MileIntel Team

6 minMay 17

yellow sale text printed on glass window

12Deals

May 2026 Deals Roundup: Which Bonuses Actually Deliver

53 active deals flood the market this May, but most transfer bonuses mask eroding point values. Here's what's worth acting on—and what to skip.

MileIntel

11 minMay 17

13Analysis

Hyatt vs. Aeroplan vs. Emirates: Who Survived May 2026 Best?

Hyatt's 67% peak price hike looks worst on paper, but Emirates' collapsing transfer network is the real disaster. Here's the data-driven verdict.

MileIntel

6 minMay 15

14Guide

How to Book Aeroplan Awards Before the June 1 Devaluation

Aeroplan raises partner award rates June 1, 2026. Book first-class and business-class awards now to lock in rates up to 20% lower. Step-by-step guide inside.

MileIntel

6 minMay 14

flat lay photography of person holding pen in front of world map

15News

Expedia Paid $279M for Tiqets While Airbnb Pocketed $70M

Expedia paid $279M for Tiqets B2B infrastructure while Airbnb collected a $70M gain exiting the same asset. Here's what it means for loyalty travelers.

MileIntel

8 minMay 14

A large jetliner flying through a blue sky

16News

United's 737 MAX to Glasgow: Premium Plus in Name Only

United launched its first-ever 737 MAX nonstop to the UK on May 8, 2026. The 'Premium Plus' cabin is a domestic recliner—not lie-flat—on a 7-hour red-eye.

MileIntel

10 minMay 12

An emirates airbus a380 airplane takes off.

17News

Emirates A380's 14 First Class Seats: The Real Trade-Offs

Emirates packs 14 First Class suites onto its A380, but elite-only restrictions since May 2025 and devalued transfer ratios make this award harder than ever to book.

MileIntel

7 minMay 7

Airport sign showing flight information and bag tracking

18News

Southwest's Boarding Rewrite: Seat Anxiety Became Bin Chaos

Southwest rewrote its 8-group boarding system twice in 90 days after assigned seating launched Jan. 27, 2026—replacing gate anxiety with a worse overhead bin crisis.

MileIntel

10 minMay 4

19From the Cockpit

How MileIntel's Transfer Graph Actually Works

Wells Fargo just added Cathay Pacific as a transfer partner. Here's why that's a hard engineering problem — and how we built the system to handle it.

MileIntel

6 minMay 3

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