Transfer Bonus Promotions Roundup [Oct. 2019 Update: 30% Bonus on Marriott Transfers to UA, Effective Transfer Ratio 1.68:1; Buy UA Miles for 1.47 cpp]

Get a 30% bonus when transferring hotel points to AC miles (extended through September 25)

• Promotion link: 30% bonus on converting hotel points to Air Canada miles (automatic, no registration required)
• Offer details: Ends September 22 extended to September 25. The bonus will appear 4-6 weeks after the promotion ends. Miles can be converted from multiple hotel programs, including major hotel points currencies such as Marriott, Hilton, Club Carlson, Best Western, Wyndham Rewards, COAST Hotels, Choice Hotels, Le Club Accor Hotels, Shrangi-La Hotels, and Radisson.
• My take: The best option in this round is transferring Marriott points. Marriott points normally transfer to Air Canada at a 3:1.25 ratio (the base ratio is 3:1, and for every 60,000 points transferred you get an extra 5,000 miles, so 60,000 points become 25,000 AC miles). With this promo on top, 60,000 Marriott points can become 32,500 AC miles, which is better than a 2:1 ratio. If you do not need your Marriott points for hotel stays and instead need airline miles, this is a very solid transfer opportunity. Aeroplan miles are quite useful for flights between China and the U.S. and between the U.S. and Europe, and round-trip awards can include two stopovers. Taking U.S.–Europe flights as an example, a one-way business class award from the U.S. to Western Europe costs only 55,000 miles, which is better than UA's 57,500 one-way rate (or 70,000 for Star Alliance partners), AA's 57,500 one-way rate, and DL's 70,000 one-way rate. Other than Marriott, the direct transfer ratios from other hotel programs to Aeroplan are terrible and not worth considering.
• Related links: Aeroplan redemption guide 1, Aeroplan redemption guide 2.

You can now transfer Membership Rewards to Aeroplan Air Canada miles with a 10%-20% bonus, effectively improving the ratio to 1:1.1-1.2. Details below:

• Promotion details: You can now transfer Membership Rewards to Aeroplan Air Canada miles with a 10%-20% bonus, effectively improving the ratio to 1:1.1-1.2. Unfortunately, this offer is targeted only to select users; some received 10% and some received 20%.
• My take: Aeroplan miles are quite useful for flights between China and the U.S. and between the U.S. and Europe, and round-trip awards can include two stopovers. Taking U.S.–Europe flights as an example, a one-way business class award from the U.S. to Western Europe costs only 55,000 miles, which is better than UA's 57,500 one-way rate (or 70,000 for Star Alliance partners), AA's 57,500 one-way rate, and DL's 70,000 one-way rate. Transfers to Aeroplan can post instantly, so booking is pretty convenient. Note that only a limited number of transfers can be made per day, so it is best to plan ahead.
• Related links: Aeroplan redemption guide 1, Aeroplan redemption guide 2.

Past promotions

• 30% bonus on hotel points transfers to AC miles (extended through September 25, 2019)
• 30% bonus on hotel points transfers to Aeroplan miles (ends April 26)
• 20%-30% bonus on hotel points transfers to Aeroplan miles (3/13-4/17)
• 20%-30% bonus on hotel points transfers to Aeroplan miles (11/7-12/12)
• Hotel points transfer bonus to Aeroplan

• Bonus details: From 11/7-12/31, transferring hotel points to Asia Miles earns a 50% bonus, with the bonus points posting by March 31. Eligible hotel programs include Club Carlson, Hilton, IHG, Hyatt, and other common hotel points programs, but not Marriott or SPG. See here for the detailed ratios.
• My take: Since this promotion does not include Marriott or SPG, the two most valuable transfer partners, OneMoreDay does not recommend this transfer unless you have a specific immediate need. Asia Miles uses a distance-based award chart, making it a good fit for short-haul flights. For more details, see Introduction to Asia Miles.
• Related links: Asia Miles official promotion page; Introduction to Asia Miles.

Past promotions

• 30% bonus on hotel points transfers to Asia Miles (12/1-2/28)

25% bonus on hotel points transfers to AA miles

• Bonus details: From 4/28-6/15, transferring hotel points to AA miles earns a 25% bonus. Eligible hotel programs include SPG, Marriott, Club Carlson, Hilton, IHG, Hyatt, Choice, and other common hotel points programs. See here for the detailed ratios.
• My take: AA miles are great for redeeming one-way business class between China and the U.S. on Cathay Pacific or Japan Airlines (70,000), as well as one-way Japan Airlines first class between Japan and the U.S. (80,000). Under this promotion, the best-value options are: transferring SPG points to miles, redeeming Marriott Travel Packages, and transferring Choice points to miles. If you have a small number of SPG points, every 20,000 SPG points can become (20,000+5,000)*1.25=31,250 AA miles. If you have a large balance of SPG points (at least 90,000 SPG points), then converting them to 270,000 Marriott points and redeeming for a travel package (7 nights cat 1-5 + 150,000 AA miles) is an even better option, and the miles are enough for two Cathay Pacific business class tickets between China and the U.S. If you picked up Choice points at 0.4c via Daily Getaways today (4/28), this promo lets you transfer CP points to AA miles at a 5000:1250 ratio, which means your cost per AA mile is 1.6c—the lowest cost to buy AA miles that I have seen. For more on Choice points, see Introduction to Choice points.
• Related links: Marriott Travel Package guide 1, Marriott Travel Package guide 2, Marriott Travel Package guide 3, Introduction to Choice points, AA miles analysis, How to redeem AA miles for Cathay Pacific and Japan Airlines flights.

20% bonus on Marriott points transfers to AA:

• Bonus details: From 10/15-11/14, both direct Marriott transfers and Marriott Travel Package conversions to AA miles receive a 20% bonus.
• My take: The direct transfer ratio improves from 5:1 to 4:1, but it is still poor. This really only makes sense via Marriott Travel Packages. After accounting for the 7 hotel nights, the remaining Marriott points are effectively transferred to AA at 1:1.2; even if you do not use the hotel stay, the conversion ratio is still 2:1.2.
• Related links: AA official explanation of this promotion; Marriott Travel Package Guide 1, Marriott Travel Package Guide 2; Using AA miles

25% transfer bonus when converting AMEX Membership Rewards to JetBlue points

• Points needed: Membership Rewards (MR);
• Registration link: No registration needed; just log in to your MR account and you should see it;
• Transfer bonus: 25%, improving from 1.25:1 to 1:1;
• Deadline: 11/30/2017;
• My take: Unlike miles from the major airlines, JetBlue points are tied to ticket prices, so they have a relatively fixed value of about 1.5 cents/pt. If you have a JetBlue co-branded credit card, the extra 10% points rebate can bring the value up to about 1.6 cents/pt. OneMoreDay does not recommend stockpiling points, but if you have an immediate redemption need, you can transfer MR points to JetBlue points.
• Related links: Membership Rewards guide.

• 30% bonus on converting hotel points to UA miles (2019 10/12-11/30)
• 30% bonus on converting hotel points to UA miles (10/12-11/30)
• 25% bonus on converting Marriott points to UA miles (10/12-11/30)

• Bonus details: After registering for this promotion, hotel points converted to UA miles between 10/12 and 11/30 receive a bonus of at least 25%, up to 20,000 bonus miles. The bonus will appear in your UA account by January 30, 2017. Marriott, IHG, and SPG receive a 25% bonus; Club Carlson 40%; Choice Hotel 50%.
• My take: For most hotel programs, the transfer ratio to UA is quite poor and not worth considering. The one exception is converting via a Marriott Travel Package. Since it already comes with a 10% UA mileage bonus, plus this additional 25% UA bonus, it can be a pretty good deal.
• Related links: Registration link for the UA 25% promotion; Marriott Travel Package Guide 1, Marriott Travel Package Guide 2; Using UA miles

Previous promotions

• 25% bonus on converting Marriott points to UA miles (ends 3/31/2016)

• Bonus details: Through June 16, transfers of Ultimate Rewards points to British Airways miles receive a 30% bonus. Normally the transfer ratio is 1:1 to BA miles, but with this promotion it becomes 1:1.3.
• My take: BA miles are one of the best sweet spots in oneworld for short-haul flights, and the cost to cancel when plans change is especially low, making them great when your travel plans are still uncertain. For more details, see Introduction to British Airways Avios (1) - Award Redemptions. Since UR transfers to BA are instant, you can first confirm the award space you need with BA, then transfer points and book. BA miles are distance-based, so they are especially useful for nonstop flights. Business class costs 2x the miles of economy, and first class costs 3x, so economy redemptions are usually the best deal, especially nonstop AA domestic flights.
• Related links: Introduction to British Airways Avios (1) - Award Redemptions, Chase Ultimate Rewards guide

35% bonus when converting hotel points to BA miles (9/22-10/31)

• Bonus details: Through 10/31, transfers of hotel points to British Airways miles receive a 35% bonus. You can see the pre-bonus transfer ratios here. For example, if you transfer 20,000 SPG points to BA miles, you would receive 25,000 miles, and with the 35% bonus that becomes 33,750.
• My take: BA miles are one of the best sweet spots in oneworld for short-haul flights, and the cost to cancel when plans change is especially low, making them great when your travel plans are still uncertain. For more details, see Introduction to British Airways Avios (1) - Award Redemptions. As with many previous transfer bonuses, the best uses this time are direct transfers from SPG (good if you have relatively few SPG or Marriott points) and Marriott Travel Packages (good if you have a larger SPG or Marriott balance). For more details, see ymlulu’s Marriott Travel Package Guide 1 and Marriott Travel Package Guide 2.
• Related links: Marriott Travel Package Guide 1, Marriott Travel Package Guide 2; Introduction to British Airways Avios (1) - Award Redemptions

Past offers

• 35% bonus when transferring hotel points to BA miles (2016.2-3)

AMEX Membership Rewards to Etihad 30% bonus

• Points needed: Membership Rewards (MR)
• Registration link: No registration required; just log in to your MR account and you should see it
• Transfer bonus: 30%, increasing from 1:1 to 1:1.3
• Expiration date: 6/15/2016
• About Etihad miles: One big advantage is redeeming partner flights, especially AA flights. For US-China routes, Etihad used AA's old award chart (see here): 35,000 in economy, 55,000 in business, and 67,500 in first class. That is much better than redeeming with AA's own devalued miles. A round-trip business class ticket on Brussels Airlines between New York and Brussels costs only a little over 36,000 miles (yes, you read that right: business class, round trip! With the 30% bonus, that's only 28,000 MR points). Of course, redeeming for Etihad's world-class first class is also a great use. The downsides are also obvious: high fuel surcharges, and award tickets can only be booked by phone. Based on FT data points, the US phone agents are not very reliable, while calling the UK line (+44 0345 6081225) tends to work much better.
• My take: If you have already decided you want to try Etihad first class once and enjoy the onboard shower and private suite, then transferring during this bonus promotion could make sense. As for redeeming AA flights between the US and China, I would suggest calling first to check award space and ask about fuel surcharges before making a decision.

AMEX Membership Rewards to HawaiianMiles 25% bonus

• Points needed: Membership Rewards (MR)
• Registration link: No registration required; just log in to your MR account and you should see it
• Transfer bonus: 25%, increasing from 1:1 to 1:1.25
• Expiration date: 6/21/2017
• My take: Although Hawaiian Airlines has quite a few partners, including AA, Korean Air, ANA, etc., its miles are usually most valuable when redeemed for Hawaiian's own flights. Inter-island flights start at 7,500 miles one-way, and North America to Hawaii costs 20,000 in economy / 40,000 in business one-way. You can find the award chart here. If you have a use for these miles, don't miss it.

Past offers:

• AMEX Membership Rewards to Hawaiian Miles 25% bonus (ended October 7, 2019)

• Offer details: Transfer Membership Rewards (MR) or Citi ThankYou Points to Virgin Atlantic miles and receive a 30% bonus. The boosted ratio is 1:1.3. This offer should be visible to everyone.
• Expiration date: 7/1/2019
• My take: Redeeming VS miles for Delta business class round-trip flights back to China requires 120,000 miles. With this bonus, that works out to about 92,300 MR points, which is still somewhat better than transferring to ANA for a US-China business class round trip at 95,000+YQ. The downside is that the itinerary must be entirely on Delta, and you need to call VS customer service to ticket it. ANA first class round-trip from the East Coast to Japan costs only 120,000 miles, and from the West Coast to Japan only 110,000 miles, which works out to about 92,300 / 84,600 MR points. For more details, see Introduction to Virgin Atlantic Miles (1). If you have a use case, this is worth considering.
• Related articles: Introduction to Virgin Atlantic Miles (1). A real-world example of redeeming Virgin Atlantic for Delta One

【2019.5 update】Right now, transferring Citi ThankYou Points to Virgin Atlantic miles comes with a 30% bonus. The boosted ratio is 1:1.3, and the expiration date is 6/22/2019. Detailed analysis is below:

• Offer details: Transfer Citi ThankYou Points to Virgin Atlantic miles and receive a 30% bonus. The boosted ratio is 1:1.3. This offer is visible to everyone and does not require registration.
• Expiration date: 6/22/2019
• About VS miles: One advantage is that VS points can be used for Delta round-trip flights between the US and China at 80,000 in economy and 120,000 in business. Redeeming 110,000-140,000 for ANA first class is also an excellent deal. Domestic US flight redemptions can also be worthwhile. The downside is that you may have to pay high fuel surcharges.
• My take: If you have a large balance of TYP and expect to need one of the flight types above soon, this could be a good time to transfer your TYP to VS.
• Related links: Link to this offer; How to use Virgin Atlantic (VS) points; A real-world example of redeeming Virgin Atlantic for Delta One

Past offers:

• AMEX Membership Rewards to Virgin Atlantic 30% bonus (2017.11)
• AMEX Membership Rewards to Virgin Atlantic 30% bonus (2017)
• Citi ThankYou Points to Virgin Atlantic 25% bonus (2017.3)
• AMEX Membership Rewards to Virgin Atlantic 30% bonus (2016)
• Citi ThankYou Points to Virgin Atlantic 25% bonus (2016.4)

AMEX Membership Rewards to Starpoints 50% bonus (targeted offer)

• Bonus details: From 10/17-11/17, transferring MR to SPG came with a 50% bonus, improving the transfer ratio from 3:1 to 2:1. Only some AMEX Platinum cardholders who received an email were eligible for this offer. You could tell whether you were targeted by the transfer ratio shown in your account, and no separate registration was required.
• My take: Normally, even a 2:1 MR-to-SPG transfer is not a good deal. The exception is if you need to redeem a Marriott Travel Package and want to generate more airline miles. In that case, this can be worthwhile. That's because 2MR=1SPG=3Marriott=3 airline miles with many programs. This can be even better when combined with a current UA 25% bonus or AA 20% bonus, further increasing the effective return. Of course, it all depends on whether you actually need airline miles.
• Related links: Guide to Using Membership Rewards; Guide to Using SPG Points; Marriott Travel Package Guide 1, Marriott Travel Package Guide 2;

33% bonus for transferring AMEX Membership Rewards to Hilton points (1: 2.01)

• Offer details: From 10/25/2017 to 12/15/2017, transferring AMEX Membership Rewards points to Hilton points comes with a 33% bonus, increasing the transfer ratio from 1: 1.5 to 1: 2.01. All MR users are eligible for this bonus.
• My take: From a valuation perspective, MR points are worth about 1.6c each, so even at a 1: 2.01 ratio, transferring to HH points worth about 0.4c each is generally not a great deal. However, if you urgently need Hilton points, especially to top off for the fifth-night-free benefit, it can still make sense to transfer (I’ve personally transferred at 1: 1.5 before). After all, points only have value when you use them. Hilton points are still quite powerful in Asia, where redemption value is often much higher than in the U.S. Even in major U.S. downtown areas, such as Times Square in New York on New Year’s Eve, you can sometimes still get solid value.
• Related links: Guide to Using Membership Rewards; Guide to Using Hilton Points

ThankYou Points to Hilton Points 50% bonus (1:2)

• Offer details: From 11/15/2016 to 2/8/2017, transferring ThankYou Points to Hilton points comes with a % bonus, increasing the transfer ratio from 1: 1.5 to 1: 2. All TYP users (those with Prestige or Premier) are eligible.
• My take: From a valuation perspective, TYP points are worth about 1.5c each, so even at a 1: 2 ratio, transferring to HH points worth about 0.5c each is generally not a great deal. However, if you urgently need Hilton points, especially to top off for the fifth-night-free benefit, it can still make sense to transfer (I’ve personally transferred at 1: 1.5 before). After all, points only have value when you use them. Hilton points are still quite powerful in Asia, where redemption value is often much higher than in the U.S. Even in major U.S. downtown areas, such as Times Square in New York on New Year’s Eve, you can sometimes still get solid value.
• Related links: Guide to Using Hilton Points

• Offer details: No registration required. From now through 12/31, transfer MR points to Plenti points and receive a 50% bonus, increasing the transfer ratio from 1: 1 to 1: 1.5.
• My take: Plenti points can be redeemed at AT&T (not for monthly bills, but you can buy phones), Exxon, and Macy's at 1 point = 1 cent. That means this transfer effectively gets you 1.5c/p in value from MR points. If you have a large MR balance, don’t have near-term travel plans, and frequently buy gas at Exxon or shop at Macy's and AT&T, this can be a reasonable way to get some value from your points.
• Related links: Guide to Using Membership Rewards