In today's episode, we'll talk about Amex Platinum shutting down paths for earning Delta airline fee credits, Google Hotels adding price drop alerts, and all the many paths that still exist for free cruises in 2026.

Main Event: Cruising for free

Giant Mailbag

(01:07) - Greg gets corrected about Bilt point accelerator vs Rent Day...

Crazy Thing: Capital One Shopping

(03:27) - Capital One brings Gmail to a crawl

Read more about the unfortunate Capital One slow gmail issue here

Bonvoyed: Amex Airline Fee Reimbursements

(08:48) - Delta tricks are dead

Read our resource for Amex airline fee credits and what still works

Awards, Points, and More

(13:15) - Google Hotels adds price tracking

(17:02) - Melio (pay bills with credit card)

Learn more about Melio here

(19:01) - Chase Travel℠ Points Boost increased to 2.5cpp for a few select properties

(21:21) - Guide to booking Preferred Hotels with points (Updated)

Find our updated resource for booking Preferred Hotels online here

(25:24) - Tools for finding point-bookable events (auctions and buy it now)

Visit the discover tools Pointsevents.com and Pointauctions.com

Main Event: Cruising for free

(29:33) - Learn more about cruising for free in 2026 here

(30:44) - There are three main options for free cruises in 2026

(31:08) - Land-based casino loyalty programs & matches

(36:26) - Why do casino elite statuses matter for free cruises?

(49:00) - Cruise line direct match opportunities for “free” cruises

(1:07:09) - Gambling on board might yield a free cruise

Subscribe and Follow

Visit https://frequentmiler.com/subscribe/ to get updated on in-depth points and miles content like this, and don’t forget to like and follow us on social media.

Music Credit – “Ocean Deep” by Annie Yoder

Mentioned in this episode:

Visit FrequentMiler.com

Did you know that Frequent Miller is also a website? At frequentMiller.com, you'll find all the latest deals, news about points, miles, and rewarding credit cards, the single best, Best Credit Cards page on the web, guides to all popular rewards programs, and many other terrific resources. If you'd like to get our posts sent to your email, go to frequentMiller.com/subscribe and sign up for free.

https://frequentmiler.com/subscribe/

Check out all of our other travel podcasts from around the world

This podcast is part of Voyascape, a podcast network that brings together the world's best travel podcasts. You can find all of our podcasts from around the world at Voyascape.com. If you are interested in advertising or sponsored content on any of our shows you can find out more at the link below.

Voyascape Podcast Network