Great Deal on Bose QuietComfort 20, Amex Playing It Smart For Long-Term Customers, All About the Apple Watch Series 3, and More!

It has been a couple of weeks since the last summary post, partially because the previous week was a little bit on the lite side. We have had family in town and that always cuts down on my regular posting times of day (or, rather, night) but it is certainly enjoyable having family visit!

A Word on the Olive Garden Italy Pass and Pasta Pass

This last couple of weeks had some more deals and running centric posts. One of the more popular posts had to do with the Olive Garden Pasta Pass. Believe it or not, in our family and all the devices, we actually were able to get a total of 4 but did not end up buying them all.

Part of that was thanks to their incredibly messed up payment processing. Not only that, but the timer was so far messed up that among all 12 of our devices (and even on a few different networks), we had a 17 second differential! We were all trying for the Italy Pass and that of course did not happen because of their messed up timing. We did have one person make it to the waiting room!

Miles, Points, and Deals

• A New SPG Transfer Bonus Is Here – But the Alternative Is Better – There is another SPG transfer bonus out but you should really think about this one before pulling the trigger.
• New Nationwide Southwest Sale from $39 or 1,660 Points – This is one of those Southwest sales that lasts for a couple of weeks so you are still good to go if you want to snag a fare.
• Top Credit Cards for Non-Bonus Spend and Give-A-Way – This post marked Dustin’s 1 year anniversary of contributing here on the blog! He has written some great stuff over that time and I always appreciate his take on things (even if it is different from mine). His posts always have more comments than many of mine as well so I am glad you enjoy engaging with him!
• American Express Is Smartly Balancing Their Once-Per-Lifetime Policy – This post got some people unhappy! The truth is that the rules are here and it is up to us to try and maximize what we can with these rules in place. It does seem that Amex is rolling out their plans to keep customers long term and I am ok with this particular move.
• Apple Making A Big Push With Apple Watch 3 For Runners – This was written before Apple announced and this post shows the evolution of Apple with the watch as it takes aim at runners and other established wearable companies in this space. They will have to keep upping their game because Garmin has been doing an incredible job!
• Great Deal On Bose QuietComfort 20 Earbuds – Fantastic Noise Cancelling Earbuds! – This deal is still ongoing so definitely check it out! While refurbished, it is the best deal I have ever seen on the black pair for either Samsung or Apple!
• The 2018 Boston Marathon Registration Is Now Open – What You Need To Know – It’s that time of year – the Boston Marathon registration is open! Hopefully all of you who enter will get positive confirmation!
• How To Get Your Hilton Surpass Referrals – And Leave Them Here! – This is one of the best ways to continue to earn Hilton points so definitely grab your referral links!
• Book Your Flights for the 2018 Boston Marathon Now! – Even though you may not know if you are in yet or now, this is a perfect time to book these flights so find out why and get booking!
• Apple Watch Series 3 Or Garmin – Is The Apple Watch Series 3 Enough? – And here we go! This post outlines what is new about the Apple Watch Series 3 and if it stacks up well against the Garmin brand. Garmin has been releasing some awesome watches so Apple really has quite a job matching up on the running/tri space.
• Olive Garden Is Selling an All-Inclusive Trip to Italy For $200 – But You Won’t Buy It – Let me know if you ended up getting one of these 50 passes!
• Hotel Review: Hyatt Place Columbus/Dublin – Dustin shows how Hyatt Place hotels can give extreme value that rivals the luxury properties – while costing you a lot less in points!
• New Amex Offer: Get Thousands of Amex Points With Nest Smart Home Devices – This week, Nest is making some big announcement so save this offer if you are interested!
• The Olive Garden Never Ending Pasta Pass Goes On Sale Soon – 22,000 passes were for sale and we had 4 in our carts. How did you do?
• Good Deal on DJI Mavic Pro Drone – Perfect for Travel Video/Photo – Drones have become very popular and this particular drone is fantastic for travel while balancing some pretty great images! Check out this deal if you are in the market for one of these!
• Great Deals on Garmin GPS Watches – Speaking of Garmin watches, here are some great deals on excellent models!
• Chase Has Made It Easier to Get Your Referral Links – Like Amex, Chase has now made it easier than ever to grab you referral link and get started signing people up while earning points yourself.
• Is United Penalizing Regular Members to Give More Award Value to Cardholders/Elite Members? – The expanded award availability is a perk for credit cardholders and elite members but it does seem that United is going too far with this as this perk penalizes regular members.
• The Apple Watch Series 3 With Cellular Is Not For International Travel – And one more bit about the Apple Watch Series 3 – if you wanted that great cellular capability to cut the cord a bit while traveling, you will be disappointed.

And that is it for the past couple of weeks! Hope the rest of this week goes well for all of you!