Bonus Points from RocketMiles

Earn 2,014 Extra Miles for New RocketMile Customers!

To celebrate the new year, RocketMiles and Jet Blue are bringing an awesome bonus to whoever books a room between now and January 31st for a stay up until 5/31/14. If you use this promotion link to sign up for Rocket Miles as a new customer and book your first room in the time frame, you will receive 2,014 TrueBlue points in your JetBlue account!

As we have discussed before, this is almost half way to a free ticket using True Blue points. Unfortunately there isn't a TrueBlue badge associated with this partnership, but maybe in the future!

In the mean time, a the entire month of January is plenty of time to work these bonus points into your spring travel plans. I personally haven't used RocketMiles yet but am hoping to see if I can make it fit for some April plans I am just about to book! 

 - John

JetBlue Card from American Express

The Best Ticket to Free Flights

The JetBlue card from American Express is the only branded credit card that JetBlue offers for customers in the US. As a smaller airline, it doesn't have multiple versions of the card or others through Visa or MasterCard. While this can be somewhat disappointing for those looking to churn multiple credit cards or load up on sign-on bonuses, there are several reasons why this card is a better deal than most others and a great card to have in your wallet.

The Card

The card itself is nothing special - as of writing it has a 15.29% APR and a $0 introductory fee, with an annual $40 fee every year after the first. As far as annual fees are concerned, this is definitely cheaper than most cards that offer good rewards, which may be in the $70-90 yearly fee range, especially from Amex. This makes it an attractive option to keep around even if one wanted to churn it, since the upkeep is so minimal and the benefits can definitely pay for themselves quickly. Late payment fees are up to $35. I was given an $8,500 limit initially on the card, but that may vary depending on the applicant. The card itself is a normal, thin, plastic card and chooses not to go for the weighted or chipped option that many high end credit cards today gravitate towards, simply because this is not meant to be a status symbol or a conversation starter. It's a card with good benefits, low fees, and helps with obtaining cheap flights - much like JetBlue itself.

The Benefits

Outside of all the standard American Express benefits and great customer service, the Jet Blue from American Express also offers a 20,000 point bonus when $1,000 is spent in the first three months. This may seem small compared to the 30-75,000 point offers on many other airline cards, but don't forget that JetBlue offers regional and domestic flights starting at 5,000 points (and roundtrips at 10,000 points) so this $200 can be stretched pretty far.

Purchases from JetBlue.com are also eligible to receive 8pts/dollar and all other purchases earn 1pts/dollar. This is a really great return when booking with JetBlue and one of the highest payouts from any branded credit card. If the qualifying $1,000 was spent at JetBlue, that'd bring the total bonus up to 28,000 points which gives a lot of options towards free flight bookings or heavily discounted airfare options.

One of my favorite benefits is 50% off in flight purchases - that's half off food, alcoholic beverages, and whatever else you need to make the flight memorable (or forgettable). The discount is returned as statement credit and makes it reasonable to order food and drink on a plane and not feel ripped off. A fantastic option to have in your utility belt for you or your flying companions.

Finally, cardholders can receive a $50 statement credit per year when they purchase a JetBlue Getaway vacation package. These bundles are usually a really great value and knocking $50 off the price tag only makes them a better deal.

The Badge

By far the coolest part of getting the JetBlue from Amex is that it ties into the TrueBlue badge program. After you get through the first few levels of badges, earning them becomes a lot more difficult and this is a nice bonus. It took me over a month to get my badge to come through after receiving my card, but it was worth the wait!

Blue's News Dec 25th

What's new with JetBlue 

Post by JetBlue Airways.

• Merry Christmas! JetBlue has really been getting into the festive mood with their song 'Twas the Night Before a JetBlue Flight and an info-graphic about their holiday season flights.

• On Tuesday, JetBlue celebrated with the JetBlue Foundation and acknowledged the recipients of $75,000 in grants towards pursuing STEM education in avionics. 

• Time covers the story that JetBlue won't be allowing in flight calls, although using your phone for other activities is sanctioned.

- John

How Does Jet Blue Fly for the Season?

Cheap, affordable, great service, but also...

Credit to BlueTales for the awesome infographic.

Blue's News Dec 18

What's new with JetBlue

• 'Twas the Night Before a JetBlue Flight

• An important review of how flying, specifically with delays and weather related cancellations, will change after new rules for pilots go into affect on Jan. 5 from the perspective of a pilot.
  
  
• Another review of JetBlue's new Fly-Fi, the fastest internet in the airline industry.
  
  
• BlueTales offers some fantastic travel tips for taking elderly loved ones with you this holiday season.

- John

$15 off JetBlue Holiday Flights!

Get Money Back on Your Already Cheap Airfare

To help with the holiday rush of flights, JetBlue is adding some new planes to their roster starting December 19 through January 6. Unfortunately, these planes have yet to be fitted with JetBlue's LiveTV system. This means that per JetBlue policy, you're entitled at a $15 redemption from your flight ticket. With the FAA allowing electronics for use during whole flights and the amazing tablets, laptops, and phones we have, missing some basic cable on a flight isn't as big of a deal as it once was. Plus, JetBlue will be throwing in some complimentary books, magazines, and playing cards to make sure you don't get too bored on your flight to see your loved ones.

If you haven't booked yet or want to change your flight to take advantage of this free money back, try to get on one of these flights:

Flight Number	Origin/Destination
B6 #3	New York City, NY/San Juan, PR
B6 #4	San Juan, PR/New York City, NY
B6 #661	New York City, NY/Bridgetown, Barbados
B6 #662	Bridgetown, Barbados/New York City, NY
B6 #1103	New York City, NY/San Juan, PR
B6 #1204	San Juan, PR/New York City, NY
B6 #1601	New York City, NY/Fort Lauderdale, FL
B6 #1802	Fort Lauderdale, FL/New York City, NY

Just remember that not all of these flights will be on the new TV-less A321 aircraft - but the odds aren't bad!

- John

Fly-Fi Still Looking Great

12 Mbps (Mega-bytes per seat) 

It wasn't too long ago that JetBlue's Fly-Fi got it's first real test with decent, but not great, reviews. Not too long later they decided to up the ante for a stress test: a flight full of blogging, streaming, Instagramming journalists on a flight that started and ended at JFK for the sole purpose of putting the wireless internet to the test. Not bad for a budget airline.

So what did Engadget have to say? "...the connection was much faster on the plane than it was in the JFK terminal..." which to me is a fairly impressive statement to make about in-flight wifi. Zach, from Engadget, was able to load 720p YouTube videos with only a moment or two of buffering and if it truly was faster than on the ground at JFK, color me impressed.

In addition to the A320s that currently have Fly-Fi, 737s have also begun to be equipped with the service thanks to JetBlue's subsidiary LiveTV. For the time being, Big Blue is still the only airline, let alone the only cheap airline, that is offering these types of speeds for a fair $9 per hour - but that's only if you want to use high definition streaming. Until June 2014, using Fly-Fi for plain old browsing the Internet will be free, as in beer. 

So if you're waiting to board your always affordable flight purchased through JetBlue and see the logo above by the boarding door entrance, you're in for a treat! Relax and enjoy cutting edge Wi-Fi speeds for free courtesy of JetBlue. For more information and FAQ, visit the JetBlue Fly-Fi page.

I'm hoping I get to try it out on my next flight out of JFK, but if have tried it let me know what you think!

Update: Check out BlueTales to find out what flights in the next 24 hours will have Fly-Fi onboard!

 - John

Blue's News Dec 10

What's new with JetBlue

• Thanksgiving may be over and done, but that just means we're in the official holiday season! If you're flying through T5 to get to your family and loved ones, there are a couple seasonal changes to the airport that can make your travel less crazy: roaming carolers, a photo booth, the new Airspace Lounge, and of course a free adult beverage with the JetBlue American Express card on your flight. Check out this and more tips for safe budget holiday flight info at BlueTales.

• Also at T5, until December 20th, Kate Spade is setting up a special pop-up installation to brighten up the decor and will be giving away free prizes!

Post by JetBlue Airways.

• Don't forget you can donate your TrueBlue points that you aren't using on airfare and have double the impact this holiday season thanks to JetBlue matching donations!

• That's all for this week! Stay tuned for an upcoming detailed post on the JetBlue Amex, which I have been waiting to post points to my TrueBlue account for quite some time.

- John

Congress's Air Tax: An Unfair Proposition?

JetBlue Is Against the Proposed Tax Hike

According to BlueTales, on a $300 round trip ticket 20% of the cost, on average, does to fees and taxes imposed upon the aviation industry. Currently flying is taxed under the same sinful area as tobacco and alcohol. Now, Congress is proposing a 100% increase on a TSA tax, from $2.50 to $5.00 and the White house is in support of tripling it. This increase is meant to tackle budget deficits, but has no actual correlation with increased security or personnel hires within the TSA.

A few facts about the current situation:

• From 2007 to 2012, the TSA budget increased 19% even though the number of screens performed dropped by 11%.
• The aviation industry is subject to 17 different federal and state taxes.
• Last year passengers paid nearly $2 billion in security taxes when flying.

Is there a lot more to this than meets the eye? That always tends to be the case when it comes to politics and matters of policy. In this case though, this seems to be a transparent grab at funding increasing for an arm of the government whose usefulness has already been called into question in recent years despite more and more money getting pumped into the TSA's coffers. There is no apparent or explicit benefit that we, as passengers, could be gaining by this increase in security tax. It puts strains on the already fragile airline industry, drives up already expensive ticket prices, and sets a dangerous precedent for future moves of similar nature. 

If you'd like to speak out to your representative about your feelings on the tax, you can do so easily at Stop Air Tax Now and stand up with Airlines for America, the Consumer Travel Alliance, IATA, ALPA, and RAA to oppose the additional taxes. I have taken the short amount of time needed to voice my opinion and hope you do too! Traveling shouldn't have to be un-affordable by way of taxes and now is an opportunity to prevent rising costs.

 - John

Donating Frequent Flier Points

JetBlue Lets You Use Points for Good

One of my favorite aspects of Jet Blue is their dedication to being a socially conscious business. All big companies will engage in the occasional non-profit work for public relations and to spread general goodwill, but certain organizations seem to go above and beyond by consistently finding new and innovative ways to give back.

Case and point, as the anniversary of Hurricane Sandy has come and gone, leaving much of JetBlue's home city of NYC still in recovery, JetBlue is allowing customers to donate money to AmeriCares and matching dollar for dollar (point) up to $25,000.

If there ever was a great use for unused airline points, a dollar matching towards a wonderful organization is one of them. AmeriCares is a diasaster relief non-profit that works to give humanitarian aid in the US and around the world. So far, they have given $3 million towards Haiyan relief.

Many homes and businesses in NYC are still struggling to rebuild and make ends meet even though the storm was a year ago. This is a wonderful gesture towards the home that JetBlue proudly has in NYC and as New Yorker myself am very touched by their efforts. If you points to spare, you have until December 31st to make the donation.

 - John

Blue's News - Dec 4

What's new with JetBlue

• Hope you had a good Thanksgiving! I'm back after a quick break spending time with the family, and was so pleasantly surprised to come back to the Truly Thankful JetBlue badge when I logged back in! A free badge, closer to your next level of TrueBlue!

• And since Thanksgiving is over, the holiday season is officially in full gear. Check out some ridiculously cheap $49 flights and $149 Getaway packages for a limited time.

• Finally, JetBlue starts servicing Port-au-Prince, Haiti tomorrow. Having been there myself, I have to say it's an incredible country for a number of reasons and one of the most life changing trips I've been on!

Post by JetBlue Airways.

Blue's News - Nov 27

What's new with JetBlue

• Engadget has a great review on JetBlue's maiden voyage of its new Fly-Fi, the fastest internet service in the industry! A full breakdown of speeds and glitches experienced are detailed in the writeup - and the outlook is quite good for the new service!

• JetBlue's annual Swing for Good golf tournament brought in a whopping $500,000 for their partner charities, KaBOOM! and First Book who will be splitting the proceeds evenly. This kind of effort from a company is one of the reasons why I love JetBlue! If you participated you'll have qualified for the Bluemanity badge!

• Forbes decided that Jet Blue is the worst airline for holiday travel, by looking at percentage of late and delayed flights. Since JetBlue is based out of the Northeast, and the top airline is based out of...Hawaii, I think it is safe to say it depends more on where you're going than who you're flying in the winter! To each their own, I suppose.

Jet Blue Joins TSA Pre✓™

Faster Security for Select Customers

Jetblue now supports the TSA Pre✓™ program, where select fliers can go through a less strict, faster version of TSA screening in the airport. Benefits usually include shorter lines, not having to remove your jacket/shoes, and so on. Although this is a free service, you must be a part of a "trusted traveler" program or a member of the  U.S. Armed Forces . Simply input your ID from the eligible organization when booking your flight to have the status added.

Currently, the TSA Pre✓™ boarding pass is only available through JetBlue's mobile app and not available to those who print out boarding passes either at home or at the airport. Even if you are not registered as part of  TSA Pre✓™, if you use the mobile app and qualify as a low risk flier you may be awarded the status on your boarding pass. Since most people can't take advantage of being a member of the program, still being eligible and having it automatically added to your e-boarding pass is a really nice feature.

The ability to print TSA Pre✓™ boarding passes at home, kiosks, or service desks in an airport is slated for the first quarter of 2014. In the mean time, the mobile app offers validation that a flier can go through the more swift screening process. At this time, JetBlue offers the service in the following 22 airports:

Austin, Texas	Newark, N.J. (a)
Boston	Oakland, Calif.
Charlotte, N.C.	Orlando, Fla.
Ft Lauderdale, Fla. (a)	Pittsburgh
Hartford, Conn.	Salt Lake City
Houston (Hobby)	San Francisco (a)
Las Vegas	San Juan, Puerto Rico (a)
Long Beach, Calif.	Seattle
Los Angeles	Syracuse, N.Y.
New York (LaGuardia) (a)	Washington, D.C. (Dulles)
New York (JFK)	White Plains, N.Y.

* Airports with (a) do not have dedicated lines but may still offer an abbreviated screening.

Blue's News - Nov 20

What's new with JetBlue

• LifeHacker has a great post on surviving flying for the holidays. From the TSA to the arrival gate, they've got you covered and the comments add in some useful color as well.

• BlueTales offers a look behind the scenes at their Veterans Career Expo in Long Island. It's this Thursday, November 21st from 12-4PM. You can sign up for it at EventBrite for free.
• "Our 2nd annual Veterans' Career Expo is geared toward veterans and their spouses interested in getting a better idea of whatcareer opportunities are available at JetBlue. Representatives from several JetBlue departments (including Finance, Inflight, JetBlue University, Marketing, Operations and many more) will be available to answer questions about their team/function. You will also have the opportunity to speak with veterans who currently work for JetBlue.This session is not specific to any role in particular. For those interested specifically in pilot career information, please register only for the pilot session at: https://pilotvets.eventbrite.com"

• Another post from LifeHacker on bringing an emergency travel pack with you - for the times when life's discomforts start to make travel a horrible experience. Bringing an extra charger, empty water bottle, and magazines are just a few of the items on their list to keep you and those around you happy.

• Until 12/31/13, Jet Blue is offering up to 50% bonus points for all gifted or purchased denominations. The bonus levels are:


• Buy between 5,000 - 9,500 get 20% bonus points
• Buy between 10,000 - 19,500 to get 30% bonus points 
• Buy between 20,000 - 29,500 to get 40% bonus points
• Buy 30,000 to get 50% bonus points

JetBlue Mobile App

For Android and iOS, Jet Blue's Mobile Offerings

Like any hip company these days, JetBlue has a mobile app to pair with their offerings. Unlike many other airline apps *cough* like Delta, this app works well. JetBlue has taken advantage of great, simple design to make an interface that is uniquely its own and uniform across the iOS/Android platforms - something that many apps fail at.

The mobile app allows you to login using your True-blue account to access everything from your rewards information to the weather to the in flight menu. It includes the typical boarding pass and flight information, but also takes strides to include some fun extras and a few features that surprisingly don't exist on every airline's app. Some of the highlights include:

A home screen which shows your upcoming flight, a menu with quick access to flight statuses, settings, a JetBlue customer service line, bag checking, weather, and "fun stuff" including wallpapers and postcards.

Drilling down into the menu, the flight status option gives a clear detail of all key information points for your selected flight. You can opt to receive notifications from the app when there are updates, such as a delay.

The boarding pass is a great option to use if you forgot to print one out or simply prefer to not have to deal with it. I find taking a screenshot of this portion of the app works best when it comes to going through security, on the off chance my phone can't find a signal or decides to be very slow right as I come up to a ticket checker. Most major airports (and many non-major) support scanning phones now for boarding passes. It's one less thing to worry about when traveling and is also great for the environment. 

In the "fun stuff" category, along with wallpapers, comes the option to send a postcard from the app. Tell your friends and family about how great of a time you're having at your destination! This extra feature in the app shows once again how JetBlue 'gets it' when it comes to social media and sharing. Give people a way to express and share their thoughts and feelings and they will happily do so!

Finally, one of the other unique features of the app is a timetable. While it's not hard to find a timetable on any one of dozens of monitors at any given airport, standing in a crowd during high traffic hours can be a pain. There's no reason why I shouldn't be able to simply pull the latest flight timetable up on my phone from where I'm sitting - and JetBlue has provided a way to do so.

There are plenty more great parts of the app (terminal maps, destination city guides, and more), but these are some of the best executed and novel features that truly add value to JetBlue's app when compared to its competitors. Above all, the app just plain works and at the end of the day when it comes to a boarding pass or checking a flight status, that is the most important part of an app like this. Kudos to you, JetBlue, for making an app that's easy to love!

Blue's News - Nov 13

What's new with JetBlue

• In line with the recent announcement of family points pooling, BlueTales posted some tips courtesy of the Huffington Post on how to ensure your family's flights are safe, fun, and well planned.

• Remember Blue's Bravest recent debut over the skylines of Manhattan? The plane is now in service for flights and the reception at the hangar after its maiden flight captures some of the magic from that first day:

• A wedding at T5? Sounds crazy, but it's true! The winners of JetBlue's "Something Blue" contest got married at T5 and then headed to Hawaii for their honeymoon courtesy of JetBlue and Hawaiian Airlines. Check out the romance below:

SoFly

SoFly: JetBlue's Social Media World

It's no surprise that JetBlue has a strong social media presence, part of its target demographic is younger customers. JetBlue has been able to muster a really great tie-in between the customer experience and the company culture through the SoFly program. SoFly acts as a place where JetBlue can share random information, from their service awards to their plane tail designs to interesting statistics. It's also made of customers' social media contributions from destinations, airports, and experiences. These come in the form of tips, Instragrams, and recommendations for food, amenities, and hotels. 

This presents an unprecedented opportunity for customers to truly interact and have an ongoing conversation with an airline. Choice submissions that use such hashtags as #sofly or #jetblue get placed on the SoFly page where they can be seen by everyone. It's a great opportunity to increase your social media account's traffic and just plain cool. It's dynamic, responsive, and customer driven. These are then available to share again on Facebook, re-tweet on Twitter, etc.

An example of an Instragram picture added to SoFly.

At its core, SoFly is an aggregation of all JetBlue social media onto the main website. It's not a revolutionary idea, but goes a long way to truly tie together the experience of planning, traveling, and booking budget flights with JetBlue. No other airline has deployed as sleek, functional, and enjoyable social media experience in this way. SoFly allows customers to be proud of JetBlue and for JetBlue to show off how great of a company they are as well. It'll be interesting to see how this evolves over time and if any other cheap airlines, let alone the big players, adopt a similar program in the future. This is a great first step in improving the chasm that has developed over the year between an airline and its customers having a natural and satisfying dialogue.

ShopTrue is Down!

An Upgrade to ShopTrue

I've been waiting for a few days now to write a post about ShopTrue, a great way to earn an extra badge and get extra True Blue miles just by using the shopping portal to purchase from online retailers like Macy's or Home Depot, but the site's been down. And not the good down - it wouldn't resolve and errored out for the past few days.

It seems like someone finally got on top of that mess, though, and the the ShopTrue URL now leads to this:

So if you've been wondering why the site is down, doesn't work, and is straight broken...this appears to be the reason! A new version of the site will debut sometime in the (hopefully) near future and I'll be posting an update with details when it does - as well as if the name TrueBlue Mall will stick.

Until then, sit tight and try to hold off on any purchases that could otherwise be used to earn points, which may be easier said than done. 

Free Drink for JetBlue Amex Cardholders!

Enjoy a Drink on JetBlue

While many airlines offer a percentage discount off in-flight purchases when using their branded credit card, JetBlue just made holiday travel a lot less hectic by giving away a free wine or beer for all passengers 21+ who can show their American Express JetBlue card on the flight. As usual, all other in flight purchases made with the card are also 50% off. 

Almost makes me wish I lived far enough from my family to fly for the holidays! Check out the post below:

Post by JetBlue Airways.

Blue's News - November 6

What's new with JetBlue

• A friendly reminder why JetBlue is so awesome - they're a low cost airline, but are the complete opposite of Spirit Air, who people love to hate.
  
  
• Yes, the FAA and JetBlue have allowed your iPod and MacBook on the plane for use during the whole flight - but that doesn't mean you can talk on the phone!
  
  
• An article that claims we're the ones ripping off the airline industry...can't say I agree, but an interesting perspective on our state of affairs using historical context.
  
  
• Terminal 5 at JFK now services two new locations through JetBlue: Trinidad and Tobago and Savannah/Hilton Head. Can you say awesome new vacation destinations?!

FAA Says Electronics Okay!

JetBlue Follows FAA Recommendations

It's been a long, long, long time coming: as of November 4th, the FAA has become more lax with their regulations on electronic devices during flights. That means no more furiously eeking out that last text as the stewardess looms down the aisle, no more unplugging your headphones just for takeoff, no more interrupted anything!

Although the FAA's allowance of device usage is great, it still falls into the hands of airlines to implement their own policy in regards to portable electronic usage. Luckily, JetBlue is awesome! Within just hours of the announcement they began letting passengers use their personal devices! In fact, Jet Blue became the first US airline to allow PED (personal electronic devices) during flight on a Buffalo flight that took off that same day.

This is a great example of why JetBlue is such a fantastic airline to fly, you get quality and genuine enthusiasm all for a seriously cheap ticket! What's not to love? 

For the nitty gritty details, the FAA has you covered with an article on their site.

Check out the video for the momentous occasion:

Blue's News - Oct 30

What's new with JetBlue

• This is the last week to enter the J. Crew Factory and JetBlue's promotion is still going on through October! Enter up to once per day to win any JetBlue Getaway destination including:
• Roundtrip airfare on a JetBlue getaway
• Hotel Accommodations
• and a $2,5000 J.Crew Factory shopping spree
  
  
• Are you ready for Hallo-win?  Share a picture on JetBlue's Facebook page by November 2nd and get the most 'likes' to win 100,000 True Blue points! That's the equivalent of 20 domestic flights all for posting a picture on social media - the odds are better for this than most other costumes if you've put some creativity into your costume this year. Happy Halloween!
  
  





• A great sale is going on through 10/30 (today!) for Getaways booked until 12/18/13. All members on the trip can get 30% off the base airfare for a getaway. Usually this kind of discount is only available at the mall! If you have some winter travel coming up, these cheap seats are a great offer to take advantage of.
  
  

Guide to Badges Part III

TrueBlue Badges Part III

In the introduction to badges, I detailed how to sign up and start getting some of your first badges and over 1,000 TrueBlue points in just a few minutes. Then there was the Jet Blue badges guide part II to net you 2,000 points in total. This next installment will cover earning your next few badges....

The Next Four Badges

At this point most of the low hanging fruit has been picked in the badge program. It's been relatively easy to score those 2,000 points without having to make a single purchase or even flight a single mile. Now, though, the level portion of badges begins to come into play as some badges won't be unlocked until you achieve the proper level so progress will be a bit slower and will take more creativity to keep earning for free.

The social media badges are an easy grab as always and Opinionator will require about 10-15 minutes in total to signup and get through a survey or two that you qualify for. I actually stuck with E-Rewards for a while and earned $25 worth of credit on their site, which translates to 500 more True Bleu miles. It took a bit longer than I expected, about 1-2 weeks by doing one survey per day (many I didn't qualify for) and I wouldn't say it's the most effective method for earning free points. It is a direct and reliable source, though, if you're only a few hundred points behind on a reward flight but don't want to spend any cash to buy miles. 

Another unique badge is ShopTrue. While this does require a purchase, which I try t stay away from for the sake of these guides, Shop True has a great selection of stores (Macy's, Home Depot, etc.) so it shouldn't be too hard to find an occasion to purchase through the portal. No points to be earned here with the badge, but your qualifying purchase will earn you at least 1pt/dollar if not more - so the earning potential here is up to you. This will also help moving up towards the next level, where more social media badges lie waiting.

That's 450+ points for these badges (and 950+ if you commit to doing E-Rewards) to round out at almost 3,000 points without flying a single mile! That's 3/5 of the way towards a domestic one way flight via reward points and we've still got plenty more free miles to earn so be sure to check out part IV coming soon.

 - John

JetBlue: Cheap, Satisfying Flights

An Airline's Survey is Telling

After my most recent flight with JetBlue, I received an email a few days later asking if I wanted to take a customer satisfaction survey. These days, surveys of this sort aren't uncommon: almost any interaction with a customer service rep will lead in an optional survey, viewing many companies' websites will prompt a random poll on feedback, and many businesses will call you to check up after a new purchase (like with my latest web domain purchase). 

Despite the popularity and pervasiveness of this, it seems as though airlines have always been willing to sit back and take feedback from those who speak the loudest - the ones who go out of their way to compliment service or deride delays angrily over social media or through customer service hotlines.

JetBlue's inclusion of a customer happiness survey illustrates that despite their cheap and affordable prices, they still highly value feedback and aim to improve their standards as an airline. In itself, this is not a huge step up, but rather shows attention to detail on JetBlue's part. Much like with their TrueBlue program, in flight amenities, and fair pricing, a little bit can go a long way when the time is taken to treat the customer well and keep our best interest in mind. 

While I secretly hoped to be rewarded with a badge or extra points at the end of the survey, I didn't mind as it was a well developed questionnaire with brief length, easy controls, and the data it asked for seemed relevant without being too detailed or laborious to recall. 

Blue's News - Oct 23

What's new with JetBlue

• J. Crew Factory and JetBlue's promotion is still going on through October! Enter up to once per day to win any JetBlue Getaway destination including:
• Roundtrip airfare on a JetBlue getaway
• Hotel Accommodations 
• and a $2,5000 J.Crew Factory shopping spree
  
  
• Terminal 5 at JFK in NYC turns five! A lot has happened with Jet Blue and other airlines at the youngest terminal over the last few years, including the new Airspace Lounge, WhereTraveler Books + More store, and a Taylor Swift concert.
  
  
  





• Big Blue made LifeHacker's Top Ten Best Airline Coach Seats list - the only truly domestic airline in the list (Virgin has so few flights it doesn't count). It had some tough competition like British Air, but came in at a respectable #7.
  
  
• Tomorrow morning JetBlue debuts their FDNY Foundation tribute plane, "Blue Bravest", flying it over the West side of Manhattan, NYC. Catch the plane at 7:15AM and tweet a picture of it to win:
• Snap a photo of our newest custom livery “Blue Bravest” (Tail# N615JB) as it comes to New York in the morning of October 23rd. Not in New York? Don’t worry, you can use the photo we’ll tweet in the afternoon!
• Post the photo to Twitter between 7:00:00 AM EST and 11:59:00 PM EST on October 23, 2013
• Your Twitter update must include the hashtag #BlueBravest and mention @JetBlue
• You must be following JetBlue’s Twitter account @JetBlue
Grand Prize (one winner)
• Two (2) roundtrip domestic travel certificates between any of JetBlue’s US destinations

Family Pooling by JetBlue

JetBlue Brings Family Pooling to TrueBlue

Jet Blue is introducing a revolutionary new feature to their reward points - free point pooling within a family. The best part? You don't even have to be related!

A "family" is defined as two adults over the age of 21 (who don't have to be related) and up to five children under the age of 21. Members of a family can see the total reward points being used in the family and once a goal is reached, the "head of household" (one of the 21+ adults) can redeem the entire family's points towards a trip for everyone.

When setting up a family, the head of household can also make a one-time point contribution to another member and set up a yearly contribution amount as well for years thereafter. This helps to consolidate points for not even just cheap, but, well, free - which no one else does. In most cases points transfers are prohibitively costly so it's not even worth doing.

These features are not rivaled by any other airline and create a truly easy way for couples, friends, and families to enjoy travel together without worrying about ridiculous exchange fees or worrying about who has what points on their frequent flyer account.

I plan to set one up soon and will do a followup post once I have some time to explore it. Sound off if you are planning to sign up for family pooling and check the video below for some more information. 

 - John