Air miles? Credit card companies?

[ffutures]

Natwest are my Mastercard provider for historical reasons - I used to have a Natwest bank account and never bothered to move the card. Over the years the card has accumulated a few thousand air miles which I've only used once, for a trip to Jersey.

Now Natwest say that they're ending Airmiles and switching to a service called YourPoints, which is (a) run by them and (b) costs £3 a month unless you spend more than £1000 in that month. My feeling on this is that they are taking the piss. I certainly don't intend to join the scheme. Airmiles have some sort of scheme with Lloyds TSB, but it doesn't look very favourable.

So I'm now wondering if there is any way to convert air miles to some other points scheme or otherwise make use of them. All other things being equal I'll probably look at transferring to Waitrose's card, which gives you a small discount in their stores and I think John Lewis, unless someone can suggest a better alternative, but this still leaves me with a few thousand air miles (not enough for anywhere I want to go in the near future) and no prospect of getting more. Is there some way of giving them to someone else, or using them to aid a charity or something?

Comments

Chunnel

[soren-nyrond.livejournal.com]

I've yet to find a good excuse to go to Europe via the Channel Tunnel -- Have you considered the lure of excellent (french) food&drink only 15 minutes (by car) from the Shuttle terminal, at City-Europe -- several restaurants, 2 tea-shops (one very English), a hypermarket (for bringing your cheese etc back with you), & a booze store if your tastes go that way.

Unfortunately zero by way of laboratory-equipment stores.

Soren the Lurker, his sig

Re: Chunnel

[ffutures.livejournal.com]

I'm not actually a foody to any great extent and I don't own a car, so not a particularly good idea. I'm thinking more in terms of a European Worldcon, preferably somewhere easily accessible by rail.