Thanksgiving Week Points & Miles Roundup: Black Friday Bonuses, Gift Card Deals, and Big Travel News
Thanksgiving week is one of the best times of the year to earn extra points, stack cashback offers, and take advantage of limited-time bonuses. Whether you’re shopping online, grabbing Visa gift cards, or trying to squeeze a little more value out of your credit cards before the year ends, there are several opportunities you shouldn’t miss.
Here’s everything happening this week in the world of travel, points, and miles — plus a few Black Friday deals and gift ideas for the travelers in your life.
CardPointers is 50% Off Until December 1
CardPointers is one of the tools I rely on most during Black Friday because it makes deal stacking and offer activation incredibly easy.
My two favorite features:
1. Card-linked offers across all your cards at once.
No more logging into Amex, Chase, Citi, Bilt, etc. one-by-one. CardPointers lets you activate offers across multiple cards at the same time and even bypasses Amex’s “one offer per person” limitation.
2. It tracks every credit card benefit you have.
Uber credits, Saks credits, travel credits, 5X categories, Amex Offers, Chase Offers — everything lives in one place so you always know which card to use.
This is the lowest pricing they offer all year.
Get your 50% off CardPointers here:
https://cardpointers.com/mileswithmary
Rakuten’s $50 Sign-Up Bonus (Plus: Earn Bilt Points Now)
Rakuten is offering a $50 bonus through December 31 when you sign up using my link and make your first eligible purchase. This is one of the easiest ways to earn quick cashback — or now, Bilt points.
Rakuten recently added Bilt Rewards as an earning option, which means you can now earn Bilt points on your everyday online shopping. This is a big deal because Bilt points are typically harder to earn quickly.
I have a full blog post and YouTube video breaking this down.
Amex Business Platinum users:
Today is also a great time to use your $150 Dell credit, and this morning Dell was earning 12X back through Rakuten.
Capital One Shopping: $40 Free Bonus
Capital One Shopping is offering $40 when you sign up using my link and make an online purchase. This portal frequently pushes out high-value targeted offers — for example, I recently received 44% cashback on my entire purchase at Skechers.com.
If you’re new to cashback portals and deal stacking, watch this video where I explain how to maximize your shopping strategy.
Visa Gift Card Deals at Office-Supply Stores This Week
This week is one of the best times to earn outsized rewards through office-supply stores.
Staples:
Fee-free $200 Visa gift cards through Saturday, November 29
Office Depot/OfficeMax:
$15 off $300 in Visa gift cards through Saturday
If you carry a card like the Chase Ink Business Cash, which earns 5X points at office-supply stores, these deals can be extremely lucrative. I always buy in $300 multiples at Office Depot/OfficeMax to maximize the discount.
Chase → Air Canada Aeroplan Transfer Bonus (15–25%)
Now through January 5, 2026, Chase is offering a tiered transfer bonus to Aeroplan:
15% bonus on transfers up to 74,000 miles
20% bonus on transfers between 74,000 and 174,000 miles
25% bonus on transfers of 175,000+ miles
If you hold the Aeroplan credit card, you’ll also receive an additional 10% bonus on top of this (up to 50,000 bonus miles per year).
You can always check my blog for a full list of current transfer bonuses.
Chase Ink Preferred: 100,000-Point Welcome Bonus
The Chase Ink Business Preferred currently has one of the strongest welcome offers available:
100,000 Ultimate Rewards after $8,000 in spend.
If you run any kind of small business — even a side hustle — this card is worth considering.
Holiday Shopping Highlight: Gift Ideas for Travelers
If you're shopping for the traveler, digital nomad, or frequent flyer in your life, I put together a curated list of items that are actually useful — not random gadgets that end up in a drawer.
Many of the items are discounted for Black Friday.
Read the full guide here:
Best Travel Gifts for Frequent Flyers and Digital Nomads
New on the Blog This Week
1. Rakuten Now Lets You Earn Bilt Points
This is one of the biggest changes we’ve seen to any shopping portal. You can now earn Bilt points on purchases you were already making.
2. The New Chase Sapphire Reserve Review – $795 Annual Fee
A complete breakdown of the CSR refresh, including new credits, new benefits, and whether the card is still worth it going into 2026.
3. How To Transfer Chase Points to Travel Partners
A beginner-friendly walkthrough with screenshots and examples for anyone looking to maximize Chase Ultimate Rewards.
Credit Card Highlight of the Week: Chase Sapphire Reserve
If you're debating whether the refreshed Chase Sapphire Reserve is still worth the annual fee, I break down everything that changed — and what remained the same — in my full review.
If you're interested in applying for the CSR, you can use my referral link here:
Chase Sapphire Reserve Application Link
Final Thoughts
Thank you for being part of the Miles with Mary community. I’m grateful for everyone who reads these posts, watches my videos, and takes steps toward traveling more for less.
Wishing you and your family a wonderful Thanksgiving and an amazing start to the holiday shopping season.