[We don’t receive any affiliate commission on this offer, but if you use any of the Amazon links found in this post and purchase a product we will receive a small payment from Amazon.]
Contents
The Offer
- Receive 1,000 SkyMiles for free by joining delta’s SkyMile frequent flyer program
- Miles post instantly, even if you use an address outside of the US
My girlfriends account immediately after sign up
The Fine Print
- This deal was supposed to be a targeted offer for Hertz car rental customers in Seattle.
- Only available to new members (you’re considered a new member if you haven’t held a SkyMiles account for in the last six months)
- Must provide a valid e-mail address and opt in to receive marketing e-mails
- Allow 4-6 weeks for miles to appear in your account (ours showed up instantly)
Using The 1,000 Miles
Transferring The Miles
You need to have earned at least one mile and have had an account for at least 10 days to be able to transfer SkyMiles, so it’s going to be difficult to get friends and family to sign up for this bonus and then transfer the points to you. You also need to pay 1¢ per mile and a processing fee of $30, which makes this not worth whiled unless for some crazy reason you value SkyMiles at 4¢+ (and even then you’d be better off purchasing them directly from Delta for 3.5¢ per mile).
Purchasing Items At The SkyMiles Market Place
The cheapest items you can purchase are two digital cameras, unfortunately they cost a minimum of 1,500 points. Although you can use a mixture of points + cash or you can purchase a minimum of 2,000 miles for $70. These are the items available for under 3,000 miles:
- Nikon COOLPIX S31 1,500 miles ($100-$200 on Amazon)
- Nikon COOLPIX AW110 1,500 miles ($220+ on Amazon)
- Mark Messier Night Pin 1,700 miles ($9.95 on Amazon)
- Eagle Creek Travel Safe TSA Lock – Graphite 2,800 miles ($8+ on Amazon)
Unfortunately you cannot purchase items from the market place unless you are Diamond, Platinum, and Gold Medallion® Members & Delta SkyMiles® Credit Cardmembers from American Express®.
Donate The Miles
Delta lets you donate miles to various charities, luckily the minimum donation amount is 1,000 miles. You can donate to the following charities:
- American Cancer Society
- American Red Cross
- amfAR
- Canine Assistants
- CARE
- Children’s Cancer Research Fund
- Children’s Miracle Network
- Fisher House Foundation – Hero Miles
- Habitat for Humanity
- Luke’s Wings
- Make-A-Wish America®
- St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital
- The Breast Cancer Research Foundation
- The Humane Society of the United States
- The Nature Conservancy
- The Salvation Army
- UNICEF
Receive A Newspaper Or Magazine Subscription
SkyMiles has plenty of options under 1,000 miles if you want to redeem for a magazine or newspaper subscription.
Our Verdict
Even though SkyMiles are continually being downgraded, there is no harm in signing up for 1,000 points for free. If it gets to the stage where they are close to expiring, you can always donate them to charity or cash them in for a magazine subscription.
Because these bonuses are becoming more common, we decided to create a dedicated page for them. Click here to view other current frequent flyer sign up bonuses.
