Continental Airlines is offering low airfare to destinations throughout Asia in economy class. Along with these recent deals, the carrier is also offering special BusinessFirst airfares to Tokyo.

You’ll find BusinessFirst flights between Newark and Tokyo for $3,781+ R/T. Once onboard the Boeing 777, you’ll enjoy entertainment in your armrest with a console that features multi-language video and audio channels (select flights will have video on demand options). Continental BusinessFirst seats also offer up to 6 1/2 feet of sleeping space, privacy hoods, laptop plug-ins and more.

Visit Continental Airlines Offers for more details, and search FareCompare’s “getaway” maps to find the lowest filed airfares to Asia from your home airport.

Sure, flying into Newark Liberty can often help you save some money, and it can help you avoid a little of the insanity of JFK (Liberty’s not the most relaxing of airports in its own right), but it still leaves you in that age-old quandary: How do you get from Newark to Manhattan?

You can take shuttles, public transportation, a cab, or have some really good friends give up their afternoon and make the trek out to pick you up and drive you into the city. Or you could just hop on a helicopter.

For a limited time, Continental Airlines is offering complimentary+ US helicopter flights from Newark to Manhattan for first class and full-fare economy passengers. You’ll still pay taxes and fees (about $27 per segment), but you’ll avoid all of that traffic.

“The special offer is effective immediately for tickets purchased on or after Sept. 1 for travel through Oct. 31, 2008. Customers previously ticketed to travel within these dates may add the US Helicopter service at the discounted fare. No advance purchase is required.” (from MarketWatch)

Passengers with discount economy airline tickets can take the helicopter flight at a discounted $45+ (per segment) while the special lasts. Continental already offers complimentary helicopter flights to BusinessFirst customers traveling between Liberty and a number of international destinations, but this special opens up the “free” rides to the rest of the first class travelers out there.

Visit US Helicopter Partners for more details.

It’s only been a year, but Virgin America has definitely made its mark among business and luxury travelers. With its first class massage seats, extra moody mood-lighting, a range of touch-screen entertainment options, passenger-to-passenger communication capabilities, and little perks like easily accessible outlets for laptops, Virgin America has tried to separate itself from other domestic carriers. According to at least one survey, their efforts have paid off.

In a recent Conde Nast Traveler survey, Virgin America was named best domestic “Business/First Class” carrier. According to the survey of 26,500 travelers, the competition wasn’t even close:

“Virgin America had an overall score of 65.3. The carrier’s nearest competitor (No. 2 in the rankings) had an overall score of 41.1.” (from Marketwatch)

While Virgin America’s route system is still relatively limited, the carrier has managed to make an impact in the industry and achieve at least some of its goals in its first year. We’ll wait to see what their second year brings:

“Virgin America was launched with the goal of reinventing domestic flying by creating an upscale, innovative and customer-focused experience,’ said Virgin America President and CEO David Cush. Business travelers should expect the very best in design, technology, entertainment and comfort in a U.S. airline — just as they do in their hotel choices. We couldn’t be more proud to earn this ranking in our first year, especially from the selective travelers who fly the most and who rightly expect more.’” (from Business Travel Frequent Flyer Guru)

Air Canada is offering a variety of vacation packages in order to entice you to travel to Paris. As if you needed to be enticed.

Fly Air Canada’s Executive First class and enjoy comfort, luxury, entertainment, gourmet dining, fine wines, and more. When you arrive in Paris, let the luxury continue at Hotel Magenta Paris where you’ll receive one free* night for every two night stay. You’ll also find deals for bike tours of the city, trips to Versailles, a night on the town in the City of Lights, and a range of other excursions and pleasant distractions.

This Paris vacation package must be booked by October 2, 2008 for travel through March 31, 2009. Visit Air Canada Offers for more details and for an in depth description of “free*”.

Okay, most of us will never be able to afford to stay in one of these places, but it’s so much fun to look at them - and, hey, we can dream, can’t we?

Take the Monarch Dubai - it made the Elite Traveler list. And why not? It features the following:

• private steam room
• private movie theater
• private butler

The “rate” is listed at $14,000. Somehow, I don’t think that’s by-the-month. And that’s not the most expensive place listed - not by a long shot.

Ah, the pleasures of long distance travel - when you’re not in coach!

Thanks to Delta, you can now travel to Europe in style, and save, too.

They give you two ways to do this: save by purchasing your tickets 30 days in advance, or really save by purchasing your tickets 50 days in advance. Some sample fares:

Click here for details, and when you’re ready to book - check with FareCompare, to make sure you get the very best deal possible.

The folks over at Sky Talk noticed an unusual trend, courtesy of stats from the International Air Transport Association (IATA):

It seems that an increasing number of the so-called premium travelers - first class fliers and business class travelers - are missing in action.

You can read more about it on RickSeaney.com. And while you’re there, take a look at this - American’s Admirals Club membership fees are rising.

Lufthansa business class allows you to relax, recline, and rejuvenate as you cross the Pond. Gourmet meals, added room, personal entertainment options, and dedicated service allow you to fly in luxury to destinations all over Europe.

Currently, Lufthansa is offering business class travel deals to cities throughout England and Scotland including London, Manchester, Edinburgh, and Glasgow from New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, and other departure cities across the U.S.

You’ll find business class airfare for as low as $1,128+ each-way for travel between October 28, 2008 and December 31, 2008. Book your airline ticket by September 21, 2008 with a 42-day advance purchase to take advantage of the lowest rates.

Visit Lufthansa Specials for more details.

Virgin Atlantic is still offering discounted first class airfare to London from departure cities in the U.S. including Boston, Chicago, Los Angeles, and New York.

You’ll find flights in Virgin Atlantic’s Upper Class cabin for as low as $1,179+ each-way for select travel dates in October, November, and December. A 42-day advance purchase and a Saturday night stay are required to take advantage of these deals.

Keep reading for sample first class airfare from Virgin Atlantic…

British Airways has launched a new promotion directed at present and potential Executive Club members. Members can fly in Club World business class (or any class for that matter) and receive a complimentary companion airline ticket the next time they purchase a ticket of their own.

This companion deal is good for travel between January 15th and December 15th, 2009 to all British Airways destinations. This is obviously a push to get more people to register for the Executive Club, but it’s definitely an offer at least worth looking into.

Visit British Airways Complimentary Companion Offer for more details.

The frequent flier program changes keep on coming. However, the latest may actually benefit travelers. While many of the recent adjustments to frequent flier programs have included added fees, elimination of minimum miles, and reduced overall benefits for members, AirTran is attempting to go the other way by offering a bit more for their A+ Rewards members.

AirTran looks to make it easier for frequent fliers to upgrade, to have their questions answered, and to earn and redeem their A+ credits. The announcement came this week, and according to the carrier, the changes directly address complaints and concerns voiced about other frequent flier programs. Keep reading to see what AirTran is doing for its members, and what led the airline to take these steps…

Walk the streets of Mozart, view the paintings of the masters, and immerse yourself in the rich history and culture of one of the world’s most storied cities: Vienna.

Austrian Airlines is offering deals on their business class vacation packages to Vienna for travel through October 31st, 2008. The price of $4,939+ includes roundtrip business class airfare, three nights at the five-star deluxe Hotel Sacher, daily breakfast, and more.

Visit Austrian Airlines Vacations for more details. If the business class trip isn’t what you’re looking for, learn how you can spend the holidays in Vienna for less.

OpenSkies has kicked off a 4-day business class (BIZ) airfare sale to Amsterdam “in honor of Dutch explorer Henry Hudson who arrived in New York in 1609.” Of course, even if your knowledge of Dutch history is a bit lacking, you can still capitalize on the promotion and enjoy a well-earned vacation in Amsterdam.

Amsterdam service begins October 15th, and as that date approaches, the carrier has dropped airfare below even their initial introductory offer (thanks to Joe Brancatelli for getting the news out there before OpenSkies even listed the airfare sale on their site). Business class flights from New York to Amsterdam are currently $1,609 R/T (including taxes and fees). You can also find premium economy (PREM+) flights to Amsterdam for $1,158 R/T. You have until September 12th to purchase your airline ticket for travel between October 15th, 2008 and March 31, 2009.

Visit OpenSkies Promo for details.

With the myriad changes that have occurred to frequent flier programs over the past year, it’s getting difficult to keep up with all of the benefits, rewards, fees, and surcharges out there.

In order to make things a little easier, we’ve put together a chart that breaks down the major frequent flier programs - highlighting award and redemption levels, processing fees, and more. It can be used as a quick reference for current frequent fliers who are trying to keep up with the “worth” of their memberships or for travelers who want to compare programs to see which ones have the most to offer.

Check out our Frequent Flier Award, Redemption and Fee Chart for all of the details.

Last week, when Continental Airlines announced that they would be adding a first checked bag fee, they also announced that they would be doing away with the old 500 minimum mile policy for frequent flyers. This is the policy that ensured you could pick up at least 500 miles on a flight regardless of the flight’s actual distance. It’s a policy that made even the shortest hops somewhat worthwhile from a mileage perspective.

Continental Airlines, like US Airways and United Airlines before them, will now base frequent flyer miles on the actual number of miles flown on flights under 500 miles. This means less miles, and it makes those short hops a little less appealing for frequent flyers.

Our CEO took an in depth look at what the loss of this policy means in actual mileage numbers for frequent flyers. The 500 minimum remains with three of the legacy airlines, but with three already going the other way, it might not be too long before the 500 mile minimum is simply a thing of the past.

Read Impact of 500 Mile Minimum Frequent Flier Policy Changes to see how these recent changes can affect your frequent flyer rewards and status.

The Mirage continues to lure travelers to the Las Vegas Strip from the world over. With it’s world class shopping, dining, Cirque du Soleleil’s The Beatles - Love and the accompanying Beatles Revolution Lounge, wildlife habitat, and more, the Mirage has a little something for everybody.

The Mirage also has newly ronovated deluxe luxury rooms. If you want to head to the desert this winter, you can find deluxe room rates for as low as $72 per night (available Sunday - Thursday). This offer from the Mirage is good for stays from November 7, 2008 - February 1, 2009, so you can hit Vegas for the holidays, or just take a little trip when things get too cold or too dull in your home town.

Visit The Mirage Winter Offer for more details.

Northwest Airlines WorldPerks has just kicked off a major promotion for frequent flyers. Their “Mountains of Miles” allows you to accrue points (which will convert to Bonus Miles) and take a shot at winning travel prizes.

You can earn points in a range of flight-related and non-flight related ways, and when all is said in done, you could be in the running for electronic credit vouchers, $10,000 vacations, and more.

You have to sign up for this latest promotion from WorldPerks by December 31st, 2008, and you have until January 31st, 2009 to earn points. Visit Northwest Airlines Mountains of Miles for more details and a look at all of the NWA and partner activities that will earn you points.

Changes to Continental Airlines OnePass program take effect today. These changes don’t involve new fees, but are focused on capacity control, seat availability, and EasyPass rewards for frequent flyers:

“Effective Sept. 3, 2008, EasyPass Rewards for travel on Continental will be subject to capacity controls, and seats may not be available on certain flights where demand is high.” ( from Continental OnePass)

It’s important to note that these changes will not affect OnePass Elite members.

Over the past several months, we’ve seen additional fees, increased reward requirements, and a slew of other changes to a number of legacy carrier frequent flyer programs. We’ll keep you updated as other changes occur. We would love to hear from frequent flyers to gauge how they view these changes and whether or not they feel these changes have diminished the worth of their frequent flyer status.

Northwest Airlines is offering “cash and miles” deals to destinations throughout Europe, Asia, and North America to its WorldPerks Members who have at least 10,000 miles in their accounts.

This frequent flyer offer lasts until October 12th, and it features cheap flights for as low as $459+ R/T and 20,000 WorldPerks miles to Europe and $548+ R/T and 20,000 WorldPerks miles to Asia. You can also find airfare for as low as $109+ R/T and 20,000 WorldPerks miles for flights within North America.

This offer is good for WorldPerks members residing in the contiguous United States. A 14-day advance purchase is required to take advantage of these “cash and miles” deals. Unfortunately, you won’t get to tack on any extra miles when you make these flights, as no miles will be rewarded.

Visit Northwest Airlines Features for more details on these frequent flyer trips to Europe, Asia, and North America.