Anyone have an airline miles credit card that they really like?

[PrincessMama605]

My mom flies a lot so it would be great for her to rack up miles on things she would buy anyway. She is interested in the US Airways one, but I was wondering if any DIS'ers have a card that they like. Just looking for opinions, not a debate on whether or not to get the card. TIA!

 

[Psychodisney]

I use the Captial One Venture card. You can use the miles on any airline. You earn 2% on all purchases. Redemption costs are based on the cost of the ticket. For example: a $275 ticket would cost 27500 miles. There is an annual fee.

 

[Donnainnj]

I really like my Southwest chase card. If she can use Southwest for her flights and they are a good deal in her area the points add up quick. They also have a good program that as long as you continue to use the card the points do not expire, and they can be used on any flight that has seats, points used are based on the price of the flight and the fare class.
Donna

 

[DVC-Don]

We use the Southwest Chase Visa card.

 

[SuzanneSLO]

I love my Starwood Amex. You earn 1 point per dollar and then can convert them to Us Air and many other airlines at the rate of 25000 miles for every 20000 points. Points can also be used at Sheraton, Westin and other hotels. There is currently a 30000 sign up bonus. The annual fee kicks in after the first year. - Suzanne

 

[ancestry]

I have the JetBlue American Express card and am quite pleased with it. JetBlue is our preferred airline. We charge everything we can on our card so we earn enough points for several free airline tickets each year. Really helps to make our Disney trips more affordable.

 

[Jedimike]

The Southwest RR Visa card is GREAT! Not only do you reach free flights faster than with other airline cards, if you rack up 110,000 points (through travel, purchases, enrollment bonuses) you can get to "companion" status where you can name a companion to fly free with you whenever you travel for the entire year (unlimited number of free flights). I just reached companion status, so my wife flys free from now until the end of December 2012.

 

[wdwnomad]

I like the Miles by Discover Card. I think their is a sign up bonus of 12,000 miles. You get 1000 miles every month you make a purchase during the first year.

Every 10,000 miles you accure a $100 credit that can be used towards any "travel" charge. Doesn't have to be airlines, could even be your Disney room charge. You can use your miles for other purchases too but I don't think the conversion is as good as the travel credit. You can get cash back too instead. Miles never expire and don't have to be used. I'm saving mine for a trip to Hawaii....maybe in a couple of years.

I like the Miles by Discover because there is no annual fee. You get 1 point for every dollar you spend. You get two points for every dollar spend on "travel" expenses and I think restraunts. They also frequently offer double miles or bonus miles throughout the year. Your birthday month is double miles. I think now you get double miles on amazon. If you shop through their shopping site you get bonus miles too.

 

[bearzabout]

I think it is important to pick a card for an airline that offers the most flights from your local airport. I'm near Detroit, so Delta works best for me. We get a free checked bag for everyone on my itinerary, so that alone saves me more than I pay per year for the card. I also get to board early in zone 2.

She can also pick one based on where she wants to go. We also have United cards to get us to Australia and New Zealand.

If she tends to fly on many different airlines, a card like Discover or Capital one might be better than a single airline's card.

Of course, she could get more than one, get the bonus miles and then cancel them before they charge a fee the next year. Most offer enough bonus miles for a free ticket.

 

[bettymae1121]

I'd only get a card like CapOne if you tend to fly on a lot of different airlines. With cards like CapOne, since the miles/points it costs depends on the dollar amount of the ticket, you don't always get good bang for your buck (or mile, in this case).

For example, my DH is flying from O'Hare to Harrisburg PA to visit his mother for two days (she had a stroke last month and he's checking up on her). If we'd paid cash for the ticket, it would have been $1065!!! Obviously we didn't want to pay that much, so I used my United frequent flyer miles (that I earned on my Chase United Visa card) and only used 20,000 miles (normally 25k miles, they were having a sale). Had we used a card like CapOne, it would have "cost" over 100,000 miles, or 5 times as much!

So if there is one major airline out of your nearest airport, that's the program you'll want to join. In your case it sounds like USAirways, so that's the card I'd get.

 

[DisneyCowgirl]

Narrow your choices down by determining which airline she would most likely fly. Here in Houston for us that means Southwest or Continental (which is now merged with United). We have both cards. The Continental one does offer some perks like free checked bag, Elite status for security and boarding which are nice in addition to getting the points.

 

[ML_LovesDisney]

I have Southwest and USAIR. Southwest is great for flying to Orlando and USAIR for everywhere else like the Carribbean, etc.