Bank One Disney Reward Card

[cypress_star]

I have been getting lots of mail regarding this Bank One Visa card. Does anyone have one and used it to cruise? Is it worth it?

The literature says that you save on Spa Treatments, Palos, shore excursions and souvenirs, is this true and if so how much?

Thanks

Going on 2nd Disney Cruise on Feb. 6-10, 2005, can't wait!!!!!

 

[LoveMickey]

We used the points that we accurred with the card and applied them to our on board account. We did not do the spas, but did have some shore excursions.

We did not receive any discounts for these, but paying with the points helped with the expenses.

 

[pppiglet]

I have the card and use it for all my purchases. I am collecting the points to use towards my onboard account. I will use it to pay for my cruise when the deadline comes, and collect the points for that, plus get 6mos no interest on payments for the cruise. I have the money in the bank to pay for the cruise now, but would rather leave it in the bank collecting interest for awhile!

 

[Jandreas]

We have the card and as of today I am very unimpressed with it.
It takes quite a while and LOTS of money spent to accumulate your reward dollars. For example, I have spent over 12k since we received the card and only have 147 reward dollars to show for it.
The interest rate is high compared to other cards.
I have found that our other visa which accumulates mileage points is a much faster reward system - and it takes care of our flights to Disney!

 

[UMTerp]

I have used the Disney VISA to put deposits on two cruises. They started charging me a finance charge even though the six-month period was not up.
I have a letter in the mail to them to try to get it straightened out.

pppiglet - I felt the same way and was just holding my money for that magic day. Unfortunately because of the finance charge mix-up I had to call to automatically pay the bill in full from my checking account. I was going to do it in a few weeks anyway but it made me angry that they started charging before the six-month date.

Good luck!

UMTerp

 

[Zandy595]

I really like the Disney Visa. We use it for everything we used to use our debit card for. I'll be ordering my Disney Dream Rewards card next week, should have $90 to put towards my shipboard credit.

 

[hopelea]

I am lucky because my mom & dad used my disney visa to pay for things for their business. I now have $200 disney dollars. I am using my card for everything. We don't cruise again until April. I am putting all of the disney dollars on my account as soon as i get on the ship. It will be great!!!

I love the card!

 

[Cap]

1) If you carry a balance, then this is probably not a card for you, as the interest rate is higher than the best.

2) Basically you get 1% of purchases credited as points that can be used at Disney and DC.

3) There is supposed to be zero interest for six months when you completely charge (deposit plus balance) a Disney cruise using the card. However, I think you have to follow that up carefully, as I have not seen any information or flagging on my statements as a special offer.

Other than the above, it is just a general type Visa card. I don't like their online payment system, as I haven't found a way to schedule when I want the payment made (e.g. 1 business day before due date). They just offer a Pay Today online feature. My MasterCard lets me schedule the payment for a specific date.

 

[Cabin8538]

I have been using this since "Day One" in 2002 and have $450 to apply on this cruise. If you carry a balance, this is not the card for you. I charge, and then payoff immediately. I even put things like the orthodontist payments on this!

 

[clori]

I use the disney visa and I'm not impressed by their specials For instance they will offer double points but only to select card holders and then only once you reach a specific preset limit and then only on certain categories. They currently have a promotion for triple points at the new worldofdisney store in Manhatten opening Oct. Since dh's family live in Manhatten we go there frequently even though we live near Boston. Of course we are not eligible for the triple points. We pay this (and any other) credit card in full each month but after the cruise will probably switch to a different card. Honestly I don't have a clue what my interest rate is but have heard it is very high. I have $147 on my card and by the cruise will have enough to cover our two excursions and some babysitting hours so it is better than nothing but I have not heard that you get discounts for spa or anything.

 

[cwf1028]

I love this card. I have over $460 points right now and I have only had it for a little over a year. I used to use a debit card but it made me nervous with it attached to my checking account. I now use this card the same way and just put the purchases is my check register. When the bill comes, I "balance" the statement and write the check. We hardly ever use cash so our balance adds up quickly. We also bought some I Bonds on the internet using the card and got a lot of points that way (this is no longer available as of 12/31 last year.) I got that hint from Clark Howard (consumer advocate). We should have almost $600 by the time we sail and that should take care of tips and much much more! I agree that this is not one to carry a balance on!

 

[thegales]

I paid the remaining balance of my cruise with the Visa card, giving the special promotion code supplied in one of their mailings. I was told that since I received the onboard credit, they could not combine the offers. I didn't bother doing any follow up, since we had been saving the money to pay the balance.

 

[christinou]

I only use it for my cruises, you get 6 months interest free, which makes it very nice when you book a cruise when you are on a cruise....

 

[cristit14]

I like my Disney Visa, but I don't carry a balance either. I use it for everything from groceries to booking my cruise. I hope to have lots of points racked up by the time we cruise in 2005.

 

[bbowers]

Cap -

There is a "payment date" when you make a payment on-line, so you can schedule it whenever you want. I've used it to schedule up to 15 days in advance, so I know they do "honor" that date.

 

[mickeyfanmom]

The bummer thing is that it only pays 1%, so it takes forever to accumulate money. If you have $147 Jandreas you have actually spent $14,700 on the card.

I do like the 0% interest for six months, but you have to be careful like UMTerp says. I called to make sure when they were going to start charging the interest and it was one billing cycle before the six months is up. So it's not actually 6 mos.

Also I read that they were having a double dollars promo, but it is only for new cardmembers. Otherwise, it is only in a few select places that you get the double dollars.

All in all, it is better than nothing for items that you would buy anyway. I use it for everyday purchases like groceries and such and will use the rewards money that I have accumulated (around $170 and getting higher everyday unfortunately) for my drink tab and possibly some small souvenirs for the children.

 

[macbaby]

Originally posted by UMTerp
I have used the Disney VISA to put deposits on two cruises. They started charging me a finance charge even though the six-month period was not up.
I have a letter in the mail to them to try to get it straightened out.
UMTerp

I too charged my two cruise deposits to my Disney Visa. I pay my entire balance, minus the deposits, on time each month. I have been charged interest on the account for the last two months. I contacted Bank One each time and they have taken the interest off each time. Call and talk to a supervisor, not a rate specialist!

Originally posted by Cap
3) There is supposed to be zero interest for six months when you completely charge (deposit plus balance) a Disney cruise using the card. However, I think you have to follow that up carefully, as I have not seen any information or flagging on my statements as a special offer.

The zero interest for six months is listed at the bottom of my monthly statement. Remember, you must pay the entire new balance, minus the travel charge, or, if you only have the travel charge on your account, the minimum monthly payment, to keep the zero interest rate. Also, you do not need to charge the deposit and balance, just any Disney-related travel charge through your travel agent or Disney's travel agents.

Originally posted by Cap
I don't like their online payment system, as I haven't found a way to schedule when I want the payment made (e.g. 1 business day before due date). They just offer a Pay Today online feature. My MasterCard lets me schedule the payment for a specific date.

I use the online payment system to schedule my payment on the due date, whether it is a business day or not. I have never been penalized for a late payment. When in the payment window, pick the date you want the payment made.

Personally, I like the Disney Visa. It has less restrictions for use than most other cards and is something I am looking forward to using next year. As of last month I have nearly $900 (yikes!) Disney Reward Dollars to spend on my two cruises!