Best credit card for points?

[wtrowbridge]

Any opinions on the best and quickest way to earn points to use towards a Disney vacation? I have a Disney Visa and I am thinking about upgrading to the Premier to earn points faster but wondered if anyone else does this regularly and what cards you think are the best?

 

[Lothlórien]

Citi Double Cash gives 2%

Costco Visa gives anywhere from 1% - 4% depending on what your purchase

Discover gives up to 5% depending on what you purchase.

If you are considering getting a new card, you just need to go out to the bank websites and see what they are offering and apply for the card that suits your needs.

 

[Eighty8Keys]

There are many credit cards that offer better rewards than the Disney premier Visa. Take a look at the type of spending you do and then check credit card websites for the card that will give you the most bang for your buck.

 

[wtrowbridge]

I guess I didn't think about it that way, I was viewing it as, which card can offer me DISNEY specific savings, but I guess if I wanted to keep track, I could just do any sort of cash back type of rewards card and just use those rewards to pay for Disney vacas

 

[GPC0321]

Okay. *cracks knuckles*
I'm relatively new to the whole credit card churning/point chasing/travel hacking thing, so keep that in mind. There are a lot of people here with more experience than me.

I have opened 5 new credit cards this year, all with the specific goal of saving on our upcoming Disney trip in December. Prior to this little venture, I had one card, a Chase Freedom. I still have it, and it's a great card.

Anyway, since September I have obtained:

1. Disney Rewards Visa (no annual fee...got a referral and got the $200 Disney Gift Card sign-up bonus)
2. Southwest Premier Visa ($98 annual fee...got 50,000 Rapid Rewards Points sign-up bonus...closed this one recently)
3. Sam's Club Mastercard (no annual fee...I only got it because I was pre-approved for it when I joined Sam's. I never use it)
4. Chase Freedom Unlimited (no annual fee...got $150 sign-up bonus and $50 from sharing a referral link on FB)
5. Chase Sapphire Preferred ($95 annual fee - waived for first year...got 50,000 Ultimate Rewards sign-up bonus)

Of these cards, the Freedom I originally had, the Freedom Unlimited, and the Sapphire Preferred all stay in my purse. I can combine my Ultimate Rewards points between them and either use them for travel via the Sapphire card, or get cash back. I closed the Southwest card because the Sapphire is all the travel card I need, and I don't want two cards with annual fees.

Basically, the Southwest card should (depending on rates when they come out for December) pay for our three round-trip tickets to/from Orlando.

The 50,000 points on the Sapphire Preferred will be cashed in for $500 (I know this isn't the best "bang for my buck", but right now cash is king. So that $500 + $200 from Unlimited + $200 Disney gift card = $900 towards $1150 worth of park tickets. I earn around $20/month via Ultimate Rewards on the Freedom, Unlimited, and Sapphire combined...and have probably already gotten around $100 just from normal cash back since September. I should be able to put away another $1-200 just from normal spending and cash back by the time the trip rolls around, so that should more than pay for our tickets. Tickets which, by the way, were bought via discounted Disney gift cards from Sam's that I earned 5% cash back on because I purchased them with my Chase Freedom card during a quarter when wholesale clubs were in the bonus category.

Long story short...look at sign-up bonuses AND whether or not the card will be one you'll use enough to earn a substantial amount of rewards. If you want to pay for flights, look into a travel card or an airline specific card. Find one with a generous sign-up bonus and use it for your everyday spending to meet the required spend. If you're more interested in cash back, look for no-fee cards with high cash back rates.

The Disney Visa is good to keep around for using in the parks themselves, as you can get 10% discounts on some shopping and dining, plus the exclusive character meets. It doesn't appeal to me outside of that (and the sign-up bonus I got) though because it only earns 1%, and that's only good towards Disney stuff. I'd rather have 1.5-5% back in cash that I can decide to put towards Disney if I want.

 

[Eighty8Keys]

I too am relatively new to the whole credit card churning/travel hacking. In the last 18 months, I've signed up for the following cards:

1. Disney Premier Visa - 200 statement credit as a sign-up bonus. Closed the account after one year and kept my regular Disney Visa
2. JetBlue Amex - 25,000 miles as a sign-up bonus. Closed the account before it could be converted to a Barclay card. Planning to sign up for the JetBlue Barclay card at some point for a 30,000 miles signup bonus.
3. Citibank AAdvantage Card - 50,000 miles as a sign-up bonus. Used the miles to fly first class from MCO to PDX last month. Closed the account this week when the annual fee came due.
4. Chase Sapphire Reserve - 100,000 Ultimate Rewards which are worth between $1,000 and $1,500. Sure there's a $450 annual fee, but getting a $300 travel credit for 2016 and 2017 more than made up for it. My son also applied for this card so we have 200,000 UR points between the two of us to use towards our WDW trip next January.

With the cost of a WDW vacation rising rapidly every year, I've had to get creative finding ways to pay for it.

 

[Doug S]

I primarily use a CapitalOne VentureOne which is unlimited 1.25 miles (1.25%) per dollar, no annual fee. Got a sign up bonus of 20,000 miles ($200) for spending $1000 in the first few months. Allows you to erase any travel purchase. I love being able to fly whatever airline I want and book from what website I want.

I would advise getting against a card with an annual fee unless you plan to use it at least 80% of the time. It's also a bad idea to sign up for a bunch of cards and cancel them after the first year to avoid the annual fee. That can negatively impact your credit score.

 

[havaneselover]

I primarily use a CapitalOne VentureOne which is unlimited 1.25 miles (1.25%) per dollar, no annual fee. Got a sign up bonus of 20,000 miles ($200) for spending $1000 in the first few months. Allows you to erase any travel purchase. I love being able to fly whatever airline I want and book from what website I want.

I would advise getting against a card with an annual fee unless you plan to use it at least 80% of the time. It's also a bad idea to sign up for a bunch of cards and cancel them after the first year to avoid the annual fee. That can negatively impact your credit score.

I have several cards with an annual fee--none of which I use 80% of the time. If the annual fee is more than offset by the extra rewards, it's worth it. For example, Amex Blue Preferred has a $95 annual fee. The free version gives you 3% back at grocery stores vs. 6%. So if you spend > $3,167 at the grocery store annually it makes sense to have the Blue Preferred (I have both). The Chase Marriott card has an annual fee but you get one free night stay at a category 1-5 hotel each year. So if you use that every year, it's worth it. Lots of examples of cards in certain situations that are worth having despite having an annual fee. Even if you barely use them.

 

[fifthdimensiondweller]

It really depends a lot too on how you spend your money. We don't fly that often since we live within driving distance of wdw and cruise ports but we have the barclaycard arrival plus for flights to Disneyland every 3 years or so. We use it for any purchase that falls outside of the regular bonus cashback categories for our other cards (think dry cleaning, vet visits, etc). The miles never expire. I also have the Disney premier which I use mainly at Disney and restaurants. Mostly this one I keep for the perk of the 0% APR on packages and the discounts in park. I have blue cash preferred as well for groceries and gas, and I have a discover for the rotating rewards. I have a target redcard too since I shop there often. This is the lineup that works best for me and DH now, but it could be completely different for you depending on how your family spends your money and how much. the most important thing to do is look at where you spend the most money and get cards that offer extra cash back in those categories

 

[MillauFr]

I would just get one of the credit cards that gives you 2% cash back. I like the simplicity of it.

 

[Albort]

UR points are the easiest way to earn a ton of rewards.

I currently hold 4 cards that earn UR.
Ink+ (70k bonus)
Freedom Unlimited
Freedom
Reserve (100k bonus)

I currently have 350k points, I started with 10k a 1.5 year ago. Single person as well.

Your best bet is probably to see what your local airport airline is if you want to save money on flights. There's another thread full of information to read though if you got time. Good Luck!

 

[tpmac68]

Starwood Amex currently has a 35,000 point sign up bonus after spending $3000 in the first three months (it's usually 25,000). The card has a fifth night free bonus as a perk so with $5000 in spending you can get 5 nights at the Dolphin or Swan (it's 10,000 point a night last I checked). I've used Starwood points to cover my last four week long stays. You will need to pay a $25 daily resort fee plus $20 parking if you have a car.

 

[smilerjones]

We have the capital one venture card, we got it a few years back and have really benefitted from it. It's $59 annual fee and spend $3,000 in first 3 months for $400 bonus also it earns 2 miles per every dollar spent. I typically buy everything that I can with it and then immediately pay off the balance. I also like no black out dates so I can use it for flights or hotels whenever we want.

 

[wtrowbridge]

Starwood Amex currently has a 35,000 point sign up bonus after spending $3000 in the first three months (it's usually 25,000). The card has a fifth night free bonus as a perk so with $5000 in spending you can get 5 nights at the Dolphin or Swan (it's 10,000 point a night last I checked). I've used Starwood points to cover my last four week long stays. You will need to pay a $25 daily resort fee plus $20 parking if you have a car.

I am not looking for points that have to be used in specific ways, I want to be able to earn points that can be converted into Disney gift cards or cash to put towards a Disney vacation so we have the freedom to vacation the way we want. We always stay at the Polynesian

 

[wtrowbridge]

UR points are the easiest way to earn a ton of rewards.

I currently hold 4 cards that earn UR.
Ink+ (70k bonus)
Freedom Unlimited
Freedom
Reserve (100k bonus)

I currently have 350k points, I started with 10k a 1.5 year ago. Single person as well.

Your best bet is probably to see what your local airport airline is if you want to save money on flights. There's another thread full of information to read though if you got time. Good Luck!

We do already have a Southwest Visa as my hubby travels a lot for work, so we earn some miles to help with the flight costs for 4 people. But, I am looking for the best way to earn either Disney specific points or cashback that could be used directly to help pay towards a Disney vacation

 

[SouthFayetteFan]

(removed)

 

[Kynarreth]

Does anyone know if the Capital One Venture card points can be used to purchase annual passes or part of a vacation package? The purchase eraser can only be used on "travel" purchases. I'm not sure if annual passes or any aspect of a vacation package count as a travel purchase, even if it should be.

 

[jujubiee4]

Does anyone know if the Capital One Venture card points can be used to purchase annual passes or part of a vacation package? The purchase eraser can only be used on "travel" purchases. I'm not sure if annual passes or any aspect of a vacation package count as a travel purchase, even if it should be.

This is my favorite card..and i have a lot. The 2 percent on everything i like without having to worry
about categories. I would say if it codes as travel as usual anything disney does you can erase it.

However not sure if its a glitch or something but every month i have things on my purchase eraser show
up. For example movie tickets i bought...a storage unit i paid for..even my water bill. All could
have been erased.

 

[Tikitoi]

This is my favorite card..and i have a lot. The 2 percent on everything i like without having to worry
about categories. I would say if it codes as travel as usual anything disney does you can erase it.

However not sure if its a glitch or something but every month i have things on my purchase eraser show
up. For example movie tickets i bought...a storage unit i paid for..even my water bill. All could
have been erased.

What is meant by "erased"? Or how is it meant with cc's? Thanks

 

[jujubiee4]

Hi they call it purchase eraser because you just erase whatever it is.
For example.. rental car charge $28 on your bill it will ask if you want
to erase(apply credit/point) then its gone.I had 23 dollars in movie tickets ..I
applied my credit to that etc..

This is still my most used card because as someone who goes on Disney cruises once
or twice a year I need flexible or general travel credit.