Disney Visa card ?

[aubriee]

I recently applied for and received the Disney Chase Visa card. I don't like credit cards and pay my other Visa off every month, seldom even using it. I mainly want it for emegencies and to buy things off the internet. I only applied for the Disney card because of the promotion they were having for the fifty free Disney dollars. For some reason I was expecting to get the free Disney dollars when I got my card. I didn't and when I called to activate the card, was told I had to use the card for a purchase in order to get the free Disney dollars. Fine, I ordered something off the internet and planned to then shred the card. However after reading the info that came with it, it doesn't seem like a bad deal. Everytime I use it I would earn Disney rewards, which could be turned into Disney dollars? Is this correct? However it's only 1% of what I buy? How do you use the card enough to earn a decent amount of points? Do you charge everything (groceries, gas, pay bills, etc) during the month and then just pay everything off at the end of the month by writing one huge check to Chase? I don't know if I like that idea. I refuse to go very far into debt, so am leary of using the card. I know how easy it is to become dependent on credit cards and max them out. Many years ago I was swamped by debts (due to credit cards and dept store cards). I consolidated them into one loan and once I got that loan paid off, I swore completely off any type of card I couldn't pay off every month.

 

[NancyIL]

Your understanding is correct! We have several rewards cards (including the Disney Visa), and charge most everything to them. Yes, you do need to be careful to charge only the things that you would've bought any way.

 

[beattyfamily]

It's worth getting and keeping just for the other rewards too, IMHO. I've seen 3 free movie screenings with it. Now they have the Character Meet and Greet in WDW till Sept 2006. Then there's the new discount at the WOD in DTD for purchases.

You would transfer your earned reward dollars to the reward card and then you can use that card to buy anything Disney you want like Disney Dollars, ticket passes, you can use it anywhere at WDW.

 

[planning06]

Same here. I love the card. I have a few other reward cards. I typically like the cash back cards. I put everything on the card and pay it off at the end of the month. Why not earn cash or points towards what you pay for groceries, gas, etc? As long as you are the type of person that will not make big impulsive purchases just because you have a credit line then this is a good option.

I just used 4 free move tickets this weekend. We will also do the character meet and greet in September as well as the 10% off DTD. We also got a free DVD. I don't use the card exclusively, but I use it enough so that the points I build I will use.

 

[calypso*a*go-go]

Keep the card, but don't carry it with you. Plan on using it once in a while to keep it active so you can use some of the freebies and special offers. It's a decent card...but nothing great enough to risk getting yourself in debt again. BTW, congratulations on getting yourself on the right path!

 

[It's A Happy Day]

Your understanding is correct as well as they offer double/triple rewards sometimes too. Be sure to check periodically online for any new offers...movie screenings, wdw vacation offers, etc. What I usually do is instead of making a once a month payment...if you are charging everyday purchases is to get online the next day or once a week or whatever would be easier for you and make a payment onto your account. This way it would be paid off immediately vs. carrying a balance. I use this for every day and even though we are paying OOP for our WDW trip I put it on the card 1st to get the points.

 

[Dizneydaz]

I use the card exclusively for most of my purchases. I earn $200-$300 a year of "free" disney dollars. That being said, I am the kind of person who pays it off monthly so I never have a finance fee. For our upcoming trip I noticed that I have a 90 day grace period on the trip deposit. I am taking advantage of this. As well as the grace period for the final balance (due in a few days). Also I've taken advantage of free movie tix. And I do plan to use the "Meet 'n Greet" free 5 x 7 pix offer this Sept. They are also offering free strollers at Disneyland until 9-30 and I plan to use this benefit too. 1% dosen't sound like much but it does add up especially if you use it for any bigger ticket items (plane fare, appliances, etc.) Sometimes they increase the amount to 2% when you go over a set limit.

My rewards have dropped some since I used to use my card at Sam's Club but they no longer accept VISA

A side benefit is if you use it for most purchases (food, gas, auto, etc.) it keeps track, for you, of your spending. Just make sure you pay it off (if you can) monthly. Those charges add up!

Just my thoughts.

45 days and counting!

 

[planning06]

I wish they had the free stroller promotion at WDW! That would be nice.

 

[4greatboys]

We have one and I think they are a good deal if you charge items then and pay it off right away. The interest is higher than a couple of other cards we have so carrying a balance wouldnt really be advantageous. But earning the rewards we have well will be able to have a couple of dinners for free

 

[4theloveofdisney]

Everytime I use it I would earn Disney rewards, which could be turned into Disney dollars? Is this correct? However it's only 1% of what I buy? How do you use the card enough to earn a decent amount of points? Do you charge everything (groceries, gas, pay bills, etc) during the month and then just pay everything off at the end of the month by writing one huge check to Chase? I don't know if I like that idea. I refuse to go very far into debt, so am leary of using the card. I know how easy it is to become dependent on credit cards and max them out. Many years ago I was swamped by debts (due to credit cards and dept store cards). I consolidated them into one loan and once I got that loan paid off, I swore completely off any type of card I couldn't pay off every month.

Your understanding is correct. We charge anything that I would normally use my check card for so that we can get points. I wouldn't worry too much about going into debt. It has become a routine for me to just log onto the website and make a $400.00 payment every paycheck (every 2 weeks) as this is the amount that I determined we normally spend. If I go over this amount, I will pay more. With only a 1% reward, it does take awhile to build up points but I figure that it's better than earning nothing - lol! We have about 120 points now which will be just about enough to pay for MNSSHP this year. You can't beat that and I didn't really have to do anything.

 

[Renysmom]

I just got mine, prior to getting it I was using my check cash card for everything so what I am doing now is using the Chase Disney Card and every Friday I am paying the balance on it just like I was using the cash check card.

I have another credit card with a very small limit that I use for the "not-everyday stuff".

So far this is working for us.

 

[disneyfanfamily]

I got one and had apx. $200.00 to use on our last trip. My husband then applied for one and he also got the $50.00 Disney dollars. Every little bit helps. I use it for utilities and for dr. and dentist bills. Just pay it off every month or it wouldn't be worth it with the finance charge.

 

[thelionqueen]

Hi all, I just applied for the Disney Chase Visa (know I will receive one soon) and have a couple of questions. I have been debating getting this card, but took the plunge.

I used the 50 Dream dollar incentive. Here is my question. We need to pay for our Disney trip by 8/19 (am hopeful will receive card by then).

How do we get or request the dream dollars? Do they accumulate on card, do you have to mail in request, or what?

Any other perks that I should know, any help would be appreciated!!

 

[4greatboys]

Hi all, I just applied for the Disney Chase Visa (know I will receive one soon) and have a couple of questions. I have been debating getting this card, but took the plunge.

I used the 50 Dream dollar incentive. Here is my question. We need to pay for our Disney trip by 8/19 (am hopeful will receive card by then).

How do we get or request the dream dollars? Do they accumulate on card, do you have to mail in request, or what?

Any other perks that I should know, any help would be appreciated!!

When you get your statement it will show you how many reward dollars you have. They do expire but if you leave them ion your acct they dont expire for years. They will continue to accumulate as you charge. Once you are ready to go on your trip then you can call for a reward card and have your reward dollars transfered to that card. I suggest you wait until very close to your trip time because once you transfer the rewards they expire much sooner. You will need to check the date on your reward card--the date it expires is the date those transfered reward dollars expire as well.
We got our card at Guest services in Downtown disney and just called in then to have the dollars transfered. We went right to lunch and used them there.

 

[branv]

I just received my Disney Card today (woohoo! ), as I too could not pass up that $50 reward offer.

However, I can tell you how we handle things when we were trying to accrue airline miles on another card.

We have 2 checking accounts with the same bank. We are also allowed to perform bill pay and transfers for free, online, from our bank. Our debit card, and paycheck deposit go into one account, and our bill pay is automatically set to our other account. We know how much most of our bills are (within a few dollars or so, since electric is variable), which paycheck pays for them and when they are due. When my DH gets paid, we automatically go in and transfer the amount of money we'll need to cover those bills, into our bill pay account. However...we will charge the bills to our credit card.

When the time comes to pay the credit card, we already have all the money available in our bill pay account. It just gets paid in one swoop to one source, instead of multiple ones. Thanks to the two accounts, there isn't money sitting in our debit account that we might "accidentally" spend, and we received lots of miles without accruing any credit card debt.

We are visiting WDW beginning of January, I figure if we want to be careful to get our rewards in time, we should ask for them in November. That gives me 3 months of bills to earn reward dollars.

 

[nikkinac@netzero.com]

I filled out the application for the Disney card with 50.00 free Disney dollars after my first purchase. When I got to the bottom it asked for a code for this offer. I could'nt find one. HELP PLEASE.

 

[branv]

To my knowledge, it's not a code. You apply for it online, using this link (and that way, they can get your application faster as well).

www.50disneyrewards.com

With thanks to WeluvDisney for originally posting this link

 

[thelionqueen]

When you get your statement it will show you how many reward dollars you have. They do expire but if you leave them ion your acct they dont expire for years. They will continue to accumulate as you charge. Once you are ready to go on your trip then you can call for a reward card and have your reward dollars transfered to that card. I suggest you wait until very close to your trip time because once you transfer the rewards they expire much sooner. You will need to check the date on your reward card--the date it expires is the date those transfered reward dollars expire as well.
We got our card at Guest services in Downtown disney and just called in then to have the dollars transfered. We went right to lunch and used them there.

Thanks for the great advice, just what I was looking for!! A couple more thoughts. When waiting as close to vacation time as possible, do they send you a different card for the reward dollars or the actual Chase Disney Visa? How long does it take to get card (if not credit card?) How close to vacation time should I wait considering mailing times?? thanks for your input. We should have over $60.00 just by applying and paying the balance of our vacation....free money is free money right??

 

[planning06]

I just ordered my reward card today. They said it should get to me by Aug 15th. That is 11 days. To be sure, I would give it about 3 weeks. My trip is actually about 5 weeks away. I can transfer any amount of at least $10 onto my reward card online once I have the card. So, I figure I will transfer my accumulated reward dollars from my next billing cycle right before I go on vacation next month. All together, I should have close to $100 in reward dollars on the reward card for my WDW vacation.

 

[It's A Happy Day]

FYI - The rewards do not show on your actual credit card - you must order a separate rewards card from Chase prior to using rewards dollars. You will receive a separate rewards card that looks just like a gift card you would receive from a local mall but it says disney across the front of it. You can reload existing cards in your possession but be sure to check you expiration date prior to loading it. Cards expire quicker than points on statement. I think the statement is around 3 years while cards are 6 mo - 1 yr. I am going in October but wanted to make sure that my card was here in time. I loaded it with the minimum requirement of $30.00 and received it in under 2 weeks. The day before our trip I plan to call and transfer whatever points I have left onto the rewards card I already have so that I don't have to take time out of my actual vacation to find somewhere in Disney to get the card and transfer rewards dollars. When transferring additional rewards dollars onto your card I believe the minimum amount you can transfer onto an existing rewards card has to be at least $10.00 so don't leave too few on your statement or you won't be able to utilize them at that time.

So with that said I would order the card about 6-8 weeks prior to vacation just in case it takes a while to get to you. The right before your trip transfer the remaining points that you have. Remember, if you have say $500.00 rewards dollars and don't intend to spend that much you might want to transfer less and then if you need more go to customer service at WDW to transfer more if nec. As the rewards card expires sooner than statement.