I love credit cards so much! v2.0 (see first page for add'l details)

[GlamMistress]

Frontier has flights out of MCO to CVG (Cincinnati) tomorrow and Saturday.
There's a flight from Tampa to CVG early Sunday but that is risky.
There's a flight from Ft Myers (RSW) to CVG tomorrow.

Cincinnati has all the major chain hotels to use points. You can go to Kings Island in Mason (Cincy suburb) to fill time.

Just an idea for our hurricane path friends.

 

[Haley R]

We could do either Palm Beach or Fort Lauderdale

We’re in Melbourne and still no one here is leaving. I’m surprised by how calm everyone is being. I’m internally freaking out. Dh’s switch he bought for the generator might not work how he had planned and I don’t really want to chance it. I looked at staying in Orlando but then we have to worry about trying to get back home and have enough supplies for the cats on the road. It’s just a mess right now

 

[GlamMistress]

We could do either Palm Beach or Fort Lauderdale

There's a Sprit flight to Las Vegas on Saturday I found with seats. Leaves at 5:36 pm. It isn't "cheap" but would get you away from the zone. ETA - leaves from FLL

 

[StephPlum]

Roundup of current Visa and Mastercard Gift Card Deals [UPDATED]:

Safeway/Vons/Randall’s/Albertsons/Tom Thumb/Acme/Jewel/Shaw’s is running a deal on Visa Gift Cards, now until 8/31/19.

• Save $10 on 2x $50 VGC ($4.95 activation fee/each, $0.10 savings)

• Save $15 on 2x $100 VGC ($5.95 activation fee/each, $3.10 savings)

Safeway/Vons/Randall’s/Albertsons/Tom Thumb/Acme/Jewel/Shaw’s is running the same Save $10/$15 deal on Mastercard Gift Cards, now until 9/7/19.

• Save $10 on 2x $50 MCGC ($4.95 activation fee/each, $0.10 savings)

• Save $15 on 2x $100 MCGC ($5.95 activation fee/each, $3.10 savings)

Safeway et al. tends to stock Metabank-issued MCGCs, which can be used on Plastiq as a debit with only a 1% fee.

Add the Just4U coupons on the Safeway app, or create an online account and add the offer there. Limit 1 per account. (Add the offers to your account(s) ASAP, as Safeway et al. has been known to pull a coupon before the expiration date.)

Pay with a credit card that earns a high bonus at supermarkets, like the Amex Gold for 4x Membership Rewards Points, Amex Hilton Surpass for 6x Hilton Honors Points, or Amex Blue Cash Preferred for 6% cash back; another card that has supermarkets as its quarterly bonus category; or a card on which you're working on the MSR. Amex cards on which you're working towards MSR are generally fine to use for gift cards at grocery stores as long as you mix in some actual grocery items to give your purchase an odd number.

Office Depot/Office Max has a Save $15 deal on $300+ Visa Gift Cards, now until 8/31/19.

Limit 1 per customer, but YMMV when purchasing more.

OD/OM sells fixed denomination VGCs in $100 (with a $5.95 activation fee) and $200 (with a $6.95 activation fee). To maximize this deal, it’s best to buy 2x $200 VGCs, paying with a CIC/Ink+ for 5x UR at office supply stores.

$206.95 x 2 = $413.90 - $15 = $398.90 (a $1.10 discount off face value) x 5x UR = 1,994.5 UR

You won’t earn as many points buying $200 and $100 VGCs, and multiple $100 VGCs will increase your fees.

$105.95 + $206.95 = $312.90 - $15 = $297.90 (a $2.10 discount off face value) x 5x UR = 1,489.5 UR

$105.95 x 3 = $317.85 - $15 = $302.85. ($2.85 in fees) x 5x UR = 1,514.25 UR

Pay with a credit card that earns a high bonus at office supply stores, like the Chase Ink Cash or Ink+ for 5x Ultimate Rewards Points, or a card on which you're working on the MSR. DO NOT purchase gift and prepaid cards at office supply stores with an Amex while working on that card's MSR.

These $15 off deals are about as good as they get, so act fast or expect your store(s) to be picked clean within a day or two.

Staples has a No Activation Fee deal on $200 Visa Gift Cards from 9/1/19 through 9/7/19.

Limit 1 per customer, but YMMV when purchasing more.

This isn't as good as the Office Depot/Office Max deal, but most Office Depot/Office Max stores are probably cleared out of $200 and $100 VGCs by now. The Staples deal is still no fee (usually $6.95) on potentially 2,000 UR when using CIC/Ink+ for 5x UR at office supply stores.

$200 x 5x UR = 2,000 UR.

Pay with a credit card that earns a high bonus at office supply stores, like the Chase Ink Cash or Ink+ for 5x Ultimate Rewards Points, or a card on which you're working on the MSR. DO NOT purchase gift and prepaid cards at office supply stores with an Amex while working on that card's MSR.

Again, don't wait to take advantage of this deal. Reports are stores get cleaned of VGCs within the first few days when deals like these happen.

Kroger is offering 4x Fuel Points on all Gift Cards, including fixed value Visa and Mastercard Gift Cards, from 8/30/19 through 9/2/19.

Check your Kroger coupons for the following offers:

• Save a digital coupon to get 4x fuel points on Visa and Mastercard $100, $50, or $25 fixed-value gift cards.
• Save a digital coupon to get 4x fuel points on third party gift cards. (Should work on all third-party gift cards.)

Pay with a credit card that earns a high bonus at supermarkets, like the Amex Gold for 4x Membership Rewards Points, Amex Hilton Surpass for 6x Hilton Honors Points, or Amex Blue Cash Preferred for 6% cash back; another card that has supermarkets as its quarterly bonus category; or a card on which you're working on the MSR. Amex cards on which you're working towards MSR are generally fine to use for gift cards at grocery stores as long as you mix in some actual grocery items to give your purchase an odd number.

You may be able to stack Kroger deals with shopping apps like Dosh for additional cash back.

Harris Teeter is offering 4x Fuel Points on all Gift Cards, including fixed value Visa and Mastercard Gift Cards, through 9/3/19.

Add the coupons to your account before purchasing.

Pay with a credit card that earns a high bonus at supermarkets, like the Amex Gold for 4x Membership Rewards Points, Amex Hilton Surpass for 6x Hilton Honors Points, or Amex Blue Cash Preferred for 6% cash back; another card that has supermarkets as its quarterly bonus category; or a card on which you're working on the MSR. Amex cards on which you're working towards MSR are generally fine to use for gift cards at grocery stores as long as you mix in some actual grocery items to give your purchase an odd number.

Previously - whenever you buy gift cards, be vigilant that the gift card's packaging hasn't been compromised and made susceptible to being drained. @Lain shared some tips to avoid buying tampered gift cards.

https://www.disboards.com/threads/i...t-page-for-addl-details.3729982/post-60519331

Safeway experts. If an offer is still showing in my list does that mean I can use again? Or does it just take awhile for it to catch up in the app that I used the offer. Also is it store dependent? I’ll only do this when I travel since no Safeway’s near me at home. So do I need to change to a store near my travels anytime I want to use offers?

 

[StephPlum]

Roundup of current Visa and Mastercard Gift Card Deals [UPDATED]:

Safeway/Vons/Randall’s/Albertsons/Tom Thumb/Acme/Jewel/Shaw’s is running a deal on Visa Gift Cards, now until 8/31/19.

• Save $10 on 2x $50 VGC ($4.95 activation fee/each, $0.10 savings)

• Save $15 on 2x $100 VGC ($5.95 activation fee/each, $3.10 savings)

Safeway/Vons/Randall’s/Albertsons/Tom Thumb/Acme/Jewel/Shaw’s is running the same Save $10/$15 deal on Mastercard Gift Cards, now until 9/7/19.

• Save $10 on 2x $50 MCGC ($4.95 activation fee/each, $0.10 savings)

• Save $15 on 2x $100 MCGC ($5.95 activation fee/each, $3.10 savings)

Safeway et al. tends to stock Metabank-issued MCGCs, which can be used on Plastiq as a debit with only a 1% fee.

Add the Just4U coupons on the Safeway app, or create an online account and add the offer there. Limit 1 per account. (Add the offers to your account(s) ASAP, as Safeway et al. has been known to pull a coupon before the expiration date.)

Pay with a credit card that earns a high bonus at supermarkets, like the Amex Gold for 4x Membership Rewards Points, Amex Hilton Surpass for 6x Hilton Honors Points, or Amex Blue Cash Preferred for 6% cash back; another card that has supermarkets as its quarterly bonus category; or a card on which you're working on the MSR. Amex cards on which you're working towards MSR are generally fine to use for gift cards at grocery stores as long as you mix in some actual grocery items to give your purchase an odd number.

Office Depot/Office Max has a Save $15 deal on $300+ Visa Gift Cards, now until 8/31/19.

Limit 1 per customer, but YMMV when purchasing more.

OD/OM sells fixed denomination VGCs in $100 (with a $5.95 activation fee) and $200 (with a $6.95 activation fee). To maximize this deal, it’s best to buy 2x $200 VGCs, paying with a CIC/Ink+ for 5x UR at office supply stores.

$206.95 x 2 = $413.90 - $15 = $398.90 (a $1.10 discount off face value) x 5x UR = 1,994.5 UR

You won’t earn as many points buying $200 and $100 VGCs, and multiple $100 VGCs will increase your fees.

$105.95 + $206.95 = $312.90 - $15 = $297.90 (a $2.10 discount off face value) x 5x UR = 1,489.5 UR

$105.95 x 3 = $317.85 - $15 = $302.85. ($2.85 in fees) x 5x UR = 1,514.25 UR

Pay with a credit card that earns a high bonus at office supply stores, like the Chase Ink Cash or Ink+ for 5x Ultimate Rewards Points, or a card on which you're working on the MSR. DO NOT purchase gift and prepaid cards at office supply stores with an Amex while working on that card's MSR.

These $15 off deals are about as good as they get, so act fast or expect your store(s) to be picked clean within a day or two.

Staples has a No Activation Fee deal on $200 Visa Gift Cards from 9/1/19 through 9/7/19.

Limit 1 per customer, but YMMV when purchasing more.

This isn't as good as the Office Depot/Office Max deal, but most Office Depot/Office Max stores are probably cleared out of $200 and $100 VGCs by now. The Staples deal is still no fee (usually $6.95) on potentially 2,000 UR when using CIC/Ink+ for 5x UR at office supply stores.

$200 x 5x UR = 2,000 UR.

Pay with a credit card that earns a high bonus at office supply stores, like the Chase Ink Cash or Ink+ for 5x Ultimate Rewards Points, or a card on which you're working on the MSR. DO NOT purchase gift and prepaid cards at office supply stores with an Amex while working on that card's MSR.

Again, don't wait to take advantage of this deal. Reports are stores get cleaned of VGCs within the first few days when deals like these happen.

Kroger is offering 4x Fuel Points on all Gift Cards, including fixed value Visa and Mastercard Gift Cards, from 8/30/19 through 9/2/19.

Check your Kroger coupons for the following offers:

• Save a digital coupon to get 4x fuel points on Visa and Mastercard $100, $50, or $25 fixed-value gift cards.
• Save a digital coupon to get 4x fuel points on third party gift cards. (Should work on all third-party gift cards.)

Pay with a credit card that earns a high bonus at supermarkets, like the Amex Gold for 4x Membership Rewards Points, Amex Hilton Surpass for 6x Hilton Honors Points, or Amex Blue Cash Preferred for 6% cash back; another card that has supermarkets as its quarterly bonus category; or a card on which you're working on the MSR. Amex cards on which you're working towards MSR are generally fine to use for gift cards at grocery stores as long as you mix in some actual grocery items to give your purchase an odd number.

You may be able to stack Kroger deals with shopping apps like Dosh for additional cash back.

Harris Teeter is offering 4x Fuel Points on all Gift Cards, including fixed value Visa and Mastercard Gift Cards, through 9/3/19.

Add the coupons to your account before purchasing.

Pay with a credit card that earns a high bonus at supermarkets, like the Amex Gold for 4x Membership Rewards Points, Amex Hilton Surpass for 6x Hilton Honors Points, or Amex Blue Cash Preferred for 6% cash back; another card that has supermarkets as its quarterly bonus category; or a card on which you're working on the MSR. Amex cards on which you're working towards MSR are generally fine to use for gift cards at grocery stores as long as you mix in some actual grocery items to give your purchase an odd number.

Previously - whenever you buy gift cards, be vigilant that the gift card's packaging hasn't been compromised and made susceptible to being drained. @Lain shared some tips to avoid buying tampered gift cards.

https://www.disboards.com/threads/i...t-page-for-addl-details.3729982/post-60519331

Thank you for writing all this out. It is really, really helpful.

 

[amalone1013]

Here's where we stand currently...

We fly out to MCO tonight at 7pm. I had booked United home Tues morning so DH would be able to go to work that day. I also had this SW flight for Tues night I hadn't cancelleyet.

So I moved the SW flight for free to Sun morning for now.

I'm basically just sticking with my Tues pm-Sat pm at this point. There is so much uncertainty still, anything can happen. For me there is no rush to decide since I am flying SW and can cancel flights and my resort is non refundable so I will have to submit a CC trip claim. I can't think of any adjustments to guarantee that I will get to go, so may as well leave it alone. We were so excited, too.

Too much uncertainty too. So mainly we will stick with original plans and adapt as needed.

What about Tuesday? Might be a better safer option.

Tuesday was our day to go home originally. Why safer?

 

[orangecuse]

We could do either Palm Beach or Fort Lauderdale

Alligant will have direct flights tomorrow FLL to GSP

 

[Lain]

So, dumb question.

Those of you taking advantage of no-fee Visa gift card promotions and such- is it only those of you who are using Serve/MSing who are buying them, or are there those who are just buying them to use for other purposes? Maybe buying Disney GCs (can you do that?) or giving them as gifts or....?

There are several reasons for buying no fee and discounted VGC/MCGC, but primarily it’s either to MS (spend money on your cards to generate points/hit SUBs without being out that money, because you’re able to liquidate the VGC/MCGC back to cash); shift spend to a later time (buy VGC/MCGC during the MSR period to count towards MSR, spend down the VGC/MCGC later); or shift category bonuses (buy VGC/MCGC where you get high category bonuses on your card, use VGC/MCGC where you don’t earn any category bonuses).

Check out this thread on DISchurners, where we had a discussion about why we buy VGC/MCGC.

https://www.reddit.com/r/DISchurners/comments/cfv6iu/_/euf1jku

The reason one person buys might be different than why someone else buys, depending on the cards they have, what MSRs they’re working on, what stores they have nearby that run these deals, and if there are stores where you can liquidate the VGC/MCGC back into cash.

You might remember that I said your velocity (how many cards you can get/how quickly) is in part determined by each credit card issuer’s rules for approving cards, but also by how much you can spend without spending more than you would otherwise (because we don’t want you getting into that trap of spending more to earn more miles, and suddenly find yourself having spent more than you can afford to pay off).

If you can manufacture spend (MS) by buying VGC/MCGC (with little to no fee), and have those purchases count against your MSRs, and if you can then get the cash value out of those VGC/MCGC (again, with little to no fee) to put back into your bank account to pay the credit card charge, you’ll have spent money and earned points on your card without really spending money. And that additional spend could dramatically increase the number of new cards (and their MSR/SUB) that you can go after. Deals like the ones I’ve been rounding up minimize or negate the fees you pay for VGC/MCGC and therefore lowers the cost of MS.

If you have

Spoiler: Goliath National Bank

Walmart

Spoiler: Gringotts Wizarding Bank

Dollar General

Spoiler: Dawes, Tomes, Mousely, Grubbs Fidelity Fiduciary Bank

Family Dollar

nearby, you can test the waters with liquidating via Serve.

If you have a Staples, Office Depot/OfficeMax, Albertsons owned supermarket, a Kroger or Harris Tetter, they often run deals on VGC/MCGC.

 

[*WDW*Groupie*]

There's a Sprit flight to Las Vegas on Saturday I found with seats. Leaves at 5:36 pm. It isn't "cheap" but would get you away from the zone. ETA - leaves from FLL

We've tried to book numerous flights on Spirit and our payment isn't accepted.

We just got a flight on SW to Atlanta leaving tomorrow afternoon; we'll stay with my BFF and her husband and she's okay with us taking our dog.

 

[palhockeymomof2]

We've tried to book numerous flights on Spirit and our payment isn't accepted.

We just got a flight on SW to Atlanta leaving tomorrow afternoon; we'll stay with my BFF and her husband and she's okay with us taking our dog.

That’s great you got something.....I have been trying to get my son who lives in Orlando to fly up to LI tomorrow night after work..but he’s not leaving

 

[Haley R]

That’s great you got something.....I have been trying to get my son who lives in Orlando to fly up to LI tomorrow night after work..but he’s not leaving

I would consider flying but we have the cats so that’s not really an option for us. It would be too difficult to deal with and I’m not sure Dh would be on board with flying somewhere.

 

[tink1970]

AA is usually cheapest for us and we flew it to Germany. The entertainment was great and they fed us quite a bit (including ice cream!). Is DL better domestically? We are an economy family but I’m willing to pay a little more if the quality is noticeably better.


We are in Miami and will be staying. I’m “essential” at my office so will need to report very soon after it’s over (not really essential, they just want everyone there). It’s a university and they’ve already canceled classes starting tomorrow at noon - hopefully schools won’t follow suit. I’m nervous as we don’t have shutters or impact windows since we are starting an addition soon. Maybe we will go to my parents house if need be. I just want to be where there is AC.

We flew from PHL on AA biz and the meal was pretty good, but the IFE wasn't (my mother's tablet never worked) and no refills on drinks which left me sort of disenchanted. I'm glad you have had good experiences with AA since you're in MIA and sort of a hostage there.

I don't know if DL is better empirically or if I just have a bias since I'm almost a Delta hostage so I've learned to love it

Good luck with the weather-I know how much it stinks to have to stay and wait and watch-fingers crossed all goes well for you and everyone in the cone

 

[Lain]

Safeway experts. If an offer is still showing in my list does that mean I can use again? Or does it just take awhile for it to catch up in the app that I used the offer. Also is it store dependent? I’ll only do this when I travel since no Safeway’s near me at home. So do I need to change to a store near my travels anytime I want to use offers?

You need to keep track of whether you’ve used the coupon or not on a particular account. When you use a coupon, it can take a few hours for it to disappear and it’s usually gone by the next day. Sometimes the app will glitch and not remove the coupon, but the registers know if you’ve already used a one-time use coupon and won’t give you the discount again. Coupons for the VGC/MCGC are not store dependent (you can use them at any location), but they are one-time use.

 

[DisneyMandC]

Loaded $700 to Serve today. The garden center guy recognizes me now lol. I told him he would probably see me a lot from now on. I have another $600 to do and will pick some more up at either OM or Kroger tomorrow.

 

[SouthFayetteFan]

Loaded $700 to Serve today. The garden center guy recognizes me now lol. I told him he would probably see me a lot from now on. I have another $600 to do and will pick some more up at either OM or Kroger tomorrow.

You know he probably has a nickname for you now! It’s good to be a regular haha

 

[DisneyMandC]

You know he probably has a nickname for you now! It’s good to be a regular haha

He can call me whatever he wants as long as he keeps letting me load my card

 

[StephPlum]

You need to keep track of whether you’ve used the coupon or not on a particular account. When you use a coupon, it can take a few hours for it to disappear and it’s usually gone by the next day. Sometimes the app will glitch and not remove the coupon, but the registers know if you’ve already used a one-time use coupon and won’t give you the discount again. Coupons for the VGC/MCGC are not store dependent (you can use them at any location), but they are one-time use.

Thanks. I still have one coupon I can use if I feel like going back to Frisco or seeing if there is a Safeway on the way to Glenwood Springs. I didn’t have the MC offer yesterday (either didn’t have or missed it) but now see it is available on my acct. I might grab some but feel good I already got the $600 yesterday so not urgent.

 

[orangecuse]

He can call me whatever he wants as long as he keeps letting me load my card

 

[*WDW*Groupie*]

That’s great you got something.....I have been trying to get my son who lives in Orlando to fly up to LI tomorrow night after work..but he’s not leaving

Honestly I'm very conflicted. We have the flights but I don't want to leave the house. It's super tough to decide what to do.

What is the cancellation policy for SW? Paid by credit card.

 

[Limes96]

I always pronounced it Plast- eek in my head. Not sure I’ve ever actually said it out loud though.

I’m really thinking about and praying for all of you that live in Florida and everybody with trips that are now uncertain. That’s got to be stressful. Keep us updated!