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

[SouthFayetteFan]

@SouthFayetteFan Any world on if your wife got approved for her next citi biz? Sorry if you posted the news already and I missed your post!

Still “reviewing”. Last time I went pending with Citi it was a day or 2 if I recall.

 

[GusGus16]

Thanks for sharing. I think it's really helpful to me when people share the way they use points. It helps me think about better ways I can use mine, makes me think about trying new places, etc. Also, I hope you enjoyed our state. The coastline is really beautiful around Monterey, Carmel, and Big Sur. I'd love to stay at a nice hotel in Big Sur but the prices were insanely high when I looked. Luckily my cousin has a home there and has been kind enough to invite us to stay there for a weekend. It's amazing to see the moon rise over the ocean (like the sun - I had no idea it could do that) and to see all the stars from there. There is too much light pollution where I live and we can't see that many.

We did indeed enjoy California! I will be back, next time probably national park tour!

 

[Albort]

So I guess the question is, do I go for more MR or UR???

MR tend to be better for luxury travel due to ANA redemptions being cheaper.
UR tend to be better for the Y class travel. also great with CSR's 1.5x portal redemption.

suggest doing cash price to Aussieland though, they could go pretty cheaply. Friend of mine has a flight to Aukland for $700 RT, purchased on Black Friday though.
i know more NZ flights there than Aussie though so im probably not much help haha.

 

[SouthFayetteFan]

.So I guess the question is, do I go for more MR or UR???

 

[CoP Luv]

MR tend to be better for luxury travel due to ANA redemptions being cheaper.
UR tend to be better for the Y class travel. also great with CSR's 1.5x portal redemption.

suggest doing cash price to Aussieland though, they could go pretty cheaply. Friend of mine has a flight to Aukland for $700 RT, purchased on Black Friday though.
i know more NZ flights there than Aussie though so im probably not much help haha.

Thanks for your thoughts!

We are looking for lie-flat seats going to and from Australia. Cash prices were about $2k/pp in economy for all flights, which I thought was pretty reasonable. I haven't priced any higher class fares yet.

We could fly directly to NZ from here, but I figured it might be nice to see Sydney too since we are all the way over there.

 

[mfly]

For those considering New Zealand/Australia trips:

We traveled there last summer for a month. We spent 3 weeks in New Zealand and 10 days in Australia.

I would highly, highly recommend New Zealand over Australia. Nothing in particular against Australia, but it just felt a lot like America/Europe, especially against New Zealand. I’d recommend NZ over anywhere I’ve been - Israel, Egypt, Europe - it’s breathtaking.

I’d be happy to give recommendations/a run-through of our trip if anyone would be interested.

We booked (very) last minute (less than a month before), so we didn’t book with points (well, we used our URs at 1.5x). We stayed in Airbnbs the whole trip, as that allowed us a lot more flexibility in where we traveled to.

If we ever go back (which I’d love to do), there is no way I’m enduring that plane ride in economy. We had bulkhead seats and I was still miserable (alas, the pains of paying with “cash”). I’d definitely recommend you find a way to fly there in style - preferably, Plane Princess style! (@calypso726)

 

[tenngirl]

Hi! I'm new here. I've been enjoying the thread. In the next year or two, I am interested in a family trip to Europe as inexpensively as possible! I just don't know where to start. Which are the best cards to start with?? I have a few active cards but only one opened in the last 24 months.
01/19 Capital One Venture
We normally put $1500-2000/month on CCs. We pay them off every month.
Does anyone have any words of wisdom for this newbie?

 

[Albort]

Thanks for your thoughts!

We are looking for lie-flat seats going to and from Australia. Cash prices were about $2k/pp in economy for all flights, which I thought was pretty reasonable. I haven't priced any higher class fares yet.

We could fly directly to NZ from here, but I figured it might be nice to see Sydney too since we are all the way over there.

im not sure what city your in but i know only 2 airlines fly direct to NZ. United and Air NZ.
Air NZ are notoriously hard to find awardspace, your alternate would be to stop somewhere in asia before flying down south, ie Japan, Taiwan, etc.

 

[CoP Luv]

im not sure what city your in but i know only 2 airlines fly direct to NZ. United and Air NZ.
Air NZ are notoriously hard to find awardspace, your alternate would be to stop somewhere in asia before flying down south, ie Japan, Taiwan, etc.

We would have to stop on the west coast most likely no matter if we were going to NZ or Australia. No NS from ORD.

ETA: Apparently, there is NS service on Air NZ from ORD. Interesting...or I could go through Figi...and take few days there. Oh the options...

 

[smmco]

Hi! I'm new here. I've been enjoying the thread. In the next year or two, I am interested in a family trip to Europe as inexpensively as possible! I just don't know where to start. Which are the best cards to start with?? I have a few active cards but only one opened in the last 24 months.
01/19 Capital One Venture
We normally put $1500-2000/month on CCs. We pay them off every month.
Does anyone have any words of wisdom for this newbie?

I have the Capital one, but I like the Chase preferred better because the points can be transferred to Hyatt. The AA Barclays card comes with no spend and 60k miles. The AA citi card will give you another 60k miles. That is enough points for two round trip coach seats to Europe. Hilton and Marriott have a lot of hotels in Europe. I would look at one of their cards. You could easily pick up at least 4 cards if you have good credit.

 

[CoP Luv]

For those considering New Zealand/Australia trips:

We traveled there last summer for a month. We spent 3 weeks in New Zealand and 10 days in Australia.

I would highly, highly recommend New Zealand over Australia. Nothing in particular against Australia, but it just felt a lot like America/Europe, especially against New Zealand. I’d recommend NZ over anywhere I’ve been - Israel, Egypt, Europe - it’s breathtaking.

I’d be happy to give recommendations/a run-through of our trip if anyone would be interested.

We booked (very) last minute (less than a month before), so we didn’t book with points (well, we used our URs at 1.5x). We stayed in Airbnbs the whole trip, as that allowed us a lot more flexibility in where we traveled to.

If we ever go back (which I’d love to do), there is no way I’m enduring that plane ride in economy. We had bulkhead seats and I was still miserable (alas, the pains of paying with “cash”). I’d definitely recommend you find a way to fly there in style - preferably, Plane Princess style! (@calypso726)

DH wants to fly-fish in NZ and depending on what you read, everywhere in NZ is perfect for that...so I would love to hear what places you liked specifically!

Since this is quite far out, I am doing what I can to get Business or higher for the long-haul portions. I don't care where I sit from NZ to Melbourne.

 

[SouthFayetteFan]

Hi! I'm new here. I've been enjoying the thread. In the next year or two, I am interested in a family trip to Europe as inexpensively as possible! I just don't know where to start. Which are the best cards to start with?? I have a few active cards but only one opened in the last 24 months.
01/19 Capital One Venture
We normally put $1500-2000/month on CCs. We pay them off every month.
Does anyone have any words of wisdom for this newbie?

Wow - you sure are new! Joined 48 mins. ago!!

I am not your expert on international travel...BUT I think I can ask some questions to help us (i.e. other people who are smarter than me) give you good advice:
1) How many people does your travel party consist of? (Adults, Children & ages)
2) Can you more clearly define "year or two". Do you have a particular season you would want to travel? Are you planning around any holidays or school schedules? The further out you can plan, the better off you will be. I'd honestly recommend looking out 18-24 months based on things others have said about planning these kind of trips. You need time to earn the points AND still book well in advance (if possible).
3) I'm no geography expert, but Europe is pretty big I think...(I kid, lol). But seriously - do you have any particular countries on your wish list? How many days?
4) Where would you be flying from? (perhaps Tennessee - taking a stab with your username)
5) Do you have a spouse who could also open cards to help score free travel (we call that 2 player mode) or is it just you? (You're using the term "we" a lot but the nice part of this game is that there is no we.) Each person is unique in the card issuers eyes and can apply for cards on their own - there are no joint credit cards that I'm aware of
6) Do you have any sort of activity or side hustle that would qualify you for small business cards? We ask because small biz cards can be the most lucrative offers at times. Activities that would qualify could include selling items on ebay, teaching piano, consulting, tutoring, babysitting, mowing lawns, etc...(basically any creative way you have made additional $$).

Start by providing this info and I think some folks could really help you plan. They key to booking international flights from what I know is doing it FAR in advance. And of course, it also takes time to earn the points.

We have a private reddit group called DISchurners. If you'd be interested in joining that I just need your reddit name (or if you don't have one register at Reddit.com). You might find some helpful stuff over there (but all the discussion is here on the DISboards).

 

[afan]

This post on the news & rumors thread made me chuckle -

By the way, 500 pages in 5 months? 1K is in the bag.

They've no idea. We'll easily have triple that amount when this thread hits 6 months next month on the 17th.

 

[SouthFayetteFan]

This post on the news & rumors thread made me chuckle -


They've no idea. We'll easily have triple that amount when this thread hits 6 months next month on the 17th.

I thought the exact same thing when I saw that

 

[SouthFayetteFan]

Hi! I'm new here. I've been enjoying the thread. In the next year or two, I am interested in a family trip to Europe as inexpensively as possible! I just don't know where to start. Which are the best cards to start with?? I have a few active cards but only one opened in the last 24 months.
01/19 Capital One Venture
We normally put $1500-2000/month on CCs. We pay them off every month.
Does anyone have any words of wisdom for this newbie?

I have the Capital one, but I like the Chase preferred better because the points can be transferred to Hyatt. The AA Barclays card comes with no spend and 60k miles. The AA citi card will give you another 60k miles. That is enough points for two round trip coach seats to Europe. Hilton and Marriott have a lot of hotels in Europe. I would look at one of their cards. You could easily pick up at least 4 cards if you have good credit.

@smmco - I think it's great to jump in and provide insight. Without asking some questions though, I'd just hesitate to recommend any cards yet. We don't yet know if this user is interested in pursuing business cards. We don't know what airports they'd be flying through. There's a lot of unknowns here.

I'd honestly love to see the great @calypso726 or some of our other int'l travel experts get a crack on this one too. While I'm not expert in airlines that don't rhyme with Mouthfest - I have gained an appreciation that booking international air travel on points/miles is an art and the easy answer isn't always the right answer. I seem to recall that a lot of people have said that AA miles for int'l travel is actually a really bad proposition but I honestly could be way off base there too.

Along those same lines...we have to keep 5/24 in mind with their overall strategy. If they grabbed Barclays Aviator, Citi AAdvantage and Amex Hilton personal cards on a whim we'd suddenly be at 4/24 with no thought given to a strategy that balances this trip with the future ability to get Chase cards. There's a lot to this

 

[kmc8826]

View attachment 403976

I love Parks and Rec. DH and I always joke about that scene when we are hungry.

On a churning front activated my Citi Biz and then scheduled the Plastiq mortgage and HELOC payments that will make the spend with the 1% fee. Now just hoping those AA points I am accumulating will actually be worthwhile!

 

[wendow]

This post on the news & rumors thread made me chuckle -


They've no idea. We'll easily have triple that amount when this thread hits 6 months next month on the 17th.

That's hilarious! They can only try to keep up with us lol. I know we rack up so many posts cause we allow OT posts but that is what makes this thread so fun and keeps us all hanging out. Well that and the FOMO

 

[wendow]

Hi! I'm new here. I've been enjoying the thread. In the next year or two, I am interested in a family trip to Europe as inexpensively as possible! I just don't know where to start. Which are the best cards to start with?? I have a few active cards but only one opened in the last 24 months.
01/19 Capital One Venture
We normally put $1500-2000/month on CCs. We pay them off every month.
Does anyone have any words of wisdom for this newbie?

Welcome! You have definitely found the right group to help you. I'm not able to provide any insight for flights to Europe (never been and not currently in my plans) but we have quite a few who have made trips on points or are earning points for a trip and they will be able to help.

ETA: The questions that @SouthFayetteFan gave you to answer are an excellent start and really important for others to be able to give you accurate advice

 

[SouthFayetteFan]

That's hilarious! They can only try to keep up with us lol. I know we rack up so many posts cause we allow OT posts but that is what makes this thread so fun and keeps us all hanging out. Well that and the FOMO

Oh man - people on that news thread would FREAK OUT about how off topic we get here. I understand in one respect why they handle that thread the way they do. BUT the fact that we fly off topic is what makes this a community. Knowing that @Haley R is now in Japan, her husband just got a new job in Florida, they have cats, they played in a band, she recently rekindled her love of volleyball, etc. is what makes this place great! (Ok...so apparently I know A LOT about @Haley R and nothing about the rest of you...)

Well wait, that's a lie... @amalone1013 has a husband who used to drive a creeper van! So I know something else at least

Now @Lain - that dude be crazy with the spreadsheet. If you broke a law in your college years he knows about it...he knows things about me that I don't even know about myself!!! At any rate...our thread is the best...that is all.

 

[Lain]

Hi! I'm new here. I've been enjoying the thread. In the next year or two, I am interested in a family trip to Europe as inexpensively as possible! I just don't know where to start. Which are the best cards to start with?? I have a few active cards but only one opened in the last 24 months.
01/19 Capital One Venture
We normally put $1500-2000/month on CCs. We pay them off every month.
Does anyone have any words of wisdom for this newbie?

I have the Capital one, but I like the Chase preferred better because the points can be transferred to Hyatt. The AA Barclays card comes with no spend and 60k miles. The AA citi card will give you another 60k miles. That is enough points for two round trip coach seats to Europe. Hilton and Marriott have a lot of hotels in Europe. I would look at one of their cards. You could easily pick up at least 4 cards if you have good credit.

@tenngirl - While there certainly are a lot of good credit card options out there, it’s very important — especially when you’re just starting out — to be strategic about which cards you get, in which order and timing in between each one, considering the particular rules each credit card issuer has for approving new credit cards.

Credit card issuers each have their own internal rules and guidelines for approving new cards and as a way to discouraging people from abusing their credit card rewards programs (or minimizing risk of default amongst their accounts) by signing up for excessive amounts of cards. One such rule you’ll see cited a lot is Chase’s “5/24 rule,” which means Chase will not approve you for any of their cards if your credit report shows you’ve opened 5 credit cards in the past 24 months. This is important to keep in mind because Chase’s rewards program is called Ultimate Rewards (“UR”), and it’s a favorite here because it’s so versatile and potentially very very valuable depending on your redemption — you can cash out points at 1 cent per point, you can redeem points at 1.25x or 1.5x on the Chase travel portal using Chase’s more premium travel cards, and you can transfer points to Chase’s travel partners like United, BA, Southwest, Marriott, and Hyatt, among many others. @smmco mentions Hyatt — Chase has a Hyatt credit card that will earn you a substantial signup bonus in World of Hyatt points, but you’ll need to be under 5/24 to be eligible.

It looks like you’re 1/24 now by Chase’s count because of the CapOne card. If you were to sign up willy nilly for AA cards from Citi and Barclays, a Hilton card and a Marriott card from Amex, you’d take yourself to 5/24 without having even touched any Chase cards, and that is an immensely huge lost opportunity. Without a strategy, you’ll have locked yourself out from getting any Chase cards and earning any Ultimate Rewards points for at least 2 years. And any personal card you open during those next 2 years will mean you’re one more card away from dropping back under 5/24 and being eligible for Chase cards again. There are ways to stretch out your 5/24 status, so that you can open many more than 5 cards in 24 months, which we can discuss.

As you’re starting out, please please please take in our advice and come up with a strategy before making any major decisions like signing up for a new card. There are folks who have been at this for years who will be more than glad to offer their advice, experiences, and different perspectives. And folks who have been at this for a while still use this community as a sounding board to catch things they might have missed. With all these credit card issuers each having their own rules, it’s very easy to get tripped up and make a mistake going for one (or several) cards and that having an impact on getting cards from another issuer.