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

[wanderlust7]

Today while I was bored on the phone at work I got on the Amex site so I could hide my now closed Bonvoy Biz account. For some reason (all while on the phone) I copied my 15,000 MR referral and went incognito. I have tried that before and nothing different. Today the 75,000 MR with $5000 spend on the Plat came up. I did nothing. But so tempted. And now regretting it.

I am either 3/24 or 4/24 depending if they count my home equity loan from last summer. I don’t want to jeopardize the UR train right now. I thought of getting it for DH but then was paralyzed with thought that maybe I could get the 100k offer for him if I keep trying. If we could make the spend (sad but true we probably could) any thoughts if I should go for it?

Home equity loans don't count against your 5/24. The 100k offer doesn't come with a referral bonus. So it's really only 10k difference, but the referral would be taxable if you go over 55k (Amex would send a 1099).

 

[Haley R]

We loved having a car and DH had a blast driving on the wrong side of the road. If you want to go for the bonus round, take a UK rental car across the Chunnel and drive on the right side of the road while sitting in the wrong side of the car

DH went to our local AAA office and applied for an international driving permit. No clue if they’re actually required but we were told it was a good idea to have. So might be something to verify if you go the rental route.

And Costco offers rental cars in Europe so definitely check out the prices there for comparison. I think we used them for our 2016 trip. We used Arnold Clark for our 2009 trip (flew in and out of Glasgow). Great experiences with both.

Now I really want to plan another trip to the UK!!!

Do you have to be a member at Costco for that?

 

[Haley R]

Wait didn’t you say you were going to stop traveling after Japan? See what churning does lol

I don’t think I said that. Did I? Lol I don’t even know. We thought about settling down after Japan but now idk. We kind of just said if we have kids then great but we still want to travel

 

[Haley R]

@Haley R would you mind sharing which airport you flew out of (in the US, assuming you did) and into/out of in Japan? I've only flown out of LAX to NRT and then from KIX to LAX. Just wondering if I will need to add Haneda to the mix if I fly ANA.

We flew LAX to NRT round trip

 

[Haley R]

So, are thunderstorms in the forecast every day normal for this time of year at WDW?

We’re kind of in the same boat here in japan. It’s showing rain almost every day next week but so far we’ve been lucky with rain. I think tomorrow is 100% chance of storms though

 

[Haley R]

Haven’t been on all day or much the last few days. We have family visiting and not a lot of free time. I’m heading to the news thread to get caught up!

Just wanted to let y’all know that my dh got a job offer! It’s a job he’s wanted for over a year. He interviewed last year in May but things didn’t work out for various reasons. Anyways, it’s looking like he will definitely accept! So excited for him but also really nervous as he will start traveling some. The job is a remote job so we can move anywhere but we won’t move for two years so we can let our dd16 graduate from here. But just know, for the next two years, y’all are going to be hearing about if we want to move/don’t want to move and if we do where!??

Tell your Dh congrats!!

 

[have2getaway]

CIP MSR Question. My statement says purchases total $3,889, but the rewards for every dollar spent says 3,593. My total purchases for the next statement is $1,287, so MSR would be met with the first figure, but not the second. Which number is the one Chase uses? I don’t see any sort of notice that my MSR has been reached, so I have no idea if I have met the MSR or not. How can I tell?

 

[calypso726]

Yeah guess so. The literature says nothing about needing to show it at the airport, you're just supposed to get into the GE line. Good to know. Last time I did Canada was well before GE and all I remember was you did US customs before getting on the plane so I just assumed it worked the same as arriving - get in the GE line. Who knew there'd be line guards.

That is odd. We've never shown our GE cards. I'll make sure to start carrying them from now on though.

OK so here is my next question.

Looks like we are leaning toward using Chase exclusively for now (baby steps), planning to use UR points transferred to something (Virgin?) transferred to ANA. Still trying to figure out hotels since we likely won't be staying in a chain (big name or otherwise) in Kyoto. (Although probably Hilton in TDR... I do have a Hilton account with no stays!)

Do I need to set up some sort of account with Virgin and ANA to see how many points are necessary? Is it even possible to do this right now as I have no UR points as of yet? Should I just concentrate on accruing the UR and THEN worry about being able to see "how far" (literally and figuratively, I guess) they will get me or is there a way to do that now?

Just to clarify, you cannot transfer Virgin points to ANA. They are partners. If ANA has partner award availability, you would be able to book the flight with Virgin Atlantic using Virgin Atlantic miles. ANA will not be able to book your flight. You also do not want to search for partner availability on ANA's site. Virgin Atlantic will not show partner availability on their site either. You check for the availability on United's site. IGnore what United says it will cost in miles. That's what it costs in United miles not in Virgin Atlantic miles. You will need 120,000 miles for a first class flight or 95,000 for business per person if you're flying from the East coast. The award chart for Virgin Atlantic is fixed.
If you are flying from the west coast then 110k for F class or 90k for J class.

Yes, you will need a frequent flyer account with Virgin Atlantic. I'd go ahead and set that up now. You won' be able to transfer URs to Virgin Atlantic unless you have a frequent flyer account set up with them.

You won't need one with ANA but it is a good idea to have one with all airlines. You may come across and airline you wish to fly in the future with points and miles or take advantage of some travel hacking opportunity. Some airlines will require you to have had your account open for a certain amount of time like Iberia, Flying Blue/KLM etc.

 

[Lain]

OK so here is my next question.

Looks like we are leaning toward using Chase exclusively for now (baby steps), planning to use UR points transferred to something (Virgin?) transferred to ANA. Still trying to figure out hotels since we likely won't be staying in a chain (big name or otherwise) in Kyoto. (Although probably Hilton in TDR... I do have a Hilton account with no stays!)

Do I need to set up some sort of account with Virgin and ANA to see how many points are necessary? Is it even possible to do this right now as I have no UR points as of yet? Should I just concentrate on accruing the UR and THEN worry about being able to see "how far" (literally and figuratively, I guess) they will get me or is there a way to do that now?

I think I posted a link to an article from One Mile at a Time about using Virgin Atlantic miles to book ANA in one of my replies a few days ago. I don’t believe you can search or book ANA awards using VS miles through VS’ website. You will need to set up a VS account eventually in order to have somewhere to transfer your UR to. You should also set up accounts with ANA and United. You can search ANA directly for their flights, which they make available 355 days in advance. However, if you search ANA directly, that’s all their inventory; you’re looking at all seats available. Since you’re booking through a partner, VS, you’ll only have access to whatever award seats ANA releases to their partners. United is another ANA partner, like VS, and should have the same partner award availability that VS has on ANA. (However, United’s partner award charts are not as good as VS’s and it’ll cost you more UR to move to United to book on ANA than it would to move your UR to VS to book on ANA.) So you can set up a United account, search award availability for LAX>NRT and see if any awards pop up for flights operated by ANA, starting about 337 days in advance of departure date. If you see award availability on an ANA flight on the United website, that means VS should be able to book it using VS miles on the award chart in that article when you call in.

 

[miztressuz]

CIP MSR Question. My statement says purchases total $3,889, but the rewards for every dollar spent says 3,593. My total purchases for the next statement is $1,287, so MSR would be met with the first figure, but not the second. Which number is the one Chase uses? I don’t see any sort of notice that my MSR has been reached, so I have no idea if I have met the MSR or not. How can I tell?

Chase will use the dollars spent, minus fees. You won't see anything about meeting MSR on the statement other than looking at the UR points earned. In the UR portal you can look for points earned/earning on next statement to find the bonus points.

I am curious why the points are so low. The fee doesn't earn points but that should put you around 3794 and not 3593. So where'd the other points go? Did you have any returns that took points away? It'd be weird but did something not earn points? If it didn't it might not be counting towards MSR. You can check that in the UR portal too, under Recent Activity.

 

[palhockeymomof2]

So, are thunderstorms in the forecast every day normal for this time of year at WDW?

Yes very normal for FL...usually quick storms in the afternoon....may rain in MK but not Epcot

 

[ten6mom]

Just to clarify, you cannot transfer Virgin points to ANA. They are partners. If ANA has partner award availability, you would be able to book the flight with Virgin Atlantic using Virgin Atlantic miles. ANA will not be able to book your flight. You also do not want to search for partner availability on ANA's site. Virgin Atlantic will not show partner availability on their site either. You check for the availability on United's site. IGnore what United says it will cost in miles. That's what it costs in United miles not in Virgin Atlantic miles. You will need 120,000 miles for a first class flight or 95,000 for business per person if you're flying from the East coast. The award chart for Virgin Atlantic is fixed.
If you are flying from the west coast then 110k for F class or 90k for J class.

Yes, you will need a frequent flyer account with Virgin Atlantic. I'd go ahead and set that up now. You won' be able to transfer URs to Virgin Atlantic unless you have a frequent flyer account set up with them.

You won't need one with ANA but it is a good idea to have one with all airlines. You may come across and airline you wish to fly in the future with points and miles or take advantage of some travel hacking opportunity. Some airlines will require you to have had your account open for a certain amount of time like Iberia, Flying Blue/KLM etc.

I think I posted a link to an article from One Mile at a Time about using Virgin Atlantic miles to book ANA in one of my replies a few days ago. I don’t believe you can search or book ANA awards using VS miles through VS’ website. You will need to set up a VS account eventually in order to have somewhere to transfer your UR to. You should also set up accounts with ANA and United. You can search ANA directly for their flights, which they make available 355 days in advance. However, if you search ANA directly, that’s all their inventory; you’re looking at all seats available. Since you’re booking through a partner, VS, you’ll only have access to whatever award seats ANA releases to their partners. United is another ANA partner, like VS, and should have the same partner award availability that VS has on ANA. (However, United’s partner award charts are not as good as VS’s and it’ll cost you more UR to move to United to book on ANA than it would to move your UR to VS to book on ANA.) So you can set up a United account, search award availability for LAX>NRT and see if any awards pop up for flights operated by ANA, starting about 337 days in advance of departure date. If you see award availability on an ANA flight on the United website, that means VS should be able to book it using VS miles on the award chart in that article when you call in.

Oh my, I am so embarrassed that I have misunderstood! Thank you both for taking the time to explain it to me...

OK next steps:

• Create Virgin Atlantic frequent flyer account
• Create United Frequent flyer account
• Create ANA Frequent flyer account just to have for possible future use (who knows.... Japan may become a regular thing)

@Lain , sorry if I missed or have forgotten your earlier post with the link. I will go look again!

 

[Lain]

Still trying to figure out hotels since we likely won't be staying in a chain (big name or otherwise) in Kyoto. (Although probably Hilton in TDR... I do have a Hilton account with no stays!)

Most of the major hotel chains have co-branded credit cards that earn their program’s points with the major issuers. Chase offers Marriott, Hyatt, and IHG cards. Amex has Hilton and Marriott cards. Amex has 4 Hilton credit cards (3 personal, 1 business) that offer SUBs in the 100-150k Hilton Honors points range. If you got them all, that’s a lot of points (but those 3 personal cards would also add to your */24.) But Hilton doesn’t have a fixed awards chart so the points pricing could go up or down. I think @Haley R might’ve only gotten two Hilton cards for points toward her Hilton Tokyo Bay stay.

Jumping into Amex cards for Hilton could affect your longer term strategy with other Amex cards. You might’ve seen mention of Amex’s 100k Membership Rewards (“MR”) points offer on their Platinum card, which is highly targeted and tends to be easier to get if you don’t have any other Amex cards (basically, you’re a new customer they want to woo with a big, sweet offer). (But even if you get other Amex cards first, and don’t find yourself targeted for a 100k MR offer on the Platinum, that’s not so bad because the next best offer is 75k MR points.)

But more importantly, Amex is happy to approve you for new cards with SUBs attached, but only if you stay on their good side by continuing to spend on their cards even after meeting MSR. Or else, at some point you’ll receive a pop up warning when applying for a new card that, based on your history with Amex, you won’t get a SUB on the new card even if you’re approved. So this may lead to sub-optimal behavior in that you’re continuing to put spend on Hilton cards that may not have the best bonus categories to keep Amex happy; money that you could be spending on cards with better bonus categories and new cards with MSRs.

The Hilton Tokyo Bay (and the next door Sheraton) should be bookable on the Chase travel portal with UR points acting as cash. But again, you should compare the UR points you’d need to book the hotel on the Chase portal vs. how many Hilton Honors points you’d need to book directly with Hilton and whether those Hilton points are something you’d feel comfortable going after with Amex’s cards.

 

[Lain]

@Lain , sorry if I missed or have forgotten your earlier post with the link. I will go look again!

No need to feel embarrassed. You just started this hobby last week! It’s a lot to take in.

And here you go: https://onemileatatime.com/redeeming-virgin-atlantic-miles-ana/

 

[Lain]

@SBWB48 - I see you’re back on this thread again!

 

[bernina]

Do you have to be a member at Costco for that?

Yes, although for years we used my Moms membership and were never asked to show a membership card.

 

[ten6mom]

• Create Atlantic frequent flyer account
• Create United Frequent flyer account
• Create ANA Frequent flyer account just to have for possible future use (who knows.... Japan may become a regular thing)

May I just say that the "password retrieval" questions on United's FF site are dumber than most??? My goodness.

Ok. Now I'm official on all three airlines' mileage programs. I also have a SW one with zero points because I don't fly them often enough

I spoke briefly to my husband last night (I was running out the door to work just as he got home) and he is on board with trying to get a CIP in HIS business name (using my referral link... right??) and not touching it for himself and then adding me as an employee so that I can take care of making the MSR. It will be interesting to see whether or not he even gets approved since as I have mentioned, he doesn't treat credit cards quite the same way I do.

But I have a couple months yet before we will try that as we could not meet MSR on two at the same time and still be able to pay everything in full.

I'm sure I'll be back with more questions very soon!

Thank you all so much for everything so far!

 

[Lain]

May I just say that the "password retrieval" questions on United's FF site are dumber than most??? My goodness.

Ok. Now I'm official on all three airlines' mileage programs. I also have a SW one with zero points because I don't fly them often enough

I spoke briefly to my husband last night (I was running out the door to work just as he got home) and he is on board with trying to get a CIP in HIS business name (using my referral link... right??) and not touching it for himself and then adding me as an employee so that I can take care of making the MSR. It will be interesting to see whether or not he even gets approved since as I have mentioned, he doesn't treat credit cards quite the same way I do.

But I have a couple months yet before we will try that as we could not meet MSR on two at the same time and still be able to pay everything in full.

I'm sure I'll be back with more questions very soon!

Thank you all so much for everything so far!

That’s awesome progress in just a week! But just to be sure, you mean in HIS NAME. Just like you did with your application. Don’t get fancy with the “business” names, or Chase will want to see documentation. I think some of us have found it best to either apply on behalf of our P2s once we have their ok, or sit with them as they fill out the app so they don’t make any mistakes that could cause it to be denied and then you’ll have to wait 30 days to try again.

 

[ten6mom]

That’s awesome progress in just a week! But just to be sure, you mean in HIS NAME. Just like you did with your application. Don’t get fancy with the “business” names, or Chase will want to see documentation. I think some of us have found it best to either apply on behalf of our P2s once we have their ok, or sit with them as they fill out the app so they don’t make any mistakes that could cause it to be denied and then you’ll have to wait 30 days to try again.

Yes, I should have written it "in his 'business name'"!! You may rest assured I will probably do it for him while he looks over my shoulder!

 

[disfanforlife]

We went car shopping yesterday. My daughter and my husband are both getting new cars. Used my new SW Biz and my daughter used her new SW personal card. Dealer let us each put $2,000 down payment per car on each card! Haven’t bought a new car in a few years, so that was a nice way to meet MSR for both of us!