I love credit cards so much! v3.0 (see first page for add'l details)

[*WDW*Groupie*]

For those who pay tuition with a cc, does the college allow payment by credit card or do you have to use plastiq? If they do allow you to pay with a credit card, do they charge a fee? I guess it's still worth it if meeting a MSR?

I plan on paying dd's tuition and residence through Plastiq. I have been trying to find a new cc to get, but the SUBs here are very low currently. I will likely use my biz gold, which gets 2X through Plastiq.

In the fall when Aeroplan announces their new line of cards (yay!) there are some "very exciting" SUBs being promised and I plan on taking full advantage! They are rolling out 11 new cards; with family pooling of points (new feature commencing in November) I may be able to convince dh to sign up for a new card and will try to get dd a base card.

 

[punkin]

Oh, trust me—I hear you. I have a late July 2021 cruise booked and am crossing my fingers. Haven’t been more than 30 minutes from my house since early January. This sucks so much and the uncertainty is the worst.

I actually still have airfare booked for a trip abroad late November 2020, But I am almost positive that will be cancelled.

 

[havaneselover]

I personally wouldn't book a cruise until the virus is eradicated. If you really want to book, I'd check the reviews (Facebook, BBB, Trip Advisor, etc.) for the cruise line you are looking at (for how they have handled cancellations / refunds during this time).

Dd and I had a cruise booked with Quark Expeditions in June and they were absolutely awful to deal with (I really had to fight to get my money back -- ended up filing a dispute with AmEx and it took 2 rounds of disputes before they sided with me -- Quark wrote a letter to AmEx filled with lies and misinformation after dispute number 1; dispute number 2 I re-filed with Quark's terms and conditions and highlighted the proper section pertaining to refunds). I need to emphasize that their T&Cs stated that if they cancelled the cruise (which they did) they would refund my money in full -- they were trying to mislead AmEx by pointing them to a different clause that pertained to excursions during the cruise. Overall a very dishonest company and a terrible experience. I connected with several people through FB that they did the exact same thing to; I was lucky that I paid for the cruise with my AmEx -- some that booked with other cards weren't successful with their disputes.

The virus likely won't ever be eradicated.

 

[SouthFayetteFan]

Hey Friends - Looking to make sure I'm not missing any potential CC tips: We just won a large auction on eBay - gonna spend ~$200. Any credit card related discounts or offers that I should be thinking about before we make the payment?

 

[LynnTH]

For those who pay tuition with a cc, does the college allow payment by credit card or do you have to use plastiq? If they do allow you to pay with a credit card, do they charge a fee? I guess it's still worth it if meeting a MSR?

My kids college only accepts Visa/MC and there is no fee to use them. So, this is a great way to meet MSR.

 

[WVMomof3]

For those who pay tuition with a cc, does the college allow payment by credit card or do you have to use plastiq? If they do allow you to pay with a credit card, do they charge a fee? I guess it's still worth it if meeting a MSR?

Oldest DD did accept with a fee, I think 2.75%. I only did it once. We didn't really owe enough to make a signup bonus work out so was not worth it. Second DD - no credit cards. Out of 5 payments I have used Plastiq twice to get a sign up bonus and had some FFD or a reduced rate to make it worth it. DS accepts with a fee, 2.75%. Still trying to figure out what to do with his. It is due first week in September so I need to move if I am signing up for a new card. Weirdly it says it takes Discover, MC and American Express, so doesn't look like they take visa.

 

[LynnTH]

Got my SW Flights booked for March Springbreak Cruise. Hoping it happens.... keeping fingers crossed. Points were a lot less than we normally spend on flights during springbreak.

 

[WVMomof3]

Charlottesville experts - Residence Inn or Quirk (a boutique Hyatt Hotel). Both are close to the downtown mall. I can use a free night certificate for either. I do have more Marriott certs and they have been extended to their Jan 2021 dates. I am not sure I will use all of them before they expire. Hoping it is no problem to extend them again. I am already Platinum with Marriott and Explorist with Hyatt and one night will not help to get to a next level with either. They both would be approx $200 cash rate.

 

[havaneselover]

Charlottesville experts - Residence Inn or Quirk (a boutique Hyatt Hotel). Both are close to the downtown mall. I can use a free night certificate for either. I do have more Marriott certs and they have been extended to their Jan 2021 dates. I am not sure I will use all of them before they expire. Hoping it is no problem to extend them again. I am already Platinum with Marriott and Explorist with Hyatt and one night will not help to get to a next level with either. They both would be approx $200 cash rate.

You honestly can't go wrong with either. If you like bagels, make sure you go to Bodo's--the highlight of my college experience.

I wonder if people still book the Boar's Head for graduation four years in advance--I messed that up by graduating early

 

[Pooh2]

We got the 5x points on grocery/gas purchases offer on our Southwest card.
The statement closed and we only received 1x points on grocery (have not used it on anything else).
How long do the 5x points take to show up?

 

[WVMomof3]

You honestly can't go wrong with either. If you like bagels, make sure you go to Bodo's--the highlight of my college experience.

I wonder if people still book the Boar's Head for graduation four years in advance--I messed that up by graduating early

Looks like rates for same night I am looking are over $400. I think I will pass for graduation and any other time. lol I am not for swanky hotels, personally. I am not liking the whole hotel for college thing. Oldest DD was local so no hotel needed. 2nd DD we have access to a family condo so no hotel needed. We just let them know before we go. It has been fabulous for us. Even used for summer storage. This is a new experience for us.

 

[havaneselover]

Looks like rates for same night I am looking are over $400. I think I will pass for graduation and any other time. lol I am not for swanky hotels, personally. I am not liking the whole hotel for college thing. Oldest DD was local so no hotel needed. 2nd DD we have access to a family condo so no hotel needed. We just let them know before we go. It has been fabulous for us. Even used for summer storage. This is a new experience for us.

I agree (and I don't even remember it being swanky--just seems like the two best options in the 90s were Boar's Head or Omni). Quirk would probably be more fun. The one in Richmond is super cute.

 

[Artygal90]

How do you find the offer in your account?

It was an option on my homepage when I logged in and then again when I selected my Chase card with available URs to check out. You do have to activate the offer, it’s not automatic. I can try to post a screenshot when I get home this evening if that doesn’t help.

 

[happ]

Hey Friends - Looking to make sure I'm not missing any potential CC tips: We just won a large auction on eBay - gonna spend ~$200. Any credit card related discounts or offers that I should be thinking about before we make the payment?

The only thing that I can think of is buying an eBay GC, maybe at a grocery or office store for category spend points.

 

[Haley R]

How do you find the offer in your account?

I just looked it up on google and found a link that sends you to the webpage. It’ll say if you’re eligible or not

 

[elgerber]

I just looked it up on google and found a link that sends you to the webpage. It’ll say if you’re eligible or not

Thanks, we are not eligible. :-(

 

[Haley R]

Thanks, we are not eligible. :-(

This was one of the first ones we’ve had in awhile that we were eligible for. Sorry it didn’t work for you

 

[LilSweetPeaPhoto]

OMG, as if it wasn't enough PITA with the VGC and WM....When I was changing the pin on all my cards yesterday, I had a card show invalid online. Well it tells you to call the number on the back. That number is automated. So when I put in all the card info it says "invalid" and to try again or check online. There are no option to talk to a human. Online there is no option for any kind of chat. There is no email, etc. Only a PO Box you can mail your issues into. I tried googling for a number to GiftCardMall, but most were automated. Finally I went through and said I wanted to buy a card. I got a human who said to return to Staples with the card since it was bought there. So I headed back to my Staples with the card. Of course they had no clue what to do. So they called the number on the card, and got the same invalid number. So the manager called corporate. They looked up the transaction and said it was activated and then gave me a number to call for GCM.

So I called that number, and again it was automated. So I walked back into Staples. The manager disappeared for about 20 min then came back to ask for the card and the receipt. He said he found another number to call. About 45 min into this he came back and said he got approval finally to return the card. Well 15 minutes later when that wasn't working, he reached into the register and gave me $200.

I'm grateful they did that. But I'll be honest, this has me concerned. Like why was the card invalid? And HTH can a company have NO WAY to get ahold of a human that can help? I'm happy Staples believed me and refunded the $200. But they easily could have told me that I had to deal with GCM myself and there is honestly NO WAY to do that unless I want to mail a letter. Is this 1980?

On a happy note, I was able to do $1200 in gift cards yesterday after all that mess. Only $1400 more to go.

 

[Haley R]

We have the best shipt shopper ever! She almost always takes our order. Today Dh was joking and said ask her to get me a slushie. I asked her jokingly and she said “sure what size?”. She’s actually bringing me a slushie lol.

 

[disfanforlife]

We are in NY and my kids attend SUNY schools. They do not charge a fee so it makes sense to get the points. I have read that it depends on the college. Some schools charge a fee to use a credit card but I read that all SUNY schools are fee free.

Same here, my kids all go to or went to SUNY schools. I have been paying their bill with credit card every time.