I love credit cards so much! v4.0 - 2021 (see first page for add'l details)

[becauseimnew]

I called Chase today and asked about possibly waiving the annual fee on my SWA Priority card. The first person I spoke with said they couldn't do anything and asked if I wanted to cancel :/ I said I'd think about it and hung up and immediately called again. The 2nd person offered me a $150 credit to offset the annual fee (lol).

I need to call today to ask for a retention offer on my CSP.

 

[2TxAgs]

Right there with ya! I want to do Europe so much, but I find it overwhelming, especially with at least 4 of us. The only international I have done is Costa Rica with DH, thinking of taking the kids there.

A thought for you (and @LynnTH) would be to look at European tours offered by some of the big travel companies. Try Rick Steves or Gate1 or others - see what their itineraries are, where they stay, how long they spend. The forums on those sites, or fodors dot com or trip advisor will have all kinds of threads about trip planning, and responses from experienced travelers or locals about what is/isn't good with the plans. SO MUCH GOOD INFORMATION!!

 

[CyndiLouWho]

A thought for you (and @LynnTH) would be to look at European tours offered by some of the big travel companies. Try Rick Steves or Gate1 or others - see what their itineraries are, where they stay, how long they spend. The forums on those sites, or fodors dot com or trip advisor will have all kinds of threads about trip planning, and responses from experienced travelers or locals about what is/isn't good with the plans. SO MUCH GOOD INFORMATION!!

Yes those and ABD itineraries are popular to copy.

 

[calypso726]

Yes those and ABD itineraries are popular to copy.

They sure are! That is exactly what we did for our visit to Ireland as a pre trip before the ABD Danube river cruise. We were hoping to book with ABD but the dates didn't line up right to do Ireland and then the river cruise. So, I copied the ABD itinerary and added some other stops based on what I'd read on the TripAdvisor forums. It was an amazing trip even if it wasn't a real ABD!

 

[Sheree]

Back from Iceland. Used Chase URS for rt on Icelandair and 2 FNC certs for Hilton. The rest I did have to pay cash for
wonderful trip around the ring road. Terrible experience with Enterprise, waiting for a manager to call me back

since I was turned down for a new csp and can't pc back to csr I'm on hold as far as new cards go.

DH has openings. We have so many AA, United and SW FF points not sure I want/need to add to them for now. not sure of next int'l travel.
I have amex surpass, looking for good upgrade to aspire possibly.

finding Hilton much nice than Marriott, as far as benefits go

if anyone looking for a travel destination, I highly recommend Iceland

 

[wanderlust7]

Back from Iceland. Used Chase URS for rt on Icelandair and 2 FNC certs for Hilton. The rest I did have to pay cash for
wonderful trip around the ring road. Terrible experience with Enterprise, waiting for a manager to call me back

since I was turned down for a new csp and can't pc back to csr I'm on hold as far as new cards go.

DH has openings. We have so many AA, United and SW FF points not sure I want/need to add to them for now. not sure of next int'l travel.
I have amex surpass, looking for good upgrade to aspire possibly.

finding Hilton much nice than Marriott, as far as benefits go

if anyone looking for a travel destination, I highly recommend Iceland

Any reason why you don't want to apply for the Aspire instead? Have you had it before? Just want to mention that upgrading will lock you out of the sign-up bonus as the criteria Amex uses is "ever had the card".

 

[havaneselover]

Using these Saks gift cards from my Platinum card has been a pain in the butt! I keep trying to order Fluff Yeah slippers which are backordered. Last time I ordered them in mid-July they were backordered until 8/3. Of course they didn't ship and I got an email saying they would ship 8/16. No update since. Logged in today and the new shipdate is in January but they are now in stock. So now I have to cancel, get the gift card funds back, and reorder. Honestly, Saks sucks.

 

[Alexle2007]

Using these Saks gift cards from my Platinum card has been a pain in the butt! I keep trying to order Fluff Yeah slippers which are backordered. Last time I ordered them in mid-July they were backordered until 8/3. Of course they didn't ship and I got an email saying they would ship 8/16. No update since. Logged in today and the new shipdate is in January but they are now in stock. So now I have to cancel, get the gift card funds back, and reorder. Honestly, Saks sucks.

I walked into the Saks store while we are in Chicago and most of the clothing was just ugly. So it’s ok with me not to own designer labels.

 

[havaneselover]

I walked into the Saks store while we are in Chicago and most of the clothing was just ugly. So it’s ok with me not to own designer labels.

They do carry some Lilly and have Christopher Radko ornaments (plus Tory Burch purses). But mostly it's useless to me.

And when I canceled, they transfered me to the gift card department to get my funds back and they told me they couldn't do anything and I had to call back customer service. So I did and got a very nice woman who fixed the gift cards, gave me $20 off the slippers, and free express shipping. So I'm less irritated.

 

[mmmears]

Seconding (or thirding?) the suggestion to look at tours of Europe and plan your trip based on what you like when looking at those itineraries. I do try to spend more days in a place than most tours, though, since they seem to zip through places a bit quickly.

I've done that on land tours and it worked out great. Cruises are another option (normally, not really now though).

So went to Google Flights (that is an awesome site...). Put in dates for about the same time in 2022 that we would go in 2023. Right now the cheapest Airport is London, flying by United. So, thinking we may need to get some United Credit Cards to help with flights.

1. How easy/hard are United Cards to get - both Personal and Business
2. Can you combine points with family members? Assuming not....
3. Can you Venmo easily on these cards for SUB?

Just realized this are Chase Cards.... I am at 5/24 unitl October. DH is 4/24 so may need to get a Biz card for him. Could have the kids get a card but they both just opened CSP's end of July. So they will need to wait a few months also. But if we all get cards - that will help with some of the flights.

Just a thought here, but you don't need to get United cards. You can transfer URs and MRs to so many airlines. I find that it helps to keep my options open and not put all my eggs, or points, in one airline basket.

 

[Sheree]

Any reason why you don't want to apply for the Aspire instead? Have you had it before? Just want to mention that upgrading will lock you out of the sign-up bonus as the criteria Amex uses is "ever had the card".

I remember reading about an upgrade offer. since I'm not paying the csr fee, if the benefits are worth it, I could do it.

 

[hsmamato2]

Back from Iceland. Used Chase URS for rt on Icelandair and 2 FNC certs for Hilton. The rest I did have to pay cash for
wonderful trip around the ring road. Terrible experience with Enterprise, waiting for a manager to call me back

since I was turned down for a new csp and can't pc back to csr I'm on hold as far as new cards go.

why can't you pc back to csr?

 

[becauseimnew]

I PCed my CSP to a Freedom Flex, already have the OG Freedom. For a second I doubted my decision. DH has both CSP & CSR, I don't have a way to transfer points anymore but hoping that isn't a big deal.

 

[mgarbowski]

I can't remember. Does amex provide an instant number for all cards, except when it glitches?

I'd love to be able to call in and see if I can get it for my new card. Since it wasn't instant approval I'm guessing it's a maybe.

It's been a year since I got a new Amex, but I believe they usually offer the chance to get an instant number during the online application process, and it can be sometimes be easy to miss. Then, once the application is completed, you can't get one, and just have to wait for the card to arrive.

 

[Alexle2007]

They do carry some Lilly and have Christopher Radko ornaments (plus Tory Burch purses). But mostly it's useless to me.

And when I canceled, they transfered me to the gift card department to get my funds back and they told me they couldn't do anything and I had to call back customer service. So I did and got a very nice woman who fixed the gift cards, gave me $20 off the slippers, and free express shipping. So I'm less irritated.

Yeah, I like Lilly and Tory but sadly that was not to be found in the store.

 

[platamama]

I PCed my CSP to a Freedom Flex, already have the OG Freedom. For a second I doubted my decision. DH has both CSP & CSR, I don't have a way to transfer points anymore but hoping that isn't a big deal.

As long as your DH can book flights & hotels for all of you through his loyalty programs you should be fine. It's best if he has the higher elite status (compared to you) in those programs. Even if he doesn't, some of them allow you to transfer points to another member, e.g. Marriott comes to mind.

 

[havaneselover]

Yeah, I like Lilly and Tory but sadly that was not to be found in the store.

That stinks. We have a kind of rinky dink Saks (in a mall that is a hot mess) but they carry some brands I like. But honestly I only go in there to get a gift card twice a year and I coordinate it with dog grooming (since my groomer is also at the mall). They used to have a nice selection of Mackenzie Childs which my mom and I both like but that's gone

 

[LynnTH]

Seconding (or thirding?) the suggestion to look at tours of Europe and plan your trip based on what you like when looking at those itineraries. I do try to spend more days in a place than most tours, though, since they seem to zip through places a bit quickly.

I've done that on land tours and it worked out great. Cruises are another option (normally, not really now though).



Just a thought here, but you don't need to get United cards. You can transfer URs and MRs to so many airlines. I find that it helps to keep my options open and not put all my eggs, or points, in one airline basket.

I know I can use my UR's but I like to hoard them and use them sparingly, so if I can use United Points for most of the flights then I won't have to use my UR's. I will have to look at tour Itineries - that is a great idea.

 

[afan]

I was able to change the dates for my travel ins to next year which just seemed easier. I picked a larger range than needed but that's also not a bad thing.

 

[Alexle2007]

Happy 1st birthday to my sweet boy! It has been quite a year for him.