I love credit cards so much! v6.0 - 2023 & 2024 (see first page for add'l details)

[disneybirds]

What does everyone have planned for 2025?
Feb: Mexico for my grandmother's 90th
March: Disney World for my niece's 6th birthday
Summer: Belize
Thanksgiving: Italy, we are taking my parents so this will be a slow touring pace. I need some advice on what to do with 6 full days. My mom's dream is to visit the Vatican so that's the primary goal, we also want to visit Pompeii and Venice. Should we fly into Rome and out of Venice or vice versa?

Not sure how much I will be able to help, but here are my thoughts. I had originally planned for us to fly into Rome and out of Venice, but in looking at the flights it was better for us to fly into Venice and out of Rome. Venice is slower paced, so you might want to take that into consideration if you want to start at a slower pace or end on a slower pace. Hopefully, your parents have good mobility. I said many times on our recent trip that Italy is not designed with those with mobility issues. In Pompeii, there is a lot of walking and stone streets. In Venice, there are lots of bridges. The Vatican involves lots of walking as well, but I am assuming there are accommodations for those with mobility challenges.

If I were traveling with my parents, I would think about convenience. For instance, I would look into a car service or tour that would take you from Rome to Pompeii for the day. We were able to find a car service that waited on us to eat lunch in Naples, waited on us to tour Pompeii and arranged a tour guide, but they are based out of the Amalfi Coast. We also booked a golf cart tour with Rolling Rome that picked us up directly from the hotel. It is expensive, but definitely worth it. You can see so much in 3 hours and not have to walk. In Venice, I picked a hotel that had canal access so that we didn't have to lug our suitcases on the cobblestone streets and up/down bridges. It is easy to get lost in Venice so I didn't want to have to worry about finding our hotel after a long overnight flight.

Good luck with your planning! Happy to answer any questions.

 

[*WDW*Groupie*]

What does everyone have planned for 2025?
Feb: Mexico for my grandmother's 90th
March: Disney World for my niece's 6th birthday
Summer: Belize
Thanksgiving: Italy, we are taking my parents so this will be a slow touring pace. I need some advice on what to do with 6 full days. My mom's dream is to visit the Vatican so that's the primary goal, we also want to visit Pompeii and Venice. Should we fly into Rome and out of Venice or vice versa?

So far this is what I have:
January / February : Singapore / Japan (incl. Disney) with ds
February / March: Australia & NZ (NZ Backroads cycling trip, several days solo before and after cycle trip)
late March: Paris & Amsterdam
April: possibly Fairmont Lake Louise with dd for her grad trip for 4 nights (hard to book until she has her final exam schedule in February)
September: thinking about booking ABD Portugal with ds (I have a lot of $$ tied up in Disney GCs -- need to use them)
December: probably annual Arsenal footie match with ds and would like to tack on visits to various Christmas markets in Europe again

Heading to Tokyo, Bali & Singapore in 27 days!

 

[*WDW*Groupie*]

If I were traveling with my parents, I would think about convenience. For instance, I would look into a car service or tour that would take you from Rome to Pompeii for the day. We were able to find a car service that waited on us to eat lunch in Naples, waited on us to tour Pompeii and arranged a tour guide, but they are based out of the Amalfi Coast. We also booked a golf cart tour with Rolling Rome that picked us up directly from the hotel. It is expensive, but definitely worth it. You can see so much in 3 hours and not have to walk. In Venice, I picked a hotel that had canal access so that we didn't have to lug our suitcases on the cobblestone streets and up/down bridges. It is easy to get lost in Venice so I didn't want to have to worry about finding our hotel after a long overnight flight.

Good luck with your planning! Happy to answer any questions.

Would you mind sharing the name of the company you used for the Pompeii tour?

 

[wanderlust7]

The basic HH AmEx was opened on July 19, 2023. I took the upgrade offer today. Is there any chance I will get an anniversary FNC and an upgrade FNC? A girl can dream, right?!

Wow, talk about cutting it close! Amex upgrades usually take a day to reflect in the system. So on the day of your anniversary, the system will hopefully recognize it's now an Aspire for the purpose of the anniversary FNC. If this works, you should get 2 FNCs within days of each other in about 2 months. Fingers crossed for you!

 

[WinterSolider]

Does anyone know if the expiration date on the Hawaiian Airlines companion coupon applies to the booking date or the travel date? Their customer service won't give me a straight answer.

 

[VGCgroupie]

Has anyone utilized the US Bank Altitude Extend Pay they offer that is like Chase Pay Over Time? Im curious how it compares, Chase typically offers 12-24 months depending on purchase size.

 

[FreeDiningFanatic]

So I've gone a LOT overboard for the next 9-12 months of travel, here's what we have in the works. And despite 8 trips in the works, I am really having FOMO about some other SLH properties, etc. I ended up in this "precidament" bc of new properties opening, the SLH partnership and darn SW. We have 2 companion passes this year and I booked some dummy dates around Thanksgiving and Christmas and all four flights got changed, so my churning math brain insists I take advantage of the situation. I might need a travel addiction support group.

August- Lisbon, Portugal and the Azores Islands
October- Hermitage Bay (SLH)- Antigua
November- Kimpton Seafire, Grand Cayman
December- surprise Disney trip- this is mostly cash
Jan/Feb- WA Los Cabos Pedregal trip with my sister/BIL
March- WA Costa Rica & Tabacon Resort
April- Kimpton Seafire- we've been going for Easter for the past 4-5 years
June- Peru- just in the initial planning stages for this

 

[disneybirds]

Would you mind sharing the name of the company you used for the Pompeii tour?

Rainbow Limos - based out of the Amalfi Coast. It is a small, family run business and I would highly recommend! The communication is superb, the cars were spotless, and the drivers were all very good. We used them getting to/from Positano. I wish we had used them for a day trip to Amalfi and Ravello instead of taking the ferry.

 

[FreeDiningFanatic]

so putting things like advil etc into this is ok for intl. travel?

Shouldn't be a problem for OTC meds, unless it is a controlled substance/not permitted in the country you are going to. Google "Fiji medications prescriptions customs" for info. For prescription medications, I personally travel with them in their prescription bottles.

At my destination I transfer my prescriptions to a daily pill box, so I can be sure I take each med and so that I'm not leaving out more info for hotel staff than I need (ie the prescription bottle). Because I usually transit through other countries when returning home, I return them to their prescription bottles before departing. You should always keep your prescriptions/medications in your carry-on or personal bag so that if your baggage is lost or delayed, you'll have access to your medications.

I really wouldn't overthink too much of this. You'll have a great time; don't stress yourself out.

 

[FreeDiningFanatic]

Thanksgiving: Italy, we are taking my parents so this will be a slow touring pace. I need some advice on what to do with 6 full days. My mom's dream is to visit the Vatican so that's the primary goal, we also want to visit Pompeii and Venice. Should we fly into Rome and out of Venice or vice versa?

With a slow touring pace (or not), I personally wouldn't try to squeeze Venice, Rome and Pompeii into one trip. I think the Venice and Rome combo will be quite nice. We did Venice first, then train to Rome and the city shock in Rome was initially offputting. But we adjusted quickly and really enjoyed our time. Venice was just so charming, so going to any large city would have taken adjustment. I don't think you'll go wrong with either city first, so I would just book what makes sense with flight availability.

Are you going to try to get your parent biz class? Not sure their age/health, but I just don't think my Mom could have done this trip well without flying biz class and having lounge access.

We just adored our Row Like a Venetian tour, recommended on this board. Probably not for the parents bc it's a long walk there, but would be great for the four of you.
Trip report in signature.

 

[leeniewdw]

We took the Eurostar to London and checked into the Hyatt Regency Churchill. This was also booked using Hyatt points and we used a suite upgrade certificate for the stay as well. We had the 9th floor balcony suites. We saw ABBA Voyage (2nd time for me and Planeprincess) and we also went to Warner Bros Harry Potter studios on a VIP tour. This was outstanding! Tower of London was a must do since we managed to get spots for Ceremony of the Keys.

Was this also your TSwift trip (if I'm recalling correctly that you had tickets).

How did you like the Churchill? We are VERY inexperienced travelers (but we have an empty nest now and both DSs are married with those expenses behind us), but we did stay at this property in June for 3 nights. We don't have status, but thought the room was fine (and the bed devine!). Just curious about a much much more seasoned traveler's thoughts!

I just rebooked my June 2025 Greece/Italy Disney Cruise to a Norwegian Fjords cruise in August. I couldn't get excited about Greece and Italy in June (sounded hot and we've done several of those ports before). I still really need a vacation now, but the best I can come up with is three weeks in SW Florida during peak hurricane season. I am going to fly dd down for a long weekend so she and my mom can celebrate their birthdays together (21st and 81st).

I follow a photographer (she's also a YTer) who was recently on a Norwegian Fjords trip and it looked AMAZING - especially during this time of terrible heat in the US! She did a Seabourn cruise (hosted I am certain, she's done them before) which is certainly out of our current budget but the scenery was amazing.

 

[MsOnceUponATime]

Not sure how much I will be able to help, but here are my thoughts. I had originally planned for us to fly into Rome and out of Venice, but in looking at the flights it was better for us to fly into Venice and out of Rome. Venice is slower paced, so you might want to take that into consideration if you want to start at a slower pace or end on a slower pace. Hopefully, your parents have good mobility. I said many times on our recent trip that Italy is not designed with those with mobility issues. In Pompeii, there is a lot of walking and stone streets. In Venice, there are lots of bridges. The Vatican involves lots of walking as well, but I am assuming there are accommodations for those with mobility challenges.

If I were traveling with my parents, I would think about convenience. For instance, I would look into a car service or tour that would take you from Rome to Pompeii for the day. We were able to find a car service that waited on us to eat lunch in Naples, waited on us to tour Pompeii and arranged a tour guide, but they are based out of the Amalfi Coast. We also booked a golf cart tour with Rolling Rome that picked us up directly from the hotel. It is expensive, but definitely worth it. You can see so much in 3 hours and not have to walk. In Venice, I picked a hotel that had canal access so that we didn't have to lug our suitcases on the cobblestone streets and up/down bridges. It is easy to get lost in Venice so I didn't want to have to worry about finding our hotel after a long overnight flight.

Good luck with your planning! Happy to answer any questions.

We just returned from Rome and I agree about the cobblestone roads. They're not for anyone with any sort of mobility issues.

 

[orangecuse]

Chase somehow shipped our new card to our old address, even though we have had like 10 cards since moving years ago. I hope the new new one comes before our couch gets delivered, I was banking on that for the spend!

 

[miztressuz]

Question.. I have the Chase Freedom, Freedom Unlimited and Sapphire Preferred cards. My normal behavior for deciding when to use which card is: Freedom 5% category? Freedom. Travel? Sapphire Preferred. Everything else? Freedom Unlimited. In my mind this was maximizing earned points.

I just learned that the Chase Sapphire Preferred has a 10% anniversary points bonus:
"Each account anniversary year, you'll earn bonus points that equal 10% of your total spend in points from purchases made with your credit card during the previous account anniversary year at a rate of 1 point for each $1 spent."

If I have no plans to close my Sapphire Preferred card before my anniversary date.. am I better off using the Sapphire Preferred for all purchases??

I feel like I'm missing something with the 10% anniversary bonus, because the "Chase Trifecta" is so highly publicized? But maybe I'm not and I actually should be using the Sapphire Preferred for everything??

@georgina nailed it, but I got a kick out of TPG take on it
"
So, for example, if you spent $100,000 on your Sapphire Preferred during your cardmember year, you would get 10,000 bonus points at the end of the year.

Since TPG values Ultimate Rewards points at 2.05 cents each, earning 10,000 bonus points would be like getting $205 in value. "

Is that all? Whoop whoop sign me up!

Sorry it was just so casual about spending 100 grand in a year I couldn't not share for perspective.

 

[calypso726]

What does everyone have planned for 2025?
Feb: Mexico for my grandmother's 90th
March: Disney World for my niece's 6th birthday
Summer: Belize
Thanksgiving: Italy, we are taking my parents so this will be a slow touring pace. I need some advice on what to do with 6 full days. My mom's dream is to visit the Vatican so that's the primary goal, we also want to visit Pompeii and Venice. Should we fly into Rome and out of Venice or vice versa?

For once I am not overplanned. I have tentative plans but am kind of also leaving things a bit open to see where the wind blows.

Jan/Feb - Costa Rica WA, Andaz, Tabacon
July - Scotland - Edinburgh, Stonehaven, Inverness, Portree, Skye
Late summer - Masai Mara

I'm bound to book a cruise somewhere in there but have not decided where or when.

 

[calypso726]

Was this also your TSwift trip (if I'm recalling correctly that you had tickets).

How did you like the Churchill? We are VERY inexperienced travelers (but we have an empty nest now and both DSs are married with those expenses behind us), but we did stay at this property in June for 3 nights. We don't have status, but thought the room was fine (and the bed devine!). Just curious about a much much more seasoned traveler's thoughts!

No, the TSwift trip is next month. We absolutely loved the Churchill and would stay there again in a heartbeat. We had some of the best fish and chips at this tiny place called the Mayfair Chippy which was in walking distance. Never dined in as they are always packed with a line. But we got take out and walked back to hotel with it and ate in our rooms or the club lounge. It was soooo good!

 

[tink1970]

No, the TSwift trip is next month. We absolutely loved the Churchill and would stay there again in a heartbeat. We had some of the best fish and chips at this tiny place called the Mayfair Chippy which was in walking distance. Never dined in as they are always packed with a line. But we got take out and walked back to hotel with it and ate in our rooms or the club lounge. It was soooo good!

Thanks for the recommendation! We're there next month before our cruise to Norway. I'm so excited about NOT Florida weather . Oh yes, and Norway...

 

[calypso726]

Thanks for the recommendation! We're there next month before our cruise to Norway. I'm so excited about NOT Florida weather . Oh yes, and Norway...

Loved Norway and hope to return one day. Yes, getting out of the heat was wonderful! Enjoy your trip and look forward to a review!

 

[Crazed4DisneyinSC]

As far as I can tell, Citi has no way to close the AA Platinum Select card via SM. I was dreading the call to do this. To my surprise, you are able to close the card via the automated prompts, without talking to an agent. Then it said I'll receive a letter within 10 days confirming the closure. Much better than talking to an agent and explaining a reason why you want to close!
ETA: I logged into my online account, and sure enough, it says the account is closed. Easy peasy.

 

[ten6mom]

I need some math help please!

I am looking at an IHG property for 2 nights at 78,000 points per night (i know.... i know... it's in Seaside OR in June so I'm sure that's their peak season. It's for the Scooter Cannonball that my husband has decided he needs to do).

I don't have anywhere NEAR that many IGH points (I have about 17K).

I just saw there is currently a Chase>IHG 80% transfer bonus through the end of July.

How do I figure out how many Chase URs to transfer?

Total Needed Points: 156,000
Points I currently have: 17,254
Points needed: 138,746