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

[palhockeymomof2]

Does anyone know if SW rapid rewards are assigned cash value? I'm assuming not...

I'll have $400 support and then a SW support bonus that I had assumed wouldn't kick me over into a 1099.

If the bonus support is 20,000RR points they are valued at $200 by chase so you would get a 1099

 

[trenty]

Unfortunately I have found different hotels have different cancellation policies. My last one at the Waldorf Bonnet Creek was 48hrs for a points booking, but at the Grand Wailea it was possibly 30 days. You may have to call the hotel, or just see what the policy is for a cash booking, as it may be the same terms.

Thanks. I called Hilton. For the hotel I want it is refundable up to the day before. All set!

 

[djmeredith]

DD just flew to Europe for a week... and Delta lost her luggage. I told her to go shopping and keep he receipts. She's got $500 worth of skin and hair products in there not to mention the expensive bag itself. Her clothes are probably not worth much, but replacements cost. Does anyone know how this is handled? She submitted a lost baggage claim but hasn't heard anything. Is been about 10 hours already. She has no travel insurance (she used her Freedom card to book). I'm unsure how much the airline is on the hook for and how she should proceed.

I got a $400 voucher when SW damaged my 2 bags. I could have waited and gone through the process of getting different compensation, but the $400 was more than the cost of damage done. Here is the official site for U.S. requirements.

https://www.transportation.gov/lost-delayed-or-damaged-baggage

 

[*WDW*Groupie*]

DD just flew to Europe for a week... and Delta lost her luggage. I told her to go shopping and keep he receipts. She's got $500 worth of skin and hair products in there not to mention the expensive bag itself. Her clothes are probably not worth much, but replacements cost. Does anyone know how this is handled? She submitted a lost baggage claim but hasn't heard anything. Is been about 10 hours already. She has no travel insurance (she used her Freedom card to book). I'm unsure how much the airline is on the hook for and how she should proceed.

My brand new Tumi bag was stolen from Hartfield (Atlanta) airport years ago and we flew with Delta. They were not good to deal with, which is why we haven't flown with them since (hopefully this has changed). To get the full amount of compensation for the items in my suitcase I had to submit receipts for everything in the bag. Not an easy task, but I'm always up for a challenge. It was several yrs ago, but I think the amount covered was in the area of $2,000 or $2,500. I honestly can't recall the exact amount (it could have been $1,500). The thing is, any receipts from purchases before she left should do, because they don't know what was in the bag. I didn't buy much when we were in Conyers (we were there for a riding competition) because I had to replace all dd's riding clothes, boots, jackets, etc., which was expensive enough. I do recall that I never spoke to a Delta agent -- all correspondence was by e-mail (they never provided a phone number despite me asking how to call them several times). Also they were super slow to issue my check. Like I mentioned, this was several years ago and things have probably changed since then.

Where is she staying in Europe? She can always ask the hotel concierge to help her track down her bag.

Sorry that she is going through this. Traveling is stressful enough without an airline losing your luggage.

 

[calypso726]

We have made it to French Polynesia on our latest travel hacked trip. So, here are the deets. We booked AA from MIA-LAX in lie flat seats for 55k miles and $5.60 per person, 37.5k miles and $5.60 pp on the way back but our aircraft changed for the trip back home and it’s regular J seats, not lie flat.

Spent some time in the Centurion lounge (thank you Amex Plat) in Miami which offers complimentary massages. I have always enjoyed these. However this last one was definitely a “you get what you pay for” experience. This one was so bad it was comical. Imagine ordering a massage on Wish or someone making a parody of the worst massage in the history of massages. It was so bad lol I had to contain myself from laughing

Fortunately, I booked our Air France flight to Papeete with more than enough time should something go sideways with the AA flight because it did. We were delayed due to weather in the gulf and then had to re-route on a northerly flight path to avoid it. Our AF flight was booked for lie flat seats in J using Amex MRs transferred during a 25% bonus. We used 120.5k AF miles and about $200 in taxes per person.

We touched down at 5:15 am and the customs line was about 1 hour and 45 minutes. If we’d had an EU passport then we’d have been in and out in no time. We grabbed a taxi and headed to the ferry port where we caught the ferry to Moorea. Once we disembarked, we got a cab to the Hilton Moorea Lagoon resort & spa, arrived about 9:45 am and checked in for the next 3 nights. We booked these using 95k Hilton points per night. The room won’t be ready for a couple more hours so we are relaxing and enjoying the view and the vibe. The area reminds me of a more compact Kauai with more dramatic mountain peaks. After our 3 nights here we will be heading to the Conrad Bora Bora. I’ll share room pics later.

 

[punkin]

My brand new Tumi bag was stolen from Hartfield (Atlanta) airport years ago and we flew with Delta. They were not good to deal with, which is why we haven't flown with them since (hopefully this has changed). To get the full amount of compensation for the items in my suitcase I had to submit receipts for everything in the bag. Not an easy task, but I'm always up for a challenge. It was several yrs ago, but I think the amount covered was in the area of $2,000 or $2,500. I honestly can't recall the exact amount (it could have been $1,500). The thing is, any receipts from purchases before she left should do, because they don't know what was in the bag. I didn't buy much when we were in Conyers (we were there for a riding competition) because I had to replace all dd's riding clothes, boots, jackets, etc., which was expensive enough. I do recall that I never spoke to a Delta agent -- all correspondence was by e-mail (they never provided a phone number despite me asking how to call them several times). Also they were super slow to issue my check. Like I mentioned, this was several years ago and things have probably changed since then.

Where is she staying in Europe? She can always ask the hotel concierge to help her track down her bag.

Sorry that she is going through this. Traveling is stressful enough without an airline losing your luggage.

Delta has not been helpful at all. She reported the bag at the airport and the agent said she would email with the claim number... but nothing so far so she can't even get any info on the Delta site even though they show her bag as "delayed."

She's staying with a friend, so no hotel concierge. I'm just hoping delta finds it.

 

[afan]

It won't help now because it needs to be purchased prior to your flight, which is why I'm not quoting to reply. But I've seen good things on Twitter about this service https://www.blueribbonbags.com/en-US/Features

A travel blogger I follow has used them to get a bag back.

 

[calypso726]

Here are a couple of room pics. The room is a standard king garden room. I like the private plunge pool!

There is a bottle of champagne on the table and complimentary soft drinks and macaroons in the fridge. Full video of room tour is here

View this content on Instagram

View this content on Instagram

 

[AmyAnne]

Speaking of lost bags, has anyone used those tile tracker things to actually help locate a bag?

Recently I spent about 20 minutes thinking AA had lost my bag, or someone had taken it. I still don't know exactly what happened to it but an AA agent appeared with it (I'm guessing it fell off a cart or belt somewhere--AA could tell me that it had arrived with the flight). I resolved to try not to check a bag unless absolutely necessary (it was free to check this one so I opted for not dealing with getting it in and out of the overhead bins twice) and to use a tile tracker if I did have to check a bag (at least I would have known if the bag was still in the airport).

 

[elgerber]

Speaking of lost bags, has anyone used those tile tracker things to actually help locate a bag?

Recently I spent about 20 minutes thinking AA had lost my bag, or someone had taken it. I still don't know exactly what happened to it but an AA agent appeared with it (I'm guessing it fell off a cart or belt somewhere--AA could tell me that it had arrived with the flight). I resolved to try not to check a bag unless absolutely necessary (it was free to check this one so I opted for not dealing with getting it in and out of the overhead bins twice) and to use a tile tracker if I did have to check a bag (at least I would have known if the bag was still in the airport).

I use AirTags in mine. They aren't super duper precise, but I could tell when my bags arrived at the Boardwalk and which hotels they were at in between. I would probably be able to at least tell the general area of the airport they are in.

 

[wdwpluto]

Semi-related pity party (the trip was booked on points) - currently in Tokyo and sick as a dog! Thankfully it's not the C-word, but I feel lousy and it was enough to make me cancel my trip to Kyoto and stay put in my hotel today.

Ughhhh. I've been looking to this trip since August and I am so sad/mad. My trip started with torrential rain and wind from the tropical storm, and now this! At least I had a great day and a half (despite the rain!) before I got sick.

Day after tomorrow I move to the Toy Story Hotel and am hoping I feel better for Disney!

 

[palhockeymomof2]

Here are a couple of room pics. The room is a standard king garden room. I like the private plunge pool!

There is a bottle of champagne on the table and complimentary soft drinks and macaroons in the fridge. Full video of room tour is here

View this content on Instagram

View this content on Instagram

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View attachment 765054

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you trip reports beautiful pictures

 

[palhockeymomof2]

Semi-related pity party (the trip was booked on points) - currently in Tokyo and sick as a dog! Thankfully it's not the C-word, but I feel lousy and it was enough to make me cancel my trip to Kyoto and stay put in my hotel today.

Ughhhh. I've been looking to this trip since August and I am so sad/mad. My trip started with torrential rain and wind from the tropical storm, and now this! At least I had a great day and a half (despite the rain!) before I got sick.

Day after tomorrow I move to the Toy Story Hotel and am hoping I feel better for Disney!

Oh no that stinks… you are feeding better quickly

 

[palhockeymomof2]

Speaking of lost bags, has anyone used those tile tracker things to actually help locate a bag?

Recently I spent about 20 minutes thinking AA had lost my bag, or someone had taken it. I still don't know exactly what happened to it but an AA agent appeared with it (I'm guessing it fell off a cart or belt somewhere--AA could tell me that it had arrived with the flight). I resolved to try not to check a bag unless absolutely necessary (it was free to check this one so I opted for not dealing with getting it in and out of the overhead bins twice) and to use a tile tracker if I did have to check a bag (at least I would have known if the bag was still in the airport).

I use to use the tiles, but got the air tags and found them easier to use

 

[SkampyOne]

Thinking of doing a direct DVC add-on and wondering should I use my Disney Visa Premier, or open a new card that would be more advantageous? Hear a lot of people talking about the CSR.

Only 1 new card in past 2 years (Chase Marriott Bonvoy Boundless) BUT average age of all accounts is just over 2 years and the oldest account is from 4 years ago when we moved to the US. That said, my credit score should be enough to get approved.

I pay off my cards in full every month (under $2K unless we have a major expense) so this will be my first time carrying a balance and hoping to spread out payments interest free as long as I can (Chase My Payment plan?) Spend is typical groceries, gas and whatever bills let us pay by credit card. Rarely travel by plane, hotels are pretty much covered between Hilton, Marriott and DVC.

Hope that's enough to weigh in!

 

[wdwpluto]

Oh no that stinks… you are feeding better quickly

Thank you! Just felt a small quake (confirmed by googling) while laying in bed. On the 17th floor of a hotel in Shinjuku and apparently it felt like a 2 here, but it was odd! Felt like being in a small car on the highway while a big truck goes flying by if that makes sense! What a trip! LOL

 

[georgina]

The good news - global entry easily saved us an hour in Charlotte today. Customs was so backed up they held us on the plane For a while. The line was snaking along hallways, we had to cut through to get to the kiosks but there was no line there.

the bad news - our 10 PM flight home is now expected to leave sometime after midnight (crew issue). The captain is trying to find a first officer on some reserve list because the original one is stuck in Memphis. I am not confident we will get home tonight. We had trouble with American both parts of our vacation.

and I was right - departure time kept changing from 12:07 AM to 1:12 to 1:57 to 2:51 to 4:21 to 5:51 to 7:21 to 8:51 to 10:21 to 11:51. Now in a nearby hotel. The line was huge at CS so I just booked a hotel and we left, need to find out if I need proof from the airline that it was a crew issue for CSR insurance.

 

[afan]

I use AirTags in mine. They aren't super duper precise, but I could tell when my bags arrived at the Boardwalk and which hotels they were at in between. I would probably be able to at least tell the general area of the airport they are in.

Can the iPhone be in airplane mode.and only connected to Wi-Fi and the airtags stuff still work?

I don't want an iphone for my daily but am thinking I could get an old one just to be able to use the airtags and also apple pay stuff for Japan.

 

[pinkxray]

Thinking of doing a direct DVC add-on and wondering should I use my Disney Visa Premier, or open a new card that would be more advantageous? Hear a lot of people talking about the CSR.

Only 1 new card in past 2 years (Chase Marriott Bonvoy Boundless) BUT average age of all accounts is just over 2 years and the oldest account is from 4 years ago when we moved to the US. That said, my credit score should be enough to get approved.

I pay off my cards in full every month (under $2K unless we have a major expense) so this will be my first time carrying a balance and hoping to spread out payments interest free as long as I can (Chase My Payment plan?) Spend is typical groceries, gas and whatever bills let us pay by credit card. Rarely travel by plane, hotels are pretty much covered between Hilton, Marriott and DVC.

Hope that's enough to weigh in!

I am also adding on direct dvc points thanks to the new incentives. I opened a new Chase Ink and will use that for the deposit. I had planned on using my Disney card for the rest in order to get the 6 months to pay it with no interest, but the Chase My plan also sounds good.

So yes to a new card! Not sure about Disney Visa vs CSR. Now, you have me thinking I should use the CSR!

 

[Zhoen]

I am one step closer to my 2025 50th birthday/Kiddo's-graduation cruise!!! Our preferred itineraries have us narrowed down to NCL, and they are currently selling their "Cruise First" certificates at $500/250 vs. the usual $150/300... So I just bought 2 of those, which H and I will use on two separate cabins/reservations to maximize our military discounts. And of course, guided by the wisdom of this group, I put it on my new CSP working toward that MSR. (Goal is to bank as many points as possible between now and then to take the sting out of the airfare when the time comes...)

When the bill posts to the credit card, I will pay that $500 using "free" money I have earned from my TD bank and Chase checking bonuses (hoping to see the Chase savings bonus post after this Tuesday...)

This is the only forum where I can geek out about this and y'all will understand my excitement! Thanks guys!!!