I love credit cards so much! v7.0 - 2025 (see first page for add'l details)

[Haley R]

My daughter was 12 when we went.

Ds will only be 5 so I’m worried he won’t want to take the time to look through everything

 

[djmeredith]

Ds will only be 5 so I’m worried he won’t want to take the time to look through everything

I did that tour in 2023 and I think he will love it if he is now interested in the movies. At 5, he's definitely not going to be interested in stopping at every single exhibit and reading the descriptions (which you already know). However, there is enough "wow" type displays to keep him interested throughout the whole self-paced tour. IIRC, they even had some hands on craft type activities at one or two locations, and those looked to be geared towards younger children like your son.

 

[Haley R]

I did that tour in 2023 and I think he will love it if he is now interested in the movies. At 5, he's definitely not going to be interested in stopping at every single exhibit and reading the descriptions (which you already know). However, there is enough "wow" type displays to keep him interested throughout the whole self-paced tour. IIRC, they even had some hands on craft type activities at one or two locations, and those looked to be geared towards younger children like your son.

I thought about it more and an evening time might actually be nice because we can do other stuff during the day before going to the tour.

 

[Haley R]

So now I have another question. Those of you who did the studio tour, did you take public transportation to get there or something else?

 

[havaneselover]

You may want to call and talk with Chase Cruise Dept. I had a scenario with Carnival, where they only had 1 cabin available for they type I wanted. So, I booked the initial cruise through Carnival and put down my deposit and then I called and had my booking transferred to Chase and then was able to us UR's for the rest of the booking. I think you have 30 days to transfer the booking. I would call Chase and confirm with them if you can do this and what the procedure is.

Thank you! The one room I was looking at disappeared then popped back up this morning so I booked with the $2 deposit. I'll call Chase and figure out if they can transfer it once I have the points. Otherwise I'll cancel it as soon as my points are returned and rebook.

 

[calypso726]

So now I have another question. Those of you who did the studio tour, did you take public transportation to get there or something else?

The first time we went we took the train from Euston Station to Watford junction, then hopped on one of the Warner Bros Harry Potter Studios shuttle buses. The second time, we just took an Uber from the hotel.

 

[hsmamato2]

So I just wanted to pipe in here with some things I'm (slowly) learning.... my previous question about AA pts vs UR and how to decide- I've since learned how quickly prices change! That 1 random day I was looking at all the options was the cheapest (points and pricewise) the next day every flight had jumped up to some degree across all the sites! It kind of surprised me as I was thinking it was more static than that- what was 11,300 UR one day was 17,xxx the next. what was 8k AA was 12k the next. It doesn't matter b/c I already chose what I was going to do, but I figured those out there like myself who are learning the different ecosystems might benefit from this.... I wish I had a better 'feel' for high/low prices overall, but I'm going to keep watching and hopefully learn something

 

[calypso726]

So I just wanted to pipe in here with some things I'm (slowly) learning.... my previous question about AA pts vs UR and how to decide- I've since learned how quickly prices change! That 1 random day I was looking at all the options was the cheapest (points and pricewise) the next day every flight had jumped up to some degree across all the sites! It kind of surprised me as I was thinking it was more static than that- what was 11,300 UR one day was 17,xxx the next. what was 8k AA was 12k the next. It doesn't matter b/c I already chose what I was going to do, but I figured those out there like myself who are learning the different ecosystems might benefit from this.... I wish I had a better 'feel' for high/low prices overall, but I'm going to keep watching and hopefully learn something

It's a good lesson. I learned it the hard way. Now, if I know that a flight or hotel booked on miles/points is one that is easily canceled without a penalty or the penalty is nominal compared to the value/difficulty then I will book it right away and figure it out later before the award disappears. Once in a while I book backup trips just in case my original trip doesn't pan out for whatever reason.

 

[Crazed4DisneyinSC]

So I just wanted to pipe in here with some things I'm (slowly) learning.... my previous question about AA pts vs UR and how to decide- I've since learned how quickly prices change! That 1 random day I was looking at all the options was the cheapest (points and pricewise) the next day every flight had jumped up to some degree across all the sites! It kind of surprised me as I was thinking it was more static than that- what was 11,300 UR one day was 17,xxx the next. what was 8k AA was 12k the next. It doesn't matter b/c I already chose what I was going to do, but I figured those out there like myself who are learning the different ecosystems might benefit from this.... I wish I had a better 'feel' for high/low prices overall, but I'm going to keep watching and hopefully learn something

I book with AA a lot, and I find the prices can jump a lot! If I see a good points price, I always book it immediately, even if my plans aren't solidified. You can always cancel and get a refund of the points/taxes. But chances that the low price you see will stick around are slim!
For example, when we went to DR last year I booked direct one ways for 8k miles each, about 9 months in advance. I never saw that low of a price again. Within days, they shot up to 25k each, and then by the time we left they were around 40-50k each.

 

[StephPlum]

So I just wanted to pipe in here with some things I'm (slowly) learning.... my previous question about AA pts vs UR and how to decide- I've since learned how quickly prices change! That 1 random day I was looking at all the options was the cheapest (points and pricewise) the next day every flight had jumped up to some degree across all the sites! It kind of surprised me as I was thinking it was more static than that- what was 11,300 UR one day was 17,xxx the next. what was 8k AA was 12k the next. It doesn't matter b/c I already chose what I was going to do, but I figured those out there like myself who are learning the different ecosystems might benefit from this.... I wish I had a better 'feel' for high/low prices overall, but I'm going to keep watching and hopefully learn something

Not sure when your trip is or which you picked but keep watching as prices can go down as well. I’ve rebooked my return flight from Iceland 3 times as the miles have gone down. This is on United. I’ve done that on AA as well.

 

[Haley R]

The first time we went we took the train from Euston Station to Watford junction, then hopped on one of the Warner Bros Harry Potter Studios shuttle buses. The second time, we just took and Uber from the hotel.

I think we would most likely do an Uber also

 

[Twilghtsprkle]

I think we would most likely do an Uber also

As long as no one gets car sick. London driving did not agree with me. We did have to take an uber to Windsor castle because the trains were not running that morning. It felt like we were turning every few minutes.

 

[Haley R]

As long as no one gets car sick. London driving did not agree with me. We did have to take an uber to Windsor castle because the trains were not running that morning. It felt like we were turning every few minutes.

Ds gets car sick but only when he has a screen in front of him. I figured sitting in an Uber would be easier than trying to transfer to different trains or buses

 

[ten6mom]

**Disregard- I found it! Had to change the currency to the "Free night flex" or something along those lines.**

Question for the experts on redeeming my free anniversary night with IHG:

I can see the free night in my 'rewards wallet'. I chose "redeem" and then went to the hotel to book, but visually, it looks exactly like booking any other reward night with points. There is no indicator (that I can see) that says it's using my free night.

Am I doing something wrong? I haven't completed the reservation yet... I just want to make sure it applies the night and doesn't use points.

 

[StephPlum]

My CSP app DP. PCed my CSR (over 4 years old) on Monday. I had to call twice to get PCed to OG CF. I have 6 (Disney, IHGx2,Marriott, CF x2) personal cards and 3 biz cards. This week I loaded $10 per card on my Amazon account (except for any card with an existing balance). So all cards had a balance. I didn't lower any CLs but most are low except for the old CSR and the CIC. Applied now (4 days after the PC) and instant approval. Now to get it before my trip starting next Sunday.

 

[mmmears]

How old was your daughter when you went? I think ds will like it but I’m not sure he would last 3 hours. I’m worried he’ll get too tired if we do the late time. Dh said we can always go back to London and do it when he’s older

Honestly, I think it's good for all ages. There were plenty of small children there when we visited. You may not have the time to see every little thing, but I'd go again even if I'd have to cut the visit short. There are a lot of things there that did appeal to kids and if he's a HP fan then I'd book it. Just be mindful that it does sell out pretty early.

I thought about it more and an evening time might actually be nice because we can do other stuff during the day before going to the tour.

That's exactly why we went in the evening. All the other things we wanted to see in London closed early so this was a bonus tour.

So now I have another question. Those of you who did the studio tour, did you take public transportation to get there or something else?

There are direct tour buses that go there. We were planning on taking the train to Euston so just bought the tickets without transportation. Then they closed part of the rail line for repairs so we just took an Uber.

 

[Haley R]

We booked our tickets for the studio tour! We ended up doing a 4:30 pm time. I think we will plan to uber there because it’ll be easier with ds. So far that’s the only thing we’ve booked for London aside from hotel and flights but I’m planning to book a Jurassic afternoon tea soon and our free tickets to the History and Science museums

 

[elgerber]

We booked our tickets for the studio tour! We ended up doing a 4:30 pm time. I think we will plan to uber there because it’ll be easier with ds. So far that’s the only thing we’ve booked for London aside from hotel and flights but I’m planning to book a Jurassic afternoon tea soon and our free tickets to the History and Science museums

You will love it.
We took the train and the bus, but we were all adults, and it was a lot of travel that way. Uber is a good choice.

 

[jujubiee4]

My view is, if you can pay it off in 6 months the Disney Premier Visa is the best way to go. 2% cash back AND 6 months (which you can stretch to 8 or 9 months) to pay with no interest.

If you know you're going to need more time, the WF is probably the way to go.

How are you stretching to 8 or 9 months with this card? thx

 

[Cfabar1]

How are you stretching to 8 or 9 months with this card? thx

DVC allows you to make payments over 60 days.

Day 0 you pay your deposit
Day 30 you pay the half the remaining
Day 60 you pay the other half of the remaining

Until very recently you could do this for 90 days with payments on 0, 30, 60. 90

So, depending on when you do your payments, and when closing statement dates begin/end you can certainly stretch it out at 0%.

In my experience I had to tell my guide this is what I wanted to do. He didn't offer or volunteer.

Worst case scenario, after the timeframe is over, you put the balance you couldn't pay off on a balance transfer card for a 3% charge for a long time. Still way cheaper than financing.