I love credit cards so much!

[speedyfishy]

Well, I did it. Instant approval for spg personal! YAY! Thanks for the enabling!

My first AMEX, so that is exciting!

Congrats!! The bonus and the spend points should be enough for five nights at the Sheraton Park in Anaheim, for your LA trip. With the whole new point system that may change. It also maybe a “bad” value though since the hotel is about $130 a night.

 

[disneymagicgirl]

Just got the spg 30,000 to pop up. I think I want to pull the trigger. Anyone want to remind me how great these points are and what you use them for? I know everyone here loves them so much, would love to hear how you get max value. Especially on hotel stays. Having the hardest time pulling the trigger but I know I need to just make a decision!!

I see you already app'd and approved, but for me it was just a way to boost our stash for upcoming trips I know we want to do, though I have been so busy getting points I haven't taken time to plan the trips. Ha! I need to pin down summer and fall first. I figured there are nice SPG/Marriott resorts at all the places we have on the list, so having them is just the cherry on top of my UR sundae.

Hoping to do Atlantis/Nassau (fall break?), ski trip out west after Christmas, weekend at Disney (prob on property though), and Hawaii (in lieu of Atlantis?). Next summer we have an Alaskan cruise so we may use points in Vancouver or Seattle. I have a ton of URs and Hilton points stashed for all this as well, so not sure how it will shake out. Way I see it, the more points the better.

 

[FredtheDuck]

My SPG personal referral link is dead. Too bad, too, was going to use it for DH.

I apparently have a fear of stingrays. We were in Belize earlier this year and our hotel had a snorkeling program. I've never been snorkeling and I was so excited to try it but then I saw a teeny, tiny stingray in the water near the hotel bar. I tried to rationalize because the water was so gorgeous and it would have been amazing, but I couldn't get myself over my fear. I had DH cancel my sign-up, but he still went by himself. When he got back, he said I would have been terrified because there were big rays that they were swimming with. No thank you.

 

[miztressuz]

Question - I just tried to find my referral link so I could refer my DH to the SPG Biz. I tried the "refer a friend" but it says my card isn't eligible for this. Is there somewhere else I should be looking?

The AmEx app is the only place I could pull it up after the 35k offer expired. You get that message on the website instead but if you look at the list of eligible cards both SPG's were still listed I can't remember where exactly in the app though, Membership or Benefits sounds familiar.

 

[Judique]

Do they count business cards towards the 5 max or just personal?

I don't know what they are doing. I had read somewhere that amex had a total of 8 - 4 charge and 4 credit - then I read that this was incorrect. The only thing I know is what she told me - that amex told her she would have to cancel one to get the Delta - I didn't ask which delta. I do know she has the following amex cards - Hilton, both SPG's, Amex everyday, Amex Blue - she may have more but we mostly talk SPG as we've both had the personal and have used them together for travel for about 18 years.

Edit - I called her and the five above are what counted - she also has charge cards (Mercedes benz) that don't count.
So, with amex, small business and personal both count towards a max of 5, as per her call with amex - I should mention she applied, got denied and called back in to be told she had to cancel one to get Delta.

 

[CyndiLouWho]

While I appreciate the thought, Unfortunately for somebody with aviophobia - no amount of "logical" statements will ease their fears and anxiety. It is a deep-seated emotional response. I attempt to provide facts such as this but they provide little consolation to her.

Yes, a phobia is an irrational fear. Most of the time, the person knows mentally that the fear is unbased, but that does nothing for emotions. I have a phobia of spiders. My husband thinks it’s silly and years ago, made me hold a tarantula. I did it, with my heart pounding, but I still scream when I see a spider to this day. I know they can’t do anything to me, totally irrational fear.
I hope your wife can quell her fear enough to enjoy your vacation. Has she tried anti-anxiety meds? I know they help some people.

 

[jhoannam]

I wish I could apply for the SPG personal, but I’m at 4/24 I think. I can’t get the SPG Biz now, because we are still working on other MSR and I don’t think I can add another $5k.
DH just got the SPG personal, so we’ll at least have that.

I think I’m going to go for the Marriott Biz. I can wait to apply and the spend is only $3k.

 

[pillow]

I just showed the post and the article to the Plane Princess. He asked how he became the "Plane Princess" and I asked him if he was being rhetorical. He was amused. His bucket list item has been over-water bungalows with beautiful clear water. Specifically, not the ones at the Poly with flesh eating bacteria infested water. Anyhow, Bora Bora or Maldives was fine by him. I've been working on it for a few years and leaning towards Bora Bora. Well he took one look at this article and immediately asked how we could travel hack it. I explained that Conrad was part of Hilton and his next response was, "Let's rack up more Hilton points!" So now, it looks like the goal will be Maldives over-water bungalows and at least one night in the underwater villa. I hope it will be bookable with points and I'm almost scared to see how many points that will be! I see another couple of Hilton credit cards in our future.

Also check out the upcoming "sweet spot" for booking Marriott/SPG this fall. There is a St Regis Bora Bora (SPG cat 7) on the list, so . . . come Aug 1, you can get SPG cat 7 5 nights for 240K Marriott points. https://frequentmiler.boardingarea.com/2018/04/17/huge-marriott-win-spg-cat7/

 

[CyndiLouWho]

Yes! I offered to order the flowers for our office admins and ended up putting $400 towards my SPG Biz minimum spend.

I need to come up with a way to meet my spend. I need those points sooner than later. I only have about $1000 left but my biggest bills are car and mortgage and I can’t get Plastiq to work for either.

 

[SouthFayetteFan]

Thanks to everybody for the likes and kind words. Too many comments to quote them all so just one big Thank You!

 

[SouthFayetteFan]

Do they count business cards towards the 5 max or just personal?

I don't know what they are doing. I had read somewhere that amex had a total of 8 - 4 charge and 4 credit - then I read that this was incorrect. The only thing I know is what she told me - that amex told her she would have to cancel one to get the Delta - I didn't ask which delta. I do know she has the following amex cards - Hilton, both SPG's, Amex everyday, Amex Blue - she may have more but we mostly talk SPG as we've both had the personal and have used them together for travel for about 18 years.

Edit - I called her and the five above are what counted - she also has charge cards (Mercedes benz) that don't count.
So, with amex, small business and personal both count towards a max of 5, as per her call with amex - I should mention she applied, got denied and called back in to be told she had to cancel one to get Delta.

So the correct answer on this is - American Express has no limit on Charge Cards but does have a limit on Credit Cards. For some people that limit is 4 credit cards, for others it is 5 credit cards. All AMEX credit cards count - whether business or personal. If you have 4 AMEX CCs and apply for a 5th and are denied due to the limit you can ask them reconsider and push the application through to see if they'll give you a 5th card. If you're already at 5 (or if they won't give you 5 and you're stuck at 4) you have to close an existing card to get a new one opened. Any DPs contrary to this online are either false, or they are an extremely special situation that probably doesn't apply to most people. I Hope that helps

 

[CyndiLouWho]

My 35,000 spg points from my spg personal bonus are going toward two nights in Vancouver pre cruise this summer. Honestly without the free nights and free plane tickets (csp) going to Alaska wouldn’t have been feasible. The 35,000 I will earn for my spg biz will go toward ten nights in Europe next summer. Again, probably not on my radar without free hotels and hopefully free plane tickets (CIP).

I am hoping for Hyatt on points, or SPG on points if no Hyatt available for Vancouver. Fingers crossed.
Which SPG in Vancouver? I’m looking at Westin Bayshore.

 

[speedyfishy]

I wish I could apply for the SPG personal, but I’m at 4/24 I think. I can’t get the SPG Biz now, because we are still working on other MSR and I don’t think I can add another $5k.
DH just got the SPG personal, so we’ll at least have that.

I think I’m going to go for the Marriott Biz. I can wait to apply and the spend is only $3k.

I’m at the same spot. I’m at 4/24 and haven’t gotten the CSP/CSR yet. The plan was to double dip after one more Chase Biz card. I’d love the SPG personal but I can’t get it over the CSP/CSR.

Also check out the upcoming "sweet spot" for booking Marriott/SPG this fall. There is a St Regis Bora Bora (SPG cat 7) on the list, so . . . come Aug 1, you can get SPG cat 7 5 nights for 240K Marriott points. https://frequentmiler.boardingarea.com/2018/04/17/huge-marriott-win-spg-cat7/

OMG maybe I should cancel my trips and book this!!!

 

[Lain]

Do they count business cards towards the 5 max or just personal?

Both business and personal count towards 5 max, but "credit cards" only; not "charge cards."

 

[CyndiLouWho]

I have SPG personal and biz. AF for SPG personal will hit this month. I was going to cancel but now I’m not sure. They are adding a free night to this card too? Anyone think there might be a bonus to upgrade to a new Starriott card? Otherwise I’d be applying for the new card. Keep or cancel?

 

[Lain]

I wish I could apply for the SPG personal, but I’m at 4/24 I think. I can’t get the SPG Biz now, because we are still working on other MSR and I don’t think I can add another $5k.
DH just got the SPG personal, so we’ll at least have that.

I think I’m going to go for the Marriott Biz. I can wait to apply and the spend is only $3k.

I don't know what your timeline and spend is like, but Amex typically takes 1-2 billing cycles to report a new personal card to your credit reports. So that gives you 1-2 months when Chase doesn't know you have a new SPG personal and won't count against 5/24. You could slot a 5/24 card in between that time. Of course, when the SPG personal does report, and you've gotten a new (personal) card from Chase, you'll be 6/24 and will need to consider when the next two cards drop off.

 

[elgerber]

Both business and personal count towards 5 max, but "credit cards" only; not "charge cards."

I try to read everything, I swear I do LOL, but could you refresh what is a charge and what is a credit with AMEX? DH and I each have 5 total, Delta personal, 2 Hilton personal, Delta and SPG Biz.
Also, is the existing SPG Biz going to come with a free night in the future?

 

[pillow]

I am hoping for Hyatt on points, or SPG on points if no Hyatt available for Vancouver. Fingers crossed.
Which SPG in Vancouver? I’m looking at Westin Bayshore.

We stayed at Westin Bayshore pre-cruise in 2015. I loved the location as it was next to the park (I would run and/or walk in the mornings). We had a juliette balcony with a nice view of the water.

See page 2 here for a few room pics - https://www.disboards.com/threads/pillow-family-alaska-canada-mega-trip.3430739/page-2

This summer, we are staying at Marriott Delta Suites - just a few blocks from the cruise terminal. There is another Marriott close by (the name is escaping me at the moment), but the beds (and room as a whole) are smaller vs Delta. The Westin was booked for our dates, or I probably would have booked it again simply due to location.

 

[peel]

So now, it looks like the goal will be Maldives over-water bungalows and at least one night in the underwater villa. I hope it will be bookable with points and I'm almost scared to see how many points that will be! I see another couple of Hilton credit cards in our future.

So, you're now planning for the underwater villa AND the island in Venice...you are very susceptible to the power of suggestion! I should come up with some more destinations that I would like to visit through your eyes.

 

[pillow]

So the correct answer on this is - American Express has no limit on Charge Cards but does have a limit on Credit Cards. For some people that limit is 4 credit cards, for others it is 5 credit cards. All AMEX credit cards count - whether business or personal. If you have 4 AMEX CCs and apply for a 5th and are denied due to the limit you can ask them reconsider and push the application through to see if they'll give you a 5th card. If you're already at 5 (or if they won't give you 5 and you're stuck at 4) you have to close an existing card to get a new one opened. Any DPs contrary to this online are either false, or they are an extremely special situation that probably doesn't apply to most people. I Hope that helps

I have 5 at the moment. I am primary on all but 1 (I'm an auth user on DH's Blue Preferred). To keep options open going forward, I probably should think about cancelling one. My preference would be to cancel my Delta Gold Business, but the last time I tried, they offered me 15K points to keep it open, so I agreed. Hmmm . . .