I love credit cards so much!

[tink1970]

I assume he should stick with Chase cards first bc of 5/24 and he won't do business cards. So that leaves the Hyatt, the new Marriott, and the United cards, right? If you were just starting out with no co-branded hotel or airline cards, what would you do?

Reminder---looking to Australia in fall 2020; youngest at school in a town with Hyatt/Hilton/Marriott properties; fly SW domestically from BWI and PHL; DVC; v limited business travel. Free-with-annual fee hotel nights would be handy for domestic travel to visit kiddo or relatives and on our hiking/national parks trips. Gathering hotel points via sign up bonuses for a couple nights in Sydney would be great, too.

So DH won't do business cards and is locked out of Sapphire for 23 months, correct?

So for co-brands I'd probably look at Hyatt and United since you're obtaining the CP for SW then either double dipping or obtaining the CIP next summer.

United flies to Australia (and most everywhere else!) and Hyatt has one of the top rated hotel in Sydney (review from Lucky https://onemileatatime.com/review-park-hyatt-sydney-2/), plus if you decided to stay elsewhere you can always use them when visiting DS.

Then I'd weigh whether Marriott or Hilton should be your next card again spacing them all out nicely--perhaps Hilton to take a break from Chase?

I'm sure others will be more helpful with the timing...I'm lol/24 so not sure what the best way to time the applications (every 3 or 4 months?).

 

[tink1970]

I just added a night on at Copper Creek after our cruise in March. Figured we can explore Wilderness Lodge and hangout in Disney Springs. I didn't want to rush off the boat and head to the airport to either wait or cut it too close. I was thinking about staying at OKW the night before the cruise but am going to use the Hyatt @ MCO on points.

I really like the Hyatt@ MCO...love to take the elevator down and have a pot luck at the different restaurants (apps at one place, main another, then dessert somewhere else) and people watch (top ten favorite pastimes). I also think staying a night at WDW is a great way to change gears from cruise vacation to heading home. Wilderness Lodge is one of our favorite resorts and Copper Creek looks very nice.

Have fun!

 

[amalone1013]

Only time at Universal was when DW's company rented out Universal for the night for themselves a couple years back. Great to see something new and HP land was pretty cool. Didn't mind the free butter beer and all the food stations everywhere.

\
That's so cool!

It's hard to leave the bubble... DH really wanted to go to KSC and it was a long trip, so that made it easier. I enjoyed it more than I expected. We also did Universal for a couple days that trip, plus a 3 night cruise (that was the wedding trip so it was almost 3 weeks). But the other times we've been down it's been just Disney.. and this time we're doing Universal 3 days and Disney the rest. There's a few other things in the area that interest us, but I hate to give up my Disney time....

 

[Lain]

I was just instantly approved for the IHG Premier!! Now I'll be scared of a shutdown for the next couple of months, lol.

As a refresher on my history, I did the double dip in the beginning of May and I'm currently 5/24. My last Chase card before that was a few years ago and I have a total of 4 (now 5) Chase cards.

I proactively decreased my credit limits on the CSR and CSP (which were ridiculous) and was given 19k for this card.

I'm going to go for the Hilton Aspire today also and give up on Chase for the foreseeable future.

Congratulations!

​

 

[tink1970]

My options are 12:30 from TPA (12k points), 3:30 from MCO (17k points AND wait around the airport for 6 hours with a toddler), or go to WDW for the night like we usually do. The reason I was trying to avoid WDW overnight is that it is close to Christmas and I know I will have things to get done at home.

Thoughts from you savvy travelers?

I'm super conservative (and was on the Fantasy last May when we limped into port around 9 or 10?) so I'd go for staying an extra night at WDW or MCO long before considering a 12:30 flight from TPA. You never know what the tollway/interstate is going to look like. Plus, any excuse for another night of Disney magic

 

[Lain]

On second thought, maybe I will wait a little bit on the Hilton Aspire to give a little breathing room on the MSRs (7k total). How long does it take a Chase card to show up on your credit report?

Tomorrow.

 

[mom2elal]

Tomorrow.

Wha??? The card shows up the next day?? Or the inquiry?

Do you think Amex even cares?

 

[disneymagicgirl]

Hi!!

I live near Tampa, and have also been on a few cruises out of PC. I think a 5 hour buffer is okay, especially since you all have precheck. My only worry would be that I-4 is so unpredictable, and if there is even one accident, there aren't any decent alternate routes. Also, what day of the week would you be traveling?

Oh good, you can give great advice! It will be sat 12/22.

 

[CyndiLouWho]

Mine doesn't have an upgrade offer. It just says Apply for the new card - I didn't really want to spend $450 on Fees.

When I look at that, I don’t have an offer either but when I log in to my SPG personal, the 100k point offer is in 2 places. First right near the top but also as I scroll down, it’s in the Amex offers section.

 

[disneymagicgirl]

Curious as to what others are going to say. I just added a night on at Copper Creek after our cruise in March. Figured we can explore Wilderness Lodge and hangout in Disney Springs. I didn't want to rush off the boat and head to the airport to either wait or cut it too close. I was thinking about staying at OKW the night before the cruise but am going to use the Hyatt @ MCO on points.

I love Hyatt pre cruise but sometimes we do wdw then too. It just depends on scheduling.

I also always want to go to wdw on debarkation but this is 12/22 and my parents will be waiting for us to get back to tn since they come for Christmas.

 

[disneymagicgirl]

I'm super conservative (and was on the Fantasy last May when we limped into port around 9 or 10?) so I'd go for staying an extra night at WDW or MCO long before considering a 12:30 flight from TPA. You never know what the tollway/interstate is going to look like. Plus, any excuse for another night of Disney magic

I wonder if I could do the tpa flights and make backup flights from mco the next day.
Then if we get into port late I just cancel the tpa flights and we still have a way home.

 

[MrPTato]

I really like the Hyatt@ MCO...love to take the elevator down and have a pot luck at the different restaurants (apps at one place, main another, then dessert somewhere else) and people watch (top ten favorite pastimes). I also think staying a night at WDW is a great way to change gears from cruise vacation to heading home. Wilderness Lodge is one of our favorite resorts and Copper Creek looks very nice.

Have fun!

I love Hyatt pre cruise but sometimes we do wdw then too. It just depends on scheduling.

I also always want to go to wdw on debarkation but this is 12/22 and my parents will be waiting for us to get back to tn since they come for Christmas.

Do all the rooms lookout over the airport inside terminal? Not sure if/what to do for any requests. I want to see the inside but also want to watch the planes if that might be an option. Probably won't matter much as we are arriving at 9p the night before. If points for the flights drop, I will come in earlier.

How does the luggage piece work? Will they (Hyatt) bring our bags somewhere to get to port?

 

[striker1064]

Does anyone have thoughts/opinions on Barclay Arrival+ vs. Capital One Venture?

I am looking for ways to save $ on an Airbnb stay in London for next summer so am considering a card that will allow me to erase travel purchases. I've never used Airbnb before but based on my reading of their payment terms, you can't split the payment between multiple credit cards even if you book a reservation that allows you to pay a deposit at booking and the balance later. You can't change your payment method between booking and final payment. The only thing I could possibly do to split it between two cards would be to split the payment with my wife and use a different card to pay her portion. (I think this will work but not 100% sure.)

Based on properties I've looked at for approximate dates we'd stay, it will be between $1,500-$2,000. Barclays welcome offer is 60,000 miles ($600) for $5,000 spend (at 2X miles = 10,000 miles) so I'd get a minimum of $700 value there. CapOne Venture is 50,000 miles ($500) for $3,000 spend (at 2X miles = 6,000 miles) so that's $560 in value. Barclays has an $89 AF (not waived); CapOne's $95 AF is waived the first year.

Is one of these cards easier to get than the other? If I were to go for both, which should I get first? And, probably most importantly, can anyone confirm if Airbnb codes as travel on both of these?

Oh! You've gotten some good advice already so I'm a little late, but given I'm pretty far past 5/24 I like talking about some of these other issuers.

I've never used AirBnB, so unfortunately I can't comment on if it codes as travel, but TPG says it does for both cards (I clicked the link so you don't have to).

The 60k offer on the Barclays Arrival+ is the highest it's ever been. It was recently re-introduced after a hiatus. We have no idea if this will be the standard offer, if it will go down, or if it will maybe even go up. But you can churn Barclays cards after some length of time, so it's not a huge deal. Barclays has a 6/24 rule that they seem to apply at their leisure. I was approved for the Arrival+ at 18/24, but the recon rep stressed that she appreciated my usage of the Wyndham card (which was recent), so you really are at their whim on whether they will approve you or not. Being under 5/24, I suspect if you want this card, you will get it. It's worth noting that you also get a 5% miles redemption every time you redeem for travel credit with the Arrival+. It's an excellent card, I think.

The CapOne Venture is tough. We really don't know much about CapOne in general. We know they sometimes pull all 3 credit bureaus (which is insane). If you're denied and call recon, they will pull all 3 credit bureaus a second time (which is even more insane). Some denial DPs have indicated "not a high enough balance on existing revolving accounts." Reading between the lines, they like to see customers who carry credit card balances before they'll approve you for one of their cards. Are they specifically targeting them? Who knows? Again, at your X/24 count, I would guess you have a good shot at getting the card (because they are inquiry sensitive, among other things), but swallowing the all 3 bureau pull is tough.

In your situation, I'd get the Arrival+. Barclays is also inquiry-sensitive, but they're more likely to approve you for their other cards after you have one and you've been using it. And they have enough other good cards to make this a worthwhile proposition.

Good luck with whatever you decide!

 

[FloridaNative8]

Oh good, you can give great advice! It will be sat 12/22.

Well, not sure about "great", but certainly some local advice!

Although I'm pretty conservative, and like to be at airports way earlier than is deemed normal, if you're okay with the 5 hour window with what will probably be more of a 3-ish hour drive (accounting for last-minute-holiday-shopper traffic), then you *should* be okay. You won't have the commuter traffic to contend with in Tampa since it's a Saturday. They just redid the rental car area at TPA, and the airport is really easy to navigate (and you'll get a fake-o-rail to your terminal!).

 

[trstno1]

All of this AmEx denial chatter has me uncertain how to proceed. My P2 is up next for a new card, and I want to try for the AmEx Hilton Business, but she has 7 AmEx cards total, 6 new cards in the last 18 months. She has 3 business cards in the last 4 months, including the Blue Business Plus and Green Business she received 2 weeks ago. I could try for the Hilton Business anyway, but if she is approved, she could be locked out of the business platinum and business gold that I had planned for December/January. She is already locked out of Chase until March/April.

Maybe it is time to dip our toes into Citi and Barclay while making sure to put spend on her AmEx cards.

 

[wendow]

What was your spend on the 100K upgrade? Mine was $1000 for 15K. I had already applied before they put an upgrade out for me. I wonder if I could do both? Slip it in before they look at it again? Sort of a double dip? That would be 2 of the 50K nights for me - worth $150 each. $150 is peanuts on those redemptions.

It was 5k. Then the offer was gone...?

 

[Lain]

Wha??? The card shows up the next day?? Or the inquiry?

Do you think Amex even cares?

Sorry, the inquiry will definitely show up tomorrow if it hasn’t already. My credit reports seem to update with a new account from Chase usually within 2 weeks. Amex isn’t really inquiry sensitive when it comes to cards from other issuers.

 

[kmc8826]

@Lain, @tink1970 and anyone else please help me think this through.

I have the pop up on my SPG personal to upgrade for 100k and 5k spend. Waiting for the BGR to come still after being approved last Friday. I just called and apparently there was a hiccup getting it mailed but it is now expedited to arrive Monday. BUT meanwhile both DH and I have some decent size expenses to make. I want to buy tickets for the new HS EMM (7 of us so over $500) before it gets all booked, and DH has "stuff." (He is the man who on his own is now at $3800 in one month on his new Ink Unlimited).

Should I just do the upgrade today? I assume if I do then I can just use the personal I have now until it arrives? I know in theory that is 15k to meet a spend on but I think we should be okay especially if plastique will continue to work for our mortgage (it did one time on CIP). I guess if I didn't meet the SPG spend I wouldn't be out anything really as I have been thinking of closing that card anyway (only reason I kept it this spring was the retention bonus).

If I upgrade to the Lux today, meet the spend on it, meet the spend on the BGR, any reason to think that would hurt my chances to get the Plat in say December?

Thanks...

 

[kmc8826]

It was 5k. Then the offer was gone...?

Have you logged into your account from somewhere other than the app? I don't have anything on my app but when I logged into Amex at work today the 100k for 5k spend popped right up (blocking the entire screen).

Now wait I will decide to go for it and it will disappear like yours!

 

[Gwmw1210]

Since you two have experience with this - figured I'd ask (and anybody else please chime in too)...

I'm going to use URs through my CSR to rent a car for our Sea World trip in November.

• Do they deduct the URs immediately when you book the car?
• Can you continue to monitor the price and "rebook" your car to save points if a cheaper price comes out?
• If you cancel the car do you get your points back?
• What is the interaction like at the rental car company - is it clear that you don't owe any other money or are they weird about it?
• I've found articles online that clearly indicate that using URs through a CSR gives you the rental car coverage, so that is cool!
• Anything else I'm not thinking about here that I should be asking?

I sound like such a newb, lol - I've never used URs before since the last time I had some was early 2016 and I transferred them all to Southwest!

It looks like @Alexle2007 has already responded to all your questions but just wanted to confirm that my answers & experience(s) were the same with renting cars using URs. Always seamless!