I love credit cards so much!

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I just wanted to take a moment to thank all of the amazing people in this thread. This is where I learned that credit cards weren't terrible things to fear, but wonderful things to embrace! Thanks to this thread, I've learned so much about how to use these things as very valuable tools for making dreams come true. I don't make a lot of money (public high school teacher in a poor county), and I'm not married. Vacation time? I have plenty. Vacation fund? Not so much. Luckily, I discovered that having an excellent credit score can open up a world of travel opportunities if you play your (credit) cards right.

This morning I completed what is probably my final "travel hack" transaction for our December trip. I used my AARP card to order one last $150 pack of Disney gift cards from Sam's as part of the spend to earn the $200 cash back bonus. With the addition of that balance to my current gift card, we should be set for eating and shopping while at WDW.

When I look back over the last year and add up the points and cash and gift cards and savings, I'm pretty amazed at how it all worked out. And I would never have known that any of it was possible if it weren't for this thread.

Credit cards and DVC are two discoveries that have made it possible for me to give my mama what will hopefully be a very magical 75th birthday.

Thanks guys. <3
Yes, I'm totally with you. I have DH and 1 kid but we don't make boatloads of money. Before cc hacking we often took no vacation, maybe a staycation for DIY home improvement. Now we are taking 2 vacations a year. Free. I'd consider more but I don't have that much vacation time.
 
Fly from EWR to LAX (Business on United
Fly from LAS to EWR Business Class
United miles / CR points banked: 74,835 (with the Exploer card bonus I'll get in March)

Re flights:Have you looked at United's site? If this is for 2018 then the calendar is open and not wanting to be a downer...there aren't any first supersaver awards open (economy and first are showing-not business). First regular is 50,000 so times four you're still going to need quite a lot. Even the SPG transfer isn't as helpful to United since it's a 2:1 ratio :sad1:
I'd say stick with the Chase cards and look at your dates and see if it's do-able.

Hotels: maybe this is where you should look at UR-there are some super helpful people who have redeemed UR for DLR hotels. New York New York is often very reasonably priced if you ignore the outrageous resort fee. I think my parents stayed there for $29/night...the resort fee double that (at least) but good prices can be had. I have a stash of hotels.com gift cards that I get discounted (newegg has $100 for $90 right now and used a targeted Amex $10 off $75 so was able to receive $100 for $80...taking advantage of deals like that means you could pay quite a bit less for some hotels). Also you could look at some of the DLR hotels that are branded with cards with high sign up rates such as Marriott, Hilton, etc and stay on points that way (if you have those stashed or are less than 5/24).

There are some very knowledgable people here regarding Las Vegas and DLR so hopefully they'll chime in and provide you even more advice!

Well done! I love how the Delta hostages are able to work the system to make the most out of their Sky Pesos.

Thanks! I'll also be buying SPG points and transferring them to me. 2.28 cents for something valued at 2.7...yes please!

2021, 2022 and 2023, I can relax a bit since I am planning to be on all 3 DCL maiden voyages.

I'm thinking that too but knowing me I'll still want to go abroad, unless they are located overseas (that would be awesome!).

That will take some serious travel hacking on my end and I may be looking at cash back cards for that if I can't get a 4th night free with either the Prestige or Amex Plat.

Definitely...it looks awesome but awesome doesn't come cheap! I was looking at a short trip next winter and my inner CPA had a coronary!

2019 we have plans to go to Scotland again

2019 is the first year in 5 or 6 I'm not headed to Scotland, but I never say never...maybe we'll detour there on our way to the Baltic. I'm always up for a visit to the ancestors :)
 
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Looking for advice now that I finally have a solid plan for my points goals. I have a big birthday coming up this fall and want to take a two week vacation with my family of 4. Here is what I want to plan:

Fly from EWR to LAX (Business on United - I know Business Domesic is a waste but I really want to fly the family in style!)
LA for 3 nights, signtseeing
DLR for 4 nights, Disneyland hotel
Drive to vegas, Vegas 3 nights New York, New York hotel
Drive to Grand Canyon 3 nights - hotel tbd
Drive to Vegas one last night
Fly from LAS to EWR Business Class

So, everything I do from here on out with credit cards should be to save as much as possible on this trip. I am accumulating Chase Reward points and I'm waiting for my new Chase United card (40k bonus points). I am using my CSP card for gas, restaurants, and just about everything else.

Here is a big question: I want to get the CSR for my husband BUT I don't want to incur that $450 + $75 fee this year. I'd rather push it to next year, so apply in January. Our trip is Aug 18. Should I get that now so that I can bank those points earlier to offset the price of the plane tickets, or is it okay to wait until January?

Any advice you can give would be great! We really want 2 rooms for the hotels and that really puts us over the top. This vacation so far is looking at over 15k - ouch! But I think if I do the credit card thing right I can offset the cost of hotels, get a free rental car, AND fly business. I'm open to any credit cards that will offset hotels and flight costs.

Thanks for any advice!!! :)

United miles / CR points banked: 74,835 (with the Exploer card bonus I'll get in March)
CSP Reward points banked: 14,539

Award flights for August of next year are already out. You may not have much choice for flights by the time you have all your points in place or there may not be enough award tickets available. We have a trip to Hawaii for September of next year, so I booked our first class flights last month as soon as they were released. If you recall, we were trying to go for March which is what the timeshare company was booking at the time but there were no award flights available 6 months out. The ones that were available required overnight stays and 30 something hours of travel time. Ticket prices were well over $2,000. That would have been over 133,000 UR points per ticket to pay with points through the travel portal. No thanks. We wound up negotiating with the timeshare company to let us get our flights first and they'd guarantee the room for us based on the dates we got. That worked out perfectly. If you want to secure saver awards or seats up front for specific dates the best bet is planning 2 years out. One year to get the points in place and then book flights 330~ days out.

Is the plan to pay with UR points or to transfer UR points to United and get an award ticket or a combination of both? The sooner you have the points in place the sooner you can try to secure your flights. I'd say get the CSR card now since you are already behind the 8 ball so to speak. Why is there a plus $75? Is that for an AU? I wouldn't waste a chase 5/24 spot for an AU card or spend $75 unless they were offering extra UR points that were worth more than $75 and more than what I'd earn spending $75 on travel and dining.

Since you may wind up paying for flights with points if you can't secure enough award tickets at a saver level I'd suggest also looking into other variable point cards like Amex MR and Citi TY points as well. Bank of America has a new card that will get you $500 after $3,000 in spend plus it has an airline incidental credit for $100 which offsets the $95 annual fee. Not sure if United gift cards trigger the credit or not. I did read that AA gift cards do. I'd suggest joining United Mileage Plus dining and earning extra miles for dining. Make sure you and DH add the United Mileage Plus X app on your phones and always check there first when shopping to purchase gift cards to merchants and pay in store or online. I've earned over 15,000 UA miles in a few months with regular shopping. It adds up quick. When you are doing online shopping go through Chase UR shopping portal or United shopping portal to get to the merchant. Right now United is offering 5,000 bonus miles for $1500 in shopping (doesn't include taxes or shipping) through their portal from now until November 19. It is tiered so $150 gets you 500 and $750 gets you 2500. Hope this helps.
 
This was my dd17. She had to go gluten free to try to help with some health problems. She was gluten free for 5 weeks and then a different doc said that was not enough time to know for sure so, a year later, she went gluten free for 3 mos. Both times, we knew it was not helping her problems at all, but just had to keep following the diet. She talked about making cookies and baking cakes and breads all the time and dreamed of pizza dough :) I mostly ate what she ate to show 'support' and I think I found it easier. I liked a lot of the gluten free foods much more than she did.

I tried doing bread in the bread maker, the only thing it was good for was bread crumbs :) The noodles are fine. My biggest problem is not liking very many veggies and having to have enough dinner for leftovers for lunch the next day. One more week thankfully. I just hope I don't have issues eating gluten again.
 

Re flights:Have you looked at United's site? If this is for 2018 then the calendar is open and not wanting to be a downer...there aren't any first supersaver awards open (economy and first are showing-not business). First regular is 50,000 so times four you're still going to need quite a lot. Even the SPG transfer isn't as helpful to United since it's a 2:1 ratio :sad1:
I'd say stick with the Chase cards and look at your dates and see if it's do-able.

I"m wondering if I can at least pay for one ticket for 100k and get the other 3 for a total of $3,000, I think we'd do that. It's not much more than if we bought coach and upgraded to premium seats, which we'd definitely do. However, now that I look the $500 one way has gone up to $800 so I'm wondering if fares will fluctuate in the next 6 months. I am looking 9 1/2 months in advance. I never buy plane tickets almost a year out.

Hotels: maybe this is where you should look at UR-there are some super helpful people who have redeemed UR for DLR hotels. New York New York is often very reasonably priced if you ignore the outrageous resort fee. I think my parents stayed there for $29/night...the resort fee double that (at least) but good prices can be had. I have a stash of hotels.com gift cards that I get discounted (newegg has $100 for $90 right now and used a targeted Amex $10 off $75 so was able to receive $100 for $80...taking advantage of deals like that means you could pay quite a bit less for some hotels). Also you could look at some of the DLR hotels that are branded with cards with high sign up rates such as Marriott, Hilton, etc and stay on points that way (if you have those stashed or are less than 5/24).

I want to stay at Disneyland Hotel so I"m hoping a deal will come out for mid August.
 
Award flights for August of next year are already out. You may not have much choice for flights by the time you have all your points in place or there may not be enough award tickets available. We have a trip to Hawaii for September of next year, so I booked our first class flights last month as soon as they were released. If you recall, we were trying to go for March which is what the timeshare company was booking at the time but there were no award flights available 6 months out. The ones that were available required overnight stays and 30 something hours of travel time. Ticket prices were well over $2,000. That would have been over 133,000 UR points per ticket to pay with points through the travel portal. No thanks. We wound up negotiating with the timeshare company to let us get our flights first and they'd guarantee the room for us based on the dates we got. That worked out perfectly. If you want to secure saver awards or seats up front for specific dates the best bet is planning 2 years out. One year to get the points in place and then book flights 330~ days out.

I was afraid of this. So, the fares will only go up from here, as well as the miles required for the ticket?

Is the plan to pay with UR points or to transfer UR points to United and get an award ticket or a combination of both? The sooner you have the points in place the sooner you can try to secure your flights. I'd say get the CSR card now since you are already behind the 8 ball so to speak. Why is there a plus $75? Is that for an AU? I wouldn't waste a chase 5/24 spot for an AU card or spend $75 unless they were offering extra UR points that were worth more than $75 and more than what I'd earn spending $75 on travel and dining.

The +$75 is for the second card for me - I use the credit cards more than dh and it would be in his name. Can I just use his in most cases? Sometimes they stores do ask for a driver's license when I use a credit card, not often though.

Since you may wind up paying for flights with points if you can't secure enough award tickets at a saver level I'd suggest also looking into other variable point cards like Amex MR and Citi TY points as well. Bank of America has a new card that will get you $500 after $3,000 in spend plus it has an airline incidental credit for $100 which offsets the $95 annual fee. Not sure if United gift cards trigger the credit or not. I did read that AA gift cards do. I'd suggest joining United Mileage Plus dining and earning extra miles for dining. Make sure you and DH add the United Mileage Plus X app on your phones and always check there first when shopping to purchase gift cards to merchants and pay in store or online. I've earned over 15,000 UA miles in a few months with regular shopping. It adds up quick. When you are doing online shopping go through Chase UR shopping portal or United shopping portal to get to the merchant. Right now United is offering 5,000 bonus miles for $1500 in shopping (doesn't include taxes or shipping) through their portal from now until November 19. It is tiered so $150 gets you 500 and $750 gets you 2500. Hope this helps.

Thanks so much for your advice!
 
Yes, I'm totally with you. I have DH and 1 kid but we don't make boatloads of money. Before cc hacking we often took no vacation, maybe a staycation for DIY home improvement. Now we are taking 2 vacations a year. Free. I'd consider more but I don't have that much vacation time.
Step 1: hit the banks hard and earn tons of points.
Step 2: get a job at a bank where they give you tons of vacation time

Lol - that plan worked for us!

Hope everybody has a great few days, I might be less active until Wednesday as we are currently boarding our flight for Orlando (Universal this time). Happy churning all!!
 
The +$75 is for the second card for me - I use the credit cards more than dh and it would be in his name. Can I just use his in most cases? Sometimes they stores do ask for a driver's license when I use a credit card, not often though.
My wife uses my card a lot - never had an issue. You could also call and order a replacement card so you each have one - say yours has a small scratch and isn't always swiping properly :rolleyes1
 
Airfare: I had no idea people book airfare almost a year in advance! I really messed up. It looks like the nicer planes are booked for the LAX trip (since I'm no longer seeing them in my search results), as well as the cheaper seats. Here I was expecting some drops in the coming months.

Maybe I should just let go of my dreams of first class flight resolve myself to sitting in coach and use the extra money for nicer hotels. And book them before the rooms sell out! Thoughts?

Edit: For my preferred flight times flying in coach is $2800 ! If i had bought business class tickets last week it would have been $4200. Should I have done that? $1400 difference that I could have offset by using points on our hotels.
 
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I was afraid of this. So, the fares will only go up from here, as well as the miles required for the ticket?



The +$75 is for the second card for me - I use the credit cards more than dh and it would be in his name. Can I just use his in most cases? Sometimes they stores do ask for a driver's license when I use a credit card, not often though.



Thanks so much for your advice!

It is possible that the prices or miles required will go up. Sometimes they go down if the flight isn't selling. I don't like taking the chance so we book 11 months out. If we flew economy we'd have a lot more leeway. But since my DH aka The Princess has been spoiled by this hobby he won't fly in economy of its over 2/12 hours. Not that I'm complaining, I've got my own tiara to polish too :laughing: Regardless, you will be able to mitigate the OOP costs to an extent. But, having more time, allows for more planning and usually less OOP.

Honestly, I cannot remember the last time anyone asked me for a driver's license when paying with a credit card. I wouldn't worry about it, especially if you have the same last name. DH and I do not have the same last name and we've never had an issue using each other's credit cards when the need arose.

Anytime! I am always happy to help others. I'd suggest also joining the Reddit group that @SouthFayetteFan created. There is some pretty useful tips and how to's listed and easier to find than digging and searching through this thread.

Hope everybody has a great few days, I might be less active until Wednesday as we are currently boarding our flight for Orlando (Universal this time). Happy churning all!!

Small world, we are here in the Orlando area this weekend. So :wave2: to you at Universal from us in WDW! Safe travels!
 
Like I said much earlier...I'm pretty sure our Dec. statement date is the 17th, so that means our 2018 TC will appear then,right? I sure hope so b/c I'm banking on it being usable between Dec 17-Jan 15 2018....:cool1:

sounds correct! believe you said u applied before that may deadline right?

Airfare: I had no idea people book airfare almost a year in advance! I really messed up. It looks like the nicer planes are booked for the LAX trip (since I'm no longer seeing them in my search results), as well as the cheaper seats. Here I was expecting some drops in the coming months.

Maybe I should just let go of my dreams of first class flight resolve myself to sitting in coach and use the extra money for nicer hotels. And book them before the rooms sell out! Thoughts?

Edit: For my preferred flight times flying in coach is $2800 ! If i had bought business class tickets last week it would have been $4200. Should I have done that? $1400 difference that I could have offset by using points on our hotels.

$1400 could get you some pretty nice hotels... haha. Only "other" tip i can give you is vegas hotels. dont get the best rooms. use the $20 trick.
 
Airfare: I had no idea people book airfare almost a year in advance! I really messed up. It looks like the nicer planes are booked for the LAX trip (since I'm no longer seeing them in my search results), as well as the cheaper seats. Here I was expecting some drops in the coming months.

Maybe I should just let go of my dreams of first class flight resolve myself to sitting in coach and use the extra money for nicer hotels. And book them before the rooms sell out! Thoughts?

Edit: For my preferred flight times flying in coach is $2800 ! If i had bought business class tickets last week it would have been $4200. Should I have done that? $1400 difference that I could have offset by using points on our hotels.

Yup. I'd say about 95% of my flights in the last 5 years, all in first class, were booked 11 months out. The one time we booked less than 11 months out we wound up slumming it in business class to London :laughing: I think that was over a weekend to see the Harry Potter play. Clearly I've blocked the memory of that flight experience. I do recall the food was horrible in business on BA. Blech!

No, don't let go of any dreams just readjust. Go to plan B and mitigate with a combo of variable points to pay for the flights. Or, make the dream vacation for 2 years out and start planning for it now. No Way would I pay $2800 in coach with real money points. Hold tight for now. Get your points in place. Look beyond United and look at other variable points cards too.
 
Thanks! I'll also be buying SPG points and transferring them to me. 2.28 cents for something valued at 2.7...yes please!

I'm thinking that too but knowing me I'll still want to go abroad, unless they are located overseas (that would be awesome!).

Definitely...it looks awesome but awesome doesn't come cheap! I was looking at a short trip next winter and my inner CPA had a coronary!

2019 is the first year in 5 or 6 I'm not headed to Scotland, but I never say never...maybe we'll detour there on our way to the Baltic. I'm always up for a visit to the ancestors :)

I'm toying with buying some SPG points. I will need to do some further investigation.

Oh I am so hoping one of the maiden voyages is international!

I know what you mean! Every time I look at the pricing for Ashford Castle, I get nauseated. But it was sooooo amazing and 2 nights wasn't enough. I want to really enjoy the castle and do the falconry/hawking everyday I'm there. That was one of the most incredible experiences. I vowed to make this happen again one way or another. DH wants overwater bungalows and I'll make it happen for him. I want the Ashford Castle and falcons so I'm sure I won't get an argument from him.

I love Scotland and could happily go back every year. After 2019 my next trip there will have to be during the fringe festival again. That was awesome and I loved seeing the Edinburgh Military Tattoo performance!
 
I just hope I don't have issues eating gluten again.

Just go slow. My dd made the mistake of eating a huge burger and bun her first night off (from the first time which was shorter) and that gave her a tummy ache. Second time we slowly added gluten back into her diet and she had no problems, and she'd been off for 3 mos that time.
 
My wife uses my card a lot - never had an issue. You could also call and order a replacement card so you each have one - say yours has a small scratch and isn't always swiping properly :rolleyes1

We just ordered a replacement card also. We are closing my CSR and keeping dh's CSR but I wanted my own card. No one ever looks and if they do, I just say it's my dh's card. I requested the replacement online and didn't even have to talk to anyone.

Hope you are having a great time at WDW!!
 
I think each cruiseline has a set # of days in which they allow this transfer,correct?

Each line has different rules for a whole lot of different things. Do your research, write down your questions, and get them all fully answered before putting down a deposit. The cruise critic site is a really good place to go for all things cruise related- might be worth a look.
 
Step 1: hit the banks hard and earn tons of points.
Step 2: get a job at a bank where they give you tons of vacation time

Lol - that plan worked for us!

Hope everybody has a great few days, I might be less active until Wednesday as we are currently boarding our flight for Orlando (Universal this time). Happy churning all!!
I'd need more vacation from a job in banking, it would drive me nuts! I work in healthcare.

Have a great vacation!
 
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