I love credit cards so much!

[Lain]

Any of you Californians want to chime in on my itinerary? I have 2 weeks and plan to drive down the coast in January. I assume route 1 has been fixed or will be fixed by then?? Guess I need to check that. The plan:

Fly into SFO - arrive late and stay at airport hotel
Spend 3 nights in Monterey at Intercontinental on points (we like to hike - lots of hiking around here it seems)
On to Santa Ynez valley/Santa Barbara for 4 nights
Then where??? - I have 3-4 nights to play with here - Joshua tree?? Catalina Island??
Ideally, we'd like to end the trip at Disneyland for 3 nights before flying home

I was initially thinking we'd spend a couple nights in L.A. doing the touristy thing, but really we mostly want to be outside. Not sure we'd be thrilled with L.A. Any thoughts/suggestions?

I’ll chime in with some ideas tonight! I love the drive down the coast! Wondering why January, and if you’re flexible on the dates? January puts you in the rainy season, so it could be beautiful weather or torrential rain, which could cause complications driving the windy roads of Hwy 1. The coast is so beautiful starting late March when the wildflowers start blooming. Last I heard, Hwy 1 is back up and running.

 

[JKalai]

Thank you so much for all this detailed info!!! Can I ask one more question... would the CIC be better for me than the CIP? I know the sign up bonus is lower, but there is no annual fee and it seems like the bonus categories that I would take most advantage of (travel, dining) are already covered with my CSR.... I could instead get 2% on gas with the CIC plus 5% at office supply stores and on my phone/internet expenses.

CIP also still codes 3x on Plastiq. I use it with my rent and car payment and get 3%.

 

[amalone1013]

Any of you Californians want to chime in on my itinerary? I have 2 weeks and plan to drive down the coast in January. I assume route 1 has been fixed or will be fixed by then?? Guess I need to check that. The plan:

Fly into SFO - arrive late and stay at airport hotel
Spend 3 nights in Monterey at Intercontinental on points (we like to hike - lots of hiking around here it seems)
On to Santa Ynez valley/Santa Barbara for 4 nights
Then where??? - I have 3-4 nights to play with here - Joshua tree?? Catalina Island??
Ideally, we'd like to end the trip at Disneyland for 3 nights before flying home

I was initially thinking we'd spend a couple nights in L.A. doing the touristy thing, but really we mostly want to be outside. Not sure we'd be thrilled with L.A. Any thoughts/suggestions?

I can't help with driving the coast... but we went to Catalina two summers ago for the day. Very pretty. Ferry takes about an hour. My money saving tip is that I held our ferry reservation with a credit card, but chose the option to pay in person when we checked in. When we got to CA we stopped at a Costco because they had Ferry gift cards, $100 for $80. We had 8 people in our group and it was around $70 roundtrip at that time, so we saved $100.

 

[amalone1013]

I’ll chime in with some ideas tonight! I love the drive down the coast! Wondering why January, and if you’re flexible on the dates? January puts you in the rainy season, so it could be beautiful weather or torrential rain, which could cause complications driving the windy roads of Hwy 1. The coast is so beautiful starting late March when the wildflowers start blooming. Last I heard, Hwy 1 is back up and running.

Driving the coast is on my list someday, so I can't wait to hear your ideas

 

[Lain]

YEP! That's what finally sold me... I am getting divorced and planning on putting a ton of stuff on eBay/Craigslist. So it turns out, I am also in the clutter reduction business.

Ok, I'm going for it!!! Thank you!

Good luck! If you feel like someone’s really been a lot of help to you, please apply for the CIP using a link from DISchurners. I don’t have any skin in this game, but I’d love to think that someone’s support is being returned. There are no support links for the CIC or CIU, but the CIC is definitely a great card that you should apply for separately so you can get the signup bonus on that one too.

 

[vanjust14]

I also used the Staples Amex offer and bought a $300 visa giftcard for $308.95 and got a credit of $30.90. I’m planning on buying an MO with the giftcard as soon as it gets delivered. Now that I know that the giftcards trigger the credit I’m going to buy three on all my cards.

Hmmm, I've been wanting to try the MO MSing thing and I have the Staples offer. I know you have mentioned this before but what type of Visa giftcard should this be? Do you plan to get your MO at Walmart? I think I'm ready to try this!

 

[miztressuz]

NCL is currently offering dollar deposits. I want to book exactly what I want with NCL direct then transfer to Chase and make final payment with UR when it comes time. Has anyone had luck doing it this way?

I'm still working on it. I'm working up the courage to call back and get the info to transfer it. I got discouraged a few weeks ago when several reps I spoke with said I had to use my UR's when the ressie was transferred and not at final payment, like the first rep said. Which doesn't sound right but since they out numbered the 1 rep that said final payment, I wanted to get my points lined up first in case it turned out to be true. So I have my points, I made my reservation with NCL, got the form but I need some TA info to complete it. I'm going to try to get a good TA on the phone in the next few days and put their info in. I'll report back how it goes.

You have 30 days to transfer it so you can try to book it at the end of the promo. Could also cancel it later if you need to extend your window but just check the new cancellation policy for free cancellations (not sure how far out you're looking.)

 

[pillow]

I’ll chime in with some ideas tonight! I love the drive down the coast! Wondering why January, and if you’re flexible on the dates? January puts you in the rainy season, so it could be beautiful weather or torrential rain, which could cause complications driving the windy roads of Hwy 1. The coast is so beautiful starting late March when the wildflowers start blooming. Last I heard, Hwy 1 is back up and running.

I chose January because Disney isn't crowded then (touring plans shows 4/5 on the crowd calendar, which isn't bad) and the points required at the Grand Californian are low. But if you think we'd have crummy weather, then I'd rather change the dates and not worry about Disney, which really isn't the focus of this trip. We've been to San Diego already. As much as I loved it, we can skip it on this trip. I suppose I could add a few nights in San Francisco on the front end - DH has been but I haven't. We're planning to come back in late August 2019 (hopefully) to visit Yosemite and to do some Sierra Nevada hiking (that is, IF we can get lodging at the high sierra camps - its a lottery system). My mother has been out multiple times and RAVES about Monterey, Carmel, and Pacific Grove. The flowers in her pics are gorgeous!

 

[spacerangerqueen]

Sounds like a solid plan, just watch out for your 5/24 status!

True, that's a strike against the Amex Plat. Maybe I'll see if UR can get me to Vancouver and pencil in the CIP for the end of the year instead.

 

[vanjust14]

Southwest help needed! Looking at booking a short SW flight for 4 people, I can save a few dollars/ticket by transferring points instead of booking through UR. Is there any upside to this? I just made a SW account today, will I have issues with points transferring? I'm nervous tbh, we've never flown SW but they're looking like a good option for our return leg right now and I quite dig the free checked bag. (Also, dad is 6'4", he'll fit right? SW isn't weird with legroom like Spirit right?)

Everyone has given you great info so far so I'll just ditto the love for SW. Transferring is the way to go as it has been mentioned, since RR points are easy to use and get refunded immediately as prices go down. The two free bags is a huge plus! I love Southwest

 

[Lain]

CIP also still codes 3x on Plastiq. I use it with my rent and car payment and get 3%.

@Angeliki19 , you may have heard about Plastiq before, but @JKalai is right to mention it again. Plastiq is a bill pay service that lets you use credit cards to pay almost every kind of bill. Although Plastiq charges a 2.5% fee when you pay with a credit card, the CIP currently earns 3x UR on Plastiq payments and the fee, which more than offsets the cost of the service and can make the CIP a big UR points generator. The CIP is the only card that codes this way, and makes it a keeper as long as Plastiq keeps earning 3x UR. We have a guide to Plastiq on DISchurners. Check it out.

 

[jimitrout]

CIP also still codes 3x on Plastiq. I use it with my rent and car payment and get 3%.

Does the CIC also code 3x with plastiq? plan to downgrade from CIP to CIC soon.

 

[pillow]

I can't help with driving the coast... but we went to Catalina two summers ago for the day. Very pretty. Ferry takes about an hour. My money saving tip is that I held our ferry reservation with a credit card, but chose the option to pay in person when we checked in. When we got to CA we stopped at a Costco because they had Ferry gift cards, $100 for $80. We had 8 people in our group and it was around $70 roundtrip at that time, so we saved $100.

You know, they do have the trans-Catalina trail that calls to me. BUT DH and I hike; we don't backpack - meaning that we don't carry our own equipment. But those campgrounds on Catalina are BEAUTIFUL! It might be worth investing in some equipment and giving ourselves a crash course. But then of course, we'd have to fly all of our stuff out to California, which seems like a lot of trouble. Anyway, I haven't ruled it out. Maybe a compromise would be to spend a night on Catalina and day hike.

 

[amalone1013]

Guys.... NCL does a Vancouver to Tokyo cruise! I didn't even know that was a thing!

 

[JKalai]

Does the CIC also code 3x with plastiq? plan to downgrade from CIP to CIC soon.

Negative. Only CIP codes 3x AFAIK.

 

[speedyfishy]

Hmmm, I've been wanting to try the MO MSing thing and I have the Staples offer. I know you have mentioned this before but what type of Visa giftcard should this be? Do you plan to get your MO at Walmart? I think I'm ready to try this!

The ones from Staples are Metabank they should work at Walmart and your local grocery store. The big issue is trying to find a place that does not ask to see the card. I am probably going to Walmart. They don't ask to see the card if I don't ask to do multiple swipes. At Walmart you can get a $1000 MO for .88 cents, so theoretically you can use three $300 cards for one MO, but I'm going to do them one at a time since here I get shut down but other people have more success and can do multiple swipes. You may also have grocery stores that won't ask to see the card. Harris teeter was working for me, but a few months ago they started to ask to see the card. I haven't tried them in a bit. Giant never let me buy an MO without looking at the card. Don't buy more than you can float and you will be fine. If it does not work for you you can use the card for normal purchases and you are still saving money.

 

[Natgridenergy]

I'm still working on it. I'm working up the courage to call back and get the info to transfer it. I got discouraged a few weeks ago when several reps I spoke with said I had to use my UR's when the ressie was transferred and not at final payment, like the first rep said. Which doesn't sound right but since they out numbered the 1 rep that said final payment, I wanted to get my points lined up first in case it turned out to be true. So I have my points, I made my reservation with NCL, got the form but I need some TA info to complete it. I'm going to try to get a good TA on the phone in the next few days and put their info in. I'll report back how it goes.

You have 30 days to transfer it so you can try to book it at the end of the promo. Could also cancel it later if you need to extend your window but just check the new cancellation policy for free cancellations (not sure how far out you're looking.)

Have you talked to Melissa at X4179? A few people said she's the best. I'm just going to book the NCL ressie right now and can cancel and get my whopping $4 back if I need to. I' looking for Feb 2019. I havent' talked to Melissa yet.

 

[wendow]

Does the CIC also code 3x with plastiq? plan to downgrade from CIP to CIC soon.

It does not. Only the CIP codes 3x on plastiq.

 

[jimitrout]

Negative. Only CIP codes 3x AFAIK.

bummer...thank you for that info. I will have to decide what to do. Wish I could do mortgage with Plastiq, might make it worth annual fee, but afraid US Bank is just too obvious of a company to do a work around...

 

[Lain]

I chose January because Disney isn't crowded then (touring plans shows 4/5 on the crowd calendar, which isn't bad) and the points required at the Grand Californian are low. But if you think we'd have crummy weather, then I'd rather change the dates and not worry about Disney, which really isn't the focus of this trip. We've been to San Diego already. As much as I loved it, we can skip it on this trip. I suppose I could add a few nights in San Francisco on the front end - DH has been but I haven't. We're planning to come back in late August 2019 (hopefully) to visit Yosemite and to do some Sierra Nevada hiking (that is, IF we can get lodging at the high sierra camps - its a lottery system). My mother has been out multiple times and RAVES about Monterey, Carmel, and Pacific Grove. The flowers in her pics are gorgeous!

Keep in mind that January is also refurbishment season at Disneyland, which partly accounts for the low crowds as many attractions may be down. @Albort could probably better advise.

Winters in central and Northern California can be hard to predict. The first week and a half this past February, we had beautiful, sunny weather in the high 60s, and 70s. Last year, we had the wettest winter in decades. But from about mid-March to May, the hills are lush green, wildflowers fill the hills, fields and bluffs — it’s just beautiful. My wife makes fun of how excited I get over spring. And your mom’s not kidding about the Monterey/Pacific Grove/Carmel area — piece of heaven on Earth.