I love credit cards so much!

[mmmears]

Sorry to be slow to respond...While I wouldn't say that the Baltics cruise was on par with the N/I/S cruise (which I have commented before is probably my favorite of the 12 DCL cruises I have done, along with British Isles), I'd still say it is a great cruise and not too similar or duplicative of N/I/S. In fact, I felt like they were totally different cruise experiences. The N/I/S cruise was much more about scenery and outdoor activities and adventures than the Baltics, which is much more of a cities experience. I happen to love more active trips and also a focus on doing things outdoors, which is why I think the N/I/S cruise was such a standout for me (and Norway and Iceland are both stunningly beautiful). But I also really enjoyed the Baltics, and it was definitely epic to be on the ship for 23 nights. Like CaliforniaGirl, I think the Baltcis cruise ended up being a little more of a less satisfying experience because of the very subpar experience with the ABD add-on. Mostly that was because of having 49 people on that add-on, which still makes my blood boil. Just WAY TOO MANY PEOPLE. But I also thought the ABD add-on wasn't as efficient as I would have hoped, and which was supposedly one of the advantages of doing the add-on (e.g., sending us back to the ship in St. Petersburg in between daytime and evening activities, which meant having to clear Russian immigration twice -- we should have just stayed in St. P!). But the Baltic capitals are amazing cities, and I loved seeing them. My favorites were Stockholm and St. Petersburg. If we had done private tours instead of the ABD add-on, I think the experience would have been much much better and that cruise would definitely be up there among my favorites.

Thanks for your honest review. It really helps. And we loved the nature and beautiful vistas in Norway and Iceland, and also the smaller towns we visited. I guess I'm not a City Mouse. But the history of St. P. is drawing me in. But I wonder that Iceland cruise will be hard to match let alone top.

I'm sure the cost is even more staggering than it was then (ABD always goes up), and I thought it was a *horrible* value. By far the worst of any of the 6 ABD's I've done (Japan will be our 7th). I really felt as if I was on a bunch of city tours that would't have cost more than $40 a person through DCL. I think we would have had a much better, more "VIP" experience doing the DCL exclusive Port Adventures on our own. I was so frustrated seeing the DCL group taking pictures where we couldn't. I heard the night event (princess ball) at Catherine's Palace was amazing. I've also heard people on various boards rave about Anastasia private tours. If I were doing it again, I would probably use them. But you are right. The planning on cruises like this is a lot of work.

Thank you. Good to know it's ok to take a private tour in St. P. We did 4 privates plus 2 little DCL 1/2 adventures in small Norway ports (only because they were going to the 2 museums we really wanted to see). Plus the Lysefjord cruise which I booked directly with Rodne. It all turned out really well, but it did take a lot more planning that one would think when hearing we went on a cruise. I do like the private excursions since we can customize our days.

 

[Happy814]

u could try to buy 3 orders online... its usually easier to use 3 cards in stores by asking the cashier to do a split payment. You could "technicially" combining them by buying a bigger denominations but then u will be paying another fee for the new card.

That's what I figured. I had a $220 VG that I used to buy two of the $100 cards (for $183.98 total) and I'll use the other two VG in store. Thank you!

 

[kidsfirsttrip]

Got an offer for Plastiq private client. Anyone done this??

 

[Lain]

Someone mentioned on Reddit this morning that TPG (well, a writer for TPG) posted about the Amex Platinum airline fee credit double dip: Can You Get the Amex Airline Fee Credit Twice in One Year?

I saw this article yesterday, and TPG posts so much daily content it's already been buried. I didn't think much of it at the time because it’s not the first time TPG has written about double dipping the airline credit. It’s also not the first time TPG's explained how to use the airline credit to buy GCs, and which airlines work. TPG is also not the only blogger who's written about this trick. That’s not to say this won’t be the final straw that breaks the camel’s back.

As a recent example, MMS wasn't the first blog to write about Plastiq coding 3x on the CIP, but when one of their editors wrote about buying a Tesla with Plastiq using their CIP and MMS pimped that story out to Business Insider, Aol, Yahoo, and even TPG, it finally died when CNBC picked up the story.

It's very likely the banks know about these tricks (and even possible they have staff lurking on the blogs and forums to learn about new hacks and how people are using or abusing them), and they tolerate them as long as closing a loophole is more trouble than a few churners and travel hackers taking advantage of it is costing them. But when too many people catch on to a trick that is costing the banks money, they're going to put an end to it. Fast.

The airline fee credit is such a core part of justifying the value of the Amex Platinum and Gold (and even the Hilton Aspire) AF. I don't see Amex ever doing away with it. But Amex could change the benefit from calendar year to cardmember year, like what Chase did with the CSR's travel credit. Amex could also more tightly enforce what gets credited from the airline fee credit, effectively killing GC purchases; and Amex has done that before by killing credits for Hawaiian Airlines and, I believe, Alaska GCs, and filtering out MPX from the Plat's 5x airline bonus or counting towards the airline fee credit for United.

I felt this needed some commentary because several of you are considering the Amex Platinum, and a large part of the justification comes from the ability to double (or even triple) dip the airline fee credit. Rules are constantly changing (although there's sometimes grandfathering), in part because the hobby is growing so much and so fast.

 

[CaliforniaGirl09]

Thank you. Good to know it's ok to take a private tour in St. P. We did 4 privates plus 2 little DCL 1/2 adventures in small Norway ports (only because they were going to the 2 museums we really wanted to see). Plus the Lysefjord cruise which I booked directly with Rodne. It all turned out really well, but it did take a lot more planning that one would think when hearing we went on a cruise. I do like the private excursions since we can customize our days.

If you have specific questions about tour operators and itineraries, definitely check out the cruise board. I know there are tons of people who have used Anastasia (as well as other operators) who might be able to give you more specific ideas/feedback. Some of the things they did sounded wonderful. I was jealous! In other words, you might be able to borrow their planning

 

[Judique]

Getting ready to plan a late January and early February trip.
DVC points are not completely off the table, but I want to stay in Florida for 2-4 weeks - maybe - and my DVC points aren't going to stretch like that.

Looking at Marriott mostly since I have a few points I can use.

 

[DisneyMandC]

Can you explain about the need for linking the reservations--is it because you made them with different MDE accounts? I have two separate room reservations for our December trip (I wanted the dining plan for one room but not the other) but I made them both from my MDE account so I'm wondering if I need to do anything else with them? I have been able to make dining reservations for all of us but the FP window is opening in a few days and I want to make sure I will be able to make FP reservations for everyone.

Also, if you can't get a reservation for 6, try making one for 4 and one for 2. I have had to do this several times and we have always ended up getting seated together, although I am prepared for the possibility that we might not. Actually some days it might be better to have a little alone time after being together pretty much 24/7.

I just didn't book directly with Disney so I was just getting everything put into MDE is all Thanks for the tip on ADRs!

 

[elgerber]

Sorry to ask yet another SW Visa question, but I want to make sure I have it right. The BIZ card is subject to 5/24, but that card will not count against the personal. So if I am 4/24, I have to apply for the BIZ first, correct?

 

[amalone1013]

Is anyone familiar with Fed Ex One Rate? Is that like USPS's flat rate packaging, where you can go get a box for free?

I never looked at Fedex for shipping until I came up with the 25% AMEX offer on one of my cards. That's making it come out ahead of USPS for something that just sold on Ebay.

 

[linzjane88]

Very true. And it depends on the time too I think, like I looked up the same week in Sept 2019 as we did this last year for 7 day PHs and it's $1.20 more (though I think part of that is they expect a lull before SWL). Tickets for ILs next summer will be $8 or $17 more depending on what we go with. I'm looking at $60 or $75 a person for a show right now... spent almost $300 on my Christmas concert tickets... $184 to see the Frozen preview here in Denver...

I think I've spoiled DH with APs and he thinks we need them forever now

And I'm over here like... Europe... Europe... There's so many places I'd like to go in Europe, even before Asia makes my list personally (unless they have a Disney park...).

Though the other night, out of the blue, DH goes, I want to go to Dubai. This is a big deal, because before he went to Quebec, Canada for work 2 years ago, he was always like, I don't really have a desire to leave the country. He was also scared/nervous of the idea. And I was like, well you have two choices. You can come anyways, or I will go by myself. And you can go on guy trips with your dad and brothers to Mount St Helens.

Did you end up going to Mt. St. Helens? If so, the highway that you turn up to go visit the mountain is in the town I live in . It's about 5 minutes from my house.

 

[tink1970]

Someone mentioned on Reddit this morning that TPG (well, a writer for TPG) posted about the Amex Platinum airline fee credit double dip: Can You Get the Amex Airline Fee Credit Twice in One Year?

I saw this article yesterday, and TPG posts so much daily content it's already been buried. I didn't think much of it at the time because it’s not the first time TPG has written about double dipping the airline credit. It’s also not the first time TPG's explained how to use the airline credit to buy GCs, and which airlines work. That’s not to say this won’t be the final straw that breaks the camel’s back.

I saw this too and thought "NOOOOOOO!" Guess time will tell but honestly, can't these bloggers just put a sock in it?

The guy was so funny I could see this being some sort of stand up routine. The wife didn't see the humor and just listed off all the things that they still wanted to buy.

I'm snickering just reading about it so good for you for not LOLing until they were away from you

I've been eyeing the Baltic Cruise for a while and am hoping to go maybe in 2020. I'm definitely not a City Mouse myself which is why I love cruising...I can dip in and dip out at my leisure. I'd love to do what @CaliforniaGirl09 and @Calfan did and B2B a Baltics/N-I-S. That would be a most excellent way to celebrate my 50th in 2020 now that I'm thinking about it...

@amalone1013 I use a huge Vera Bradley tote for my airplane bag (it has quite the capacity) and a Coach saddlebag purse for the day/in city use. I did use a tiny Coach crossbody purse until DD appropriated it and then she lost it in Greece.

 

[palhockeymomof2]

Sorry to ask yet another SW Visa question, but I want to make sure I have it right. The BIZ card is subject to 5/24, but that card will not count against the personal. So if I am 4/24, I have to apply for the BIZ first, correct?

No worries...better to ask before applying....Yes that’s correct...don’t apply for the personal the same day space out the applications

 

[palhockeymomof2]

Hello.. planning a family trip to California next year and trying to save where ever I can. I’m thinking of applying for the JetBlue plus card with 40000 points and the Hilton card for 75000 points. We will be spending a couple days in San Diego before going to Disneyland and I figure we can stay in a Hilton hotel. Would these be the best credit cards to get or is there a better travel card? Thanks!

Are you definitely flying JB.....There are a lot of Chase cards that earn UR points which can be used to book different airlines and hotels...if you let us know what credit cards you currently have and when you opened them we can give you better advice on which cards to apply for...

 

[miztressuz]

On the topic I'm reading here on SW bonus on a personal card, and then getting a SW Priority, I'm interested because I may do this eventually. So if I understand this right, if a person already has a SW personal card and got a sign-up bonus, in two years they can then cancel the card and apply for another SW personal card to get a new bonus? Chase has been honoring that? I'm just curious how Chase is with cancelling/reapplying and approving after the 24 month window.

Yep, Chase was honoring it before they put the 2 year language in, people were doing it every year (hence the 2 year language now). If you basically follow the terms of the card, and meet the criteria the card company has, and don't be a jerk, the credit card company will indeed give you a bonus again. Sounds crazy, I know! But indeed it is real and not from a Nigerian prince.

I've had the Capital One Venture card for a long time, so I hang on to it. I'm grandfathered in at $65 AF. It was my first travel rewards card before I discovered how much other fun there is to jump inot. I''m not aware of any 5/24 rules but I've read they are unpredictable as to who the approve. Also, they pull from all credit bureaus. I'm not sure why this is a big deal...maybe someone else can comment.
Using the rewards to "erase" charges is very easy to use. You get 2 points per dollar on everything your spend. To figure out how many points you need to erase a purchase, you move the decimal point over two spaces. For example, 50,000 points = $500. The travel category is not as expansive as Chase. For example, airport parking does not show up as a travel expense. It's the big things like car rental, hotel and airfare in my experience.

It's more a big deal for people with lots of inquiries. With some banks and products being inquiry sensitive, having another one on every credit report can ding you. Plus, that means they pulled each report so they can see all inquires and corresponding accounts. I opened (or attempted to open) 9 new credit accounts in the last ~17 months, but it's been a pretty even mix of inquiries across the 3 bureaus so I only had 2 on every report until recently. That looks better to some banks than having 9 separate inquiries.

I just looked it back up and it was May 2017 when I got my current SW bonus so I would have to wait until after that next year. Seems so long to wait! Plan to wait until then and after I get that card I won’t care about staying under 5/24 anymore bc it seems like Chase keeps adding restrictions like the new 48 month thing on some of their cards. After I get the new SW card I think I’ll focus on delta/Amex for a while.

Ugh, yeah, long time to wait. At this point you may want to math it out and see if the benefits of the new card now will outweigh the points bonus (and opportunity cost) later. For instance, how many SW flights will you have between now and next May that you can use the statement credit or other perks? Are there other cards you could better use before then? Maybe make a roadmap of what each decision would look like - one for upgrading now and one for signing up in 7 months.
Do you have any other UR earning cards? That might be a more compelling reason to get under 5/24 if you don't, but if you do, what would be the difference between transferring UR to SW when needed and taking the upgrade now to just blow past Chase? Sorry I don't have a single answer for you

 

[palhockeymomof2]

Getting ready to plan a late January and early February trip.
DVC points are not completely off the table, but I want to stay in Florida for 2-4 weeks - maybe - and my DVC points aren't going to stretch like that.

Looking at Marriott mostly since I have a few points I can use.

Sounds like a great trip....Are you looking at Marriott hotels or Vacation resorts...if their Vacation club resorts...friends own and have stayed at pretty much all the Orlando ones....I can ask which their favorites were...

 

[Lain]

Alright, which one of you is this?

Hi Mickey, ’Bye Mickey: 6 Disney parks on 2 coasts in 1 day.

Clark used points to pay for part of the trip.

 

[Fischstick]

Someone mentioned on Reddit this morning that TPG (well, a writer for TPG) posted about the Amex Platinum airline fee credit double dip: Can You Get the Amex Airline Fee Credit Twice in One Year?

I saw this article yesterday, and TPG posts so much daily content it's already been buried. I didn't think much of it at the time because it’s not the first time TPG has written about double dipping the airline credit. It’s also not the first time TPG's explained how to use the airline credit to buy GCs, and which airlines work. TPG is also not the only blogger who's written about this trick. That’s not to say this won’t be the final straw that breaks the camel’s back.

I felt this needed some commentary because several of you are considering the Amex Platinum, and a large part of the justification comes from the ability to double (or even triple) dip the airline fee credit. Rules are constantly changing (although there's sometimes grandfathering), in part because the hobby is growing so much and so fast.

Thanks for the heads up.....hoping it will hold until Nov. 19! Missed the Sapphire DD because of this exact stuff! Though there were some DPs of hope a few days ago........

 

[DrFacilier]

Thanks for the info and DP. I did chat last night, told them I was traveling on the 29th. Not really leaving until the 3rd but also want to apply the spend on GCs at BJ's. I also maxed my Discover on BJ's but I do not have Freedom. I applied on the 13th, my chat dude did say I would have it by the 29th, 10 days would be the 23rd which would be great but not holding my breath. Mine GCs came today and no one heard or saw him so they posted that they would try again tomorrow (when no one will be home grr). Should have placed 3 separate orders so we didn't have to sign for it.

The same exact thing happened to me yesterday with my BJ's GC delivery! I'm probably going to have another sticker on my door today when I get home. At least tomorrow is Saturday and there is more of a chance one of us will be home to sign for it.

 

[miztressuz]

...

It's very likely the banks know about these tricks (and even possible they have staff lurking on the blogs and forums to learn about new hacks and how people are using or abusing them), and they tolerate them as long as closing a loophole is more trouble than a few churners and travel hackers taking advantage of it is costing them. But when too many people catch on to a trick that is costing the banks money, they're going to put an end to it. Fast.
...

I'll go one further and say they may even build in some loopholes, maybe not intentionally at first, but someone worked out all the scenarios when they build the program and there was a risk analysis done. The obviously flawed ones were worked out, the obscure ones were left in. Not because they couldn't figure out a way around it, but there's a psychological aspect of a loyalty program - as long as the customer feels like they get more out of the program than you do, they'll continue to use it. Assuming you actually want them to use it long term, as that's where you make your money eventually, you need to make sure the user can find that value. It's all a percentages game. Top couple percent will milk it, but they're also your biggest advocates getting more people into the program to use your services. But, as you say, once too many people catch on to the expensive tricks and it tips the scales, that's when they're going to end it. (Tesla douche)

On a small scale, IHG knew getting $49 for a free night at any hotel was not profitable on it's own. But that's the hook that kept people getting and keeping the cards. Percentage wise there's a lot less folks out there getting the card and sock drawering it, than are getting it and using more IHG brand properties because of it. Scales tipped and now we have capped certs and higher fees (but it worked!) AmEx has been doing this for years so they have metrics on how people use it and I suspect the triple dips are even farther lower than double dips, as most people can figure out a calendar without TPG, even though it gets talked about a lot. Until the triple dips and other maximizing overshadows the majority of users, AmEx is probably ok with it. As you point out though, once they're not it moves fast. Always good to keep on your toes

 

[Happy814]

Alright, which one of you is this?

Hi Mickey, ’Bye Mickey: 6 Disney parks on 2 coasts in 1 day.

She posted on Theme Parks Attractions and Strategies

https://www.disboards.com/threads/6-parks-in-1-day.3706437/