I love credit cards so much!

[usakiwi]

Also, DP for the Freedom Unlimited vs Freedom on the extra 1500 points if you do 5 Chase Pay purchases...we did NOT get the extra 1500 points on our Freedom. I can completely understand why because as some have already pointed out, you are already getting a bonus on those purchases for the quarter category, but I know some have gotten the extra 1500 anyway. So I guess it really IS targeted/YMMV.

 

[1st*toright]

nudge nudge, wink wink, kwim kwim )

liked this mostly for the monty python reference...

 

[Judique]

@MrPTato and @striker1064

SM'ed Chase about transferring my credit on my closed card and they said no problem and you'll see it reflected in 24-36 hours. I put it on my Hyatt card. Now need to look into the Chase offers. I've been really slow about getting the app. I think it's time since I have found money to spend.

Also, can't see Amex offers right now and want to shop away the $100 referral on my Amex! Will check again in a few minutes.

 

[WVMomof3]

I was at a conference in Orlando recently and they did an evening dinner event at Universal. We had access to the Mummy, the Jimmy Fallon ride, Transformers and a roller coaster, and they had dinner served out in the street. It was pretty nice.

Right when I got there I decided to ride the Mummy. I didn't see a single other person in the queue - it was a full 5 minute walk through creepy rooms all by myself. Then I got up to the ride vehicle - I was the ONLY person in it. Again, super creepy. I'm not a huge fan of things jumping out at me, so about the time that I was fully strapped into the ride I was kinda thinking this wasn't my best decision ever. I realized that unlike Disney, the ride was intended to be truly scary, not funny scary or mildly surprising scary. Not going to lie, I was so creeped out that I kept my eyes closed through most of the ride.

I really should have bought the picture to prove I rode the Mummy all by myself (with my eyes closed like a scaredycat!)

I love the Mummy, have rode it numerous times, but would not want to ride it by myself! Kudos to you and a great story for you. lol Though in all honesty, I can't think of any ride I would want to ride myself! I would get scared on anything imagining all kinds of scenarios.

 

[Albort]

Also, DP for the Freedom Unlimited vs Freedom on the extra 1500 points if you do 5 Chase Pay purchases...we did NOT get the extra 1500 points on our Freedom. I can completely understand why because as some have already pointed out, you are already getting a bonus on those purchases for the quarter category, but I know some have gotten the extra 1500 anyway. So I guess it really IS targeted/YMMV.

i got it on the CFU and on the CSR. I dont have the CSP but it should be also able to do it as well.

 

[castoral]

Wanted to come post and say THANK you for helping my family have an AMAZING trip at Disney FOR FREE! All in 10 months!

The total for our 10 day Disney/Universal trip would have come to nearly $10,000!

Here’s how I covered every dime:
-Hyatt 1 night Atlanta Cobb - Chase UR ($155.06)
-6 nights at the Swan - SPG pts ($2,956.50)
-Disney tickets 3 adults, 3 kids - Chase UR ($2,314.90)
-Lowe’s Royal Pacific Club Level - $500 Chase bank bonus ($488.25)
-Universal Park to Park tickets 4 days for 3 adults, 3 kids - 2 Capital One Venture cards + Chase Ink Unlimited Business Card ($1,605.70)

Then had a total of $2300 between Huntington Bank bonus ($750), selling things ($950), EBay ($350) Ebates ($125) and Ibotta ($170) to cover extras like food, gas, tolls, parking, resort fees, souvenirs.

We also had enough points to stay 2 other nights free at Hyatt + 1 night booked free on way to New Orleans in March. Enough IHG pts we’ve used for 3 free nights now + 2 nights in New Orleans.

And we just hit the bonus on our Barclay Arrival Plus card where $600 will be used towards our AirBNB for Hilton Head in August!

Now to figure out our next big goal and of course which card next!

 

[miTnosnhoJ]

Has anybody been able to book a Disney Partner Hotel in Orlando through the Chase Travel Portal and been able to get a confirmation # that you could use with DIsney to book dining, fastpasses, etc.?

I booked a room a week ago and have not been able to get a confirmation # that will work with Disney. Called the Expedia folks today and they said I should get an automated email, but were otherwise clueless on how to help.

 

[SouthFayetteFan]

I was at a conference in Orlando recently and they did an evening dinner event at Universal. We had access to the Mummy, the Jimmy Fallon ride, Transformers and a roller coaster, and they had dinner served out in the street. It was pretty nice.

Right when I got there I decided to ride the Mummy. I didn't see a single other person in the queue - it was a full 5 minute walk through creepy rooms all by myself. Then I got up to the ride vehicle - I was the ONLY person in it. Again, super creepy. I'm not a huge fan of things jumping out at me, so about the time that I was fully strapped into the ride I was kinda thinking this wasn't my best decision ever. I realized that unlike Disney, the ride was intended to be truly scary, not funny scary or mildly surprising scary. Not going to lie, I was so creeped out that I kept my eyes closed through most of the ride.

I really should have bought the picture to prove I rode the Mummy all by myself (with my eyes closed like a scaredycat!)

I once rode Tower of Terror by myself early in the morning. I bought the picture immediately, It was so cool and something that probably will never happen again (especially with crowds these days!)

 

[SouthFayetteFan]

I'm a little muddled by why this is a good use of hilton points vs straight hotel redemptions?

It can be challenging to get a good value out of Hilton points. While they are easy to earn in large quantities, most people seem to peg their value at 0.4-0.5 cpp. If I had a bunch and could cash out on Amazon for useful gift cards at 0.5cpp I'd take it in a heartbeat. It would be similar IMO to if a glitch suddenly allowed you to cash out your URs at 1.5cpp.

 

[SouthFayetteFan]

Wanted to come post and say THANK you for helping my family have an AMAZING trip at Disney FOR FREE! All in 10 months!

The total for our 10 day Disney/Universal trip would have come to nearly $10,000!

Here’s how I covered every dime:
-Hyatt 1 night Atlanta Cobb - Chase UR ($155.06)
-6 nights at the Swan - SPG pts ($2,956.50)
-Disney tickets 3 adults, 3 kids - Chase UR ($2,314.90)
-Lowe’s Royal Pacific Club Level - $500 Chase bank bonus ($488.25)
-Universal Park to Park tickets 4 days for 3 adults, 3 kids - 2 Capital One Venture cards + Chase Ink Unlimited Business Card ($1,605.70)

Then had a total of $2300 between Huntington Bank bonus ($750), selling things ($950), EBay ($350) Ebates ($125) and Ibotta ($170) to cover extras like food, gas, tolls, parking, resort fees, souvenirs.

We also had enough points to stay 2 other nights free at Hyatt + 1 night booked free on way to New Orleans in March. Enough IHG pts we’ve used for 3 free nights now + 2 nights in New Orleans.

And we just hit the bonus on our Barclay Arrival Plus card where $600 will be used towards our AirBNB for Hilton Head in August!

Now to figure out our next big goal and of course which card next!

This is an amazing story...Totally why I love this game!!!

I try to explain to coworkers and friends how this works and how we're able to spend nothing on HUGE cost vacations and they don't believe me. I'm sure you feel very proud of this trip and you should! You did great research, asked good questions, hit the right cards and bonuses and gave your family an experience they'll always remember

 

[StephPlum]

I was at a conference in Orlando recently and they did an evening dinner event at Universal. We had access to the Mummy, the Jimmy Fallon ride, Transformers and a roller coaster, and they had dinner served out in the street. It was pretty nice.

Right when I got there I decided to ride the Mummy. I didn't see a single other person in the queue - it was a full 5 minute walk through creepy rooms all by myself. Then I got up to the ride vehicle - I was the ONLY person in it. Again, super creepy. I'm not a huge fan of things jumping out at me, so about the time that I was fully strapped into the ride I was kinda thinking this wasn't my best decision ever. I realized that unlike Disney, the ride was intended to be truly scary, not funny scary or mildly surprising scary. Not going to lie, I was so creeped out that I kept my eyes closed through most of the ride.

I really should have bought the picture to prove I rode the Mummy all by myself (with my eyes closed like a scaredycat!)

I loooove the Mummy. I am a frequent solo rider as I travel a lot by myself but rarely get to ride without anyone at all. Best story was I did get a car all to myself on the Hogwarts Express. Wonderful.

 

[mmmears]

We drove past it on our Uber ride to the airport on the last trip. I liked the location and thought I had read somewhere that it was a 35k/night property where we could use the free night cert. I was kind of shocked too when I realized exactly where it was located. DH even said, "Are you sure?" when I told him I thought that might be the Residence Inn that is bookable with one of our free night certs. We've kept the Marriott cards for years just to use the free night certs at off property Disney stays. Now, it is even more valuable to us. I like occasional weekend getaways in NYC to catch a show. Actually using it for that is like Christmas just came early.

I'm going to have to remember this one. We just got the LUX so no free night yet but it does look like a good way to use it! We are booked at a Hyatt about a block away (using up a ton of Hyatt points) and I'd love to hear your thoughts on this Residence Inn and also that area. I haven't stayed around there before.

@MrPTato and @striker1064

SM'ed Chase about transferring my credit on my closed card and they said no problem and you'll see it reflected in 24-36 hours. I put it on my Hyatt card. Now need to look into the Chase offers. I've been really slow about getting the app. I think it's time since I have found money to spend.

Also, can't see Amex offers right now and want to shop away the $100 referral on my Amex! Will check again in a few minutes.

My Amex offers have not been working, on and off, for the last few days. But even when they won't show up on my laptop I can see them on my phone app. Hope that helps!

 

[mamathompson]

Wanted to come post and say THANK you for helping my family have an AMAZING trip at Disney FOR FREE! All in 10 months!

The total for our 10 day Disney/Universal trip would have come to nearly $10,000!

Here’s how I covered every dime:
-Hyatt 1 night Atlanta Cobb - Chase UR ($155.06)
-6 nights at the Swan - SPG pts ($2,956.50)
-Disney tickets 3 adults, 3 kids - Chase UR ($2,314.90)
-Lowe’s Royal Pacific Club Level - $500 Chase bank bonus ($488.25)
-Universal Park to Park tickets 4 days for 3 adults, 3 kids - 2 Capital One Venture cards + Chase Ink Unlimited Business Card ($1,605.70)

Then had a total of $2300 between Huntington Bank bonus ($750), selling things ($950), EBay ($350) Ebates ($125) and Ibotta ($170) to cover extras like food, gas, tolls, parking, resort fees, souvenirs.

We also had enough points to stay 2 other nights free at Hyatt + 1 night booked free on way to New Orleans in March. Enough IHG pts we’ve used for 3 free nights now + 2 nights in New Orleans.

And we just hit the bonus on our Barclay Arrival Plus card where $600 will be used towards our AirBNB for Hilton Head in August!

Now to figure out our next big goal and of course which card next!

Amazing! We started playing this game after we had already booked our upcoming trip but you are giving me some serious travel goals for the future! Congratulations on accomplishing all of that!

 

[MrPTato]

@MrPTato and @striker1064

SM'ed Chase about transferring my credit on my closed card and they said no problem and you'll see it reflected in 24-36 hours. I put it on my Hyatt card. Now need to look into the Chase offers. I've been really slow about getting the app. I think it's time since I have found money to spend.

Also, can't see Amex offers right now and want to shop away the $100 referral on my Amex! Will check again in a few minutes.

I have been having issue with Amex site most of the day. I had to go into incognito mode on Chrome to get in where it still took 2 attempts.

 

[Angrose]

I am happy to report that calling in for the AmEx Business Platinum still results in the 100K MR/$10K MSR offer. Thank you again @Lain for your help and for the contacts.

I now need to cancel another AmEx personal platinum card. I called in the last time I needed to cancel, but this is for my wife, and she hates calling. Can I cancel via chat?

I was just approved this morning for this deal as well! @Lain, you are awesome with the contacts!

Also, I have closed AMEX cards via online chat before, hopefully your wife won't need to call in.

 

[palhockeymomof2]

I would wait for the SPG Biz offer to go back up. The bonus on the SPG Biz was at 100k Marriott points (for $5k MSR) until that offer expired on 10/31. As you know, the current offer is only 75k Marriott points (for but a lower $3k MSR), and likely won't go lower than that. Amex's offers on the SPG cards go up and down. I fully expect the SPG Biz welcome offer to go back up again in a few months.

However, that means putting off your first year anniversary, only after which you'd get your free night certificate. The SPG Biz has its first year AF waived, $95/yr. thereafter, but Amex hasn't been posting the FN certs to Starriott accounts until ~6-8 weeks after the AF posts, which makes pocketing the FN cert and canceling in time to avoid the AF not possible. Still, the FN cert worth a 35k stay is often > $95 AF.

ETA: I would add, as has been suggested here by others, to time your and P2’s anniversaries to coincide around the same time, so the FN certs post to your accounts around the same time and you each have your certs ready to use together on one night each and have the hotel link your reservations for a two night stay. That may mean P1 and P2 applying for the SPG Biz around the same time (P1 refers P2 after getting approved).

Thanks....reading back today I saw the higher 100k for 5k MSR....would have trouble hitting that times 2 within 3 months with both of us applying around the same time.....which it definitely makes sense to do. 6k MSR we can do.

 

[palhockeymomof2]

In actual churning-related news, I've been getting a lot of use out of Amex offers and RMN was actually fairly useful in my holiday shopping endeavors.

Most of my RMN offers have worked fine (small cash back percentages on stuff I was going to buy anyway), but I have one that is taking a while to go pending. Not a big deal, because I would have made the purchase anyway, but $20 is $20 (and as @SouthFayetteFan says, cash is king!)

Really happy to see that the 100k Amex Plat biz still seems be live - I sent the info to my P2 (along with talking points). He was going to apply yesterday but got too busy - hopefully we have an approval dance party coming our way soon.

If your $20 RMN cash back doesn’t post after 2 weeks you can do the online chat with them...if you send them a screen shot of the receipt they will give you the $20. Ive had to contact them twice when offers didn’t go pending

 

[SouthFayetteFan]

So uhhh does anybody have a DP on the new free night with the SPG biz card?

Here's my experience and info so far:

1) My card opening date is 10/26/2017.

2) On 11/2/2018 I got the following email (truncated for time)...

You’re close to receiving a Free Night Award from SPG...Happy Card anniversary! We wanted to remind you that you will receive one annual Free Night Award from SPG® each year of Card Membership within 8-12 weeks after your Card Account anniversary date...You can redeem...at or under 35,000 points....You will receive an email from SPG to the email address listed on your loyalty member account confirming that the Free Night Award e-certificate has been deposited into your loyalty member account....To qualify...account must be open and not in default at the time of issuance...Thank you for your Card Membership...American Express Customer Care​

3) On 11/25/2018 my statement closes on the SPG Biz and my $95 annual fee is billed

4) My payment of this AF is due by 12/18/2018...

Conveniently for AMEX...8 weeks from my anniversary date is 12/21/2018. It sounds to me like I have to pay the annual fee to get this free night. Has anybody had their free night post yet from the SPG Biz (or even the SPG personal would be a meaningful DP). I was hoping this would work like the Chase Marriott card where I get my free night and then cancel...but I don't think that's going to be the case unfortunately.

 

[amalone1013]

@SouthFayetteFan
Here is my unhelpful experience. SPG Biz.
Opening date 10/16/17
Got the same email on 11/2/18
AF billed/statement closed 11/9/18
Payment due 12/5
No sign of free night yet


I was really hoping it would show up and I could use it this Friday since the Courtyard we're staying at is a 35k hotel, so I could keep my actual 35k points for a future <35k hotel


ETA: DHs SPG Personal free night
Opening date 8/16/16
No email
AF billed/statement closed 9/15/18
Payment due 10/9
Saw free night on 11/5 (expires 11/2/19 so maybe it showed up then, I didn't check every day)
So, about 7 weeks after statement close, 11 weeks after actual anniversary of opening date.

 

[Lain]

So uhhh does anybody have a DP on the new free night with the SPG biz card?

Here's my experience and info so far:

1) My card opening date is 10/26/2017.

2) On 11/2/2018 I got the following email (truncated for time)...

You’re close to receiving a Free Night Award from SPG...Happy Card anniversary! We wanted to remind you that you will receive one annual Free Night Award from SPG® each year of Card Membership within 8-12 weeks after your Card Account anniversary date...You can redeem...at or under 35,000 points....You will receive an email from SPG to the email address listed on your loyalty member account confirming that the Free Night Award e-certificate has been deposited into your loyalty member account....To qualify...account must be open and not in default at the time of issuance...Thank you for your Card Membership...American Express Customer Care​

3) On 11/25/2018 my statement closes on the SPG Biz and my $95 annual fee is billed

4) My payment of this AF is due by 12/18/2018...

Conveniently for AMEX...8 weeks from my anniversary date is 12/21/2018. It sounds to me like I have to pay the annual fee to get this free night. Has anybody had their free night post yet from the SPG Biz (or even the SPG personal would be a meaningful DP). I was hoping this would work like the Chase Marriott card where I get my free night and then cancel...but I don't think that's going to be the case unfortunately.

Every DP I’ve seen had the FN cert post, at earliest ~6 weeks after the AF posts. Since Amex AF posts at the end of the statement, and you have 30 days from the close of the statement on which the AF posts to cancel the card, it looks like Amex is not letting us take the FN and still have enough time to cancel the card for a refund of the AF.