This has been updated as the Old IHG Club Card is no longer offered.
The IHG Rewards Club Premier Credit Card has a bonus of 140,000 points right now which should get you at least a several free nights at Holiday Inns, Crown Plaza or InterContinentals and more. Redemptions start at 5k points, so you could possibly get up to 28 free nights out of the bonus. I'm not sure if you will be able to find them at that rate but I have been able to find redemptions for 10,000 at Candlewood Suites.
The minimum spend is $3,000 to get that bonus. The $89 annual fee is not waived the first year like the old IHG card. I do like that you get a free night every anniversary, so if you did keep the card and pay the annual fee you would be getting something in return. A reward night up to 40,000 points. You also get up to $100 towards TSA Pre-Check or Global Entry.
By holding the card you also get Platinum Elite Status, which has some reasonable perks like complimentary room upgrades and earning extra points. You also get the fourth reward night for free. There is no referral program I am aware of for this card, so just apply as normal through Chase.
Thanks for Reading,
Michael Wilson
Wednesday 20 December 2017
Why I upgraded to a $450 annual fee card
I just upgraded my Chase Saphire Preferred card to the Chase Saphire Reserve card.
I did this as my first annual fee was approaching. I could have cancelled or downgraded the card and payed no fee, or else I could have kept it and payed the $99 annual fee.
Instead I opted to upgrade it to get 3X points on travel and dining and most importantly, Priority Pass.
Priority Pass gets you into over 1000 Airport Lounges around the world. Is that really worth the $450 annual fee you ask? Since the Reserve card automatically gives you a $300 credit towards travel each year, it is really a $150 annual fee. All you do is spend on travel and your account get reimbursed up to $300. The same level Priority Pass (Prestige) costs $399, so in my opinion this is a great deal if you travel enough to use Priority Pass. You and a guest enjoy unlimited entry into lounges around the world.
There are also other benefits to the card, such as the 50,000 Ultimate Reward Point signup bonus. I did not get this as I already cashed in on the Sapphire Preferred bonus. You also get 50% more on travel redemption through the Chase Reward site. This might make some of them worth looking into.
If you are interested in this card please use my referral link to apply and I will get 10k points. You can then refer your friends and family to get up to 50k bonus points a year.
(Update)
I have checked on travel redemptions since my account started displaying Reserve instead of Preferred. While I thought Flying from Bali to Indianapolis for 40K points by transferring points to United was good, I see that I can redeem flights for 36K points through the Chase site. From LA to Bali was 32k points. Both flights were with Singapore Airlines. The hotel redemptions also look pretty good. Another benefit I am taking advantage of is a $100 credit for applying to Global Entry. This will make getting through immigration much faster. I will also look into the discount rates on rental cars while in Dallas. I also noticed the site shows I have already spent the $300 on travel, so I should see the statement credit soon. So far I am very happy I upgraded.
Here's the link:
https://www.referyourchasecard.com/19/M0GHJYSNAE
Thanks for reading,
Mike
I did this as my first annual fee was approaching. I could have cancelled or downgraded the card and payed no fee, or else I could have kept it and payed the $99 annual fee.
Instead I opted to upgrade it to get 3X points on travel and dining and most importantly, Priority Pass.
Priority Pass gets you into over 1000 Airport Lounges around the world. Is that really worth the $450 annual fee you ask? Since the Reserve card automatically gives you a $300 credit towards travel each year, it is really a $150 annual fee. All you do is spend on travel and your account get reimbursed up to $300. The same level Priority Pass (Prestige) costs $399, so in my opinion this is a great deal if you travel enough to use Priority Pass. You and a guest enjoy unlimited entry into lounges around the world.
There are also other benefits to the card, such as the 50,000 Ultimate Reward Point signup bonus. I did not get this as I already cashed in on the Sapphire Preferred bonus. You also get 50% more on travel redemption through the Chase Reward site. This might make some of them worth looking into.
If you are interested in this card please use my referral link to apply and I will get 10k points. You can then refer your friends and family to get up to 50k bonus points a year.
(Update)
I have checked on travel redemptions since my account started displaying Reserve instead of Preferred. While I thought Flying from Bali to Indianapolis for 40K points by transferring points to United was good, I see that I can redeem flights for 36K points through the Chase site. From LA to Bali was 32k points. Both flights were with Singapore Airlines. The hotel redemptions also look pretty good. Another benefit I am taking advantage of is a $100 credit for applying to Global Entry. This will make getting through immigration much faster. I will also look into the discount rates on rental cars while in Dallas. I also noticed the site shows I have already spent the $300 on travel, so I should see the statement credit soon. So far I am very happy I upgraded.
Here's the link:
https://www.referyourchasecard.com/19/M0GHJYSNAE
Thanks for reading,
Mike
Sunday 26 November 2017
Why you should use a Shopping Portal
I have mentioned using a shopping portal as a way to get points for travel or get cash back. These are often just a webpage with links to online shopping retailers. Airlines, banks and independant shopping portals exist so you have a range of options for how to be rewarded.
The hard part is remembering to always use a shopping portal before you click buy when you see that shiny new product on sale. Using a shopping portal is actually pretty easy. If you were going to use ABC airline’s shopping portal for example, you would go to their website and click on the link to the online retailer you wanted. From there on it is exactly the same shopping experience you are used to, except you will receive points to your ABC airline rewards account.
One shopping portal not associated with hotels, banks or airlines I have been using is Ebates.com.
It rewards you with cash back, and just for signing up you get $10.00 credit. You can choose to receive this through paypal or a check. They also have a referral program where you can earn $25.00 for referring your friends. Here is my referral link https://go.ebat.es/imsk/IOM2j6OSmI so if you sign up I will get $25.00 and you will get $10.00 (I know it is so unfair).
Another site similar to Ebates that I recently found is befrugal.com. I will get $10 and you will also get $10 for using my referral link. https://www.befrugal.com/referral/?ref=FWYEVXI
You should take a look at which portal is offering the best rewards for the retailer or product you are looking at. You can use sites like http://evreward.com/ or http://www.cashbackmonitor.com/ to see which portals have the highest reward for say Walmart.com. When I ran this search Ebates had the highest rewards in cash back at 6%. As Cyber Monday opens be sure to give shopping portals a check. Used in combination with a credit card like Chase Freedom, which is currently getting 5 points per dollar at Walmart and departent stores, you could be getting an additional 11% back on already rock bottom prices. Happy online Shopping!
Mike
The hard part is remembering to always use a shopping portal before you click buy when you see that shiny new product on sale. Using a shopping portal is actually pretty easy. If you were going to use ABC airline’s shopping portal for example, you would go to their website and click on the link to the online retailer you wanted. From there on it is exactly the same shopping experience you are used to, except you will receive points to your ABC airline rewards account.
One shopping portal not associated with hotels, banks or airlines I have been using is Ebates.com.
It rewards you with cash back, and just for signing up you get $10.00 credit. You can choose to receive this through paypal or a check. They also have a referral program where you can earn $25.00 for referring your friends. Here is my referral link https://go.ebat.es/imsk/IOM2j6OSmI so if you sign up I will get $25.00 and you will get $10.00 (I know it is so unfair).
Another site similar to Ebates that I recently found is befrugal.com. I will get $10 and you will also get $10 for using my referral link. https://www.befrugal.com/referral/?ref=FWYEVXI
You should take a look at which portal is offering the best rewards for the retailer or product you are looking at. You can use sites like http://evreward.com/ or http://www.cashbackmonitor.com/ to see which portals have the highest reward for say Walmart.com. When I ran this search Ebates had the highest rewards in cash back at 6%. As Cyber Monday opens be sure to give shopping portals a check. Used in combination with a credit card like Chase Freedom, which is currently getting 5 points per dollar at Walmart and departent stores, you could be getting an additional 11% back on already rock bottom prices. Happy online Shopping!
Mike
Thursday 2 November 2017
Low Minimum Spend Cards with Big Bonuses
I have been thinking about which credit cards to sign up for next, but I don't want to worry about meeting a big minimum spend right now.
I love how easy it is to get the bonus on a card with only $500 or $1000 minimum spend. While not as huge of a bonus, the reward for how much you are spending is usually much better.
It can be hard to meet the minimum spends on some cards, especially ones that come with big bonuses. The Chase Saphire Preferred requires $4,000 US to get the 50k bonus points. The reward to spend ration only $500/$4000 = .125 if you are using it for cash back instead of more rewarding flight rewards. You can think of this as a 12.5% cashback discount on what you spent. There are tricks, like paying your taxes on a credit card for a small fee (about 2%). Or some people buy PIN enabled debit cards, buy money orders with them, then use them to pay off the card, to earn rewards or meet minimum spend, but I want to focus on some cards that are easier to get the bonus on. It should be noted that buying gift cards may not count toward some cards minimum spend.
I was approved for the BankAmericard Cash Back Rewards Card which has a low minimum spend of $500.00 and a bonus of $150 as a statement credit. It also has no annual fee.
Here are the rewards for spending:
1% cash back on every purchase, 2% at grocery stores and wholesale clubs and 3% on gas for the first $2,500 in combined grocery/wholesale club/gas purchases each quarter.
To me this seems like a no brainer. You get 30% back on spending $500 you would have spent anyways, and then you can continue to use the card for 3% off of gas. I think everyone has to spend $500 in a three month period anyways. The reward to spend ration is $150/$500 = .300
I also have mentioned I also have BOA's Travel Rewards card, which also has a minimum spend of $1000 and no annual fee or foreign transaction fee. You get $250 towards travel purchases and earn 1.5% on all spending. With these two cards you would always get at least 1.5% back, and up to 3% on daily spending. One thing to remember when comparing rewards points verse cash back is that reward points may be called higher than a cash back percentage. Chase Ultimate Rewards points are valued at 1.5 cents by some travel hackers as they can purchase premium travel experiences at a better price than cash. So two points/dollar back on the Chase Sapphire Preferred may be worth more like 3-4% to some.
Two Chase cards that have a minimum spend of $500 for their bonus of $200 in points or cash back are the Chase Freedom and Freedom Unlimited. No annual fees on either. You will also get $25
back for adding an additional card holder after they use the card. $350 in your pocket for spending $1000 you would have spent anyways. Thats a reward to spend of 175/500 = .35 so 35% cash back. If you already have one of these and refer someone else who gets the card, you would get $100 right now.
You can space getting these four cards out over a year, and it should be easy to meet the minimum spends. Some people worry this will hurt their credit, but I have better credit now than I did before I started travel hacking. A new credit card application or cancellation may temporarily make your credit score dip a few points, but it quickly goes back up. Your score is then positively effected by having a higher credit limit to use ratio. It is also positively effected by holding a credit line for a long time. This is why I still have my first credit card open, even though I don't use it. There are many travel hackers who have dozens of cards, and apply and cancel many times more than myself and have better credit ratings than me. You can also monitor your credit score for free with Chase and BOA. Mine is at 767 right now while a year ago it was at 757.
I think that getting three or all four of these cards are the way to start out using credit cards to earn cash back and travel rewards. Once you see how easy it was you might move on to some bigger bonus rewards by timing some big purchases to meet the minimum spends.
Happy Travels,
Mike
I love how easy it is to get the bonus on a card with only $500 or $1000 minimum spend. While not as huge of a bonus, the reward for how much you are spending is usually much better.
It can be hard to meet the minimum spends on some cards, especially ones that come with big bonuses. The Chase Saphire Preferred requires $4,000 US to get the 50k bonus points. The reward to spend ration only $500/$4000 = .125 if you are using it for cash back instead of more rewarding flight rewards. You can think of this as a 12.5% cashback discount on what you spent. There are tricks, like paying your taxes on a credit card for a small fee (about 2%). Or some people buy PIN enabled debit cards, buy money orders with them, then use them to pay off the card, to earn rewards or meet minimum spend, but I want to focus on some cards that are easier to get the bonus on. It should be noted that buying gift cards may not count toward some cards minimum spend.
I was approved for the BankAmericard Cash Back Rewards Card which has a low minimum spend of $500.00 and a bonus of $150 as a statement credit. It also has no annual fee.
Here are the rewards for spending:
1% cash back on every purchase, 2% at grocery stores and wholesale clubs and 3% on gas for the first $2,500 in combined grocery/wholesale club/gas purchases each quarter.
I also have mentioned I also have BOA's Travel Rewards card, which also has a minimum spend of $1000 and no annual fee or foreign transaction fee. You get $250 towards travel purchases and earn 1.5% on all spending. With these two cards you would always get at least 1.5% back, and up to 3% on daily spending. One thing to remember when comparing rewards points verse cash back is that reward points may be called higher than a cash back percentage. Chase Ultimate Rewards points are valued at 1.5 cents by some travel hackers as they can purchase premium travel experiences at a better price than cash. So two points/dollar back on the Chase Sapphire Preferred may be worth more like 3-4% to some.
Two Chase cards that have a minimum spend of $500 for their bonus of $200 in points or cash back are the Chase Freedom and Freedom Unlimited. No annual fees on either. You will also get $25
back for adding an additional card holder after they use the card. $350 in your pocket for spending $1000 you would have spent anyways. Thats a reward to spend of 175/500 = .35 so 35% cash back. If you already have one of these and refer someone else who gets the card, you would get $100 right now.
You can space getting these four cards out over a year, and it should be easy to meet the minimum spends. Some people worry this will hurt their credit, but I have better credit now than I did before I started travel hacking. A new credit card application or cancellation may temporarily make your credit score dip a few points, but it quickly goes back up. Your score is then positively effected by having a higher credit limit to use ratio. It is also positively effected by holding a credit line for a long time. This is why I still have my first credit card open, even though I don't use it. There are many travel hackers who have dozens of cards, and apply and cancel many times more than myself and have better credit ratings than me. You can also monitor your credit score for free with Chase and BOA. Mine is at 767 right now while a year ago it was at 757.
I think that getting three or all four of these cards are the way to start out using credit cards to earn cash back and travel rewards. Once you see how easy it was you might move on to some bigger bonus rewards by timing some big purchases to meet the minimum spends.
Happy Travels,
Mike
Not all Flight Search Engines are Equal
I have just been introduced to a new airline ticket search engine I am pretty impressed with. While I have been using Google Flights, Cheapoair.com, kayak.com and will continue to do so, I will also use Momondo.com
I found it while reading a post on how to find cheap tickets on https://www.nomadicmatt.com
I did a search for flights from Bali to Darwin and was able to get $95 on Momondo instead of the airlines direct fare of $125.00. It points you toward the booking site with the cheapest fare.
Somehow airline ticket booking agencies are able to get a discount on tickets, so if you book through them you can often get a lower price. This comes with some trade offs though. They usually wont buy extra bags for you so you have to deal with the airline anyways, wont let you cancel or change the flight under the airlines policies (24 cancellation policy is law for airlines), etc.
Usually I like dealing directly with the airline, but in the case of booking a multi airline itinerary an travel agent (or online travel agency) can simplify things for you and help you find the cheapest itinerary. In this case the savings alone will justify going through an online booking agency.
All for now,
Mike
I found it while reading a post on how to find cheap tickets on https://www.nomadicmatt.com
I did a search for flights from Bali to Darwin and was able to get $95 on Momondo instead of the airlines direct fare of $125.00. It points you toward the booking site with the cheapest fare.
Somehow airline ticket booking agencies are able to get a discount on tickets, so if you book through them you can often get a lower price. This comes with some trade offs though. They usually wont buy extra bags for you so you have to deal with the airline anyways, wont let you cancel or change the flight under the airlines policies (24 cancellation policy is law for airlines), etc.
Usually I like dealing directly with the airline, but in the case of booking a multi airline itinerary an travel agent (or online travel agency) can simplify things for you and help you find the cheapest itinerary. In this case the savings alone will justify going through an online booking agency.
All for now,
Mike
Monday 30 October 2017
Award Maximizer tool
I found this really cool tool for finding the cheapest use of points between two airports. I find the first one to be more accurate. I used it to find a flight from CLT to IND on AA for 7,500 British Airlines Avios which I transferred from my Chase Sapphire Reserve account. It would have cost 11,000 through the Chase portal or $175 cash.
https://www.awardhacker.com/
https://travelcodex.com/award-maximizer/
https://www.awardhacker.com/
https://travelcodex.com/award-maximizer/
Cheap tickets with China Eastern
I have been working on the return leg for our trip from Australia to the USA and was almost ready to book reward flights with Qantas from Dallas to Bali. Each one way ticket would have cost 60,000 points. The only problem was that I was 5,000 points short and to buy the 5,000 points would cost $200.
I quickly searched for alternatives and found if I bought a case of wine for $150 off of the Qantas epiQure website, I would get a bonus 5,150 points. I did this and then went to book the flights the next day. When I had selected the flights I saw that the taxes and fees for two people totaled $800.00 US!
This kind of ticked me off, because earlier I had seen a similar flight with fees only $215.00 per person, but I could not find that flight anymore. All flights from the US to Bali or Australia seemed to have the same high fees.
A search on Google Flights came up with one way tickets around $600 each. Feeling desperate I did a search on Cheapoair.com and found ticket for $271 each! They called this a Fusion Fare as it combined a Spirit Airlines ticket to LAX with a China Eastern ticket the rest of the way.
I have seen Google Flights do this in the past, but for some reason it hasn't been combining airlines recently. The catch is we have to pay around $36 per bag (including carry ons) and with Spirit airlines. China Eastern includes two checked bags. Another thing to beware of is that Cheapoair no longer allows free cancellations in the first 4 hrs. They charge $50 per person for cancellations, and after 24 hrs the flights are non-refundable. It's a good idea to use a credit card with good travel insurance when booking through them, or just book directly with the airlines and they give you free cancellation within 24 hrs.
I will write a review of our trip with China Eastern in the future, which will include a 24 hr layover in Shanghai Pu Dong. The reviews I have read mostly complain about lack of pillows and difficulty in English communication.
Another side note is that I used Ebates as a shopping portal to earn $9.83 cash back from this booking. I will have to write about shopping portals in the future, but most airlines have them so you have can get points by shopping at places like Apple.com and other online stores by using the link to the store in the shopping portal. They are basically referring customers to online stores, which then pay the portal comany for their traffic. If you use my link by clicking on Ebates or copying and pasting the link below to sign up, I will get $25 and you will get $10.
https://www.ebates.com/r/MIGUEL4648?eeid=28187
Cheers,
Mike
I quickly searched for alternatives and found if I bought a case of wine for $150 off of the Qantas epiQure website, I would get a bonus 5,150 points. I did this and then went to book the flights the next day. When I had selected the flights I saw that the taxes and fees for two people totaled $800.00 US!
This kind of ticked me off, because earlier I had seen a similar flight with fees only $215.00 per person, but I could not find that flight anymore. All flights from the US to Bali or Australia seemed to have the same high fees.
A search on Google Flights came up with one way tickets around $600 each. Feeling desperate I did a search on Cheapoair.com and found ticket for $271 each! They called this a Fusion Fare as it combined a Spirit Airlines ticket to LAX with a China Eastern ticket the rest of the way.
I have seen Google Flights do this in the past, but for some reason it hasn't been combining airlines recently. The catch is we have to pay around $36 per bag (including carry ons) and with Spirit airlines. China Eastern includes two checked bags. Another thing to beware of is that Cheapoair no longer allows free cancellations in the first 4 hrs. They charge $50 per person for cancellations, and after 24 hrs the flights are non-refundable. It's a good idea to use a credit card with good travel insurance when booking through them, or just book directly with the airlines and they give you free cancellation within 24 hrs.
I will write a review of our trip with China Eastern in the future, which will include a 24 hr layover in Shanghai Pu Dong. The reviews I have read mostly complain about lack of pillows and difficulty in English communication.
Another side note is that I used Ebates as a shopping portal to earn $9.83 cash back from this booking. I will have to write about shopping portals in the future, but most airlines have them so you have can get points by shopping at places like Apple.com and other online stores by using the link to the store in the shopping portal. They are basically referring customers to online stores, which then pay the portal comany for their traffic. If you use my link by clicking on Ebates or copying and pasting the link below to sign up, I will get $25 and you will get $10.
https://www.ebates.com/r/MIGUEL4648?eeid=28187
Cheers,
Mike
Wednesday 25 October 2017
Cash back
Earlier I wrote about redeeming Ultimate Rewards Points by transferring them from Chase to United or one of the other transfer partners.You get a 1:1 exchange for the points. You could also get 1 cent per point as cash back in your Chase account. Is this a good idea though? Lots of people value these points at 1.5 cents each or more.
If you do not have a premium Chase card, then you cannot transfer to one of their other parters. In this case cash back is probably the best way to use the points, unless your spouse or family member has a premium card. If they do you can transfer the points to them and they can send them to transfer partners to book reward flights and hotels.
So lets say you have been earning 5% back on the Freedom card. To do this you have to activate the quarterly cash back category. It might be fuel one quarter and groceries the next. You will earn 5% on up to $1500 and after that 1%. That's $75 per quarter if you max out the 5%. You can then start using your Freedom Unlimited to earn 1.5%. You can hold on to the points as long as you want or you can redeem them as cash right away.
I would recommend holding on to them if its possible you will get a premium card later or know someone in your household will.
There are other cards out there with good cash back rewards if that is what you want. Bank of America has a with cash back card of 3% on a category you get to choose.
Tuesday 24 October 2017
Redeeming Ultimate Rewards Points
I recently booked my first reward tickets from points acquired using Chase credit cards. I transferred 80,000 Ultimate Rewards Points to my United MileagePlus account and then booked two one way economy tickets from Bali to Indianapolis for 80k points plus $82.52 USD in fees. Some airlines (looking at you Qantas) charge much more in taxes, fees and fuel surcharges and end up ruining the deal.
I could have used these points to get $800 USD cash back, but when you look at the prices of flights from DPS (Bali) to IND on Google Flights, you see I am getting a much better deal. If I book the return flights for the same amount, I will have gotten two return flights for $1,765.00 USD. Right now that would cost over $3,100 to buy the tickets with cash. When you book business and first class tickets using points you end up getting an even better value compared to cash.
One caveat to this redemption is that to transfer points from Chase to one of their partners is that you must have a premium card like the Sapphire Preferred Card. There are other options, especially if you need a business card, but this is the best to start with, since it has no annual fee the first year.
The points you earn with your other cards, like the Freedom can easily be moved over to your Sapphire account. When logged into your Chase account you will see your Ultimate Rewards Points on the left under your credit card info and balance. When you click on them you will be taken to the Ultimate Rewards page where you can transfer your points between cards, spend your points on travel directly, or transfer you points to several transfer partners such as United, Southwest, Singapore Airlines, British Airways, Virgin Atlantic, KLM, Korean Air, and several hotel rewards programs.
Travel booking through the Chase page is available without a premium card, but it is not a very good value compared to transferring to a partner. It might actually be better to just get cash back and then buy a ticket. If you do not want to keep your card longer than one year, you can transfer your points to someone else in your household who has a premium card and then use them with a transfer partner.
When planning your trip, it is a good idea to figure out which airline has the best redemptions and see what is available before transferring your points. Once they have gone, there is no getting them back into your Chase account from an airline or hotel reward program. If you find a redemption you like, then transfer the points quickly and get that thing booked. Since many airline points expire, it is not a good idea to transfer them without having an idea when you will spend them. Chase and Bank of America points do not expire, which makes them great places to hoard points.
When I first attempted transferring points to United through Chase's website, the request seemed to go through fine, but I waited days without seeing them show up on the receiving end. After several days and phone calls I realized they had gone back to Chase. When I requested they be transferred over the phone, they showed up immediately and I was able to book my flights.
United seems to have the best redemption value for flying from this part of the world to the USA (40k plus $41 one way). Singapore Airlines seems to be pretty good as well, but the fees were a little bit higher and the flights I saw were wait list flights. Southwest and British airways seem to have some pretty good short haul redemptions from what I have read. The only other redemptions on travel I have done are with Bank of America's Travel card, which just gave me money back after I purchased tickets with the card so you get exactly 1 cent per point. Maybe I will be redeeming some Qantas points sometime soon.
I could have used these points to get $800 USD cash back, but when you look at the prices of flights from DPS (Bali) to IND on Google Flights, you see I am getting a much better deal. If I book the return flights for the same amount, I will have gotten two return flights for $1,765.00 USD. Right now that would cost over $3,100 to buy the tickets with cash. When you book business and first class tickets using points you end up getting an even better value compared to cash.
One caveat to this redemption is that to transfer points from Chase to one of their partners is that you must have a premium card like the Sapphire Preferred Card. There are other options, especially if you need a business card, but this is the best to start with, since it has no annual fee the first year.
The points you earn with your other cards, like the Freedom can easily be moved over to your Sapphire account. When logged into your Chase account you will see your Ultimate Rewards Points on the left under your credit card info and balance. When you click on them you will be taken to the Ultimate Rewards page where you can transfer your points between cards, spend your points on travel directly, or transfer you points to several transfer partners such as United, Southwest, Singapore Airlines, British Airways, Virgin Atlantic, KLM, Korean Air, and several hotel rewards programs.
Travel booking through the Chase page is available without a premium card, but it is not a very good value compared to transferring to a partner. It might actually be better to just get cash back and then buy a ticket. If you do not want to keep your card longer than one year, you can transfer your points to someone else in your household who has a premium card and then use them with a transfer partner.
When planning your trip, it is a good idea to figure out which airline has the best redemptions and see what is available before transferring your points. Once they have gone, there is no getting them back into your Chase account from an airline or hotel reward program. If you find a redemption you like, then transfer the points quickly and get that thing booked. Since many airline points expire, it is not a good idea to transfer them without having an idea when you will spend them. Chase and Bank of America points do not expire, which makes them great places to hoard points.
When I first attempted transferring points to United through Chase's website, the request seemed to go through fine, but I waited days without seeing them show up on the receiving end. After several days and phone calls I realized they had gone back to Chase. When I requested they be transferred over the phone, they showed up immediately and I was able to book my flights.
United seems to have the best redemption value for flying from this part of the world to the USA (40k plus $41 one way). Singapore Airlines seems to be pretty good as well, but the fees were a little bit higher and the flights I saw were wait list flights. Southwest and British airways seem to have some pretty good short haul redemptions from what I have read. The only other redemptions on travel I have done are with Bank of America's Travel card, which just gave me money back after I purchased tickets with the card so you get exactly 1 cent per point. Maybe I will be redeeming some Qantas points sometime soon.
Monday 23 October 2017
Getting into the points game
Over the past few years I have done a fair bit of travel and have been learning about using points to pay for travel. This is simply a way to share with my friends and family what I have learned.
The first rule is to sign up for frequent flyer programs before you buy your tickets (or at least before making the flight). If you don't sign up for an account first then it is probably too late to get points on your flight. You can also earn points in other ways which I will address later.
I use Google Flights, momondo.com and other sites to search for flights and then click on the link it provides to book directly with the airline (if cheapest), thus eliminating any booking fee's like you would get with popular sites like orbits, cheapoair, etc.
This is the easiest way to start earning points and getting the best deals on flights and requires no credit cards or financial risk. Just use your frequent flyer/reward account when you book the tickets.
Here are some links to Frequent Flyer programs:
United MileagePlus
American Airlines AAdvantage
Alaska Mileage Plan
Delta's SkyMiles
Just Google your favorite airline and they most likely have a rewards program.
The next level of reward travel requires you to have a credit card that earns points.
If you can not pay off your card every month and end up paying the high interest rates on credit cards then the rewards not be worth it. The interest and fees will exceed whatever rewards you earn.
That being said, you can rack up quite a few points without having to pay any interest or fees. You can get 90,000 points in sign up bonuses (or $900 cash back) with just three cards and only pay $95 in annual fees.
Chase credit cards are a good place to start. If you plan on getting multiple cards you will soon learn that they have a limit of 5 cards in a 24 month period. It doesn't matter if the cards are from Chase or not. They will automatically decline your application once you reach the 5 card limit.
With Chase you can set up automatic payments to pay off your balance each month. You also get up to 5% back in either cash or rewards points on certain cards.
You also usually earn a big bonus by signing up and spending a minimum amount in the first three months.
For chase I recommend starting with the following cards:
Chase Freedom - usually gives you $200 cash back bonus (20,000 points) when you spend $500 in the first 3 months, plus $25 for an additional card holder when they first use the card.
You earn 5% cash back on a quarterly category and 1% on everything else. There is no annual fee.
https://www.referyourchasecard.com/2f/1I2SBS697W
Chase Freedom Unlimited - gives you $200 cash back bonus (20,000 points) when you spend $500 in the first 3 months, plus $25 for an additional card holder when they first use the card.
You earn 1.5% cash back on all purchases. There is no annual fee.
Earn $200 cash back with any participating Chase Freedom credit card. I can be rewarded, learn more.
https://www.referyourchasecard.com/2f/VJE7TG5NDP
Chase Sapphire Preferred - Earn 60,000 bonus points with Chase Sapphire Preferred when you spend $4000 in the first 3 months and another 5,000 with a second card holder who uses the card at least once. You earn 2% on travel and dining, and 1% on everything else.
The usual annual fee of $95 may be waived the first year depending on the current offer, so you can just downgrade the card after getting and using or transferring your points if you can't justify the annual fee. More benefits of this card is no foreign transaction fees and it offers great travel insurance including lost baggage and car rental insurance and purchase protection of 120 days due to damage or theft. It also allows you to transfer your points to many Airlines and Hotels. You can transfer the points from the freedom cards to this card, which makes them much more valuable than cash back. Using Chase's website you can use the points to book travel and get 25% more value.
If you want to jump right into the advanced level you can get the Chase Sapphire Reserve card and enjoy airport lounges with complimentary Priority Pass, a $100 credit towards Global Entry or TSA pre-check (every 4 yrs) and lot's more. You will get 50% more value using Chase's website to book travel. The new annual fee has gone up from $450 to $550, but you get $300 in statement credit for travel and $60 credit towards Doordash for 2020 and 2021.
If you apply using my referral links (currently only the freedom cards) I will also get 10,000 reward points when you are approved for each one. You can then refer friends yourself and earn points, up to 50,000 points per year.
If you are interested in hotel's Chase has the IHG Rewards Club Premier Credit Card which has an all time high sign up bonus of 140,000 points. You pay an annual fee of $89 but you get an anniversary night of up to 40,000 points with this. Hotel rewards start at 5,000 but 10,000 to 20,000 is more common. You get $100 towards TSA pre-check or Global Entry every 4 years and the 4th reward night is free. It offers phone insurance if you pay your cell phone bill with it. Lots of value out of this card.
Bank of America also has a travel rewards card that I keep in my wallet. There is a 12 mo. introductory rate of 0% APR for 12 billing cycles. You get a $250 bonus credit when you meet the minimum spend of $1000 in the first 3 months. It offers 1.5% on all purchases. You get it in a statement credit toward travel purchases. Super simple to use and has no annual or foreign transaction fees. If you have a savings account with BOA you also get 10% more back. There is no referral program for this card, but here is the link below.
https://www.bankofamerica.com/credit-cards/products/bankamericard-travel-rewards-credit-card/
I will talk about how to use points or get cash back in my next post.
Mike
The first rule is to sign up for frequent flyer programs before you buy your tickets (or at least before making the flight). If you don't sign up for an account first then it is probably too late to get points on your flight. You can also earn points in other ways which I will address later.
I use Google Flights, momondo.com and other sites to search for flights and then click on the link it provides to book directly with the airline (if cheapest), thus eliminating any booking fee's like you would get with popular sites like orbits, cheapoair, etc.
This is the easiest way to start earning points and getting the best deals on flights and requires no credit cards or financial risk. Just use your frequent flyer/reward account when you book the tickets.
Here are some links to Frequent Flyer programs:
United MileagePlus
American Airlines AAdvantage
Alaska Mileage Plan
Delta's SkyMiles
Just Google your favorite airline and they most likely have a rewards program.
The next level of reward travel requires you to have a credit card that earns points.
If you can not pay off your card every month and end up paying the high interest rates on credit cards then the rewards not be worth it. The interest and fees will exceed whatever rewards you earn.
That being said, you can rack up quite a few points without having to pay any interest or fees. You can get 90,000 points in sign up bonuses (or $900 cash back) with just three cards and only pay $95 in annual fees.
Chase credit cards are a good place to start. If you plan on getting multiple cards you will soon learn that they have a limit of 5 cards in a 24 month period. It doesn't matter if the cards are from Chase or not. They will automatically decline your application once you reach the 5 card limit.
With Chase you can set up automatic payments to pay off your balance each month. You also get up to 5% back in either cash or rewards points on certain cards.
You also usually earn a big bonus by signing up and spending a minimum amount in the first three months.
For chase I recommend starting with the following cards:
Chase Freedom - usually gives you $200 cash back bonus (20,000 points) when you spend $500 in the first 3 months, plus $25 for an additional card holder when they first use the card.
You earn 5% cash back on a quarterly category and 1% on everything else. There is no annual fee.
https://www.referyourchasecard.com/2f/1I2SBS697W
Chase Freedom Unlimited - gives you $200 cash back bonus (20,000 points) when you spend $500 in the first 3 months, plus $25 for an additional card holder when they first use the card.
You earn 1.5% cash back on all purchases. There is no annual fee.
Earn $200 cash back with any participating Chase Freedom credit card. I can be rewarded, learn more.
https://www.referyourchasecard.com/2f/VJE7TG5NDP
Chase Sapphire Preferred - Earn 60,000 bonus points with Chase Sapphire Preferred when you spend $4000 in the first 3 months and another 5,000 with a second card holder who uses the card at least once. You earn 2% on travel and dining, and 1% on everything else.
The usual annual fee of $95 may be waived the first year depending on the current offer, so you can just downgrade the card after getting and using or transferring your points if you can't justify the annual fee. More benefits of this card is no foreign transaction fees and it offers great travel insurance including lost baggage and car rental insurance and purchase protection of 120 days due to damage or theft. It also allows you to transfer your points to many Airlines and Hotels. You can transfer the points from the freedom cards to this card, which makes them much more valuable than cash back. Using Chase's website you can use the points to book travel and get 25% more value.
If you want to jump right into the advanced level you can get the Chase Sapphire Reserve card and enjoy airport lounges with complimentary Priority Pass, a $100 credit towards Global Entry or TSA pre-check (every 4 yrs) and lot's more. You will get 50% more value using Chase's website to book travel. The new annual fee has gone up from $450 to $550, but you get $300 in statement credit for travel and $60 credit towards Doordash for 2020 and 2021.
If you apply using my referral links (currently only the freedom cards) I will also get 10,000 reward points when you are approved for each one. You can then refer friends yourself and earn points, up to 50,000 points per year.
If you are interested in hotel's Chase has the IHG Rewards Club Premier Credit Card which has an all time high sign up bonus of 140,000 points. You pay an annual fee of $89 but you get an anniversary night of up to 40,000 points with this. Hotel rewards start at 5,000 but 10,000 to 20,000 is more common. You get $100 towards TSA pre-check or Global Entry every 4 years and the 4th reward night is free. It offers phone insurance if you pay your cell phone bill with it. Lots of value out of this card.
Bank of America also has a travel rewards card that I keep in my wallet. There is a 12 mo. introductory rate of 0% APR for 12 billing cycles. You get a $250 bonus credit when you meet the minimum spend of $1000 in the first 3 months. It offers 1.5% on all purchases. You get it in a statement credit toward travel purchases. Super simple to use and has no annual or foreign transaction fees. If you have a savings account with BOA you also get 10% more back. There is no referral program for this card, but here is the link below.
https://www.bankofamerica.com/credit-cards/products/bankamericard-travel-rewards-credit-card/
I will talk about how to use points or get cash back in my next post.
Mike
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)