I love credit cards so much! v2.0 (see first page for add'l details)

[elgerber]

This has been a brutal winter and it just keeps going. We literally have 2 snow piles double my height in our culdesac and when it snows tomorrow I have no idea where they’re gonna put the new snow. There’s only so many places to put it around the circle.

I have to call the city tomorrow and voice my thoughts on their plows and our yards. They drove 8 feet into our neighbors yard to push the snow up when they wiped out the cable utility box. They would have done the same to ours but I think they panicked and left after that. The cable company now has an orange cone where the box should be and they duct taped the destroyed box to the street light about 7 feet in the air LOL.

 

[magickingdomprincess]

I signed up for Twitter for the Chase protest. It's fun to feel like we're at least trying to do something. Thanks for starting this @SouthFayetteFan!

 

[Haley R]

I have to call the city tomorrow and voice my thoughts on their plows and our yards. They drove 8 feet into our neighbors yard to push the snow up when they wiped out the cable utility box. They would have done the same to ours but I think they panicked and left after that. The cable company now has an orange cone where the box should be and they duct taped the destroyed box to the street light about 7 feet in the air LOL.

Omg! That’s ridiculous! We have a fire hydrant hidden under one of our giant snow piles.

 

[amalone1013]

I did it! Got a motherlode junior backpack. I'm super excited. I was able to use one of the Visa GCs too. Now I'm debating using another GC for the second backpack since that money is like long lost from the budget (I think they're from a Safeway deal during a Discover grocery quarter last year)

 

[CallieMar]

I see what you mean. With variable miles like UR or MR that makes perfect sense.

Ok, here are some numbers for you which are food for thought. The CSR $300 travel credit is triggered by any number of things including tolls. I happen to trigger that credit in tolls alone fairly quickly. Therefore, I look at it this way. I'm spending $300 in travel regardless because of the tolls. I need points that transfer to hotels or airlines but can also be used as cash through the portal. So it is a CSR or CSP. The difference between the two in AFs is $55 since I am spending over $300 in travel (tolls) no matter what I do. Let's say I want to purchase $1000 worth of travel through the UR portal. With the CSR it will cost me 66,666 UR points. With a CSP it will cost me 80,000. That is a 13,333 difference. Keeping the CSP over the CSR now just cost me $200 in buying power because I wanted to save $55. I also had to spend a lot more just to earn those points when my earning is 2x over 3x. Hope that helps.

Granted, there are cards, if you are willing to juggle a little that can help you earn more UR points at a faster rate. Hope that helps

Thank you! This really helps a lot. I'm wondering if I were to apply for the CSR soon if I'd get the card before our Europe trip which is in a little less than a month (I already have an old regular Chase Disney Visa card that doesn't get used much anymore so have a relationship with them). I'd easily hit the 4k spend regardless so it doesn't matter if I hold off until we get back, other than timing of getting the reward points (which will eventually be transferred for miles). And yes , down the line I'd be looking at applying for Chase Freedom and Freedom Unlimited, since I'm already used to switching between cards for max cash back.

Looking towards the future (since this trip is mostly paid for already), how robust is the UR portal? Are there additional rewards for using the UR portal if I'm paying with cash instead of points or do I just get 3x for using the CSR to pay?

The great thing about making a conscious decision to travel more, is I'm constantly researching awesome places! Our trip next month is pretty much planned and we just need to get on the plane! So now I get to do the leg work on the next place we want to go

 

[gottalovepluto]

I thought i was gonna get all caught up here today. Fail. What is it they say? Man makes plans and God laughs? Sounds accurate! Anyway, cross posting this from gift card deals here since I got it from DoC and it's practically a free $39 to MyPoints users: https://www.doctorofcredit.com/dall...t-4000-swagbucks-6000-mypoints-both-worth-40/ it's $1.08 for a digital newspaper, my 6000 MyPoints are already pending, just gotta make sure to cancel before it renews.

To anyone looking to top off on airline miles I also got in on the $12/12 weeks economist subscription DoC posted about to score 1400 AS miles as increased bonuses seem to be back (except UA, I started to do UA but on the UA site it's only 1000 miles) https://www.doctorofcredit.com/the-economist-sign-up-for-1-twelve-weeks-get-up-to-1500-miles/​

 

[elgerber]

I did it! Got a motherlode junior backpack. I'm super excited. I was able to use one of the Visa GCs too. Now I'm debating using another GC for the second backpack since that money is like long lost from the budget (I think they're from a Safeway deal during a Discover grocery quarter last year)

My dd has that bag, traveled the UK with it.

 

[SouthFayetteFan]

Thank you! This really helps a lot. I'm wondering if I were to apply for the CSR soon if I'd get the card before our Europe trip which is in a little less than a month (I already have an old regular Chase Disney Visa card that doesn't get used much anymore so have a relationship with them). I'd easily hit the 4k spend regardless so it doesn't matter if I hold off until we get back, other than timing of getting the reward points (which will eventually be transferred for miles). And yes , down the line I'd be looking at applying for Chase Freedom and Freedom Unlimited, since I'm already used to switching between cards for max cash back.

Looking towards the future (since this trip is mostly paid for already), how robust is the UR portal? Are there additional rewards for using the UR portal if I'm paying with cash instead of points or do I just get 3x for using the CSR to pay?

The great thing about making a conscious decision to travel more, is I'm constantly researching awesome places! Our trip next month is pretty much planned and we just need to get on the plane! So now I get to do the leg work on the next place we want to go

If you can hit an $8k min spend in 3 months you could be a candidate for a modified double dip (where you get both CSR and CSP one day apart). Would that strategy interest you? It’s an advanced strategy that we don’t always discuss with newer folks because it can sound a little crazy lol.

 

[wanderlust7]

I did manage to get the NCL on 1 of my 4 cards! After I used all my UR points through Chase travel so all payments go through Chase

But does anyone have experience with using it for other stuff? It says shore excursions don't count but is it really true? And is there a difference if I book the excursion through the web vs the phone maybe? I can charge our gratuities but that won't even be half so I'd need some excursions or maybe spa passes to get it over the $500 mark.

I bought $500 OBC on the NCL website and got the offer used e-mail. Waiting to see if it credits. Cruise Critic posts mention buying OBC, but not prepaying gratuities, so I don't know if that would work. But the OBC can apply towards gratuities on your onboard account. I was thinking the OBC can just apply to the shore excursions as well. But just tried to book one and it requires prepayment (darn!). It doesn't even apply our $50 shore excursion credit.

don't think you need to cash out at casino. my unused balance was credited back to my credit card, but check at guest services before last day.
this was a couple of years ago though.

Thanks! I would want to make sure that it doesn't go back to the credit card that was used to purchase the OBC. I think that would risk claw back of the credit. Hopefully it can just go back on the CC attached to the onboard account.

 

[mmmears]

Thank you! This really helps a lot. I'm wondering if I were to apply for the CSR soon if I'd get the card before our Europe trip which is in a little less than a month (I already have an old regular Chase Disney Visa card that doesn't get used much anymore so have a relationship with them). I'd easily hit the 4k spend regardless so it doesn't matter if I hold off until we get back, other than timing of getting the reward points (which will eventually be transferred for miles). And yes , down the line I'd be looking at applying for Chase Freedom and Freedom Unlimited, since I'm already used to switching between cards for max cash back.

Looking towards the future (since this trip is mostly paid for already), how robust is the UR portal? Are there additional rewards for using the UR portal if I'm paying with cash instead of points or do I just get 3x for using the CSR to pay?

The great thing about making a conscious decision to travel more, is I'm constantly researching awesome places! Our trip next month is pretty much planned and we just need to get on the plane! So now I get to do the leg work on the next place we want to go

We did the CSP/CSR double dip (now you need to do a modified double dip per @SouthFayetteFan's post above). DH applied for both cards about a month before we left for Europe. The CSR comes very quickly (2-3 days) and the CSP took about a week to arrive, but both were here long before we left. We put some spend on them on our trip so it was really easy to meet the MSRs on both. URs are pretty useful since you can use them for hotel stays booking through the portal or by moving the points into a hotel account (like Hyatt). Honestly we have no trouble finding a way to use them. AMEX MRs are what we use mostly for overseas flights. Hope this helps.

 

[CallieMar]

If you can hit an $8k min spend in 3 months you could be a candidate for a modified double dip (where you get both CSR and CSP one day apart). Would that strategy interest you? It’s an advanced strategy that we don’t always discuss with newer folks because it can sound a little crazy lol.

I'm willing to hear it out! I think I could do 8k in 3 months. I just realized that the place we do a lot of our grocery shopping (which only takes debit card) sells store gift cards that can be reloaded online using a credit card. D'oh! We've been shopping there for a couple of years already.

 

[SouthFayetteFan]

I'm willing to hear it out! I think I could do 8k in 3 months. I just realized that the place we do a lot of our grocery shopping (which only takes debit card) sells store gift cards that can be reloaded online using a credit card. D'oh! We've been shopping there for a couple of years already.

So you can read our comments on it here: https://www.reddit.com/r/DISchurners/comments/9uoxlv/the_modified_double_dip/

Let us know what questions you might have then. Folks here have limited knowledge of this because I don't know that anybody here has attempted it. It's just such a specific strategy and a lot of us already have a CSR/CSP and weren't in the position to try.

 

[SouthFayetteFan]

I just sent a whole batch of tweets, tagged MillionMileSecrets, The Points Guy, and all the others you guys recommended.

I also sent a DM to Expedia and got them to confirm that they are not blocking Disney Hotels (that really means nothing* but made for a nice picture to send Chase)...Check this out: https://twitter.com/SouthFayetteFan/status/1097719680037470209

*I say that because it's some rando running the twitter account, not necessarily somebody qualified to make that statement...but I'll use it to my advantage

 

[miztressuz]

I bought $500 OBC on the NCL website and got the offer used e-mail. Waiting to see if it credits. Cruise Critic posts mention buying OBC, but not prepaying gratuities, so I don't know if that would work. But the OBC can apply towards gratuities on your onboard account. I was thinking the OBC can just apply to the shore excursions as well. But just tried to book one and it requires prepayment (darn!). It doesn't even apply our $50 shore excursion credit.

Yeah, all the excursions are paid for when booked. Apparently most cruise lines follow this method except Disney and Princess, and it's been a while since we did princess so they could have changed. Guess what cruise lines we've only been on? Rude awakening when we booked our first NCL

For the shore excursion credit you can use it when you call in or onboard. I thought they finally set it so you can book with it on the website but I haven't gone far enough to check yet. So I could put OBC on plus the amount of gratuities but we don't spend much on board outside the excursions and I think there's a discount on the spa pass if you buy it in advance. Planned to put it all on the NCL card to top off the points for the little OBC we'll use onboard. Decisions.

 

[SouthFayetteFan]

So in my excitement to lead a twitter rally today...I forgot to share some good news.

I reported the other day about trying to do a 3night stay (Wed-Fri) at the Bethany Beach Residence Inn in August but the partial ocean view room category was sold out on our middle night (Thurs). I figured I’d call and at least ask some questions...

I started with the Marriott Platinum Elite exclusive line (which was an utter waste LOL!).

Then I called the actual property. The person who answered the phone said my odds of an upgrade were slim that time of year but to leave a message for the head of group bookings at the hotel and she’d call me back when she got in to discuss. Much to my surprise she actually did call back. I explained the situation and while she couldn’t upgrade me to full oceanview, she did override my reservation for 3 nights to the partial ocean view category. She said they had only a couple rooms left in that category and that’s why their system wasn’t showing availability. It was just awesome customer service! So we are all set for our long weekend trip to Bethany Beach and Philly in August

 

[CallieMar]

So you can read our comments on it here: https://www.reddit.com/r/DISchurners/comments/9uoxlv/the_modified_double_dip/

Let us know what questions you might have then. Folks here have limited knowledge of this because I don't know that anybody here has attempted it. It's just such a specific strategy and a lot of us already have a CSR/CSP and weren't in the position to try.

Ok, this seems fairly straightforward actually. Sounds like I should apply for the CSR first since that's the one I'd want to keep if anything happens. I'll probably apply tomorrow night since today's a holiday.

Thanks!

 

[CaliforniaGirl09]

Catching up before checking out of SSR, but thought I’d share our travel hacking success for this weekend. We decided to go see the Hamilton exhibit in Chicago and the show too while we are at it.

Great minds! I totally thought of you yesterday. We are in London for the week enjoying our new timeshare (LOVE!!), and I decided to check Ticketmaster for returned Hamilton tickets. I tried the lottery on our last trip in November and was shut out. Anyway, like magic, three tickets appeared in the stalls with an aisle in front of us, which is perfect for 6'5 DH and DS special needs. So we're going to the matinee performance on Thursday. It wasn't cheap, LOL, but can't wait. It will be fun to compare to the NY production, which we saw a couple years ago with some of the original cast.

 

[calypso726]

Thank you! This really helps a lot. I'm wondering if I were to apply for the CSR soon if I'd get the card before our Europe trip which is in a little less than a month (I already have an old regular Chase Disney Visa card that doesn't get used much anymore so have a relationship with them). I'd easily hit the 4k spend regardless so it doesn't matter if I hold off until we get back, other than timing of getting the reward points (which will eventually be transferred for miles). And yes , down the line I'd be looking at applying for Chase Freedom and Freedom Unlimited, since I'm already used to switching between cards for max cash back.

Looking towards the future (since this trip is mostly paid for already), how robust is the UR portal? Are there additional rewards for using the UR portal if I'm paying with cash instead of points or do I just get 3x for using the CSR to pay?

The great thing about making a conscious decision to travel more, is I'm constantly researching awesome places! Our trip next month is pretty much planned and we just need to get on the plane! So now I get to do the leg work on the next place we want to go

I would definitely go for the modified DD. Both CSR and CSP have no foreign transaction fees. My top of the wallet card out for spending of the country is the CSR. I will suggest one other card to add to your future UR earning team of cards and that is the CIC via a CIP first for the better bonus and then downgrade to CIC after a year which has no fee but better earning potential. The CIC earns 5x at office supply stores. Office supply stores sell gift cards to other stores, restaurants and gas stations. Much of our vacation time is dedicated to Disney parks, cruise line, Adventures by Disney etc. Therefore, we purchase a lot of Disney gift cards at office supply stores to earn 5x on our Disney vacations. Besides earning 5x for Disney, we make sure to get 5x for Amazon, Whole Foods, Macy's by getting gift cards at office supply stores.

Researching awesome places to visit is lots of fun. The best part about travel hacking with points and miles is nothing seems out of reach.

Great minds! I totally thought of you yesterday. We are in London for the week enjoying our new timeshare (LOVE!!), and I decided to check Ticketmaster for returned Hamilton tickets. I tried the lottery on our last trip in November and was shut out. Anyway, like magic, three tickets appeared in the stalls with an aisle in front of us, which is perfect for 6'5 DH and DS special needs. So we're going to the matinee performance on Thursday. It wasn't cheap, LOL, but can't wait. It will be fun to compare to the NY production, which we saw a couple years ago with some of the original cast.

Nice!!! The London Hamilton show is on my wish list too. We finally got face value tix for the NY show later this summer. Comparing productions and casts has been fun. While we never got to see the original cast in person, I have seen a bootleg filming of the show with the original cast. Not the same, but without a time machine, the closest I'll get. Do let me know what you think of the London production!

 

[striker1064]

Got an email this morning from Amex that I earned a free Hilton weekend night from the Aspire that I opened 12/19/18!

The email said it would post to my Hilton account in 8-14 weeks... Geez Amex, we are really stretching that one out, huh?

 

[apollodi]

Hi everyone! I posted a while back with questions about CC apps and a possible move this summer. Well, unfortunately the move is not going to happen after all, which is disappointing.

But the silver lining is, I can apply for CCs again. Applied for the CIP last night using DH's referral and approved this morning!