hi everyone! (this is my first post to this group, so hi!)

i'm going to be travelling to australia for an extended stay (i'm going to medical school at the university of sydney) and i'm trying to get 100,000 points (either AC or AA) to fly business class from toronto-sydney round trip.

i have at my disposal: 25,000CAD for the next two months, plus a 30,000CAD credit line (i get about 5%p.a. interest). is there any way to "shuffle" this money about in such as way as to accumulate enough points? (i.e., use CIBC Aerogold visa or something?)

kind regards
firefly

You could get an American Airlines Royal Bank Visa. (I think they are still offering double miles for any AA purchase (duty free on-board, tickets, etc) and there is a 5,000 mile sign up bonus.

Beware the 'Australian kiss'...



------------------
I'd give my right arm to be ambidextrous

Legally, there are no way which you can just turn cash into 100K points in one shot. (Unless you put 100K cash into your Aerogold Visa and then go buy a house or something) However, there are always people out there who are willing to sell you their points.

If you are really willing to spend cash for J class, then you can either buy a full fare J (which will cost you $10K CAD on AC) or find some top tier member who is travelling around that time so they can upgrade you as their companion.

[This message has been edited by Empress (edited 12-04-2001).]

Here is my advice... evil grin.

Since you will be out of country for at least 4 years (med school), and possibly longer if you stay for internship. Why not use up your line of credit? Then either declare bankruptcy or let the accounts close as charge-off. You will have credit ruined but...

The bad records will stay in your credit file for 6 years. They will have to be removed according to current laws after this period. By the time you are back, you start record-clean as you never had any debt before.

Another way is to marry someone in Australia (if you are not married already). Then get the citizenship, make a name change. When you come back, apply for a new S.I.N. You are a new person again.

The first one is unethical but legal. The second one is neither.

Disclaimer: Above information is based on existing public information such as "creditnet.com". I am not suggesting/recommending/soliciting/encouraging any illegal activities. These are listed as loopholes in current system for educational purpose only. You are responsible for your action/decision.

Go thru all that just for a J class ticket? Come on...

He's a young kid and he's got a long career to go so I don't think it's wise to screw around with his credit just because he wanted to fly J class!!

Med student? Easy!!!

1) Get a mileage earning credit card (e.g. CIBC Aerogold for AC points or Royal Bank AAdvantage Gold Visa for AA miles).

2) Pay your tuition on credit card.

Voil�! Hee hee...

FewMiles..

That USED to work really well. However many universities (including where I am currently in grad school) now deduct financial aid electronically (if on aid). In the past, one could simply charge the entirety of tuition and pay off your credit card bill with your financial aid check.

Of course, my undergrad school didnt take credit cards and I am now screwed by the new electronic fin-aid system in grad school, doh! At least I can earn the United College Plus 10,000 graduation bonus twice!


[This message has been edited by paullevi (edited 12-04-2001).]

Take a trip to the US, buy a ton of Kellogs products, take the AA miles from the boxes, and donate the stuff to charity...

If you didn't actually want to spend the money, then I'm afraid you're out of luck. There's no way you can simply shuffle money around in less than 2 months to get 100k miles.

Bite the bullet and see if you can get your hands on some VIPOW's from AA to upgrade a discount coach fare.

The first option is known as "fraud" and would require lying in Federal bankruptcy court. Yes, declaring bankruptcy is a legal right... but plotting ahead of time to do it? Bad, bad.

Plus, if he/she ever wants to practice medicine in the US, "Have you ever declared bankruptcy?" is a frequent question asked by both physician recruiters and state licensing boards.

My school quitely opened up the paying of tuition last year and a huge shift of payments came via cards for this very reason. Needless to say that they don't sit on the mountain of money by being stupid and shut that down entirely. You might consider trading with someone for the award.

hi guys!

wow - i went out for dinner with my girlfriend and all these responses! *smile* and here i was afraid i was going to get flamed!

ok..my responses/comments/questions

yyz-den: i've been warned about the australian kiss.

empress: yeah...when i phoned around, 10K seemed to be the going price. so, i'm going to advertise. anyone who is leaving for SYD via YYZ the week of Feb 4 and has upgrade status, would you please take pity on my poor soul? i would be more than happy to dance a jig in the aisle, tell you all about your body, talk philosophy or just let you sleep!

moremiles: ok, that was scary i'd definately be responsible for my actions. now, since my parents are cosigners for my line of credit, methinks they'd get mighty upset if i delcared bankruptcy. but, you've got the devilsh mind. you should work for the government! (or maybe against it!)

empress: thanks again for the defence

FewMiles and Paullevi: my undergraduate and graduate university (the university of toronto) didn't take credit cards. but thank the good lord the university of sydney does! the only problem with this is that on either royal bank aadvantage visa or cibc aerogold, you pay 1.8% extra because the transation is in foreign currency. (i checked with bank of montreal, my BMO M/C airmiles card doesn't charge that 1.8% surtax. but it would take me 10 years of tuition to get 1 free flight! [read: airmiles stinks])

Pacha: this idea i seriously like. i read somewhere that a guy bought like $3,000 worth of kelloggs eggos and got 1.25 million miles (i think i might have read it on FT...i dunno) thereby ensuring some form of lifetime membership in a FF program. does anyone have experience in this? i'd be willing to pay whatever i'm paying in airline tickets to get the miles and then donate the food to charity!

Plato90s: i hate to sound like a newbie (but i am)...what's a VIPOW?

techgirl: yup. bankruptcy=bad

mktozd: trade? hrm..if only i had something to trade....


MANY THANKS TO ALL OF YOU!
i look forward to further discussions
(esp. regarding the kelloggs stuff)

cheers
firefly

to respond to myself.

i went hunting and i've found myself info on the kelloggs promo.

http://businesstravel.about.com/libr...loggs++coupons

so, i'm going to go to bed (it being 4am and all..) to dream of eggo waffles. but before i go...can someone answer me this:

how can i buy mass quantities of anything kelloggs?

cheers
firefly

LOL, fireflyreaction!

Good luck with your endeavours. I wish you many miles, upgrades, good grades and Kellog's!

Have you tried signing up for a Goldpoints account through Radisson yet. make sure you sign up through www.radisson.com Once you hace your goldpoints account, go to www.goldpoints.com and order $1000 worth of magazines. This will give 450,000 goldpoints at the current promotion. These points can be redeemed at a 4-1 ratio for frequent flier miles ONLY if you signed up through Radisson. This should net you over 112,000 miles. These are the rules for US, I am not sure if the same holds true for people outside the US