Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan - Ditching the AS/BOA Visa Signature? If so, which cards are you looking into?

Well, needless to say I am pretty upset with the two latest announcements. Not really sure who to blame, AS or BOA, but what I am sure of is that I am ready to move on from this card.

This is the only CC I've ever had since I turned 18. I'm 25 now and based in ANC. What card should I look into to replace the Signature?

Anyone else planning on ditching their card?

One of my 3 is toast upon renewal. A second of the 3 may also be toast. I'll probably keep one.

Anyone have experience with the Citi Thank you Preferred World Elite?

It would be nice to switch to a card where I can earn EQM's with reward tickets, since they technically aren't reward tickets from the point of view of the airline.

Anyone have experience with the Citi Thank you Preferred World Elite?

It would be nice to switch to a card where I can earn EQM's with reward tickets, since they technically aren't reward tickets from the point of view of the airline.

Nope, but I'm interested in hearing the discussion. One of my 3 cards (the one I use for Int'l business expenses) is now going to be 100% changed to the Priority Club Visa, where I pay no Forex fees, and keep Platinum PC status with the card. Without the companion F ticket, I have absolutely no reason to keep the card.

(Maybe you would be so kind as to ask a mod for a topic change by adding "if so, where are you going?" to the topic.)

Depending on what type of spending you do, you might want to look at a cash back card...

I've had nothing but great experiences with Amex. I have an (old) AS visa as a backup if places don't take Amex. I'm looking at switching that Visa to the WN visa (doesn't do you folks up north much good with WN though). Their companion pass is a very, very good benefit. My girlfriend can fly with me anywhere for $5 o/w max. As long as there are seats and I'm on the plane, she can come.

Anyone have experience with the Citi Thank you Preferred World Elite?

It would be nice to switch to a card where I can earn EQM's with reward tickets, since they technically aren't reward tickets from the point of view of the airline.

I have the citi Thank you Premier, and mentioned it as an option to consider in one of the other threads. I don't think the preferred would be a very good fit.

I believe the preferred is lacking all of the main benefits of the Premier including 15% flight discount, limited companion certificate, and ability to redeem points towards air travel at a 1.33 cents per point value.

Note further details here (http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/18878776-post62.html) and here (http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/18886898-post76.html) in the Chip Chip Chip, CLUNK - No More 1000 mile CC booking bonus eff 1 AUG 12 Thread (http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/alaska-airlines-mileage-plan/1363024-chip-chip-chip-clunk-no-more-1000-mile-cc-booking-bonus-eff-1-aug-12-a.html)

What, specifically are you looking to do with your credit card:

1 - earn AS miles specifically?
2 - Earn miles/travel rewards for daily spend?
3 - Earn miles/travel rewards/cashback specifically for airline purchases?

The following cards are reasonable alternatives, from what I know/have read elsewhere:

SPG AMEX will do well for 1&2 above, but not for 3; earning 1.25 miles/$ spent everywhere when transferred into various Airline programs at a 20K points - 25K mile ratio; also good value for SPG cash and points stays. (has forex fee)

Chase Sapphire preferred does ok for 2&3 above with some 2x points categories including air travel, I believe. Points can be transferred to various airline/hotel partners (but not AS) at a 1:1 ratio, I believe. Points can be redeemed directly towards travel as well at a 1.25 cents/point ratio. (no forex fee)

Citi Thank You premier, IMO, does the best for a hybrid card at meeting 2&3 above when combining the initially discounted travel, the lower 48 companion cert, matching miles flown (on itins booked with the card) with TY points, and redeeming TY points at 1.33 cents/point towards air travel...all the while earning EQM's on your reward travel. Limited in that points cannot be transferred to Hotel/Airline points when compared to Chase above. Note their program is the most complicated, but one can basically net 2.66% on all purchases (combining purchase points with flight points) if redeemed towards air travel IN ADDITION TO the up front savings on airfare at booking (with some limitations). (no forex fee)

Cap One venture, Travelocity Amex, and Priceline Visa are well worth looking into. I do not know these cards in detail, but believe Cap One venture and Travelocity Amex essentially net 2% back on all purchases if redeemed towards travel; Priceline Visa earns 2% cashback on all purchases, and slightly more if redeemed towards Name your own price hotels.

Amex Plat and Gold are also worth looking at, but again I do not know these programs well. I believe 3 points/$ spent on airfare, which can be transferred into various programs (unsure if AS is included or not). 1 point/$ spent everywhere and some 2 point categories as well, I believe. Hefty annual fees, but additional travel perks such as lounge access and airline incidental reimbursement.

PenFed Amex is supposed to also be good for someone booking a lot of air travel, but I do not know this card at all.

Amex Plat and Gold are also worth looking at, but again I do not know these programs well. I believe 3 points/$ spent on airfare, which can be transferred into various programs (unsure if AS is included or not). 1 point/$ spent everywhere and some 2 point categories as well, I believe. Hefty annual fees, but additional travel perks such as lounge access and airline incidental reimbursement.

Unfortunately, there's no way to transfer from AXMR to AS (if there is, it would be at an abysmal exchange rate).

I am seriously considering the Citi Thank You Prestige Card

https://creditcards.citi.com/credit-cards/citi-thankyou-prestige-card/

There is a $500 fee, but the benefits seem worth it. On top of automatic HHonors Gold status, you get a complimentary international or domestic companion ticket each year. Further, another benefit reads, "save 15% on air travel when you book through our travel benefits provider Spirit Incentives."

I do have a few questions however. If I am able to use the international companion ticket on DE in C class, then I am 100% sold on the card. The $500 is not an issue because it is a very small % of annual spending. Plus, unlike the Premier card, it doesn't seem to be restricted to the Lower 48 states for the companion ticket.

I've heard good things from the Amex SPG card. I like that I can transfer miles to mileage plan.

Does anyone know of or if any USA credit cards have a smart chip? It would make some of my international travel more convenient.

I would highly recommend the Chase Sapphire Preferred card.

Anyone else planning on ditching their card?

Yes. Without the FC companion benefit it's not worth keeping permanently. I just got the card last year and was planning on keeping it until I found out that the main benefit I got it for will be cut. It's too bad for Alaska. I used other airlines before I got the AS visa card and have booked a couple of upcoming trips on Alaska and could have booked more but not now. I'll default to other airlines again.

Goodbye Alaska, it's not me, it's you.

I am seriously considering the Citi Thank You Prestige Card

https://creditcards.citi.com/credit-cards/citi-thankyou-prestige-card/

There is a $500 fee, but the benefits seem worth it. On top of automatic HHonors Gold status, you get a complimentary international or domestic companion ticket each year. Further, another benefit reads, "save 15% on air travel when you book through our travel benefits provider Spirit Incentives."

I do have a few questions however. If I am able to use the international companion ticket on DE in C class, then I am 100% sold on the card. The $500 is not an issue because it is a very small % of annual spending. Plus, unlike the Premier card, it doesn't seem to be restricted to the Lower 48 states for the companion ticket.

This website (http://www.drcreditcard.net/citi-thankyou-prestige.html) explains the Prestige in relative detail. You are correct that the Prestige Companion cert doesn't exclude Alaska, which is a nice benefit. I am not sure of the other limitations. When referencing that website for the Prestige and other cards, I found the last 2 sections - "the math" and "the conclusion" to be particularly helpful in guiding decisions.

Note, the main difference between the Premier and Prestige is the extent of the companion certificate (international for Prestige, lower 48 for Premier), as well as the airline incidental fee reimbursement. If you are certain to use the companion certificate and the airline incidentals program, it may be worth the hefty $375 markup on the annual fee. IMO (and many others I know), Hilton Gold is not a particularly valuable status.

I've heard good things from the Amex SPG card. I like that I can transfer miles to mileage plan.

Does anyone know of or if any USA credit cards have a smart chip? It would make some of my international travel more convenient.

I was able to get an EMV chip for my Citi ThankYou Premier, but it did take some doing (i.e. several citi agents who had no idea what I was talking about, and QUITE a runaround). This thread (http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/credit-card-programs/1304271-usa-emv-cards-available-today-chip-pin-chip-signature.html) and the referenced google document may be helpful to you.

The AS Visa was my first credit card about four years ago, but I ditched it in favor of the SPG Amex a while back. Just recently signed up again trying to get the 30k bonus earlier this year but they only gave me a Plat card (despite having much better cards with other banks) so I only got a handful of miles and will definitely not be keeping it around for more than a year.

I'm mostly playing the signup bonus game these days, but my default cards are the Chase Sapphire Preferred (for travel and int'l expenses), Citi Forward (for restaurants/Amazon) and the SPG Amex (for everything else)

I would suggest that everyone look to the MilesBuzz! forum for good discussions about credit card sign-up bonuses.

During the last 1.5 years, I signed up for the British Airways Chase Visa (100K bonus), AA Citi Visa (75K bonus x 2 for personal/business), Capital One Visa ($1,100 in travel credits). I also got my wife involved and she got the same bonuses.

I also own the Hyatt Chase Visa, SPG Amex and Hilton Amex. I don't care about the annual fees or my credit score. I am in the minority in that regard. So many people moan and groan about $75 annual fees. To me, they are just a small drop in the big travel bucket.

Last year, I used the British Airways Visa as my primary card and Hilton Amex as a back up. The British Airways Avios points are very flexible with partners and there is no forex charges. The card also made me feel like an international man of mystery. :) This year I am trying to focus on building up SPG Amex points and have the recently acquired Hyatt Visa as a back up.

Capital One Visa and Hyatt Visa also don't have forex charges. If you use Amex as a primary card, you will need a Visa back up. If you use Visa, no back up required.

Lots of folks seem to like Chase Sapphire and Citi Thank You, but I don't know anything about them. There are lots of choices for many needs. If you find a good sign up bonus, that might clinch the deal.

Well, needless to say I am pretty upset with the two latest announcements. Not really sure who to blame, AS or BOA, but what I am sure of is that I am ready to move on from this card.

This is the only CC I've ever had since I turned 18. I'm 25 now and based in ANC. What card should I look into to replace the Signature?

Anyone else planning on ditching their card?

1) Since age of oldest account is a credit factor, I'd find a nice low rate, no annual fee account that you keep "forever" to get a stable oldest account. Then choose a new rewards card, which you may churn or change with minimal impact to your credit score.

2) I'd do thorough research on an offer fulfilled by Spirit. I've found them to be worthless.

More and more of my spending continues to be moved onto the Chase Sapphire Preferred card. While it seems like every other card out there has been cutting benefits, the Sapphire keeps adding to its list.

Unfortunately, there's no way to transfer from AXMR to AS (if there is, it would be at an abysmal exchange rate).

Transfer to BA (there are regular bonuses offered, too). The Avios distance-based chart is really good for AS's network. ;)

Case in point: Hawaii r/t from the West Coast is 25K in Y...

The Hilton Honors American Express is the best card.

I largely gave up on airline tickets and instead go for hotel room awards. There are no blackout days and I get all sorts of bonuses with Hilton all the time. I used to have BOTH the Amex and Alaska card, but ditched it last year after the constant stream of compromises. Now I use the Amex exclusively.

In the rare event someone doesn't take Amex - there are still some you can also get the Honors Citibank Visa as well.

Both cards are free, but you get better points with the Amex version.

1) Since age of oldest account is a credit factor, I'd find a nice low rate, no annual fee account that you keep "forever" to get a stable oldest account. Then choose a new rewards card, which you may churn or change with minimal impact to your credit score.

2) I'd do thorough research on an offer fulfilled by Spirit. I've found them to be worthless.

I'll offer my experience on Spirit incentives. I needed to book a one way ANC - WAS. AS prices were ridiculously expensive for the dates I needed, but AA had a good ticket with an indirect routing (attractive to me - extra 1000 EQM's or so). Published price on AA.com/Kayak/etc was $300. I purchased the same ticket through Spirit Incentives for $260. Saved $40 on a ticket I would certainly have otherwise purchased on aa.com.

That is the only ticket purchase I've made since getting the card; but my n=1 saved me $40...33% of the TY premier annual fee.

I have checked several other times, with pleasing results - i.e. just yesterday I was considering purchasing a r/t JFK - IST. DL sells for $695 on their website, Spirit Incentives sells it for $636.

Limitations to Spirit Incentives:
#1 - it will only show you itineraries with the lowest base fare available on your dates of travel. If US Air has availability for $10 less than everyone else you want to book with, it will only show you US Air, and no one else...
#2 -you have to be traveling; you can book the discounted fares for others on your same itin, but you cannot book the discounted fares for friends and family if you are not traveling with them.
#3 - you can only book one way, round trip and single open jaw itineraries (i.e. A-B//C-A). You cannot book itineraries with more than 2 legs, or itineraries that return to a different city besides the origin (i.e. you cannot book A-B//B-C)
#4 - very limited/no ability to manipulate routings for mileage running, etc.

My conclusion is that the discounts via Spirit Incentives are indeed valuable, especially when used on non-complex itineraries. For more complex itins that you cannot take advantage of the spirit incentives discounts, you will still earn the flight points if booked using a TY card.

Well, needless to say I am pretty upset with the two latest announcements. . . .
I'm based in ANC. . . What card should I look into to replace the Signature?



Seems like Chase and Citi are offering the best cards right now. Kind of a drag as I don't think there's a Chase or Citi bank in Anc (not imperative, but can be useful). For some reason BA seems to be napping, in terms of their credit card offers.

I'm sure you must know, but there's several web sites that compare the different cards out there, including a few web sites that have been referenced frequently on FT. And of course FT even has their own forums on credit cards (scroll down on the page), which somehow i didn't even realize until not too long ago.

Thanks Jlove, I'll look into those forums as well. A physical bank for my credit card isn't imperative for me. I'll look into the comparisons as well, but I trust the people in the Alaska Airlines forum to point me in the right direction. Many cards aren't AK friendly, for example the Citi ThankYou premier which has the Lower 48 companion ticket as an incentive. I am sold on the Citi ThankYou Prestige as long as I can verify that the third party, points-booking company isn't too much of a pain to work with, and the international companion fare can be used in "C" class on DE from ANC to FRA. I am not too confident about that, but we will see.

Kind of a drag as I don't think there's a Chase or Citi bank in Anc (not imperative, but can be useful).

There isn't a BofA anywhere in Alaska, either. We've gotten used to being ignored by big corporations. (Sometimes that's a good thing. :p)

The Hilton Honors American Express is the best card.

I largely gave up on airline tickets and instead go for hotel room awards. There are no blackout days and I get all sorts of bonuses with Hilton all the time. I used to have BOTH the Amex and Alaska card, but ditched it last year after the constant stream of compromises. Now I use the Amex exclusively.

In the rare event someone doesn't take Amex - there are still some you can also get the Honors Citibank Visa as well.

Both cards are free, but you get better points with the Amex version.


I too had good use of the American Express and the Alaska Visa card combo, but now I find the value of keeping the Alaska Visa card "worth less." With the 1000 mile bonus gone, it no longer pays to keep the card...even with the companion fare (which has found some devaluation as well). I am now looking for alternatives and many of the suggestions found in this forum thread have been useful in making my decision. Right now, sort of leaning to the Capital One cards, but still shopping.

Good luck everyone. Unless Alaska and B of A work something out toward the positive, their Visa card will be worth even less.

With the 1000 mile bonus gone, it no longer pays to keep the card...even with the companion fare (which has found some devaluation as well).This is the part of everyone's argument I don't understand. I understand shifting most spending to other cards, and the loss of the 1,000 mile booking bonus certainly sucks, but isn't it worth keeping it if for no other reason than to save several hundred dollars on a coach companion ticket, even if that's the only transaction you make on the card that year? What other card can save you $200+ on an AS ticket in a single transaction?

This is the part of everyone's argument I don't understand. I understand shifting most spending to other cards, and the loss of the 1,000 mile booking bonus certainly sucks, but isn't it worth keeping it if for no other reason than to save several hundred dollars on a coach companion ticket, even if that's the only transaction you make on the card that year? What other card can save you $200+ on an AS ticket in a single transaction?

You are assuming that one wants to use the coach companion ticket. From certain markets, absent a trip to BRW or similar, it is a stretch to say "several hundred dollars" as compared with a good sale fare to far away. Card = $75. Companion ticket (w/typical fees/taxes) $135. Total "cheap ticket" = $210. For "several hundred dollars" on top of this, there's nowhere I can't go without even a modest fare sale, save a few AK villages and a small handful of other destinations where AS goes.

Have now ditched the biz cards (5 of our employees too) for the Chase Ink card and happy with it so far. Also, just replaced the two personal cards with the Chase Sapphire Preferred.

Simply not interested in using the companion fare for a coach seat, in that we don't fly that much with Alaska anymore and were using the companion fares for "special" vacations to mostly Mexico in FC seats. Have one last companion fare to use, will go FC either to Hawaii or Mexico, and then will drop the AS card and simply choose the best price airline since our air travel has changed dramatically. Daughter married to an Aussie, so many years of travel ahead down under and will travel with best price option which may or may not have been an AS partner.

The B of A agent that helped me cancel the biz cards was very apologetic ;-) Am making the call to cancel the personal ones in the next few days.

While I think it may not have been the best business decision, I do believe it is simply a sign of the times.

I cancelled one of my BofA visa cards and got the Amex SPG card instead. But I will continue to use my remaining BofA card for the miles on AS ticket purchases and the companion ticket (and for purchases where aimed is not accepted).

More and more of my spending continues to be moved onto the Chase Sapphire Preferred card. While it seems like every other card out there has been cutting benefits, the Sapphire keeps adding to its list.

Can't agree more. Between the Sapphire Preferred and the Chase Ink Bold... I'm earning incredible amounts of points that can be "downloaded" to BA Avios and then spent with AS...
I am earning more Ultimate Rewards points just by my spending now than I ever did with AS even when I was earning about 200,000 AS miles per year with the airline... Ultimate Rewards points can be downloaded into one of each of the three major alliance partners... which gets you access to awards on 70 different airlines. Since I use most of my points for high end luxury travel, having access to Star Alliance is really a great benefit. I'd highly recommend everyone look into the Chase cards and dump the AS card.

I'd highly recommend everyone look into the Chase cards and dump the AS card.

That's what I did, dumping the AS card very soon and already picked up the Sapphire Preferred. The range in which they multiply points is quite good (i.e. dinning etc..)

Just noticed this new card at BofA (https://www.bankofamerica.com/credit-cards/products/bankamericard-travel-rewards-credit-card.go), highlight features:

No annual fee
No forex fee
EMV chip
effective 1.5% back everywhere, 3% back on travel booked through their portal

Not a stellar card by any means, but perhaps a reasonable backup card to convert to (if BofA will let you) for anyone wanting to keep their credit history from the AS visa. Especially worthwhile for anyone who doesn't already have a card with EMV chip and no forex.

That's what I did, dumping the AS card very soon and already picked up the Sapphire Preferred. The range in which they multiply points is quite good (i.e. dinning etc..)

Same here. Also picked up the Starwood Preferred Guest card and will be using both for my mileage earning. Love the flexibility of redemptions for these two cards, plus annual fee waived the first year.

Sometime between now and renewal, I will either see if they let me move to a no fee card since this is one of my longest opening account, or just cancel it.

... Right now, sort of leaning to the Capital One cards, but still shopping.

I signed up for the Capital One Venture card back when they did the "mileage" match to 100,000 Venture Miles, with another 1,000 earned after spending the minimum for the bonus...

While I think the advertising is a bit deceptive (you're really earning something closer to cash back as opposed to miles) and you probably get more value with miles or points earned with a hotels or airline card, the flexibility to use points on any travel-related expenses (including ancillary charges) has come in handy. Also, I was in the habit of using a different card when I ended up having some extended overseas travel, and this was my only card without a foreign currency conversion fee -- a rarity for cards with an annual fee in the $60 range.

There have been few reasons to contact Capital One, but on the rare occasions that I have contacted them they have been helpful and courteous, no voice-mail-jail or endless transfers. (I worked with them on a couple chargebacks, and recently had a strange situation that meant actually using a convenience check.)

Also, the Capital One travel portal often has lower (paid) car rental rates than booking directly with agencies or a Kayak search can find. You don't get the status benefits because they are consolidator rates, but I have found the price difference to be worth booking through Capital One for some rentals.

I still have my Alaska BoA Visa but I doubt I will keep it next time the annual fee is due. I rarely use it, the companion cert is one of the only reasons to keep the card, and that benefit is being eroded at a rapid rate. I am maximizing earning on a different card with a hefty annual fee which has been waived for this first year, and I will probably start using an UR card at that point. That having been said, Capital One has been good to me and I anticipate hanging on to the Venture card longer than the Alaska/BoA Visa.

Regarding 'miles versus points' -- for me, I've found the value of miles (if you can plan things out far enough and particularly use the miles for Business Class/First Class international flights) I find that to be true with USAirways as well. The trade off of course is that you simply must be able to do long term planning -- which works out OK for me.

As to the loss of the 1st class companion fare -- well I still have two 'left overs' from this year (one expires in March, the other in July -- that is the flights need to be booked by then which means I can still have those in late 2013 and early 2014 if needed).

Again, its a 'your mileage may vary' scenario.

For the 1st class companion tickets -- my only real use there is Hawaii flights -- and since I'm in Arizona, I didn't the sort of real value that Alaska card holders from the east coast get with those).

I mean I can see Alaska looking at those East Coast to Seattle, then Seattle to Hawaii 1st class companion tickets as a revenue issue.

Now as to servicing the account -- I agree that Chase does a better job than B of A -- but I've not had real problems with B of A over the years.

Since I do not consider the card to be worth the $75 fee, I asked BA's CR if there was a fee-free alternative.

(I prefer not to close accounts unnecessarily, as doing this reduces the average age of my accounts, and the amount of credit available relative to the amount used. Each negatively impacts the credit score.)

The CR offered to convert the card to a "BankAmericard Cash 1,2,3 Rewards account" which rebates 1% of purchases as cash, as well as some category bonuses, with no annual fee.

Although the account number will change, the credit line remains the same, and the account is considered (according to Bof A) to have continued.

I do not expect to spend much on this card, as I have others with much more valuable rewards. However, I will use it at least once every six months to keep it active.

For those of you looking for a card that rewards you more for everyday spending, there are good suggestions in this thread. The Starwood Preferred Guest Card would be my top choice as it is by far the most flexible, transferring to myriad airline programs at a premium (transfer 20K points, receive 25K miles). SPG points are even more valuable at Sheraton hotels.

I would be honored (and would receive a referral bonus if you apply and are approved:)) to refer you for the SPG card, with a 25K signup bonus, 10K after the first use, and 15K after $5K spending within 6 months. Its $65 annual fee is waived for the first year. It is available in both personal and business versions with these terms. On Small business Saturday, Nov. 24, you get $25 for spending $25 at a small business for each card, including additional cards. PM me if you would like to be referred.

Goodbye AS Visa...RIP.

Over the years, I've been progressively using this card less and less in favor of higher earning rewards cards.

Since I don't always annually have a trip that both has a companion on the exact itinerary AND is exclusively on the AS route network, I wasn't always able to use my companion cert. The 1K mile booking bonus was the last thing that had me holding onto the card... Still think it is a reasonable if not GREAT card for anyone who uses the companion cert annually.

In my case, I converted to a no annual fee B of A travel card which has zero forex, an EMV chip, and a relatively simple 1.5% back rewards structure. Should be a good backup card, though also unlikely to see a ton of use.

Goodbye AS Visa...RIP.

Over the years, I've been progressively using this card less and less in favor of higher earning rewards cards.

Since I don't always annually have a trip that both has a companion on the exact itinerary AND is exclusively on the AS route network, I wasn't always able to use my companion cert. The 1K mile booking bonus was the last thing that had me holding onto the card... Still think it is a reasonable if not GREAT card for anyone who uses the companion cert annually.

In my case, I converted to a no annual fee B of A travel card which has zero forex, an EMV chip, and a relatively simple 1.5% back rewards structure. Should be a good backup card, though also unlikely to see a ton of use.

Mine is done too, mostly for the same reasons you mentioned. I ended up converting to the $50 Mileage Plan Platinum Plus (with $50 travel voucher) as I have other cards with EVM and no foreign currency conversion fee.

don't mean to hijack this thread, but what's this new announcement everyone hating so much?

don't mean to hijack this thread, but what's this new announcement everyone hating so much?

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/alaska-airlines-mileage-plan/1323621-did-visa-card-just-go-directly-hell-do-not-pass-go-no-more-companion-f.html

From last summer (although the linked thread starts in March 2012).

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/alaska-airlines-mileage-plan/1323621-did-visa-card-just-go-directly-hell-do-not-pass-go-no-more-companion-f.html

From last summer (although the linked thread starts in March 2012).

I saw that thread but thought nothing of it, the $99 companion ticket are usually + tax anyways. So what more?

btw: thanks for clarifying

don't mean to hijack this thread, but what's this new announcement everyone hating so much?

See the thread "$110 Companion ticket valid for COACH class only-effective August 1st"

which sets out why the AK card has become problematic for many of us. I dumped mine as have many others.

Also, that thread has a bunch of information about good replacement cards---most of which are way better than the BofA Alaska card.

I saw that thread but thought nothing of it, the $99 companion ticket are usually + tax anyways. So what more?

btw: thanks for clarifying

Off the top of my head...

1. Loss of 1,000 booking bonus
2. Loss of ability to use companion discount for F
3. Companion fare went up from $50 to $99
4. Loss of annual renewal mileage bonus [used to be 4K or 5K?]

For some, dealing with BOA is a pain.

Honestly, if losing the ability to book in F for the companion ticket was the only change then I'd wager the circumstances would be a little different, but it has been a domino effect of dilution in benefits that really adds up. When they took away F for companion, that is the straw that broke the camel's back for many.

Not to mention that Canadian customers lost online access. Which means I can no longer access my credit card account online and must either wait for a paper statement (which always arrives close to or after the payment is due) or phone in. And you can't get a statement balance in the automated system, just a total account balance. I only want to pay the satement balance, not everything I have charged after the statement cut off date but to get that number, you have to wait in the usually very long queue and talk to a live person just to find out how much you have to pay. And I can't check my account for bogus charges, as I used to do almost daily. This was the deal breaker for me.

How can a bank not figure out a way to give customers online access? This is insane. It is 2013, for goodness sake.

don't mean to hijack this thread, but what's this new announcement everyone hating so much?

For me, it was the loss of 1K booking bonus. Since that was for each way, I often earned thousands annually just from that bonus which offset the annual fee of the card. Since my travel patterns don't always involve an itin with a companion exclusively on AS metal, I was happy to gift my cert to family the years I couldn't use it, and still feel like the 1K bonus offset the fee for me.

For most, loss of ability to use companion certificate for F bookings pushed them over the edge.

For years now, I haven't been using the card for regular spending, as there are cards which yield much higher rewards for daily spend than 1 AS mile/$.

So...no booking bonus, only sometimes using my companion cert, and never using the card for daily spend...combined with work forcing me to book all work tickets through their TA resulted in me almost never using the card...

Yeah, the loss of using the companion cert in F was a pretty big deal to me as well.

Why would anyone keep this card unless you can get $175 value from the 2-for-1 cert?

It isn't as if Alaska miles are easy to use at the lowest award chart rates.

Why would anyone keep this card unless you can get $175 value from the 2-for-1 cert?

Agreed, but make that value between $195-250 for a roundtrip itinerary depending on the route and number of segments.

Why would anyone keep this card unless you can get $175 value from the 2-for-1 cert? That's exactly why I keep it - with fares these days, it's extremely easy to extract that kind of value out of the cert.

Why would anyone keep this card unless you can get $175 value from the 2-for-1 cert?

It isn't as if Alaska miles are easy to use at the lowest award chart rates.

Well, I wouldn't get greedy now. I would keep the card if I could be guaranteed even $100 out of the cert; really, even if the cert had the option to be used as a $75 discount code instead of as a companion cert... Well, really most of my motivation to keep the card would be to keep the long credit history...not that I think a net gain of 0-$25 a year is a significant perk to encourage me to frequently use the card...

Even more telling was the fact that on two occasions this year I had the chance to give the cert to family...in both cases, it was actually cheaper to purchase two tickets on an alternate carrier than to choose the AS flights with the cert...