Originally Posted by SFOPhD

OK, OK, time for the nitty gritty. Is the special $99 rate at the Marriott an eligible stay for the Spring Megabonus promotion?

Originally Posted by LAtraveler1

I went to my first (and only - so far) FTU about a year ago in LA with my husband as it was in our hometown and seemed interesting to me.

Boy, did I get more than I bargained for - all good! I had known about credit card offers and had signed up for a few several years ago but was always concerned as to whether it was the "right" thing to be doing - was I hurting my credit score, etc.

In the last year I have gotten 15 credit cards with many of them being higher than normal bonus offers and my husband has gotten at least 6 or 7.

We have gotten many rewards - 2 free Hyatt nights at the Hyatt Big Sur (over Thanksgiving weekend), 2 free Marriott nights in Times Square in December and free airfare. We got last minute WN tickets for LA - OAK - while I realize that may not sound all that exotic - the fact is that is one of our favorites as it saved us from having to spend 10+ hours driving and got us to a graduation relaxed. The list goes on but you get the idea.

We have done mileage runs to Cleveland in January, Boston in February, Anchorage in June and Providence (via Hartford) in September. Thank you ITA software and Flyertalk for assistance in finding these. For this year, we are looking at the LAX-PVG for the fall.

Other benefits include being able to help out others with basic information for their travels as well as helping out relatives fix a mistake (where the solution was Alaska miles) at the last minute or else they wouldn't have made a wedding.

With banks now giving out free credit scores - I found out that our credit scores have only increased from last year.

Liz

Originally Posted by gpapadop

You are the PRIMARY target attendee for these events! I bet you applied for the cards through one of the presenter's blog sites. Just wondering out loud, did you know how much these guys make per app? Do you know now?

Originally Posted by LAtraveler1

Don't know how much they make and honestly DON"T care! They provided me with a service that is helpful to me and I am happy if they made some $ on the back end. Its not like I received any less miles/points because I signed up through their websites. The $ are coming from the bank's coffers and I'd just as well see the bank share it with the bloggers as keep it for themselves.

You seem to have an issue with the bloggers making $ - me wondering out loud - why? If your concern is for me that I am naive and don't realize they are making $ then I thank you for your concern, which I will tell you is misplaced. The blogger's website I use is up front about the fact that he makes referral fees and always states the best offer regardless of whether it is his link or someone else's. I believe that is what one calls integrity and I am happy to support him.

Best
Liz