Originally Posted by
Topspin14m
Agree. You can't count on VR anymore. Sometimes you get lucky, often you don't. Amex GC could work (currently free) if you are willing to tie up the money and can pay the CC balance. For me, I have a big purchase coming this month, so it won't be an issue.
Costco cash cards. We do almost all of our shopping at Costco and they only take AMEX in the store. You can buy cash cards, however, online at Costco.com using any credit card. The cash cards cost nothing to activate and they mail them to you for free. This method of course is not true MS, but it's a way to time-shift expenses you know you will incur (we do about 10k a year at Costco).