Welcome to FlyerTalk.

You will probably receive better advice if you flesh out some of the details of your trip. What city will you fly from, and what is your destination in Europe? What ages are the children? Do you intend to fly in economy class, or is your ambition to fly in business class?

There are two primary reasons that people say "wonderful things" about the Starwood Preferred Guest Credit Card. First, the points can be converted to miles on many airlines, but this isn't as important if you are collecting miles for one trip and know the carrier you will use. Second, Starwood awards a 5,000 mile bonus for every 20,000 points transferred to an airline program. This means $20,000 in credit card charges could generate 25,000 miles. You need to estimate how much you will use the card prior to your trip, and how to allocate spending between the Starwood card and the AAdvantage card. If you do not earn at least 20,000 Starpoints you will not realize much benefit compared to using only the AAdvantage card.

You mentioned that you have a small business. Bear in mind that you could apply for an AAdvantage business card to use there, but you and your husband could also apply for separate personal AAdvantage cards to earn additional enrollment bonuses - but also pay additional annual fees, and have additional inquiries on your credit reports.

You also mentioned that you fly infrequently. Do you take driving trips, or train trips, and stay at hotels or motels?

dennis