Southwest or AAdvantage
 

My girlfriend and I are looking to apply for our first miles CC. We just got out of school and are on a limited budget, we only fly about 3 or 4 times a year.

Currently I have 15.5 RR credits with southwest, she has 8 RR credits with southwest.

I have 3k miles on AAdvantage, and she has 4k miles on AAdvantage.

I also have 3k miles on Delta Skymiles.

I'm thinking of getting my 16th RR credit and just terminating my relationship with southwest, it seems like other programs allow you to get elite status by things other than flying a certain amount of times in a one year period.

I was thinking of signing up for an AAdvantage citi card, I like the fact that the miles don't expire, and that the miles are transferrable into other programs such as the Hilton HHonors etc.


So should we scrap Southwest and go with AAdvantage?

I think a lot of it depends on where you live and what you eventually want to get out of the frequent flyer program.

Do you have a route that you usually travel? Who has the best fares on that route? Who has direct flights from your home to where you usually travel {while other people do not mind stops just to get more miles, I dread having to change planes and waste time}?

I am partial to American, but then I live in one of their hubs and have a lot more flexibility with them. They also have a bigger network and partners that will open a lot of possibilities in the future.

Also once you have decided, apply for that card first and apply for the card for the other program after. There is no reason not to get another round trip if you can.


PS: You seem to have been reading enough Flyertalk to not even consider Delta ^ :)

If you can get one of the BIG bonuses for a first-time CITI AA card, then you should definitely go for it. Follow and read this thread:

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/miles...-up-bonus.html

On AA, the only way to get elite status other than by flying is to earn a lifetime total of 1 million miles (1) which will be hard for you to do if you don't spend or fly a lot.




1. an unpublished benefit, meaning it could go away any time

However, it's possible to earn annual status by flying a minimal amount through a challenge, as explained here:

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/ameri...-platinum.html