May 14, 2014, 1:15 pm
Last edit by: rrgg
This thread is a continuation of the discussion posted here from 12.08.2012 - 5.13.2014: Barclays Arrival/Arrival Cards (1.05%/2.1% travel credits)
Current offer for Arrival Plus is 70K pts w/$5K spend & AF waived 1st year.
Barclays says that you earn “miles” but you’re actually earning cash back with the card since you can’t transfer your Barclays miles to airlines. But you can redeem them for statement credits at 0.5 cents per mile (poor value) or 1.05 cent per mile if you redeem for travel.
You get 5% of your miles back if you redeem for travel, so 40,000 miles gets you $400 towards travel and 2,000 miles back (5% of your miles back). You must have at least 10K 'miles' in your acct if you wish to redeem as a travel credit. 2500 'miles' can be redeemed for a stmt credit though.
If you want, you can redeem miles to cover a portion of a travel charge instead of the full amount. For example, if you have 80k miles and a $740 airline charge, you can choose to redeem just 70k to cover $700 of the charge.
You earn 2X miles on all purchases, so you’re effectively getting 2% cash back for each purchase. But since you get 5% of your miles back when you redeem for travel, this is effectively a 2.1% cash back card when miles are redeemed for travel.
This makes the Barclaycard Arrival PlusTM World Elite MasterCard® (with 2.1% cash back for travel) better than the Capital One Venture card which offers only 2 miles per $1 or 2% cash back, only if you spend $30k+ per year after first year, because Arrival Plus AF is $30 more than Venture.
If you receive a call from 302-255-8000 after applying for this or any other Barclay's card, it is a legit number! You can also call them back directly at 866-951-1437.
Very Old Wiki Info ---
Regarding official company representatives
Note that there is an official procedure for company representatives to register themselves with the FlyerTalk Community Director and verify their credentials. When that process is completed, the username will turn green in posts, rather than the standard blue.
Anyone who does not appear in green has not followed this procedure. Those posts should be considered the same as any other user's posts. It is important to remember that the moderation team does not generally monitor the veracity of any posts; it is up to you to judge a poster's content and history yourself.
Let's crowd source things that have counted towards travel redemptions that are not so obvious
="3"%Successful
Don't forget travel purchase needs to be > $100 charge for 10K mile redemption
Airlines that post purchases of multiple tickets as one amount or split them:
One Amount
BA (USD based award ticket)
Multiple Transactions
UA (award)
DL (award)
Current offer for Arrival Plus is 70K pts w/$5K spend & AF waived 1st year.
Barclays says that you earn “miles” but you’re actually earning cash back with the card since you can’t transfer your Barclays miles to airlines. But you can redeem them for statement credits at 0.5 cents per mile (poor value) or 1.05 cent per mile if you redeem for travel.
You get 5% of your miles back if you redeem for travel, so 40,000 miles gets you $400 towards travel and 2,000 miles back (5% of your miles back). You must have at least 10K 'miles' in your acct if you wish to redeem as a travel credit. 2500 'miles' can be redeemed for a stmt credit though.
If you want, you can redeem miles to cover a portion of a travel charge instead of the full amount. For example, if you have 80k miles and a $740 airline charge, you can choose to redeem just 70k to cover $700 of the charge.
You earn 2X miles on all purchases, so you’re effectively getting 2% cash back for each purchase. But since you get 5% of your miles back when you redeem for travel, this is effectively a 2.1% cash back card when miles are redeemed for travel.
This makes the Barclaycard Arrival PlusTM World Elite MasterCard® (with 2.1% cash back for travel) better than the Capital One Venture card which offers only 2 miles per $1 or 2% cash back, only if you spend $30k+ per year after first year, because Arrival Plus AF is $30 more than Venture.
If you receive a call from 302-255-8000 after applying for this or any other Barclay's card, it is a legit number! You can also call them back directly at 866-951-1437.
Very Old Wiki Info ---
Regarding official company representatives
Note that there is an official procedure for company representatives to register themselves with the FlyerTalk Community Director and verify their credentials. When that process is completed, the username will turn green in posts, rather than the standard blue.
Anyone who does not appear in green has not followed this procedure. Those posts should be considered the same as any other user's posts. It is important to remember that the moderation team does not generally monitor the veracity of any posts; it is up to you to judge a poster's content and history yourself.
Let's crowd source things that have counted towards travel redemptions that are not so obvious
="3"%Successful
Don't forget travel purchase needs to be > $100 charge for 10K mile redemption
- 9/11 Museum and Memorial - NYC
- Accuracy Limo (via Square, Salt Lake City, UT limo service)
- ACE Adventures (West Virginia White Water Rafting), had to call in to get it processed manually
- agoda.com
- AirAsia Flights (airasia.com)
- airbnb bookings
- airbnb GC purchased on United MPX site
- Alaska Airlines checked baggage fee $25 charge
- Amazing Bike Tours Thailand
- AA Gift Card
- American Airlines telephone booking (including booking fee)
- Amtrak train ticket >$25 (ALB-NYP)
- Amtrak train ticket >$25 (unknown destinations)
- Arrival+ Annual Fee
- Argosy Cruises (SEA, classified as RECREATION)
- Autoeurope.com
- BART (Bay Area Rapid Transit) San Francisco
- Balloons over Bagan
- Bieber bus tickets
- Boston MBTA Charlie Card reload & Commuter Rail passes & tickets
- Burj Khalifa observation decks
- Buying Lifemiles from Avianca
- Capitaine Train Tickets (capitaine.com)
- Carmel Limo (NYC car service)
- carrentals.com
- cheaptickets.com hotel
- Chinese Visa Application Fees (had to call in. Credit showed up in account in 2 business days. See Post 912 and 921 for details)
- City Taxi (Tampa)
- CostcoTravel
- Cotai Waterjet (Hong Kong)
- CT Limo
- Daily Getaways purchase of HHonors points
- DB Bahn Trains Germany (bahn.de)
- Disneyland Hong Kong (Manual redemption required)
- DriveNow - all locations in EU/US
- Dublin Bus Tours Hop on, Hop off (Green)
- Eiffel Tower (manual redemption by phone allowed)
- Empire State Building tickets
- Enterprise rent-a-car, paid at the counter when returning the car (used Chase United Visa initially for primary coverage, but asked to pay with a different card when returning the car)
- Eurostar Train Tickets (eurostar.com)
- Europcar.com
- Expedia.com
- Hertz Rent-a-Car (booked on hertz.com)
- Hong Kong Airport Express Pass
- Hotel bookings through Rocketmiles (even refundable bookings or those tied to other promotions)
- Hotels.com
- Hotwire
- ItaliaRail (online booking agency for TrenItalia)
- LA Swamp Tours, Steamboat cruise, Haunted History Tours (New Orleans)
- Lahaina-Maui Ferry Tickets - booked online at www.go-lanai.com
- Las Vegas Show Booked through hotel
Las Vegas show tickets booked online (Mandalay Bay Box office) - Limo Charges - Two limo charges that I made in March PRIOR the the recent changes to what qualifies as "Travel" showed up as eligible travel charges. I guess with the changes to what's covered, and for how long, these got pulled back in.
- Lyft
- M-Life advance reservation deposit
- Montway Auto Transport (deposit)
- New York City MTA Subway Cards
- New York Waterways Ferry (between NJ and NYC)
- Ngong Ping 360 (Hong Kong)
- Norwegian Cruise Line purchase made from telephone order from vacationstogo.com
- Norwegian Cruise Line (deposits and payments)
- NS Hispeed Train Tickets (nshispeed.com)
- NYC Taxi
- Orbitz.com purchase
- ORCA card for Seattle area tolls (considered the very typical GOVERNMENT SERVICES NOT ELSEWHERE CLASSIFIED)
- Paris RATP Metro/VATP (buy 10-ticket pack for >$25 and save cost)
- PeruRail (Machu Picchu train)
- PMRF Beach Cottages (Kauai)
- Priceline
- Primetime Shuttle (Worked from LAX-SNA)
- rail europe on Travelocity
- rail JR Rail in Japan, load as tourist attraction, call in to get it credit (Post#938)
- Safari Helicopter Tour (Kauai)
- Sandals.com resort booking (unique vacations) was not redeemable last year. Is redeemable online now
- SEASTREAK LLC - NYC (Commuter Ferri)
- Singapore Cable Car
- Southwest $100 gift card
- Southwest Early Bird Check-in (billed separately from airfare charges)
- Spirit of NY Dinner Cruises - www.spiritcruises.com, which have cruises in several other cities as well.
- Starwood Vacation Ownership (SPG Timeshare) Westin Princeville Kauai (coded as Timeshare).
- St Pauls Cathedral (manual redemption by phone allowed)
- Super Shuttle (mixed, worked in SF when (billed SUPERSHUTTLE EXECUCARS), worked in Boston (SUPERSHUTTLE BOSTON), failed in LA (SUPERSHUTTLE), Worked in Cancun.
- Taxi in Zürich
- Top of the Rock tickets - NYC
- Trenitalia Online
- Trimet (Portland OR public transportation)
- Trip Advisor Rental
- TurboJET (Hong Kong)
- Uber
- Uber GC through MPX $100 (re-confirmed 11/1/2018, using Arrival Premier)
- United Baggage Fee
- Universal Studio Orlando tickets (had to call in)
- Viator (sightseeing/tours)
- Victoria Clipper (passenger ferry)
- Wedding at the Stratosphere's Chapel in the Clouds (billed as stratosphere)
- Windsor Castle (manual redemption by phone allowed)
- Wine purchases from different wine tasting rooms
- WMATA (Washington DC Metro) - [[COLOR="Red"]reconfirmed 10/5/15]
- Zipcar
="3"%Unsuccessful (please mention the amount redeemed - important as anything under$25$100 cannot be reimbursed)
Partial redemptions are possible - however you cannot redeem against that charge again. So if you have a $500 charge and you spend 40K points against it, you cannot redeem 10K points for the remaining $100 of that charge. - www.b-europe.com (SNCB rail)
- Amtrak (possibly due <$25 charge)
- Blue Water Rafting. Merchant category "Recreation Services -- Not elsewhere classified"
- Brazil airline GOL booked online codes as DIRECT MARKETING/DIRECT MARKETERS--NOT ELESWH ..
- Broadmoor Hotel Food and Beverage (Colorado Spring, CO)
- budgetair.co.uk (charged >$200)
- Car2go
- De Palm Tours, Aruba (classified as Recreation. Called Barclay twice.)
- Description: ZERVE *CA WHALES Merchant Category: THEATRICAL PRODUCERS (EXCEPT MOTION PICTURES), TICKET AGENCIES...Tickets to whale watching tour purchased over the phone.
- Evan Evans Sightseeing tours (UK based)- http://www.evanevanstours.co.uk
- Fastrak tag autoload for San Francisco bridge tolls ($25)
- Global Entry
- Gotobus.com Long Distance Buses, ~$100
- Homeaway.com, posts as real estate. Barclays said they'd make a one-time exception but future purchases won't count as travel.
- Hostelbookers.com deposit (maybe the charge which is >$25 will count?)
- Hotels.com Gift Card
- IHG points and cash hotel redemption
- Malaysian Overnight Train KUL-SIN (ktmb.com.my)
- Monterey Aquarium
- Parking at DCA - $136 (7/9/19)
- Parking at HSV ($96 in parking at Huntsville International Airport)
- Parking at IAH (Houston Intercontinental - on airport) -$76 (PARKING LOTS AND GARAGES)
- Parking at LAS
- Parking at LGA $204
- Parking at Port Imperial, Weehawken, NJ
- Parking at SNA (John Wayne Airport)
- San Francisco Clipper Card public transit (autoload from website)
- Skyjump at Stratosphere Hotel LV $150 (01/14) - not charged by hotel.
- Space Needle and Chihuly Garden Tickets
- Starwood points purchase (BUSINESS SERVICES NOT ELSEWHERE CLASSIFIED)
- Taxi Magic /Curb- Taxi service
- Thello train (France-Italy night train, codes as rail-freight)
- Trenitalia (both online and in stations, posts as rail-freight)
- UBER eGift Card (bought through the UBER app) for $100 - Not coded as "travel," so couldn't redeem online and they wouldn't do it over the phone, either.
Airlines that post purchases of multiple tickets as one amount or split them:
One Amount
BA (USD based award ticket)
Multiple Transactions
UA (award)
DL (award)
Barclays Arrival Plus, now 70K w/$5k spend
Jul 13, 2015, 2:10 pm
#2641
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Jan 2014
Location: San Diego, CA
Programs: GE, Marriott Platinum
Posts: 15,508
Thanks for the discussion. I already have two Visa (Marriott and Southwest) which have chips with no forex fee, but neither of them support PIN at all. Depending on who and where you read having chip and PIN priority is a big deal, or at least having chip and PIN as an option is a big deal.
I will be doing some considerable traveling in the next year so the no forex fee will make a difference. The $400 sign up bonus seemed good (especially with no annual fee) but after I'm hearing all of the bad customer service and the possible limitations of redemption, I'm thinking my best choice is to
1) join American Consumer Council (free)
2) join State Department Federal Credit Union (also free, but looks like I have to at least open a 'regular share savings account' (which has no minimum) but it looks like this would require its own credit inquiry
3) get the SDFCU EMV card (which is chip and PIN priority)
I know this is going off topic now. The part that I'm not sure about is if step 2 is required -- when I jumped straight to step 3, it didnt ask me for a member number from #2 or #1. But dont want to randomly apply, take the credit hit and then get rejected..
Decisions, decisions. Guess want no forex and chip and PIN for no fee. Maybe the new Arrival "free" card will be worth it, and I can use my 'primary' cards above (which are chip and signature).. and if they fail, I can use it as my backup chip and PIN card.
I will be doing some considerable traveling in the next year so the no forex fee will make a difference. The $400 sign up bonus seemed good (especially with no annual fee) but after I'm hearing all of the bad customer service and the possible limitations of redemption, I'm thinking my best choice is to
1) join American Consumer Council (free)
2) join State Department Federal Credit Union (also free, but looks like I have to at least open a 'regular share savings account' (which has no minimum) but it looks like this would require its own credit inquiry
3) get the SDFCU EMV card (which is chip and PIN priority)
I know this is going off topic now. The part that I'm not sure about is if step 2 is required -- when I jumped straight to step 3, it didnt ask me for a member number from #2 or #1. But dont want to randomly apply, take the credit hit and then get rejected..
Decisions, decisions. Guess want no forex and chip and PIN for no fee. Maybe the new Arrival "free" card will be worth it, and I can use my 'primary' cards above (which are chip and signature).. and if they fail, I can use it as my backup chip and PIN card.
Maybe it's worth waiting to see if there's still going to be a no-AF Arrival and what it has before proceeding?
Jul 13, 2015, 3:39 pm
#2642
Join Date: Jul 2007
Posts: 1,762
SDFCU is not pin priority; it has pin capability much like Arrival+ but I assure you, no matter what people say, the pin is becoming more and more not necessary. In my recent three week stint in Europe, while I used UNFCU (which is also pin priority but 1% ftf) totally voluntarily for personal reasons, not once did I have any difficulty whatsoever using a chip and signature card and you will probably find your primary cards will universally work.
Jul 13, 2015, 3:59 pm
#2643
Join Date: Jun 2015
Posts: 91
http://thepointsguy.com/2015/07/barc...firms-changes/
These changes will go into effect in November for cardholders who got the card before Sept. 30, 2014, and in August 2016 for cardholders who got the card on or after Oct. 1, 2014.
Jul 13, 2015, 6:14 pm
#2644
Join Date: Oct 2014
Location: Portland, OR, USA
Programs: Delta + United Airmiles
Posts: 703
From this post:
http://thepointsguy.com/2015/07/barc...firms-changes/
So, it depends how long you have it. I was being selfish in saying for a year since I just got it in June.
http://thepointsguy.com/2015/07/barc...firms-changes/
So, it depends how long you have it. I was being selfish in saying for a year since I just got it in June.
Wonder if that method still works?
Jul 13, 2015, 9:24 pm
#2645
Join Date: Jan 2014
Posts: 742
sounds like a good plan going forward. 2.1% is not attractive with AF when 2.0 (or 3.0 for first year with disc or 3.0 with that other japenese card) for no AF.
Chip+pin with A+ has been good for...
1. kiosks (train stations)
2. tolls in france, etc.
Hope the new aviator card by barclays will continue its generous AF waiver forever. The 5-10 times per year I reload my oyster card or train stations elsewhere in the world is not really worth the AF if I had to pay.
With new regulations in the USA for chip cards starting oct 1, I'm sure we'll see some no-AF products with full chip capacity sometime in the next year or so. All the banks will be like "wow that 10 billions dollars per year we saved from fraud prevention with chip+pin was a really good idea."
Chip+pin with A+ has been good for...
1. kiosks (train stations)
2. tolls in france, etc.
Hope the new aviator card by barclays will continue its generous AF waiver forever. The 5-10 times per year I reload my oyster card or train stations elsewhere in the world is not really worth the AF if I had to pay.
With new regulations in the USA for chip cards starting oct 1, I'm sure we'll see some no-AF products with full chip capacity sometime in the next year or so. All the banks will be like "wow that 10 billions dollars per year we saved from fraud prevention with chip+pin was a really good idea."
Jul 13, 2015, 9:34 pm
#2646
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Jan 2014
Location: San Diego, CA
Programs: GE, Marriott Platinum
Posts: 15,508
sounds like a good plan going forward. 2.1% is not attractive with AF when 2.0 (or 3.0 for first year with disc or 3.0 with that other japenese card) for no AF.
Chip+pin with A+ has been good for...
1. kiosks (train stations)
2. tolls in france, etc.
Hope the new aviator card by barclays will continue its generous AF waiver forever. The 5-10 times per year I reload my oyster card or train stations elsewhere in the world is not really worth the AF if I had to pay.
With new regulations in the USA for chip cards starting oct 1, I'm sure we'll see some no-AF products with full chip capacity sometime in the next year or so. All the banks will be like "wow that 10 billions dollars per year we saved from fraud prevention with chip+pin was a really good idea."
Chip+pin with A+ has been good for...
1. kiosks (train stations)
2. tolls in france, etc.
Hope the new aviator card by barclays will continue its generous AF waiver forever. The 5-10 times per year I reload my oyster card or train stations elsewhere in the world is not really worth the AF if I had to pay.
With new regulations in the USA for chip cards starting oct 1, I'm sure we'll see some no-AF products with full chip capacity sometime in the next year or so. All the banks will be like "wow that 10 billions dollars per year we saved from fraud prevention with chip+pin was a really good idea."
BTW chip and signature is all they need to do to be considered a "full chip implementation".
Jul 14, 2015, 12:10 am
#2647
Join Date: Jul 2007
Posts: 1,762
sounds like a good plan going forward. 2.1% is not attractive with AF when 2.0 (or 3.0 for first year with disc or 3.0 with that other japenese card) for no AF.
Chip+pin with A+ has been good for...
1. kiosks (train stations)
2. tolls in france, etc.
Hope the new aviator card by barclays will continue its generous AF waiver forever. The 5-10 times per year I reload my oyster card or train stations elsewhere in the world is not really worth the AF if I had to pay.
With new regulations in the USA for chip cards starting oct 1, I'm sure we'll see some no-AF products with full chip capacity sometime in the next year or so. All the banks will be like "wow that 10 billions dollars per year we saved from fraud prevention with chip+pin was a really good idea."
Chip+pin with A+ has been good for...
1. kiosks (train stations)
2. tolls in france, etc.
Hope the new aviator card by barclays will continue its generous AF waiver forever. The 5-10 times per year I reload my oyster card or train stations elsewhere in the world is not really worth the AF if I had to pay.
With new regulations in the USA for chip cards starting oct 1, I'm sure we'll see some no-AF products with full chip capacity sometime in the next year or so. All the banks will be like "wow that 10 billions dollars per year we saved from fraud prevention with chip+pin was a really good idea."
Jul 14, 2015, 9:23 am
#2648
Join Date: Feb 2000
Location: Pittsburgh
Programs: Whoever Has the Best Bonus
Posts: 5,183
I will wait a bit longer and see what the no fee card is like.
A $400 bonus for signing up for a CC is still pretty decent on its own. I will have plenty of travel expenses that I can redeem against. Understanding that SDFCU is also not PIN priority makes it a little less attractive, though I see that its not as big a deal as it used to be.
Since I can't apply for the card anymore right now anyway (still says 'check back to apply') guess will see what the future actually brings and then make a decision from there.
Bottom line is I was looking for a new credit card anyway, so thought it would be best to get one with PIN capabilities as none of my current ones have it.
A $400 bonus for signing up for a CC is still pretty decent on its own. I will have plenty of travel expenses that I can redeem against. Understanding that SDFCU is also not PIN priority makes it a little less attractive, though I see that its not as big a deal as it used to be.
Since I can't apply for the card anymore right now anyway (still says 'check back to apply') guess will see what the future actually brings and then make a decision from there.
Bottom line is I was looking for a new credit card anyway, so thought it would be best to get one with PIN capabilities as none of my current ones have it.
Jul 14, 2015, 10:09 am
#2649
Join Date: Jan 2014
Posts: 11
Downgrade info
I just called in with a plan to get the AF waived (to no avail), then proceeded with the downgrade process to the no AF card instead. While the agent was reciting the disclosure statement, she mentioned that any points earned since the start of the statement period would be forfeit. I stopped her and asked her to repeat it. Yes indeed - i would loose all points earned in last couple of weeks. Since I am in the middle of a billing cycle, she suggested waiting until after the statement period ended to make the change. My annual fee is up then too and she said that as long as it is within 60 days, it would get reimbursed. She also said that with the downgrade I would get 1000 points.
Jul 14, 2015, 11:21 am
#2650
Join Date: Aug 2013
Posts: 197
@Murph
Just wondered if you (or anyone else) had called back at this time to see if the July 14-15th mention was a 'thing' or not.
Interested to see if anything comes out today or tomorrow regarding this but am skeptical that its a BC stall tactic.
Just wondered if you (or anyone else) had called back at this time to see if the July 14-15th mention was a 'thing' or not.
Interested to see if anything comes out today or tomorrow regarding this but am skeptical that its a BC stall tactic.
Just called to cancel my Arrival+ since the annual fee hits on July 31. Was told by the rep to wait until July 14 or 15 for the "new, free version of the Arrival card". But a free version has existed for a while.
Are they just jerking me around to increase their "called to cancel, but were convinced otherwise" rate? Is there a new free version coming in a week that anyone is aware of? I did ask what new features were coming, but they couldn't tell me anything, other than "You'll like it".
I was going to call back and see if CSR Roulette gives me a different story, but I wanted to check here first (searched the thread and read back a few pages, but didn't see anything about it). I can wait a few days, but if the rep did lie to me, is there an official place to complain?
Are they just jerking me around to increase their "called to cancel, but were convinced otherwise" rate? Is there a new free version coming in a week that anyone is aware of? I did ask what new features were coming, but they couldn't tell me anything, other than "You'll like it".
I was going to call back and see if CSR Roulette gives me a different story, but I wanted to check here first (searched the thread and read back a few pages, but didn't see anything about it). I can wait a few days, but if the rep did lie to me, is there an official place to complain?
Jul 14, 2015, 11:34 am
#2651
Join Date: Aug 2005
Location: DFW
Posts: 1,249
I got the letter from Barclays detailing the devaluation in the mail today. It says the same as reported with my effective date being 11/17. It did offer a pro-rata refund if I decide to cancel the card.
Jul 14, 2015, 1:17 pm
#2652
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Jul 2003
Location: Florida
Posts: 29,763
I just called in with a plan to get the AF waived (to no avail), then proceeded with the downgrade process to the no AF card instead. While the agent was reciting the disclosure statement, she mentioned that any points earned since the start of the statement period would be forfeit. I stopped her and asked her to repeat it. Yes indeed - i would loose all points earned in last couple of weeks. Since I am in the middle of a billing cycle, she suggested waiting until after the statement period ended to make the change. My annual fee is up then too and she said that as long as it is within 60 days, it would get reimbursed. She also said that with the downgrade I would get 1000 points.
Jul 14, 2015, 2:58 pm
#2653
Join Date: Aug 2013
Posts: 197
+1 for receiving the letter today with concrete proof of the negative changes
Jul 14, 2015, 4:31 pm
#2654
Join Date: Jun 2015
Posts: 91