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.
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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
Jun 1, 2017, 12:17 pm
#3797
Join Date: Mar 2006
Location: SAN
Programs: DL MM, Marriott LT Titanium, AA EXP, Avis Chairmans
Posts: 1,399
Just an update on my two applications on one day. First went into pending (AA red), called, got approved. Did arrival application, pending, called next day, got approved. I also opened two Alaska cards on the same day, so 4 approvals in one day. I haven't had a Barclay card in years.
Jun 1, 2017, 5:21 pm
#3798
Join Date: Jun 2012
Location: NY
Posts: 733
Have had the card for 4 yrs.
Have put most of my non-bonus spending on the card.
Lately, my spending needs have grown, and I found myself bumping against the $49,500 CL every month. All legit spending, no MS.
Which is obviously pushing my score down since I am nearly at 100% on this card all the time.
I called to have CL increased - was told can't be done without a hard pull. I've charged and paid in full millions of dollars over the last 4 yrs, what other info are you looking for?
Nope, not enough. Need a credit pull.
And we can downgrade you to a no-fee card if you like. So, like, I should give up 1% of $500K to save on the fee?
No thanks.
Have put most of my non-bonus spending on the card.
Lately, my spending needs have grown, and I found myself bumping against the $49,500 CL every month. All legit spending, no MS.
Which is obviously pushing my score down since I am nearly at 100% on this card all the time.
I called to have CL increased - was told can't be done without a hard pull. I've charged and paid in full millions of dollars over the last 4 yrs, what other info are you looking for?
Nope, not enough. Need a credit pull.
And we can downgrade you to a no-fee card if you like. So, like, I should give up 1% of $500K to save on the fee?
No thanks.
Jun 1, 2017, 5:45 pm
#3799
Join Date: Feb 2012
Posts: 4,477
Have had the card for 4 yrs.
Have put most of my non-bonus spending on the card.
Lately, my spending needs have grown, and I found myself bumping against the $49,500 CL every month. All legit spending, no MS.
Which is obviously pushing my score down since I am nearly at 100% on this card all the time.
I called to have CL increased - was told can't be done without a hard pull. I've charged and paid in full millions of dollars over the last 4 yrs, what other info are you looking for?
Nope, not enough. Need a credit pull.
And we can downgrade you to a no-fee card if you like. So, like, I should give up 1% of $500K to save on the fee?
Have put most of my non-bonus spending on the card.
Lately, my spending needs have grown, and I found myself bumping against the $49,500 CL every month. All legit spending, no MS.
Which is obviously pushing my score down since I am nearly at 100% on this card all the time.
I called to have CL increased - was told can't be done without a hard pull. I've charged and paid in full millions of dollars over the last 4 yrs, what other info are you looking for?
Nope, not enough. Need a credit pull.
And we can downgrade you to a no-fee card if you like. So, like, I should give up 1% of $500K to save on the fee?
Besides, it's a required procedure for customer-initiated CL increases in all banks.
Jun 1, 2017, 9:07 pm
#3801
Join Date: Feb 2015
Posts: 910
I'm seeing conflicting DPs abt combining hard pulls for 2 same-day applications. Obviously if 1 or both go pending and they are processed another day, you might get another hard pull if you don't ask recon whether they will pull again or not. But it seems even when both apps were processed same day, whether one through recon or not, sometimes people got two hard pulls. Some banks will do 2 hard pulls though in some scenarios even for just 1 app, so it is possible this is happening on the 1st app.
Last edited by NoonRadar; Jun 3, 2017 at 11:43 am
Jun 1, 2017, 9:08 pm
#3802
Join Date: Feb 2015
Posts: 910
It is the requirement thing some banks have. A soft pull would also show them what new accounts & limits you have.
Jun 2, 2017, 9:48 am
#3803
Join Date: Oct 2011
Posts: 4,166
Have had the card for 4 yrs.
Have put most of my non-bonus spending on the card.
Lately, my spending needs have grown, and I found myself bumping against the $49,500 CL every month. All legit spending, no MS.
Which is obviously pushing my score down since I am nearly at 100% on this card all the time.
I called to have CL increased - was told can't be done without a hard pull. I've charged and paid in full millions of dollars over the last 4 yrs, what other info are you looking for?
Nope, not enough. Need a credit pull.
And we can downgrade you to a no-fee card if you like. So, like, I should give up 1% of $500K to save on the fee?
No thanks.
Have put most of my non-bonus spending on the card.
Lately, my spending needs have grown, and I found myself bumping against the $49,500 CL every month. All legit spending, no MS.
Which is obviously pushing my score down since I am nearly at 100% on this card all the time.
I called to have CL increased - was told can't be done without a hard pull. I've charged and paid in full millions of dollars over the last 4 yrs, what other info are you looking for?
Nope, not enough. Need a credit pull.
And we can downgrade you to a no-fee card if you like. So, like, I should give up 1% of $500K to save on the fee?
No thanks.
Jun 2, 2017, 11:11 am
#3804
Join Date: Jun 2012
Location: NY
Posts: 733
One, cash flow is not always there to pay off a $35K statement 2 wks early.
But that's not the biggest issue.
Currently, this card, like everything else in my life, is on Autopay...because otherwise I would be up to my neck in late fees and interest charges.
On this card, if I make a mid-statement payment, the autopay turns off.
And if a $35k statement is paid even a day late, the interest charges are $400+.
And do you know that even customer service managers have no authority to remove interest charges, and one must write an actual letter and mail it to the billing department asking to please remove the $400 interest charge for the payment being a day late?
I don't mean to whine - just pointing out that Barclays doesn't seem to be very friendly to high-spenders.
Jun 2, 2017, 2:08 pm
#3805
Join Date: Feb 2014
Location: YYC, SFO, OAK
Programs: AS MVP 75K, AA Platinum, IHG Platinum, Club Carlson Gold
Posts: 734
sure, but there are two small problems.
One, cash flow is not always there to pay off a $35K statement 2 wks early.
But that's not the biggest issue.
Currently, this card, like everything else in my life, is on Autopay...because otherwise I would be up to my neck in late fees and interest charges.
On this card, if I make a mid-statement payment, the autopay turns off.
And if a $35k statement is paid even a day late, the interest charges are $400+.
And do you know that even customer service managers have no authority to remove interest charges, and one must write an actual letter and mail it to the billing department asking to please remove the $400 interest charge for the payment being a day late?
I don't mean to whine - just pointing out that Barclays doesn't seem to be very friendly to high-spenders.
One, cash flow is not always there to pay off a $35K statement 2 wks early.
But that's not the biggest issue.
Currently, this card, like everything else in my life, is on Autopay...because otherwise I would be up to my neck in late fees and interest charges.
On this card, if I make a mid-statement payment, the autopay turns off.
And if a $35k statement is paid even a day late, the interest charges are $400+.
And do you know that even customer service managers have no authority to remove interest charges, and one must write an actual letter and mail it to the billing department asking to please remove the $400 interest charge for the payment being a day late?
I don't mean to whine - just pointing out that Barclays doesn't seem to be very friendly to high-spenders.
If I had $35K a month in legitimate spend, I'd be churning cards much more heavily. Besides that, I don't feel the Barclay Aviator offers an adequate return for that spend. AA miles aren't worth 2 cents each anymore and there are other cards that offer >=2% return
Jun 2, 2017, 3:44 pm
#3806
Join Date: Jun 2012
Location: NY
Posts: 733
That's unfortunate that Barclay's is such a hardass about waiving interest charges. I've never had a bank say they were unable to waive the interest as a one-time courtesy for a customer that otherwise always pays on time - especially for a one day late payment.
If I had $35K a month in legitimate spend, I'd be churning cards much more heavily. Besides that, I don't feel the Barclay Aviator offers an adequate return for that spend. AA miles aren't worth 2 cents each anymore and there are other cards that offer >=2% return
If I had $35K a month in legitimate spend, I'd be churning cards much more heavily. Besides that, I don't feel the Barclay Aviator offers an adequate return for that spend. AA miles aren't worth 2 cents each anymore and there are other cards that offer >=2% return
While I do churn heavily, realize that legitimate biz spend comes with its own challenges. Every account must be reconciled, every statement saved. It can be a hassle.
Whenever I can, I try to churn with personal spend, which is much, much lower.
Jun 3, 2017, 7:57 am
#3807
Join Date: Jul 2013
Posts: 1,784
And you don't have to scrutinize your charges before you make a payment; you have 60 days after the charges post to dispute them.
Jun 3, 2017, 10:50 am
#3808
Join Date: Nov 2015
Location: St. Louis, MO
Programs: Southwest Companion Pass
Posts: 790
Have had the card for 4 yrs.
Have put most of my non-bonus spending on the card.
Lately, my spending needs have grown, and I found myself bumping against the $49,500 CL every month. All legit spending, no MS.
Which is obviously pushing my score down since I am nearly at 100% on this card all the time.
I called to have CL increased - was told can't be done without a hard pull. I've charged and paid in full millions of dollars over the last 4 yrs, what other info are you looking for?
Nope, not enough. Need a credit pull.
And we can downgrade you to a no-fee card if you like. So, like, I should give up 1% of $500K to save on the fee?
No thanks.
Have put most of my non-bonus spending on the card.
Lately, my spending needs have grown, and I found myself bumping against the $49,500 CL every month. All legit spending, no MS.
Which is obviously pushing my score down since I am nearly at 100% on this card all the time.
I called to have CL increased - was told can't be done without a hard pull. I've charged and paid in full millions of dollars over the last 4 yrs, what other info are you looking for?
Nope, not enough. Need a credit pull.
And we can downgrade you to a no-fee card if you like. So, like, I should give up 1% of $500K to save on the fee?
No thanks.
Jun 4, 2017, 9:49 am
#3809
Join Date: Jul 2003
Location: Wine Country, Finger Lakes
Programs: LFFRS BOD
Posts: 1,355
Has anyone had a pending transaction show up one day and the next day it disappeared?
Still not showing on a purchase I made on June 1st.
Still not showing on a purchase I made on June 1st.