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
Jul 25, 2014, 2:21 am
#826
Join Date: Mar 2014
Programs: AA Exec Plat, Hilton Diamond, Citi-Prestige,
Posts: 131
Jul 25, 2014, 2:37 am
#827
Join Date: May 2003
Location: Slightly to the left of center
Posts: 3,475
Just reporting on a great redemption experience
Earned 40k signup, did some other spending - net balance of 50k to use on travel purchases.
Easy online redemption for previously purchased travel
the 10% bonus automatically hit my account, allowing me to credit back some other smaller travel expenses
Credit hit my credit card statement within 1-2 business days.
This, plus I'm warming up to TravelPro and enjoy the free credit score.
Impressed...
Earned 40k signup, did some other spending - net balance of 50k to use on travel purchases.
Easy online redemption for previously purchased travel
the 10% bonus automatically hit my account, allowing me to credit back some other smaller travel expenses
Credit hit my credit card statement within 1-2 business days.
This, plus I'm warming up to TravelPro and enjoy the free credit score.
Impressed...
Jul 25, 2014, 9:11 am
#828
Join Date: Jul 2003
Location: Wine Country, Finger Lakes
Programs: LFFRS BOD
Posts: 1,355
ok.. newbie question... I just got my first statement posted and have around $800 charged.
I need to pay my balance by 8-24 so what happens to the redemption part of the 40k .. I have till Sept. to get my 40k since I opened the card July 1st.
Can I go back and redeem on those travel charges already paid?
thanks
ETA: the secure message that Barclays sent me regarding this question did not answer it.. typical
I need to pay my balance by 8-24 so what happens to the redemption part of the 40k .. I have till Sept. to get my 40k since I opened the card July 1st.
Can I go back and redeem on those travel charges already paid?
thanks
ETA: the secure message that Barclays sent me regarding this question did not answer it.. typical
Last edited by duranza; Jul 26, 2014 at 8:39 am
Jul 25, 2014, 9:11 am
#829
Join Date: Jun 2014
Posts: 319
my arrival+ card just got stolen (just the info, not physical card).... thief tried ~10 random charges ranging from 80 to 4k, resulting a total attempted charge of 10k....
luckily barclays did approve any of them.... hassel for me tho now that I need to get a replacement card....
luckily barclays did approve any of them.... hassel for me tho now that I need to get a replacement card....
Jul 26, 2014, 12:55 am
#830
Suspended
Join Date: May 2012
Location: ORD
Programs: AA, UA, AS, DL, BA, F9, IHG Plat, HH Gold, CC Gold, SPG Gold, MR Silver
Posts: 1,786
my arrival+ card just got stolen (just the info, not physical card).... thief tried ~10 random charges ranging from 80 to 4k, resulting a total attempted charge of 10k....
luckily barclays did approve any of them.... hassel for me tho now that I need to get a replacement card....
luckily barclays did approve any of them.... hassel for me tho now that I need to get a replacement card....
Jul 26, 2014, 7:22 pm
#831
Join Date: Apr 2011
Location: Phoenix, Arizona
Programs: SPG/Marriott Gold, National Emerald Executive
Posts: 66
Thank You re: Europe
Just got back from a long vacation around Europe using only my arrival+ card.
Transactions that showed up redeemable:
-All Trains/Underground/Metros in London, Paris, Germany, Switzerland, Italy
-Ticket to summit of Mt. Titlis in Switzerland (shows as 'ENGELBERG ZB'), purchased at ticket office in Engelberg
Transactions that were not redeemable automatically:
-St Pauls Cathedral
-Eiffel Tower
-Windsor Castle
Calling up Barclay they seemed to have no problem manually using points for those 3 purchases.
Other than those 3 transactions, I had zero problems using the card through Europe. Chip+PIN worked as expected when needed
Transactions that showed up redeemable:
-All Trains/Underground/Metros in London, Paris, Germany, Switzerland, Italy
-Ticket to summit of Mt. Titlis in Switzerland (shows as 'ENGELBERG ZB'), purchased at ticket office in Engelberg
Transactions that were not redeemable automatically:
-St Pauls Cathedral
-Eiffel Tower
-Windsor Castle
Calling up Barclay they seemed to have no problem manually using points for those 3 purchases.
Other than those 3 transactions, I had zero problems using the card through Europe. Chip+PIN worked as expected when needed
Jul 26, 2014, 8:29 pm
#832
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Jul 2003
Location: Florida
Posts: 29,762
Anyone has redeemed Tourist Visa Application fee?
It is not listed as one of the categories but I gather it could be manually redeemed with CSR's help. Would like to know if there are successful experiences as I could charge it to a 2% rebate card or on the Arrival+.
It is not listed as one of the categories but I gather it could be manually redeemed with CSR's help. Would like to know if there are successful experiences as I could charge it to a 2% rebate card or on the Arrival+.
Jul 26, 2014, 8:55 pm
#833
Join Date: Aug 2010
Location: CLT
Programs: AA, UA, BA, Hilton Diamond, Marriott Gold, IHG Platinum
Posts: 2,074
ok.. newbie question... I just got my first statement posted and have around $800 charged.
I need to pay my balance by 8-24 so what happens to the redemption part of the 40k .. I have till Sept. to get my 40k since I opened the card July 1st.
Can I go back and redeem on those travel charges already paid?
thanks
ETA: the secure message that Barclays sent me regarding this question did not answer it.. typical
I need to pay my balance by 8-24 so what happens to the redemption part of the 40k .. I have till Sept. to get my 40k since I opened the card July 1st.
Can I go back and redeem on those travel charges already paid?
thanks
ETA: the secure message that Barclays sent me regarding this question did not answer it.. typical
Jul 27, 2014, 5:25 pm
#834
Join Date: Apr 2013
Posts: 26
Does it really take 7-10 business days to receive your cards? I asked for expediting the mailing while I called them last Tuesday, but they didn't do it. I just called again and they told me that it was mailed out last Friday and they can't expedite issuing me another new card. But I need to go abroad on the coming Saturday. Will I receive the card before I leave? I'm in Boston.
Jul 27, 2014, 6:14 pm
#835
Join Date: Dec 2006
Location: USA
Posts: 3,945
Does it really take 7-10 business days to receive your cards? I asked for expediting the mailing while I called them last Tuesday, but they didn't do it. I just called again and they told me that it was mailed out last Friday and they can't expedite issuing me another new card. But I need to go abroad on the coming Saturday. Will I receive the card before I leave? I'm in Boston.
Jul 27, 2014, 6:19 pm
#836
Suspended
Join Date: May 2012
Location: ORD
Programs: AA, UA, AS, DL, BA, F9, IHG Plat, HH Gold, CC Gold, SPG Gold, MR Silver
Posts: 1,786
Does it really take 7-10 business days to receive your cards? I asked for expediting the mailing while I called them last Tuesday, but they didn't do it. I just called again and they told me that it was mailed out last Friday and they can't expedite issuing me another new card. But I need to go abroad on the coming Saturday. Will I receive the card before I leave? I'm in Boston.
Jul 28, 2014, 8:08 am
#839
Join Date: Feb 2014
Location: PHL
Posts: 930
Does purchasing miles from US Airways count as a travel expense?