What card to apply for next?
Oct 12, 2018, 7:18 pm
#31
Join Date: Aug 2018
Posts: 29
Is it worth it to get a cc for hotel?
Im going on a trip in around 2 months I have amex plat and gold, I am going to be in paris and hong kong for one day each. Is it worth it to get Hilton/spg card or another hotel card with amex for this reason if im not really going to be using it other than for these 2 stays? Main reasons to get points for the luxury hotels. Just was approved for amex plat 3 months ago
Oct 16, 2018, 11:03 am
#32
Join Date: Nov 2011
Location: Iowa
Posts: 721
It would seem to be impossible for anyone to provide insight without knowing your travel patterns and habits.
Do you consistently fly the airlines and stay at the hotel chains that you mention, or are you simply collecting cards and banking the miles and points?Are you getting any value from those cards that you are paying annual fees on? If not, perhaps some consolidation would simplify your situation.
If the CSR is your general spending card( which is a guess based only on the amount of points), do you have an alternative in mind if you do cancel?
If you were to provide more specifics as to your intentions and needs, I think you would get more responses to your inquiry
Do you consistently fly the airlines and stay at the hotel chains that you mention, or are you simply collecting cards and banking the miles and points?Are you getting any value from those cards that you are paying annual fees on? If not, perhaps some consolidation would simplify your situation.
If the CSR is your general spending card( which is a guess based only on the amount of points), do you have an alternative in mind if you do cancel?
If you were to provide more specifics as to your intentions and needs, I think you would get more responses to your inquiry
I don't have an airline preference. From DSM, you take whichever airline can get you to your destination. So points that can be redeemed for cash or that can be used on any/most airlines are probably most useful for my situation. I don't really have a general spending card. I use whichever card I've received most recently. I have never been able to figure out which of my cards would be the best for daily use so I just use the most recently received card.
Are there any Chase cards that you might think I should apply for? I am presently at 4 cards in 24 months. Maybe I should get the 5th card.
Oct 16, 2018, 12:53 pm
#33
Used to be 'FTcadence'
Join Date: Oct 2012
Location: SAN
Posts: 432
I've been looking in my wallet and thinking that it's time for a new card or 2. I have a 1 y/o and will be expecting again in the spring. I'm coming to accept the fact that I'm largely grounded for most of the foreseeable future so no need for miles/hotel points. (When/if we do travel, my SO collects very nice amounts via business cards.) My needs/situation are a little bit different so I'm thinking of getting into the cash back game.
I don't currently have a cash back card. I'm planning a CF application and have also been checking out the Discover It card. Haven't seen good things about Amex's Blue Cash Preferred card... Any good cash back card I'm missing?
I'm going to have a few thousand in baby/kid spend coming up in the next few months. I am debating Chase's Amazon card and Target's red card, but are those really my best options?
I don't currently have a cash back card. I'm planning a CF application and have also been checking out the Discover It card. Haven't seen good things about Amex's Blue Cash Preferred card... Any good cash back card I'm missing?
I'm going to have a few thousand in baby/kid spend coming up in the next few months. I am debating Chase's Amazon card and Target's red card, but are those really my best options?
Oct 19, 2018, 11:46 am
#34
Join Date: Nov 2011
Location: Iowa
Posts: 721
Are there any Chase cards that you would recommend I apply for?
These are the cards I have presently:
Chase Marriott Rewards
Chase Business Ink Preferred
Chase Freedom Unlimited
Chase Sapphire Reserve
Chase Amazon
Chase United Explorer MielagePlus
These are the cards I have presently:
Chase Marriott Rewards
Chase Business Ink Preferred
Chase Freedom Unlimited
Chase Sapphire Reserve
Chase Amazon
Chase United Explorer MielagePlus
Oct 29, 2018, 3:20 pm
#35
Join Date: Jan 2005
Programs: UA GOLD MM,WN CP A+list, HH Gold,MR LT Titanium
Posts: 2,184
I don't have an airline preference. From DSM, you take whichever airline can get you to your destination. So points that can be redeemed for cash or that can be used on any/most airlines are probably most useful for my situation. I don't really have a general spending card. I use whichever card I've received most recently. I have never been able to figure out which of my cards would be the best for daily use so I just use the most recently received card.
Are there any Chase cards that you might think I should apply for? I am presently at 4 cards in 24 months. Maybe I should get the 5th card.
Are there any Chase cards that you might think I should apply for? I am presently at 4 cards in 24 months. Maybe I should get the 5th card.
I would suggest you evaluate the cards you currently have and decide if you are really getting value from them,especially since most of them appear to be annual fee cards. If you are not at least getting the value of the fee, then downgrade or close them as needed.
I can give you a basic idea of how I approach my personal use of cards,of which I have many. Others will probably have better suggestions for you, but for now, my personal preference is to keep things simple.
Hotel spending goes on the corresponding hotel card, in my case Marriott and Hilton. I do pay fees on them,but get the value from the benefits. For the times that I stay in a hotel that is outside my card stash, I use my CSP.
Airline spending goes on CSP or Costco Visa.
Chase Freedom and Discover get used for 5% bonus categories only.
Groceries go on Blue Cash
General spending goes on Citi Double Cash
There are many members here that are what I would consider experts on credit cards and their usage. Hopefully one of them can assist you better
Oct 29, 2018, 3:30 pm
#36
Join Date: Jan 2005
Programs: UA GOLD MM,WN CP A+list, HH Gold,MR LT Titanium
Posts: 2,184
I've been looking in my wallet and thinking that it's time for a new card or 2. I have a 1 y/o and will be expecting again in the spring. I'm coming to accept the fact that I'm largely grounded for most of the foreseeable future so no need for miles/hotel points. (When/if we do travel, my SO collects very nice amounts via business cards.) My needs/situation are a little bit different so I'm thinking of getting into the cash back game.
I don't currently have a cash back card. I'm planning a CF application and have also been checking out the Discover It card. Haven't seen good things about Amex's Blue Cash Preferred card... Any good cash back card I'm missing?
I'm going to have a few thousand in baby/kid spend coming up in the next few months. I am debating Chase's Amazon card and Target's red card, but are those really my best options?
I don't currently have a cash back card. I'm planning a CF application and have also been checking out the Discover It card. Haven't seen good things about Amex's Blue Cash Preferred card... Any good cash back card I'm missing?
I'm going to have a few thousand in baby/kid spend coming up in the next few months. I am debating Chase's Amazon card and Target's red card, but are those really my best options?
I have a Discover card that I use solely for the 5% bonus categories. The IT card will double your cashback bonus after the first year. Many posters dislike Discover,but for my purposes it works just fine.
I have the Blue Cash card and use it for groceries,except the times when Discover or Freedom has grocery as a 5% bonus category, and also for any Amex Sync offers that work for me.
My main cash back card is Citi Double Cash,which is a straight 2% cash back on everything.
Oct 30, 2018, 11:36 am
#37
Join Date: Nov 2011
Location: Iowa
Posts: 721
That's one of the few things that I do know. Thanks for the tips.
Oct 30, 2018, 2:15 pm
#38
Join Date: May 2015
Posts: 261
If you stay at hotels often and you don’t have a firm preference for a particular chain, the Capital One Venture card is excellent. If you book through the hotels.com/Venture link you get 10 points per dollar and with hotels.com you get one free room every 10 stays so that is a 20% discount. I use it very often. The deal expires February 2020. There is a 50,000 point bonus for getting the card, it is free first year, 2 points per $ all spending and redemptions are easier than any other card.
I also have Marriott, SPG, Hyatt and IHG, for all of them the value of the free night is considerably greater than the annual fee, so there is no reason not to have them.
I also have Marriott, SPG, Hyatt and IHG, for all of them the value of the free night is considerably greater than the annual fee, so there is no reason not to have them.
Nov 12, 2018, 1:03 pm
#39
Join Date: Sep 2001
Location: San Diego, CA, USA
Posts: 244
I have accumulated the following -- most as principal, a couple as secondary
Marriott Rewards Visa Signature
Starwood Preferred Guest Amex
United Mileage Plus Award Visa
United Mileage Plus Explorer business visa
Delta Skymiles Amex
Southwest Rapid Rewards Plus Visa
AAdvantage Citibusiness Select
I'm thinking of getting a Hilton card. Currently have Gold status from a status match, but it will expire next March. I see that there are bonuses offered on the HHonors Amex Ascend and the HHonors Amex Business. Which would be better? (or neither?)
Any other suggestions for next card? Chase Sapphire Preferred? Any cards I should dump? (The CitiBusiness is by far my oldest card, if that makes a difference.)
I'm pretty clueless about all of this. I do have a small business, and I travel regularly, but not extensively. Usually Southwest. Some foreign Usually prefer Marriotts and Hiltons. I'd like to be more intentional about my credit cards and look forward to suggestions
Marriott Rewards Visa Signature
Starwood Preferred Guest Amex
United Mileage Plus Award Visa
United Mileage Plus Explorer business visa
Delta Skymiles Amex
Southwest Rapid Rewards Plus Visa
AAdvantage Citibusiness Select
I'm thinking of getting a Hilton card. Currently have Gold status from a status match, but it will expire next March. I see that there are bonuses offered on the HHonors Amex Ascend and the HHonors Amex Business. Which would be better? (or neither?)
Any other suggestions for next card? Chase Sapphire Preferred? Any cards I should dump? (The CitiBusiness is by far my oldest card, if that makes a difference.)
I'm pretty clueless about all of this. I do have a small business, and I travel regularly, but not extensively. Usually Southwest. Some foreign Usually prefer Marriotts and Hiltons. I'd like to be more intentional about my credit cards and look forward to suggestions
Nov 20, 2018, 11:32 am
#40
Join Date: May 2016
Posts: 15
Need a strategy for a 2020 trip
Current cards:
Chase Sapphire Preferred
Chase Freedom
Amex Blue
So my wife and I have a 10 year anniversary coming up in 2020, and it coincides with a major birthday milestone for myself. I have a few cards in my wallet that I've been gathering points with, which is always enough to fly my family someplace (cheaply) once a year. But we were thinking of taking a really nice kid-free trip somewhere, hopefully first class flight, etc. so I'd like to rack up some points a bit quicker over the next year and a half. Need help deciding which card(s) to get for this strategy:
Chase Sapphire Preferred
Chase Freedom
Amex Blue
So my wife and I have a 10 year anniversary coming up in 2020, and it coincides with a major birthday milestone for myself. I have a few cards in my wallet that I've been gathering points with, which is always enough to fly my family someplace (cheaply) once a year. But we were thinking of taking a really nice kid-free trip somewhere, hopefully first class flight, etc. so I'd like to rack up some points a bit quicker over the next year and a half. Need help deciding which card(s) to get for this strategy:
- I have excellent credit, so hopefully getting some top-tier rewards cards won't be an issue
- I'm not interested in keeping high-fee travel cards too long, as I really only travel 1-2 times a year
- I'll be registering for a company-reimburseable training course for work soon totalling over $3k, so getting the minimum spend on one card could be an absolute no-brainer
- I can easily hit the minimum on a second card in a month or two
- It would be great to end up with a top-tier travel card in my pocket for potential access to a lounge or other perks on our trip, but that's not a necessity
Nov 21, 2018, 8:09 am
#42
Join Date: May 2016
Posts: 15
My wife would love to go to Hawaii, so to keep the discussion simple, I'll use that as my destination. Only time of year I'll be able to take a trip will be between the end of June, and mid August, so no shoulder-season deals for me. :-(
Nov 21, 2018, 9:04 am
#43
Join Date: Mar 2013
Location: EWR
Programs: World of Hyatt, Marriott Bonvoy, Hilton Honors, UA Mileage Plus
Posts: 1,255
Total points for Chase are just over 100k. I have ~50,000 cashback points on my Amex Blue, but they're mostly worthless unless I can convert them to a better Amex account and transfer them as MR points.
My wife would love to go to Hawaii, so to keep the discussion simple, I'll use that as my destination. Only time of year I'll be able to take a trip will be between the end of June, and mid August, so no shoulder-season deals for me. :-(
My wife would love to go to Hawaii, so to keep the discussion simple, I'll use that as my destination. Only time of year I'll be able to take a trip will be between the end of June, and mid August, so no shoulder-season deals for me. :-(
1) Sign up for Chase Ink Preferred and get yourself 80,000 UR points. With the 100k you have that is enough for a 7 night stay at a Cat 6 Hyatt. There is a beautiful Grand Hyatt in Lihue that is 25,000 points a night. You can transfer your UR to Hyatt.
2) Assuming it is 50,000 Membership Rewards Points, I try to find yourself a 100k AMEX Platinum sign up offer. You can then transfer 120k points to Singapore airlines and fly round trip first class on United metal. You can use your remaining MR points to transfer to Hawaiian airlines to island hop.
Hope this helps.
Last edited by jags86; Nov 21, 2018 at 9:14 am
Nov 21, 2018, 10:26 am
#44
Join Date: May 2016
Posts: 15
Where are you traveling from and when you say AMEX Blue do you mean Blue from American Express with non transferable Membership Rewards points or Blue Cash?
1) Sign up for Chase Ink Preferred and get yourself 80,000 UR points. With the 100k you have that is enough for a 7 night stay at a Cat 6 Hyatt. There is a beautiful Grand Hyatt in Lihue that is 25,000 points a night. You can transfer your UR to Hyatt.
2) Assuming it is 50,000 Membership Rewards Points, I try to find yourself a 100k AMEX Platinum sign up offer. You can then transfer 120k points to Singapore airlines and fly round trip first class on United metal. You can use your remaining MR points to transfer to Hawaiian airlines to island hop.
Hope this helps.
Nov 21, 2018, 11:37 am
#45
Join Date: Mar 2013
Location: EWR
Programs: World of Hyatt, Marriott Bonvoy, Hilton Honors, UA Mileage Plus
Posts: 1,255
Blue from American Express is the only MR earning AMEX card which doesn’t allow points transfers. By getting another MR card that offers points transfers all of your points will become transferable.