Delta and Hilton
 

I am a newbie to the forum and trying to figure out how to best maximize Delta and Hilton CC offers. Can I apply to both offered Amex cards? Is there a better method? Anyone know target FICOs?

May I ask why you chose Delta versus other airlines? Delta is one of the worst for redeeming award tickets.

Redacted-- Incorrect information on my part.

I don't think there would be a problem with having both.

Hilton also has a Visa credit card through Citi.

See http://hhonors1.hilton.com/en_US/hh/...creditcards.do

I have both the AMEX Hilton and AMEX Skymiles. Both were obtained for the sign-up bonus, but are now used on a limited basis, depending on current promotions and usage for Hilton and Delta purchases. Per rtravler's comment, it is getting tougher to redeem Delta mileage awards and Hilton has just devalued their points by 20%. Cash back credit cards with 1~2% back and/or up to an additional 5% with special promotions is starting to be a better option.

You can find links within the credit card section in FT and many web discussions on which card may be best and current offers.

Good luck,

-outoftown

To be helpful, it would be good to know:
- The approximate total spend you expect to make on the card(s)
- Whether you have any other source of points/miles, such as you already travel for business and would accrue xx,xxx miles or points
- Type of personal travel you would intend to take (intl vs domestic, general locations of interest, etc)

In general, if you are looking to get points to assist in both air and hotel travel, it seems the Starwood Amex card might be a better, single card as it can be used for air travel, while HH points cannot. This is not what I do, but I only want to maximize hotel stay opportunities, so what you really want to do with the points will make a difference in what would be the best approach.

There are some fantastic threads you can find via the search function that discuss card based point accrual. Recommend you search those out and read through them as background.

Starwood AMEX seems to be very popular with it's 25% bonus for certain airlines. 20k points -> 25k miles.

Thanks for feedback!

I am currently Silver Medallion working on Gold with Delta and Diamond with Hilton. Most of my travel is US domestic business, but I use the accrued points for personal. I was thinking about both cards to top off points and, for Delta, to help with my level advancement. As I travel with Delta and Hilton primarily, I had intended to use each card for its respective purchase to boost accrual.

Having both the Delta Reserve Amex and the Hilton Surpass Amex has worked very well for me. Good luck!

Welcome to FlyerTalk and the multitude of threads jimmyshaft. Don't be put off by the occasional gruff response as most of us will be willing to help.

Thanks, Italy! :-)

@Dickinson - Any idea of target FICO for those? I heard 720 for Delta Reserve, others have said 690+. Also, are you using the Delta card to book flights and the Hilton for your hotels as I was planning? It sounded like a good balance to me, but I also understand that others have recommended using a single card for all activity.

I've heard it's 700+, since 700+ seems to be considered excellent credit.