Hello All -

After spending a few weeks scouring this and other sites, I've learned that there is no "best" FF airline/hotel/car/card setup - it all depends on who you are, where you go, where you stay, etc... so I thought I'd pitch this specific scenario and see what comes up:

- Home base: DC area, typically fly out of Dulles IAD
- Volume: Once or twice a month, 1-3 night stays.
- Destinations: Heaviest in VA Beach, VA; Dayton, OH; San Diego, CA; and Ontario, CA.
- Accomodations: Usually stay at/below government rate.
- Car: Usually rent economy class.
- Card: I've been using my company card to book everything - considering switching to a personal rewards card.
- Current points: I haven't racked up enough to be tied to one airline, hotel, or car rental company, but I have small point balances with United, Marriott, and Hertz.

Question 1: What do you United/Marriot/Hertz folks think about that combo? Can I make a minor modification (maybe use different hotel or rental chain) to better effect? What rewards card would you recommend for those three?

Question 2: If I were willing to walk away from my small point balances, what do you IAD-based travelers consider the best FF/hotel/car/card setup?

Thank you!
Catfish97

Just my 2cents- Out of WAS Delta is not terribly bad for domestic rewards. (It is for international and some business class). It's at least as good as AA & CO for domestic economy rewards.

IAD is a United mini-hub so US/CO makes sense.

A lot of your traffic seems suited to SWA routes from IAD also.

Using the AmEx Gold that's free for a year is nice to transfer points to airlines easily. $175 after 1st year makes it a temp card.

Overall the Starwood AmEx that's $65 after 1st year is wonderful as you can transfer to many airlines and get 25% bonus on each 20K transfer.

Until you figure out which airline you use most, having one or both of these free for a year makes sense.