We get some booking advice for booking IHG Rewards Pointbreaks hotels, how to get Amex Business cards, learn how the Club Carlson Free Night actually works, Radisson Aruba became Hilton Aruba, read about this crazy McAfee dude, marvel at more pics of Pluto and more!<—–notice the strategic placement of the exclamation solely designed to increase clicks on our few affiliate links, I learned this stuff at Million Mile Secrets lol.
TBB Blog Mission: To Entertain. Educate. Inspire. In That Order!
You can support TBB by shopping with our AMAZON AFFILIATE LINK or click on the Amazon Banner on the right side, thank YOU!
TBB is always evolving, always! Such is life. But the mission does not…for now anyways lol. I will be limiting TBB blog posts to no more than three travel related links and then up to four other links (personal finance and miscellaneous topics ranging from hopelessly inspirational to downright bizarre, you know, eclectic stuff as always hehe.) On top there will always be miles/points related links to whatever I found worthy the previous day. Maybe taking a break at least one of the two weekend days. And I will always aim to end each post with a funny pic or gif. Like that Mile Nerd dude does 🙂
I am slowly working through past trip reports now that I got son to help me upload the pics. And I am thinking about doing blog posts of trip reports in parts (please be gentle, we have no staff!) with the aim of eventually gathering them all in one massive Trip Report eventually when I get through them. I am done with the first part: Detroit to Banff, hooray! Hey, I am the slowest trip report blogger, bar none! Don’t worry, these will not be 35 part trip reports lol. I am doing this more for our family as a place to show the grandkids what legend their grandpa was #kidding.
One of the few great bargains with hotel points is the IHG Rewards Pointbreaks list. Each hotel costs just 5,000 IHG Rewards points per night. The latest list is pretty unremarkable. Book fast if you can make some of these work into your schedule. Loyalty Lobby almost always is the first one out with it. The bigger blogs are too busy massaging their credit card affiliate links to…care! And here is some advice about how to book Pointbreaks hotels!
Personal Finance Digest has a few things to say about the fall out from the Rolling Stone article about our hobby The Hobby. “We ‘re doomed.” Can’t wait for Chase Sapphire Preferred Week lol.
Julian, as known as Devil’s Advocate writing at Frequent Miler, wrote a post about Amex Business card apps & how the 12-month does not have to apply. Very interesting, you bet I didn’t know that!
Out and Out has a list of Amex cards NOT issued by American Express.
Well, after reading this post by The Free-quent Flyer on how the Club Carlson annual benefit free night work, I am definitely leaning towards canceling not only wife’s card (after our stay at the Chicago Radisson Blu in a few weeks) but also mine too…And yes that stay was booked pre devaluation to get the two nights for one 50,000 points (now 70,000 points for one night, booooo!).
Hotel Award Charts by Travel Is Free (who is cooking something in his blog, very curious to see what it is).
Radisson Aruba has now rebranded to Hilton per Loyalty Traveler. I never got around to making it there to take advantage of the two for one Club Carlson credit card deal. Then again, whenever I looked at Aruba I found it underwhelming as a destination.
Edge of Stability by Jeff Boyce. A mind blowing timelapse video!
20 Stunning Tennis Courts to play in your lifetime. I am not a tennis fan but…wow!
The world’s largest sauna opened in Norway. From Architecture Digest. Seats 150 people…it’s hot in there!
The insane life of former fugitive and eccentric cybersecurity legend John McAfee. What a wild psycho dude, wow!
The Sharpest Photos of Pluto. Love them!
Asset Allocation: Make it Personal. Good one at the Vanguard Blog.
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Goals
Hi, about the Chase Sapphire. I just signed up for the Chase Ink and should get my 60K bonus points soon. I was going to also sign up for the Sapphire and get another 40K, bing, bang, boom. I have a Chase United Card I’ve used for about ten years and finally used 240K miles from it in the last couple of months.
So just starting into “power” miles earning. I only have another card which I rarely use, a Hawaiian Air card with around 250K miles on it, I intend to use the miles probably with Virgin Atlantic or ?
I know there is lots of advice out there on credit cards, and I appreciate that you have brought to light that some of these travel advice sites are really just credit card peddling machines.
But the hotel and cash back cards are a little complicated for me. I feel like I’ll get better value with the airline miles, using them for flights, then I will get with the cash back. Especially if I can get multiple of points eg. 2x, 5x, depending how I use the cards. The hotel cards, they seem great but it looks like it would take quite a while to get enough points to really be of use. I would rather be spending that money getting points for airfare.
My real point is to ask, what’s wrong with the Sapphire card, in my case as a second card, and mostly for the 40K bonus points ?
I know most of the people reading this site are waaaaaay more advanced than this question, and this doesn’t add much pizzaz to the discussion but anyway just saying ! ! !
Thanks again for this fantastic site, I love it ! ! !
Hi,
We like to make fun of the Chase Sapphire Card because it pays a lot to the bloggers pumping it in each blog post it appears! Just way too much play for the card.
Nothing wrong to get it for the first time of course. We around here have had these cards..more than once. It’s a good signing bonus at 40k. Just probably not one you keep for the second year. It all depends on your goals and spending patterns and tolerance for juggling multiple cards.
You need to be careful with the new Chase policy for the cards earning Chase Ultimate Rewards points. You are limited to 5 credit card apps for the past 2 years. From ANY bank (ouch). So take it easy and don’t go all gung ho if these points are your PRIMARY goal. I would take a breather and make sure that the CSP is your 5th go to card (assuming you have not been over already).
We also like to make fun of the Hawaiian card around here. It’s not a core card in our portfolios. Quite interesting you have that one!
Do NOT underestimate the hotel cards as they can provide great value. Many come with lots of points for more than one night or free night certs. A standard one we like to use is the Starwood Preferred Guest SPG where you can send 20k SPG points to 25k airline miles if you are so committed to spending miles.
It’s exciting when you first start in this….you say “:Wow, all these banks are giving me alll these miles/points and all I gotta do is meet the min spend and pay off my bills like I do every month(I hope you do!).” Yeah, what a country lol. Seriously, start slow and make sure you follow a system so nothing slips through the cracks and then you end up hurting yourself!
Now if you reply that your credit card apps were done at Million Mile Secrets I will ban you pronto lol.
I do have a credit cards page too but don’t like to plaster the links, 35 at at time in each blog post! So, consider applying at my site, thank you.
I gotta hit the bed now. Thanks for the kind words too.
Umm, something else, just read the linked article about Amex 75K rewards points. Sounds good !
(How do I get targeted ? )
🙂
Thanks, you are the best !
Click on Credit Cards on the top menu
Click on the creditcarddotcom banner
Click on “Free Interactive Tools” on top right corner
Click on CardMatch
Put in your info (no hard pull is done)
See what you get
If you don’t get much like me, try clearing cookies or this incognito browsing mode or whatever they call it, and try it again. Key is to make it a point to try this because these mega amex offers come in quick and go poof too!
You have groupies!
I love groupies!
Nice coaching from the softer side of TBB. 🙂
You know it 😉
F Lucky
Ramsey dude, not necessary. Gives ammunition to ingy to come out here and stroke the whole TBB movement (haha) as we ONLY whine and degrade others (WTF!).
Just don’t read blogs that get to you if you know what I mean…life is too short to deal with them!
F Jared (Subway)?
Lol…I think we may not get to see this dude again…
Buzz-
If Ingy is too busy helping people travel at prices they can afford to shill credit cards, I’m sure he is way too busy to come over here and be critical.
We should respect his busyness and not be so quick to judge. It’s like my Mom used to say about the kids in India…………
All this lingo you guys are throwing around, it’s making me dizzy, you are doing that on purpose to take advantage of me ? ? ? 🙁
OK getting back on topic here . . .
Got the Hawaiian card several years ago when I was working over there periodically. I’m a creature of habit, just started using it since I already had a pile of Chase United miles I was never using, then finally I switched back.
Just signed up for the Ink card at the branch, heard that was better for some reason, my credit is pretty gold plated. So that’s my only application. It is only Chase that has that 5 card rule ? The chick at the bank was quite cool at first, but after five minutes or so was telling me that I ought to also apply for the Sapphire card at the same sitting. I was demure and said no let me make sure to do my minimum spend on the Ink card first, muahahahahaha . . .
Thing is, I just took what my first and what I thought would probably be my last trip to UK and Europe, wouldn’t you know I met a nice young female of the opposite sex there and the rest as they say is history, for now anyway. So therefore having blown all my United miles on that trip in May going first class and on this Friday’s trip going Econ Plus . . . you get the picture.
What’s the advantage to applying in the branch again ? I was even thinking of opening an account there, the FlyerTalk people seem to have suggested it would get me extra good karma. George I am happy to support this best of all blogs. You are saying if I do some clicking then Amex will send me the awesome offer of beaucoup points ? I will have to re-read your post to figure it all out.
Also have seen mentioned Citi card megapoint bonuses but don’t remember how their points can be used.
Still, about the hotels, <> the points easily is the part I don’t totally get, ie. getting big chunks of bonus points for signing up and so forth, I don’t remember seeing that. Then again I may have mentioned I most often bargain hunt for hotels and vacation rental apartments, etc. Comparing the trip advisor, trivago, etc reviews against the prices etc., or going on vrbo, airbnb, and so forth. But sure if I could stay in lovely nice hotel accommodations then great ! ! ! Just that it can be nice to have a kitchen, washer, dryer, etc.
Sheesh this post, it sounds like it is all about me me me ! ! ! ! Sorry ! ! !
Ink card at the branch could be better, good move to at least check.
Yes only Chase has the new 5 app rule. It only involves cards that earn Chase Ultimate Rewards points: The Ink Plus, Chase Sapphire Preferred and the Ink Cash (I think this last one is still around).
Relationships from afar are so hard to maintain. Good luck.
If you can handle the credit cards and the minimum spends you can go for the Chase Sapphire card next, definitely before you complete 5 apps! Not sure if you will get a better offer in branch for this one though.
Good to have a Chase checking account and establish rapport with the bank staff. Check the blog of “Doctor of Credit” as he posts about checking/saving account opening bonuses often!
Yes reread that post regarding Amex offers.
Citi has its own proprietary points currency. It is called Thank You Points. It works just like the Chase Ultimate Reward points and you get to transfer out to airlines or just buy American Airlines flights from the Thank You website. The airlines you can transfer out to are not considered as good as the airlines you can transfer out to from Chase (like United!).
The Citi Thank You Premier right now has 50,000 signing bonus and no annual fee for the first year. Can be about $600 in AA airfare or transfer out to airlines.
Here are the airlines you can transfer out to (bookmark this: http://travelisfree.com/2015/05/31/master-chart-of-earning-miles-points-from-credit-cards/ )
American Express Membership Rewards points:
Delta Skymiles, AeroMexico, Air Canada Aeroplan, Flying Blue (KLM & Air France), Alitalia MilleMiglia, Cathay’s Asia Miles, British Airways Executive Club, El Al Israel, Emirates Skywards, Frontier, Hawaiian Airlines, Iberia Plus, Jet Blue, Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer, Virgin Elevate, Virgin Atlantic, All Nippon Airways (ANA) Mileage Club
Chase Ultimate Rewards points:
British Airways Executive Club Avios, Korean Air Skypass, Southwest Rapid Rewards, United Mileage Plus, Virgin Atlantic Flying Club, Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer
Citi ThankYou points:
Asia Miles, EVA Air Infinity MileageLands, Etihad Guest, Flying Blue, Garuda Indonesia Frequent Flyer, Malaysia Airlines Enrich, Qatar Airways Privilege Club, Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer, Thai Airways Royal Orchid Plus, Virgin Atlantic Flying Club
SPG points:
Aeromexico Club Premier, Aeroplan/Air Canada, Air Berlin, Air China Companion, Air New Zealand & Air Points, Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan, Alitalia MilleMiglia, All Nippon Airways (ANA) Mileage Club, American Airlines AAdvantage, Asia Miles, Asiana Airlines, British Airways Executive Club, China Eastern Airlines, China Southern Airlines’ Sky Pearl Club, Delta Airlines SkyMiles, Emirates Skywards, Etihad Airways, Flying Blue, Gol Smiles, Hainan Airlines, Hawaiian Airlines, Japan Airlines (JAL) Mileage Bank, Jet Airways, LAN Airlines LANPASS Kms, Miles and More, Qatar Airways, Saudi Arabian Airlines Alfursan, Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer, Thai Airways International Royal Orchid Plus, US Airways Dividend Miles, United Mileage Plus, Velocity Frequent Flyer, Virgin Atlantic Flying Club
On hotels, the point indeed is to stay in lovely nice hotels for free or close to free 🙂 Washer & dryers are over rated 🙂
Hope this helps
Are the Amex offers going to come to my email addy, at any random time ?
I need to read again about how their points work, I read that one a couple of days or so ago and it did sound good.
Usually not in your email addy….other than Delta card offers. Check the link in previous reply comment to you
One more little thing, just wait and wait till the big poppa of Amex offers comes through, disregard the small fry ?
Yes. 50k points is a good cutoff point lol
Can transfer Amex points to Delta, BA, Emirates ? Among others of course but I’m thinking in terms of international travel.
American Express Membership Rewards points transfer to:
Delta Skymiles, AeroMexico, Air Canada Aeroplan, Flying Blue (KLM & Air France), Alitalia MilleMiglia, Cathay’s Asia Miles, British Airways Executive Club, El Al Israel, Emirates Skywards, Frontier, Hawaiian Airlines, Iberia Plus, Jet Blue, Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer, Virgin Elevate, Virgin Atlantic, All Nippon Airways (ANA) Mileage Club
Amex used to give transfer bonuses. In the old days it was common to see 50% transfer bonuses! Amex has been really stingy with them bonuses. Key is to hold the Amex MR points in Amex until you absolutely have to transfer out to an airline to book a specific award that you can actually book. Keep them in Amex for…maximum flexibility (transfer bonus, award availabilty, etc.)
Really you are too generous with your help, I think I’ll just apply for Sapphire from your links, minimum spend is no prob, already did my Ink in the first month. BTW does Amex Bluebird count as credit card app?
Probably will wait on the Amex offers, don’t want to get confused with too much too quickly but again why not do it though this my favorite FF site, so direct and to the point.
Thanks for the good wishes and yes I have no idea as to whether it will work out.
Slightly tangential here,, a guy on Flyertalk posting about travel bloggers said their cookies will stick in your computer and pay them a kickback from any credit card you sign up for anywhere online in the next month, which makes me a bit uncomfortable. Not sure if I understood it exactly right but something like that, just want to make sure if I click the links here that some other site doesn’t get credit for it after all.
I do not think Bluebird count as a credit card app but if you can ask it in the latest blog post I am sure someone will answer it to confirm it is not.
You need to develop a system to make sure nothing falls through the cracks (miss a payment, miss a signing bonus—> OH NO!, etc). Keep it simple so you can handle it. Some have the time and organization skills to handle lots more than others. EVERYONE is different, develop your own pace, what feels comfortable to you.
Regarding the cookies & not properly crediting from the site you click on….I am sure it happens occasionally. Hard to trace and confirm unless people inform me with “I applied from your site for XYZ card at 11.33 pm on ZYX date”. And that takes time to do. Maybe just delete cookies first? Just assume it will credit properly. Not much else you can do to ensure this. Great thought. I should ask in my blog about how to ensure exactly what you are saying. Thanks for this idea!