I love credit cards so much!

[wendow]

I bet they are getting a deluge of people wanting to PC the CSR, since the 2018 travel credit was just made available.

This is what I am thinking too and wondering if they decided to start having people call so they can try to 'sell' you on keeping the card.

 

[Ava]

I guess I need to read through the Swagbucks thread on here to learn the tricks. DW has had an account for I don’t know how long, but earns very little at it. (She also doesn’t do much with it at all.) I tried for a bit to earn more by running the videos, but they froze up a lot and it just seemed to be such slow going for the amount I had to sit there and “babysit” it. Do those of you who earn a lot do it mostly by running videos/apps? Or are there other ways (without spending any $ or signing up for a lot of trial offers, etc.)? Earning a few points at a time is just not motivating to me, even if it adds up over the course of a year or two.

I personally like Bing rewards. Maybe not as lucrative as SB in the long run, but it’s super easy. You can get at least 250 points per day for searches, plus extra for playing little trivia games or clicking links. It takes me less than 5 minutes to max out my earnings for the day. 5250 points = a $5 GC. I also used to like mPlus Rewards but it shut down unfortunately.

 

[wendow]

I guess I need to read through the Swagbucks thread on here to learn the tricks. DW has had an account for I don’t know how long, but earns very little at it. (She also doesn’t do much with it at all.) I tried for a bit to earn more by running the videos, but they froze up a lot and it just seemed to be such slow going for the amount I had to sit there and “babysit” it. Do those of you who earn a lot do it mostly by running videos/apps? Or are there other ways (without spending any $ or signing up for a lot of trial offers, etc.)? Earning a few points at a time is just not motivating to me, even if it adds up over the course of a year or two.

I personally like Bing rewards. Maybe not as lucrative as SB in the long run, but it’s super easy. You can get at least 250 points per day for searches, plus extra for playing little trivia games or clicking links. It takes me less than 5 minutes to max out my earnings for the day. 5250 points = a $5 GC. I also used to like mPlus Rewards but it shut down unfortunately.

I earn mostly by running ncraves, ngage and watch videos. I also do a lot of offers that are money makers. I'm not much into surveys. I just don't have the patience for it but one of my dd's loves surveys and earns a lot through those. I have 4 kids and homeschool all of them so I do not have the time to babysit anything lol. If it won't run on it's own, I don't do it

I'll have to look more into Bing. How much can you earn in a day?

 

[DisneyMandC]

I earn mostly by running ncraves, ngage and watch videos. I also do a lot of offers that are money makers. I'm not much into surveys. I just don't have the patience for it but one of my dd's loves surveys and earns a lot through those. I have 4 kids and homeschool all of them so I do not have the time to babysit anything lol. If it won't run on it's own, I don't do it

I'll have to look more into Bing. How much can you earn in a day?

If I do all of the searches/quizzes/little extras they send out, I earn a $5 gift card every 15 days. Not huge earnings, but it literally doesn't take more than maybe two minutes a day to get it all done. I have Target gift cards available to cash out for, but I think I've heard some people say that they have different rewards. It might vary based on when you've signed up.

 

[ski_mom]

If I do all of the searches/quizzes/little extras they send out, I earn a $5 gift card every 15 days. Not huge earnings, but it literally doesn't take more than maybe two minutes a day to get it all done. I have Target gift cards available to cash out for, but I think I've heard some people say that they have different rewards. It might vary based on when you've signed up.

So, do you just type in random searches - back to back - until you get the maximum on your computer and on your phone? I do bing when I think about it, but I need to figure out a way to remember to do it daily.

 

[DisneyMandC]

So, do you just type in random searches - back to back - until you get the maximum on your computer and on your phone? I do bing when I think about it, but I need to figure out a way to remember to do it daily.

That's usually what I do on my phone. On the computer, when you go to the Bing website there are headline news stories on the bottom that you can scroll through. I usually just click on each one of those scrolling through the list until I max out the searches. I usually do it all first thing in the morning so I don't forget.

 

[havaneselover]

So, do you just type in random searches - back to back - until you get the maximum on your computer and on your phone? I do bing when I think about it, but I need to figure out a way to remember to do it daily.

THere are four periods during the day when you can get a search win. They are something like 3-11 am et, 11 am - 4 pm et, 4 - 7 pm et and 7pm - 3 am et.

I really think this discussion belongs on the swagbucks thread though. Not everyone on this thread cares about swagbucks.

 

[amalone1013]

I decided to order packing cubes today for the ebags deal... I got all distracted picking which ones, and then forgot to use Chase Pay. D'oh!

 

[hsmamato2]

I wouldn't feel bad or envious of others about whatever your travel goals are, lol. Everybody has different goals - as long as it's what you want. If it makes you feel any better, the travel goals you list here sound better than anybody else's to me lol!

True! I love a lot of what I'm reading, and our travels sound much simpler..... but it is SO great to be able to travel at all!

This is what I am thinking too and wondering if they decided to start having people call so they can try to 'sell' you on keeping the card.

I was worried about this..... it's happening a lot I'm guessing. I'm gonna wait anyway for now

 

[marsh0013]

I decided to order packing cubes today for the ebags deal... I got all distracted picking which ones, and then forgot to use Chase Pay. D'oh!

Can you cancel the order and then place a new order with chase pay?

 

[Judique]

I had a friend who i got into churning but she isnt too experience with it with only a CSP then CSR. All she collects for is United.

I had a similar experience of cant afford it either, but i can totally understand it. We were trying to a friend quick trip to vegas for the new years but found air tickets at $350 rt, my other friend and I had enough points to fly SW for 20k points but $350 for the other 2 was just too much for them. Hotel was also pretty insane but using my points for hotel also works for us...

edit: im also quite jealous of the rest of you guys too. I started this game 2.5 years ago. i have redeemed for 1 upgrade from PE-->J for me and my mom, and 15k for Grand Hyatt in Taipei.

That is it. I saved up a lot of points for idk what yet lol.

I'm sitting on about 100K spg points. But, I've been a collector for 17 years or so. I use some yearly for different rooms. Sometimes at Hilton Head at the Westin there; sometimes in Jacksonville at the Aloft in Deer Park. I've used them in Washington,DC, Boston, Providence and in Montreal. In November I stayed in Clearwater at the Sheraton over a weekend. Love my spg as I get a little status even though I never pay for a room with actual cash these days as most rates meet my criteria for points use. Back in the day when purchasing nights gave free nights I would pay for the least expensive rooms, even going out of my way to complete a 5 night requirement one time by booking a room, checking in and going back home to sleep! 5 nights gave 2 free weekend nights in a $300 plus room, so it was a no brainer.

I wouldn't feel bad or envious of others about whatever your travel goals are, lol. Everybody has different goals - as long as it's what you want. If it makes you feel any better, the travel goals you list here sound better than anybody else's to me lol!

You've said it correctly! I've got the Carlson card for trips down I-95 to Disney and back. The yearly fee gives 40K points. I need 15K points each way. They also have a cash and points option that I was using before the card. I'll pay every few trips on the least expensive rooms, and get about 3 nights per year just from the annual fee allotment.

IHG - I've been doing this for maybe 20 years - free rooms in summer at the beach or maybe not always free - sometimes buying points can be much cheaper than the nightly summer rate. In winter if I do the beach room I always pay.

Got the Hyatt earlier this year and have plans for those points.

Applied for the Marriott personal on Xmas day and that will turn into nights and flights combined with my existing spg points.

All cards are keepers - you can't beat an IHG night for a $49 annual fee! Also 40K Carlson for $75. Same with the others. And combining with family makes it a nice getaway.

I haven't gotten into the UR points but give me time! I'm still ok with Chase. With the Marriott and Hyatt I'm 3/24 now, but will go to 2/24 soon. I'm saving those big spend app's for when I have to do a big spend - roof next summer. Right now I couldn't reach a 5K spend in 3 months so I have to move slowly. But, I've got points and the rest of my life and a high credit score, so I will get what I can use as I go along.

It's all about attaining what your family will use and enjoy.

Also, I don't like to talk about my credit card use. I'm afraid of encouraging someone to go in the wrong direction. I've had credit card debt in the past and know how quickly it can add up. I dug myself out several times as I came along - points don't mean much if you are paying interest. My big balances were many years ago but I still remember them. Don't want to go back or send anyone else there.

 

[amalone1013]

Can you cancel the order and then place a new order with chase pay?

I'm not sure... I don't see an easy button to do it. I also used reward points and I don't know if I'd get them back. Maybe this is just an excuse to order more packing cubes... lol.

 

[Judique]

I guess I need to read through the Swagbucks thread on here to learn the tricks. DW has had an account for I don’t know how long, but earns very little at it. (She also doesn’t do much with it at all.) I tried for a bit to earn more by running the videos, but they froze up a lot and it just seemed to be such slow going for the amount I had to sit there and “babysit” it. Do those of you who earn a lot do it mostly by running videos/apps? Or are there other ways (without spending any $ or signing up for a lot of trial offers, etc.)? Earning a few points at a time is just not motivating to me, even if it adds up over the course of a year or two.

I personally like Bing rewards. Maybe not as lucrative as SB in the long run, but it’s super easy. You can get at least 250 points per day for searches, plus extra for playing little trivia games or clicking links. It takes me less than 5 minutes to max out my earnings for the day. 5250 points = a $5 GC. I also used to like mPlus Rewards but it shut down unfortunately.

I am retiring, so I expect to have time on my hands for swagbucks and other rewards programs also. I tried doing this last year but I just didn't have time. That thread is sort of daunting but I'll get to it by February!
Strangely, I can work part time and make some good money after retirement. But right now, I'd rather do swagbucks for peanuts then commit myself back to the job!

 

[marsh0013]

I'm not sure... I don't see an easy button to do it. I also used reward points and I don't know if I'd get them back. Maybe this is just an excuse to order more packing cubes... lol.

Yeah I think it said to call to cancel. I do love packing cubes! I did the offer on my account and my husband's. Mine should be arriving today. They were on sale anyway right? Go for another set make sure you use chase pay.

 

[amalone1013]

Yeah I think it said to call to cancel. I do love packing cubes! I did the offer on my account and my husband's. Mine should be arriving today. They were on sale anyway right? Go for another set make sure you use chase pay.

I think I will I had an unexpected $15 in rewards so I'd hate to lose them, and we're basically starting from scratch because I want to ditch my cheap Amazon set (really cheap, like not even the Amazon basics ones...).

 

[mhartman09]

I wouldn't feel bad or envious of others about whatever your travel goals are, lol. Everybody has different goals - as long as it's what you want. If it makes you feel any better, the travel goals you list here sound better than anybody else's to me lol!

I guess I used a bad choice of words. I don't feel bad about what we've used our points on at all. In fact, we are exceedingly happy with it all. There is no way we would have been able to do so many WDW stays in just a year without learning all I've learned here and grabbing some great signup bonuses. I really just meant we'd eventually like to expand our travel goals to other types of trips. DH and I would really like to travel to lots of different places, but just haven't explored that until now. Hearing about trips from posters here and seeing pictures like those from calypso really drives the point home for us that our cc points can open up a whole new world of travel for us.

I always feel as though it's not really the "redemption value" that matters (although it does play a part), but rather the value to you and your goals at the moment that are important factor.

 

[miztressuz]

I guess I need to read through the Swagbucks thread on here to learn the tricks. DW has had an account for I don’t know how long, but earns very little at it. (She also doesn’t do much with it at all.) I tried for a bit to earn more by running the videos, but they froze up a lot and it just seemed to be such slow going for the amount I had to sit there and “babysit” it. Do those of you who earn a lot do it mostly by running videos/apps? Or are there other ways (without spending any $ or signing up for a lot of trial offers, etc.)? Earning a few points at a time is just not motivating to me, even if it adds up over the course of a year or two.

I personally like Bing rewards. Maybe not as lucrative as SB in the long run, but it’s super easy. You can get at least 250 points per day for searches, plus extra for playing little trivia games or clicking links. It takes me less than 5 minutes to max out my earnings for the day. 5250 points = a $5 GC. I also used to like mPlus Rewards but it shut down unfortunately.

So I finally got Gift Cards as rewards on Bing but I'm pretty sure they're all 6500 pts for $5. Some have a minimum of $10 for cash out and they're 13k. Took a couple months before they showed up even though I would get emails telling me I could cash out for them. The program is kinda weird depending on when you joined and probably other factors. However, I agree, it's very easy when I remember to max it out. Takes me a bit longer to cash out tho since I have higher points and I don't always max out my earnings daily.

If I do all of the searches/quizzes/little extras they send out, I earn a $5 gift card every 15 days. Not huge earnings, but it literally doesn't take more than maybe two minutes a day to get it all done. I have Target gift cards available to cash out for, but I think I've heard some people say that they have different rewards. It might vary based on when you've signed up.

I definitely have different ones than my husband does, but of the few I recall off hand I definitely have Target and PayPal. I've only cashed out once so far, but it was PayPal and pretty instant.

 

[Lain]

Last day of our Hawaii vacation and some musings about next year's trip --

We love Aulani, so much that we're talking about staying over Christmas for a third year in a row; but, gosh it's expensive. We paid the rack rate for a standard room this year, and it was $664/night. Last year, we had a standard view studio and paid $634/night. Luckily, we received an upgrade to an island gardens view room last year and were upgraded to a partial ocean view room this year. Looking at next year's rates for Christmas week, a standard room is $704/night, an island gardens view room is $784/night, and a partial ocean view room is $869/night. Taking advantage of Disney Gift Card discounts, Shopkick, Ebates (and I'm guessing I'm missing out on Swagbacks?), and having both my wife's and my CSR travel credits refresh in early December really helps lessen the hit to the wallet.

I know if you own or rent DVC, the cost of staying at Aulani is likely to be significantly lower, but making a reservation directly with Disney gives us the flexibility to modify or cancel our reservation up to 5 days before the start of our trip, which we value. But if you're paying rack rates that high, it becomes very hard to justify leaving the property and not making the most of all the inclusive amenities -- of which there are lots, e.g., Aunty's Beach House for the kids, character dining at Makahiki, character meet and greets around the resort, family activities out of the Pau Hana Room, live local music at the restaurants, onsite tours, the lazy river, water slides and multiple pools, an enclosed lagoon, etc. At the same time, Ko Olina is really a bubble of luxury out in West Oahu, without a lot of everyday conveniences like Starbucks, reasonably priced dining or much shopping options. Yes, you can drive to nearby Kapolei for Starbucks, dining, Target, Costco, etc. but visiting other parts of the island with Aulani as a base camp is going to be a trek. We stayed 5 nights last year, which felt too long if you're going to spend most or all of that time onsite; so we stayed only 4 nights this year, which felt like a good amount of time to enjoy all of Aulani's amenities. We did trek back to town a few times during our stay at Aulani for family holiday gatherings, so even 3 nights of nothing but Aulani might've worked for us.

Next year, we're thinking of splitting our Hawaii vacation between a hotel in Waikiki and Aulani. Staying with family is nice and free, but it can really be ... too much. The CSR's UR portal doesn't show hotel availability for December 2018 yet, but using Thanksgiving week as a proxy I'm seeing Aulani rooms available starting at about 35k UR/night or DVC studios for 42k UR/night. By comparison, some really fine hotels in Waikiki are priced between 17k-25k UR/night. This price difference really makes staying in Waikiki a more palatable option while exploring all of Oahu, before moving to Aulani for a few days to cap off your stay with some Disney magic.

P.S. For those like @Angrose who are thinking of staying at Aulani over Christmas, keep in mind that Aulani has a limited activities schedule on Christmas Eve and Day, so allow for two or more extra days before or after Christmas if you plan to enjoy the family activities or kids programs at Aunty's Beach House.

 

[snugglebug]

Aww, someone here must have used my referral link for CIP. Thank you so much! Those extra points mean a lot, we are now pretty much traveling as a family of 7 (6 + a significant other) so every point helps so much.

 

[GlamMistress]

Last day of our Hawaii vacation and some musings about next year's trip --

We love Aulani, so much that we're talking about staying over Christmas for a third year in a row; but, gosh it's expensive. We paid the rack rate for a standard room this year, and it was $664/night. Last year, we had a standard view studio and paid $634/night. Luckily, we received an upgrade to an island gardens view room last year and were upgraded to a partial ocean view room this year. Looking at next year's rates for Christmas week, a standard room is $704/night, an island gardens view room is $784/night, and a partial ocean view room is $869/night. Taking advantage of Disney Gift Card discounts, Shopkick, Ebates (and I'm guessing I'm missing out on Swagbacks?), and having both my wife's and my CSR travel credits refresh in early December really helps lessen the hit to the wallet.

I know if you own or rent DVC, the cost of staying at Aulani is likely to be significantly lower, but making a reservation directly with Disney gives us the flexibility to modify or cancel our reservation up to 5 days before the start of our trip, which we value. But if you're paying rack rates that high, it becomes very hard to justify leaving the property and not making the most of all the inclusive amenities -- of which there are lots, e.g., Aunty's Beach House for the kids, character dining at Makahiki, character meet and greets around the resort, family activities out of the Pau Hana Room, live local music at the restaurants, onsite tours, the lazy river, water slides and multiple pools, an enclosed lagoon, etc. At the same time, Ko Olina is really a bubble of luxury out in West Oahu, without a lot of everyday conveniences like Starbucks, reasonably priced dining or much shopping options. Yes, you can drive to nearby Kapolei for Starbucks, dining, Target, Costco, etc. but visiting other parts of the island with Aulani as a base camp is going to be a trek. We stayed 5 nights last year, which felt too long if you're going to spend most or all of that time onsite; so we stayed only 4 nights this year, which felt like a good amount of time to enjoy all of Aulani's amenities. We did trek back to town a few times during our stay at Aulani for family holiday gatherings, so even 3 nights of nothing but Aulani might've worked for us.

Next year, we're thinking of splitting our Hawaii vacation between a hotel in Waikiki and Aulani. Staying with family is nice and free, but it can really be ... too much. The CSR's UR portal doesn't show hotel availability for December 2018 yet, but using Thanksgiving week as a proxy I'm seeing Aulani rooms available starting at about 35k UR/night or DVC studios for 42k UR/night. By comparison, some really fine hotels in Waikiki are priced between 17k-25k UR/night. This price difference really makes staying in Waikiki a more palatable option while exploring all of Oahu, before moving to Aulani for a few days to cap off your stay with some Disney magic.

P.S. For those like @Angrose who are thinking of staying at Aulani over Christmas, keep in mind that Aulani has a limited activities schedule on Christmas Eve and Day, so allow for two or more extra days before or after Christmas if you plan to enjoy the family activities or kids programs at Aunty's Beach House.

Sounds like you go to Aulani regularly. Have you considered buying a DVC contract (resale) for Aulani and renting those points? You'd make a profit and then you can use those proceeds to pay for the CASH reservation you'd prefer. Yes, Aulani has higher dues but the resale price is much lower than most other contracts. The direct price on Aulani is insane (and soon to be worse!) Just food for thought. I was planning on an Aulani contract by the end of this year myself but now I've decide to wait a little bit and keep watching the resale market.