I love credit cards so much! v2.0 (see first page for add'l details)

[IFlossU]

Hi! Slowly coming out of “lurkdom” to throw in my 2 cents on the Skyliner. We rode it on Tuesday from Hollywood Studios to Epcot. While it was “neat” when we got off at Epcot hubby and I agreed we wouldn’t do it again. It came to a full stop 3-4 times during our trip and 1 of those times was for approximately 5 minutes. Long enough to begin to get a bit worried. It was also quite windy, and swinging around up there at a dead stop wasn’t awesome.

I’m not typically bothered by “rides” or heights, but with the multiple stops it wasn’t really enjoyable. I found it to be a bit disconcerting.

I’m sorry to hear about what happened this evening, and feel terrible for the people being evacuated. It crossed our minds when we were stopped for that extended period.

 

[gottalovepluto]

#disneyskyliner is at the top of my Twitter For You Trending in the US... #oops ?

 

[PolyRob]

#disneyskyliner is at the top of my Twitter For You Trending in the US... #oops ?

Twins!!!

 

[afan]

I don't claim white chocolate is chocolate...it's just the name people use for that 'stuff' lol. What do you call it?

We don't know that anyone was injured but when people are snapping pics and posting on twitter, and Disney is denying, it just looks so poorly on Disney. I think all Disney is admitting to is a power failure.

I don't call it anything because I think it's gross and I don't eat it. Well I eat it in peppermint bark but that's peppermint bark and I've yet to find it without the white stuff.

As for the other, from what I saw they just said there weren't any, they weren't denying it. I equate it to anything like this where things evolve, not to use the worst case, but like a mass shooting. There's tons of social media info and the news will report that but the city or whatever will go with what they know, no deaths etc until they've been told by the hospital/coroner/whomever. I'm not trying to argue about it, I just don't get why disney fans are so much harder on disney when anything remotely bad happens than they are with other companies they also like or their own city/county/state. Maybe it's just because we're in a disney community vs a much larger community so it sticks more. But I feel like people forget there are two sides, policies and procedures etc that are followed with anything like this and it's why with other "events" the news covers things are always changing as they learn more.

If it's running when I'm there in a few weeks I'll still use it.

 

[wendow]

I don't call it anything because I think it's gross and I don't eat it. Well I eat it in peppermint bark but that's peppermint bark and I've yet to find it without the white stuff.

I don't eat it either....except in peppermint bark...and I don't eat much of that either. One ghiradelli square a year and I'm good.

 

[snugglebug]

Ok, so I'm reading between the lines here, and if your banking deadline is 3/31, that means you have an August UY, correct? Remember, your UY does not determine when you can book. Your UY only determines your points expiration, and as such which "bucket" of points will be used when you make your booking. You can book vacations at any time. The time you want to travel determines your 11 month and 7 month booking windows.

Right now, since we are past August 1, we are in the current UY for August. Absent any banking or borrowing, these current year points will expire on July 31, 2020. Therefore, if you are not planning to travel before July 31, 2020, you should bank your points. This will give those points a new expiration date of July 31, 2021. But do make sure your travel plans don't change - banking points is a final transaction and cannot be reversed.

With regard to your question about booking, since you want to book a December vacation, your 7 month window as you stated is May. Alternatively, you may book your home resort of PVB 11 months ahead of time beginning in January. While 1 BRs are relatively easier to book, BWV is one of the most sought after resorts in all of DVC, and the first two weeks of December are the highest demand period for DVC of the entire year. I would book PVB at the beginning of your 11 month window just to make sure you have a room. Then, in May, you'll be able to edit that reservation at 8 AM EDT on the first day of your 7 month booking window and grab a BWV 1 BR, if it's available. If it isn't, no harm no foul, at least you have PVB and you'll be able to travel when you want. What you don't want to happen is have nothing booked at 7 months and turn up empty handed at 7 months because all of BWV is already booked.

A note about changing your reservation at 7 months - BWV Standard and Boardwalk View are extremely unlikely. At other times of the year, it's easier to get a 1 BR in those categories, but for the first week of December, I would plan on BWV Pool/Garden View and be pleasantly surprised if another category is open.

I hope that makes sense. UY is a tough concept to wrap your mind around, and I find it's very helpful to talk it out. Think of your UY as your calendar year for using a specific bank of points. Feel free to ask more question if you have them!

Tks. I think the part that was confusing me is the usability of the points once banked. I completely understood the entire thing when I joined, no issues. My brain has declined lol Am I correct, points should be in the bucket that coincides with the trip? That might be a good way for me to remember it.

What about BLT in December? I know this is a split stay and I'll likely use points of another variety to book the other part, MK area would be desirable (momma needs a lapu lapu at least once). View doesn't matter, I just want 4-5 nights under 168 total hopefully.

I'm assuming when I book PVB it'll use my banked points first? (Purpose of trip is MVMCP so definitely will be that part of the year) Since we won't need a 2bedroom, I don't see myself using all of my 2020 points this trip. I know once banked it's use or lose and I've put no thought into 2021 yet.

I'm making notes in my points tracking spreadsheet now.

 

[Haley R]

I don't eat it either....except in peppermint bark...and I don't eat much of that either. One ghiradelli square a year and I'm good.

The only time I eat white chocolate is in those hershey’s cookies n cream bars. Those things are yummy

 

[Judique]

Ok, so I'm reading between the lines here, and if your banking deadline is 3/31, that means you have an August UY, correct? Remember, your UY does not determine when you can book. Your UY only determines your points expiration, and as such which "bucket" of points will be used when you make your booking. You can book vacations at any time. The time you want to travel determines your 11 month and 7 month booking windows.

Right now, since we are past August 1, we are in the current UY for August. Absent any banking or borrowing, these current year points will expire on July 31, 2020. Therefore, if you are not planning to travel before July 31, 2020, you should bank your points. This will give those points a new expiration date of July 31, 2021. But do make sure your travel plans don't change - banking points is a final transaction and cannot be reversed.

With regard to your question about booking, since you want to book a December vacation, your 7 month window as you stated is May. Alternatively, you may book your home resort of PVB 11 months ahead of time beginning in January. While 1 BRs are relatively easier to book, BWV is one of the most sought after resorts in all of DVC, and the first two weeks of December are the highest demand period for DVC of the entire year. I would book PVB at the beginning of your 11 month window just to make sure you have a room. Then, in May, you'll be able to edit that reservation at 8 AM EDT on the first day of your 7 month booking window and grab a BWV 1 BR, if it's available. If it isn't, no harm no foul, at least you have PVB and you'll be able to travel when you want. What you don't want to happen is have nothing booked at 7 months and turn up empty handed at 7 months because all of BWV is already booked.

A note about changing your reservation at 7 months - BWV Standard and Boardwalk View are extremely unlikely. At other times of the year, it's easier to get a 1 BR in those categories, but for the first week of December, I would plan on BWV Pool/Garden View and be pleasantly surprised if another category is open.

I hope that makes sense. UY is a tough concept to wrap your mind around, and I find it's very helpful to talk it out. Think of your UY as your calendar year for using a specific bank of points. Feel free to ask more question if you have them!

Excellent reply!
@snugglebug - you should definitely book the Poly room at 11 months. Early December can be harder to get than any other DVC time, outside of Food and Wine festival.
The standard studio is the first to go, but happily for you, you are looking for 1 bedrooms - you have a much better chance of success. As previously noted, garden view will probably have the most availability. Good luck and hope you get your choice!

 

[Judique]

I don't call it anything because I think it's gross and I don't eat it. Well I eat it in peppermint bark but that's peppermint bark and I've yet to find it without the white stuff.

As for the other, from what I saw they just said there weren't any, they weren't denying it. I equate it to anything like this where things evolve, not to use the worst case, but like a mass shooting. There's tons of social media info and the news will report that but the city or whatever will go with what they know, no deaths etc until they've been told by the hospital/coroner/whomever. I'm not trying to argue about it, I just don't get why disney fans are so much harder on disney when anything remotely bad happens than they are with other companies they also like or their own city/county/state. Maybe it's just because we're in a disney community vs a much larger community so it sticks more. But I feel like people forget there are two sides, policies and procedures etc that are followed with anything like this and it's why with other "events" the news covers things are always changing as they learn more.

If it's running when I'm there in a few weeks I'll still use it.

I have no need or intentions of using it, since it's unlikely I'll be staying for any length of time at the resorts it serves. I don't like gondolas in general as I don't care for heights and I'm prone to motion sickness.

Public accountability - if this happened any other place there would be shutdowns, inquiries and political heads rolling. Disney makes a lot of its own rules. And gets away with it. They hush most of their mishaps and when they settle, it's all nondisclosure. I think the more you get into Disney, the more you 'beware the mouse', even though you can still enjoy the product. You have to take 'magic' for what it is, and in a community where people go 2-3 times a year or more, there are more informed individuals. News in Orlando is very pro Disney - after all you don't bite the big hand that feeds you.

 

[Judique]

Tks. I think the part that was confusing me is the usability of the points once banked. I completely understood the entire thing when I joined, no issues. My brain has declined lol Am I correct, points should be in the bucket that coincides with the trip? That might be a good way for me to remember it.

I would think of it more as 'your trip needs to be within the period when the points are still good.'
So with an August use year starting in 2019, there are 3 possible years to use the year of points:

The first year is when you can borrow. August 1 2018-July 31,2019.
The second year is the year you get them issued new. August 1, 2019 - good until July 31,2020 unless you bank.
The third year is the year you bank them into. August 2020 -good until July 31, 2021.

You are looking to use them in the third year. So, once you bank them, August 2019 points are good for any vacation between August 1, 2020 and July 31, 2021.

You can't pull them back into the 2nd year period, but you can book (using 11-7) whatever you want just so long as you check out by August 1, 2021.

 

[Judique]

Did you know that with the Target app, you just scan the barcode and the Target gift card gets added to your Wallet?

Tap your name on the lower right corner of the app, scroll down to "Gift Cards" and tap it, tap "+ Add gift card" then a scan the bar code.

To use your funds, tap "Wallet" in the center bottom row of the app and it will bring up a code to be scanned at checkout.

If I had the Target app I'd probably be doing that, but I've never really gotten into Target that much, and I have 'old person syndrome' where I resent having to download an app to get the best prices. I buy the $300 gift card and use it for some of the cat food we need. The rest comes from Chewy or Amazon. I buy very little at Target since you can't get the Disney gc deals anymore.

At some point Target stopped just scanning the gift cards at the register and they manually enter them. I'd be good with that, except the self serve registers are usually what's convenient at my nearest store.

Guess I'm going to have to DL the APP if I buy another gift card. If they hadn't given me 15 off 60 today and then returned another $10 to my gift card because the stock wasn't all there, I'd consider being done with them.

 

[striker1064]

Tks. I think the part that was confusing me is the usability of the points once banked. I completely understood the entire thing when I joined, no issues. My brain has declined lol Am I correct, points should be in the bucket that coincides with the trip? That might be a good way for me to remember it.

What about BLT in December? I know this is a split stay and I'll likely use points of another variety to book the other part, MK area would be desirable (momma needs a lapu lapu at least once). View doesn't matter, I just want 4-5 nights under 168 total hopefully.

I'm assuming when I book PVB it'll use my banked points first? (Purpose of trip is MVMCP so definitely will be that part of the year) Since we won't need a 2bedroom, I don't see myself using all of my 2020 points this trip. I know once banked it's use or lose and I've put no thought into 2021 yet.

I'm making notes in my points tracking spreadsheet now.

Yep, @Judique covered it pretty well above, but yes that's one way to think of it - you want your bucket of points to be in the same time frame as your trip. And yes, it will automatically use your banked points first.

BLT is another popular resort. If it's open, it's going to be Lake View, so plan on that, points-wise. 1 BR Standard and Theme Park View will both very likely be gone.

 

[disfanforlife]

It says only going to 66 here today but we have 75 projected for Sunday and 79 for Monday, then it starts to fall into the 60ties again. Makes me happy to have 2 weeks in Florida in November. Going back in February and working on something warmer for January. Have to stay here in December.

I am so looking forward to our trip in November. Not sure what other trips we are doing this winter as my DH might have jury duty.

 

[trenty]

How many keeper cards are you maintaining or sock drawering, with no intention to close?

Between DH and myself we have 7 or 8 sock drawered right now. I will let them close if the issuer wants to close them. The only one I plan on keeping is the Disney Visa. I never use it, but for some reason want to keep that one open. I put a small charge on it every now and then just to keep it active.

 

[Judique]

@Judique would you mind going over your FNCs and sharing which ones you find have the best value? This is a topic of interest for me and I think you are the FNC queen!

Keeper cards- I’m working on balancing a smart churning strategy with focus on adding keeper cards. Hoping the Amex Gold will be a keeper and definitely my Hilton card is a keeper for us although I hope to upgrade to the Aspire after a year!

Sure thing.
I have mostly Marriott and they were collected because I go to the beach in Ocean City, Maryland in summer and Marriott has a number of options there. June, July and August the room costs for these Marriott hotels are anywhere in the $250 to $600 range, so paying $95-$150 (Brilliant $450 with $300 credit) annual fee for a FNC was cost effective.
However - Marriott threw a wrench into that plan with peak and off peak pricing, so it's less convenient now. I'll have to do more work to find nights.

I have the Amex line up - Bonvoy Brilliant, Bonvoy Biz and the legacy Spg/now Bonvoy personal card. This provides 2 of the 35K FNC and 1 of the 50K FNC.

I also have the Chase cards - Chase personal and the now defunct Chase business card and I get 2 of the 35K FNC from these.

So far, I've used or booked every night as soon as I got it. And I've at least doubled the value of the annual fee. (I booked the Aloft in OC last minute in August for son and girlfriend- room rate a couple days before was over $500 and with taxes almost $600). Felt great to be able to do this for my son and they had a terrific overnight visit. I'm also careful about watching for Chase and Amex offers that can be used to buy Disney gift cards at a discount. The Amex cards are paying their way in offers. The Chase personal card is contributing some - I've earned $54.24 back on the Chase personal card offers. Mostly Staples, Lowes, Starbucks and Advance Auto purchases. This offsets the annual fee along with the free night.

I think my best value card is the Hyatt, but that is because I have a Hyatt that I go to that the free night cert is good at it. The free night is good up until 15k points and the Hyatt in OC costs 15K points. I already have my FNC booked for July 2020 along with another couple of nights using points. If this rate changes, and I expect it will, since I like the hotel I'll continue to collect points and find another location to use the night. Chase offers have earned me $51.72 on this card and the annual fee on my card is $75, so that's a pretty inexpensive room. I think it was $450 before taxes for the past summer.

I have the IHG $49 card. I used my last unrestricted night in July and now I'm looking at 40K or less nights for $49. Actually $44 as I used a Chase offer and got $5. This FNC can again be used at the beach, but I'll have a choice of 2 HI Expresses there. I drive to Disney and there are lots of places I can stop for a $44 night with free breakfast. Not going to toss this card until the room choices become nonexistent.

I have the Radisson card which comes with points - 40K per year for $75. This works as a road trip card for me. I used to have a 15K option, so that was 2 and a half nights. Now that option is 28K - still works. @calypso726 keeps this card for European trips - she can better explain her choices.

I actually prefer the Radisson system of points - if I don't want to use them in any particular year, I can let them build up, plus since I was doing 15k nights with them for a few years, I've got a little stash waiting for when I need them.

This use is a personal thing - I'm retired and can go where I want when I want, but I still have a vacation pattern - Disney in fall and winter, beach in summer, beaches and Hilton Head in winter, and I book these up to a year in advance, so I usually find the rooms I want with points or free nights. Someone booking last minute is not going to find it so easy as most points redemptions are listed as standard rooms. If I ever find myself left holding a FNC that can't be used for greater value than the annual fee or extended and then used, I'll get rid of the card. I also have DVC so my free nights are road trip nights or beach nights. I also pay cash when the nights I want are cheaper than the value of the certificate or when I know I'm going to use the certificate somewhere later for a greater value.

I can foresee that my cards will become obsolete as new products are introduced and the points needed for a free night redemption goes up. Such as, who is going to want a new Marriott card if you can't redeem the night anywhere? So eventually they will have to offer cards with higher FNC redemption values. They've already started this with the 35K's and the 50K on the Brilliant, and you can no longer apply for the Marriott card that gave a 25K FNC. Problem is, as soon as they fixed the 25K problem, they created the peak, off peak, so they are really trying to restrict usage to less expensive nights. This messes up people with all their eggs ie travel plans, in one basket.

Contrary to popular opinion, I think IHG's 40K limit is still viable - the unrestricted was such an outstanding value that it may have set the bar higher than one should expect. That said by someone who used 5 or 6 of those unrestricted nights at $49 a pop, put no spend on the card, and usually got values in the $400 to $500 range.

I see free nights as another discount versus actually being free, and so long as they fit my way they are valuable to me. But I look at how they fit into my travel plans, not at how I can fit a plan around them. This all varies for everyone, so work it to suit you! The only decision I truly wince at is when someone closes the $49 card. I just wish I could give them $50 and use it to go see the wild ponies!

Future hotel cards for me: I app'ed for the Hilton Biz recently and got the pop up. I'll be trying again when some time has passed. I'll be looking to run through all the Hilton cards for the points, but unless they have usable free nights, I probably won't keep them.

 

[Judique]

Between DH and myself we have 7 or 8 sock drawered right now. I will let them close if the issuer wants to close them. The only one I plan on keeping is the Disney Visa. I never use it, but for some reason want to keep that one open. I put a small charge on it every now and then just to keep it active.

Yeah, I still have the no fee Disney Visa. I should put it up for use on the reddit thing, but I'm kind of lazy about that. I really liked it when Chase was a big time sponsor and you got the wristbands for eat to the beat and illuminations. Never have used it for the photo or anything other than maybe a discount. But I have the castle one and its kind of pretty.

 

[Judique]

Hi! Slowly coming out of “lurkdom” to throw in my 2 cents on the Skyliner. We rode it on Tuesday from Hollywood Studios to Epcot. While it was “neat” when we got off at Epcot hubby and I agreed we wouldn’t do it again. It came to a full stop 3-4 times during our trip and 1 of those times was for approximately 5 minutes. Long enough to begin to get a bit worried. It was also quite windy, and swinging around up there at a dead stop wasn’t awesome.

I’m not typically bothered by “rides” or heights, but with the multiple stops it wasn’t really enjoyable. I found it to be a bit disconcerting.

I’m sorry to hear about what happened this evening, and feel terrible for the people being evacuated. It crossed our minds when we were stopped for that extended period.

First of all, Welcome! Glad you decided to come out of lurkdom.

Sorry to hear the Skyliner is not as user friendly as hoped - I had no intention of getting on the thing but was hoping it would help ease transportation from HS to Epcot so that I could ride 'my' boat without having to wait every single time except when I do an early opening and go back to my room at 8:30am. My own selfish reasoning.

So, since you lurk here, what are you up to with credit cards? And have you joined dischurners?
And, from your name, I am guessing you are a dental hygienist?

 

[GlamMistress]

I fell asleep early last night and missed all the Skyliner news. I've been reading various threads, forums, Facebook groups and tweets for two hours. I was crying laughing at one point. Not for the poor folks stranded. But for the image of people rioting after having to poop in a bag in front of strangers... and demanding free nights at The Contemporary for compensation.

Also, this does not deter me. I want to ride that thing so I hope it gets all fixed up and safe really soon! I logged in to my DVC portal... just waiting for my dates to open to pounce. I'm a September UY but I want to go next October.

 

[GlamMistress]

And now this:

https://twitter.com/x/status/1180823619800371200

 

[Alice Sr.]

And now this:

https://twitter.com/x/status/1180823619800371200

I agree, I feel sorry for the people stranded but I was laughing about "the bag" also. By accident do they mean in somebody's pants lol. I don't see myself ever checking it out now. I was talking about it with my oldest DD this AM and we were laughing so hard about what it would be like to be stuck in a gondola with my youngest DD and her family or any young family, just cannot imagine.