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

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I just looked at the website---I don't like the fact that they need to be hand washed with soap (I love that I can throw my various Rothy's into the washing machine!) And they don't have very many colors (yet, at least). Waterproofing would be awesome, though.

I'm trying to find waterproof Chelsea boots that fit my superhigh, awkward instep and arch. I've tried on, ordered, and returned so many boots in the past few months :sad:
why not just buy good insoles to stick in some boots?
Does your wife have a preference between the Flat and Point?
I'm super curious about the Rothys...I need some dressy shoes with a good insole/high arch support...The Vionics I bought are barely ok for that.... the Birkenstocks are NOT pretty enough for dressy....(not sandals) I need to look for a place to buy these so I can return for free if needed..... (and yes I also use insoles in some of my shoes but it's tough to find the right one for dress flats etc.)
 
Anyone been to Candlelight Processional? My dd17 is performing with her choir on 12/14 at two of the shows. Do we need to do the dinner package? I want to make sure we get good seats! Any help? We've only been to WDW once in Dec and we didn't go to see the CP so not sure what it's like.
We went several years ago a few days after Christmas. Absolutely loved it! Depending on who is the narrator, a dinner package might be a must. In your circumstances, I would also think a dinner package is a must! The lines for standby can be pretty long.
 
Marriott Peak/Off-Peak Update: Check all of your bookings

Both @Lain and I posted comments regarding this yesterday. However, I don't think either of us explicitly mentioned to check all of your previously booked upcoming Marriott stays to see if you can re-book to save any points. There were a bunch of DPs on r/churning of people saving points today. Be careful on this too and check everything over to make sure you aren't messing anything up first. You don't want to be Bonvoyed here while trying to save 10k points or something like that!
Both of my Aruba reservations went up significantly. I'm hoping not to be Bonvoyed as they are points advance reservations!
 
Wow, ok thank you. I guess I am just surprised at the difference between the number of HH points needed vs the number of URs needed, for the exact same thing.

I tend to look at UR as cash. So 15,000 UR for example is $150 minimum for me. If the cash price is $150 or less I will normally book on cash. There are times where the cash price could be higher than $150 and I’d still book on cash if I know I have future redemptions planned that will get me the full 1.5 multiplier from my CSR or 1.25 from CIP/CSP.



I’m running into the same situation you’re seeing with Hilton points for our trip to Europe next year. I knew Hilton points were worth a lot less but didn’t realize how little! However I will likely still lean towards using Hilton points vs. cash or URs as we don’t stay in Hilton’s frequently in the US (I’m a Hyatt girl). It just blows my mind to see 6 figure redemptions for 1 night!
 
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Can someone who does this often tell me if this is normal??

I am simply poking around some websites for the Hilton Tokyo Bay from November 10- November 14 (this year... I am just looking to get an idea for next year).

4 nights for just a standard double room at 66,000 Hilton Honors Points is a total of 264,000 Hilton Honors points for the 4 nights.

Comparatively for the same room type, it would only be 15,280 Chase URs per night for a total of 73,721 Chase URs for the 4 nights.

This is the first time I've compared two "currencies" side by side. Does this seems normal to you all?
  • I've found Hilton points to be worth 0.5cpp on average. Typically they operate in a range of 0.4 - 0.7.
  • URs on the other hand are pretty clearly 1.5 cpp through the portal (unless the property you want actually costs more in the UR portal vs. booking direct).
So URs are generally worth 1.75x - 3.75x as much as Hilton points. Yours came in at 3.58x which is within that range. Both of those figures could change over time so it make sense to check back a few times to see how they move (if they move). In this particular instance, I'd lean towards URs - if the "ratio" dropped to 3.0 or below 3.0 I'd lean towards Hilton points.

This really comes down to how many points you have, and your personal preferences though. Some people would simply prefer to use Hilton points because the URs are more flexible down the line (and have a tangible cash value).

EDIT: My comments were based on you holding a CSR. @Lain's comment below addresses this a little better since he recalled that you only have a CIP. With a CSR you'd actually only pay 12,734 URs for this same property though - there's some food for thought, LOL!
 
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I have the Flat (2), the Point, and the Sneaker. The Flat are soooooooooooo comfortable---I have walked 4 miles in cities in them, and I have hiked (accidentally) for 4.5 miles (not much elevation gain). The Flats are my everyday shoe. The Point are my dressier shoe; in fact, I wore fuchsia ones with a black dress to a super-fancy awards party. For my shape of foot, they are not as comfortable long-term as the Flat. I wear the Sneaker with boyfriend jeans mostly. The Sneaker has a thicker sole than the Flat and Point and is great for running around.

Since discovering Rothy's, I now only wear them, regular sneakers for working out, hiking sneakers, and Ariat boots. I hurt my foot in Feb 2018 and cannot wear heels over 2" anymore.
sooooo..... how do these compare to a Birkenstock feel when walking? those are about the only shoes/boots my feet can tolerate (esp. love soft sole) without feeling like they're falling off..... I just ordered some cute rubber rain booties from Amazon which have a decent insole,and I'll add my own also for the arch.... change of seasons always has me looking for new footwear....
 
Can someone who does this often tell me if this is normal??

I am simply poking around some websites for the Hilton Tokyo Bay from November 10- November 14 (this year... I am just looking to get an idea for next year).

4 nights for just a standard double room at 66,000 Hilton Honors Points is a total of 264,000 Hilton Honors points for the 4 nights.

Comparatively for the same room type, it would only be 15,280 Chase URs per night for a total of 73,721 Chase URs for the 4 nights.

This is the first time I've compared two "currencies" side by side. Does this seems normal to you all?
Looks pretty normal to me. My room at Hilton Tokyo Bay for next June was 68k/night.
Yeah, the UR price is definitely "better" in the sense that it's cheaper. However, you might place a higher value on those URs than on Hilton points. I don't mind burning the Hilton points since 70k URs means a lot more to me for future travel.
That seems high for just a standard room. We booked a celebrio king ocean view room for 55k. It’s possible they have something going on at the hotel or near it November 10-14. I would check that. We were there for about a week and there were so many big groups that checked in and out. There was a huge college French group of athletes (who were horrible). Then a big group of school kids from japan (who were very respectful).

The reason we didn’t book through chase is because I couldn’t get a non refundable rate. I wanted to make sure I had a rate I could change if something cheaper popped up

Comparing currencies is a bit like dollars and pesos. UR is considered one of the most valuable currencies, and Hilton is one of the weakest per point. 1 UR point used on your CIP through the UR travel portal is worth 1.25 cents (and 1.5 cents on the CSR); by comparison, most people value Hilton points somewhere around 0.4 cents per point. It takes a lot more Hilton points to book what you could book with UR.

Let's do some early morning math.

15,280 UR x 0.0125 = $191/night. 73,721 x 0.0125 = $921.51/4 nights. With Chase UR, you're getting a fixed $0.0125 per point redemption value.

Let's use these numbers to compare with Hilton points.

$191/66,000 = $0.0029 per point on a 1 night reservation. $921.51/264,000 = $0.0035 per point on a 4 night reservation

@Haley R remarked that 66k/night seems a bit high, but you're getting 0.3-0.35 cents per point on the redemption using Hilton points, which is not totally off from what most people value Hilton points.

Now, there may be good reasons to book with Hilton points vs. Chase UR points.

Booking via Chase UR is effectively booking through Expedia, a third-party online travel agent, and you likely will not receive the benefits of any elite status you may have. As you know, the Hilton Biz and Hilton Surpass cards come with Hilton Honors Gold status. Gold status will get you complimentary breakfast and might get you a room upgrade. The Hilton Aspire card comes with Diamond status, which is Hilton's highest elite tier and gets you free breakfast, room upgrades up to a suite when available, lounge access, and apparently access to the Hilton Tokyo Bay's guest services manager who can charge park tickets to your room. Booking with Hilton points will get you the benefits of your status.

Have you considered spending 5 nights at the Tokyo Hilton Bay? I know the location isn't ideal for traveling around and seeing the rest of Tokyo. However, you're already planning to stay 4 nights. Booking through Hilton points will get you the 5th night free. You do not get a 5th night free by booking through the Chase UR portal. Let's do some math again.

$191/66,000 = $0.0029 per point on a 1 night reservation. $921.51+191 ($1,112.51 for 5 nights)/264,000 = $0.0042 per point on a 5 night reservation, and that's where most people value Hilton points.

264,000 Hilton points may seem like a lot, but that's basically two Hilton cards. The Hilton Biz and Hilton Surpass are regularly offering a 125,000 points SUB. If you go with the Hilton Biz, that doesn't count against 5/24. The Hilton Aspire regularly comes with a 150,000 points SUB. If you were to get any mix of 2 Hilton Biz, Hilton Surpass, Hilton Aspire, you're set; or if you get 1 and P2 gets 1, Hilton makes it really easy to pool the points you'd get from the SUBs. Also remember that Amex expects you to continue spending on their cards after you've met MSR and gotten the SUB, which is fine for the Hilton Biz and Hilton Surpass because both these cards award a Free Weekend Night certificate when you've spent $15,000 on the card in a calendar year, and you can apply these certificates to a weekend night (Friday, Saturday, or Sunday) during your stay.
 
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These sound wonderful. I also can’t wear heels after a knee injury. Plus a plantar fibroma on the opposite foot. But I just can’t on the price.
and I'm SO cheap in almost every other aspect of my life except my shoes (which MUST be properly comfortable)..... I literally buy almost every item of clothing at thrift shops.... but shoes I spend on. (not luggage,or purses or makeup lol,I'm a weirdo)
 
I just looked at the website---I don't like the fact that they need to be hand washed with soap (I love that I can throw my various Rothy's into the washing machine!) And they don't have very many colors (yet, at least). Waterproofing would be awesome, though.

I'm trying to find waterproof Chelsea boots that fit my superhigh, awkward instep and arch. I've tried on, ordered, and returned so many boots in the past few months :sad:

The Rothy's material is super forgiving - so if the issue is that shoes squish the top of your foot, they might be a good choice. I obvioulsy havn't tried the Chelseas yet, but the other shoes aren't waterproof as much as water tolerant - my feet might get a little wet when wearing them, but the shoes dry right out and aren't stinky or warped afterwards. If the issue is needing support, Rothy's aren't a great choice, in my opinion.

why not just buy good insoles to stick in some boots?

I'm super curious about the Rothys...I need some dressy shoes with a good insole/high arch support...The Vionics I bought are barely ok for that.... the Birkenstocks are NOT pretty enough for dressy....(not sandals) I need to look for a place to buy these so I can return for free if needed..... (and yes I also use insoles in some of my shoes but it's tough to find the right one for dress flats etc.)

Rothy's are really flexible (whch makes them great to pack), but do not offer a ton of support. You can put an extra one of their insoles in to make them a little more cushy, or you could probably add insoles of your own (I feel your pain about getting insoles to fit right, though). I love my Rothy's, and they work well for me for work, or as a second pair of shoes for part of the day, but I don't think I could wear them for an entire day with lots of walking without my feel suffering some.
 
Marriott Peak/Off-Peak Update: Check all of your bookings

Both @Lain and I posted comments regarding this yesterday. However, I don't think either of us explicitly mentioned to check all of your previously booked upcoming Marriott stays to see if you can re-book to save any points. There were a bunch of DPs on r/churning of people saving points today. Be careful on this too and check everything over to make sure you aren't messing anything up first. You don't want to be Bonvoyed here while trying to save 10k points or something like that!
I can't even figure out how to view the new award charts....what am I doing wrong?
 
I've done the TKTS line quite a few times, but not in some years. It used to take about an hour to get through the line. Is it still that much time or is it longer? It's probably the only way I'll do any NYC shows unless something comes along that I can't see in DC at some point.

Yup, still about an hour or more in line.
 
@palhockeymomof2 Did your Serve transfer post today? Still waiting for mine. On the Serve acct over the weekend it still said pending. This morning there’s nothing on Serve (not pending, not completed transaction, just nothing), and still nothing posted in the bank acct. It makes me nervous.
 
Has anyone ever been to a PGA lounge at the airport? Looking at the one in Minneapolis specifically, not sure if there are more. It says you will get a $15 credit/person. Just wondering if everything is paid and nothing complimentary?
We were there a couple of weeks ago on a Friday night. The lounge area was full, so we were directed to the bar/restaurant area. The had alcohol and cold, premade wraps for food in that part for the $15 credit. Really not impressed with the food there, but sorry I can't say what would have been available in the lounge side.
 
@palhockeymomof2 Did your Serve transfer post today? Still waiting for mine. On the Serve acct over the weekend it still said pending. This morning there’s nothing on Serve (not pending, not completed transaction, just nothing), and still nothing posted in the bank acct. It makes me nervous.

Mine still has not posted either and nothing showing up in the transactions list.
 
@palhockeymomof2 Did your Serve transfer post today? Still waiting for mine. On the Serve acct over the weekend it still said pending. This morning there’s nothing on Serve (not pending, not completed transaction, just nothing), and still nothing posted in the bank acct. It makes me nervous.

I'll give it until tomorrow before I get worried. I feel like Serve always takes forever for me, and I'm with BoA and I feel like sometimes there stuff has delayed posting after a weekend.
 
@palhockeymomof2 Did your Serve transfer post today? Still waiting for mine. On the Serve acct over the weekend it still said pending. This morning there’s nothing on Serve (not pending, not completed transaction, just nothing), and still nothing posted in the bank acct. It makes me nervous.

I'm in the same position as you; I did the transfer on Wednesday. It's still within the 5 business days that Serve says it can take, so I will just wait. But I agree, it is unsettling.
 
I think I'm almost ready to book my anniversary European trip next summer. My going dates are already out a d my coming back dates should be out in a couple days. Looks like there's lots of super saver availability as long as I'm willing to make connections. So DH has approximately 160k united miles and 68k URs. I have about 108k URs. I will probably need (70x4) 240k miles total. I want to transfer all his URs and then mine to make up the difference. Will that work? Even though I'm transferring into his account? How do I do that? I also have a united account with 60k points if that makes a difference. I'm very anxious about this for some reason. I guess it's my first time and I need someone to walk me through the process.
 
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