I love credit cards so much! v6.0 - 2023 (see first page for add'l details)

[sinnika]

I have not posted in a while. Been busy traveling to Germany. This time on a free flight thanks to our Military benefits. For those active duty and retirees on this board, the hub from BWI has quite a few flights to Europe. You have to sign up well in advance as a retiree (up to 60 days), however, seats are usually available when school is in session to many destinations in Europe. We were fortunate to fly directly into Rammstein where her daughter is stationed. And we were able to be on the same flight as she was when she was flying on orders back to BWI. There is no option for first class or Business seats on the Chartered commercial aircraft. However, they are a lot more roomy than current Airlines. Since they are older planes, the seats are a bit wider, and there is more legroom between the rows. This was the first trip where I incurred hotel expenses since our daughter was already out of her home and staying on temporary lodging at the Air Force Base. We managed to get a two bedroom one bath place for just the two of us which was nice to spread out, especially after arriving jetlagged. My husband likes to watch TV so I was able to sleep in my own room and get on Germany time. We even manage a day trip to Oktoberfest in Munich. I signed us up for a tour from the military base. Very convenient and nice not to have to worry about transportation back-and-forth . We went on opening day, and the parade was the highlight for me. We had a chance to visit one of the beer tents and enjoy some great music and food. We taxied into downtown Munich to do some shopping as well and see the glockingspiel. For all of those that are eligible for this travel benefit, I highly recommend it if you have the time and patience. The cost per person was about $60 round-trip for airport fees from both BWI and Rammstein. As of right now, BWI is also flying into Naples, Sigonella, and Rota, Spain. These flights usually leave from Norfolk, but the Norfolk runway is being redone right now until the end of December I did use my Venture x to rent a car and the same card for our lodging on the base. We did manage one night in town at a hotel, but preferred being on base close to our daughter and the grandkids. Our final journey was on a southwest flight from BWI to Houston With our daughter and her family. Again we flew on points and a companion pass, so no flight cost there.

 

[Judique]

I have not posted in a while. Been busy traveling to Germany. This time on a free flight thanks to our Military benefits. For those active duty and retirees on this board, the hub from BWI has quite a few flights to Europe. You have to sign up well in advance as a retiree (up to 60 days), however, seats are usually available when school is in session to many destinations in Europe. We were fortunate to fly directly into Rammstein where her daughter is stationed. And we were able to be on the same flight as she was when she was flying on orders back to BWI. There is no option for first class or Business seats on the Chartered commercial aircraft. However, they are a lot more roomy than current Airlines. Since they are older planes, the seats are a bit wider, and there is more legroom between the rows. This was the first trip where I incurred hotel expenses since our daughter was already out of her home and staying on temporary lodging at the Air Force Base. We managed to get a two bedroom one bath place for just the two of us which was nice to spread out, especially after arriving jetlagged. My husband likes to watch TV so I was able to sleep in my own room and get on Germany time. We even manage a day trip to Oktoberfest in Munich. I signed us up for a tour from the military base. Very convenient and nice not to have to worry about transportation back-and-forth . We went on opening day, and the parade was the highlight for me. We had a chance to visit one of the beer tents and enjoy some great music and food. We taxied into downtown Munich to do some shopping as well and see the glockingspiel. For all of those that are eligible for this travel benefit, I highly recommend it if you have the time and patience. The cost per person was about $60 round-trip for airport fees from both BWI and Rammstein. As of right now, BWI is also flying into Naples, Sigonella, and Rota, Spain. These flights usually leave from Norfolk, but the Norfolk runway is being redone right now until the end of December I did use my Venture x to rent a car and the same card for our lodging on the base. We did manage one night in town at a hotel, but preferred being on base close to our daughter and the grandkids. Our final journey was on a southwest flight from BWI to Houston With our daughter and her family. Again we flew on points and a companion pass, so no flight cost there.

Thanks for posting this! I sent it on to share with my DD and her Dad who is retired military.
How many people can the military retiree (possibly) sponsor on the flights?

 

[sinnika]

Thanks for posting this! I sent it on to share with my DD and her Dad who is retired military.
How many people can the military retiree (possibly) sponsor on the flights?

Only dependents of the retiree can travel space A along with the retiree. If the retiree is deceased, the widow and dependents can fly space A but only in the continental US.

 

[palhockeymomof2]

I know that there are a number of people here with Verizon, so I’m sharing this (from Slickdeals) - a very easy way to save $10/month per line for the next 12 months:

1. Open your My Verizon app.
2. Click on the Account icon at the bottom of the app.
3. Towards the top, it says "Hi (Your Name)" Click on the "Edit Profile and Settings" link underneath that.
4. On the Account Settings screen, scroll down to the Security section and click Number Lock.
5. On the Number Lock screen, turn off the Number Lock for each line. This enables other carriers to port out your line.
6. Go back to the Account Settings screen and click on Number Transfer Pin.
7. Generate a Number Transfer Pin. Since I already did it, I can't do it again right now in order to give you step-by-step directions. It was easy. You can figure it out.

And that's it. Wait a day or two and see if Verizon decides you are also a loyal customer worth giving a $10.00 per line loyalty discount for 12 months. YMMV.

Note: After a few days, go back into the app and turn Number Lock back on, so nefarious characters can't try to port out your phone number without your consent.

Thanks for posting wonder if this would be offered if we also have the $10 auto pay discount on each line…I guess it can’t hurt to try

 

[mfly]

Thanks for posting wonder if this would be offered if we also have the $10 auto pay discount on each line…I guess it can’t hurt to try

I've seen nearly exclusively success stories on this one. I don't know how long they're going to keep it alive.

We have the $10 auto pay discount and I received this as well...

 

[palhockeymomof2]

Big SW 50% sale ….select days/flights from 10/26 to 3/6…book by 9/28. I was able to take advantage for some flights just by changing them, didn’t have to cancel and rebook

 

[Alice Sr.]

I have been happily traveling on pnts thanks to all the recommendations here but am finally running out. A significant chunk was from taking the family to Aulani for 2 weeks in January. I used the balance of my Delta Plat card for my flight and a combo of Chase & AMEX for my youngest DD, SiL and 2 GBs on United. Thankfully my oldest DD took my advise and was was able to fly on her own pnts with Delta. I'm down to 250k pnts on my Amex plat which I don't know why I don't seem to use. I am 0/24 but below are the cards I have. Sorry I don't recall the initials so please correct me.
AMEX
Delta Plat Bus
Plat
Chase
SW bus
SW
INK Bus
United
Reserve
IHG
Independent
Cap One
Discover
Nordstrom

I fly almost monthly to see the family, I am in FL now and they are in MI and IL I use Delta and SW for flights to MI and primarily SW and Allegiant for flights to IL although for Christmas I am using Delta. I also try to put together a yearly trip with both DD's and their families (2 x 4@) which I fund (combo of cc pnts, DVC and cash). So the goal is to replenish as many travel pnts as possible. I don't really have spend like I used to so I might have to get strategic on meeting the spend. I hope I did not break any of the posting rules. Also tried to check in on the Reddit site but I think I have been inactive for too long. I would like access there again as well. Thanks!!

 

[Psychodisney]

Speaking of Verizon, has anyone had their bill increased recently? My bill just jumped a little over $30 and I can’t find out why. The statement just say plan changed. We didn’t change anything. Of course, despite DH calling Verizon multiple times in the past to make me the primary acct holder they wont always tell me he is the primary and they can’t talk to meHe needs to call and find out.

Mine went up after the employer discount one of my kids had ended. DD is a nurse, so we got that discount added but we're still up $20.

 

[DogCat]

I have an existing hotel reservation using Hilton points and cash. I just earned more points from my HH Sub and would like to use them instead of cash. I think the answer is no but is there way to apply them to my existing reservation? If not, I guess I have to cancel it first to get my points back so I can use them all at once. Anyone know how long it takes to get your points back? Thanks!!

 

[jujubiee4]

Mine went up after the employer discount one of my kids had ended. DD is a nurse, so we got that discount added but we're still up $20.

Ours went up 5-10 dollars. With inflation soaring I was actually happy to see it wasn't more. I'm getting
to the point Im afraid to open any household bill for fear how much it has increased. lol

 

[becauseimnew]

Speaking of Verizon, has anyone had their bill increased recently? My bill just jumped a little over $30 and I can’t find out why. The statement just say plan changed. We didn’t change anything. Of course, despite DH calling Verizon multiple times in the past to make me the primary acct holder they wont always tell me he is the primary and they can’t talk to meHe needs to call and find out.

The plan that you have increased in price, they now have new plans. Our original plan went from $30 to $35/month per line.

 

[becauseimnew]

DH just informed me that he can't take off 2.5 weeks for Africa. Which sucks because now we have 190K Avios stuck and we'll need to pay $100 to cancel our Qatar flights. I'm not going to make any changes just yet until he's 100% sure he can't take the time off. But I'm so upset because everything had worked out perfectly.

 

[palhockeymomof2]

I've seen nearly exclusively success stories on this one. I don't know how long they're going to keep it alive.

We have the $10 auto pay discount and I received this as well...

Thanks…I went into our account and it was probably disabled for years…I generated the pin so we shall see

 

[FreeDiningFanatic]

I have an existing hotel reservation using Hilton points and cash. I just earned more points from my HH Sub and would like to use them instead of cash. I think the answer is no but is there way to apply them to my existing reservation? If not, I guess I have to cancel it first to get my points back so I can use them all at once. Anyone know how long it takes to get your points back? Thanks!!

I would do a fresh search and see how many pts per nt the reservation is listing at now. If you are happy with the rate, you can try to change/modify your reservation and see if you can switch to a points only booking. If that's not an option and you booked a flexible/refundable fare the first time around, you can cancel and rebook using just points. Again, make sure the room is available at a points pricepoint you are happy with before canceling.

 

[FreeDiningFanatic]

DH just informed me that he can't take off 2.5 weeks for Africa. Which sucks because now we have 190K Avios stuck and we'll need to pay $100 to cancel our Qatar flights. I'm not going to make any changes just yet until he's 100% sure he can't take the time off. But I'm so upset because everything had worked out perfectly.

I'm really sorry. That's a hard one to swallow.

I think you'll be able to use the Avios at some point, as so many partners keep transitioning to Avios. I think Finnair just announced they'll be transitioning to Avios in 2024.

We also had our flights for the Maldives lined up pretty well- Etihad and Qatar in business and first, but couldn't get our hotels to quite align, so we are also going to have to cancel that. It's sad plus the cancellation fees...

 

[FreeDiningFanatic]

I have been happily traveling on pnts thanks to all the recommendations here but am finally running out. A significant chunk was from taking the family to Aulani for 2 weeks in January. I used the balance of my Delta Plat card for my flight and a combo of Chase & AMEX for my youngest DD, SiL and 2 GBs on United. Thankfully my oldest DD took my advise and was was able to fly on her own pnts with Delta. I'm down to 250k pnts on my Amex plat which I don't know why I don't seem to use. I am 0/24 but below are the cards I have. Sorry I don't recall the initials so please correct me.
AMEX
Delta Plat Bus
Plat
Chase
SW bus
SW
INK Bus
United
Reserve
IHG
Independent
Cap One
Discover
Nordstrom

I fly almost monthly to see the family, I am in FL now and they are in MI and IL I use Delta and SW for flights to MI and primarily SW and Allegiant for flights to IL although for Christmas I am using Delta. I also try to put together a yearly trip with both DD's and their families (2 x 4@) which I fund (combo of cc pnts, DVC and cash). So the goal is to replenish as many travel pnts as possible. I don't really have spend like I used to so I might have to get strategic on meeting the spend. I hope I did not break any of the posting rules. Also tried to check in on the Reddit site but I think I have been inactive for too long. I would like access there again as well. Thanks!!

You don't list your 5/24 status. Assuming you are 4/24 or under, there is a really great Chase Ink offer for 90k pts for $6k MSR/3 mos. You can have multiple Inks.

You can message the mods over at https://www.reddit.com/r/DISchurners/ with your DISBOARDS username, and they'll get you joined to the group.

 

[Haley R]

Ds tells us every single day that “we should go back to Germany” It’s funny because it was actually kind of a rough trip since traveling that far with a preschooler was new to all of us. It makes it so worth it to hear him talk about all of the things we did that he loved and somehow he’s forgotten the days that were hard.

 

[Duckbug.Ducktales]

I have been happily traveling on pnts thanks to all the recommendations here but am finally running out. A significant chunk was from taking the family to Aulani for 2 weeks in January. I used the balance of my Delta Plat card for my flight and a combo of Chase & AMEX for my youngest DD, SiL and 2 GBs on United. Thankfully my oldest DD took my advise and was was able to fly on her own pnts with Delta. I'm down to 250k pnts on my Amex plat which I don't know why I don't seem to use. I am 0/24 but below are the cards I have. Sorry I don't recall the initials so please correct me.
AMEX
Delta Plat Bus
Plat
Chase
SW bus
SW
INK Bus
United
Reserve
IHG
Independent
Cap One
Discover
Nordstrom

I fly almost monthly to see the family, I am in FL now and they are in MI and IL I use Delta and SW for flights to MI and primarily SW and Allegiant for flights to IL although for Christmas I am using Delta. I also try to put together a yearly trip with both DD's and their families (2 x 4@) which I fund (combo of cc pnts, DVC and cash). So the goal is to replenish as many travel pnts as possible. I don't really have spend like I used to so I might have to get strategic on meeting the spend. I hope I did not break any of the posting rules. Also tried to check in on the Reddit site but I think I have been inactive for too long. I would like access there again as well. Thanks!!

If you fly SW a lot, would you want to get more SW cards? Or the same ones you have but canceling and reapplying to earn the bonuses again?

By the way, you can use your 250K Amex MRs on Delta by transferring and even on SW by calling in and having them make SW booking with your points. Though the latter would not be a great value.
It seems you're comfortable with business cards so I would also look at the Chase Ink Preferred for 90K pts.

 

[StephPlum]

Big SW 50% sale ….select days/flights from 10/26 to 3/6…book by 9/28. I was able to take advantage for some flights just by changing them, didn’t have to cancel and rebook

Thanks for sharing. no savings for me.

Thanks…I went into our account and it was probably disabled for years…I generated the pin so we shall see

I was feeling like I was the only one with the lock unlocked. Generated a pin and a reminder to lock in a few days.

 

[leeniewdw]

Big SW 50% sale ….select days/flights from 10/26 to 3/6…book by 9/28. I was able to take advantage for some flights just by changing them, didn’t have to cancel and rebook

I checked my flight to MCO in November and got almost 5k back in pts (2 people). We still haven't booked our return because the cash prices on JB were so low (and times better) so we were kinda wait and see. Checked SW via pts just now and it was not discounted...interesting. We're flying down direct from RDU for < 3k pts each. The direct return is 13k.