I just got married and my wife doesnt have a credit card so i'm thinking about adding her as a user. I have the chase freedom, but i'm thinking about upgrading to the Sapphire preferred or the Amex gold. I put the normal stuff on credit card such as gas, groceries, eating out, shopping, and a few bills. I want to be able to pay for flights when we go on vacation each year with our points from the credit card. I am a little concerned about the annual fees on both cards and if they are worth the fee or not, but they both have the fee waived for the first year so i can try it out. Does anyone have any cards they prefer for booking travel? Are the rewards programs better on one than the other?
OT: Credit card experts
- Thread starter civildawg88
- Start date
Where are you? Because Delta cards are worthless because their miles points are basically pesos.
If you want to get an airline card, I suggest the Citi American Airlines one (if you're near an airport that services United or AA), because flights are generally low miles, there are no blackout dates, and in my experience (the day before) there are always flights... Add in there the miles are good for United, British, Qatar, and a ton of others.
If you have good credit I would sign up for AAdvantage and wait for an offer in the mail. Their general offers on their site are good, but I held out for an offer in the mail and ended up getting 50,000 miles just for signing up (domestic roundtrip is 25,000).
It was $95 annual fee but they waived it for the first year, and when it gets to be 11th months or so I'm going to call and haggle with them (this is a real thing) and if I can't get the fee waived again I'm going to transfer my account to a free card, most likely their Hilton card. From there I'll either go with the sapphire or AMEX. AMEX has a looooooot of great offers aside from airlines though... So if you don't travel through the air a ton it might be worth it.
If you want to get an airline card, I suggest the Citi American Airlines one (if you're near an airport that services United or AA), because flights are generally low miles, there are no blackout dates, and in my experience (the day before) there are always flights... Add in there the miles are good for United, British, Qatar, and a ton of others.
If you have good credit I would sign up for AAdvantage and wait for an offer in the mail. Their general offers on their site are good, but I held out for an offer in the mail and ended up getting 50,000 miles just for signing up (domestic roundtrip is 25,000).
It was $95 annual fee but they waived it for the first year, and when it gets to be 11th months or so I'm going to call and haggle with them (this is a real thing) and if I can't get the fee waived again I'm going to transfer my account to a free card, most likely their Hilton card. From there I'll either go with the sapphire or AMEX. AMEX has a looooooot of great offers aside from airlines though... So if you don't travel through the air a ton it might be worth it.
Amex Blue Preferred is a good general one. It's free the first two years b/c you get a statement credit of $150 if you spend $1000 in first 3 months.
Try looking at Amex Blue Sky if you want a miles one.
Try looking at Amex Blue Sky if you want a miles one.
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I am in Jackson, MS. Now that southwest is gone. I have mainly been flying delta, but I could fly american or united also since they are serviced in jackson.
Citi has one of those chat things. I'd get on there and ask for a special offer. Who knows... They might offer you something ridiculous.
Not a credit card expert, but I would just do American Express Blue Cash Everyday or Preferred (depending on how much you spend on gas and groceries) and pair it with a no annual fee cash back card to use when places don't take amex.
I put basically everything on a credit card except my mortgage and utilities, and end up with around $800 to $1000 cash back per year. I'm sure you can do better with miles cards, but I like the fact that when I'm trying to book a hotel room or flight, I don't have to worry about blackouts, don't have to be tied to a particular hotel chain or airline, and I don't have to worry about my points being devalued or expiring. I also don't have to spend any time trying to manage or maximize my points. I just check every year or so to make sure the card I have is the best cash back card out there.
If you travel a lot for work so you spend a lot on airlines and hotels, you probably are better off with a rewards card instead of cash back.
I put basically everything on a credit card except my mortgage and utilities, and end up with around $800 to $1000 cash back per year. I'm sure you can do better with miles cards, but I like the fact that when I'm trying to book a hotel room or flight, I don't have to worry about blackouts, don't have to be tied to a particular hotel chain or airline, and I don't have to worry about my points being devalued or expiring. I also don't have to spend any time trying to manage or maximize my points. I just check every year or so to make sure the card I have is the best cash back card out there.
If you travel a lot for work so you spend a lot on airlines and hotels, you probably are better off with a rewards card instead of cash back.
GREAT advice. I just signed up, but avoided applying for the card yet (30,000 pt offer). I'm gonna hold out like you suggested.
I've had very little problems with Delta Amex..
Sounds like I might need to look at that American Airlines card, if really no blackout dates.
I have flown to Cali, Washington State, and Colorado(multiple times) with Delta miles..
Sounds like I might need to look at that American Airlines card, if really no blackout dates.
I have flown to Cali, Washington State, and Colorado(multiple times) with Delta miles..
They sent me 2 before I finally pulled the trigger. Like I said, they have good offers as it is, but the special offers they send in the mail usually are about 20,000 miles more than the same exact card on their website. My offer in particular gives me an extra 10,000 for hitting certain milestones ($X in the first X months).
SkyMiles Amex
I've had a gold SkyMiles Amex for awhile. I travel a good bit and use it for rental cars. A few months ago, I dented the door of the brand new rental car (yep, had 19 miles on it when it happened). The total bill was $1,300 for the repair but the Amex paid my $500 deductible. That protection just comes with the card apparently. Nice fringe benefit I suppose.
There may be some other cards where you can wrack up miles faster but I've been traveling Delta so long, it's hard to switch now.
I've had a gold SkyMiles Amex for awhile. I travel a good bit and use it for rental cars. A few months ago, I dented the door of the brand new rental car (yep, had 19 miles on it when it happened). The total bill was $1,300 for the repair but the Amex paid my $500 deductible. That protection just comes with the card apparently. Nice fringe benefit I suppose.
There may be some other cards where you can wrack up miles faster but I've been traveling Delta so long, it's hard to switch now.
Whatever works for you, works for you. I'm not trying to insinuate I know everything in the world about these things, but as someone who started off with 0 miles for both airline and am near 2 airports that service every airline in the world... I kind of approached it as "What's the best value?" I did a lot of research.
What I found was, for someone starting out with 0 miles, Delta has the least value. AA seems to be VERY liberal not only giving away miles but when it comes to redeeming them too (they gave me 5,000 miles for liking them on Facebook and some other dumb ****). Their partners outside of airlines include most popular hotels where they'll also take AA points and contribute towards yours.
They all say "no blackout dates" but I flew Memorial Day weekend and I bought my plane ticket the day before. It still costed the regular 25,000 miles. Technically within 21 days they charge you $75 but since I had their card they waived it. I legitimately booked a flight the day before Memorial Day weekend for $8 (taxes)... And I can book United airlines for the same 25,000 through AA too. Just be careful, the two airlines are the same now but United's rewards are not 1=1. It makes sense to get the AA even if you only fly United 100% of the time.
Just my $0.02. Delta cards are probably worth it if you live in a place like Gulfport or the Golden Triangle that operates only Delta flights.
One quick question. how do you sign up for a card and not apply for it? I just see the apply now button
You sign up for the AAdvantage Program and then it gives the "apply for card" option earning 30,000 points. I'm gonna wait though and see if something better comes in the mail.
I had a different credit card and an AAdvantage account (their rewards program, which basically takes an email to get) with barely any miles in it whatsoever and I guess AA/Citi buys information of people who have a certain credit score (perfect time to tell you that your wife won't be eligible for one of these probably) and match them with an AAdvantage account with not many miles in it, enticing you to add to that total.
I had like 1,400 miles in my AAdvantage account from like 1 domestic flight so when I got those offers in the mail they most definitely targeted me by saying "You have 1,400 miles now, but if you get or card you'll have 1,400 + XX,XXX!!!!!"
What I'm saying you should do is go to aa.com, sign up for AAdvantage, play one of their games or whatever for 500 miles just to have something in your account and trigger their system which puts you on their radar, and wait for the offer in the mail.
OR click on the tab on citi's website and ask one of their associates in the IM window if they can offer you any special offers. Don't settle. Whether that's for Delta or anyone else. If you hold off for a month they'll bait you with a better deal.
I basically got x2 the miles of what my card goes for on the website by simply throwing away their initial offers in the trash. If you have a good credit score and have a demonstrated interest in AA (ie have a miles username)... They'll do anything within reason to get your account.
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We use the Capital One Venture & can use the points for various travel expenses such as flights, hotels, car rentals, etc. Love it
Never leave home without it
Chase Freedom that is...
in April, they just paid for me a new computer, replacing one that died in it's 19 month.
Yes, I'll tell everyone.
Chase Freedom that is...
in April, they just paid for me a new computer, replacing one that died in it's 19 month.
Yes, I'll tell everyone.
One good thing about credit card is the rewards you earn, which can actually help you save. Blue Sky from American Express is a good card for those who travel a lot. Using such card, you can generate a free airfare without diving into frequent flier miles. You can get a cash back and a variety of other benefits, and some of the rewards could be used to book a flight anytime. Advance bookings and shorter-distance trips give AMEX holders real worth for their dollars. Here is the source: American Express Blue Sky.
I was in a work meeting and we got on the subject of credit cards. An actuarial guy at work looked at a lot of credit cards and said the best card out there was the Amex Blue Preferred.
Good site with a lot of info ...
http://creditcardforum.com/blog/american-express-black-card-requirements/
Says the AmEx Black sux. When the card first came out, the annual fee was “only” $1,000. Less than ten years later, AmEx jacked up the annual fee all the way up to $2,500. In addition, they’ve now tacked on a $7,500 so-called “initiation fee” just to get the card.
Site says that the Chase Sapphire Preferred Card has the 'best offer.'
When it first launched a few years ago, it was aimed at the top-earning 15 percent of American households. However many average Joes and Janes report being accepted, so if you have good credit and at least an average income, it’s worth a shot. I have heard from people with incomes as low as the $30k’s getting approved for it (but they also had great credit).
And vanity aside, this is actually the best credit card offer on the market because you can earn 40,000 bonus points after you spend $3k in the first 3 months from account opening – redeemable for $500 in travel rewards!
http://creditcardforum.com/blog/american-express-black-card-requirements/
Says the AmEx Black sux. When the card first came out, the annual fee was “only” $1,000. Less than ten years later, AmEx jacked up the annual fee all the way up to $2,500. In addition, they’ve now tacked on a $7,500 so-called “initiation fee” just to get the card.
Site says that the Chase Sapphire Preferred Card has the 'best offer.'
When it first launched a few years ago, it was aimed at the top-earning 15 percent of American households. However many average Joes and Janes report being accepted, so if you have good credit and at least an average income, it’s worth a shot. I have heard from people with incomes as low as the $30k’s getting approved for it (but they also had great credit).
And vanity aside, this is actually the best credit card offer on the market because you can earn 40,000 bonus points after you spend $3k in the first 3 months from account opening – redeemable for $500 in travel rewards!
Long time reader, first time poster here.
Just wanted to give my 2 cents. Some great cards have been suggested so far. The AmEx Blue Cash Preferred is great if you don't regularly shop at Walmart. They don't consider that to a grocery store, so you won't receive your full benefits. If you do get it, make sure to pair it with a Visa or Mastercard.
The Capital One Venture is another great travel card. I believe it's only $59 annual fee (first year waived). My only issue with this card is that its a Capital One card. They are very stingy with credit limits and just a pain in the *** to deal with should anything come up.
I recommend the Barclaycard Arrival Plus. 2% cashback on all purchases like the Venture, but you also get 10% of the miles you redeem back. Miles don't expire and can be used to any type of travel purchase on your card. They have a great signup bonus right now if you can meet it... 40,000 miles ($400) when you spend $3,000 in the first 90 days. Only knock against this card is the annual fee being $89, but they'll waive it the first year. If you don't like it you can always downgrade to the Arrival with no annual fee.
Best of luck to you picking one out. Don't think you can go wrong with most of the cards listed here!
Just wanted to give my 2 cents. Some great cards have been suggested so far. The AmEx Blue Cash Preferred is great if you don't regularly shop at Walmart. They don't consider that to a grocery store, so you won't receive your full benefits. If you do get it, make sure to pair it with a Visa or Mastercard.
The Capital One Venture is another great travel card. I believe it's only $59 annual fee (first year waived). My only issue with this card is that its a Capital One card. They are very stingy with credit limits and just a pain in the *** to deal with should anything come up.
I recommend the Barclaycard Arrival Plus. 2% cashback on all purchases like the Venture, but you also get 10% of the miles you redeem back. Miles don't expire and can be used to any type of travel purchase on your card. They have a great signup bonus right now if you can meet it... 40,000 miles ($400) when you spend $3,000 in the first 90 days. Only knock against this card is the annual fee being $89, but they'll waive it the first year. If you don't like it you can always downgrade to the Arrival with no annual fee.
Best of luck to you picking one out. Don't think you can go wrong with most of the cards listed here!