Airline/Hotel Loyalty Programs

[Jeff Lebowski]

Delta CEO teasing a potential walkback of the revised skymiles requirements. I'm thinking this may have been the plan all along. They knew they had to cull the herd, but they deliberately introduced it with extremely draconian benefits cuts and earnings requirements increases. After the backlash they can appear reasonable by walking it back, but not all the way. They just walk back to where they predetermined they needed to be with the changes. Then the permanent changes are greeted with more satisfaction than anger.

This was prophetic. Well done.

[Jeff Lebowski]

I am not a big fan of JetBlue, but they are running a deal now where you can get the Jetblue premium credit card and with $1000 of spending you get 50K miles. There is a $100 annual fee, but once you spend $100, you get a $100 credit. So the first year is free. JetBlue also has very low mileage rates for flights, so a roundtrip from SLC to JFK is 18K miles. Spend $4K to get to 54K points and you have 3 roundtrip tickets to NYC.

[Pelado]

We should have a repository of referral links so that if there's a card one of us wants to get, at least one member of our little clan is also benefitting from it. I'll start with a summary of some of the current promotions and benefits of the cards in my wallet for which I can get a referral (click on the linked card name to apply for the card):


Chase Ink Business Preferred - 100,000 bonus Ultimate Rewards points after spending $15,000 in first 3 months; 3x UR points on travel, postage/shipping, social media advertising, internet, cable, and phone services; 1x points on other spending; points earned by other cards can be transferred into the UR account for this card and each UR point on this card is worth 1.25 cents in purchasing power in Chase portal (25% bonus); $95 annual fee

Chase Ink Business Unlimited - 75,000 bonus UR points after spending $6,000 in first 3 months; 1.5x UR points on all purchases; no annual fee

Chase Ink Business Cash - 75,000 bonus UR points after spending $6,000 in first 3 months; 5x UR points on purchases on internet, cable, phone, office supply stores; 2x UR points on gasoline and restaurants; 1x UR points on other spending; no annual fee

Chase Freedom Card - 20,000 bonus UR points after spending $500 in first 3 months; 5x UR points on rotating bonus categories each quarter; 1x points on other spending; no annual fee

Chase Freedom Unlimited (I don't have this one, but I'm trying the same link as the other Freedom Card) - 20,000 bonus UR points after spending $50 in first three months; 1.5x UR points on all purchases; no annual fee

United Business Card - 75,000 bonus United MileagePlus miles after spending $5,000 in the first 3 months; 2x MP miles on United spending, dining, gasoline, office supply stores, and local transit; 1x MP miles on other spending; 2 United Club passes annually; free checked bag for holder and companion; unlocks additional award availability; $99 annual fee/waived for first year

Chase Amazon Prime Card - 5% cash back on all purchases at Amazon.com or Whole Foods; 2% cash back at restaurants, drugstores, and gas stations; 1% cash back on other spending; no annual fee

To qualify for the business cards, you don't have to be (wholly) self-employed. A side gig could be enough to qualify you - something as simple as collecting some extra cash on the weekends doing welding for friends and family.

Many card companies, including Chase, will automatically decline you if you've opened up 5 or more new card accounts within the previous 24 months (known as the 5/24 rule). So you want to be judicious in which accounts you open to make sure that the juice is worth the squeeze. Luckily, business cards usually aren't considered for the 5/24 rule.

Chase Ultimate Rewards points (along with American Express Membership Rewards) are pretty much the most valuable loyalty rewards currency. Their best use is generally transferring them as needed to airline or hotel transfer partners for specific award spots. They can also be used in the Chase Travel Portal.

Your spending strategy doesn't have to be this complex (though it can also be much more intricate). In general, when I first get a card, I put all my spending on it to make sure I get the bonus points/miles. After the bonus has been earned, I revert to using whichever card gets me the most points for the purchase. For example, I only use the Chase Amazon Prime Card for Amazon purchases. I use the Chase Ink Business Cash card for internet, phone, cable, and office supply store purchases since I get 5x Ultimate Rewards points. I use the Chase Ink Business Preferred for any travel, postage, or social media advertising to take advantage of the 3x UR points. All the non-bonus category spending goes on the Chase Ink Business Unlimited since it gets 1.5x points instead of just 1x like the other cards.

I just got the United Business Card approval today. I don't anticipate using this card a lot for a couple different reasons. First, it provides MileagePlus miles instead of Ultimate Rewards points. UR points are more valuable than MP miles. Second, the bonus categories are not particularly exciting. I don't anticipate racking up a lot of United purchases, and even if I did, it would generally be wiser for me to use the Chase Ink Business Preferred to get 3x UR points instead of 2x MP miles. Some of the benefits that spurred me to apply: 1) It unlocks the same award availability than is available to the elite MP members without having to obtain elite status 2) It makes upgrades more likely for me and my travelling companion(s) 3) It opens up access to Chase's Luxury Hotel & Resort Collection. I'm skeptical that there will be any properties in the Collection that would be considered a bargain, but I couldn't see the options at all without the card, so now I'll be able to see the options there, at least. So there are some benefits to the card, including the 75k bonus miles with very little risk since the $99 fee is waived for the first year.

I also have the CitiBank Costco Card, which I use for 4% cash back on gasoline and 2% cash back on other Costco purchases. Unfortunately, I didn't see any referral bonus links there.

So what cards do you all have? Don't forget to include referral links where available so you can rack up some free rewards by all us suckers following your example.

Updating with new links and some additional cards:

Any Southwest Rapid Rewards card - This is a great way to get Southwest's Companion Pass, which may be the best benefit in travel (if you're willing to condescend to fly on SWA). The Companion Pass can be earned either by flying a lot in one year or by accumulating at least 135k Rapid Rewards points in a single year. Once earned, the Companion Pass allows a companion to travel with you for essentially free (only have to pay the taxes) for as many flights as you want to anywhere SWA flies (as long as there is an open seat) during the remainder of the year in which the pass is earned, plus the following year.

Accumulating 135k RR points is easy if you get both the Southwest Rapid Rewards Performance Business card along with one of their personal cards (Plus, Premier, or Priority). The Southwest RR Performance Business card will also reimburse you for your Global Entry or TSA Precheck application.

Remember - to qualify for the business cards, you don't have to be (wholly) self-employed. A side gig could be enough to qualify you - something as simple as collecting some extra cash on the weekends doing welding for friends and family.

Any Chase Ink Business card - Really nice bonus awards with one of the best transferable currencies (Ultimate Rewards). I have the Ink Business Preferred, Ink Business Unlimited, and Ink Business Cash cards, and I'm still using them as I described in the quoted post. Those cards are offering introductory bonuses of up to 100k UR points each, all transferable if you have either the Ink Business Preferred or one of the Sapphire cards. The Ink Business Premier card is also available through this link with up to $1,000 cash back bonus offer, but - last I checked - it doesn't work with Ultimate Rewards.

Chase Freedom Unlimited or Freedom Flex card - These cards can also accumulate Ultimate Rewards points and are currently offering intro bonuses of $200 or 20k UR points each.

Any United MileagePlus card - If you're going to be flying United (or want to book another Star Alliance carrier through United), these cards can get you some nice benefits - bonus miles, unlocking award seats, and even reimbursing you for your Global Entry or TSA Precheck application.

Amazon Prime card - Get 5% cash back on purchases from Amazon or Whole Foods.

[Pelado]

Who has the Chase Sapphire Reserve or Chase Sapphire Preferred card? I'm considering applying and it seems like at least one of you should get a referral bonus for it. So please provide a referral link.

[Jeff Lebowski]

Updating with new links and some additional cards:

Any Southwest Rapid Rewards card - This is a great way to get Southwest's Companion Pass, which may be the best benefit in travel (if you're willing to condescend to fly on SWA). The Companion Pass can be earned either by flying a lot in one year or by accumulating at least 135k Rapid Rewards points in a single year. Once earned, the Companion Pass allows a companion to travel with you for essentially free (only have to pay the taxes) for as many flights as you want to anywhere SWA flies (as long as there is an open seat) during the remainder of the year in which the pass is earned, plus the following year.

Accumulating 135k RR points is easy if you get both the Southwest Rapid Rewards Performance Business card along with one of their personal cards (Plus, Premier, or Priority). The Southwest RR Performance Business card will also reimburse you for your Global Entry or TSA Precheck application.

Remember - to qualify for the business cards, you don't have to be (wholly) self-employed. A side gig could be enough to qualify you - something as simple as collecting some extra cash on the weekends doing welding for friends and family.

That is really tempting, but I can't remember the last time I flew SWA. It has been ages.

Any United MileagePlus card - If you're going to be flying United (or want to book another Star Alliance carrier through United), these cards can get you some nice benefits - bonus miles, unlocking award seats, and even reimbursing you for your Global Entry or TSA Precheck application.

My wife and I both got one of these, spent $3K pretty quickly and got 60K miles each.

Amazon Prime card - Get 5% cash back on purchases from Amazon or Whole Foods.

I have had this card for years and it is my default payment on Amazon. Why pass up 5% off of everything?

I think my next mileage card will be American. Give me a heads up when they get a good deal going. I think it was 75K miles a while back, but not at the moment.

[Pelado]

That is really tempting, but I can't remember the last time I flew SWA. It has been ages.

My wife and I both got one of these, spent $3K pretty quickly and got 60K miles each.

I have had this card for years and it is my default payment on Amazon. Why pass up 5% off of everything?

I think my next mileage card will be American. Give me a heads up when they get a good deal going. I think it was 75K miles a while back, but not at the moment.

We don't all have welder money, thumbing our noses at Southwest.

With the 135k+ points that you'd get from this strategy plus the companion pass, maybe flying SWA would become more common for you.

[Bo Diddley]

I have had this card for years and it is my default payment on Amazon. Why pass up 5% off of everything?

Yep. This is one of the no brainers in credit cards.

[Copelius]

My wife thinks we have too many credit cards already, but I may just do it anyhow. Amazon, that is.

[bluegoose]

We have used the Southwest Rapid Rewards business card for years. Its a great card if you do much domestic travel. We haven't paid for a US flight for years, and with three kids away at college, I'm guessing we'll be getting even more use out of it over the next couple of years. Companion pass is fantastic.

I've considered the Amazon card for years. I like the idea of the 5% back, but that takes away a bunch of our Southwest points.

[Pelado]

We have used the Southwest Rapid Rewards business card for years. Its a great card if you do much domestic travel. We haven't paid for a US flight for years, and with three kids away at college, I'm guessing we'll be getting even more use out of it over the next couple of years. Companion pass is fantastic.

I've considered the Amazon card for years. I like the idea of the 5% back, but that takes away a bunch of our Southwest points.

You're only getting one point per dollar spent on Amazon using your RR business card, right?

If you're set on earning points/miles instead of cash back, then get the Chase Ink Business Unlimited card (no fee) and either the Sapphire Reserve card ($550 fee), the Sapphire Preferred card ($95 fee), or the Ink Business Preferred card ($95 fee).

Use the Unlimited card to get 1.5 Ultimate Rewards points per dollar spent for anything that doesn't have a bonus category on a different card. Then pair it with the Sapphire Reserve/Preferred or Ink Business Preferred to be able to transfer the Ultimate Rewards points to Southwest (or any of their other transfer partners). That gets you 50% more points per dollar spent than using the Southwest card.

Also, once you get the opening bonuses I described earlier for the Southwest cards, you can cancel the SW cards and then do the strategy again 2+ years later to get another companion pass.

[fusnik]

We have used the Southwest Rapid Rewards business card for years. Its a great card if you do much domestic travel. We haven't paid for a US flight for years, and with three kids away at college, I'm guessing we'll be getting even more use out of it over the next couple of years. Companion pass is fantastic.

I've considered the Amazon card for years. I like the idea of the 5% back, but that takes away a bunch of our Southwest points.

I took my first southwest flight in probably 25 years a couple weeks ago, don’t ask, awful circumstances, but it was a horrible experience.

Not knowing which seat you are getting, paying extra for a spot in line, people saving seats by inhabiting middle seats, no television screen, just an awful experience.

I ended up flying 2 legs to get home to avoid the nightmare.

We are with friends this weekend and I’m bitching about it and was rebuked by multiple people who said Southwest is the best, they don’t pay for flights, spouse flies for free, the CC is the best. I feel like I’m in a parallel world.

[Moliere]

I took my first southwest flight in probably 25 years a couple weeks ago, don’t ask, awful circumstances, but it was a horrible experience.

Not knowing which seat you are getting, paying extra for a spot in line, people saving seats by inhabiting middle seats, no television screen, just an awful experience.

I ended up flying 2 legs to get home to avoid the nightmare.

We are with friends this weekend and I’m bitching about it and was rebuked by multiple people who said Southwest is the best, they don’t pay for flights, spouse flies for free, the CC is the best. I feel like I’m in a parallel world.

I’ve flown them once in the past 20 years. It was also a horrible experience but not because it was southwestern. My problem with SWA is they fly out of Hobby, which is about 1:15 hours from my house. Super inconvenient and driving through the third ward at night is total sketch. I prefer to high brow it on delta and United at IAH.

[Clark Addison]

I flew Frontier for the first time a couple of weeks ago. It will also be my last time. Having said that, I did enjoy watching the boarding process. They started boarding over an hour before take-off, saying "We are going to try to depart early". lol. ok, sure you are (spoiler: they didn't). I didn't want to sit in a Frontier seat for an extra 40 minutes, so I just camped in a chair by the gate to watch the action. It was surprising (or maybe it wasn't) and also entertaining seeing how many people either didn't read the carry-on requirements or thought they wouldn't be enforced (just because your carry-on fits under the seat in front of you does NOT mean it is free. I brought a special thin laptop bag to make sure I was ok). About 10 people were pulled out of line, told that their bags were too large, and charged the $99 fee (yikes). Most took it stoically, some... did not. It helped that the Frontier employee doing the baggage enforcement was a large and imposing-looking man. It made me wonder if Frontier employs a bouncer-type at all of their departing gates.

The flight itself was actually not too bad. I've been flying this route a lot lately, mostly on the little Bombardier jets, so I appreciated being on a 737. Also, I avoided most of the fees (I had no luggage except my laptop bag), but I did splurge $6, I think it was, for an exit row seat (may have been $9). I guess everyone else was all tapped out after paying for their luggage, because the other two seats in my row of three were empty. It also helped that it was only a 90 minute flight.

Regardless of the benefits, I will not be making a return visit to Frontier, for various reasons. One being that, like Moliere, it isn't the most convenient airport. Another being that the ticket buying process reminded me of a combination of sitting with the F&I guy at the Chevy dealer and getting music from a sketchy website in 2004. There is a constant barrage of pushing new fees combined with an interface that actively tries to make you push buttons that will add costs.

[Bo Diddley]

We mostly fly Delta because we like the experience and we get companions passes through some of our cards.

I'm accruing flight credits on Southwest through our Amex Hilton Aspire cards. I think I have close to $2000 in the bank. So we haven't flown SWA in a while. We'll probably use the credits for Hawaii or a family trip.

You fly enough, you're going to have bad experiences from time to time no matter who you fly with. My worst experience was with AA. I still avoid them.

We just tried Allegiant for the first time on our trip to Anaheim. Provo to SNA is pretty nice. Plus most additional fees are waived because I'm in the military.

[BigFatMeanie]

We mostly fly Delta because we like the experience and we get companions passes through some of our cards.

I'm accruing flight credits on Southwest through our Amex Hilton Aspire cards. I think I have close to $2000 in the bank. So we haven't flown SWA in a while. We'll probably use the credits for Hawaii or a family trip.

You fly enough, you're going to have bad experiences from time to time no matter who you fly with. My worst experience was with AA. I still avoid them.

We just tried Allegiant for the first time on our trip to Anaheim. Provo to SNA is pretty nice. Plus most additional fees are waived because I'm in the military.

Do you board early when they let active-duty military personnel board early?