<p>“I admit it was tempting to just take the check, but we fly a lot and like to pay as little and infrequently as possible for the privilege”</p>
<p>I’m with you there, HImom. But in our case, we’re really wishy washy about flights. Don’t ever want to get tickets with cancellation or change fees, and we cancel or change all the time. Delta doesn’t charge us any fees to mess around with our mileage tickets, which is very valuable to us, therefore we really only like to use tickets that can be cancelled with no penalty. We like the programs where you can get points and convert them to miles, therefore allowing all the changing. I’m not sure what other airline policies are on changing mileage tickets, but if you have elite status, it might cost you nothing. Southwest does sound like they have a good mileage program, especially when the mega signup bonus comes along.</p>
<p>So there it is. I’m cheap, like a good bargain, and like to change my mind!</p>
<p>I use Capital One, also. We have gotten SO many free tickets! You get the best bang for your buck for travel purchases. We spent a ton of money on a cruise - when I got home, I discovered that I could get a credit for ALL of it with my rewards points. DH also had a very large hotel bill that a company reimbursed him for, but it was on our credit card and we got a credit for the full amount.</p>
<p>We DO plan ahead and never change tickets, so that’s not an issue for us. We put every single purchase on it we can, including business needs. It adds up faster than you’d expect.</p>
<p>There is no annual fee for our card, and we have paid it off EVERY month, so they must lose money on us.</p>
<p>I might look into that Capital One, if they have a good signup bonus going on. We never pay our bills with credit card, and 5X points for bills…good deal. Our phone bill is about 260 per month, that could add up. I’m sure my H will just love adding another credit card bill to the ten or so we already have going!</p>
<p>I’ve had good luck with AMEX. You can transfer AMEX points into an airline frequent flier account if the airline is an AMEX partner. One thing I’ve noticed is that the number of AMEX partner airlines seems to be decreasing as each airline creates its own credit card with miles. Despite that, we’ve had good luck with the transfer of AMEX point. We saved up our miles for a flight to Moscow (Youngest kid was studying there–H and I and my oldest D and son-in-law went to visit her); we’re planning to take our immediate family to Croatia next year and have the miles to do it. The link below has a good explanation of how the transfer with AMEX points works. </p>
<p>The cool thing about the Chase Sapphire or Ink Plus is that you are not wedded to one airline program. You have a choice of three, United, British Airways or Southwest, or some of the hotel award programs. You can instantaneously transfer the points to any of the programs or redeem them for cash. </p>
<p>The Ink Card is for business owners, so if you can qualify for it, it is a great card that complements the Sapphire card very nicely. If you charge any telecommunication expenses, such as telephone, wireless, internet service, cable, you get 5 points for every dollar spent. With Sapphire, you can get 2 points for eating out, which is something I like to do. I also own a Freedom Card which has a rotating program of 5-point categories. In Jan, all restaurant expenses will earn 5 points for each dollar spent. </p>
<p>The points earned from these three cards can be aggregated and then transferred to one of the aforementioned reward programs, or used to buy tickets for any airline through their travel agency, or can be redeemed for cash.</p>
<p>I also like Capital One. Mine gets me 2 miles per dollar, sometimes more when a promotion is going on for a certain type of purchase and I can redeem it for travel of any kind. I can book through Travelocity with points or I can buy and get the amount refunded to my card. I’ve used it to rent a villa, rent a car, fly…any of that is doable.</p>
<p>Also, it has no international fees at all, which makes it a great card to use overseas.</p>
<p>Another vote for the Southwest card here. I also got the deal with 50,000 miles for signup and then charging a couple thousand dollars recently, I think they offer it pretty frequently. The thing I like about them is that there are no blackout dates. I have found other airline miles are just too hard to use. Southwest makes it really easy. We booked our spring break tickets using the signup miles already. :)</p>
<p>There’s another great feature about Capital One cards. Most credit cards charge a ‘foreign transaction fee’ for any purchases made outside the US. This can be close to 3% on all purchases. Even if you book a hotel or apartment from the US you are going to be charged the fee because it is processed overseas. Capital One is one of the few cards that does not charge the foreign transaction fee. So, if you are going to Europe you definitely want a no fee card that also racks up the points.</p>
<p>Will be shopping for one or two new cards in 2014. Already used the 60K signing bonus and getting ready to move get a sign up bonus with another card of two. Still love getting cash for my Capitol One Spark Business Card. Wish I could buy last minute United flights with points without so many restrictions and so many points required but we don’t have the status to do so. S does and rarely pays for his travel.</p>
<p>Using the signing bonus, H & I were able to redeem it for both of us to fly HI to LAX to SFO to HNL for under $300 + sign up points.</p>
<p>Was able to use AA points to get D a last minute flight to HI R/T from LAX for only 40K miles on partner airlines.</p>
<p>Himom, or anyone… Which airline has a 60k signing bonus. Plus, I’m usually pretty good, but it never occurred to me that I could get both southwest cards and get 100k points… Next time they have the 50k miles that’s what I will be doing. Seems like they do it every several months. Also, both husband and wife can get card, so you can get even more points.</p>
<p>I don’t see anything out there with a 60K signup bonus either, but I’m looking. Still hoping for Amex to do one of their 100K signup bonuses again.</p>
<p>Yes, it is a great idea for both husband and wife to do it separately. Why not get the double bonus?</p>
<p>Back when I signed up for Chase INK business card, it had a 60K point signing bonus AND gives you an extra 20-25% credit when you buy tickets through their preferred vendor (the prices are same as the airlines websites). Ink also gives you 5% for categories like DSL, phone, cell service and office supplies purchased with the card, which helps add to your point bonus.</p>
<p>Haven’t signed up for cards in several months–will have to look into it again soon. H hates it, but I’m fine with it. H rarely will let me sign him up, so we don’t get as much as we COULD, but it’s still nice to get some free perks. My 2% cash for using the CapitolOne is still my favorite.</p>
<p>If you have very high credit scores, \I don’t think it matters much if you cancel a card with a lower credit limit that you’ve only had a year or less. If you plan to apply for financing, it matters more what your credit limit is and you may wish to make such applications when you know your credit score is particularly high. Our credit scores are near the max and we don’t plan to apply for any credit, so a minor temporary dip in our credit score is fairly moot.</p>
<p>Thanks for the explanation, HImom. Would love more info about the ‘glitch’ that allows you to earn points by funding your husbands retirement with his CapitalOne card. Are you willing to share?</p>
<p>Sent your a PM. The wrinkle only applies to federal employees who have been continuously employed since mid 80s or before and are in original pension system.</p>
<p>We’ve been using a Marriott Visa instead of an airline card. I like it because the points count for “elite nights” (status) as well as for free stays.</p>