Posts Tagged With: Credit Cards

Activate Chase Freedom Q1 Bonus Categories

2014-12-31 Freedom Q1 ActivationHere’s a reminder to activate your Chase Freedom card so that you can get 5x points (or 5% cash back) on select categories for the first quarter (January – March) of 2015. Q1 categories are: grocery stores, movie theaters and Starbucks. Note that Wal-Mart, Target and warehouse clubs such as Costco and Sam’s do NOT qualify for the bonus.  You can get the 5x/5% bonus on up to $1500 in purchases.

The Freedom card is a favorite of mine because it has no annual fee and it earns Ultimate Rewards (UR) points. If you only have the Freedom card you can use URs like cash to buy airline tickets, hotel rooms and even merchandise (but please, don’t buy merchandise) at the rate of 1 UR = 1 cent. Or, if you have a premium Ultimate Rewards card like the Sapphire Preferred or one of the Ink cards, you can transfer URs to one of the associate frequent flyer or hotel programs get more than 1 cent per point in value.

Here are the current transfer partners:

Ultimate Rewards Transfer PartnersKorean Air is not currently on the list but is rumored to be returning as a partner in the new year. When they do, that means the three major airline alliances will each have a representative airline. And Virgin Atlantic miles can be used on Virgin America and Virgin Australia too!

So be sure to activate your Freedom Q1 bonuses by March 14, 2015 to ensure you’re maxing out all the points you can.

Categories: Chase, Credit Card Promos, Freedom | Tags: , | Leave a comment

Starwood Preferred Guest Credit Card from American Express

2014-12-13 SPG Referral

What’s better for airline points than the credit card tied to a particular airline? The Starwood Preferred Guest Credit Card from American Express. While it doesn’t have bonus categories for everyday purchases (though you do get 2x points at SPG hotels) the great thing about SPG points are their versatility.

For some airlines you can transfer SPG points to the airline at a 1:1 ratio. BUT, if you transfer 20,000 points they’ll give you a 5,000 point bonus and you’ll end up with 25,000 airline points! There’s a huge list of airlines including: AeroMexico, Aeroplan (Air Canada), Air Berlin, Air China, Air France/KLM, Alaska, Alitalia, All Nippon Airways (ANA), American, Asia Miles (Cathay Pacific), Asiana, British Airways, China Eastern, China Southern, Delta, Emirates, Etihad, Gol, Hainan, Hawaiian, Japan (JAL), Miles & More (Lufthansa/SWISS), Qatar, Saudi Arabia Airlines, Singapore, Thai Airways, US Airways, Virgin Atlantic and Virgin Australia.

They also transfer to LAN Airlines at a rate of 1:1.5. Do not transfer to United (2:1) or Air New Zealand (65:1) as they have bad (UA) or horrible (NZ) transfer rates.

Of course since Starpoints are the currnecy of SPG hotels, they can also be used for free or discounted rooms. Category 1 hotels are just 3,000 points per night, meaning this card could get you a free room for 8 nights just with the signup bonus! SPG properties include: St. Regis, The Luxury Collection, W Hotels, Le Meridien, Westin, Sheraton, aloft, element and Four Points. Don’t have enough points to cover your stay? No problem with the cash + points option where you can use points to discount the cost of the room. You can also use points to upgrade to larger rooms or suites, or even for nights at Caesars Entertainment hotels like Caesar’s Palace, Harrah’s, Bally’s, Flamingo, Harvey’s, Nobu Hotel, Paris Las Vegas, Planet Hollywood, The Quad and Rio hotels.

If you’ll allow me to refer you for this credit card you’ll get 10,000 Starpoints after your first purchase and 15,000 Starpoints when you spend $5000 in the first 6 months of owning the card. (As always, if you do not pay off your credit card bills each month, DO NOT apply for a new card!) In addition, I will receive a bonus of 5,000 Starpoints.

To do the referral I’ll need your first and last names and your email address. You can email them to me at 2btraveling@gmail.com. I appreciate your support!

Categories: Credit Cards, SPG Amex, Starwood | Tags: , | Leave a comment

Discover and Freedom Bonus Categories for 2015

Both the Discover card and the Chase Freedom card offer rotating quarterly bonus categories where you can earn 5% cash back (Discover) or 5x points (Freedom).  The categories for 2015 have been released.

Discover

Discover’s categories for the first quarter of 2015 are Gas and Ground Transportation.  That’s great for those who have to fill up often!  Also included are rental cars, public transportation like buses and trains, charter and tour buses and limos.  You can go ahead and sign up HERE and you’ll be all set come January.

2014-12-08 Discover 2015 Bonus

Chase Freedom

The Freedom categories are Grocery Stores, Movie Theaters and Starbucks.  Note that the Grocery Store category does not include Wal-Mart or Target.  The 5x bonus is limited to $1500 per quarter.  Sign up will be available on December 15th.

2014-12-08 Freedom 2015 Bonus

 

Categories: Credit Cards, Discover, Freedom | Tags: | Leave a comment

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