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

[pinkxray]

@Expiry- oh no, that’s horrible! We will definitely fly out 2 days before but even then I worry.

Do you mind sharing which cruise you went on? I have two I’m debating between.

 

[palhockeymomof2]

Next week I'm going to be booking SW flights. I'll book three with my account and DW will book one with her account. All four will be the same flight. I should get enough points for a companion pass a little later this year. My plan was to cancel her flight if there was an open seat and add her as my companion. Can I buy one flight with cash (CSR credit) and the other two with points in the same transaction or will I have to do two? If I have to make two transactions can I then call SW and get them combined into one confirmation number?

Unfortunately you can’t book with points and cash in the same transaction, and no way to combine the cash and points confirmations into one number

 

[pinkxray]

@*WDW*Groupie*- thank you for the AC info. I did notice they have their flights available. The economy plus seats are less miles than the regular but there are only 2. We have never flown anything besides economy so that will be fine for us.

Thank you for all the things to do near Vancouver. I have been debating between Seattle and Vancouver but only looked up Seattle so far. Glad there are things to see and do if we pick Vancouver.

 

[Expiry]

@Expiry- oh no, that’s horrible! We will definitely fly out 2 days before but even then I worry.

Do you mind sharing which cruise you went on? I have two I’m debating between.

We went on a 7 night DCL from Vancouver with stops in Stikine Icecap, Skagway, Juneau, and Ketchikan. This was only my second cruise, and I've only been on DCL, so I couldn't help compare cruise lines, but I could comment on our itinerary

 

[leeniewdw]

We're headed to a Kimpton in Charlotte in 2 weeks (attending a concert). My DH is a Platinum Ambassador with IHG but this is our first stay at a Kimpton. I keep seeing bloggers and insta travel people saying to email the hotel/mgr to ask about an upgrade. Does anyone here do that? This is just a 1 night stay, but I just feel weird doing that like "hey, I'm staying free on points but could we also be considered for an upgrade?" lol.

 

[elgerber]

We're headed to a Kimpton in Charlotte in 2 weeks (attending a concert). My DH is a Platinum Ambassador with IHG but this is our first stay at a Kimpton. I keep seeing bloggers and insta travel people saying to email the hotel/mgr to ask about an upgrade. Does anyone here do that? This is just a 1 night stay, but I just feel weird doing that like "hey, I'm staying free on points but could we also be considered for an upgrade?" lol.

I have only stayed at one Kimpton, but our upgrade was already done before we even got there.
You are entitled to one, so even if it feels weird, I think you could safely ask.

 

[smallsy]

Went for the CIP 8K deal and instant approval! I was going to wait til August and go for another MDD CSR/CSP but we have so many expenses coming up and no current MSRs so I figured why wait.

 

[chattadisser]

We're headed to a Kimpton in Charlotte in 2 weeks (attending a concert). My DH is a Platinum Ambassador with IHG but this is our first stay at a Kimpton. I keep seeing bloggers and insta travel people saying to email the hotel/mgr to ask about an upgrade. Does anyone here do that? This is just a 1 night stay, but I just feel weird doing that like "hey, I'm staying free on points but could we also be considered for an upgrade?" lol.

I'm not sure about the upgrade but Kimpton regularly has a "social media phrase" that if you tell them when you check-in gets you something. We stayed at the Kimpton in Nashville last week and telling them the phrase got us a choice of a bottle of wine, free movie, or a couple of drinks at the bar. You can google it to find the phrase to tell them. Kinda nice to get something "extra".

 

[DogCat]

Last week I applied for a CIC and was denied. My first denial. The nerve
Today I called recon and they asked some questions then said they will review again and let me know in 1-2 weeks. How much hope is there?

I'm also surprised it'll take that long. Once had to call recon for DH, about 2 yrs ago, and they considered and let us know right away. That one was successful, so I wonder if "we'll let you know" is a nicer way of saying "you'll get your final denial in the mail" lol

I haven't had a denial yet but I haven't been getting instant approval anymore either so I always worry. Based on the call, what was their concern? Is your total Chase CL and velocity okay or are you pushing it?

 

[FreeDiningFanatic]

We're headed to a Kimpton in Charlotte in 2 weeks (attending a concert). My DH is a Platinum Ambassador with IHG but this is our first stay at a Kimpton. I keep seeing bloggers and insta travel people saying to email the hotel/mgr to ask about an upgrade. Does anyone here do that? This is just a 1 night stay, but I just feel weird doing that like "hey, I'm staying free on points but could we also be considered for an upgrade?" lol.

You should absolutely ask at check in if they don't mention it. I would say something like, "I was just wondering if there are any Platinum upgrades available?" Sometimes you'll get upgraded in the app in advance. You could possibly message through the app in advance as well, but not sure if that functionality is available. If you're celebrating something like "adult only travel," you could mention that as a "celebration."

Also, after most of the check in is complete, don't forget to use the Kimpton secret password to the check-in agent, which is saying "No Shade." I say something like, "I guess I'm supposed to use the secret password, No Shade?" Each hotel gives a different gift, could be a sweet treat, could be cocktails vouchers, free parking, room upgrade, free breakfast, etc.

Summer 2023 between May 26 and September 3- "No Shade"

 

[FreeDiningFanatic]

Anybody been to Rome in the last couple of years? I am trying to plan our itinerary for our November Italy trip but the official sites of many Rome attractions don't work for me regardless of what browser I use. It's hard to know opening times and such. I could get tickets with third-party sites for, say, the Colosseum and Vatican tours, but it seems some of them have conflicting information. I would like to have the official times! Any help would be appreciated.

Also, if anyone has done any tours that you would recommend, let me know!

Italy trip report is in my signature. I see you received the official link to both the vatican and maybe the colloseum. If you book directly through either of these, it is much cheaper than through a third party. Both sites directly offer tours and tickets. There are specific rules on when availability opens up and there was a TA thread which was helpful for me.

Here's a link to the Colloseum underground tour. It also includes tickets to the Roman Forum and Palatine, which you can do the next day if you don't want to do it the same day. It seems from a quick look like they are opening these tours only 30 days in advance, so be on top of it Roman time to grab your tix. Third party tour operators also sell these tickets, but they are coming from the same pool. So they may sell you the ticket but not be able to deliver, if 30 days in advance they aren't able to grab a ticket spot. There's a limit to how many tickets you can buy (maybe 6?), so don't make my mistake. If you have to buy more than that, use different names, email addresses and credit cards. Otherwise they think you are a reseller, and that's what they're trying to prevent.

I would download the free Rick Steves audio app for all over Rome. We used the audio app for the Roman Forum and it was just perfect. Sometimes with kids it's just easier not to be in an organized group.

 

[pinkxray]

We went on a 7 night DCL from Vancouver with stops in Stikine Icecap, Skagway, Juneau, and Ketchikan. This was only my second cruise, and I've only been on DCL, so I couldn't help compare cruise lines, but I could comment on our itinerary

I would love to know. We are doing Skagway, Juneau and Ketchikan. Glacier Bay replaces Stikine though. I would love to do DCL for Alaska but a balcony is out of our budget.

 

[TheOneWithTheTriplets]

So, I am able to call each time to have points transferred, but I'd rather be able to do it online myself. Anyone else having this issue, or is it just us?

I just had to call in and transfer points over to a card of Hubby's that wasn't on my list. I asked to transfer them since I couldn't see his card on my list and the customer service rep said something along the lines of, "I can add that card and also transfer the points." The way he phrased it made it seem like there were two distinct steps there. I do now see Hubby's card as one of my transfer options, so whatever he did worked.

Have you called and specifically asked to have the card added to your list for future transfers? One would think that should be automatic, but maybe if the phone rep is rushing they just do the transfer and don't take the added step of making it so you can do it yourself in the future? Or, you know, I was lucky that it worked for me and should count my blessings. Who knows?

 

[becauseimnew]

Went for the CIP 8K deal and instant approval! I was going to wait til August and go for another MDD CSR/CSP but we have so many expenses coming up and no current MSRs so I figured why wait.

Congrats, DH applied and received the "we're reviewing your application"
I keep checking but no card.

 

[Expiry]

Have you called and specifically asked to have the card added to your list for future transfers? One would think that should be automatic, but maybe if the phone rep is rushing they just do the transfer and don't take the added step of making it so you can do it yourself in the future? Or, you know, I was lucky that it worked for me and should count my blessings. Who knows?

My husband did specifically ask, but I'll try again in a few days. Thanks for sharing your experience--at least I know it's still possible!

 

[miztressuz]

Is anyone else still (or newly) having trouble with combining points with Chase?
I searched, and the last mention on this forum was in March (I've not been active on here in a bit). I opened a new CSR this month that P2 was going to transfer points to, so he called chase to establish a link. They transfered the points he requested, but even several days later it's not showing up as an option online.

And with my CIC, it had been set up to transfer to a card that is now closed, so I called to add my new card, and they made the transfer over the phone, but it's not showing up in Ultimate Rewards to do myself. So I currently can't transfer CIC points anywhere without calling.

So, I am able to call each time to have points transferred, but I'd rather be able to do it online myself. Anyone else having this issue, or is it just us?

We were only able to see the linked card after combining the business and personal accounts. We each had our personal and biz accounts separate. After calling in to link my card to P2's so he can transfer to me, we couldn't see it on either of his accounts. Once P2 linked his personal to his business account and created a combined login on the biz account, then my card showed up in the list to transfer to. I had to delink my personal card from my business account in order to link one of P2s cards. So in order to transfer from biz to personal I combined my two accounts and can now see his card to do the transfer myself.

If that's not the problem then maybe try calling again and ask about it, perhaps one of the reps missed a step. I recall mentions of having to call a couple times before seeing the link.

 

[wannabee]

125K seems high to me, but it is worth it if you have plenty of points and want peace of mind. My United Polaris tickets in May were 60K from EWR to LHR. I repositioned to NYC because I had plenty of Delta points to get us to NYC cheap. We stayed 2 nts there and toured the city and caught a Yankees game. Check ticket prices to Europe for about 6 months from now. See if they are more or less than 125K. As I mentioned previously, 5-7 months out seem to be when you see some good deals. Flying Blue is by far my first choice for Europe, preferably Air France.

I had to edit my previous post because it said I booked a Europe trip in 2002, but it should have said 2022.

I have looked and looked and can't find any flights anywhere near 60K for United business class. So you think its best to wait instead of booking when they first open?

 

[mmmears]

I know about point.me but are there other flight finders you all would suggest? Things just look really tough at the moment but my guess is that I'm not looking hard enough. I have no real issues with repositioning, so I don't think that's it. My dates are somewhat fixed because I booked a cruise, so I know that will make things harder.

Anybody been to Rome in the last couple of years? I am trying to plan our itinerary for our November Italy trip but the official sites of many Rome attractions don't work for me regardless of what browser I use. It's hard to know opening times and such. I could get tickets with third-party sites for, say, the Colosseum and Vatican tours, but it seems some of them have conflicting information. I would like to have the official times! Any help would be appreciated.

Also, if anyone has done any tours that you would recommend, let me know!

We were there a month ago. Italy is really, really crowded right now. People on our cruise group had booked tours with tour companies and had them canceled 24 hours before the tour. I booked a Vatican tour through Context and it was great (and they were able to secure tickets). Some companies were not able to get in. The Colosseum was much worse, with most people finding out their tours were canceled the day of the tour. I think it has to do with how the tickets are sold. We didn't try to go there since we've all been there before. For Borghese Gallery, we couldn't get online tickets so booked a tour, then the tour was canceled but they were there and handed us the tickets which is what we really wanted. I'd say it's all complicated at best. Since Covid most tour sites are using timed entry which can work great but is really hard to plan around.

 

[djmeredith]

I have looked and looked and can't find any flights anywhere near 60K for United business class. So you think its best to wait instead of booking when they first open?

I just realized we might be comparing apples to oranges. 60K was one way. If yours is 125K round trip, then that is a decent rate.

If that is a one way, I would probably wait. Are your points already with United or do you still have the ability to transfer UR/MR? I ask because United seemed to offer the fewest deals both times I was looking. Virgin (depending on the fees) and Flying Blue were the ones with the most consistent points bargains. I checked Delta, United, Air Canada, Virgin, and Flying Blue.Sometimes I would check a different one but mainly stuck with these. The good rates come and go on an airline. If there was a rhyme or reason I never figured it out. If I still had the flexibility to transfer points to several airlines, I would wait and keep checking daily. I literally checked every day for weeks. That being said, if you are comfortable spending that amount of points for peace of mind, then go for it.

 

[StephPlum]

Planning future travel to Europe. I think my first trip will be Switzerland and Italy. I’m sure I’ll have plenty of questions, but for now I’m stuck on this. I’ll rely on trains/buses to get around. Reading blogs, travel sites they all say pack light. Which I can probably do but can’t decide on rolling carry on or backpack. So all you experts and experienced travelers, what do you feel works better in Europe. If I go with a backpack, I’m thinking of the ebags Mother Lode Jr.