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

[chattadisser]

Any tips for a short weekend trip to Phoenix? We’re thinking about going next year over Presidents’ Day. We’ve never been before. Mostly interested in easy hikes and trails in the area. We just started looking at places to stay so if anyone has any recommendations I’ll gladly take them!

We love the JW Marriott in Scottsdale. For hiking we usually go up to Sedona but I know there are some local trails around Scottsdale and then there is camelback mountain and the surrounding area.

 

[Haley R]

We love the JW Marriott in Scottsdale. For hiking we usually go up to Sedona but I know there are some local trails around Scottsdale and then there is camelback mountain and the surrounding area.

Thanks! That looks like a nice one. Since we’re only doing a weekend we probably will mostly stay in the Phoenix area. Have you been to Papago Park or the Boyce Thompson Arboretum?

 

[ten6mom]

Thanks! That looks like a nice one. Since we’re only doing a weekend we probably will mostly stay in the Phoenix area. Have you been to Papago Park or the Boyce Thompson Arboretum?

We love Boyce Thompson! And it should be nice around that time of year. The "High Trail" is probably even doable for your little one if he is used to walking- just gotta keep an eye on him. It's not as high as it sounds but it is not flat ground.

We love it so much we even took my older son's senior pictures there. This is the "bouncy bridge" and my kids have loved it since they were little. There are tables near the parking lot if you wanted to bring a picnic lunch.


Another good trail for littler kids is Hieroglyph (I think??) in the Superstitions.

 

[DogCat]

I just saw on DOC Plastiq was acquired after filing for bankruptcy. Has anyone used them since?

 

[chattadisser]

Thanks! That looks like a nice one. Since we’re only doing a weekend we probably will mostly stay in the Phoenix area. Have you been to Papago Park or the Boyce Thompson Arboretum?

We have not yet but I'm now putting those on our list for next trip.

We love Boyce Thompson! And it should be nice around that time of year. The "High Trail" is probably even doable for your little one if he is used to walking- just gotta keep an eye on him. It's not as high as it sounds but it is not flat ground.

We love it so much we even took my older son's senior pictures there. This is the "bouncy bridge" and my kids have loved it since they were little. There are tables near the parking lot if you wanted to bring a picnic lunch.

View attachment 791586
Another good trail for littler kids is Hieroglyph (I think??) in the Superstitions.

This looks like fun, going to add it to our next trip.

 

[Haley R]

We love Boyce Thompson! And it should be nice around that time of year. The "High Trail" is probably even doable for your little one if he is used to walking- just gotta keep an eye on him. It's not as high as it sounds but it is not flat ground.

We love it so much we even took my older son's senior pictures there. This is the "bouncy bridge" and my kids have loved it since they were little. There are tables near the parking lot if you wanted to bring a picnic lunch.

View attachment 791586
Another good trail for littler kids is Hieroglyph (I think??) in the Superstitions.

Awesome thank you! I thought it looked really cool. Do you think we should stay near there or Scottsdale? It’ll be over Presidents’ Day. Also, does it get busy that weekend?

 

[ten6mom]

Awesome thank you! I thought it looked really cool. Do you think we should stay near there or Scottsdale? It’ll be over Presidents’ Day. Also, does it get busy that weekend?

I live in the "east valley" although on the opposite end of it from Scottsdale; unfortunately I don't know that much about hotels or resorts and such. I am not personally aware of any resort type places that are in the same direction as the Arboretum... @IFlossU might have some thoughts?

If you're venturing east (the east side of Phoenix I mean!) you might also check out Goldfield Ghost Town... definitely touristy but it looks fun to me (I've never been).

Also no specific thoughts on Presidents' Day Weekend unfortunately... although for a lot of people February is a really good time to do things here because a lot of people are freezing in other parts of the country. (We Phoenicians are also freezing but that's because most of us have zero tolerance for cold... myself included). Could be busy with snowbirds and such but I'm sorry I don't know about activities and crowds.

I will say when I was hiking a lot that prime hiking season was between November and February, so definitely expect to see people on the trails.

 

[Haley R]

I live in the "east valley" although on the opposite end of it from Scottsdale; unfortunately I don't know that much about hotels or resorts and such. I am not personally aware of any resort type places that are in the same direction as the Arboretum... @IFlossU might have some thoughts?

If you're venturing east (the east side of Phoenix I mean!) you might also check out Goldfield Ghost Town... definitely touristy but it looks fun to me (I've never been).

Also no specific thoughts on Presidents' Day Weekend unfortunately... although for a lot of people February is a really good time to do things here because a lot of people are freezing in other parts of the country. (We Phoenicians are also freezing but that's because most of us have zero tolerance for cold... myself included). Could be busy with snowbirds and such but I'm sorry I don't know about activities and crowds.

I will say when I was hiking a lot that prime hiking season was between November and February, so definitely expect to see people on the trails.

Lol coming from Florida I’m sure we’ll feel chilled. We have a low tolerance for the cold after moving here

 

[ateam79828592]

P1 (me)
03/23 - Chase Sapphire Preferred
07/23 - Chase Ink Business Unlimited

P2
03/21 - Chase Sapphire Preferred
03/23 - Chase Ink Business Unlimited

P2 is ready for the next card. We mostly use our rewards for travel and preferred Chase UR for flexibility.

What do you suggest P2 apply for next?

 

[GZanta77]

If you want to stay with URs, then another Ink Card seems the obvious choice. If you refer P2 from your CIU to get a Chase Ink Preferred it will get you 140k URs (100k + 40k referral) if you can manage the $8k spend in 3 months.

For $6k spend there is the CIC, which will get you 115k URs. Otherwise, you are looking at the Chase Freedom cards, but I don't think the SUB on those is very good at the moment.

 

[IFlossU]

Lol coming from Florida I’m sure we’ll feel chilled. We have a low tolerance for the cold after moving here

@ten6mom gave you great advice, and yes it can be chilly that weekend for a Floridian. Jacket and sweater weather for sure. Sadly since I live here I don’t have any hotel experience. I understand the Biltmore WA is quite nice. I’m hoping others who have vacationed here will chime in. All of my hiking experiences have been in the East Valley too. Some really beautiful spots out there, but a solid hour drive from the Scottsdale resorts. I think there are hikes in the Scottsdale area I’m just not familiar with that area. Wouldn’t recommend Camelback for a toddler though. It’s pretty strenuous. Sorry I’m not more help.

 

[ten6mom]

@ten6mom gave you great advice, and yes it can be chilly that weekend for a Floridian. Jacket and sweater weather for sure. Sadly since I live here I don’t have any hotel experience. I understand the Biltmore WA is quite nice. I’m hoping others who have vacationed here will chime in. All of my hiking experiences have been in the East Valley too. Some really beautiful spots out there, but a solid hour drive from the Scottsdale resorts. I think there are hikes in the Scottsdale area I’m just not familiar with that area. Wouldn’t recommend Camelback for a toddler though. It’s pretty strenuous. Sorry I’m not more help.

Good point... agree Camelback is not suitable for small children.

 

[wanderlust7]

Is there any way to find tracking for AMEX Hilton MSRs? We got 2 Hilton Honors cards and 1 Hilton Biz card during the last promotion with FNCs and are working on our MSRs. I love how Chase tracks your spending and shows the SUB you will receive when you meet the spend by a certain date. Is there anything like that with AMEX?

No SUB tracker, but they have an FNC tracker on all the Hilton cards except the no fee (since it doesn't earn FNC with spend). I use it to see that the charge has posted for reward purposes and double check that Amex has the same spend as my spreadsheet.

I just saw on DOC Plastiq was acquired after filing for bankruptcy. Has anyone used them since?

Used it a couple weeks ago and noticed that the website had a message about the acquisition being completed. Also used it once in July before it was finalized. No issues.

 

[Sheree]

I don’t think I’ve ever gotten the bonus. Did you login before you clicked on the link?

what bonus? for referring ink? have to login and send link

 

[Sheree]

If you want to stay with URs, then another Ink Card seems the obvious choice. If you refer P2 from your CIU to get a Chase Ink Preferred it will get you 140k URs (100k + 40k referral) if you can manage the $8k spend in 3 months.

For $6k spend there is the CIC, which will get you 115k URs. Otherwise, you are looking at the Chase Freedom cards, but I don't think the SUB on those is very good at the moment.

i'm not tied to URs, i was thinking a united card for free bags. but the ink probably makes more sense. even one to one, it's 140k miles
unfortunately I can hit the spend easily!

 

[becauseimnew]

what bonus? for referring ink? have to login and send link

Sorry, I didn't mean bonus. I've never gotten that warning.

 

[IFlossU]

Awesome thank you! I thought it looked really cool. Do you think we should stay near there or Scottsdale? It’ll be over Presidents’ Day. Also, does it get busy that weekend?

One recommendation if you want an indoor activity is The Phoenix Children’s Museum is awesome! My teenagers still talk about how much they loved going there when they were little. We always showed up just after opening and there were little to no crowds. We would leave around noon when the crowds started to build. So much fun for kids and parents. Highly recommend it.

 

[becauseimnew]

Awesome thank you! I thought it looked really cool. Do you think we should stay near there or Scottsdale? It’ll be over Presidents’ Day. Also, does it get busy that weekend?

Anywhere is Scottsdale is amazing, you really can’t go wrong. We stayed at Hyatt Place, used 2 FNC and were happy.

 

[Haley R]

One recommendation if you want an indoor activity is The Phoenix Children’s Museum is awesome! My teenagers still talk about how much they loved going there when they were little. We always showed up just after opening and there were little to no crowds. We would leave around noon when the crowds started to build. So much fun for kids and parents. Highly recommend it.

I have it on my list! I’m not sure how much we’ll actually be able to do in just a weekend but I have a list of possibilities just in case

 

[reliev]

i got this too. but when I went to pay my verizon bill, ah is the 17th so I figured I'd pay it now with amex it said I'd lose my ach discount. i thought if you paid prior to debit date you'd be fine.
but with 4 lines , my discount is $40 s not worth losing it
any ideas?

I went to google fi over 20$ I didn't think the loosing the phone insurance was worth it Also I had to buy plans so I wouldn't get 2g when traveling abroad. I got 4G in Bahamas so far so good. (also was spending 10-20$ depending on the length of the trip every trip because 2g was slow) We have been saying we want to go more places so maybe it was a long time coming.