Category Archives: Credit Cards

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Reminiscing About and my Plan for my US Bank Radisson Rewards Premier & Business Credit Cards

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Good morning everyone, I hope your Easter, Passover, and Ramadan weekend is going well.  Long ago, I got the US Bank Club Carlson Premier Rewards Credit Card in 2013.  I then got the Club Carlson Business Rewards Credit Card in 2014 and I also had another no annual fee Club Carlson credit card for a while, but I closed that years ago (read 4 Flavors of Club Carlson Credit Cards (High, Medium, Low & Biz).  I used to be a huge fan of Club Carlson when the credit cards debuted since the cards came with an 85,000 point sign up bonus, a 40,000 point anniversary bonus, and the awesome BOGO night deal.  Sadly, the BOGO night deal ended in June 2015, which I still miss.

Thankfully, I did get the chance to stay at several great Radisson Blu properties around Europe over the years: Amsterdam, Rome, London Edwardian Mercer Street, Nice, France, Royal Dublin, and Milatos, Crete.  In 2018, Club Carlson rebranded as Radisson Rewards and the above cards changed to the US Bank Radisson Rewards Premier Credit Card and US Bank Radisson Rewards Business Credit Card, respectively.  Fast forward to now when US Bank announced that beginning in June 2022, Radisson Rewards credit cards will no longer exist.  My US Bank Radisson Rewards Premier Credit Card will become the US Bank Altitude Go Credit Card and my US Bank Radisson Rewards Business Credit Card will become the US Bank Triple Cash Rewards Business Credit Card.

I called US Bank yesterday and asked a lot of good questions about the conversion process, annual fee refunds, and product change options.  I will share what I found out, but first, here is the letter I received about the US Bank Radisson Rewards Premier converting to the US Bank Altitude Go.

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PSA: Register ASAP for Chase IHG Premier Personal & Business Credit Card $50 United Airlines TravelBank Credit

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Good afternoon everyone, happy Friday!  I hope you have exciting Easter, Passover, and Ramadan plans this weekend.  A few weeks ago, the Chase IHG Rewards Premier Credit Card and Chase IHG Rewards Premier Business Credit Card started offering cardholders $50 United Airlines TravelBank Credit each calendar year.  The TravelBank Credit is split into two $25 credits that appear in your United Airlines account twice a year.  I recently booked a United Airlines flight and was excited to use one of the $25 credits to save a few bucks, but it didn’t quite work out for me.  Long story short, you need to register for the benefit first and then wait up to 2 weeks for the first $25 credit to post to your United Airlines account.  Don’t make the same mistake as me and wait until you are ready to book your next United Airlines flight to sign up for the credit.

To get started, go to the IHG / United registration page and click the Sign In button.  As you can see, it says “it may take up to 2 weeks for your registration to take effect.”

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How to Book Annual Flex Night Award from Chase IHG Personal & Business Premier Credit Cards

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Good afternoon everyone.  I just read about the new IHG One Rewards program and decided to try to book a free night certificate Annual Flex Night Award for an IHG hotel than cost more than 40,000 IHG Points per night.  Every year when you pay the annual fee on your Chase IHG Rewards Premier Credit Card or Chase IHG Rewards Premier Business Credit Card, you get an Annual Flex Night Award.  The Annual Flex Night Award can be used at any IHG property that costs up to 40,000 IHG Points or can be used in conjunction with IHG Points to book an IHG property that costs more than 40,000 IHG Points.  Even though I didn’t actually book the award, I went through the entire booking process and the process was quick and easy.  To get started, sign into your IHG account and click on the 1 Free Night link.

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My Experience with AMEX Expand Your Membership with American Express Business Gold Card & Instant Card Number

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Good afternoon everyone, I hope your week is going well.  A few weeks ago, Laura and I moved into a new home and we are in the process of getting custom closets installed in the bedrooms.  With that large purchase on the horizon, I wanted to get a new credit card to pick up another sign up bonus.  I saw that I was targeted by American Express to expand my membership by getting another business card.  I decided to get the American Express Business Gold Card.  I will share the application process and welcome letter below, but first, here are the front and back of the new card:

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Travel with Grant has Moved… into a New Home & Quick Trip Report of our Maui Vacation

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Good morning everyone, happy Friday! Laura and I just finished selling our old home, buying a new home, doing a few small home improvement projects around the new home (painting rooms, changing lights, etc.) and unpacking boxes. I haven’t had much free time to write blog posts over the last few weeks, but now that the dust has settled, I have more free time now.

A few weeks ago (in the middle of packing and moving), Laura and I went to Maui for her Spring Break (she is a teacher). We flew Alaska Airlines roundtrip from San Francisco (SFO) to Maui (OGG) using my Alaska Airlines Companion Fare. Since we both have Alaska Airlines MVP Elite Status, we were upgraded to first class on our return flight. In my experience, I have had good luck getting upgraded when flying on less popular routes and on less popular days (like weekdays).

We used AutoSlash to help get us a good deal on a Hertz rental car. The new Maui airport rental car facility is very nice – I wish all airports had a rental car facility and tram system like the one at the Maui airport. We stayed on the South Shore in Kihei in a Vacasa Vacation Rental. The rental cost 13,500 Wyndham Rewards Points per night and I used a combination of points from my Barclays Wyndham Rewards Business Earner Credit Card and transferred Capital One Points to Wyndham Rewards to top off for an award.  Here is the view from our Vacasa Vacation Rental:

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