Good morning everyone.  Ahh, I feel so refreshed, I just spent the last week on tropical Kauai with my girlfriend. We enjoyed inner tubing down an old sugarcane plantation irrigation canal, a 4×4 off road vehicle tour of Kipu Ranch, driving around Waimea Canyon, and eating as much poke and shaved ice as our stomachs would allow. I would definitely recommend all of those activities if you are heading to Kauai anytime soon.

During the good ole days of credit card sign up bonuses, I used to do epic 4-8 credit card App-O-Ramas every 3 months.  I probably did that for the first 2 years I was in the miles and points game.  Over those years, I accumulated a lot of credit cards, but now is the time when several annual fees are posting.  I have 8 credit cards that posted annual fees in March (totalling $1,165 in annual fees), so now is the time for me to decide: keep, cancel, or convert?  Here is the list of credit cards and annual fees.  I am going to cover the first 2 Chase credit cards in today’s post, and then cover the other credit cards in a few more posts.  Let’s start with my beloved Chase Sapphire Reserve.

• Chase Sapphire Reserve – $450 (posted 4/1)
• Chase Ink Plus Business – $95 (posted 4/1)
• American Express Hilton Ascend – $95 (posted 4/3)
• American Express SPG Business – $95 (posted 4/6)
• Bank of America Alaska Airlines Business – $75 (posted 4/2)
• Citi AT&T Access More – $95 (posted 4/4)
• US Bank FlexPerks Gold – $85 (posted 4/3)
• Wells Fargo Propel World – $175 (posted 3/31)

Chase Sapphire Reserve Credit Card

Is the Chase Sapphire Reserve worth the $450 annual fee? Several months ago, I converted my Chase Freedom into a Chase Sapphire Reserve, and it was one of the best credit card decisions I ever made.  After I converted to the Chase Sapphire Reserve, I started to receive the $300 in travel reimbursements (before I even paid the first $450 annual fee).  I also received my Priority Pass card which includes unlimited guests (you have to request this through the Chase Ultimate Rewards Portal).  Between the $300 travel credit and the free meals I have had at Priority Pass lounges, the $450 annual fee is basically a wash.  Then add on the 3x Chase Ultimate Reward Points on travel and dining purchases, plus the ability to redeem Chase Ultimate Reward Points for travel at 1.5 cents, keeping this credit card is the easiest credit card decision of the year.  The only downside is that I had to give up my Chase Freedom and I would have loved to get 5x on PayPal purchase this quarter (that would have taken me only a few days to max out).

Decision: Chase Sapphire Reserve Credit Card is a keeper.

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