Tag Archives: Hotels

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All Buy Miles/Points Promos Ending in July & August (Alaska Airlines Added)

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Updated 11:20am PT on 7/22: I added the latest Alaska Airlines buy miles promo to the end of this post.

Good afternoon everyone.  I was working on my Buy Miles & Points Page and found 10 offers ending in the next 2 months.  Always check the math to make sure that buying miles & points makes sense for you.  Do not buy miles & points speculatively unless you have a use in mind.  With that said, here is a quick summary of the 10 buy miles/points promos ending in July and August:

  • Radisson Hotels – Buy Radisson Rewards Points with up to a 50% Bonus! (Offer expires July 28, 2019)
  • Avianca Airlines – Buy Avianca Airlines LifeMiles with a 145% Bonus! (Offer expires July 31, 2019)
  • JetBlue – Buy JetBlue TrueBlue Points with up to a 40% Discount! (Offer expires July 31, 2019)
  • American Airlines – Buy American Airlines AAdvantage Miles with a 10% Discount + up to 100,000 Bonus Miles! (Offer expires August 2, 2019)
  • Spirit Airlines – Buy Spirit Airlines Free Spirit Miles with up to a 40% Bonus! (Offer expires August 9, 2019)
  • Air France / KLM – Buy Air France / KLM Flying Blue Miles with a 50% Bonus! (Offer expires August 11, 2019)
  • Southwest Airlines – Buy Southwest Airlines Rapid Rewards Points with up to a 40% Discount! (Offer expires August 14, 2019)
  • Choice Hotels – Buy Choice Hotels Rewards Points with a 25% Discount! (Offer expires August 22, 2019)
  • IHG Hotels – Buy IHG Rewards Club Points with a 100% Bonus! (Offer expires August 23, 2019)
  • Alaska Airlines – Buy Alaska Airlines with up to a 50% Bonus! (Offer expires August 30, 2019)

First up, Radisson Rewards is offering up to a 50% bonus, depending on the number of Radisson Rewards Points you purchase.  This offer expires on July 28.

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My July App-O-Rama Credit Card Results (Spoiler: 4 out of 5 Approved)

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Updated on 7/20/2019 at 8am: I added the Barclays rejection letter to the bottom of this post.

Good morning everyone, I hope your 2 day Prime Day shopping spree is going well.  Even though I didn’t buy much on the first day of Prime Day, I did pick up a few new credit cards.  My last App-O-Rama was in March, so I patiently waited 3+ months until my July App-O-Rama.  As a reminder, I was approved for 3 out of 4 credit cards in my March App-O-Rama, including the American Express Gold Card, the US Bank Altitude Reserve Visa Signature Credit Card, and the Wells Fargo Business Platinum Credit Card.  With those minimum spending requirements completed and the sign up bonuses redeemed, it was time to focus on these 5 credit cards.  Here is a quick summary of my July App-O-Rama:

  • Citi Premier Credit Card – instantly approved
  • American Express Platinum Delta SkyMiles Credit Card – pending, then approved (I called AMEX and had to close an old card to open up a credit card slot)
  • Barclay AAdvantage Aviator Business Credit Card – pending, then declined (too many recent inquiries)
  • Banco Popular Avianca Vuela Credit Card – instantly approved
  • Wells Fargo Propel World Credit Card – instantly approved (I called Wells Fargo to apply for this credit card over the phone)

Citi Premier Credit Card

I currently have a Citi Premier Credit Card that I have had for 4+ years, but I wanted to get another one since the sign up bonus is currently 60,000 Citi Thank You Points after spending $4,000 in 3 months.  If I was approved for a second Citi Premier Credit Card, my plan was to downgrade/convert my old Citi Premier Credit Card into a Citi Rewards+ Credit Card.

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Track Hotel Free Night Certificates & Credit Card Annual Fees with my Spreadsheet

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Good afternoon everyone.  Last month, I was reading an article by Nick at Frequent Miler called Almost #Bonvoyed: a cautionary tale on free night certs.  In that post, Nick shared that after cancelling a Marriott stay booked with a free night certificate, the free night certificate did not automatically redeposit into his Marriott account.  He had to track down the cancelled reservation and call Marriott to get the free night certificate redeposited into his Marriott account.  Bonvoy!  Toward the end of the article, Nick stated, “You shouldn’t need a spreadsheet to track the history of your Marriott free night certs — but the reality is that you do need to stay organized with them.”

That’s when the idea hit me, I should create a spreadsheet to track my Marriott category 1-5 free night certificates… as well as my Hilton free weekend night certificates, Hyatt category 1-4 free night certificates, IHG 40k free night certificates, and Radisson Rewards anniversary points.  Here is my Hotel Free Night Certificate Tracker, maybe it will help you stay organized too.

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Warning! US Bank Radisson Rewards Credit Cards Charge 3% Foreign Transaction Fees (FOREX)

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Good morning everyone.  I guess today is the day that I bash US Bank and Radisson Rewards.  Earlier this morning, I wrote Problem Solved! Missing US Bank Radisson Rewards Credit Card Anniversary Points Posted.  In today’s post, I will tell you to be careful using your US Bank Radisson Rewards Credit Cards internationally and for international purchases because you will be hit with a 2-3% foreign transaction fee (FOREX).

The only reason I am using my (dusty) US Bank Radisson Rewards Credit Cards is because I received a targeted spending offer from US Bank / Radisson Rewards in early May.  Doctor of Credit has more details, but the bonus is simple: spend $500 in May, June, and July to earn 20,000 bonus Radisson Rewards points.  That was a pretty simple targeted spending promotion, so I brought both of my US Bank Radisson Rewards Credit Cards with me to Tahiti and used them a few times.  Unfortunately, I forgot that US Bank / Radisson Rewards charges foreign transaction fees on international purchases, so I racked up a few FOREX fees on my trip :(

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Problem Solved! Missing US Bank Radisson Rewards Credit Card Anniversary Points Posted

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Good morning everyone.  A few months ago, I wrote PSA: Make Sure to Convert / Upgrade to US Bank Radisson Rewards Premier Visa Signature Credit Card.  In that post, I shared my experience upgrading from the no annual fee to the US Bank Radisson Rewards Visa Signature Credit Card ($50 annual fee).  A few days before I wrote that post, I received this email from US Bank on March 28 informing me of the cardmember anniversary.  The last bullet point in the email mentioned the 25,000 anniversary points, which was my whole reason for upgrading.  Unfortunately, the 25,000 anniversary points never posted to my Radisson Rewards account, so I had to track them down.

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