Questions and Answers

Hello all,

I live in the Continental US and will be sending my daughter to College in Hawaii, this obviously brings about a need to maximize my dollar for travel.

Q1. Should I get a card specific to an Airline like Citi AAdvantage Platinum Select Mastercard or a more flexible card like Citi Thank You Premier Card…………….or both?

Q2. Are the points from Citi Thank You transferable to the Citi AAdvantage?

Q3. when you book travel, can you apply points/miles ftom multiple cards to one trip?

Sorry for the ground floor questions, but like I said, I am fairly clueless in regard to making a credit card work for me.

Please feel free to elaborate beyond the three questions, as all information is considered of value.

Thank You

[QUOTE=”Newbian, post: 9860, member: 1162″]Hello all,

I live in the Continental US and will be sending my daughter to College in Hawaii, this obviously brings about a need to maximize my dollar for travel.

Q1. Should I get a card specific to an Airline like Citi AAdvantage Platinum Select Mastercard or a more flexible card like Citi Thank You Premier Card…………….or both?

Q2. Are the points from Citi Thank You transferable to the Citi AAdvantage?

Q3. when you book travel, can you apply points/miles ftom multiple cards to one trip?

Sorry for the ground floor questions, but like I said, I am fairly clueless in regard to making a credit card work for me.

Please feel free to elaborate beyond the three questions, as all information is considered of value.

Thank You[/QUOTE]
Citi Thank You Points (TYP) are NOT transferable to AA
Before getting any card I would suggest you to wrap your head around some things like:
Flexible points currency like Chase Ultimate Rewards (UR), Amex Membership Rewards (MR), and Citi Thank You Points (TYP), Award Charts, Partner Programs (Alliance and Non Alliance).

Also if you are in the west coast, looking in to Alaska Program is not a bad option.

For your Q3:
[I]”Q3. when you book travel, can you apply points/miles f[r]om multiple cards to one trip?”[/I]
If you have points from flexible currency you can transfer to the same partner and book. For eg: If you have UR, MR & TYP – you can transfer all of them to [I]your[/I] Singapore Airlines (SQ) account and make a booking from there. SQ is a common valuable partner among all 3 transferable partners. SQ miles can be used to book awards on Star Alliance partners like United in the US.

Using Korean Air Miles (Transferable from Ultimate Rewards) for awards on Delta is also considered a good value.

When travelling on revenue tickets to Hawaii, consider options to deposit your miles to partner programs. For ex: travel on Delta or AA can be deposited to Alaska whose miles are more valuable.

Some useful posts from Ben and others I thought would be worth looking in to:
[URL]http://onemileatatime.boardingarea.com/2015/10/06/redeeming-miles-to-hawaii-can-be-tough/[/URL]
[URL]http://onemileatatime.boardingarea.com/2015/08/25/virgin-america-first-class-hawaii/[/URL]

[URL]http://www.milevalue.com/guide-book-united-flights-hawaii-singapore-krisflyer-miles/?nabe=5869811131219968:0&utm_referrer=https://www.google.com/[/URL]

Slightly complex:
[URL]http://www.pointswithacrew.com/4-sweet-spots-singapore-airlines-amazing-award-chart/[/URL]

[USER=1162]@Newbian[/USER] — Welcome! Make sure you’ve read over the [URL=’http://onemileatatime.boardingarea.com/whats-the-point/’]Beginner’s Guide to miles and points[/URL] as well. This will answer the bulk of the “getting started” questions, and will help with understanding some of the vocab.

[USER=1162]@Newbian[/USER] Please don’t take this as a brush off, but have you read the beginners guide under “Start Here” section on the top left? I think that might benefit you tremendously. There is a lot to learn in this hobby.

With that being said, what I’d recommend first is a cash back card like the Barclays arrival for the sign up bonus or the Citi Double Cash for ongoing spend. The reason I’d lean this way is that your or your daughter is likely going to be flying around vacations where travel peaks and award spaces can be limited. Being able to use your cash back to pick whatever flights work for you is going to give you a lot of flexibility. Definitely look into getting an Alaska Airlines credit card (or more–the buy one get one for $99 vouchers will help if you are going to visit her). For other points, I would be very mercenary and sign up for the best qualifying offers as they show up. If you’re lucky and using points vs. a cash fare make sense you can use miles miles or use your cash reserve. Bank points like UR and TY points are useful since they allow you to redeem for higher values through their booking travel portals though sometimes finding the lowest price to match other sites can be a bit of an exercise. Good luck and feel free to keep asking questions.

Sorry, I started typing up an answer this morning and just got around to finishing it tonight and didn’t notice that Tiffany and PM had already replied. Some good advice to get your started here.

Thank you all, I will read the beginners guide and the links that were given. thanks for the great advice. and I am certain I will have more questions post research.

[USER=1162]@Newbian[/USER] where in the US48 are you going to be flying from/to?

[QUOTE=”Gaurav, post: 9887, member: 79″][USER=1162]@Newbian[/USER] where in the US48 are you going to be flying from/to?[/QUOTE]
Denver, Colorado

[QUOTE=”Newbian, post: 9900, member: 1162″]Denver, Colorado[/QUOTE]
and to Hawaii

As mentioned before, I’d look at a cash back card, (edit: delete: and miles and points that can be converted to) Alaska credit card for BOGO vouchers if more than one person is traveling and miles and points that can be converted to Singapore points (most transferable points do) to book UA flights.

For transferable points, I would look at the application rules for Chase UR products (no more than 5 applications in the past five years) and get those first. Then I would look at MR, SPG and Thank You points. Hold your UR in reserve because they can go to both SQ and UA. SQ has a cheaper chart to HI but in some cases will not have access to availability that UA will allow to its own members so it would be useful to be able to transfer directly to UA as well. You can also apply directly for the UA explorer card when the bonus is more than 50,000 miles to pad your UA account.

[QUOTE=”Gaurav, post: 9905, member: 79″]For transferable points, I would look at the application rules for Chase UR products (no more than 5 applications in the past five years) and get those first. Then I would look at MR, SPG and Thank You points. Hold your UR in reserve because they can go to both SQ and UA. SQ has a cheaper chart to HI but in some cases will not have access to availability that UA will allow to its own members so it would be useful to be able to transfer directly to UA as well. You can also apply directly for the UA explorer card when the bonus is more than 50,000 miles to pad your UA account.[/QUOTE]
Correction on the Chase UR Rule: No more that 5 apps in the last [B]2[/B] years

[QUOTE=”Gaurav, post: 9902, member: 79″]As mentioned before, I’d look at a cash back card, (edit: delete: and miles and points that can be converted to) Alaska credit card for BOGO vouchers if more than one person is traveling and miles and points that can be converted to Singapore points (most transferable points do) to book UA flights.[/QUOTE]
[QUOTE=”PhatMiles, post: 9909, member: 522″]Correction on the Chase UR Rule: No more that 5 apps in the last [B]2[/B] years[/QUOTE]
So are you saying the Chase Ultimate Rewards is my best first card? It seems that Alaska Airlines is my best bet and I am currently an AAdvantage FF member with a scant 5500 miles which seem to be transferable to Alaska. I have been in front of this computer for 5 hours and I am confused as all get out

[QUOTE=”Newbian, post: 9910, member: 1162″]So are you saying the Chase Ultimate Rewards is my best first card? It seems that Alaska Airlines is my best bet and I am currently an AAdvantage FF member with a scant 5500 miles which seem to be transferable to Alaska. I have been in front of this computer for 5 hours and I am confused as all get out[/QUOTE]
credit apps as a whole, or just chase credit apps

if I am an AAdvantage FF member do I need to become an Alaskan Airlines FF Member?

You can use American miles to book Alaska flights (and vice-versa). You cannot transfer miles between the programs.

It certainly doesn’t hurt to join both programs – and I would do that. At times when the airlines have sales on their miles you typically must have been a member of their program for a certain period of time before you can buy the miles, so there’s no reason to wait.

And I believe [USER=522]@PhatMiles[/USER] is referring to 5 credit apps as a whole – which is why we encourage folks to get the Sapphire Preferred first, so you’ll have an easier time getting approved for it before you start applying for other cards.

[QUOTE=”PhatMiles, post: 9909, member: 522″]Correction on the Chase UR Rule: No more that 5 apps in the last [B]2[/B] years[/QUOTE]
Thanks for catching my typo!

[USER=1162]@Newbian[/USER]
I (almost) am sure you are confused like hell.

To clarify, some recap:
1. Reg the chase rule:
If you are applying for a Chase card that earns UR (Freedom, Sapphire, Ink) – Chase has imposed a recent rule that if you have applied for more than 5 cards (any cards not just Chase) they are not going to approve your app.
For eg: if you want if you have applied for 3 cards in the past 2 years (again, any cards not just chase) and now you want to apply 3 more cards (say Citi TY, Alaska Card from BOA, and Chase Sapphire) – you should start with Chase. That way you will pass the 5 apps in 2 years ‘rule’.

2. AA miles are not transferable to Alaska program. Not sure what you are referring to.

3. If you are applying for a BOA Alaska card, it helps to create membership on Alaska mileage plan ahead and provide your frequent flyer number at the time of applying. If you do not provide one, upon approval they will create a number for you. I recommend the former than latter.

[I]3 years ago I was like you and can imagine my problems that time.[/I]

[USER=1162]@Newbian[/USER] just to clarify all together: 5 apps of any kinds for any credit cards within 2 years and Chase is unlikely to approve you for a UR earning card so definitely start there. You can earn UR with the Freedom (no annual fee and rotating bonuses), Sapphire (nice bonus categories related to travel and features, strong sign up bonus), Ink Cash (no AF) and Plus (for small business owners if you are eligible–again, strong sign up bonuses and strong bonus categories). You must have either the Sapphire or the Ink Plus in order to move points to airlines.

[QUOTE=”Gaurav, post: 9917, member: 79″]Thanks for catching my typo![/QUOTE]
Thank you all, now I have a starting point……….hopefully we have not applied for that many cards………I will also become a Alaska FF.

[QUOTE=”PhatMiles, post: 9919, member: 522″][USER=1162]@PhatMiles
I (almost) am sure you are confused like hell.

To clarify, some recap:
1. Reg the chase rule:
If you are applying for a Chase card that earns UR (Freedom, Sapphire, Ink) – Chase has imposed a recent rule that if you have applied for more than 5 cards (any cards not just Chase) they are not going to approve your app.
For eg: if you want if you have applied for 3 cards in the past 2 years (again, any cards not just chase) and now you want to apply 3 more cards (say Citi TY, Alaska Card from BOA, and Chase Sapphire) – you should start with Chase. That way you will pass the 5 apps in 2 years ‘rule’.

2. AA miles are not transferable to Alaska program. Not sure what you are referring to.

3. If you are applying for a BOA Alaska card, it helps to create membership on Alaska mileage plan ahead and provide your frequent flyer number at the time of applying. If you do not provide one, upon approval they will create a number for you. I recommend the former than latter.

[I]3 years ago I was like you and can imagine my problems that time.[/I][/USER][/QUOTE][USER=1162]
thank you @Phatmiles , it say that I can book travel on Alaska from AAdvantage as they are partners[/user]

I have not been able to access Chase past their home page all day………sheeeeesh

[QUOTE=”Newbian, post: 9922, member: 1162″][USER=1162]
thank you @Phatmiles , it say that I can book travel on Alaska from AAdvantage as they are partners[/user][/QUOTE]

Correct–Alaska and American are partners. Which is why you can use Alaska miles to book awards on AA and AA miles to book awards on Alaska. However you cannot transfer miles between the two. You must have enough miles in either account to fully make the purchase..

Chase has been working for me. Are you following Ben’s credit card links or going directly in your browser? Have you tried another browser?

[QUOTE=”Gaurav, post: 9926, member: 79″]Correct–Alaska and American are partners. Which is why you can use Alaska miles to book awards on AA and AA miles to book awards on Alaska. However you cannot transfer miles between the two. You must have enough miles in either account to fully make the purchase..

Chase has been working for me. Are you following Ben’s credit card links or going directly in your browser? Have you tried another browser?[/QUOTE]
So I just looked at chase sapphire and I cannot transfer points to Alaska or AA, does that mean that I can use those points to purchase tickets on any airline directly?

You can use them to buy tickets directly through the Chase travel portal or you can transfer the points to a transfer partner like UA or SQ like I mentioned before and use the miles to book tickets.

sweet, just got approved for the Chase Sapphire Preferred

[USER=1162]@Newbian[/USER] not that I don’t want to encourage this new hobby for you, but please slow down do some more reading before applying for more cards. As anyone new to this hobby you’ll find things confusing, encounter different perspectives, etc. Please take the time to develop a strong understanding of the value of different kinds of points and what will work best for you so that you are able to maximize your benefits.

Ok, I read the entire newcomers post and I want to get myself, my wife and my daughter back and forth from Denver to Hawaii……..I got this new sapphire card and I plan to put Christmas on it as well as all my general expenditures to secure and build upon the 50,000 miles + 5000 for adding my wife as a user. I have the means to pay the card off prior to incurring any of the APR fees.

apparently, because I need specifics that include (Holiday travel) and the like, I need a card that is broad across all airlines (flexible points and cash back) as opposed to locking in to a card that is airline specific……..at least that is what I was told.

my plan is not to go out and get every card on the planet, to the contrary……I hope to take advantage of my general expenditures and aid in offsetting what could be a very costly four years for our family.

Still wanting advice, and appreciate every bit of it.

So, based on my statement of intent, am I on the right path?

I meant 50,000 points as opposed to miles

[USER=1162]@Newbian[/USER] — You’re on the right path! I’d probably also look at maybe the Citi Premier or Citi Prestige (depending on your other travel needs). You can transfer to airlines, or use those points towards the purchase of revenue flights, which will likely come in handy.

I think our general concern is that we have too many experiences of newbies who show up, read just enough to get themselves in trouble, and then have a half-dozen credit cards and no plan. So as long as you’re taking it slow, and learning as you go, you should be fine. 🙂

[QUOTE=”Tiffany, post: 9941, member: 7″][USER=1162]@Newbian[/USER] — You’re on the right path! I’d probably also look at maybe the Citi Premier or Citi Prestige (depending on your other travel needs). You can transfer to airlines, or use those points towards the purchase of revenue flights, which will likely come in handy.

I think our general concern is that we have too many experiences of newbies who show up, read just enough to get themselves in trouble, and then have a half-dozen credit cards and no plan. So as long as you’re taking it slow, and learning as you go, you should be fine. :)[/QUOTE]
I guess my user name set off all kinds of red flags……….thanks Tiffany, I will look in to those Citi cards as well. and thank you Gaurav and everyone else. I am certain that I will be back with another level of questions soon.

Also…Keep in mind that UR and TY points are transferable between spouses/domestic partners. Spouse = 2X the sign up bonus potential if you both get the cards. My wife and I put 150K Chase UR rewards points in the bank in 3 months with bonuses and targeted spend. It’s an easy way to double up on points.