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CREDIT CARDS
We play the credit card game
and have been extremely successful in traveling the world in business
class. Between the two of us we have
over 15 cards.
As of March 1, 2023 here are
some recommendations:
If you wanted to get started I would go
with the Capital One Venture X.
The current promotion is get 75,000 miles after spending $4,000 in 3
months. The card costs $395 per year, but you get $300 back in
travel spending (hotels, car rental and airlines) Also on the anniversary
you get 10,000 miles. So in my mind the card is free. You also get
2% back in miles on all charges. The miles can be transferred to the
following airlines: British Air, Flying Blue, Emirates, TAP, Turkish Air,
Air Canada, Qantas, Etihad, Singapore. It also offers Priority Pass which
is Lounge access at almost every airport in the world. We love it. This
is our go to card for every day expenditures.
If you are interested please click on the following link as it gives me
25,000 miles: https://capital.one/3ghrG4N If you really want to play the game, you
apply, get the card, find the referral link on your statement page and refer
your spouse or other family members. Capital One is also great as you can
share miles. Thus after you two spend $8,000 you would have 191,000
miles.
Delta Platinum American Express is great too. The current promotion
is 90,000 Delta miles after spending $4,000 in 3 months. Although the
annual fee sounds high at $250 it comes with a companion certificate
annually. We use it to visit my Mom in Minneapolis, and makes the card
basically free. We only use this card now to pay our cell phone bill as
it has great insurance and repair coverage. They also always have great
offers that save us $100’s annually. We’re now getting Disney+/Hulu free
until 8/31. Here is a referral code to Apply for an American Express
Delta Card:. https://americanexpress.com/en-us/referral/NORMADC5IJ?XLINK=MYCP
American
Express Card. We also have an American Express Gold Card,
which earned us 60,000 Membership reward points when we applied. We use this card for groceries and
restaurants, getting us 4X points on every purchase. They also have other reward offers that have
saved us much more that the annual fee, which for some cards can be high. Apply for an American Express Card with this
link. With your new Card, you could earn a welcome bonus and your friend could
earn a referral bonus. Terms Apply. https://americanexpress.com/en-us/referral/NORMADa2ZR?XLINK=MYCP
Another card to consider is a Chase United Card. This card also
offers 60,000 United miles if you spend $4,000 in the first 3 months of opening.
One benefit is free checked bags. The miles earned on this card are only
United miles and can only be used to book flights on United web site, but this
is a window to Star Alliance airlines. Both Susan and I have this card. Choose
any United MileagePlus credit card that is right for you. I can be rewarded too if you apply here and
are approved for the card. Learn more. https://www.referyourchasecard.com/215f/Q8DBZK5ZOF
I would also apply for the Chase Sapphire
Preferred Card. You earn 60,000 Ultimate Rewards point after charging
$4,000 in the first 3 months. The
card earn 3x point on dining, 3x on groceries, 2x on travel (hotels, tours,
airline tickets, etc,) and 1% on everything
else. It also has good travel
insurance benefits. The annual fee
is $95. The Ultimate Reward Points
earned on this card can be transferred to your United Mileage Plus Account or
other foreign airlines.
Both Susan and I got a related card Sapphire
Reserve Card years ago but it has a very high annual fee, but I can justify the
cost based on our spending habits, plus the BEST travel Insurance policy. This card gets
me 3X on all our cruises airfare, hotels and tours. Plus the travel insurance is
outstanding, although I have heard complaints about getting paid on
claims. The current promotion is 60,000
bonus points. I can be rewarded
too, learn more. https://www.referyourchasecard.com/19/CR7DPA1Y9C This
link is for the Chase Sapphire Reserve Card. Try to get the Preferred
card instead even if I don’t get a referral bonus. The annual fee is
MUCH less.
A next card I would apply for is the Chase
Freedom Unlimited card. You only have to charge $500 in the first 3
months to earn 20,000 Ultimate Rewards points, which equates to $200 cash
back. BUT if you have the Chase Preferred Card you can transfer those
20,000 point to that card and then to airline partners such as United.
You can’t transfer these points to an airline unless you have the
Preferred card. You also earn 5x points on groceries the first year, 3X
on dining, 3x at drug stores and 2x on travel and 1½ points on everything
else. Both Susan I have this card, since she lives at the same address
she can transfer these miles to my reserve card. I signed my mother up for this
card, although she can’t transfer point to me, she just gets a statement credit
for the points she earns. Lots of points on prescriptions. Earn
$200 cash back with Chase Freedom Unlimited or Chase Freedom Flex credit card.
I can be rewarded, learn more. https://www.referyourchasecard.com/18o/BLK93ZJJRG
PLANNING TRAVEL
I find Google
Flights Extremely helpful in seeing what airlines travel to particular
destinations and flight times. I have
noticed that some airlines do not have their schedules included. My back-up source is Rome2Rio that cover more than just flights
but also how to get anywhere by plane, train, bus, ferry & car. For both Google Flight and Rome2Rio, I identify
the operator and go directly to that company’s web site.
For hotels, I always look
at Booking.com to see what hotels exist near
where I want to book, but generally always book with the hotel companies
directly (after comparing prices.)
For cruises, we always
pick ports we want to go to and are not tied to any particular cruise
line. To find ships that go to a port we
are interested in we love the Vacations
to Go web site. For booking of
cruises we rely exclusively on Crown
Cruise Vacations. They give us the
same service as other travel companies and/or the cruise line, but most
importantly will give you REFUNDABLE ship board credit for about 7-8% of your
fare or cash back after the cruise. We
talk to others on a cruise and can’t believe they pay full (or discounted fares
without getting a portion of the travel agents fee back.)
Tour companies we
consistently book for small group trips are Native Eye out of London for fantastic
adventure trips to places you have never heard of. The other company is Overseas Adventure Travel for
consistently great trips. We love their
African safari’s. They do a great job is
showing you the culture, not just sights.
Don’t forget to look at the My Tours page for great ideas
from my past or upcoming trips
I recommend
subscribing to the Point
Guy’s Daily Newsletter. Great travel
and credit card advice. Sign up on the
web page.
WINE TOURS
Besides traveling our other
vice is wine. We have two companies that
our go to for great wine tours:
1. Ombiasy The company is owned by our good friend Annette
Schiller. We took her Bordeaux tour and
LOVED it. In 2023 we are taking her
Burgundy and Champagne tour. Still on
our list is one or more of her Germany tours.
2. Life Well Drunk So far we have only toured with their OUTSTANDING guide Charlie Ratcliffe. Based on a great 2 day tour out of Cape Town, the South African trips and tours to other African countries must be wonderful!
OTHER STUFF
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This quilt was made from
T-shirts I collected from around the world.
Craftsmanship was done by a great company in New York. Please take a look at their web site:
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