point fu

....a Marriott Bonvoy Visa from Chase – definitely not something I would have predicted a few months ago, that's for sure. Before I go into why, here's our current points situation: pink box is a best case scenario on how many airline points those SPG/Marriott points could buy Here's why: I have a large, no bonus category, reimbursable expense coming up that will easily put me over spending threshold for the bonus ($5,000 for 100,000 miles). The vendor I have to pay doesn't take Amex any longer Both my husband and I currently have 100k+ Marriott points bonuses thanks in part to churning the SPG Amex prior to the Marriott + SPG merger. It's always easier to book rewards when you have one big pile of points versus having them scattered across several programs. I debated getting an Alaska Airlines card or a Korean SkyMiles one, but we don't have any big travel plans beyond what we've already booked for this year, so I'd really prefer to ha...

UPDATE AUG 2024: Their North America – Korea award availability is still bad. I poked at a bunch of dates and there's 1 or 2 Business Class seats available 330 days from now and that's it. I love Korean Air's Skypass mileage program, and let me tell you the top 3 reasons why: availability, availability, availability . Sadly, booking award travel with most airlines usually involves major compromises on dates. If you want that Saver reward seat on the cool new plane with the lie-flat seat and the fancy champagne and the amazing lounge, it means you're going to have to cut your trip short by several days, or waste a day and a half of your trip flying a 2-stop itinerary through cities you don't want to stop in. With Korean, there was always at least one flight every single day with open Business or First seats so you never had to compromise like that. Furthermore, Incheon airport's luggage storage service meant you could intentionally schedule yourself...

Well it's late February and I'm doing my first credit card " churn " of the year. (Last year's roundup is here ). While I often say "this is a hobby for people with more time than money", there's also an obsessive-compulsive/ extreme couponing vein running through point collector community. People go to some crazy lengths for a signup bonus, but for me, I generally sign up for a new card once or twice a year if something easy, interesting, or low-impact comes along. The Starwood Preferred Guest American Express card definitely fits that bill: I already have another card with Amex they didn't pull my credit report   No annual fee the first year 25,000 Starwood points (some of the most valuable points out there – 2.2¢ each) after $3k of spending Starwood points transfer to a lot more programs than Chase UR and Amex MR points do (just not instantaneously) A refer-a-friend program where you earn 5,000 points for each person who signs up...