Credit Cards

Throughout the years, the one question I’ve been asked consistently is how Leigh and travel like we do. Beyond the fact that we’re both lucky to have great jobs that allow for a good amount of flexibility, the primary method is simply using points. It used to be that I earned most (and a lot) of my points through actually traveling for work, but nowadays, that’s not so true…at least with airlines. As loyalty programs have (d)evolved, I’ve found myself relying more and more on credit card sign-up bonuses and spend. The question is: where to start?

My strategy

My view is that you should concentrate enough miles and points in at least two programs and/or in flexible currency. Why two? Because that it provides more opportunities for award space. For example, you may find plenty of award space TO Europe on oneworld via American Airlines, but you literally can’t find anything to get home. If you have United miles, then you’ve just increased your odds of getting home on a Star Alliance carrier

Further, having points in more currencies is great for open jaw itineraries. An open jaw is an itinerary where you go into city A and go out of city B, with no booked connection between the two. Example: you want to fly from Atlanta to London, then a few days later, take the Chunnel to Paris and fly out from there back to Atlanta. In this example, you might be able to find British Airways/oneworld award space there and Air France/Sky Team award space coming home just due to the fact you’re traveling in and out of different airline hubs.

Through spend, travel, and signup bonuses, I always try to keep enough points in each of my frequent flier accounts to cover a one-way business class ticket. Leigh has several of the same cards as me, and that’s her strategy as well. If we find that award space has opened up when we need it, we book it.

Transferrable currency

I used to only hoard American miles because that was who I was loyal to and certainly that’s all I could ever need. The issue I consistently found is that I could never find the award space I needed, when I needed it, on both legs. While I’m no longer solely loyal to American, I’ve also changed my strategy. I still have miles with American, and I have miles with United, and Alaska, and Virgin Atlantic, and a few with Delta. I also have Chase Ultimate Rewards Points and American Express Membership Rewards, both of which transfer to a myriad of partners.

Both Chase and American Express allow you to use points to book flights directly. This is a great option for those who are less flush on cash or just want to save some money. Further, you still earn frequent flyer miles (elite-qualifying too) on the flight itself, which can be a huge boon if you find a great deal!

You can also transfer miles to a myriad of partners for both Chase and American Express:

Current American Express transfer partners:

Current Chase Ultimate Rewards Transfer partners:

• Aer Lingus
• AerClub
• Air France/KLM Flying Blue
• British Airways Executive Club
• Emirates Skywards
• JetBlue TrueBlue
• Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer
• Southwest Airlines Rapid Rewards
• United MileagePlus
• Virgin Atlantic Flying Club
• Iberia Plus
• World of Hyatt
• IHG Rewards Club
• Marriott Bonvoy

Always confirm that the award space is available BEFORE transferring your points to a frequent flyer program. Most transfers are instant, so it’s not like you’ll need to wait any considerable length of time to book.

Going all-in with an airline

If you’re an elite with a particular airline, I certainly think it’s not a bad idea to add to the stash if you can do so through a co-branded credit card. While the Big 3’s domestic airline clubs aren’t the Cathay Pacific The Pier lounge by any means, credit cards that include lounge access can be a good option depending on your travel patterns and home airport. Lounge access can also be a lifesaver when operations go sideways.

Personally, I’m awaiting my renewal date for my American Airlines Executive Card renewal next year to cancel/downgrade before I sign-up for another lounge card (like the United Explorer card). I already have Centurion Lounge Access through my American Express Platinum Card, and I also have Priority Pass through my Chase Sapphire Reserve. The one thing to note about non-airline lounges/dining options is that they can’t help you when your flight is canceled or delayed. I’ve had many instances where the “AAngels” in the Admirals Club saved my ass due to some unforeseen operational issue.

There are some other cards that can be rewarding for those trying to focus points in their program of choice due to status. The Chase Sapphire Reserve Card has better everyday earning than any of the United cards, and United is a transfer partner of Chase. The American Express Gold Card has better earning on dining and grocery stores than any of the Delta cards, and since Membership Rewards are a transfer partner to Delta, this could be a great add-on card. As for American, there are no transferable currencies to the AAdvantage program. The closest you’ll get is British Airways (through any of the major currencies), however American has cracked down in recent years when it comes to using Avios to book, then entering your American frequent flyer number in order to secure benefits.

A couple of points on financial responsibility. First, Leigh and I don’t carry balances and neither should you. The only way these cards work for the consumer is by not paying interest, so pay your balance in full every month, or travel by way of credit card isn’t for you at this point. The other thing I’ll say is around the annual fees. You’ll notice that I have a lot of cards with fees, however many of them offer credits that offset them. For instance, the Chase Sapphire Reserve fee is $450, but it comes with an annual $300 travel credit, effectively brining the fee down to $150, which is a great deal considering the benefits. Each person should weigh the benefits for their own situation and make a call whether it’s worth it. Personally, I keep track of all the annual fees we’re paying, along with a spreadsheet outlining the benefits of each card to ensure we’re getting our money’s worth.

Okay, so enough with the talking, what do I have in my wallet?

• American Express Platinum Card
• American Express Gold Card 
• Chase Sapphire Reserve
• American Airlines Executive Club World Elite MasterCard
• Marriott Bonvoy Boundless American Express (formerly SPG Luxury Card)
• Hilton Surpass Card from American Express

The Amex Platinum and American card I use almost solely for lounge access. The great thing about the

American Express Platinum Card

The Platinum Card has become synonymous with luxe travel, and while that’s true, it’s not the most rewarding everyday card. Other than the Centurion Lounge access, this is not a card I use often and don’t see that changing any time soon. You do earn 5x points when booking flights directly with Amex. With SFO being my home airport and United now my primary airline, I get a great deal of benefit from my access, so the card is an overall keep for me. There are other good reasons to keep the card:

• Centurion Lounge Access
• $200 annual Uber Credit
• $200 annual airline credit
• Priority Pass (restaurants now excluded)
• TSA Pre Check/Global Entry statement credit

American Express Gold Card

The Gold card changed pretty significantly last year. The annual fee increased from $195 to $250, and with that came 4x earning on restaurants and grocery stores, which was a game changer in my opinion, since no other card offered any bonus at all at grocery stores, and 4x at restaurants is now industry leading. In addition, cardholders can expect to get:

• $100 annual airline fee credit
• $120 annual restaurant credit
• 4x earning at grocery stores and restaurants

Chase Sapphire Reserve

This is my go-to card. It is all around the most solid card on the market. Chase also doesn’t make you jump through hoops to use some of the benefits (like the Amex airline credit). It also comes with an unrestricted Priority Pass membership, meaning that unlike Amex Priority Pass memberships, you can still use them at airport restaurants. The $300 travel credit is broad, meaning that everything from Uber credits, to dining, to flights are included, effectively bringing the annual fee down to $150. Chase Points are some of the most valuable out there, and with the CSR, cardholders get 1.5 cents in value per point, so they go further when booking flights directly in the Chase travel portal.

• $300 annual “travel” credit
• Priority Pass membership (includes restaurants)
• 3x points on all travel and dining spend
• Trip Insurance up to $10,000 per person or $20,000 per trip

American Airlines Executive World Elite Mastercard

This was my first premium card; I’ve had it since 2014. The $450 annual fee gets you access to the Admiral’s Club when flying American, onworld, or Alaska Airlines. The fee is also cheaper than buying membership outright, which starts at $575. The other great thing about this card (for now) is that you can add authorized users for free, which also gets them plus 2 into the lounge. For $450, you can get you + 33 additional people into Admirals Clubs (with the above access rules)! I’ve added my parents, brother, and in-laws to my account and it’s absolutely helped steer some business American’s direction.

• Admirals Club access when flying American, Alaska, or oneworld airlines
• TSA Pre Check/Global Entry statement credit
• Waived check bag fees and priority boarding on American flights
• 25% back on in-flight and Admirals Club purchases

Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant American Express

This is my newest card, as I just upgraded from the Marriott Bonvoy card (formerly SPG card). The old card (which is no longer accepting applications) had a $95 fee and gets you an annual free night certificate at any Category 5 or lower (35k points/night). The Boundless Card (formerly SPG Luxury card), has an annual fee of $450, but gets you a free night at a Category 6 hotel (up to 50k points/night). Other benefits that bring the annual fee way down are:

• $300 Marriott property credit, including room rates
• Annual free night certificate, up to 50k points (Category 5)
• Complementary Gold Status

Hilton Surpass American Express

I got this card a few years ago for the signup bonus and the annual free night, though now it’s not one I use. The Hilton annual free night certificate can be used at any property on a standard room as long as it’s the weekend. With some properties – like the Waldorf Astoria Cabo, which tends to go for over $1,000/120,000 points a night – using the certificate can be a killer deal. The only caveat is the card now requires $15,000 annual spend in order to earn the certificate, which leads me to say that I think the better card is the Hilton Aspire Card.

• Complementary Gold Status
• Free weekend night award at any property, after $15k in spend on the card

Leigh’s cards (that are different than mine)

Hilton Aspire American Express

Leigh has the Aspire card and we’ve gotten a lot of benefit out of it. The fee is $450, but the benefits far outweigh the cost, not to mention the card gets you Diamond status. It also earns an annual free weekend night certificate, which you can use at any property in the world. Considering there are some hotels that go for close to $1k/night, you can get some serious value out of it! In addition to the free night, you also earn:

• $150 Hilton resort credit
• $250 annual airline credit
• Diamond status

Chase Ink Business Preferred

At 80k Ultimate Rewards points, the Ink Business preferred card has one of the best sign-up bonuses out there (after $5000 in purchases in the first 90 days). I’d peg Chase Ultimate Rewards as being worth 2.2 cents each, giving you a value of $1760! This card is able to fill some gaps that other cards don’t, such as:

• 3x points on the first $150,000 in spend on travel and dining
• 3x points on internet and phone services
• Complimentary cell phone protection
• In conjunction with the Sapphire Reserve, those 80k points can go 50% further

Final words

So now that you know what I have in my wallet, you might be wondering what I’m looking to get next. For me, I’m looking to get the Chase Ink Business card, because frankly you can never have enough Ultimate Rewards points. In addition, I’m also targeting the American Airlines Aviator Barclays business card. The American Airlines Barclay card has an excellent sign-up bonus of 65,000 miles after $1000 in spend, plus another 10,000 miles after an authorized employee makes a purchase, giving a total sign-up bonus of 75,000 miles. At 1.2 cents each, that’s $900 worth of points, however there are redemptions that will easily earn you more than that value. For instance, a one-way award to Africa or the Middle East in Qatar’s incredible Q-Suite is 75,000 Aadvantage miles. A great redemption! And because they’re both business cards, they don’t count against you for Chase’s 5/24 rule.

Do you plan on getting any of the cards above?