Rec a credit card that gets frequent flyer points

jgb2000 · June 2011

Now that we have two kids and will be visiting the in-laws about once a year, we are looking to save $ on flights. Any recs for a miles credit card? We are flying from Austin to Cleveland, if that matters. We are flying SW this summer, but used to fly Continental when they had direct flights.

Any tips or ideas would be appreciated. Anyone have experience with Capitol One--I know their commercials claim little to no restrictions...

angelaggie · June 2011

We use AMEX so we can convert the miles. I don't know if it works for SW though. We usually can't fly SW where we go.

OrangeFelt · June 2011

I know AA has one with Citi, and SW has one with Chase.. those are brand specific, which will help you build miles quicker. I've actually been looking into Amex's blue card lately, which as angelaggie said, will let you convert miles to various different airlines. If I didn't have so many built up with one airline already, I'd probably go that route.

mcurban · June 2011

9 times out of 10 we fly southwest (free bags make it worth it everytime for us). so, we have chase for sw. as for tips, we use it for everything. groceries, all utility bills, etc. also, any time I am about to purchase something, I check on the SW site first to see if they are partners. we linked all of our cards to rapid rewards dining on the off chance that we are eating somewhere that offers points.

MrsMillerTime · June 2011

DH usually flies Continental so we have a Chase Continental card. He gets bonus points all the time when he uses it to book his travel.

Europelove · June 2011

We use AMEX spg and convert the miles! I love it!!! Low yearly fee and great points. Every time we convert the points we get 25% more points.

We also have the AA and we dont like it as much. Yearly fee is higher and not as many points.

Duckie07 · June 2011

mcurban:
9 times out of 10 we fly southwest (free bags make it worth it everytime for us). so, we have chase for sw. as for tips, we use it for everything. groceries, all utility bills, etc. also, any time I am about to purchase something, I check on the SW site first to see if they are partners. we linked all of our cards to rapid rewards dining on the off chance that we are eating somewhere that offers points.

What's this and how do you go about doing it? We're trying to collect points any which way we can!

mcurban · June 2011

Duckie07:
What's this and how do you go about doing it? We're trying to collect points any which way we can!

https://www.southwest.com/rapidrewards/partners-dining-details?name=rapidrewards

hopefully, the link works. if not, go to the sw page and click on rapid rewards, then partners. under that, you will see dining. you can link any cards you want and you earn 3 pts for every dollar at participating restaurants. i like it b/c the card is linked (even our credit/debit card) so, you don't have to think about it.

BSE · June 2011

not a huge fan of the new system but i have a SW card and like their rapid reward program. i've racked up a lot of free flights over the years (havent yet with the change so not sure if its as easy). we fly SW a lot though since we go to MD and FL and they have direct flights to those locations. there is a yearly fee though. if you fly exclusively on SW i think its worth using their card.

thethomps · June 2011

mcurban:
9 times out of 10 we fly southwest (free bags make it worth it everytime for us). so, we have chase for sw. as for tips, we use it for everything. groceries, all utility bills, etc. also, any time I am about to purchase something, I check on the SW site first to see if they are partners. we linked all of our cards to rapid rewards dining on the off chance that we are eating somewhere that offers points.

We do all this, too. I liked my American card but American doesn't have the flights out of here that SW does, so we ended up getting a new card.

Mrs.Froggianna · June 2011

mcurban:
9 times out of 10 we fly southwest (free bags make it worth it everytime for us). so, we have chase for sw. as for tips, we use it for everything. groceries, all utility bills, etc. also, any time I am about to purchase something, I check on the SW site first to see if they are partners. we linked all of our cards to rapid rewards dining on the off chance that we are eating somewhere that offers points.

We've been doing exactly this since we got married. Combined with the points DH gets for work travel we haven't had to pay for a flight in almost 5 years. The yearly fee is $30 or $40 so it's not outrageous.

GuavaGal · June 2011

I have the cap one card, and you can use the miles on any airline. I love it! I do usually fly southwest, but I've been able to redeem points for American, Frontier (once), and Continental.

Their system isn't always 1 dollar charge = 1 point, sometimes (depending on the vendor) you'll get double or more points per dollar.

The points total equals the cost of the flight. For example (and you'll want to double check this) 35,000 points = up to $350 ticket. Of course, there are lower limits as well.

You can book your own ticket and once the charge is applied to your card, you can redeem the miles online for the credit. Or, you can book online through their travel system. I did that once when I flew continental, and it was really easy.

I think you can also redeem points for stuff other than travel, but I'm never done that.

Want a personalized experience?

Rec a credit card that gets frequent flyer points

Re: Rec a credit card that gets frequent flyer points

Choose Another Board

Search Boards