Citi Double Cash Card, Best Cash Back Card in America
August 29, 2014
Citi has just released a new cash back card that is the best on the market:
Citi® Double Cash Card – 18 month BT offer
You earn 1% back when you make a purchase and another 1% back as you make payments. You should, of course, pay in full every month to avoid interest.
Cheap Alaska Airlines Awards to Mexico and US This Fall
August 29, 2014
Alaska Airlines is having a sale on award flights between select cities. One way flights are going for as little as 5,000 Alaska Airlines miles + $5.60 for flights between August 30 and October 31, 2014.
Many cities are on the sale list. Check out the full list and sale prices here.
Domestic awards and awards to Canada are discounted from their normal price of 12,500 miles each way to 5,000, 7,500, or 10,000 miles each way.
Do This to Avoid an Error When Transferring ThankYou Points
August 28, 2014
I got an error when I tried to transfer ThankYou Points to Air France Flying Blue miles. A Citi representative called me to let me know that my transfer would be cancelled, and I could re-initiate at my leisure.
The problem was that I had put my 10 digit Flying Blue number in when asked my Flying Blue number.
Trip Report: The Wing (Cathay Pacific First Class Lounge)
August 28, 2014
This is the fifth installment of a round-the-world trip report that started here. We pick up in Hong Kong.
In late February, I flew into Hong Kong International Airport for a 23 hour layover that I spent in Macau. (Don't worry, I'm going to Hong Kong proper in a few weeks!)
I flew into Hong Kong in Cathay Pacific First Class and out of Hong Kong the next day in Cathay Pacific Business Class.
American Express and Discover Have Highest Customer Satisfaction
August 28, 2014
The J.D. Power 2014 U.S. Credit Card Satisfaction Study concludes that American Express and Discover have the highest customer satisfaction of any credit card issuers.
The study measures customer satisfaction with credit card issuers by examining six factors:
interaction
credit card terms
billing and payment
rewards
benefits and services
problem resolution
American Express has been #1 for all eight years of the study, and this year for the first time, it was tied for the top spot with Discover.
Interestingly, overall satisfaction with credit cards is at a record-high, surpassing last year's record high.
Only Flying Blue Award Chart Online
August 27, 2014
Yesterday I wrote that Citi ThankYou Points had added Air France Flying Blue as a 1:1 transfer partner.
That's big news because there are some amazing high value uses for Flying Blue miles, and ThankYou Points are so easy to earn from the Citi ThankYou® Premier Card with its 40,000 point sign up bonus and 3x category bonus on travel and gas purchases.
When I was researching that post though, I couldn't find Flying Blue's complete award chart.
Reminder: You Can Still Book United Awards at Pre-Devaluation Prices
August 27, 2014
You can still pay United's award prices from January 2014 and before for premium cabin awards.
The catch is that you need to be changing an existing award that you booked February 2, 2014 or earlier.
How and Why I Was Totally Wrong about the Avios Devaluation
August 26, 2014
Sunday I read a post on Gary Leff's blog that said that Iberia Avios had massively devalued its award chart for flights on oneworld airlines.
I looked up the Iberia award chart for oneworld flights and came to the same conclusion as Gary--that Iberia had put out a new, worse award chart. I wrote a post Sunday and another yesterday about the changes and how to beat them.
It turns out my posts were mistaken. Iberia hasn't touched its award chart since November 2011.
The reason I was wrong is that I had misunderstood Iberia's program.
Free First Class Next Month,Credit Card Negotiations
Free First Class 2014: Cancelling Cards
August 25, 2014
This is the twenty-eighth post in a monthlong series that started here. Each post will take about two minutes to read and may include an action item that takes the reader another two minutes to complete. I am writing this for an audience of people who know nothing about frequent flyer miles, and my goal is that by the end, you know enough to fly for free anywhere you want to go.
Most travel credit cards have an annual fee.