August 13, 2024 | View Online
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Apologies for the absence. When the Rugby’s on South African pubs open at 6 am, it’s rude not to partake in the local culture. So, naturally, things got a little out of hand…
I’m just kidding. In all honesty, We had some big tech issues last week that crippled our sending capabilities, but I’m back with a vengeance.
While I have you, I’d love to know if you have any questions you need answered. Even better, if you don’t have a question but a big travel hacking win you want to share, I want to know that too! Just hit reply to this email.
Let’s get to the points:
What to get instead of this foodie favorite
Why transfer bonuses are the greatest tool
The best ones out there right now
Cheers,
Steven
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| CARD OF THE WEEK
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Which Card to Grab Now That This Favorite Is More Expensive
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Last week, I mentioned that the annual fee on this foodie favorite had increased. While die-hard diners and big grocery shoppers will still find it an incredibly useful card, others may now see it as a little harder to maximize the value.
Again, the best thing to do is check your average spend on those major categories. To earn back the fee in earnings alone, you’ll need to spend around $677 a month. Of course, that doesn’t take into account the intro bonus or the perks, and it’s also placing a 1 cent value on the points. In reality, you’d be able to get more for your points than that. Regardless, that first year is more than worth it for most.
But, if you already have the card and the perks and earning just don’t add up in your favor, it might time to check out another product. Here are a couple that I recommend:
🪜 The step down
This card is a solid alternative that gets looked over all the time. It offers a solid 3x points per dollar on the same dining and grocery categories, as well as some other helpful ones like gas stations. Its fee is considerably lower, so it’s easy to make the value back. The only downside is that the points don’t go quite as far, but it still has some amazing transfer partners you can use.
🧑🤝🧑 The combo
Instead of switching to one card, grab two and make the most of them. One of these cards is $95 a year, while the Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card is a premium product at $395. It might sound silly to opt for a more expensive card, but it’s so easy to regain value with this product that you’re also grabbing the high-end benefits it offers. The cheaper card offers solid earnings on restaurants, while the Venture X gives you 2x miles per dollar on everything, thereby maximizing your travel earnings.
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| EUROPE VACATION PACKAGES
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Explore the Best Travel Packages in Top European Destinations
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Imagine your dream European vacation: sightseeing in London, island-hopping in the Mediterranean, a grand road trip across multiple countries. Planning it all yourself can be overwhelming, but Guide to Europe has the perfect solution.
Guide to Europe uses cutting-edge AI technology to craft personalized itineraries. With AI handling everything from booking hotels and museum tickets to planning routes, your travel experience becomes completely hassle-free.
Thousands of unique itineraries have already been created, covering every type of trip you can imagine. With just one click, you can reserve accommodations, rental cars, tickets, and more, all tailored to your preferences.
Embrace the future of travel with Guide to Europe, where your perfect vacation is just a click away. Explore the biggest selection of perfectly planned travel packages in Europe here.
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| STEVEN'S TIPS
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Always Double-Check Your Transfer Bonuses
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A lot of our on-site content focuses on finding you the best redemptions for any given airline, destination, or points store. They’re great to use as a guide when planning your travel, but depending on any given moment in time, there may be better options.
🤔 Why? Because of transfer bonuses.
If you’ve been around for a while, you’ll know that transfer bonuses are exactly as they sound. A credit card company has an agreement with an airline or hotel allowing you to earn bonus points or miles when transferring. For example, American Express could have an agreement with British Airways allowing you to earn 25% extra Avios on top of whatever you transfer. So moving 100 thousand American Express Reward Miles gives you 125 thousand Avios.
A bonus that size is more than significant and can shift the value of redemption at any given time. In this case, you might have been planning to use Aeroplan’s award chart to book a flight to Europe. On a regular day, that may be the best option, but with the Avios bonus, booking a flight with British Airways may take the top spot and change your strategy.
I generally don’t recommend moving points without a plan but, if you know you’ll use a specific program at a later date, it can sometimes be worth transferring a lot of points without a specific flight in mind.
And with that in mind, always make a point to check for any transfer bonuses before making a redemption. Ensure you've done the math correctly and never transfer more than you need.
In the next section, I’ve compiled every major transfer bonus right now, including the end date so you can take advantage of them right now.
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| TRANSFER BONUS ROUNDUP
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Transfer Bonuses You Should Consider This Month
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If you're wondering if there are any worthy transfer bonuses running this month, don't worry, we have a handy-dandy list breaking all of them down for you:
🙌 American Express Membership Rewards
Amex is currently running the following promotions:
30% bonus when transferring points to Avios programs British Airways, Aer Lingus, and Iberia. Remember, you can move Avios between other members, so this is effectively a bonus for Qatar Airways and Finnair, too. Offer ends September 30.
20% bonus when transferring points to HawaiianMiles. Offer ends August 31.
🏩 Chase Ultimate Rewards
Chase is currently running the following promotions:
✈️ Citi ThankYou Rewards
Citi is currently running the following promotions:
25% bonus when transferring points to KLM/Air France Flying Blue. (I actually just used this one to save a few points on my Africa flights.) This promotion ends on August 17.
20% bonus when transferring to Wyndham Rewards. Promotion ends August 17.
💸 Capital One Venture Rewards
Capital One is currently running the following promotions:
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| WHAT ELSE IS HAPPENING
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*This link is sponsored.
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