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TRAVEL: Points, Miles, Discounts, Tips, Advice & Questions


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18 hours ago, VABuckeye said:

I always do this.  

I've read that if an airline has marked down fares considerably it can be beneficial to book through a cc portal using points but it's never worked out for me. Actually, I take that back. USAA used to offer some good deals using points but now they're the worst. The nice thing is if you are able to book using a cc portal you typically get points toward status, and/or miles, with the airline you're flying. So it's worth at least checking.

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sometimes i find really good flights at chase, it was just weird to me that the CSR and freedom redemption sites would be completely different with no clear way to get regular economy fares at CSR.  on freedom it's clear as day with multiple tiers shown on each flight grouping. 

 

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On 11/20/2021 at 4:42 PM, elfenix said:

sometimes i find really good flights at chase, it was just weird to me that the CSR and freedom redemption sites would be completely different with no clear way to get regular economy fares at CSR.  on freedom it's clear as day with multiple tiers shown on each flight grouping. 

 


You were just comparing right? You’re pooling points to csr right?

 

I picked up two r/t F to PHX for 45k chase points last August for a trip last Sep/Oct. Dunno of it was a fuck up or not, but they flew just fine. 
 

Grabbed LAS-PHX off BA for 5k ea. Free MCE, drinks and all that. 45min ride, so was tolerable for the $11 and change for tax. 
 

Deals can be had if you can start looking early enough and turn over every stone.

 

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  • 3 weeks later...

If you've used your AA miles for an award trip that you later canceled, go to your online account and make sure those miles were re-deposited to your account. If they didn't re-deposit them I believe you only have a year to claim them back. I had to call and get lots of miles redeposited from a canceled June flight after noticed they had not been automatically re-deposited despite AA's earlier assurances.

Edited by Chopper
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  • 4 weeks later...

Anyone else get this fine email this morning?

Quote

We recently detected activity indicating that someone with your username and password gained unauthorized access to your online AAdvantage® account. This may have resulted in access to the information that is viewable in your account such as your name, email address, date of birth, AAdvantage number and account information, and known-traveler ID.

 

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Question for the experts out there.  This is booked for late March, so I'm sure plenty can change, but as of right now curious to experienced takes on the following:

Booked on expedia (first mistake, but a friend handled and I found out too late)

JFK-ORK overall

Route is JFK->LGW on JetBlue, 8 hr layover and then LHR-> ORK on Aer Lingus

Is the fact that I am moving between airports in London going to create a COVID protocol nightmare?  As in, am I accountable to UK COVID entry protocol, or still just Ireland.  I assume I need to bite the bullet and rebook direct to Ireland (or at least with a connectiong not requiring exiting the airport)

Thoughts?

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6 hours ago, Lynchburg Horn said:

Question for the experts out there.  This is booked for late March, so I'm sure plenty can change, but as of right now curious to experienced takes on the following:

Booked on expedia (first mistake, but a friend handled and I found out too late)

JFK-ORK overall

Route is JFK->LGW on JetBlue, 8 hr layover and then LHR-> ORK on Aer Lingus

Is the fact that I am moving between airports in London going to create a COVID protocol nightmare?  As in, am I accountable to UK COVID entry protocol, or still just Ireland.  I assume I need to bite the bullet and rebook direct to Ireland (or at least with a connectiong not requiring exiting the airport)

Thoughts?

You'll be in the category of a "transiting landside transfer passenger." https://www.heathrow.com/customer-support/faq/coronavirus-covid-19#transfer-passengers

You'll have to pass through immigration and have proof of a covid test that you submit online before your flight, as well as fill out a form. You'll also supply proof of being fully vaccinated for covid if memory serves. But you don't have to have another covid test upon arrival.

Current law:

  • You need to take a COVID-19 test before traveling to England. 
  • Passengers must complete a passenger locator form and you need to do the following when you complete your form:
  • Select ‘Stay in the UK’ under the “Your travel plans” section
  • Reply ‘I will be traveling for an exempt reason’ to the question about whether you are required to self isolate on arrival
  • Select the Exemptions options, and then select "Transit Exemption"
  • You'll need your full travel plans and passport info for the locator form

Hint: if the scrawling on your cdc vax card doesn't pass muster when you submit for approval get an electronic print out of your vaccination record off your physician's website or if you used walgreens or cvs, they'll have it for you to print, as well. Getting that in advance will save you some stress prior to departure.

Edited by Chopper
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  • 1 month later...
150,000 mile sign up bonus for Amex Biz Platinum. Too good of an offer to pass up.

My second go round with Amex Plat so I understand most of the benefits. Anything new I should take advantage of?
A. I didn't think you coukd get a plat sign up bonus more than once. Unless maybe it's personal vs biz.

B. It still pays for itself imo but the lounges are becoming a problem. Over crowded with waitlists approaching an hour at times.

C. Media credits. NY times. Sirius. Audible. Etc

D. $200 hotel credit when you books one of the collection hotels.
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So anyone take advantage of one of these timeshare pitches from Marriott/Sheraton? I got an offer to visit the Sheraton Kauai for $599 for 5 nights plus some other benefits including the resort fee.  I know it's a timeshare pitch that the T&C's say you must attend so I can easily put in my headphones and sleep during it. (I assume I got the offer as I've been a Marriott gold member for years but I don't think I can get any perks from my status if I do this...)  While I haven't visited Hawaii, I'd rather have an offer to one of their other resorts if I could get a similar deal.  Any tips on how to get an offer to one of the other locations as I assume these come unsolicited?

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19 minutes ago, Grimas said:

So anyone take advantage of one of these timeshare pitches from Marriott/Sheraton? I got an offer to visit the Sheraton Kauai for $599 for 5 nights plus some other benefits including the resort fee.  I know it's a timeshare pitch that the T&C's say you must attend so I can easily put in my headphones and sleep during it. (I assume I got the offer as I've been a Marriott gold member for years but I don't think I can get any perks from my status if I do this...)  While I haven't visited Hawaii, I'd rather have an offer to one of their other resorts if I could get a similar deal.  Any tips on how to get an offer to one of the other locations as I assume these come unsolicited?

I've done this a number of times.  Got a CHEAP vacation and just have to waste 1.5 hrs listening to the pitch.  I know how to say no - I've got 9 kids.

Just call them - they'll almost always give you a list of all the different vacations you could get if you sign up.  My last one was 3days/2nights in NYC in a Hilton Club off of 53rd St (IIRC) for $199.  After listening to the pitch, they gave me a $50 Visa gift card and a free 4day/3night vacation to FL on one of the coastal islands.

Which reminds me...I've got to use that this year.

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15 hours ago, ousuxndallas said:

150,000 mile sign up bonus for Amex Biz Platinum. Too good of an offer to pass up.

My second go round with Amex Plat so I understand most of the benefits. Anything new I should take advantage of?

If you don't already have it, Platinum pays for your annual CLEAR fee ($179).  I signed up for CLEAR via Delta SkyMiles which offers CLEAR for $119.  I then signed up my two Amex Platinum additional cardholders for CLEAR for $60 each.  $119 + $60 + $60 = $239 for three CLEAR memberships and Amex refunded $179 of that.  So, all told, three CLEAR memberships for a total of $60.  Not bad.

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Dumb question(s) amnesty, please.

My wife is starting a new job and working on a 1099 basis, and while she won't have a ton of business expenses, we were planning on getting her a card (thinking AMEX platinum) to help keep things separated for accounting purposes and pick up a few perks while at it. 

1)  I've never had an AMEX.  She has an excellent credit score, but as she's just getting started it'd be difficult to provide much income info.  I don't quite understand how credit "limits" work on AMEX, but would obviously like to have as much flexibility as possible.  Are we better off having me as the primary account holder and adding her as an authorized user? 

2)  Does the AMEX site make it reasonably simple to view/download transactions by user for accounting purposes?  The plan would be for her card to be used only for business expenses, and on the few occasions we'd use it for personal spending (outside of hitting the initial bonus spend), I'd use mine.

3)  I understand that the $179 AU fee allows up to 3 AUs.  In that case I figured I might as well add our teenagers to get a start on their credit history, even if they aren't going to use them much (if at all).  Any potential negative ramifications for them when we eventually take them off the account?  I hate the credit score game, but would like to help them get a good start without screwing anything up.

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FYI, Southwest is running a credit card promotion right now.  Spend $5K on a new card and get a Companion Pass for 1 year plus 30K points.  If you get this, it doesn't preclude you from still earning enough points to keep the Companion Pass active through the end of 2023. 

Here's a referral link if anyone wants it:  https://www.referyourchasecard.com/226c/NVGHUWVCN6

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On 2/10/2022 at 10:31 AM, Damor said:

Dumb question(s) amnesty, please.

My wife is starting a new job and working on a 1099 basis, and while she won't have a ton of business expenses, we were planning on getting her a card (thinking AMEX platinum) to help keep things separated for accounting purposes and pick up a few perks while at it. 

1)  I've never had an AMEX.  She has an excellent credit score, but as she's just getting started it'd be difficult to provide much income info.  I don't quite understand how credit "limits" work on AMEX, but would obviously like to have as much flexibility as possible.  Are we better off having me as the primary account holder and adding her as an authorized user? 

2)  Does the AMEX site make it reasonably simple to view/download transactions by user for accounting purposes?  The plan would be for her card to be used only for business expenses, and on the few occasions we'd use it for personal spending (outside of hitting the initial bonus spend), I'd use mine.

3)  I understand that the $179 AU fee allows up to 3 AUs.  In that case I figured I might as well add our teenagers to get a start on their credit history, even if they aren't going to use them much (if at all).  Any potential negative ramifications for them when we eventually take them off the account?  I hate the credit score game, but would like to help them get a good start without screwing anything up.

Yes, amex makes downloading transactions easy. Their additional cardholders are expensive though so I don't think it'd be worth it for your teens but ymmv. I'd check out the benefits on the amex biz plat or the regular amex plat and make sure you think you'll get enough benefits to make either card worthwhile. If you're planning on buying any new computer equip I know the biz plat offers a large credit for Dell that on its own is like 1/3 the annual cost of the card. When you sign up for a biz card, you'll put in the biz tax id number and the cardholder's ssn as well, so even for a new business the decision to issue will be tied to how they rate the individual applicant.

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On 2/10/2022 at 6:31 PM, Damor said:

Dumb question(s) amnesty, please.

My wife is starting a new job and working on a 1099 basis, and while she won't have a ton of business expenses, we were planning on getting her a card (thinking AMEX platinum) to help keep things separated for accounting purposes and pick up a few perks while at it. 

1)  I've never had an AMEX.  She has an excellent credit score, but as she's just getting started it'd be difficult to provide much income info.  I don't quite understand how credit "limits" work on AMEX, but would obviously like to have as much flexibility as possible.  Are we better off having me as the primary account holder and adding her as an authorized user? 

2)  Does the AMEX site make it reasonably simple to view/download transactions by user for accounting purposes?  The plan would be for her card to be used only for business expenses, and on the few occasions we'd use it for personal spending (outside of hitting the initial bonus spend), I'd use mine.

3)  I understand that the $179 AU fee allows up to 3 AUs.  In that case I figured I might as well add our teenagers to get a start on their credit history, even if they aren't going to use them much (if at all).  Any potential negative ramifications for them when we eventually take them off the account?  I hate the credit score game, but would like to help them get a good start without screwing anything up.

1a.  nobody verifies the income info.

1b. the 'limit' is unstated.  amex app and site has a place where you can run a purchase authorization 'check' to find the soft limit.

3.  its a net benefit.  just add them.

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20 minutes ago, 52-80 said:

1a.  nobody verifies the income info.

1b. the 'limit' is unstated.  amex app and site has a place where you can run a purchase authorization 'check' to find the soft limit.

3.  its a net benefit.  just add them.

When you first start, the limit will be somewhat lower, since they don't have any real data on your spending and payoff habits.  After some time, the limit will increase...often a lot...

I just checked and both my personal and business Plat cards have 6 figure limits right now.

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edit: amex MR points transfer directly to Delta but not Chase, as you probably already know. Before transferring to Air France or KLM, search the AF sight for availability and see if you can find something that makes sense for you. You'll probably have to register for the Flying Blue program before you can search for award seats.

Edited by Chopper
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I do this a lot. Transfer from chase to BA, then get a domestic US ticket on points.

Can’t buy them outright, obviously, but it works with points. 
 

what Chop said though, double check availability first, and triple check KLM will even allow it.

If looking for an international flight, check the availability. The restrictions are much less. 

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Thanks, y'all.

It's looking like the personal Amex Platinum will come reasonably close to paying for itself for her purposes, as the benefits align well with how she'll use it.

I thought the AU fee was $179 and allowed up to three users (not $179 each), am I seeing that right?

And in doing a little more reading, it looks like spousal income can be claimed on credit card apps these days, so I don't have to fret about fudging anything anyway.

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On 2/10/2022 at 12:31 PM, Damor said:

1)  I've never had an AMEX.  She has an excellent credit score, but as she's just getting started it'd be difficult to provide much income info.  I don't quite understand how credit "limits" work on AMEX, but would obviously like to have as much flexibility as possible.  Are we better off having me as the primary account holder and adding her as an authorized user? 

There is a limit. It can be expanded.  My “limit” is now so high it scares me. 
 

teenagers:  There is no fucking way I’d put an Amex card in a teenagers hand.  I will say that you can set limits for authorized users.  

Edited by VABuckeye
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Spain in May. 
 

R/T Miami to Madrid in business class - 106000 Amex points at 1:1.6 transfer bonus to Iberia Avios

1st night in Madrid. 60000 Hilton points

Nights 2-4 in Seville  90000 Amex points

Nights 5-6 in Malaga 40000 Chase UR points

Nights 7-9 in Valencia 55000 Chase UR points

Nights 10-14 on Mallorca 55000 Chase UR points

Nights 15-19 in Barcelona AirBnB (Spanish Grand Prix)

Nights 20-21 in Toledo 35000 Chase UR points

Night 22 in Madrid 60000 Hilton points  

Will take for flights in Spain for 36000 Iberia Avios

One train from Barcelona to Madrid

Two private cars Madrid to Toledo and Seville to Malaga

Less than $1000 out of pocket for all travel and accommodations.  Spanish Grand Prix tickets will set me back another $1000.   Just meals and incidentals left to pay for on the trip.

 

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Interesting tidbit about Chase and the 5/24...

I had looked awhile back and I've had 5 cards opened within the past 2 years.  I'm coming up on 3 of them dropping off, but that's in April, June and September.

However, I logged into my Southwest Airlines account this past weekend looking for prices on a flight I'll be taking over spring break and it had an offer for their Southwest Chase card with 30K pts and the free Companion Pass - and it said I was PRE-APPROVED.

It's a fucking awesome deal, so I just said fuck it and applied.  What's the worst thing that could happen?  Ooooohhhh...an inquiry hits my credit report and I don't get the card (which I don't have now, so it's continues the status quo).  Well, I got the "We're researching your application and get back to you" message.  Oh well, no card.

The next morning, I get an email from Chase - "Congratulations!!!  We've approved your card application.  We'll be sending it out soon."

So, now I've got 6 cards opened in 24 months.

But WAIT!  There's more!!!!

Yesterday, I logged Into my United Airlines account to see about a flight for this weekend (SWA doesn't fly out of the airport I need and AA was RIDICULOUSLY expensive).  Lo and behold, I've got an offer for one of their cards - with a better deal than I've seen elsewhere.  AND it's PRE-APPROVED.

This couldn't work again, could it, says I?  Ah...fuck it, why not?  Applied and got the same "We're researching your application and get back to you" message as before.

And...this morning came the good news..."Congratulations!!!  We've approved your card application.  We'll be sending it out soon."

So, now I have 7 accounts opened in the past 24 months.  Is Chase getting soft in their old age?  Or is the "PRE-APPROVED" offer truly pre-approved regardless of the 5/24?

Anywho, figured I'd let y'all know so you can see if it works for others...

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Oh...and while I was on this quest, I looked at my British Airways account just to see if I had a PRE-APPROVED offer there.  No bueno...

BUT...It looks like the BA card is offering 100K Avios as their bonus.  In addition to that, the Aer Lingus and Iberia cards are also offering 100K Avios.  So, you could potentially get 300K Avios and take a bad ass trip or four...

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34 minutes ago, Ag with kids said:

Oh...and while I was on this quest, I looked at my British Airways account just to see if I had a PRE-APPROVED offer there.  No bueno...

BUT...It looks like the BA card is offering 100K Avios as their bonus.  In addition to that, the Aer Lingus and Iberia cards are also offering 100K Avios.  So, you could potentially get 300K Avios and take a bad ass trip or four...

Avios are awesome. Whenever Amex offers the 1:1.6 bonus I pump 100-200k Amex into Avios. 

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On 2/15/2022 at 5:07 PM, Chewbacca said:

Anyone have an offer on Amex plat that doesn't require $15k spend in 3 months to qualify for the 120k miles?  I might hit that, but don't want to have to put a bunch of personal expenses on it to get the miles.  That's why I want a business card - to keep them separate.

I'm guessing y'all already know this given the 26 prior pages I can't understand, but when my wife signed up she went through the AMEX pre-qual offer site and got a 150k bonus offer for 6k/6mo spend on the personal Plat.  I'm guessing that's influenced by the fact that we've never had an AMEX, though.

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46 minutes ago, Damor said:

I'm guessing y'all already know this given the 26 prior pages I can't understand, but when my wife signed up she went through the AMEX pre-qual offer site and got a 150k bonus offer for 6k/6mo spend on the personal Plat.  I'm guessing that's influenced by the fact that we've never had an AMEX, though.

Yeah, I already have an Amex.  So I don't think the bonus would work for me personally.  My business has never had one, though.

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Spain in May. 
 
R/T Miami to Madrid in business class - 106000 Amex points at 1:1.6 transfer bonus to Iberia Avios
1st night in Madrid. 60000 Hilton points
Nights 2-4 in Seville  90000 Amex points
Nights 5-6 in Malaga 40000 Chase UR points
Nights 7-9 in Valencia 55000 Chase UR points
Nights 10-14 on Mallorca 55000 Chase UR points
Nights 15-19 in Barcelona AirBnB (Spanish Grand Prix)
Nights 20-21 in Toledo 35000 Chase UR points
Night 22 in Madrid 60000 Hilton points  
Will take for flights in Spain for 36000 Iberia Avios
One train from Barcelona to Madrid
Two private cars Madrid to Toledo and Seville to Malaga
Less than $1000 out of pocket for all travel and accommodations.  Spanish Grand Prix tickets will set me back another $1000.   Just meals and incidentals left to pay for on the trip.
 

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Oh, hai
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On 2/16/2022 at 7:16 PM, midtown said:

They will approve for the card but not the bonus I think.

If that's not true I could be that some of your previous cards are on included when calculating the 5/24.

If neither than sweet.

Well...at first glance, it appears I got the Chase cards (6 and 7 w/in 24 months) AND the bonus according to my iPhone Chase app.  It has my cards in there along with a section showing how much spending I've done towards the $5K for each card to earn the bonus.  SWA card doesn't show the Companion pass as part of the 30K bonus but I figure that's just for brevity since the section is pretty small (at least I hope).

As a side note, logging into my Chase acct on my MacBook does NOT show that section.

So...my advice is to go look at all your accts that have Chase cards associated with them (SWA, United, BA, etc) and see if you have PRE-APPROVED offer for a card...because it seemed to work for me.

NOTE:  Neither of those 2 accts have the pre-approved offer anymore.

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Tell me how I screwed up.  I was on the phone with Hilton changing my reservation in Chicago because the total price dropped $50 for 3 nights.  I think a lot of people book a hotel and just forget about it.  I always check back a few times because although I am not cheap by any means I don't see any reason to pay more than I have to.   

While on the phone Hilton offered me 500 pts to listen to a pitch.   I knew it was going to be a time share thing but 500 pts is 500.    They offered me two nights at a Hilton property in NYC for $285 total.  I just have to listen to a 2 hour presentation.    Also a $100 hotel credit that I assume I can drink away in the bar and another 5000 pts.   That seemed worth it.  Basically a free night and a bunch of drinks for two hours of my time for a trip I do at least once a year anyway

Edited by midtown
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44 minutes ago, midtown said:

Tell me how I screwed up.  I was on the phone with Hilton changing my reservation in Chicago because the total price dropped $50 for 3 nights.  I think a lot of people book a hotel and just forget about it.  I always check back a few times because although I am not cheap by any means I don't see any reason to pay more than I have to.   

While on the phone Hilton offered me 500 pts to listen to a pitch.   I knew it was going to be a time share thing but 500 pts is 500.    They offered me two nights at a Hilton property in NYC for $285 total.  I just have to listen to a 2 hour presentation.    Also a $100 hotel credit that I assume I can drink away in the bar and another 5000 pts.   That seemed worth it.  Basically a free night and a bunch of drinks for two hours of my time for a trip I do at least once a year anyway

I did something like that to get my trip to NYC back in 2020 (right before covid).  No way you could get that hotel for that price, plus the freebies, AND you're already going that way.  And it's easy to tell them NO at the end of the pitch.

I did one of those about 10 years ago and the guy looked at me right as he started and said if I was just going to say no then let's just get it over with.  I was done in 15 min.

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Ok...so I've apparently been targeted for an AMEX Bus Plat offer of 150K MR points for $15K spend over 3 months (via snail mail).  The offer does NOT have the "lifetime restriction" language stating that you can't get the offer if you've had the card before.  However, I've already GOT an AMEX Bus Plat.

But, research shows that if you've got one of these targeted offers, you CAN get the offer...even if you have a current card.  Yes, you can have 2 AMEX Bus Plat cards at one time.

I just got a couple Chase cards so I'm holding off until April (I've got til 4/13) to try to sign up so I can complete the spending on the Chase cards first.

I also saw this list which apparently looks like it might work in my AMEX acct...so I'll check into it at the end of March.  It gives you an extra 10K points with a $1K spend by an AU...

https://dannydealguru.com/amex-business-platinum-160k-offer/

Edited by Ag with kids
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Sorry if this is the wrong topic but have any of you had issues with foreign travel and covid testing proof? We've been doing outpatient testing for awhile and people are saying our forms aren't sufficient because results aren't printed. They object to results with a handwritten signature and date. What the fuck is that about? 

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14 minutes ago, HRSchenker said:

Sorry if this is the wrong topic but have any of you had issues with foreign travel and covid testing proof? We've been doing outpatient testing for awhile and people are saying our forms aren't sufficient because results aren't printed. They object to results with a handwritten signature and date. What the fuck is that about? 

Most of Europe translated to digital proof, and certificates with QR codes so theres a 2nd layer of authenticity.

But also..most of Europe are abandoning the covid requirement anyway so.......

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