In Manila now for a work trip and needed to book a flight home - saw that UA is selling saver economy tickets for only 32.8k miles, and now that awards are upgradable, I was able to confirm an upgrade to Polaris for only 40 PP!
It's just mind boggling to me that there are ways to fly Polaris 7000 miles for the price of a domestic economy YN ticket
Got this email from BA just now....
> We wanted to let you know that from May 27, 2026 the price of Reward Flights will increase. This will only affect the cash element of your booking.
> Rest assured that any Reward Flights booked prior to this change will remain at the current price. Reward Flights continue to offer great value and the Avios required will remain unchanged.
> Thank you for your continued support and understanding.
https://onemileatatime.com/news/redeem-qatar-airways-avios-philippine-airlines/
Looks like QR picked up where Alaska left off with Philippine airlines - exciting to have another transpacific option where availability has been historically tight.
Tried using my Bilt Palladium via Apple Pay for a HAFH hotel in China (which are all pay at property I guess?). The POS asked for a PIN which I set up on the spot, but it didn’t work.
Had to check in with another card, but don't want to lose the $300 of credits by not paying via the Bilt card. Any suggestions on how to fix this? Cardless support was useless and just told me the pin I set should work instantly, which it clearly didn't....
Appreciate any advice anyone can share.
First time using the emergency medical benefit and pleasantly surprised how easy it was to use. I got injured hiking in Bali and was hospitalized for a few days and the total hospital bill was about $4500.
Chase covered $2500 of the bill and my travel insurance plan ($2500 deductible). I had to submit flight ticket (one way was fine), card statement, medical report, denial of primary coverage, and receipt - Chase didn’t require that I paid the hospital with the CSR.
Overall really impressed with the benefit, the whole process was easy and lasted 3 weeks end to end with 2 follow up document requests.
Going to Shanghai today and have about USD 7800 that I am bringing on my trip. I saw that China requires foreigners to declare amounts over USD 5000, does anyone have experience to share on the process, whether they ask for documentation of the source of funds, etc.?
Appreciate any advice the group has to share
When logged into the Chase app, are the cards listed in explore more products -> credit cards pre approved offers? Looking to pick up the Hyatt card but don’t see a specific pre approval tool for it, so wondering if this is it.
Looks like Mastercard is jumping into the lounge game! Free access for any world legend Mastercard, which includes Bilt Palladium and Citi Elite.
I haven’t visited this one yet, but it looks like a real premium lounge with à la carte on the level of the Centurion section of the Amex lounge.
HKG really is lounge paradise with the best credit card lounges, superb priority pass options, and the Cathay first lounges.
I’ve been picking up a lot of cards the past 3 years, mainly for SUBs, and I think it’s getting to the point where I’m paying $4465 in annual fees which feels excessive, but not sure where to cut. I do travel every other week for work, including overseas, so airline spend is around $40k annually and hotel spend $20k.
Would love to hear feedback from the group on ways I could trim some fat and improve my wallet. Thanks!
1. Amex Platinum $895:
a. 5x FHR and airlines, Centurion and Plaza Premium lounge access
b. I don’t spend much on this card other than simple round trip domestic flights and FHR, but do use at least FHR ($400), Resy ($300), Lululemon ($150), Airline Fee ($200), Entertainment ($150), Clear ($50), and for $1250 in all in value
2. Amex Green $150
a. Downgraded from gold card, waiting for upgrade offer
3. Amex Bonvoy Business $125
a. I value the 35k free night at $200 and maintain platinum status, so the 15 nights which stack with the Ritz card come in handy
4. Chase Sapphire Reserve $795
a. 4x airlines and hotels, Sapphire lounge access
b. This is my main travel card due to best travel protections on one way flights and multipliers for hotels. Trip cancellation and emergency medical saved me around $5000 this year alone
c. Credits are harder to use, but I manage the travel credit ($300), Sapphire tables ($200), Edit ($250), and Apple ($100) for $850 in credit value
5. Ritz Carlton $450
a. Main priority pass card for my family and friends due to free AUs
b. I value the travel credit at face value, so this card is $150 effective AF, which seems to be worth it for the 85k certificate
6. United Quest/Business $500
a. Picked up both for 100k/125k SUBs,
b. Quest: $200 travel bank ($200), 10k mile discount ($100), and rideshare credit ($50) for $350 in value
c. Business: annual 5k mile benefit ($50), $125 travel bank ($125), and $100 rideshare ($50) for $225 in value
7. Ink Preferred $95
a. Main business card for 3x on ads and general travel
8. Citi Elite $595
a. Main dining card with 3x/6x multipliers
b. I picked up this card for the SUB year 1 double dips, and got it for free due to the IRS form fiasco they had last year
c. Will likely get citigold this year, so can renew at $450, but I only value the credits at $400 split as $200 for AA flights and $200 for hotels due to portal price inflation and 2 night min requirement. Blacklane is worthless since it costs so much more than Uber black
d. Does it make sense to downgrade this to a custom cash?
9. Citi Premier $95
a. Main 3x gas and groceries card, but the $100 hotel credit is kinda useless
10. C1 Venture X $395
a. Main 2x catch all card and seems to be an easy break even with $300 travel credit and 10k anniversary miles
b. Also use C1 lounges at least 4x a year, so that’s a nice cherry on top
11. Bilt Palladium $495
a. Recently picked up for the SUB and currently using as main catch all, and I like the transfer partners a lot more than C1
b. AF honestly seems high and the PP is useless to me due to Ritz card, but I think the hotel credits stacked $100 Bilt cash each could be worth maybe $400?
c. I’m CA based so I think I can cash out the $10 walgreens gift cards to bring the AF down to $375?