Keeping an eye on the best credit card offers
Chase and United are currently offering up to 60,000 bonus miles when you open up a new United MileagePlus Explorer Card, but getting this deal can be slightly tricky. You’ll earn 50,000 bonus miles after your first use of the card and another 10,000 miles after spending $25,000 in a calendar year. Your spending requirements, however, aren’t really the tricky part.
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For a limited time, Delta and Amex have sweetened the signup bonuses on both their personal and business credit cards, offering 45,000 bonus SkyMiles for opening a new Gold Delta SkyMiles credit card and 55,000 bonus SkyMiles for opening a new Gold Delta SkyMiles Business Credit Card.
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Through January 31, 2012, you can apply for a new Citi AAdvantage credit card and receive 50,000 American Airlines AAdvantage bonus miles, a $150 statement credit and 2 Admirals Club one-day passes. This offer is valid on the Citi Platinum Select / AAdvantage Visa Signature card, the Citi Select / AAdvantage American Express card, as well as the CitiBusiness / AAdvantage Visa card.
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While an 80,000 bonus point offer for the Priority Club Visa Card has reportedly been offered to some on a targeted basis, it now appears that this offer may now be publicly available.
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Chase is now offering an excellent 70,000 bonus points upon your first use of a new Marriott Rewards Premier Credit Card. That’s one of the most lucrative deals ever for this card. In addition, you’ll receive a free night stay at a category 1-4 location upon account approval and the annual fee of $85 will be waived for the first year.
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For a limited time, Chase and Southwest have brought back this popular offer. With your very first purchase on your Southwest Airlines Rapid Rewards Plus Credit Card, you’ll earn 50,000 bonus points–enough to redeem for 2 free roundtrip flights (up to $833 towards Wanna Get Away fares).
The card has a $69 annual fee which is not waived for the first year. That fee, however, is substantially offset by the 3,000 points you’ll receive on your card membership anniversary every year, good for $50 towards a Wanna Get Away fare.
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The Hawaiian Airlines® Visa Signature® card currently offers 20,000 bonus Hawaiian Miles after first purchase and an additional 15,000 bonus HawaiianMiles after making $1,000 in net purchases within four months of account opening for a total of up to 35,000 bonus miles.
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There are many hidden expenses when it comes to traveling overseas. And one of them comes from the plastic in your wallet. Most credit cards charge a fee for making transactions in foreign currencies, an amount which is usually between 1 and 3% of your purchase price. Fortunately, one of the benefits of the Credit CARD Act has been to make these kinds of fees more transparent to consumers. So, at least now when you’re traveling, you should be aware of how much extra your charges are costing you, as any exchange fees should be broken out separately on your credit card statement.
That’s not to say that you should avoid using your credit card while you’re on vacation. Charging your purchases to a travel credit card while you’re abroad does have a few very significant advantages. Among the most important is the convenience and security of not having to carry too much cash. And you may be pleased to find out that even if you are being charged a fee for using your card, you’ll still almost certainly come out ahead versus changing your money at the airport or hotel, since the exchange rates that credit cards use are quite competitive.
Still, wouldn’t it be better to not be charged the fee at all? Fortunately there has been a trend towards offering this benefit on many cards, typically targeted to more affluent customers more likely to be frequent travelers.
Read on to find a list of credit cards and charge cards that do not charge foreign transaction fees:
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Chase officially announced a new enhancement today for its premier rewards card, the Chase Sapphire Preferred card. Chase Sapphire Preferred cardmembers will now enjoy two points per dollar spent on travel (including air, hotel, car rental, trains, travel agencies, taxis, etc.) and on dining purchases (from fast food and coffee shops to fine dining). Previously, travel and dining purchases earned double points only on purchases made through the Ultimate Rewards portal, but that restriction has now been removed. Purchases of eligible airfare and hotel accommodations made through Chase’s Ultimate Rewards will still earn an additional point per dollar spent (now for a total of 3 points per dollar).
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The Ritz-Carlton Rewards credit card is currently offering 50,000 Ritz-Carlton Rewards points after you use your card for the first time, redeemable for a free one-night stay at over 60 Tier 1-3 Ritz-Carlton locations. Or, you can take advantage of the interchangeability of Ritz-Carlton and Marriott points and redeem the 50,000 points for 3 nights at a Tier 3 Marriott hotel.
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