I love credit cards so much! v3.0 (see first page for add'l details)

[Judique]

In case you are not following the reservation thread the AP glitch for multiple reservations has been fixed. I was able to get all my days with a few refreshes in between.

Thanks! I was following but took a breather for dinner and didn't get back on until now.

I'm going to see if I can get my extra 4 days now.

 

[WinterAloe]

Happy to see you come out of lurkerdom! You did such a nice job in completing the requested format for info to help us give you advice here. Looks like you are both sitting at 0/24 as far as Chase is concerned so that gives you so much room to get the cards you want. Thank You! Yes, we are at 0/24 and ready to get started. We have some extra spend in the next month or two that will help.

Some thoughts for you - have DH max out his CSR's 5xURs at grocery stores/gas/home improvement by June 30 ($1500 spend limit for June). Then consider pc'ing it to a CF or CFU if the 3xUR travel category is not beneficial for him (although it sounds like he will be traveling more in the future so maybe the CSR is the best UR card for him). He is eligible for a new Sapphire SUB sometime this year or early 2021, depending on when he earned his bonus on the CSR in 2016/2017 - 48 months is the spacing you'll need for that, just keep that in mind. Then when that 48 mo clock has expired, he can get a CSP through your CSP support link for a combined 75K UR (60K him, 15K you, as long as the current SUBs don't change on the CSP). But he can't be holding a CSR when he does that, so you'll have to decide if the 3xUR travel/dining earning + 1.5X Chase travel portal multiplier are worth keeping over the lower earning structure and AF of the CSP. I think his annual $300 travel credit usually posts on his December or January statement. We both use our Sapphires as our primary cards. If he is still travelling every week like he is now, I will probably product change his CSR for a no-fee one (CF or CFU) then apply for a new CSR for him. We will reassess in December before we do this since it seems as if Chase has been making a lot of changes lately. If I keep a CSP and he keeps a CSR, is there anyway we can support each other? Or, if he signs up for a CSP using a support from me for the extra UR's, can he PC that to a CSR and if he can, how long should we wait?
What I am planning on doing within the next several days is pc my CSP to a no-fee Chase card (CF or CFU) then apply for another CSP. I need to look into the differences between the two before I do that. I think it has been discussed here recently so I'll go back and look for it again. If we can't support each other, I will wait until I understand the Reddit site and use a support from Dischurners on there.

I just got DH a Hyatt card last week, if you search for my posts on this thread recently you'll see I've posted a few information sharing posts. I would recommend signing him up for a WoH account first. Then while logged in that same website you'll see the WoH card advertised, and currently the signup offer includes 10 elite nights instead of the normal 5 elite nights. When I checked with a DISer's support link last week, it only showed the normal 5 elite night with application, so if you are interested in a jump start toward elite status then that's something to keep in mind. I did see your post about the Chase Hyatt and it was very informative. It helped me to decide that now was the time to get it. I guess I didn't remember all of the details so I need to find it and read through it again.

Until June 30, the Hyatt card is also earning 3 elite nights per $5000 spend and 3x on grocery spending up to $1500 spend.

Your stash of Marriott points ! If you're looking at boosting your UA miles you could transfer some at 3:1 with a 5000 mile bonus if you do it in chunks of 20K Marriott points (thus getting 25,000 UA miles using 60,000 Marriott points). That's a back pocket stash of hidden UA miles if you need it. Do either of you have United status? You can transfer Marriott points to UA with a 10% bonus if you have UA Silver (or above) status (names have to match on the Marriott and UA accounts, but you can transfer Marriott points to your spouse up to 100K points a year). And travel packages took a big hit in 2018, but you have so many Marriott points that might be worth taking a second look at. DH currently has United Silver and will hopefully be able to bring it up before the end of this year since he is now flying every week instead of driving to the job location. I am fairly familiar with the Marriott program and am treating the points as kind of a travel savings account. It takes a lot longer to earn them than spend them! We are using some of his points this week and next for 5 night stays near his new job location but would like him to venture to Hyatt and Radisson properties now that he's at a location that has some.

I'm off to apply for a Hyatt cc for him now! Fingers crossed there aren't any glitches and he's approved!

 

[Alexle2007]

Oh, private school peeps, do your high schools have weighted classes? This is one aspect that hasn’t been discussed with us but, apparently, DS’s school doesn’t have weighted classes. So an AP class is the same as any other class and they don’t have levels like public school did with honors, academic, etc. I wonder how they compete for college when other kids can have over a 4.0 GPA.

 

[georgina]

Oh, private peeps, do your high schools have weighted classes? This is one aspect that hasn’t been discussed with us but, apparently, DS’s school doesn’t have weighted classes. So an AP class is the same as any other class and they don’t have levels like public school did with honors, academic, etc. I wonder how they compete for college when other kids can have over a 4.0 GPA.

The schools send out a profile with the transcript that explains their grading system and their courses. So the college can see where the student fits among their class. It shouldn’t hurt the student in college admissions.

 

[palhockeymomof2]

Oh, private peeps, do your high schools have weighted classes? This is one aspect that hasn’t been discussed with us but, apparently, DS’s school doesn’t have weighted classes. So an AP class is the same as any other class and they don’t have levels like public school did with honors, academic, etc. I wonder how they compete for college when other kids can have over a 4.0 GPA.

Both of my kids..now 32 and 29 went to a private prep school on scholarships because they played ice hockey...same as you no weighted classes....think it depends on what colleges your looking at......but for us we couldn’t pay for the higher end colleges anyway so it really didn’t matter....they had no issues getting into the colleges they wanted to attend

 

[Alexle2007]

The schools send out a profile with the transcript that explains their grading system and their courses. So the college can see where the student fits among their class. It shouldn’t hurt the student in college admissions.

Thanks! I was like now I have this I to worry about. His friends will have 4.45 GPA and he’ll be stuck with a 4.0 and it won’t look as attractive to schools.

 

[mmmears]

Oh, private peeps, do your high schools have weighted classes? This is one aspect that hasn’t been discussed with us but, apparently, DS’s school doesn’t have weighted classes. So an AP class is the same as any other class and they don’t have levels like public school did with honors, academic, etc. I wonder how they compete for college when other kids can have over a 4.0 GPA.

Just one person's perspective here, based on my experience with this stuff. Of course, YMMV, and it really depends on what the final goal is here. In general, though, colleges look at kids "in context" which means they look at the HS and will understand. Of course, having a well-known (to colleges) HS really helps in this regard. It can hurt with some of the very large public Us that will use a computer to determine most admissions and merit aid packages though, since many just go with the weighted score. I also asked an old friend who was admissions director at my alma mater about grades because DD's school was notoriously hard and didn't weight and he knew our area and said that he expected a different GPA from her school and another private, then a higher one from public HS A, an even higher one from public HS B, and so on. They know. But this was for a smaller LAC and just one example. So, TBH, it depends. I hope this helps.

 

[Judique]

Still only able to get three days. It will let me choose a date which I couldn't do this morning but then the parks are all greyed out.

I've been refreshing etc for the last hour and nothing.

 

[Alexle2007]

Just one person's perspective here, based on my experience with this stuff. Of course, YMMV, and it really depends on what the final goal is here. In general, though, colleges look at kids "in context" which means they look at the HS and will understand. Of course, having a well-known (to colleges) HS really helps in this regard. It can hurt with some of the very large public Us that will use a computer to determine most admissions and merit aid packages though, since many just go with the weighted score. I also asked an old friend who was admissions director at my alma mater about grades because DD's school was notoriously hard and didn't weight and he knew our area and said that he expected a different GPA from her school and another private, then a higher one from public HS A, an even higher one from public HS B, and so on. They know. But this was for a smaller LAC and just one example. So, TBH, it depends. I hope this helps.

Thanks. This is my concern. DS’s school is fairly small (there were 50 kids in 8th grade) and I expect that he will be applying out of state to engineering/math/science programs (Definitely not liberal arts) so will he be competitive.

 

[mhartman09]

Still only able to get three days. It will let me choose a date which I couldn't do this morning but then the parks are all greyed out.

I've been refreshing etc for the last hour and nothing.

That happened to me too. I just kept selecting a different date, then the one I was trying to book for, and back and forth until it showed the parks as available. Took a while and was annoying, but it worked and I was able to book all 5 park days of my second trip that way.

 

[snugglebug]

Still only able to get three days. It will let me choose a date which I couldn't do this morning but then the parks are all greyed out.

I've been refreshing etc for the last hour and nothing.

Just keep clicking the date on the calendar. You don't even have to switch to another date, just keep clicking the same one until they're available. I think the most I did was 5 clicks.

 

[pinkxray]

My Amex Gold annual fee just posted. I would really like to call to get a retention offer.
Problem- I am a little baby when it comes to negotiation and have no idea what to say.
Do I say I am thinking of canceling, just say do I have any retention offers?
I need a script!

 

[havaneselover]

Thanks. This is my concern. DS’s school is fairly small (there were 50 kids in 8th grade) and I expect that he will be applying out of state to engineering/math/science programs (Definitely not liberal arts) so will he be competitive.

It's likely a non-issue, but I wouldn't like it. Where do the graduates go?

I'd also say standardized test scores will normalize, but honestly who knows what will happen with standardized testing in four years.

 

[Judique]

Still not working for me and I foolishly deleted one of the days I had and can't get it back. Yesterday I could delete and replace.

My younger daughter has a ticket assigned in MDE - a non expiring park hopper. Clicked on her name which isn't on the reservation, and I was able to make a park reservation for her.
I woke up early as usual so did some incessant clicking for awhile but still no success for my problem. I've also tried different browsers, etc.

***EDIT - see update below

 

[Judique]

My Amex Gold annual fee just posted. I would really like to call to get a retention offer.
Problem- I am a little baby when it comes to negotiation and have no idea what to say.
Do I say I am thinking of canceling, just say do I have any retention offers?
I need a script!

That's what I said. They transferred me to a retention specialist who went over my account and pointed out all the value I was getting from it. Eventually they gave me 10k points, or maybe it was 15K? Sorry I'm not remembering exactly right now, but I kept it because they gave me points. I'm going to try again but not till November.

 

[Judique]

@snugglebug @mhartman09 @georgina

I had an epiphany and deleted all my park reservations. I then reassigned my extra AP voucher to my daughter. Went into park reservations and was able to get all 7 nights!!!

Then put my AP voucher back in my own name. Now it says 'nontransferable' but that shouldn't be a problem as it's for me anyway. Took screen shots just in case.

As you can see, I'll do anything to avoid that IT possibly 2 hour call.

 

[trenty]

I just checked my CF grocery categories. I have not received 5x points on grocery since 6/9. I am not maxed out yet. Anyone else experiencing this?

ETA: After a few inaccurate, canned responses to my SM, I got a response that says I am maxed. Not sure why my counter shows that I am not maxed.

 

[wed100105]

I am a month behind after a crazy end to the school year, a wedding which all three of my kiddos were in, and a blissful trip to Hilton Head and Gatlinburg. I'll try to catch up!

We booked Disney for Christmas this year. Our military ticket expiration dates were extended through September 2021. I called and found out that there are no black out dates. We are not thrilled about wearing masks at a theme park with a 13, 9, and 4 year old, so we knew our only options would be Christmas and Easter breaks. Considering that theoretically the number of people in the park should be the same (right?), we decided to go for Christmas since I won't have to ask for an exemption from my contract to use vacation days with a two-day-or-more break. The only thing I think we're conceding choosing Christmas over Easter is swimming, and it's been hit-or-miss for us in late March/early April anyway. This will probably be the only time the kids are ever able to go for Christmas, and while certainly we understand that it won't be the same experience it has been or hopefully someday will be, we will make the best of it.

I already had the tickets in my Disney account, but didn't have a resort reservation. On Sunday I had the brilliant idea to make an Official Disney partner hotel reservation. I quickly booked a Hilton Bonnet Creek reservation using points. (Originally we were staying using our timeshare points at Wyndham Bonnet Creek). I didn't think about the fact that I have 3 kids when I made that reservation....so Cody doesn't have a park reservation with the rest of us right now. Hopefully I'm able to get him what he needs as soon as existing ticket owners can book. I haven't been able to find an answer yet if I can later change my resort reservation, but keep my park reservation days. I certainly hope so. I'm searching for a DVC match through RCI. My resort reservation linked up around 1, and I had all of our park reservations by 3.

Hopefully our camping in Michigan's UP trip is still a go for later this summer. DH will now need it approved through work. School starts back up for me August 12. I'm nervous for all of us - as a mom and a teacher.

Hugs to everyone as I try to catch up. <3 I hope you're all doing well.

 

[wed100105]

@snugglebug @mhartman09 @georgina

I had an epiphany and deleted all my park reservations. I then reassigned my extra AP voucher to my daughter. Went into park reservations and was able to get all 7 nights!!!

Then put my AP voucher back in my own name. Now it says 'nontransferable' but that shouldn't be a problem as it's for me anyway. Took screen shots just in case.

As you can see, I'll do anything to avoid that IT possibly 2 hour call.

How did you delete the park reservations? I would like to switch two because I accidentally booked AK and then HS, when my kids asked for it the other way. I figured they'd just have to get over it (not a big deal), but would love to rearrange if I could.

 

[shairpdrh]

@snugglebug @mhartman09 @georgina

I had an epiphany and deleted all my park reservations. I then reassigned my extra AP voucher to my daughter. Went into park reservations and was able to get all 7 nights!!!

Then put my AP voucher back in my own name. Now it says 'nontransferable' but that shouldn't be a problem as it's for me anyway. Took screen shots just in case.

As you can see, I'll do anything to avoid that IT possibly 2 hour call.

I am stuck with everything greyed out too and I am too scared to delete all my park reservations! I have clicked on these dates hundreds of times and nothing. Glad you were bold and made it work!