Just Got Chase Sapphire Reserve Credit Card

[Flying Ace]

Originally Posted by shoei

I'm assuming he flies a lot... I have (had before the long distance treks coast to coast) and that was off of a few years of flying...

That's just airline miles... Not including the chase sapphire and chase united mileage plus miles I received...

yeah, based on what I've read on Flyertalk, the people who accumulate that much usually does the sign-up bonuses along with business travel. You can probably get that much in 2 years.

I don't do business travel, so I'm left with just the sign up bonuses at this point.

To date, I've done pretty well for myself:

- 75k Marriott
- 100k Southwest + companion pass
- 75k AMEX plat
- 25k AMEX Everyday (no AF MR retainer card)
- Hyatt 2 free nights in any Hyatt in the world, $50 statement credit, 5000 Hyatt points (about 1 free night)

I'm taking a breather for now. I'm waiting for a really good United MileagePlus one to come up. My goal is to get my wife and I down to NZ/Australia in Business Class, and I'm aligning my points up for Star Alliance flights.

[Flying Ace]

Originally Posted by BimmerRookie

Already carry amex platinum (strictly for benefits of international travel, don't really spend on it)!

wow, you carry Plat without a Centurion Lounge in Houston? Hopefully you travel enough to SFO or Miami or LGA to make it worth it.

[BimmerRookie]

Originally Posted by Flying Ace

wow, you carry Plat without a Centurion Lounge in Houston? Hopefully you travel enough to SFO or Miami or LGA to make it worth it.

Lol there's one coming! I use the ones in LGA and DFW every year when I fly to India, connections from IAH to those airports leave lots of time in-between

[Flying Ace]

Originally Posted by BimmerRookie

Lol there's one coming! I use the ones in LGA and DFW every year when I fly to India, connections from IAH to those airports leave lots of time in-between

oh yeah, forgot about DFW...is that one crowded? SFO is packed sometimes.

Glad to see AMEX adding more lounges. After I cancel my Plat, a few years later, I might get the MB version, then the Ameriprise version, etc just for the lounge access, it's so sweet.

[BMW F22]

I read that the $300 travel credit is per calendar year correct? Meaning this year we would get $300 and next year another $300 (no need to go the full 12 months cycle).

[BimmerRookie]

Originally Posted by Flying Ace

oh yeah, forgot about DFW...is that one crowded? SFO is packed sometimes.

Glad to see AMEX adding more lounges. After I cancel my Plat, a few years later, I might get the MB version, then the Ameriprise version, etc just for the lounge access, it's so sweet.

The one in DFW is kind of small, but cozy in a good way. It gives good visibility of the terminal and the entrance/exit is always conveniently next to the emirates gates.

[Flying Ace]

Originally Posted by BMW F22

I read that the $300 travel credit is per calendar year correct? Meaning this year we would get $300 and next year another $300 (no need to go the full 12 months cycle).

likely, that's how the AMEX Plat works too, so if you only plan on keeping it in year 1, you'll get $600 back

You should read Flyertalk, they have a dedicated thread on success/failure of what is correctly coded for this reimbursement.

The AMEX version was good for ebay, amazon and Southwest airlines gift cards.

[Flying Ace]

Originally Posted by M_Six

I'm not a credit card guru, so 'splain some stuff to me.

100,000 bonus points (Spend $4,000 in first 3 months) - We put $4k/mo on ours, so no problem here.

3X points on Dining - We eat out 4-5 nights a week.

3X points on travel - We travel 3-4 times a year, but what qualifies as travel?

$300 Travel credit (yearly) - How does this work?

TSA Pre/Global Entry credit (Every 4 years) - I think these are good for 5 years. - Is this like a refund after you get TSA PRE/GE?

No Foreign Transaction Fees - This would come in handy for our trip to the UK next week.

Access 900+ VIP airport lounges worldwide with Priority PassT - What is Priority PassT?

you have much to learn, young grasshopper...here's my quick cliffs notes and method of how:

-100,000 bonus points (Spend $4,000 in first 3 months) - We put $4k/mo on ours, so no problem here. METHOD: The quickest and surest way of reaching your spend limit in time is to PREPAY for your monthly bills. Often you're allowed to carry a credit balance on your cable, some utility and cell phone bills. Literally just log on, and charge like $1000 onto your bill pay with that credit card, and it counts for the purposes of "spending" on the credit card. Also, pay your car/house insurance on your credit card too, it's like $500+ a pop. In a pinch, buy gift cards that you will use over time, namely gas station, restaurants, grocery stores.

3X points on Dining - We eat out 4-5 nights a week. METHOD: You know how you and your friends split dining bills or your company reimburses you for dining with clients? Yeah, offer to pay for these huge tabs and get reimbursed by your friends/company. My wife does this all the time for company sponsored happy hours for employees.

3X points on travel - We travel 3-4 times a year, but what qualifies as travel?
RTFM? These things are tricky, it's all about how merchants code these things on your bill. Some cards, even gas stations count as "travel". Others only allow direct booking and don't like sites like priceline. Read the terms and conditions.

$300 Travel credit (yearly) - How does this work? CLIFF NOTES: The original purpose is to get your airline baggage fees, wifi fees, change fees covered. METHOD: check flyertalk forums. Similar to travel point coding, there's ways to get this covered for even airline ticket purchases, gift cards etc etc, but some work is involved like using an dedicated app.

TSA Pre/Global Entry credit (Every 4 years) - I think these are good for 5 years. - Is this like a refund after you get TSA PRE/GE?
Cliffs Notes: Correct statement credit after you pay CBP first for the application

No Foreign Transaction Fees - This would come in handy for our trip to the UK next week. Cliffs Notes: Meh, I prefer to use a Schwab Visa debit card and use it to withdraw cash. Many foreign countries and places within don't accept credit cards in general. The Schwab ATM cards reimburses 100% ATM fees and gives you best exchange rates for that day (less than 0.1% for most currencies).

Access 900+ VIP airport lounges worldwide with Priority PassT - What is Priority PassT? Cliffs Notes: google priority pass, it's access to hundreds of worldwide airport lounges. However, it's only good for you the card holder. IMO, it's minimum usefulness unless you travel often at a location with one of these lounges. But if you do use it, it's sweet with the free food and shower and all.

[BMW F22]

@Flying Ace. I looked up lounges at Singapore SIN airport and saw a few. From what I read I should be able to go into any of those lounges, correct?

[BayMoWe335]

Originally Posted by BMW F22

I read that the $300 travel credit is per calendar year correct? Meaning this year we would get $300 and next year another $300 (no need to go the full 12 months cycle).

That is correct.

[Flying Ace]

Originally Posted by BMW F22

@Flying Ace. I looked up lounges at Singapore SIN airport and saw a few. From what I read I should be able to go into any of those lounges, correct?

yes, as long as it's on the list on priority pass website, but your companion has to pay.

IMO, if you want best lounge access, since you're in SFO, you should do AMEX Plat. It has the Centurion Lounge out of SFO + Priority Pass lounges + Delta Lounges. Centurion and Delta allows you to bring up to 2 guests.

AMEX points is a bit more tricky to redeem for airlines though, that's the downside. But if you care a lot about lounge access, I would get AMEX Plat

Here's the reviews for the SFO Centurion and Delta lounges, some of the best in the business:
https://www.yelp.com/biz/the-centuri...-san-francisco
https://www.yelp.com/biz/delta-sky-club-san-francisco

The Delta one is like 2 years old, so it's still got new lounge feel. Only issue to note is, Delta is T2 and Centurion is T3. Not all International Terminals are connected on the "secure" side at SFO. IIRC, only International G is connected to T3 and only T1 is connected to T2.

[BayMoWe335]

Originally Posted by Flying Ace

care to share how you accumulated 500,000?

I have had a Sapphire Preferred since 2013. I got 50,000 bonus points when I signed up, 100,000 from this, and 350,000 from my normal spending. I travel a lot. I also take advantage of promotions Chase has in categories for more points.

For example, I got 15,000 points when amazon had 10 points/dollar during Christmas with Chase Freedom. Those points are also transferrable to your Sapphire Card.

I also use the 5% categories when Freedom has them (Gas, grocery, Amazon) and transfer those as well.

[BayMoWe335]

Originally Posted by Flying Ace

you kind of proved my point, so you still have $150 left over of fees. Ideally, you should pay no fees to retain your points. It sucks carrying that much fees just to retain points, unless in you case, you're sitting on over $5000 worth of points, then you pay to play.

I can cancel the Sapphire Reserve card at any time and retain all my points, because I also have a Chasee Freedom (free card).

I think I'll keep the Reserve because after travel credit, even $150/yr is worth it to get 3X points on Travel and dining. I've spent over $50,000 on travel in a year, so that's 150,000 points (much more than most cards). With a regular sapphire preferred, it'd only be 100,000 points because 2X travel vs 3X travel on the Reserve

Plus, 3X on dining is worth the incremental $55/yr over the Sapphire Preferred (that is $95/yr). There aren't any other cards paying 3X points for Travel/Dining.

You're basically paying $150/yr for the Reserve and $95/yr for the Sapphire Preferred. If you spend a lot on travel/dining, you can do the math to decide if $55/yr is worth it, plus you'll get the airport lounge access as well and other perks.

[BMW F22]

Originally Posted by Flying Ace

yes, as long as it's on the list on priority pass website, but your companion has to pay.

IMO, if you want best lounge access, since you're in SFO, you should do AMEX Plat. It has the Centurion Lounge out of SFO + Priority Pass lounges + Delta Lounges. Centurion and Delta allows you to bring up to 2 guests.

AMEX points is a bit more tricky to redeem for airlines though, that's the downside. But if you care a lot about lounge access, I would get AMEX Plat

Here's the reviews for the SFO Centurion and Delta lounges, some of the best in the business:
https://www.yelp.com/biz/the-centuri...-san-francisco
https://www.yelp.com/biz/delta-sky-club-san-francisco

The Delta one is like 2 years old, so it's still got new lounge feel. Only issue to note is, Delta is T2 and Centurion is T3. Not all International Terminals are connected on the "secure" side at SFO. IIRC, only International G is connected to T3 and only T1 is connected to T2.

Thanks for that! Looks nice but for now I'll stick with Sapphire (personal preference).

Anyone knows whether I will get reimbursed for Global Entry if I were to pay for it on my current Sapphire? The Reserve probably won't get here until next week. I'm applying for the Entry now.

[Flying Ace]

Originally Posted by BMW F22

Thanks for that! Looks nice but for now I'll stick with Sapphire (personal preference).

Anyone knows whether I will get reimbursed for Global Entry if I were to pay for it on my current Sapphire? The Reserve probably won't get here until next week. I'm applying for the Entry now.

don't count on it. You need to pay with the correct card, it's all automatic reimbursements based on merchant coding. I would just wait at this point. SFO GE appointments are booked way out anyways, so 1 week isn't that big of a difference.

[BMW F22]

Originally Posted by Flying Ace

don't count on it. You need to pay with the correct card, it's all automatic reimbursements based on merchant coding. I would just wait at this point. SFO GE appointments are booked way out anyways, so 1 week isn't that big of a difference.

Agreed. I read up on that as wel. They say that I must pay with the same card for reimbursement.

[John Tanglewood]

This card looks awesome, but it has an APR right?

I am coming from an Amex Gold which I have a little over 300k points on, but I have been contemplating the switch to Platinum for the travel. I like how there's no APR with the Amex.

Would you give me your thoughts?

[BimmerRookie]

Originally Posted by Flying Ace

don't count on it. You need to pay with the correct card, it's all automatic reimbursements based on merchant coding. I would just wait at this point. SFO GE appointments are booked way out anyways, so 1 week isn't that big of a difference.

Keep checking upon it and your email as well. HTX locations were booked out until October, however, for a few select weekends, they offered appointments on the weekend. I was fortunate to snag up a slot (original appointment was in mid-October) and get my "interview" completed last weekend.

[Z K]

I wonder if this is worth getting even if you don't travel much?

Most of the benefits seem oriented towards travel and the annual fee is rather high.

[BayMoWe335]

Originally Posted by Z K

I wonder if this is worth getting even if you don't travel much?

Most of the benefits seem oriented towards travel and the annual fee is rather high.

1 flight (or other $300 in travel expenses like hotel, taxi, uber) per year and you'll get $300 back, so it's really $150/yr.

3X points on travel/dining is crazy good.

[BayMoWe335]

Originally Posted by John Tanglewood

This card looks awesome, but it has an APR right?

I am coming from an Amex Gold which I have a little over 300k points on, but I have been contemplating the switch to Platinum for the travel. I like how there's no APR with the Amex.

Would you give me your thoughts?

Yes, but who cares about the APR?

[Flying Ace]

Originally Posted by BMW F22

Agreed. I read up on that as wel. They say that I must pay with the same card for reimbursement.

good luck on waiting for GE appointments at SFO

For a period they moved to a 24-hour operations, but now it's a 9-5 again.