Spirit Airlines Launches Cancun Service to Celebrate Austin Anniversary

by Cory Santos
Spirit airlines launches cancun service

Last updated on June 17th, 2020

Spirit Airlines recently celebrated its first full year at Austin Bergstrom International Airport. To honor the occasion, the low-cost carrier unveiled new flights to several new destinations, including Cancun. The new Austin – Cancun service is the first international route Spirit will offer from Austin.

Spirit’s Austin Service Expansion

The first passengers to travel to Cancun from Bergstrom International Airport left on February 26th, with the new route running four times per week (Monday, Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday). Beginning next month Spirit will add two more new services to their Austin schedule, with daily flights to Nashville and Newark.

All told, the three new routes increase the airline’s presence in Austin to 13 routes, most of which operate daily. These routes include:

  • Atlanta (ATL)
  • Baltimore (BWI)
  • Cancun (CUN)
  • Chicago – O’Hare (ORD)
  • Denver (DEN)
  • Detroit (DTW)
  • Fort Lauderdale (FLL)
  • Las Vegas (LAS)
  • Los Angeles (LAX)
  • Nashville (BNA)
  • Newark (EWR)
  • New Orleans (MSV)
  • Orlando (MCO)

Austin to Orlando is the carrier’s most popular service, operating 11 times per week.

Offering Texans Even “More Go”

Speaking at the departure of the first Cancun service, John Kirby, Spirit’s VP of Network Planning, said the new service shows the airlines commitment to their customers:

 “We’re excited to offer even more go in Austin. Savvy travelers can use the money Spirit helps them save to enjoy more of Cancun’s great beaches, experience another great music city like Nashville, or catch a new show in the Big Apple. By adding more nonstop destinations with our famous low fares, we create more opportunities for our guests to travel and save.”

Spirit Increasing Its International Services

The announcement of new services to locations like Cancun continues the trend of expansion from the discount carrier. Early this year, Spirit also announced Cancun services from several other American cities, including Cleveland, Nashville, Philadelphia, and Pittsburgh.

About Spirit Airlines

Spirit Airlines is a low-cost American carrier with its headquarters in Miramar, Florida. The airline is the seventh-largest carrier in the United States in passengers and flies to over 75 destinations in North and South America, as well as the Caribbean. The company also issues a co-branded credit card, the Spirit Airlines World Mastercard, through Bank of America.

Citi Retail Services Partners with Meijer on Credit Card

by BestCards Team
citi retail partners with meijer on credit cards

Last updated on November 9th, 2023

Recently, Meijer announced it would become one of the newest Citi Retail Services partners and relaunch its cobranded card. This Midwestern superstore chain isn’t the first to partner with Citi, as it joins other retailers like BestBuy and Macy’s. Current cardholders will transition over to the new cards, while first-time applicants will gain access to new signup deals.  

Why the Switch to Citi Retail Services Cards?

Based on the agreement laid out between these companies, Meijer will now use Citi Retail Service cards exclusively. Prior to this, Meijer cosponsored a card with Comenity Bank: the Meijer® Mastercard®. While the card offered great deals at Meijer’s gas stations and discounts for spending, this new partnership aims to provide even more customer value eventually.  

When asked about the move, Meijer CEO and President Rick Keyes said, “We believe this new relationship with Citi Retail Services will extend benefits to our customers while also providing them yet another way to shop our stores.” 

The company currently runs upwards of 245 supercenters throughout the Midwest, and Citi Retail Services hopes to bolster this success. The head of the department, Craig Vallorano added, “This retail industry pioneer is a tremendous addition to Citi Retail Services’ family of iconic brands, and we look forward to bringing innovative offerings to their customers for years to come.” 

New and Future Meijer Credit Card Customers

When the partnership became official on Feb. 24, qualified customers with an active Meijer credit card account were ported over to Citibank. Now, these cardholders can set up new accounts on CitiCards.Citi.com to access their information. New credit cards should have arrived in the mail by the end of February.  

While under Comenity Bank, the Meijer credit card from Mastercard offered flat-rate rewards and 10 cents off each gallon pumped at Meijer’s gas stations. Since this card was moved instead of entirely replaced, Citibank plans to stick with these features and the Mastercard network.  

This means new cardholders will still receive a $10 signup bonus, plus $10 each time they spend $750. However, all APRs and fees under the new issuer experienced increases. Beyond that, Meijer customers will have to wait and see what new rewards and card offers (if any) Citibank puts forth.

Capital One Cardholders Can Book JamFest Tickets Today

by BestCards Team
Capital one cadholders an book jamfest tikets today

Last updated on November 9th, 2023

Capital One JamFest is coming! It’s officially March, and American college basketball fans are getting into a frenzy over March Madness. This is one of the biggest sporting events of the year in the U.S. As such, many companies are organizing public events to add to the festivities.

Capital One is participating in a very big way with its JamFest music festival. This year’s event plans to be very popular, even with people who aren’t big college basketball fans. That’s because Taylor Swift will be headlining this year’s JamFest.

The event is free, but because of demand and limited space, attendees need to register in advance. Capital One cardholders can book their tickets before the general public. However, they only have one day before the masses storm in. If you’re a music fan and have a Capital One account, today is the day to take advantage of this free concert.

What Is JamFest?

Capital One JamFest is a one-day event that concludes the weekend-long March Madness Music Festival. This year the festival runs from Friday, April 3rd to Sunday, April 5th.

The 2020 festival is happening in Atlanta, Georgia at the Centennial Olympic Park. This venue is a holdover from when the “Big Peach” hosted the summer Olympic games back in 1996.

The park is centrally located in downtown Atlanta and attendees can reach the venue via public transportation. In fact, it’s recommended that you do that if you plan to attend, as traffic promises to be intense (to say the least).

The three-day festival is free to attend. However, the April 5th JamFest requires advanced registration. Besides Taylor Swift, Sunday’s event will also bring Halsey and Tayla Parx to the stage. As such, the City of Atlanta is expecting a huge turnout. To avoid total pandemonium on April 5th, the city is requiring that all attendees register in advance.

Currently, there is only a published schedule of events for Sunday’s Capital One JamFest. Friday and Saturday’s schedules aren’t available yet. However, the weekend is supposed to include a variety of musical acts, vendors, and food.

Who Can Attend JamFest?

March Madness Music Festival is supposed to be a mostly family-friendly event, so kids are welcome. Just make sure to leave your pets at home.

Friday and Saturday’s programming don’t require you to pre-register. However, you should get there before the gates open. This is a first come, first served event.

As mentioned before, Sunday’s lineup does require you to register in advance. You can only acquire tickets through the official site. The music festival’s organizers are explicitly warning the public against buying tickets from third-party sources.

That said, if you really want to see Taylor Swift on April 5th, you’re going to need to reserve your space now. Don’t count on scalpers or ticket brokers on the day of the event.

Additionally, Sunday’s Capital One JamFest is only open to people 16 years of age or older. So while the little ones are welcome to rock out the rest of the weekend, you should probably find a sitter for them on Sunday.

Capital One cardholders Get Early Access

Capital One JamFest tickets are officially available to the public starting tomorrow, March 5th, 2020. And tickets will be available until they’re gone.

However, Capital One is offering its cardholders advanced access to tickets starting today, March 4th, at 10:00 AM (Eastern Time). There is a separate registration area for cardholders on the ticketing site.

Cardholders will need to enter the last six digits of their Capital One credit card number in order to move on to the next step. 1iota, which is hosting the ticketing site, won’t charge cardholders, though. And it’s a secure website.

All guests are limited to two tickets per order. This prevents brokers from grabbing all the tickets for this free concert and then selling them back for a profit.

Advanced ticketing for Capital One cardholders ends today at 11:59 PM. General ticketing begins tomorrow, March 5th, at 10:00 AM (ET).

If you own a Capital One credit card and love great live music, don’t let this opportunity slip you by. If you don’t own a Capital One credit card, this is just one of the many perks that this financial institution offers its members. You can learn more about Capital One’s many benefits by checking out some of our reviews.

Limited Time Offer: 50% More Hilton Honors Points from AMEX Point Transfers

by Cory Santos
limited-time-offer-50-more-hilton-honors-points-from-amex-point-transfers

Last updated on March 9th, 2020

American Express is currently running a special offer through the beginning of April. The offer? Receive 50% Hilton Honors bonus points when transferring Amex Membership Rewards points. Amex points must transfer by April 14, 2020, to be eligible.

Making Cents of the Offer

American Express Membership Rewards currently transfer to Hilton Honors points at a ratio of 2:1. This means that members receive two Hilton Honors points for every single Amex Membership Rewards point they transfer. American Express only allows points transfers in increments of 1,000, so the base amount of Honors points a member can receive is 2,000 per every 1,000 Amex points.

Thanks to the 50% increase in transfer value, however, that 2,000 Hilton Honors points per 1,000 Amex points transfer value become 3,000 Hilton points for the same 1,000 Amex points. Free nights with Hilton typically start at 30,000 points, with Hilton points valued at around 0.6 cents per point. This means that 1,000 Amex points are good enough for a free night with Hilton.

Value of American Express Membership Rewards Points

Amex Membership Rewards points have a value of two cents per point, which is significantly more than Hilton Honors points. Despite this, the 50% increase nearly places the value of Hilton Honors points on par with Amex points, meaning those who hold Hilton co-branded credit cards through American Express receive exceptional value.

Maximize Hilton Honors Points Through Hilton Amex Credit Cards

By combining a Hilton points transfer with a new Hilton credit card, the points potential is even more significant. Using the Hilton Honors Card, for instance, a 10,000-Amex points transfer can quickly become over 130,000 Hilton Honors points. Arriving at this figure requires meeting the minimum spending requirements for the first 90 days with the card – which is $1,000. Reaching this goal, however, earns 100,000 bonus points. The card also earns 7X points with direct Hilton purchases; 5X points at U.S. supermarkets, restaurants, and gas stations; and 3X points everywhere else – all for no annual fee.

Other available Hilton Honors credit cards:

Caesars Republic to Be Company’s First Non-Gaming Hotel

by Cory Santos
Caesars republic to be company first non-gaming hotel

Last updated on September 19th, 2023

Caesars is branching out in the world of hospitality with a new hotel in Scottsdale. The new luxury hotel, Caesars Republic, will be the first non-gaming property in the brand’s extensive portfolio.  The new hotel will sit in the heart of Scottsdale, Arizona’s dining district, and feature 265 luxurious rooms. Fall of 2021is the timeframe for the opening.

A “Lifestyle Hotel Experience”

The new hotel won’t be owned by Caesars, but rather will only feature their branding. Instead, HCW Hospitality and Aimbridge Hospitality will manage the property. The company, out of Plano, Texas, sees great value in the Caesars name.

CEO and President of HCW, Richard Huffman, sees the new hotel as a “new kind of lifestyle hotel experience.” At the groundbreaking ceremony, he stated that “upon its opening in Fall 2021, the hotel will offer a dynamic destination experience to both locals and visitors traveling from afar.”

The Caesars Republic will pay homage to Las Vegas in its architectural design while keeping true to its Arizona location. The building will be an 11-story glass structure that incorporates both natural and modern elements – blending with the existing architectural designs of Scottsdale Fashion Square. It will also feature two restaurants by celebrity chef Giada De Laurentiis.

Caesars Rewards

While the Caesars Republic won’t run through Caesars Entertainment, it will feature the Caesars Rewards loyalty program. While much of the program is tied to gaming, members also earn rewards through purchases at Caesars properties. These categories include:

  • Stays
  • Shopping
  • Dining
  • Hospitality
  • Spas

Caesars also offers a co-branded credit card – the Caesars Rewards Visa– through Community Bank. The card provides an additional 5X points on eligible Caesars stays, plus bonus points on dining, airfare, gas, and groceries.

About Caesars

Caesars Entertainment is a leading name in the world of gaming and entertainment. The company, which recently merged with El Dorado in a $17 billion transaction, operates numerous famous casinos across the United States. These venues include Caesars Palace, the Flamingo, the Palms, Bally’s Harrah’s, El Dorado, and the Tropicana. For more information about gambling and credit cards, check out our comprehensive Ultimate Guide to Gambling and Gaming Credit Cards.

Biometric Credit Card Scanner from Amazon Could Scan Palms for Payment

by BestCards Team
Biometric credit card scanner from amazon could scan palms for payment-min

Last updated on November 9th, 2023

A new biometric credit card scanner from Amazon is reportedly in the works, representing the company’s latest attempt to revolutionize the way we pay. If successful, this technology would turn a cardholder’s own hand into a quick and easy payment method.  

The current wave of contactless payment options has yet to produce such an option. At the moment, cardholders still need some sort of object – a credit card, cell phone, or wearable – to complete their transactions. If these were eliminated, it could further improve payment security and make checkout times even shorter. Yet some may be wondering: At what cost? 

How Will the Amazon Hand Scanner Work?

Sources close to Amazon say the e-commerce giant is developing a checkout terminal that processes payments with customers’ palm scans. The company recently applied for a patent on the technology, though it has not released an official statement. 

Since the project is still in the earliest stages of development, not much is known about how it will work. To use the hand scanner from Amazon, cardholders would likely need to set up the link between their palms and credit cards first. 

Some say this will involve inserting a credit card and allowing the terminal to take an image of your hand. This scan would then be linked to the credit card information provided. Going forward, cardholders would simply hold their hands above the machine in order to initiate a payment. 

Amazon Biometric Payment vs Contactless Pay

Moving credit card payment technology in this direction has plenty of potential benefits, and it’s not exactly a foreign concept. A few years ago, several credit card companies began developing technology that would integrate fingerprint scanning into each card. At the time, the result was pricey, complex, and didn’t quite pan out.  

Related article: The History of Credit Cards: From Charge Plates and Zip-Zap Machines to Digital Wallets and Card Chips 

Contactless pay is the closest comparison to–date, allowing cardholders to pay with a tap of their card, cell phone, Apple watch or other wearable against the checkout terminal. With the Amazon hand scanner, however, shoppers wouldn’t need a card – or any other device – at all. No more digging around for wallets or fumbling with the swipe system. This could help cardholders avoid misplaced credit cards, as well as shorten wait times at the checkout even more.  

Revolutionary or Invasive?

This isn’t the first time Amazon has gotten into the credit card game or proposed new and unique payment technology. Back in 2016, the company unveiled the Amazon Go store in Seattle. The concept allows shoppers to pick up the items they want without going through a formal checkout.  

With the Amazon biometric payment method, this idea could expand into other stores, and consumers – as well as credit card issuers – aren’t sure how to feel about it. On one hand, it could simplify the checkout process. Yet questions remain, such as how many credit cards can you assign to each palm image? How you would select the one you want to pay with? 

Amazon will have to get both issuers and consumers on board for this technology to take off. Otherwise, it might only reach Amazon cardholders, like those with the Amazon Prime Rewards Visa Signature®. Both issuers and cardholders also wonder how secure this technology will be, since it will rely on storing customer data in the Amazon cloud.  

Not only that, but Amazon may also collect data on shopping habits to further improve advertising strategies. More consumers these days express concerns about this type of data collection and storage. Similarly, issuers worry about how this new technology would protect against fraud.  

American Express Accepted Almost Everywhere Now

by BestCards Team
American express accepted almost everywhere now

Last updated on November 9th, 2023

American Express has traditionally held a negative reputation among many business owners, especially those who own small businesses. The credit card payment network historically made things very difficult for merchants to accept American Express payments.

It charged high flat-rate processing fees that were more expensive than those of Visa or Mastercard. Businesses were unable to leverage their successes to negotiate these fees. Additionally, acceptance required businesses to have a separate merchant account just for American Express payments.

These details deterred many businesses from accepting American Express. Many consumers, in turn, were aware of Amex’s limited acceptance and have been hesitant to sign up for the card.

Things have recently taken a drastic change, however. A February 2020 Nilson report announced that in 2019 nearly all merchants who accept credit cards now accept American Express.

The Numbers

According to the Nilson report, cardholders can now use their American Express credit cards at 99% of merchants who accept credit cards. American Express added 1 million now merchant locations in 2019 alone. In total, 2019 saw 10.6 million U.S. merchants accept this payment network.

This acceptance rate is presently limited to merchants within the United States. However, American Express did also add over 2 million new international merchants to its numbers in 2019. And the company plans to add even more oversees merchants in the future.

How American Express Changed Its Public Image

Most of American Express’s success was the result of focused marketing and public relations efforts. According to the Amex website, it had to change “outdated misperceptions” about its accessibility.

You could say that the company was charged with a major reputation management task. It needed to convince small and emerging businesses that accepting American Express was not only beneficial but also affordable and easy. At the same time, it didn’t want to alienate cardholders by changing its elite image.

American Express began with a PR project during the height of the great recession. It launched a Shop Small campaign that encouraged cardholders to support local businesses. It quotes a statistic that states that $0.67 of every dollar spent at a local small business remains in the community.

The company publishes short documentary series on small businesses throughout the country. It also provides business owners free marketing tools – flyers, PDF images, templates – to promote themselves. The Amex website also includes ideas and resources to help members of the community launch their own small business events and grassroots marketing campaigns.

Amex bolstered this campaign with a Small Business Saturday campaign back in 2010. It promoted the idea of shopping at local small businesses the day after Black Friday. The Obama administration supported the idea, and before long all 50 states had implemented Small Business Saturday as a small business shopping event.

American Express’s Concrete Changes

However, PR and marketing will only get a company so far. It’s easy to pay lip service to supporting small businesses. But if American Express didn’t make any real changes to how it handled merchants, the public could have seen its campaigns as empty promises. This could have spawned a PR nightmare.

Fortunately, Amex backed its marketing with policy changes and new features to help small and emerging business owners. In 2014, the company launched OptBlue, which has been instrumental in this credit card’s nearly universal acceptance rate in 2019.

This program did away with one of the major deterrents for many merchants: the American Express merchant account. Merchants no longer need to sign up for a separate account just to accept Amex payments. OptBlue lets business owners accept American Express through their existing merchant account providers.

Merchant account providers include companies like Square, which has marketed itself as the go-to source for small business owners. When a business owner signs up for a provider like Square, they’ll already get access to American Express payments.

What’s more, merchants can keep track of all payments in one place. There’s no more need to set up a separate merchant account just for Amex payments.

But what really attracted so many business owners to OptBlue had almost everything to do with the bottom line. With this program, Amex did away with its flat-rate interchange fees. Instead, merchant account providers negotiate fees on merchants’ behalf.

The result is a merchant fee structure that is on par with those that Visa, Mastercard, and Discover employ. Many merchants are now finding that the differences between American Express OptBlue and other credit cards’ interchange fees are almost negligible.

And that’s how you raise a credit card payment network’s acceptance rate to nearly 100%.

Is AAdvantage Dining Really Worth It?

by Cory Santos
is-aadvantage-dining-really-worth-it

Last updated on April 5th, 2023

AAdvantage is American Airlines’ loyalty rewards program. It’s free to sign up, and members earn miles for purchases they make with American Airlines, Oneworld Alliance airlines, and other partnering airlines. You can use your miles to purchase flights, seat upgrades, and even car rentals.

AAdvantage Dining is a special program within AAdvantage that earns members even more miles when they dine out. The program advertises a large collection of participating restaurants in many different cities. As well, members can attain elite statuses within AAdvantage Dining to earn even more points on their dining purchases.

However, this program may not offer all that it promises. The team at BestCards.com decided to investigate this dining program to determine whether those who live (and travel) to eat will benefit from joining.

How AAdvantage Dining Works

While it is technically part of the airline’s regular loyalty program, AAdvantage Dining operates somewhat independently. Members don’t automatically benefit from AAdvantage Dining features when they enroll in the regular loyalty program. Instead, you must sign up separately for this program.

As with the regularly loyalty program, membership in AAdvantage Dining is free. Additionally, you don’t need an American Airlines credit card to participate. You can link any credit and/or debit card to your account, and you can also register multiple cards.

The regular AAdvantage program earns you one mile for every dollar you spend on qualifying airline purchases. Adding AAdvantage Dining will allow you to earn the same number of miles per purchase on dining, as well.

Earning More Points

Now, there are distinct earning tiers with this program. If you opt to receive emails from AAdvantage Dining, you’ll receive three miles for every dollar you spend on dining. After you complete 11 transactions at participating restaurants within a calendar year, you’ll attain VIP membership, which earns you 5X miles per dollar spent.

Your VIP status will last a full calendar year in the year following the year you attained this status. Sounds confusing, but it’s kind of simple. If you pay for meals at 11 participating restaurants in 2020, you’ll have VIP status for all of 2021.

Currently, AAdvantage Dining is also offering a signup bonus. If you spend $25 within the first 30 days that you sign up, you’ll earn 1,000 bonus miles. This is in addition to the regular miles you earn.

AAdvantage Platinum Select Cardholders Earn More

What’s more, you can earn even more points if you register your Citi/AAdvantage Platinum Select Card. Just register your American Airlines card with AAdvantage Dining and you can earn two additional points for every dollar you spend.

If you attain VIP status, you’ll be earning seven miles for every dollar you spend. If you spend $2,000 in a year, you’ll earn enough points to purchase a one-way ticket to Mexico or the Caribbean. For a foodie, that’s not a high spending requirement to meet.

In Reality

The team at BestCards.com was really excited about the opportunity to earn miles on dining purchases. The fact that it’s free to join and you can register any credit card made it that much more appealing.

You should keep in mind that you must dine at participating restaurants in order to earn AAdvantage miles. This requires some research. Fortunately, the AAdvantage Dining website is very user-friendly. Simply type in your location or use the GPS feature to locate restaurants in your area. You can filter results by type of cuisine, price point, and other criteria

Considering American Airlines’ global reputation, we imagined that there would be a lot to choose from. We looked at participating restaurants in three East Coast cities we’re familiar with: Miami, New York City, and Boston. The results were a little disappointing

Not Enough Fine Dining

Low prices can be great if you’re looking to save money. However, they might not be so attractive when you’re looking to maximize the points you earn on a meal.

In Miami, where BestCards.com is based, we discovered that the list of participating businesses included some of the city’s most inexpensive eateries. At first, we thought this was a major benefit of the AAdvantage Dining program as it could allow you to earn points on all sorts of dining experiences.

However, as we scrolled through the list, we noticed that most of the restaurants were lower-end establishments. A full meal for two at many of these businesses could come out to $30. The low spending requirement for earning the 1,000-mile signup bonus made a lot more sense after we discovered this.

The problem with this emphasis on inexpensive dining is that there are very few opportunities to earn a lot of miles on a single meal. A fine dining meal could easily earn a VIP member 1,000 points. But there just aren’t that many options to earn that through AAdvantage Dining. As such, you’d have to dine out more often at participating businesses to earn enough miles to qualify for any type of reward.

The Unpopular Crowd

The selection of food businesses that participate in AAdvantage Dining really doesn’t include a city’s most crave-worthy options. Scrolling through the list of Miami, Boston, and NYC restaurants, very few options jumped out at us.

The list of Miami participating restaurants only included a couple of establishments that make it on the city’s “best-of” list. Many of these restaurants are declining in popularity and may have hit their peak several years ago.

This was true in NYC’s selection of participating restaurants, which included Junoon. This Indian fine dining establishment had lost its Michelin star this year, making it a less desirable destination than it had been in the past. In short, the list of local restaurants doesn’t really include businesses that locals are currently excited about. At worst, some discerning foodies may think AAdvantage Dining only includes “has beens.”

In Miami, the team even found some businesses within the program’s selection with historically negative reputations. It makes us wonder what the selection process is for AAdvantage Dining participants.

Food Tourism? Maybe Not

Perhaps one of the most ironic things about AAdvantage Dining is how the program really limits your options for trying local flavors when you travel. For starters, the program is only available within the United States. We at BestCards.com tried to look for participating restaurants in several popular international culinary hubs – Bangkok, Paris, and Vancouver – and received zero results.

Even within the United States, you wouldn’t find many participating restaurants in a foodie’s bucket list. New York City’s selection didn’t include any of the acclaimed restaurants that many travelers seek out. In addition, there were very few local culinary institutions on the list. As such, there is little opportunity for a traveler to earn points while sampling a slice at the city’s first pizzeria or discovering why a NY bagel deserves all the hype.

The same rang true for selections in Boston in Miami. Some of Beantown’s most sought out food tourism destinations didn’t make the cut. Forget about earning points while slurping oysters at the nation’s oldest restaurant.

Is AAdvantage Dining Worth It?

The fact that this is a free dining rewards program may be one of its only saving graces. As it stands, AAdvantage Dining seems to be more geared towards promoting unpopular restaurants than offering members a selection of a city’s best eats.

The situation is reminiscent of many restaurant month promotions or dining coupon books. The most successful dining establishments don’t need to participate because they’re not lacking for business. As a result, diners may end up with just a handful of more obscure gems. However, they have to sift through many banal (at best) restaurants to find these.

A serious foodie may find that they won’t earn many miles by participating in AAdvantage Dining. Given the limited selection, it may even be impossible for such a consumer to ever make it to VIP status when there aren’t even 11 participating restaurants in their town worth going to. American Airlines will need to provide AAdvantage members with a more curated selection of restaurants in order to attract consumers who live to eat and travel.

New Report Exposes America’s Credit Card Debt Problems 

by Cory Santos
Navigating Credit Card Debt During a Financial Crisis

Last updated on April 12th, 2023

New data shows that Americans average more than $6,000 in credit card debt. The actual figure, a staggering $6,194, is $154 more than the 2018 average: $6,040. This rise in credit card debt is part of a worrying trend where more and more Americans are relying on their credit cards – something which can have disastrous consequences.

Credit Card Debt: A Growing Problem for Many Americans

According to the Wall Street Journal, the U.S. is currently finding itself buried under a mountain of credit card debt. The Federal Reserve reports that the current debt burden sits at $930 billion. That total is a $46 billion increase over the same period the year prior – and well ahead of debt levels seen before the 2008 recession.

How to Tackle Credit Card Debt

The growing debt crisis makes it imperative that Americans begin to tackle their debts. With an average of over $6,000 per person, however, that task can be daunting. This is especially the case with lower-income households, who often rely heavily on credit. There are two popular methods for paying down credit card debt, the “snowball method” and the “avalanche method.”

Debt Snowball Method

The debt snowball method involves paying off credit card debts from smallest to largest. An individual starts by identifying their lowest credit card balance and paying that one down – all the while making the minimum payments on other accounts. Once the smallest account is paid off, they move to the next lowest account. This trend continues until their entire debt is paid off.

Debt Avalanche Method

The debt avalanche method is like the snowball method but in reverse. Instead of focusing on the smallest existing debt, the individual pays down the biggest debt – all the while making minimum payments on the lower balances. After paying the most significant debt in full, they move to the next largest, and so on.

Related Article: Paying Off Debt – Debt Avalanche vs. Debt Snowball 

Moderating Spending

Both the snowball and avalanche debt methods require adjustments to spending levels. For many Americans, this can be difficult – especially when credit is an essential part of making ends meet. Finding the right balance, however, is critical. Paying down debt requires treating a credit card the same way as cash. This means spending only what can be repaid immediately. It also requires a focus on paying new monthly statements in full – in addition to paying down existing balances.  These healthy financial habits, combined with a debt repayment plan, offer the best route out of dire financial straits.

How to Repair Credit After Credit Card Debt

When credit card debt grows, so too does the damage to a person’s credit score. Credit card defaults are commonplace when debts aretoo much to handle, and the effects on scores are catastrophic. When this occurs, rebuilding credit is critical.

Sub-Prime Credit Cards

Recovering from credit card debt with another credit card might sound counterintuitive, but a credit rebuilder credit card is an excellent option for those who want to rebuild their credit report. Credit cards for those with poor credit scores don’t offer the best interest rates, but part of building credit is displaying financial responsibility. Using a card like the Indigo Platinum MasterCard or the Milestone Gold Mastercard requires on-time and in-full payments every month. Fortunately, that isn’t too difficult, as the credit lines with cards like these are far lower than what is found with cards from issuers like Citibank.

Related Article: The Best Unsecured Credit Cards for Poor Credit 

Reduce Credit Utilization

Small credit lines offer the chance to reduce dependence on credit cards. This, in turn, can help reduce an individual’s credit utilization. Credit utilization is how much available credit a person uses. If they have a credit line of $1,000, for example, they need to keep spending below $300.  A credit utilization rate of 30% or lower is needed to maintain a credit score. For those rebuilding, however, a credit utilization rate of 10% or smaller is essential. This can help quickly counteract the damage of debt – while reducing the reliance on credit cards at the same time.

Responsible Use of Credit is Key

Credit is a tool. While some credit cards offer rewards, points, and perks, these don’t remove the financial responsibility that comes with credit card ownership. Fortunately, there are practical steps Americans can take to get their credit card debts under control quickly.

Related Article: How to Improve Your Credit Utilization Ratio

Amtrak Introduces New Fare Structure

by Cory Santos
Amtrak-introduces-new-fare-structure

Last updated on April 21st, 2023

Amtrak is introducing a new fare structure starting March 1st. The new system will eliminate the ability of those who purchase the cheapest fares to receive refunds when canceling. Other passengers will face additional fees when making changes to existing bookings within 14 days of travel.  The new fare structure closely mirrors the pricing of airlines, which is no surprise. Amtrak’s current CEO is Richard Anderson, a former executive with Delta Air Lines.

Amtrak’s New Pricing Structure

The new Amtrak fares offer significant savings for consumers but the tradeoff being flexibility. Starting in March 2020, the company will offer three tiers for tickets:

  • Saver Fares: Saver fares provide the most value for consumers, with fares starting as low as $9. However, these fares don’t offer any changes, upgrades, or cancellations 24 hours after booking.
  • Value Fares: Value fares are the basic fare. These fares come with fewer restrictions but may still charge fees for cancellations or changes within 14 days of departure.
  • Flexible Fares: Flexible faresoffer the greatest opportunity for making changes. These fares include Acela first-class, sleeper, and business-class tickets. Customers purchasing a Flexible fare don’t pay for changes and receive a full refund for cancellations.

Amtrak hopes the new lower fares will entice more travelers to ride the rails. While the train company has reduced losses over the previous years, it still lags far behind air travel as the preferred method of travel for U.S. consumers.

Amtrak Guest Rewards

The new system also provides more opportunities for members of Amtrak Guest Rewards, the loyalty program for the operator. Cheaper fares may lead to more riders, earning points on every journey. Amtrak Guest Rewards points are among the most valuable rewards points, with a current value of approximately 2.5 cents per point. The Amtrak Guest Rewards World Mastercard offers additional points to Amtrak travelers, allowing them to maximize their Guest Rewards through the new fare schedule.

About Amtrak

Amtrak, the National Railroad Passenger Corporation, is a semi-public railroad company. The firm provides regional and national services to more than 500 destinations in 46 U.S. states and nine Canadian cities.  Amtrak carries an estimated 32 million passengers per year on dedicated services, with another 61 million travelers riding in conjunction with local and regional transit authorities.

Relates Article: Changes Announced to Visa Interchange Fees

Chase Renews United Airlines Credit Card Partnership Through 2029

by BestCards Team
Chase-renews-united-airlines-credit-card-partnership-through-2029

Last updated on November 9th, 2023

Current and prospective United Airlines credit card customers are in luck. After a few months of negotiations, Chase has agreed to renew its multi-year partnership with the airline for another decade. This involves the continued maintenance of its portfolio of cobranded cards, currently including 4 offers with various travel benefits.  JPMorgan Chase Bank and United make up just one of many partnerships experiencing success in the co-branded airline cards market. Amex and Delta, for instance, also recently announced a continuation of their work together on the Delta SkyMiles cards. As deals like this provide further growth for airlines and card issuers, travelers can expect more great cardholder perks ahead.

The Chase United MileagePlus® Partnership

The success of this partnership isn’t exactly news – these two companies have offered travel rewards together for 30 years. In the last 7 quarters alone, the United Airlines Chase credit card program “United MileagePlus” has reported consistent growth in the double digits. So when it came time to renew the deal, both companies agreed that an extension through 2029 was mutually beneficial.

Related article: Types of Credit Cards: Airline Credit Cards

Based on details surrounding the new agreement, United expects to receive an additional $400 million in revenue through 2020. This is attributed to the company’s continued status as a Chase Ultimate Rewards transfer partner, as well as plans to expand on the current United Airlines credit card deals.

How the Extension Will Affect Chase United MileagePlus® Cardholders

According to the president of Chase Co-Brand Cards, Ed Olebe, these companies aim to provide even more value to cardholders going forward. When asked about the renewed partnership, he said, “The program has deep cardmember loyalty and fantastic momentum, with exciting new offerings and experiences for our customers to look forward to in 2020 and beyond.”  Chase already offers some generous United Airlines credit card benefits, including the ability to convert Chase Ultimate Rewards into miles.  Other perks that come with these cards include free checked bags, travel credits, and miles earned for various purchases. If the most recent developments in these offers provide any indication, it’s that rewards will only increase from here.

Current United Airlines Credit Card Offers

The signing of this deal comes on the heels of new developments to the rewards program, including a new Chase United MileagePlus card. In mid-January, the issuer introduced the United Business credit card geared toward small business owners. It features a rewards rate of 2 miles per dollar in several different categories, as well as the travel credit and free checked bag for a relatively small annual fee.   In addition, Chase announced that for the first time it will offer signup bonuses for each of the MileagePlus cards. These bonuses range from 60,000 to 100,000 miles when you meet the minimum spending requirement. Check out our United Airlines credit card reviews to find out more about these offers as this partnership continues:

Virgin Atlantic Joins KLM, Air France, and Delta

by BestCards Team
Virgin-atlantic-joins-klm-air-france-and-delta

Last updated on November 9th, 2023

The four carriers plan to become the go-to resource for transatlantic air travel

Air France, KLM, Virgin Atlantic, and Delta Airlines have recently announced a codeshare partnership that will give more options to customers. Air France and KLM, a Dutch airline, had already merged back in 2004 and currently codeshare routes. The Air France-KLM Group had partnered with Atlanta-based Delta Airlines in 2009. Shortly after in 2013, Delta partnered with Virgin Atlantic. This most recent 2020 merger consolidates all these air travel giants into one large transatlantic partnership.

How This Partnership Affects Flyers

The Air France, KLM, Virgin, and Delta partnership means that customers can now travel to more places through these airlines. The aim of this partnership is to make these airlines the go-to source for transatlantic travel.

Because Air France and KLM already represent a single entity, both airlines already codeshare. This is an industry term meaning that the airlines share the same flight codes. This facilitates bookings and streamlines air travel.

Without codesharing, customers would have to book different legs of their flights separately and hope that they have enough time to connect to their next flight. Delta also codeshares with these two airlines. As such, you can find a lot of the same routes when you book through either of these three carriers.

The new partnership between Air France, KLM, Virgin Atlantic, and Delta is supposed to increase the number of transatlantic flights to 341 per day. This includes 110 nonstop transatlantic routes. Through their partnership with Delta, the European carriers can now connect to 238 cities in North America. Conversely, Delta passengers now have access to 98 cities in continental Europe and 16 cities in the U.K.

Putting the Codeshare to the Test

We at BestCards.com put the airlines’ partnership to the test. We wanted to see if we can travel from a small U.S. airport to a more obscure European destination. Our starting point was Madison, Wisconsin, which Delta Airlines currently services. Our destination was Sofia, Bulgaria.

Booking this route involved practically the same procedures on both the KLM and Air France websites. This isn’t so surprising as both airlines belong to the same company. The process was different on the Delta website, but we were essentially able to find the same route at a similar fare.

All three airlines had passengers taking a Delta Connection flight (operated by Skywest, which uses Delta livery) to Detroit. From Detroit, Delta flew passengers to Amsterdam Schiphol.

Bulgaria Air was responsible for the last leg of the flight to Sofia. This flag-bearing Eastern European airline already codeshares with KLM and Air France.

However, the same route wasn’t available on Virgin Atlantic’s website. In fact, no flights appeared when we selected our departure and destination airports. Since Virgin is essentially the newcomer in this partnership, it’s not surprising that its booking site hasn’t caught up to the other carriers.

How This Partnership Affects Credit Cardholders

According to press releases that each carrier has issued, customers were able to start benefiting from this partnership beginning on February 13th of this year. Consumers who own any of these airlines’ credit cards may not see exclusive changes to their benefits.

However, members of the airlines’ loyalty programs will have a lot more flexibility in terms of how they earn and redeem points or miles. Since nearly all airline cardholders also belong to these programs, they will be able to reap the same benefits.

Perhaps the most immediate perk for loyalty program members is that they’ll earn points on bookings they make on any of these four carriers. What’s more, they can redeem their points on Air France, KLM, Delta, and Virgin Atlantic purchases.

This detail is going to make it much easier for cardholders to rack up more points and attain elite status. On that note, cardholders with elite status will now have access to more airport lounges.

Future Perks

According to an official Air France press release, all partner airlines will roll out some additional features later this year. This will include more codeshare routes, which will make it easier for consumers to book travel to even more destinations between North America and Europe.

KLM, Air France, Delta, and Virgin Atlantic will also start aligning their schedules more throughout 2020. This will increase the number and variety of routes available to travelers. It will also mean that you’ll start to see the same flights on the Virgin Atlantic booking site that already feature on the other carriers’ sites.

One of the more exciting features to debut later this year involves the partnering airlines’ mobile apps. You’ll be able to access flight information from any of the four airlines on any of the airlines’ apps. What’s more, you’ll be able to check in and select your seats on any of these apps. So, if you book a KLM flight, you’ll be able to manage your flight from your Delta, Air France, or Virgin Atlantic app.

Advertiser Disclosure

BestCards is an independent, Florida-based credit card comparison platform. Many of the card offers that appear on this site are from companies from which BestCards receives compensation. This compensation may impact how and where products appear on this site (including, for example, the order in which they appear). BestCards does not include all card companies or all card offers available in the marketplace.