Choosing Your Credit Card: Do Airline Or Bank Cards Yield Better Deals For Travelers?

by McLean Robbins on

Who doesn’t love free flights? We sure do. ShopSmart magazine, a Consumer Reports publication, has tracked the best credit cards and methods to accrue points towards free flights in its latest issue, and some of these tips are extremely relevant for readers.

While choosing a loyalty carrier or airline credit card is often a personal matter – if your home city is a hub for American Airlines, it might not make sense to choose a United card, for example – these tips are relevant to most travelers and first-time card activators.

“You’ve got more options than ever for credit cards that let you rack up points for free travel,” said Lisa Lee Freeman, editor-in-chief of ShopSmart in a release. “But finding one that will score you free tickets the fastest can be tricky. Depending on your travel and spending patterns, sometimes airline cards are best but sometimes you’re better off with bank cards.”Choosing Your Card

Choose an airline card if:
· You’re loyal to a particular airline
· You travel a lot
· You want a free trip fast
· You like to wheel and deal

Airline cards usually aren’t as generous with points, but may be worth it for those who can score a decent up-front bonus. Airline card users should check offers listed on an airline’s website and use them as a starting bid when calling the airline directly to negotiate a deal or to ask for double points. A notable caveat: blackout dates and other restrictions can be an issue with airline cards.

Choose a bank card if:
· You fly based on price
· You don’t want to deal with blackout dates
· You are enrolled in several frequent flier programs

Users can earn points on purchases and spend them on any airline they choose – points are usually tied to the price of the ticket, so the lower the price, the fewer the points needed. Bank cards are a better option for those concerned about when they can fly and how much time they have to use their points. Some cards allow users to transfer earned points to a variety of airline programs.

ShopSmart suggests the following as particularly worthy card selections:

1.) American Express Premier Rewards Gold. This bank card rewards shoppers with three points per $1 spent for airfare; two points per $1 spent on gas and groceries; one point per $1 spent elsewhere. Users who spend $2,000 in the first three months can earn 25,000 bonus points. There’s no interest charge; users pay balances in full every month. No annual fee is charged for the first year, then $175.

2.) Chase Sapphire Preferred Visa or MasterCard. These bank cards reward shoppers with two points per $1 spent for travel and dining; one point per $1 elsewhere and a seven percent yearly bonus on points. Users who spend $3,000 in the first three months earn 40,000 bonus points (worth $500 on travel booked through Chase). APR for purchases is 15.24%; the $95 annual fee is waived the first year.

3.) Delta SkyMiles American Express Gold. This airline card rewards shoppers with two miles per $1 spent on Delta; one mile per $1 spent elsewhere. Users get a free checked bag for up to 9 people in a reservation; 20% savings on eligible in-flight food and beverage purchases. APR for purchases is 15.24%, 17.24%, or 19.24%; the $95 annual fee is waived the first year.

Do you have a bank card or an airline card? Both? Neither? We’d love to hear from you in the comments. Tell us why you love your card or why you chose what you chose.

[Image Credit: Flickr user 401 (k) 2013]

Three More Ski Resorts Join The Mountain Collective

by Kraig Becker on

Way back in August of last year we told you about the Mountain Collective, a group of independent ski resorts in North America that had joined forces to offer skiers and snowboarders access to each of their mountains at an amazing price. The collaboration between these iconic ski destinations was unprecedented at the time and yesterday it got even better.

The resorts that were on board at the launch of the Mountain Collective included Alta in Utah, Aspen/Snowmass in Colorado, Jackson Hole in Wyoming and Squaw Valley/Alpine Meadows in California. On Tuesday it was announced that three more great resorts would join their ranks as Snowbird, Mammoth Mountain and Whistler Blackcomb were all added to the Collective.

The inclusion of these new resorts makes an already amazing ski deal even better. The Mountain Collective Pass costs just $349 and provides two free days of skiing at each resort with an additional 50% off an unlimited number of lift tickets thereafter. Furthermore, the pass grants discounts on lodging and other amenities too, making it a fantastic option for those who simply can’t get enough time on the slopes.

After announcing the addition of the new resorts, a limited number of passes for the 2013/2014 season went on sale at both the Mountain Collective website and Liftopia.com. These passes are being offered at the same price as the 2012/2013 tickets, but once they are sold out, that price will be gone. If you want to be able to take advantage of this amazing deal, you’ll want to grab a ticket while they last.

I know that the 2013/2014 ski season sounds like a long way off, particularly since we’re still wrapping up the current season. But this is just too good of deal to pass up. The price is likely to increase in the fall, so get your hands on one of these passes while you can.

[Photo Credit: Alta]

New Spring Road Trip Options Save Money And Time

by Chris Owen on

March 20 is the first day of spring and for those in the northern plains of the United States, the day just can’t get here fast enough. Battered by late winter storms, spring road trip thoughts were put on hold as attention was drawn to record snowfalls. Spring will eventually get here. When it does, plans for a road trip might be just to get out of town with the destination unknown or a direct route to a popular spring break destination. Since spring of last year, the world of road trip gear has seen some new, helpful additions. Let’s take a look.

Drive A New Car
If the family auto is not quite in its best shape and buying a new car is more of a dream than a reality, why not rent one?

Becoming increasingly popular for road trips is renting a car from any one of a number of car rental companies that offer discounted weekend rates. Starting at $9.99 per day, Enterprise offers a weekend special that includes an Economy or Compact car rented on Friday and ending the following Monday that includes 100 miles per day.

Hertz has a similar deal for $14.99 when the vehicle is picked up on Thursday and returned on Sunday with unlimited miles.

Google Field Trip
Location-based apps can be helpful in a number of ways. HipGeo, LiveTrekker and other GPS-fired renditions can almost automatically produce a travel journal, tagging our photos, video and more without a lot of work. At the end of a trip, just a little editing can produce an accurate depiction of where we go plus what we see and do.

Google Field Trip’s value is simple. Using that same location-based technology, it runs in the background on your android (initially) and iPhone (new) smartphone then directly taps Google’s rich content, automatically popping up a card with details about the location.

Nice for road trips, settings allow audible notification, speaking the name of places only or the title and description. Better yet, a choice of allowing audio all the time or selecting when “headset is connected,” “bluetooth headset or audio is connected” or “device is docked” are available as well as “disable when driving.”

Users can also select areas of interest like architecture, lifestyle, historic places and events, food and others.

All the GPS In One Place
Back to Hertz we go for something entirely different and not on the market last year. Their new NeverLost GPS option promises the best of mobile technologies and traditional GPS devices to help plan and navigate road trips.

Hertz told Gadling that their NeverLost system “eliminates the need (and risk) of juggling a cellphone to get directions and find destinations while driving, allowing users to manage their entire trip at the push of a button,” in an email. That claim looks to be true and NeverLost does include some unique features we look to see in other auto-based GPS in-dash systems.

A unique feature is being able to access the program on a phone or computer to remotely enter destination addresses, rather than sitting in the car to add them before hitting the road.

Synced with their My Explore App for iPhone and android, NeverLost has an itinerary planner, suggested sights and events in the area and even (you guessed it) a social element (“hey you in the pickup, got your ears on?”).

Check this video for more on how nicely this one might fit into your spring road trip plans:



[Image credits – Flickr user Black Photo Studio / Hertz]

Kids Ski Free At Big Bear For Spring Break

by Kraig Becker on

If you’re planning a spring break getaway with the entire family, and intend to do a little skiing during that time, then Big Bear has just the deal for you. The resort, located just 100 miles northeast of Los Angeles, is offering free weekday lift tickets for kids 12 and under starting now and running through April 14 or until the end of the season.

The Kids Ski/Ride free package requires at least one night stay at one of the Big Bear lodges. This special offer provides one child lift ticket for each paying adult with those passes valid for skiing at both Snow Summit and Bear Mountain resorts. Together those locations offer 436 skiable acres with 26 lifts, four high-speed chairs and 1800 vertical feet. Nearby terrain parks also offer more than 200 features as well and a free shuttle gives visitors quick access to either of the two resorts.

Snow conditions at Big Bear are good with a current base of between 28-48 inches on the ground. The past few days have seen steady snowfall bringing an additional 8-10 inches of fresh powder to the slopes. That bodes well for spring break skiers and snowboarders looking for some quality time on the hill. The winter conditions have made the drive into Big Bear a bit of a challenge, however, so if you’re planning on going, be sure to check the current road report before setting out.

If you’re still firming up your spring break ski plans and you’re looking for an affordable way to hit the slopes, Big Bear’s kids package is tough to beat. Find out all of the details by clicking here.

[Photo Credit: Big Bear]

FlightCar Makes Peer-To-Peer Rentals More Convenient

by Megan Fernandez on

If you can get comfortable with the idea of a stranger driving your car – or if you have the capacity to not think about it while the vehicle is out of your sight – it might make sense to rent your wheels while you’re out of town.

But the leading peer-to-peer rental agencies leave a lot of the logistics to the car owner. List your car with a service like Relay Rides, Getaround or Jolly Wheels (available in several major cities), and if you get a taker, you have to arrange to meet the renter somewhere to hand over your keys. That’s inconvenient if you’re heading to the airport. It’s one more thing to do before leaving town and when you return.

FlightCar, a new service in San Francisco, tailors the peer-to-peer thing to air travelers by meeting both listers and renters at the airport. Drive to its lot at the Millbrae BART station, leave your car and a rep will give you a free lift to the terminal (and back, upon your return). The same goes for renters.

Since launching on February 5, some 200 travelers have offered up their chariots to rent, and 80 percent have been rented, according to co-founder Shri Ganeshram. The average rental period is five days. FlightCar, like the other peer-to-peer companies, provides $1 million in free insurance and checks each renter’s driving record.

But is FlightCar’s compensation to car owners worth the worry and the wear and tear?FlightCar pays car owners in gas cards, and only if it rents the vehicle. It also washes every vehicle, whether it rents or not. Compensation ranges from $10 for the entire duration of the rental (for the oldest cars) to $10 per day of rental (for the nicer, newer rides, a rate that Ganeshram says might go up to $20 soon). If the car doesn’t rent, well, you don’t get a gas card, but you’ve scored free parking and a car wash while away. Long-term parking at SFO costs $18 per day, while independent park-and-fly services can save you a few dollars. So at most, you can come away $28 per day to the good.

Owners need to remember that the compensation isn’t all profit because wear and tear on the vehicle carries a cost. Renters can drive the car 90 miles per day. Ganeshram says rental-car companies value wear and tear as high as 15 cents per mile (“I got that number from a rental lease for a 2012 BMW X5”), in which case 90 driven miles would amount to $13.50. Subtract such cost from the value of the gas cards and parking you’d expect to receive each day. (In fairness, Ganeshram points out that many renters don’t reach the 90-mile max, and if they exceed it, FlightCar pays car owners 35 cents per extra mile.)

Ganeshram, a graduate of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, provided an example to show that the value of the wear and tear doesn’t eat up all of the owner’s profit. It’s too complicated to repeat, but he arrived at the conclusion that the owner of a new $40,000 car should value mileage at 27 cents per mile. (Cheaper and/or older cars would have a lower per-mile valuation.) Say said owner makes the car available for a week and it rents for five days. That person would gain seven days of free parking, valued at $126; $50 in gas; and let’s say $20 for the value of the valet service and the car wash. That comes to $196. If the car is driven 80 miles per day at a wear-and-tear value of 27 cents per mile, that’s $108. Difference: $88.

Enough to hand over your keys?

[Photo credit: bottom, Flickr user Stig Nygaard]