December 5th, 2012
Upcoming Chase Southwest And Airtran Card Changes?
Chase Southwest Airlines VisaDEAD!
-From this link you can access all 4 Southwest credit cards, the Consumer Plus, Consumer Premier and the Business Plus and Business Premier. The Apply Now button will take you to the Premier card and the alternate cards can be found on the bottom of the page. Each of these cards offer 50,000 points for spending $2,000. Points can be converted to Airtran, used on Southwest, used for store Gift Cards, and all count towards the 110,000 points needed in a year to get a free companion pass.
Some DDF members have all 4 versions of the Southwest card, by getting 3 you’ll effectively double the travel value of the 150,000 points from $2,850 to $5,700 due to the free companion pass you’ll get. With Southwest starting to fly internationally and publicly stating that they intend to start service to the stunning island of Hawaii, this is a golden opportunity.
Chase Airtran Visa DEAD!
-Earn 32 Airtran credits and 2 business class upgrades for spending $3,000. Points can be used for 4 free one-ways on Airtran or Southwest, used for a free round-trip on any other airline in the US, or transferred to Southwest credits.
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For a limited time you can get 50,000 points when you spend $2,000 within 3 months of getting the Southwest card. They’re marketing this as 2 free flights but in fact it is enough for about $950 of free flying on Southwest, so you can stretch out those points for as many as 15 free flights with Southwest’s low prices.
You can use the points for yourself or book award tickets for anyone else you want to give a ticket to. Plus Southwest allows you to cancel an award flight and redeposit the points in your account for future use without any penalties!
Don’t fly? You can also use 50,000 points to get $500 worth of gift cards to places like Amazon, Avis, Bed Bath & Beyond, Gap, Hyatt, Lowe’s, Macy’s, TJMaxx, Walmart and many others. A $500 gift card to Walmart can always be sold to a place like Cardpool for $460 cash.
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With Southwest’s Rapid Rewards “2.0″ program you can redeem points for any seat on any flight. For the regular “wanna get away” fare it costs 60 points for each dollar of airfare. In practical terms this means for example:
A one-way LaGuardia-Chicago flight on 01/08 is $68.80 with tax.
It can also be bought for 3,480 points plus $2.50 tax.
So 3,480 points gets you a value of $66.30 ($68.80 airfare less the $2.50 tax required on the points ticket)
So each point is worth 1.9 cents (66.30/3,480), valid for redemption on all flights.
The value per point will depend on your route, but points always seem to be worth more than 1.8 cents each.
The Southwest card comes with a 50,000 point signup bonus, which at 1.9 cents per point is worth $950 towards Southwest flights just for opening the card and spending $2K.
There is a $99 annual fee but with this card you earn 6,000 points every anniversary that you have the card, which is worth $114 towards Southwest flights!
You get 1 point per dollar on regular purchases, which is equal to a rebate of 1.9%.
You get 2 points per dollar on Southwest purchases, including hotel and car rentals via Southwest, which is equal to a rebate of 3.8%
Companion pass:
Plus you get a free companion pass if you earn 110,000 points in a year from any source, including earnings from credit card bonuses and credit card spending! If you earn 110,000 Southwest points for example by 02/01/13 the pass will be good until 12/31/14. The pass allows you to bring a companion with you for free when you fly Southwest, even if you are flying on a free ticket!
Opening 2 Southwest cards (100,000 points) and spending the $2,000 on each (4,000 points) means you’ll be just $6,000 of spending short of the companion pass.
You should wait to finish spending the $2,000 on this card until January so that the points post in 2013 and the pass will be good all the way until the end of 2014!
Points transferred from Ultimate Rewards to Southwest don’t qualify towards companion pass status, but points transferred from Ultimate Rewards into Hyatt and then into Southwest do qualify! So you can transfer 50K Ultimate Rewards points into 50K Hyatt and 50K Hyatt transfers into 30K Southwest.
In other words if you get 50K points from signing up for this credit card you can transfer 100K Ultimate Rewards points to Hyatt and then into 60K Southwest points, worth about $1,140 towards Southwest travel. Plus then you’ll have a companion pass so that you can bring your companion for free whenever you fly Southwest, so that $1,140 toward Southwest is really doubled to $2,280 because of the free companion ticket. Not a bad value for a 100K Ultimate Rewards transfer.
See this post for more info on the Ultimate Rewards program and associated credit cards.
Transfers to Airtran and Rapid Rewards “1.0″:
You can transfer increments of 1,200 Southwest points into 1 Airtran credit. Here is Airtran’s award chart, which does not price awards according to the cost of the flight. Thus you can get an international round-trip award ticket for just 19,200 Southwest points. These awards are capacity controlled however. A business class upgrade on Airtran is just 4,800 Southwest points.
Once they are in Airtran you can also transfer them back into Southwest’s old Rapid Rewards 1.0 program. In this program awards are just 16 credits (19,200 points) round-trip, no matter how expensive the flight is. These are also capacity controlled, but for some flights you will come out far ahead with this old program.
And as always, Southwest:
-Gives 2 free checked bags per passenger.
-Does not charge change fees to switch your flight. Whether you are on a paid or an award flight you can change without penalty!
-Does not charge a cancellation fee to cancel your flight (you will get Southwest credit for the full amount paid, even on non-refundable wanna get away fares) or to cancel and redeposit your award flight.
-Refunds the fare or point difference if the price of your flight goes down after you buy it, just call to get the credit at any time!
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Need other Chase cards to apply at the same time?
All consumer or business cards applied for on the same day count as just 1 credit pull. It’s how I currently have 13 active Chase cards without making a dent to my top-notch credit score. Here are other Chase card offers, almost all of which I’ve successfully churned myself.
Consumer cards:
-Chase Freedom Mastercard and Chase Freedom Visa, 0% Intro APR for 15 months on purchases and balance transfers. $100 cash back for spending $500 in the form of 10,000 points. 5% back in rotating categories in the form of 5 points per dollar. Points can be transferred into miles if you have a Sapphire Preferred, or Ink Bold, or Ink Plus card. No annual fee.
-Chase United Explorer Visa, 30K miles for spending $1,000 in 3 months and adding an additional cardholder. Free checked luggage on United. Free Priority boarding with card. Non-expiring miles with card. Expanded Saver award availability. Last seat Standard award availability with card. Free primary Car Rental CDW. 2 annual lounge passes. 10K bonus miles for spending $25K annually. Comp upgrades for elite cardholders on award tickets. Double miles for United purchases. Introductory annual fee of $0 the first year, then $95.
-United Club Visa (Click on Club tab), 1.5 miles per dollar spent. 2 free checked bags on United. Free Premier boarding, security lines, and baggage with card. United lounge membership. Airport Terminal access even when not flying to access United or USAirways clubs. Waived expedite award fees. Non-expiring miles with card. Expanded Saver award availability. Last seat Standard award availability with card. Free primary Car Rental CDW. 2 annual lounge passes. 10K bonus miles for spending $25K annually. Comp upgrades for elite cardholders on award tickets. Double miles for United purchases. $395 annual fee.
-Chase British Airways Visa, 50,000 bonus Avios for spending $1,000, an additional 25,000 bonus Avios for spending $10,000 in 12 months, and another 25,000 Avios for spending $20,000 in 12 months for up to 100,000 bonus Avios. 2.5 Avios for every $1 spent on British Airways purchases and 1.25 Avios for every $1 spent on all other purchases. No Forex fees. Every calendar year you make $30,000 in purchases, you will earn a free companion ticket when you redeem Avios for a flight on British Airways. $95 annual fee.
-Chase Hyatt Visa, 2 free nights at any Hyatt worldwide for spending $1,000. Free Hyatt Platinum status. Existing Hyatt Platinums also get 2 free suite upgrades on paid stays. Existing Hyatt Diamonds get the 2 free nights in a suite. No Forex fee. Free automatic annual night at category 1-4 hotels. $75 annual fee.
-Chase Marriott Premier Visa, 50K bonus points and free cat. 1-4 night certificate for spending $1,000 in your first 3 months. Annual free cat. 1-5 night certificate. 15 night elite credit. No Forex fee. Introductory annual fee of $0 the first year, then $85.
-Chase Sapphire Preferred Visa Signature, 40K points for spending $3K. 1.07 points per dollar spent, 2.14 points per dollar spent on car rentals, airfare, hotels, and dining. Points redeemable 1:1 for BA, United, Southwest, or Hyatt points or for 1.25 cents each towards airfare. 7% point bonus for all spending. No Forex fee. No fee first year then $95.
-Chase Slate Mastercard, No balance transfer fees for 60 days and 0% APR on purchases and balance transfers for 15 months. No annual fee.
Business Cards:
-Chase Ink Bold Mastercard 50K points for spending $5K in 3 months. Points redeemable 1:1 for BA, CO, or Hyatt points or for 1.25 cents each towards airfare. 5 points per dollar on up to $50K per year on wireless, landline, cable services, and office supplies. 2 points per dollar on gas and hotels. 1 point per dollar elsewhere. 2 free lounge passes per year for all card users. No fee first year then $95.
-Chase Ink Plus Mastercard 50K points for spending $5K in 3 months. Points redeemable 1:1 for BA, CO, or Hyatt points or for 1.25 cents each towards airfare. 5 points per dollar on up to $50K per year on wireless, landline, cable services, and office supplies. 2 points per dollar on gas and hotels. 1 point per dollar elsewhere. 2 free lounge passes per year for all card users. No fee first year then $95.
-Chase Ink Cash Mastercard, 20K points for spending $3K in 3 months. 5 points per dollar on up to $25K per year on wireless, landline, cable services, and office supplies. 2 points per dollar on gas and dining. 1 point per dollar elsewhere. 0% APR for 6 months. Points can be transferred into miles if you have a Sapphire Preferred, Ink Bold, or Ink Plus card. No annual fee.
-Chase United Explorer Visa (Click on “Are you a business owner” on the top-right), 30K miles for spending $1,000. Free checked luggage on United. Free Priority boarding with card. Non-expiring miles with card. Expanded Saver award availability. Last seat Standard award availability with card. Free primary Car Rental CDW. 2 annual lounge passes. 10K bonus miles for spending $25K annually. Comp upgrades for elite cardholders on award tickets. Double miles for United purchases. No fee first year then $95.
1
December 4th, 2012 at 6:01 pm
Dan you say to wait till 2013 to complete the 110k points for the companion pass but the terms and conditions say that all 110k must be earned in one calendar year. So shouldn’t the first 100k plus points be lost once jan starts with regards to the companion pass?
2
December 4th, 2012 at 6:17 pm
If I currently don’t have any credit cards but I have a chase account, which credit card do you recommend opening?
3
December 4th, 2012 at 7:05 pm
@Yitz:
That’s why you should complete the $2,000 in spending in January as the 50K won’t post until then.
@Sara:
I’d start with Freedom.
A great card with great rewards and never an annual fee.
Chase Reconsideration is also excellent at getting cards approved in case you ae denied, though sometimes it can take a few phone calls. More info:
http://www.dansdeals.com/archives/16036
http://www.dansdeals.com/forums/index.php?topic=8028.0
4
December 4th, 2012 at 8:19 pm
@Dan
I just applied for the business card and now want to apply for the personal as well but realize that I don’t know what rapid reward number I will get generated by first card. It won’t be approved before 12/6 but want the personal card to end up in same place as business card for companion ticket. Will I be able to reallocate the personal card toward the account that will be generated now by the business card?
I realize that I should’ve created account before applying at all.
thanks!!
5
December 4th, 2012 at 8:25 pm
@Queensdeals:
You’ll be able to merge duplicate accounts afterward and it will all combine for the companion pass.
6
December 4th, 2012 at 9:01 pm
I have 300k UR i want to travel in the summer using multiple stops. i remember reading here you can have a stopover for as long as you want for free… were can i read about this?
Thank you Dan!
7
December 4th, 2012 at 9:05 pm
Dan,
Which office supply store sells visa gift cards that makes it worth it to spend on ink bold? I only found office max which sells max 200 but has 5 dollar fee.
Thanks.
8
December 4th, 2012 at 9:09 pm
can i 3bm for the premier and the plus card
9
December 4th, 2012 at 10:17 pm
will i have a problem getting the BA point benefits if i already have their card?
also anyone know when the BA signup bonus expires?
10
December 4th, 2012 at 10:26 pm
@Yanky:
You can do that with United miles.
80K coach or 120K business.
@Dave:
Try Office Depot.
@incendia:
I know some people have both, but it may take some negotiating with Recon.
@yitz:
I don’t understand your first question.
The BA signup bonus should be around for a couple months.
11
December 4th, 2012 at 10:30 pm
Dan, tx for responding so quickly.
I already have the ba chase card. is there any way i can still get these signup bonuses (50k/75k/100k)
12
December 4th, 2012 at 10:45 pm
@yitz:
You’ll have to close it first, or better yet apply for a different card(s) and have it approved by telling Recon to move over the line and close the card to get the new card approved.
The BA card is known to be the hardest Chase card to churn, though some have reported success by applying and leaving the mileage number blank. For other cards opening a new mileage number works.
13
December 4th, 2012 at 10:50 pm
How do I explain Recon why I just applied for both the premier and the plus?
I just applied for 3 business(3BM) for my a family member and got denied because of too many requests. I will call recon and try and shift credit.
Is it too risky to apply for 2 southwest cards now as well?
Thank you
14
December 4th, 2012 at 10:58 pm
I got denied, I called the recon number that was posted on the website, the number doesnt work anymore, so I googled and got a few different numbers, they all said ” thank you call you chase lending services ” the recording also said that we are closed and to call back during biz hours.
I thought they were 24hrs did that change.
15
December 4th, 2012 at 11:15 pm
@tll:
Good question, if anyone here got the plus and premier, what was your strategy?
@Avi:
Lots of numbers here:
http://www.dansdeals.com/forums/index.php?topic=8028.0
16
December 5th, 2012 at 5:50 am
So help me out a bit what’s better to apply gr the south west or the AirTran card
17
December 5th, 2012 at 5:52 am
Btw the credit report freezing thing works really well. I always get my chase cards approved now
http://www.dansdeals.com/forums/index.php?topic=8028
18
December 5th, 2012 at 7:07 am
Dan, (1) re the Chase Explorer Visa you wrote ’30K miles for spending $1′; the link says ‘Start with 30k miles after you spend $1000 in the 1st 3 months’. (2) re the message to match – who do i send it to and what offer source am I asking them to match? Thanks Always!
19
December 5th, 2012 at 8:45 am
What about having just applied for 3 business can I go for any personal now? I need to have recon move credit for the business but since the southwest is going away I want to apply for it too this morning
20
December 5th, 2012 at 9:23 am
@Dans the man:
Go for both?
@Dans the man:
It’s for advanced users, but people have had luck with it.
@jysubs:
Just say that your colleague received that offer and they’ll match it.
@tll:
As long as you have cards/credit lines to leverage and are willing to negotiate and call back then the sky is the limit in my experience.
21
December 5th, 2012 at 9:33 am
@Dan: Thanks. Was hoping to get the miles for spending $1, as you said, and not $1000 as they said.
22
December 5th, 2012 at 9:36 am
@jysubs:
Actually with the match many people have indeed gotten the 55K+$50 after spending $1 on the United card.
Try it yourself and report the results
23
December 5th, 2012 at 11:35 am
if one was to open 1 or 2 credit cards which ones are the best to open?
24
December 5th, 2012 at 12:04 pm
If i open the airtran card and convert the 32 credits to southwest miles, will those miles count towards the companion pass? If i opened both sw and at cc, would that leave me with just an additional 10k miles to companion pass?
25
December 5th, 2012 at 12:38 pm
what’s the best bet for 2 southwest cards, business & personal? Is that one pull or 2?
26
December 5th, 2012 at 1:27 pm
2 quick questions…
A) whats the difference between the premier and the plus ?
B) if I get 50k or 100k of southwest… and i get my wife the card is there a way to merge the miles into one account to get the companion pass… if not then probably not a good idea for both to go after this at the same time since companion passes will overlap and be obsolete (unless always traveling with a family of four, correct ?
27
December 5th, 2012 at 7:06 pm
Dan, I got approved for the Explorer, thanks.
I have ~200k points on my corp green amex. I live in Israel and have wasted my fights with elal by crediting matmid – grrrr. I’m thinking the best thing to do is:
(a) convert those ~200k AMEX points @130% to BA Avios, and then use them for flights to EWR (not sure how yet).
(b)Credit all future ELAL flight mileage to my United (or BA) account.
Am I on the right track?
28
December 5th, 2012 at 10:49 pm
About a year ago, I recon’ed my way into the SW Plus and Premier. Took a little HUCA but basically I just kept saying one’s business one’s personal until someone relented.
29
December 5th, 2012 at 10:54 pm
@mimi:
Depends on your needs.
@yitzie:
No.
@Az:
Can’t merge account in different names.
@Ephraim:
Another way to get Plus and Premier would be to say one is exclusively for medical expenses, which are good to keep on a dedicated card.
30
December 6th, 2012 at 1:43 am
do the sw points ever expire? what if i cancel the card after a yr do they then expire?
31
December 6th, 2012 at 2:35 am
Hey Dan, ive made repeated calls to southwest.com and to their rapid rewards clients ervices; they have reiterated that the 50k points signup bonus doesn’t count towards tier-qualifying-points, which is what is required to hit the a-list, a-list preferred, and companion pass statuses. As they explained, the 50k are bonus points, not tier-qualifying-points, which do not count towards any of these tiered levels. Is there a technique i am missing here, or is there a certain number i need to call to make it so?
32
December 6th, 2012 at 8:32 am
@rots5:
Not as long as you earn or redeem a point every 24 months.
@mikem:
They are not tier-qualiying towards elite status.
They do however count towards companion pass status, those are 2 very different animals.
This has been confirmed many times.
33
December 6th, 2012 at 9:18 am
is the southwest card worth the $99 fee?
34
December 6th, 2012 at 9:40 am
@benyomin:
Is $500 of gift cards or $950 in travel worth $99?
35
December 6th, 2012 at 10:12 am
Dan I tried 3 BM method and got 3 decision pending what should I do?
36
December 6th, 2012 at 10:14 am
@dans great:
Call Recon:
http://www.dansdeals.com/forums/index.php?topic=8028.0
37
December 6th, 2012 at 10:29 am
called them they said I would have to close one of my other 2 accounts.
problem is that 1 account is a sapphire (I dont want to give up the miles) and second is avios
aka which do I give up
38
December 6th, 2012 at 10:32 am
@dans great:
Try to get them to take part of the credit line from those accounts to get a new account approved.
The Avios will not expire if you close the card.
The Sapphire points will, but you can always transfer them out to miles or transfer them to your spouse before closing.
39
December 6th, 2012 at 10:49 am
FYI i was at the airport yesterday and signed up for the regular southwest card for $69 and they gave me the 50,000 points plus a free t-shirt! (instead of signing up for the $99 card)
40
December 6th, 2012 at 10:50 am
@chiam:
You can do that via my link as well. The Plus card is $69 and gets 50,000 points.
No T-Shirt though
41
December 6th, 2012 at 11:35 am
Hey Dan,
I applied last night for SW Premier and SW Plus using 3BM. Should i call Recon now to explain or wait to hear back from them first?
42
December 6th, 2012 at 11:36 am
@Shloomb: I got a decision pending response
43
December 6th, 2012 at 11:50 am
if I signed up before 10:00 am will I get the 50000 bonus miles
44
December 6th, 2012 at 11:55 am
The links just changed.
Now it’s 25k points after 1k spend.
Any idea how to still get the old offer of 50k points after 2k spend?
If not, how likely that it’ll be offered again and any idea when?
45
December 6th, 2012 at 1:22 pm
If I opened two cards for 50k each, but under different Rapid Reward numbers, will merging them into one account work towards the 110k total?
Thanks.
46
December 6th, 2012 at 4:54 pm
I applied via 3BM for:
1) Case Southwest personal: instant approval
2) Case Southwest business: Pending – I called Recon and got it approved
3) Case Slate personal: Pending – I called Recon and they told me I was denied because you can only get approved 2 Case cards in 30 days.
After offering to transfer credit line etc… they put me on a long hold and said no, only 2 cards every 30 days. The only way to get approved is to close one of the Southwest card that I was approved of today, not an older card.
Any advice?
Try again hugh?
47
December 6th, 2012 at 11:38 pm
Dan, I missed this by several hours. When do you think it will be offered again?
John
48
December 7th, 2012 at 10:29 am
follow up I call recon and got 2 approved.
the third (business card) didn’t go through
should I try and get it open as well?
if so how?
49
December 9th, 2012 at 4:28 pm
Dan.
What is a secure message? Is that what you send from your Chase account online?
Thanks!
50
December 18th, 2012 at 11:10 pm
I have a chase ink bold that I got the 50K bonus about 6 months ago. Can I get it again and do I need to close it before applying?
51
December 18th, 2012 at 11:19 pm
@sara:
Yes.
52
December 18th, 2012 at 11:40 pm
Dan,
Is yes I can get it again and yes I need to close it first?
53
December 18th, 2012 at 11:43 pm
It’ll be hard to get approved for it again if you already have the card open.
54
December 18th, 2012 at 11:49 pm
If I cancel how long do I need to wait to reapply
55
January 2nd, 2013 at 11:57 am
@Dan:
Just wanted to let you know that it took a few messages but Chase is matching the 50k bonus for $1k spend. Sweet. Thanks Dan!
56
January 2nd, 2013 at 2:42 pm
Why Southwest is good? https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=-_MfHMQWmiE
57
January 14th, 2013 at 1:40 am
The companaion pass is NOT true for this offer. I followed your suggestion , received 2 cards for 50,000 points each
and spent $10,000 for a total of 110,000 points. SW refused to categorize me as having a companion fare as the fine print says that it is only for “revenue flights” and NOT bonus miles. This offer wsnot presented correctly. Sad but true.
58
January 14th, 2013 at 11:23 am
@Alan:
You were misinformed.
If you earn 110K points from SW cards in the same calendar year you will the companion pass, as have hundreds of others.
59
January 20th, 2013 at 2:47 am
I got 2 Southwest cards (cons & bsns) but did not spend yet the 2k on each. If I don’t want spend another 6k what are my other options to get the 110k. Thanks for all your help,
60
January 20th, 2013 at 3:00 am
I also got the Air Tran card but did not spend the 3k yet. Can I tfr from Air Tran to Southwest to satisfy the 110k. Alternatively, What is the min UR points to tfr to Hyatt and then to Southwest. Thanks so much. !!!!
61
February 27th, 2013 at 9:47 pm
Hi Dan,
I sent 2 msgs on Jan 20 re southwest and air tran. I am just finishing the spending can u pls let me know if the air tran required 2 or 3K spending and if u can respond to my msg from 1/20/2013. Thanks so much.