Merry Christmas! We hope everyone is having a great holiday season. Thank you so much for your support for DeepValueTravel this year. In this episode of our newsletter, we will do a quick recap of our travels this year and update you all with some exciting promotions and news in the credit card space.
2024 Wrapped!
2024 has been an amazing year of balancing work and travel for us, here are some insights into our traveling this year:
We visited 9 foreign countries, 21 cities, and touched down at 25 airports.
We spent a total amount of 617,500 credit card points earned with natural spending habits, these points helped us fly 12 award flights and stayed 18 nights at hotels.
Our most popular articles were:
1. Flight Review: Air France Business Class B777-300ER (LIS-CDG-SFO)
2. 2-Week Adventure in London, Paris, and Lisbon Under $1000
3. Hotel Review: Park Hyatt Milano
News
Amazon Prime Credit Card - $150 Sign-on Bonus
The Amazon Prime credit card is a card we don’t mention often because only Prime members can apply. However, it is a no-brainer for any existing Prime member as it has no annual fee and offers 5% back on all purchases on Amazon, including at Amazon Fresh and Whole Foods markets. This card also has no foreign transaction fees. You can apply now at the official website; the offer ends on 1/2/2025.
Chase Freedom Unlimited - $250 Sign-on Bonus
Chase Freedom Unlimited is offering a lucrative sign-on bonus of $250 after spending $500 in the first 3 months from account opening. This is our recommended intro credit card for anyone looking to begin their credit card journey because it has no annual fee and earns valuable Chase Ultimate Rewards points (read more @ our credit card setup for 2024). You can apply on the official website or use our referral link.
Chase Freedom Flex Q1 2025 5x categories
Chase has just announced the 5x earning categories for Chase Freedom and Freedom Flex cards. The categories are:
Select grocery stores (including Instacart)
Fitness club and gym memberships
Self-care and spa services
Norwegian Cruise Line purchases (must book directly with the cruise line)
Make sure to activate your card on the credit card portal to unlock the 5x earnings.
Alaska Premium Credit Card News
Alaska Airlines just announced a new premium credit card releasing in the summer of 2025. The benefits look very attractive with lounge passes, elevated status, and great earning multipliers. The most interesting multiplier is 3x miles on all eligible international purchases. This is certainly a card we are looking to get, and you can earn some extra miles if you pre-register now on the official landing page to join the early access waitlist.
On-going Transfer Bonus
Amex
Virgin Atlantic 40% (12/31)
JetBlue 25% (ending 12/31)
Avianca 15% (ending 12/31)
Marriott Bonvoy 35% (ending 12/31)
Chase
Air Canada 20% (ending 1/15)
Air France 20% (ending 1/15)
IHG 70% (ending 1/15)
Tip of the Month
Amex Platinum Triple Dip! The high annual fee is a common deterrent for people looking to get the Amex Platinum card. We’ve found the credits to be very useful and get a net positive value out of the card (read more about our review of the card on our credit card setup for 2024). If you want to try the card for a year, December is the best time to do so because you can use the Platinum credits (hotel, airline incidentals, Saks Fifth Avenue) for three calendar years while paying one single annual fee (the annual fee will be posted in January). You just need to make sure to use those annual credits during the right time window (e.g., Dec 2024 - Jan 2026, use the credits in Dec 2024, anytime in 2025, and Jan 2026).
Closing
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