Yesterday’s news that Citi and American are finally getting their act together with their credit card game was welcome news indeed. The other card companies and their airline partners have long left Citi AAdvantage in the dust with superior benefits like waived baggage charges, priority boarding, and bonus miles for purchasing air travel with the airline or sometimes partners. Citi AAdvantage has been a stand out in not evolving with the times, but those days appear to be over. Take a look at the new card product’s benefits.

• First checked bag free for cardmembers and up to four companions traveling on the same reservation for travel booked and ticketed on or after April 2, 2012. For example, a family traveling in the main cabin from JFK to LAX roundtrip with four checked bags could save $200.
• Priority boarding for cardmembers and up to four companions traveling on the same reservation for travel booked and ticketed on or after April 2, 2012.
• Cardmembers earn a $100 American Airlines Flight Discount that can be used to book any available qualifying flight on AA.com for each year following which they spend $30,000 in purchases and renew their Citi® Platinum Select® / AAdvantage® card.
• 25 percent savings on in-flight purchases of food, beverages and headsets when purchases are made with the Citi® Platinum Select® / AAdvantage® card or any other Citi® / AAdvantage® card.
• Ten percent miles back on AAdvantage miles redeemed by cardmembers, up to 10,000 miles per calendar year. For example, if the cardmember uses AAdvantage miles to book a 50,000 mile roundtrip flight, they will receive 5,000 AAdvantage miles back in their AAdvantage account approximately 6-8 weeks after booking.
• Double miles on eligible American Airlines purchases.
• No annual limit or cap on how many AAdvantage miles cardmembers can earn with card purchases.

If you are interested in applying for one of these cards, check out this offer. (Hat Tip to Mommypoints)

I’m happy to see American catching up in the credit card department, but this is also a key datapoint on why a lot of people feel that the value of entry-level elite status is declining. While I’m not quite ready to say that I’d trade in any level of elite status for one of these cards, I think it’s a legitimate point of discussion. Other than the potential of a First Class upgrade, the differences between entry level status at most airlines and the benefits offered by their card products are minimal. One outlier in all this, US Airways’ MasterCard offers priority boarding and check in, but no waiver of any kind for checked baggage fees. Wonder if they’ll be looking at this in the near future?

Just a quick word with a more thoughtful post to follow this evening. Good news from Citi and AAdvantage today as they are adding some significant new benefits to the Citi AAdvantage Card products that finally make them competitive with other offerings from Delta/Amex and United/Chase. The following is quoted directly from the joint press release announcing the new product:

“A full description of the new Citi® Platinum Select® / AAdvantage® cardmember benefits, designed to make the travel experience easier from booking to boarding and beyond, is below.

 The ability to earn more AAdvantage miles faster.

• Ten percent miles back on AAdvantage miles redeemed by cardmembers, up to 10,000 miles per calendar year. For example, if the cardmember uses AAdvantage miles to book a 50,000 mile roundtrip flight, they will receive 5,000 AAdvantage miles back in their AAdvantage account approximately 6-8 weeks after booking.
• Double miles on eligible American Airlines purchases.
• No annual limit or cap on how many AAdvantage miles cardmembers can earn with card purchases.

 More ways to save time and money when booking, boarding and beyond.

• First checked bag free for cardmembers and up to four companions traveling on the same reservation for travel booked and ticketed on or after April 2, 2012. For example, a family traveling in the main cabin from JFK to LAX roundtrip with four checked bags could save $200.
• Priority boarding for cardmembers and up to four companions traveling on the same reservation for travel booked and ticketed on or after April 2, 2012.
• Cardmembers earn a $100 American Airlines Flight Discount that can be used to book any available qualifying flight on AA.com for each year following which they spend $30,000 in purchases and renew their Citi® Platinum Select® / AAdvantage® card.
• 25 percent savings on in-flight purchases of food, beverages and headsets when purchases are made with the Citi® Platinum Select® / AAdvantage® card or any other Citi® / AAdvantage® card.

An annual fee of $95 applies. For new cardmembers, the annual fee is currently waived for the first 12 months. Starting today, existing cardmembers who have the Citi® Platinum Select® / AAdvantage® Visa Signature, Citi® Platinum Select® / AAdvantage® World MasterCard, Citi® Platinum Select® / AAdvantage® World Elite MasterCard and Citi® Select® / AAdvantage® American Express can enjoy the new benefits immediately, and will see the $95 fee on their next anniversary date after July 2012.”

All good news as far as I can tell, and as promised, I will have more to say on this development later this evening.

Posted here previously, and this will be the last time I post about it. The 50,000 bonus point offer for the Chase Sapphire Preferred card is going away Tuesday, April 3rd. Chase’s own website now advertises a 40,000 point offer, so I assume that’s what the new affiliate offer will be on April 3rd. For now, you can still get the 50,000 bonus Ultimate Rewards points if you use my link. The positive benefits of this card for travelers have been widely posted about both on MJ on Travel and on other blogs, so I won’t repeat the same here.

Disclosure: If you apply for and receive a card through my link, I will receive a referral bonus.

Note: Affiliate links removed temporarily as of 4/3/12 pending new offer.

The bloggerverse has been alive with speculation about the status of the 50,000 bonus Ultimate Rewards point offer for new Chase Sapphire Preferred accounts going away. Chase’s own website now offers 40,000 bonus points, but for whatever reason, the bonus for affiliates like myself remains at 50,000 points for $3,000 in spend in the first 90 days. It was only a matter of time before this changed and now it has. Like Lucky, I have received word that the current bonus offer available through my links will cease next Tuesday, April 3, 2012.

If you are in the market for a Sapphire Preferred card, it’s time to apply. If you want and need a card, the Sapphire Preferred card is my favorite right now. Double Ultimate Rewards points for travel and dining spend, one point for all other. A 7 percent points rebate annually, no foreign transaction fees, Ultimate Rewards mall (to pad your points account), all for an annual fee of $95 dollars which is waived the first year. At this point, The Sapphire Preferred Card and the American Express Platinum card are the 2 card products that I am most likely to always carry…at least as long as I am traveling and the benefits remain comparable to what they are today.

You can apply for the Chase Sapphire Preferred Card by clicking here, or apply for the American Express Platinum Card here.

Disclosure: If you apply for and receive a credit card through the links in this post, I will receive a referral bonus. If you are aware of a better offer than those provided here, please apply for the offer that is most beneficial to you. I value your readership, no matter what!

Disclaimer: This content is not provided or commissioned by American Express. Opinions expressed here are author’s alone, not those of American Express, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by American Express. This site may be compensated through American Express Affiliate Program.

You may have heard me say that I was flipping Citi AAdvantage cards before I knew card flipping had a name. I’ve earned at least 250,000 miles from playing the card game, and if I’d had sense enough to start learning the miles game before I did, I’m sure that number would be 1 million miles. That said, I’ve had some fun and earned a few miles in my time before Citi shut down the real flipping game. A year or so back I applied for a couple of Citi cards and was turned down because I’d had a Citi AAdvantage card before.

Now that it’s been a couple years since I had an account, AND more importantly, because my AAdvantage balance is downright puny now, I decided to give Citi a try again. I applied for the Citi AAdvantage Visa and was immediately approved. $3,000 dollars in charges in 4 months and then I’ll have 50,000 miles in my account. A little 2-browser action could net you 100,000 miles if you apply for another Citi AAdvantage card, but I admit, I didn’t go for that this time.

In the interest of broadening our points base, I’m working on getting MrsMJonTravel (and the rest of my family that will listen to me) onboard with the Chase Sapphire Preferred Visa. I’ve been carrying the Sapphire card for a few months now, and it really is my go-to card. 2 points per dollar on travel expenses (including things like taxis and SuperShuttle) as well as dining expenses really make this an attractive card. Better yet, there are no foreign transaction fees. I just wish Chase would add a real “Chip and PIN” option for foreign travel!!! With widespread evidence that the great 50,000 bonus Ultimate Rewards points offer may now be going away, it may be the time to make a move on this card if you are interested in acquiring it. While a 40,000 bonus point offer has appeared on the Chase website, you can still earn 50,000 bonus points when you spend $3,000 dollars in the first 90 days if you apply through my affiliate link.

Disclosure: If you apply for and receive the Chase Sapphire Preferred card through my affiliate link, I will receive a commission. I do not receive a commission for the AAdvantage card. Apply for the card you need most. I appreciate your readership no matter what!

It appears that the 50,000 bonus Ultimate Rewards points offer for new cardholders will be departing soon. As you can see on Chase’s website, they are already offering only 40,000 bonus points for new card applications. However, if you apply through my affiliate link, you can still receive 50,000 bonus points if you spend $3,000 dollars in the first 3 months of card membership.

As you know, the Sapphire Preferred card is my go-to card right now. Look for a future post on the virtues of carrying it.

Disclosure: If you apply for and receive a card through the link I provided, I will receive a referral bonus. Please know I appreciate your readership whether you apply through my link or not!

As the last blogger in the new world to talk about this, I won’t bother with hat tips….. there are too many. That said, it appears that the ever popular 50,000 bonus Ultimate Rewards points for the Chase Sapphire Preferred card may be dropping slightly to 40,000 points. Right now, affiliate links like mine are still offering 50,000 points. Who knows how long this will last? If you’ve been sitting on the fence about getting the Chase Sapphire Preferred card, there’s no time like the present to apply for this great card. It is my go-to card right now, and for the foreseeable future.

Apply for the Chase Sapphire Preferred card here.

Disclosure: If you apply for and receive the card through the links provided here, I will receive a referral bonus.

Note that this is a summary of a multi-part email conversation. I’d love to hear your thoughts on my advice.

Reader P writes:

I need a Visa card for my business to supplement my Amex card.  Which one should I get that plays well or compliments my other cards? (Amex Biz Platinum, Dividend Miles MasterCard) I’m not married to getting a “business” credit card, anything will do that will allow me to run my biz expenses separate from personal. I mainly fly US Airways, and stay at Hilton Hotels.

MJ on Travel responds:

Well, there are a couple ways to go. You could get the US Airways Business MasterCard which will be as widely accepted as Visa, I think….and pad your miles hoard. I think you are focusing on Hilton for hotels, and they do have a Visa card in addition to their Amex card….but it is not a “business” card. You might also consider the Chase Ink Bold card with Ultimate Rewards….it is a popular card and Ultimate Rewards is a very useful rewards program…. 1 to 1 points transfers to United, British Airways, Marriott, and many more. You get 5 x bonus points for business spending on things like office supply stores, cable and wireless bills, and your landline phone. Here’s some info on the Ultimate Rewards program. 

I carry a Chase Sapphire Preferred card as my primary card that is the hottest thing going right now…but it is a personal card. You earn 2 x bonus points for travel and dining expenses, and 1 point for all other charges. As I said, it is my primary spend card and if nothing else, it’s cool looking. Both the Ink Bold and the Sapphire card are offering 50,000 ultimate rewards bonus points for meeting certain spending thresholds. Note that those Chase cards will pay me a referral if you apply through the link I sent as will the Hilton card. The US card does not. If you want to pad your US account, go with that. If you want to diversify a little bit….think about the Chase Ink Bold card.

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Disclosure: I will receive a referral bonus if you apply for and receive a card through the links above with the exception of the US Airways card.

Courtesy of The Frequent Miler, I just learned that Chase Ultimate Rewards will be offering 6X (4 bonus points plus the 2 you earn for booking travel with your Chase Sapphire Preferred Card) UR points for booking a cruise with an Ultimate Rewards travel agent. This deal runs April 2 through June 30, and is a very fine reason to book with Ultimate Rewards if you’re going to be booking a cruise anyway.

I’m a big fan of the Chase Sapphire Preferred Card, and this offer makes it even more attractive for a frequent floater like me. Cruiser or not, I love my Sapphire Preferred Card. Ultimate Rewards is a very compelling rewards program especially that it now has 1 to 1 transfers with the new United MileagePlus. The Ultimate Rewards shopping mall is a lucrative way to earn points as well, and I’ve all but stopped using the airline shopping malls because of it. Just one example, drugstore.com purchases earn 3 miles per dollar spent with the MileagePlus shopping portal, but you’ll earn 5 Ultimate Rewards points per dollar spent with the Ultimate Rewards mall.

Disclosure: If you apply for and receive a card through the links provided, I will receive a referral bonus.

This card will be going away very soon. This might be a great opportunity to pad your soon to be combined MileagePlus/OnePass balance. Don’t miss out. You can apply for the card here (Note – Link removed by MJ). I did several months ago, and it’s a good part of the reason Mrs MJ on Travel and I are flying to Rome in First Class this fall. (Disclosure: I will receive a commission if you apply for and are approved through the link provided. Not necessary that you apply here, especially if you have a better bonus offer, but always appreciated.)

Be warned, you apparently can’t take a bonus from both the Continental card and the United card. The United card currently has a better bonus and will likely be better for you. This is very much a YMMV situation, and in fact, I have removed the links to the application page, and as best I can tell, no one applied for the card from here. Many people are eligible for a 60,000 mile MileagePlus Explorer card. You can check for eligibility by logging into your MileagePlus account.