I love credit cards so much! v2.0 (see first page for add'l details)

[Alexle2007]

Just posted an AmEx SW airline credit DP on Dischurners, in case you have $ you need to use Or lose by the end of the year.

 

[Oscar Madison]

Thank you so much for all of this great info. I'm bookmarking and will re-read to try and process it all I can do Disney with eyes closed but Universal is so confusing to me.

I bookmarked as well!

 

[gottalovepluto]

-

 

[Oscar Madison]

It feels like about once a month they do the next 4-5 weeks worth of flights. So maybe we’ll see something near the end of January?

I know that I track this closely and so do others.

...and we appreciate it.

 

[gottalovepluto]

--

 

[CyndiLouWho]

Found DD in the laundry room around midnight last night... She just told me "I'm tired, goodnight" and went back to her room...

We have to keep the basement door closed because DS has gotten up and tried to open doors looking for the bathroom (which is next to his room) He is never fully awake and never remembers any of it. Last night was an “I can’t go to sleep” night and he kept coming in our room. I think he’ll be 27 before I get to sleep thru the night.

 

[bernina]

I bookmarked as well!

When are you headed to Universal?

 

[CyndiLouWho]

Yes, AMC between 4-5:30p.

Around here, usually weekends before noon. There are 2 theaters nearby and one or both usually have the cheap tickets

 

[DaveL]

We have to keep the basement door closed because DS has gotten up and tried to open doors looking for the bathroom (which is next to his room) He is never fully awake and never remembers any of it. Last night was an “I can’t go to sleep” night and he kept coming in our room. I think he’ll be 27 before I get to sleep thru the night.

Hah! DD exactly. She never remembers any of it, random things. Least the laundry in on the upper level but no where near the bathroom. I joked with DW a year ago that I need to setup a tripwire before the stairs so I know if she attempts to go down stairs, just worried about her falling on the stairs being half asleep.

 

[Judique]

So this morning the grands adventure at the St Regis continues. There is a mailbox for Santa and the girls were able to write a letter and deposit it. But, youngest was okay with putting it in but then wanted it back.

When they all checked in, they had to wait for the rooms. Meanwhile champagne was offered in the lobby and they were there for a champagne bottle sabering.

Also, girls were each given a panda bear. Nice touch. I remember when we took littles to Westin, they used to get a kids club bag of goodies.

And daughter said 'good luck at Disney'. Apparently they were a little stressful at breakfast in the dining room. I reminded her I'm going to a character meal.


I want my letter back. Edit this is the one I bought a shirt for that says 'Santa, I can explain.'

 

[Alexle2007]

Has anyone tried the FLL PP restaurant option? We’ll have some time to kill before our flight to MCO on Tues. Thought a $56 late lunch might be nice. There also seems to be a PP lounge at Punta Cana airport. So might try that also.

 

[Haley R]

Oh me too!!!! I miss having a baby and all the fun that came with that but then I realize how easy life is now with my youngest being 8 and that is nice too. I'm excited for @Haley R and all the other expectant mommas here!

We find out the gender in 6 days!!!

 

[Oscar Madison]

When are you headed to Universal?

Spring Break...3/28

 

[NewbieMom]

Anyway, I'll have a press pot of coffee. The girls may want the premium drink if they see other kids with it. They will get it. YOLO, and I am the best Gammy! That said, I will be hurrying them past any plush available for sale at Riviera....

OMG, YOU ARE! Neither my parents nor DH's would even babysit the kids overnight much less take them to WDW solo. It's so amazing of you to plan all these ADRs too. I'm sure they'll have such a wonderful time and memories of their trips with you!

 

[Ngwira]

Has anyone seen any news on the 2020 Centurion lounges that will be opening? I’m curious about JFK... I know they just opened up two new PP lounges there. And I can still go to Bobby Van’s steakhouse using my CSR but still.

 

[trenty]

To the Lurkers and Newbies Among Us: We will soon be moving to our new thread (v3.0) for 2020! If you haven't had the courage to speak up and introduce yourself please do so. This game is very cyclical for some people and thus as we lose old friends, we always look to bring in new friends. You probably sense some nature of community in here, and that's for good reason. By not only sharing our churning activities (and wishes and dreams) but also personal experiences and stories, we have created a true community of friends. You too can be a part of that, it just starts with saying hello and opening up to us a bit.

Not a newbie; not just a lurker; I do post occasionally. I am not a churner but follow this thread daily. I have a few credit cards that I use to maximize points by putting close to 100% of my organic spend on. I earn and burn slowly....have enough points for my family's travel needs with very little OOP expense.

I follow this thread to keep up to date with the other benefits of using the cards I have. For example using just .01 MR, UR or Discover cash back to get 20% off amazon purchases - or using MPX to get some additional United points from everyday shopping.

A thank you to everyone here for keeping this a friendly place to discuss CCs and other related and non-related topics. Happy Holidays to all of you!

ETA: I think I also found out about Happy Gift Cards here. Gave a few to my co-workers this holiday season and they were received very well. None had ever heard of them and loved that they could be used at various places. I find them a bit more personal than a Visa GC.

ETA2: I aslo learned (from @Judique) how to pay my DVC dues with $ earned from reward sites. I think I paid less than $100 OOP last year on my dues with this trick. So a BIG thank you there!

 

[Ngwira]

Has anyone tried the FLL PP restaurant option? We’ll have some time to kill before our flight to MCO on Tues. Thought a $56 late lunch might be nice. There also seems to be a PP lounge at Punta Cana airport. So might try that also.

I just asked a lounge question lol..

 

[Judique]

OMG, YOU ARE! Neither my parents nor DH's would even babysit the kids overnight much less take them to WDW solo. It's so amazing of you to plan all these ADRs too. I'm sure they'll have such a wonderful time and memories of their trips with you!

Thank you! My daughter appreciates this also.

I had a wonderful grandmother until my early teens when she passed on. I can still remember going to their house and visiting, and always wanted to/ got to stay for a week or so in summer when school was out. It was a big farmhouse, with all the animals, etc, horses to ride, chickens to chase, gardens to raid for sweet peas and strawberries. We didn't live that far away, but all my cousins would come on weekends also, so it was heavenly from a kids point of view.

Even when my grandma passed, my aunt and uncle lived there and were just as hospitable to us all. There were 300 acres of fields and forest to roam plus barns and outbuildings - old timey type of place. The property is still in our family today with one of my cousins and his family living there and family has put on a few reunions there.

 

[Lain]

Congrats! I jumped on the no fee link awhile back (the road back under 5/24 is hard!). I know you go to Oahu a lot. Have you stayed at the Hilton Hawaiian Village Waikiki Beach Resort? Thinking about using our FN cert there. Also if occupancy says max 4, would it be an issue if we have 5 (2 adults, 3 kids)? All kids under 5? They're too young to split up to a 2nd room...

Hey NewbieMom, our chatter this morning reminded me that I didn't get around to replying to your question. (I've been quite busy IRL so haven't been able to keep up on the DIS or reddit.)

I've never stayed at the Hilton Hawaiian Village, but I've visited the property many times and my BIL's parents have a timeshare so their entire family spends a few days every summer there with all the kids and grandkids.

Firstly, I don't think it should be a problem accommodating a family of 5, with 3 young kids. I've found most Waikiki hotels are very happy to accommodate "keiki." Just call the resort's reservations desk to run it by them before booking and just book a room for 2 adults/2 kids if the room occupancy is 4, then notify the reservations desk about the additional child prior to arrival. As a Diamond member, they may even upgrade you to a larger room or suite at check in. Typically if you request rollaway beds or a crib, those incur an extra fee.

The Hilton Hawaiian Village is kind of at the entry to Waikiki, situated at some wide and busy crossroads. It's like a 5 minutes drive to the Ala Moana Shopping Center, which has a lot of high end shops, a Disney Store with some Hawaii exclusives, and a LOT of food court/quick service dining options and a Foodland supermarket that'll probably be cheaper than dining onsite. Waikiki's main drag of Kalakaua Avenue is about a 5-10 minute walk away. The Hilton Hawaiian Village property is massive, and once you're onsite you don't really feel the hustle and bustle outside. The property is lush, with koi ponds, a lagoon, several pools, and is situated on its own stretch of beach. My sister and BIL's kids love all the pools, and I think your kids would enjoy it too. I think there's a kids club for older kids, but your kids may be too young for that. There are also fireworks every Friday night over the beach at the Hilton Hawaiian Village.

I don't think it's a bad way to use a Free Weekend Night Certificate! Just keep in mind that standard rooms don't cost that much in cash during the off seasons -- typically under $300/night, but that $50/night resort fee (ouch) on cash bookings. I know some people like to use their free night at some obscenely expensive hotel, but having young kids makes that a little more challenging. On points, standard rooms go for 60k Hilton points/night with no resort fees, but again as a Diamond member you can hope for a nice upgrade. Booking with Hilton points also gets you a 5th night free. Also keep in mind the Hilton Hawaiian Village is included on Hilton's list of resorts where you can use the Aspire's $250 resort credit. That should help with things like parking and onsite dining.

 

[havaneselover]

Having revenue flights does not help. But fwiw those flights are safe in that revenue flights are not cancelled when an account is shut down.

I misread the Reddit post. But who knows what will go into decisions on who to unlock ultimately (I am not locked).