Club Carlson 6/1/15 Devaluation - Is this the end?

kodiak jack

Level 2 Member
As long as the Blu in Prague stays at 44/66 I'll keep the card. A Club room for $125 in MS costs is a total steal. It was much better with the last night free, but I'll still take that over paying $300+ cash for the same room.
Just a thought for you G1ant; some folks these days are opting for maximizing cash with their MS and using that to pay for rooms with cash. Since the devaluation, it seems that might be an option here too. Going from memory at your post above, that club room might require $13,200 in spend, which would generate $290 in cash on a 2.2% card (or even better at $346.50 if you have the BOA Travel Rewards card and a platinum relationship with BOA.)

So you might stay a bit more flexible by cranking up the MS and earning cash back instead of locking it into the devalued Carlson program.
 

G1ant

Level 2 Member
I take your point. But how do you achieve a NET gain of 2.2% ??
Surely there is a cost involved in VGC and MO ??
 

kodiak jack

Level 2 Member
Think of it in a slightly different way G1ant. Your input into the process is the time, gas, fees (~$125) you put into MS on $13,200. That's the same no matter what card you use. But when you're done, you'll have either

1. 66,000 points to spend on a CC hotel, perhaps a club room in Prague
OR
2. $346.50 (if you use the 2.625% b of a card)


The advantage of the cash is flexibility, and hopefully it will pay for the club room (and maybe a cafe lunch the next day too), plus you get the opportunity to earn some Carlson points in addition if you pay for a stay.


It's a personal choice, and i'm leaning more toward option 2 these days. I think framing it as the above is a good way to help make the economic choice that is most beneficial to your situation.


Happy spending!

KJ
 

knick1959

Level 2 Member
yes, bank of america travel rewards. i believe a combination of debit/credit balances of 100k at BofA/Merrill Lynch gets you there.
That's a non-starter for me. Could I? Perhaps, but not at the expense of my current, happy financial setup.

So, what's the next highest cash-back possibility? Let's discount the MilesIt card x 2 .... harder to MS and temporary, but I'm using it where I can.

I'm thinking Arrival+ at 2.05. By my calculations, I'm getting 2 cents per dollar with Club Carlson (sometimes more, depending on the property). And the arrival plus card has its restrictions and costs. I jettisoned the card because (with the MilesIt card in hand) I could not warrant using it.

There are other 2% cards. Many. But now you're breaking even (ok, I am) and I'd rather have miles and points over the cashback, as long as I'm even ... or better.

It's very close for me. I almost gave up on CC, but with the annual bonus it still fits well in my plan. It may not forever, but it does right now.
 

G1ant

Level 2 Member
The advantage of the cash is flexibility, and hopefully it will pay for the club room (and maybe a cafe lunch the next day too), plus you get the opportunity to earn some Carlson points in addition if you pay for a stay.

It's a personal choice, and i'm leaning more toward option 2 these days. I think framing it as the above is a good way to help make the economic choice that is most beneficial to your situation.


Happy spending!

KJ
I take your point. I do both. But Carlson points still work out cheaper. $118 cost for a $300 room.
Using my Citi 1+1 card I would get $146 cash back after gift cards and MO cost, so would have to add $144 in cash to buy the room.
Probably the clincher for me is that my Carlson CL is $20k but my 1+1 limit is only $5k. Much easier to spend the required $13k spend on the Carlson.

All my other travel costs above $100 (that new minimum redemption is really hurting) I put on Arrival+

I suppose the bottom line is that I don't have much in the line of cashback cards.
 
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