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- š¤ The best "choice" is "choice"
š¤ The best "choice" is "choice"
Let's talk about the most misunderstood travel topic, shall we? Also, we're having a very special event this weekend, and we'll tell you about a "sweet spot" that you probably aren't aware of.
Estimated read time: 4 minutes and 50 seconds
Did you know that there is a remote island in Micronesia nicknamed āthe Island of Colorblind,ā for its high population of people who cannot distinguish color? Roughly 10% of the islandās people have the condition. There are some legends that might explain the oddity, but no one is sure of the real reason. You can read more about it here.
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Good morning and welcome back to Daily Drop. Instead of crunches and squats, letās exercise our brain today with some amazing travel hacks, shall we?
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Hereās how weāll finish off the week with a bang:
šø Letās talk about cash back
š¤ The best āchoiceā is āchoiceā
šš¼ Wanna hang out this weekend?
š¼ļø Meme
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šø Letās talk about cash back
Before you blow past this section after seeing the words ācash back,ā just hold on a sec.
Although many of us have been conditioned to believe that cash back is evil by the travel hacking community, let me try to change your mind.
![](https://media.beehiiv.com/cdn-cgi/image/fit=scale-down,format=auto,onerror=redirect,quality=80/uploads/asset/file/fa78876e-c309-431f-abd6-6b410667e9b8/Cash_Back.png)
Iām going to lay out a few reasons that you may consider opening or switching to a cash back card.
But if you stick around to the end, Iāll tell you about a bank that offers the single best suite of cash back cards on the market.
1. Cash is king, baby
One of the reasons people donāt have cash back cards is that the value you get back is generally far less than the value of rewards you can get from other cards.
For example, if you have a card like the [[ citi-double-cash-card.name ]] that earns 2% cash back vs. a card like the [[ capital-one-venture-x-rewards-credit-card.name ]] that earns 2x points on all purchases, youāre effectively only getting half the value, since those points are worth twice as much as a penny.
But you know what cash can get you that rewards canāt get you?
Literally everythingā¦
Sometimes, people just want to save as much cash as possible and travel on a budget. Maybe you want the choice of using the cash you earn for travel or something completely different.
In that case, cash back is the way to go. Because cash is still king.
![](https://media.beehiiv.com/cdn-cgi/image/fit=scale-down,format=auto,onerror=redirect,quality=80/uploads/asset/file/911c340a-34cf-4bfa-ba85-f88943835c42/giphy.gif)
Iād like to see you try to make it rain with these āpointsā you speak ofā¦
2. Great starter cards
Generally speaking, cash back cards are lower-tier, low-annual-fee (or no annual fee) cards. Because they donāt offer tons of perks, fancy points, or rebates, the banks donāt need to charge you to have them.
So if youāre starting off in the points/credit card game, opening a cashback card could be a solid option.
Some no-annual-fee cards even offer HUGE cash back bonuses. For example, the [[ citi-custom-cash-card.name ]] offers 5% cash back on a category of your choosing. Pretty wild, eh?
3. Buying points
Okay, hereās a fun oneā¦
Remember last week when I told you about an awesome 70% transfer bonus from this bank to IHG?
![](https://media.beehiiv.com/cdn-cgi/image/fit=scale-down,format=auto,onerror=redirect,quality=80/uploads/asset/file/2386445b-ee1f-4141-bb3f-eeae80ed781b/Screenshot_2023-07-04_at_5.15.43_PM.png)
That all sounds greatā¦ but what if I told you that you could get a 200% bonus on the same points by having a cash back card instead?
Let me explainā¦
If you have the [[ chase-sapphire-preferred-card.name ]] (which can currently transfer points to IHG with a 70% bonus), you earn one point per dollar on most purchases.
At this rate, every dollar you spend will earn you 1.7 IHG points.
If you have the [[ citi-custom-cash-card.name ]], however, you earn 2% cash back on every purchase, or two cents per dollar you spend.
IHG generally sells their points for one cent each.
BUTā¦ IHG also frequently sells their points with a 100% bonus (just $0.05 each)ā¦
![](https://media.beehiiv.com/cdn-cgi/image/fit=scale-down,format=auto,onerror=redirect,quality=80/uploads/asset/file/241e4600-258d-44ea-b306-8f87a9d5a1ef/Screenshot_2023-07-13_at_6.35.12_PM.png)
So, if you spend $1 on the [[ citi-custom-cash-card.name ]], you would earn two cents cash back, which could buy you FOUR IHG points per dollar spent.
So basically, youāre getting more than twice the value by opting for cash back and buying points as opposed to a really solid transfer bonus.
If you used the [[ citi-custom-cash-card.name ]] that earns 5% cash back, youād be able to buy TEN points per dollar spentā¦
Itās a good example of how cash back can be deceptively valuable in the points and miles world.
Now in case youāre wonderingā¦
Thereās one bank, [[ citi-aadvantage-executive-world-elite-mastercard.issuer.name ]], out there that has the market locked down when it comes to great cash back cards. So we made a page that lists out the best cards this bank has to offer (both cash back and points-earning cards) for your viewing pleasure.
So be sure to check it out if you want to earn cold, hard cash and diversify your credit card travel-hacking strategy.
![](https://media.beehiiv.com/cdn-cgi/image/fit=scale-down,format=auto,onerror=redirect,quality=80/uploads/asset/file/a58fa6ae-6ddb-44ba-bd9f-8ecb66be805a/hr-6-16.png)
š¤ The best āchoiceā is āchoiceā
If you hadnāt picked up what Iām throwing down at this pointā¦ Iām on a big kick with [[ citi-aadvantage-executive-world-elite-mastercard.issuer.name ]]ās cards in todayās newsletter.
And rightly so, because theyāre dope š¤
I wanted to highlight yet another perk of using the [[ citi-strata-premier-card.name ]], and in particular, its hotel transfer partner, Choice Privileges.
And that is because you can transfer the [[ citi-strata-premier-card.name ]]ās points at a 1:2 ratio to thousands of Choice Privileges properties around the world.
![](https://media.beehiiv.com/cdn-cgi/image/fit=scale-down,format=auto,onerror=redirect,quality=80/uploads/asset/file/d53ed241-c32f-4624-a1d1-24ea5b395609/Screenshot_2023-07-12_at_12.20.38_AM.png)
In fact, itās the best point currency to use if youāre going to book within this hotelās portfolio because of this 1:2 ratio.
Now, not all points are valued equally, but stillā¦ transferring, say, 5,000 points and having them automagically turn into 10,000 feels pretty good.
Using this particular transfer partner at this point transfer ratio is also an excellent opportunity to head to Scandinavia, for example, which is known for being one of the worldās most expensive places to travel.
But I love it there. I guess I canāt help but gravitate toward other tall, blonde people who are walking around eating cardamom buns. Itās in my blood.
For instance, you could book this nice hotel in the painfully expensive city of Stockholm for just 10,000 points a night š
![](https://media.beehiiv.com/cdn-cgi/image/fit=scale-down,format=auto,onerror=redirect,quality=80/uploads/asset/file/2ac6219f-101b-457e-9cc5-a5bab2329a31/Screenshot_2023-07-12_at_12.12.13_AM.png)
As a reminder, thatās just 5,000 points transferred from the [[ citi-strata-premier-card.casual-card-name ]] for a hotel that would cost closer to $200 a night if you were paying cash.
![](https://media.beehiiv.com/cdn-cgi/image/fit=scale-down,format=auto,onerror=redirect,quality=80/uploads/asset/file/31bef5f7-69a7-4c7d-bba9-57daafd20811/Screenshot_2023-07-12_at_12.52.06_AM.png)
2,195 SEK = 205.97 USD
BUT WAIT. It gets even better because right now, cardholders can earn 10 points per dollar spent on hotels and car rentals booked through this bankās online travel portal (through June 30, 2024).
Thatās, like, a lot of points. And for almost an entire yearā¦ all from a card that costs just $95 annually š¤
So if you play your cards right, you could earn a fat stack of points if youāre already planning to book accommodations and decide to do so through their travel portal.
This accelerated earning rate through next June could then allow you to transfer a chunk of future points to a Choice Privileges propertyā¦ and double them on the spot (thanks to that sweet 1:2 ratio, remember?)
I dunno about you, but these perks are looking pretty tasty. Or maybe thatās just the cardamom bun next to my laptopā¦ š
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šš¼ Wanna hang out this weekend?
Hey, what are you doing this weekend? No, Iām not going to invite you over for a craft beer (althoughā¦ Iām totally down).
I actually have something arguably cooler than thatā¦
Do you want to (virtually) hang with Kara and Nate this weekend?
Yes, I mean the Kara and Nate!
Andā¦ *cue confetti*
Theyāre going live on Saturday at 4:00 p.m. EST in the Daily Drop Lounge for a Q&A session.
Whether itās a question about travel hacking or what their favorite brand of travel deodorant is, theyāre hanging out for an hour and answering as many as they can get through š
Join the Lounge here, get your questions ready, and refresh your feed at 4:00 p.m. to join live!
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š¼ļø Meme
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Yepā¦ that one pretty much sums it upā¦
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Thatās gonna do it for today, folks! Before you go, I have a quick question for you:
Do you prefer cash back or rewards?Please explain. |
Have a GREAT weekend, and Iāll see you first thing on Monday.
Love u ā¤ļø