Author Topic: Best card overall for Israel travel only.  (Read 5529 times)

Offline Judahhakohain

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Best card overall for Israel travel only.
« on: February 13, 2017, 03:47:49 AM »
Hi.  Two kids just made Aliyah, so all our travel will be from our home (LA) to EY.  I refied recently and now have a 845 FICO (a true nes).  Which company and specific card would be the best to rack up miles easily?  Don't really care which airline.  Thanks for this awesome service! ;D

Offline Emkay

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Re: Best card overall for Israel travel only.
« Reply #1 on: February 13, 2017, 03:50:35 AM »


Hi.  Two kids just made Aliyah, so all our travel will be from our home (LA) to EY.  I refied recently and now have a 845 FICO (a true nes).  Which company and specific card would be the best to rack up miles easily?  Don't really care which airline.  Thanks for this awesome service! ;D

Can I assume economy? Prob Amex  BP.

Offline mmgfarb

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Re: Best card overall for Israel travel only.
« Reply #2 on: February 13, 2017, 03:52:44 AM »
That is a multi faceted and complicated question with many different factors going into the answer. How many cards have you opened in the past two years? How much do you spend in various different categories (gas, grocery etc.) each year? Do you only want one card from one issuing bank or are you willing to have more than one card and have cards from different banks?
"JS [is] a fetid cesspool of unvarnished linguistic manure, with lots of useless drivel and post-padding." -Moishebatchy

Offline mmgfarb

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Re: Best card overall for Israel travel only.
« Reply #3 on: February 13, 2017, 03:53:29 AM »

Can I assume economy? Prob Amex  BP.
The cheapest economy fares are not on American carriers.
"JS [is] a fetid cesspool of unvarnished linguistic manure, with lots of useless drivel and post-padding." -Moishebatchy

Offline Emkay

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Re: Best card overall for Israel travel only.
« Reply #4 on: February 13, 2017, 03:57:18 AM »
The cheapest economy fares are not on American carriers.
And the cheapest carriers don't fly to LAX.

Offline mmgfarb

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Re: Best card overall for Israel travel only.
« Reply #5 on: February 13, 2017, 04:05:54 AM »
And the cheapest carriers don't fly to LAX.
TK flies LAX-IST-TLV, depending on how the prices work out, it may sometimes make more sense to book TK with CSR at 1.5 than UA or DL with BP at 2.
"JS [is] a fetid cesspool of unvarnished linguistic manure, with lots of useless drivel and post-padding." -Moishebatchy

Offline David Smith

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Re: Best card overall for Israel travel only.
« Reply #6 on: February 13, 2017, 06:38:57 AM »
UA availability out of SFO isn't awful.
Who do you think you are fooling? You think you are going to pull a quick one on your Creator? Good luck with that.
JTZ

Offline Mr. CC

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Re: Best card overall for Israel travel only.
« Reply #7 on: February 13, 2017, 07:53:10 AM »
Hi.  Two kids just made Aliyah, so all our travel will be from our home (LA) to EY.  I refied recently and now have a 845 FICO (a true nes).  Which company and specific card would be the best to rack up miles easily?  Don't really care which airline.  Thanks for this awesome service! ;D
not Citi, there always checking for fraud

Offline coralsnake

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Re: Best card overall for Israel travel only.
« Reply #8 on: February 13, 2017, 09:20:57 AM »
not Citi, there always checking for fraud
???
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Offline Judahhakohain

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Re: Best card overall for Israel travel only.
« Reply #9 on: February 13, 2017, 09:12:13 PM »
Yes, economy.  So, am I hearing that it's just not worth it to go with domestic flights even with miles?

"How many cards have you opened in the past two years? How much do you spend in various different categories (gas, grocery etc.) each year? Do you only want one card from one issuing bank or are you willing to have more than one card and have cards from different banks?"

Zero cards opened.  Usually use debit for everything.  I'd prefer to have one card though that is not a priority.

Is TK a safe option?  They are cheap, but...

"not Citi, there always checking for fraud"  I don't understand.





Offline David Smith

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Re: Best card overall for Israel travel only.
« Reply #10 on: February 13, 2017, 11:18:33 PM »
Turkish is safe.

A great option would be the Chase Sapphire Reserve. If you go into a Chase branch before March 12, you should get an offer for 100,000 bonus points after meeting the spending requirements. This is equal to $1,500 worth of airfare.

In general, it's not a good idea to use debit for everything, as you're not afforded the consumer protections you get from a decent credit card.
Who do you think you are fooling? You think you are going to pull a quick one on your Creator? Good luck with that.
JTZ

Offline Judahhakohain

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Re: Best card overall for Israel travel only.
« Reply #11 on: February 14, 2017, 02:41:11 AM »
Chase Sapphire Reserve?  Isn't the fee 450 per year???

Offline shulem92

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Re: Best card overall for Israel travel only.
« Reply #12 on: February 14, 2017, 02:59:06 AM »
Chase Sapphire Reserve?  Isn't the fee 450 per year???
Yes but with $300 cash back in travel credits per calendar year, you will have covered that fee in no time. Essentially making the card free for the first 2 years

Offline Abebee

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Re: Best card overall for Israel travel only.
« Reply #13 on: February 14, 2017, 09:30:49 AM »
Yes but with $300 cash back in travel credits per calendar year, you will have covered that fee in no time. Essentially making the card free for the first 2 years
And if you have any other chase cards.. Its will makes your points worth .5 more when used towards travel.

Offline emjee

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Re: Best card overall for Israel travel only.
« Reply #14 on: February 14, 2017, 04:28:11 PM »
1)Yes, economy.  So, am I hearing that it's just not worth it to go with domestic flights even with miles?

2)(mmfarb)"How many cards have you opened in the past two years? How much do you spend in various different categories (gas, grocery etc.) each year? Do you only want one card from one issuing bank or are you willing to have more than one card and have cards from different banks?"

(juda)Zero cards opened.  Usually use debit for everything.  I'd prefer to have one card though that is not a priority.

3)Is TK a safe option?  They are cheap, but...

4)"not Citi, there always checking for fraud"  I don't understand.
1) yes but no. it always depends
2) I'm sorry to hear about your debit card habits.  however given that you have shared that info it gives a little bit more if a picture . based on that I would just say that based on this specific correspondence between you and mmfarb that you should be careful. this game isn't for everybody. ddf-like conduct can really hurt you if it's not your "thing".
3) depends if you ask me or the Mrs.
4) don't even try.
5) welcome to ddf

Offline mmgfarb

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Re: Best card overall for Israel travel only.
« Reply #15 on: February 14, 2017, 04:55:52 PM »
1) yes but no. it always depends
2) I'm sorry to hear about your debit card habits.  however given that you have shared that info it gives a little bit more if a picture . based on that I would just say that based on this specific correspondence between you and mmfarb that you should be careful. this game isn't for everybody. ddf-like conduct can really hurt you if it's not your "thing".
3) depends if you ask me or the Mrs.
4) don't even try.
5) welcome to ddf
I agree with all of this. CSR probably makes the most sense in this situation then. $150/ year effective AF and 1.5 CPP redemption for all travel which is pretty straightforward to book. If the OP decides to get more involved, there are more options but CSR is the best for the least amount of effort and knowledge IMO.
"JS [is] a fetid cesspool of unvarnished linguistic manure, with lots of useless drivel and post-padding." -Moishebatchy

Offline eli232

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Re: Best card overall for Israel travel only.
« Reply #16 on: February 14, 2017, 06:22:07 PM »
TK flies LAX-IST-TLV, depending on how the prices work out, it may sometimes make more sense to book TK with CSR at 1.5 than UA or DL with BP at 2.
I dont understand. why cant you book TK with BP at 2?

Offline mmgfarb

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Re: Best card overall for Israel travel only.
« Reply #17 on: February 14, 2017, 06:26:24 PM »
I dont understand. why cant you book TK with BP at 2?
Only J/F
"JS [is] a fetid cesspool of unvarnished linguistic manure, with lots of useless drivel and post-padding." -Moishebatchy

Offline eli232

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Re: Best card overall for Israel travel only.
« Reply #18 on: February 14, 2017, 06:26:58 PM »

Offline Judahhakohain

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Re: Best card overall for Israel travel only.
« Reply #19 on: February 21, 2017, 04:33:48 PM »
Thanks to all for the advice.  newby question?  How many miles does it typically take for a RT to Israel from LA?