Southwest credit card worth it?

[FairestOfThemAll37]

Have some air travel planned in the coming months (more than usual as I stick to cars and boats for vacation lol).

I'll be going either one flight on southwest and two on JetBlue or vice versa. I'm thinking about getting one of their rewards cards as I'd get one trip free from the sign up bonus.

Is this worth it? How much does it ding your credit to open and card and then close after a year or so (before the annual fee).

How often do either of these do sign-up bonuses? One trip is in July(definitely sw flight) so probably can't wait too long.

I would easily hit the $1000 needed for bonus points in the first month. Thoughts? I'm usually not so concerned with saving but I have 3 additional trips planned this year.

Thanks!!

 

[DonnaL]

It's a little late to have points in place to book a flight for July......it would be May before you receive the card, the first month takes you to June and the points wouldn't be deposited until late June/early July (whenever your statement is generated)....so I guess it all depends on WHEN your trip in July is and if you're willing to wait until a week or two before to book your air travel.

 

[jimandami]

What she said. In my experience, it's worth it but you don't get the points until a few days after your billing cycle ends, which might be too close to your travel date.

 

[FairestOfThemAll37]

I figured that even though trip is late July, the bonus (whichever card) would be used on the second later trip.

I figured for the first at least I'd be getting some extra cc points for purchasing with the card.

 

[marthachick]

Have some air travel planned in the coming months (more than usual as I stick to cars and boats for vacation lol). I'll be going either one flight on southwest and two on JetBlue or vice versa. I'm thinking about getting one of their rewards cards as I'd get one trip free from the sign up bonus. Is this worth it? How much does it ding your credit to open and card and then close after a year or so (before the annual fee). How often do either of these do sign-up bonuses? One trip is in July(definitely sw flight) so probably can't wait too long. I would easily hit the $1000 needed for bonus points in the first month. Thoughts? I'm usually not so concerned with saving but I have 3 additional trips planned this year. Thanks!!

Also, the yearly fee is charged on the first statement. So keep that in mind.

Sent from my iPhone using DISBoards

 

[ruadisneyfan2]

We love our SW credit card. I put everything on it except our mortgage and dh's truck payment. We earn enough points for a one way to MCO approx. every other month. I can't remember the last time we had to buy flights for all 4 of us. I find it's well worth the annual fee though it was only $59 when I signed up so I'm locked into that.

 

[DonnaL]

Totally agree w/ruadisneyfan2.....we also love our SWA card and use it for everything we can....then just pay one bill every month. We also earn enough about every other month for a one way tix.......haven't paid full airfare (sometimes we may need to pay for one or two one-ways...depending how many are traveling) for about 5 years now! AND, we usually travel at least twice a year!

 

[TosaTrio]

Agree with others. We put all expenses on the card and pay in full every month. We had multiple free tickets last year. Best card we own as long as you do not carry a balance.

 

[DisMomme]

Just an FYI, on the site they are only giving 25000 points. DH called 2 days ago to see if they would give us the 50000 and they said no so he signed up for a different card. Today I open my e-mail and it is an offer from SW for 50000. Not sure if it is coincidence or not but it could be worth a try. (we did already have a rewards account without a CC attached which may be another reason for the offer)

 

[jpeppers]

I have an offer available through September 30th that gives the applicant 50,000 miles if they spend $2,000 in the first 3 months and also gives me 5,000 miles (does have the $99 annual fee). I would be more than happy to send the coupon to anyone that might be interested. I think I have had my Southwest card for a couple of years and still haven't paid for a flight, taking my second trip to Orlando this year with my daughter on the points plus I've been to Vegas and Phoenix solo........the points deal is so worth it!

 

[dakotix]

I just signed up for that rewards card last night. They were offering 50,000 bonus points if I spend $2000 in the first three months. Great! So now how do I responsibly spend two grand in the next three months? lol. Luckily we already have a trip planned for Disney with both sets of parents. We already pretty much have paid off our balance but my mom and my partner's parents have not. I am responsible for all the bookings and payments for them so I think I may just use my card to pay for their trips and they can just pay me back. That should get me to the level where I receive the bonus points. That'll save us $500 because now we don't have to pay for the flights!

 

[FairestOfThemAll37]

I would love that coupon! I usually have around $1,500-2,000/month on my card so could easily have the bonus miles to use for my second trip in sep.!

Does anybody here have a JetBlue card? Does anybody know if they ever do a bonus point sign-up?

I'm so torn by which one would benefit me most in the end!

 

[hsmamato2]

First,not sure you're allowed to post referrals like that on the boards here pp....
Second, it is a great card to get/have if you intend to fly a lot in the US...
Third,yes,it is worth keeping,and paying the annual fee if you intend to keep on traveling
Fourth, If you have good credit,and pay your bills without fees,all the above is true. If you carry a balance, not so much.
Fifth,there are 2 cards, one charges 69,one charges 99. find an offer with 50k miles,if it works for your life.
Sixth, applying for a card isn't going to harm your credit, unless you are planning to apply for a new mortgage or something similiar in the next few months....
Seventh, if spending 2000 in 3 months is a stretch for you,be careful about applying.You only get the points if you spend it. If it's difficult, then this may not work well for you.
Eighth- ***If you have/love/ the card, research the *companion pass*
It takes SWA to the next level,and makes it the BEST. Info is on their SWA site. To get it, you need to get 110,000 points into your Rapid rewards acct. within one year.Google for lots of thoughts and ways to get/use this.
Ninth, Rapid Rewards is the SWA program to store/use points. The SWA cc is separate, in which you accumulate those points,with that big bonus,and using the cc after that.
Tenth, I am biased, I LOVE the SWA program of benefits! this is one of the easiest to get/use programs out there. Just do your research....there's a LOT of it out there