Annual FeeSpiritwalker2222 wrote: ↑ What does AF stand for?
Meridian + Fido?travelgeek wrote: ↑ I have an AF card in order to get the travel insurances, and a no AF card for purchases in foreign currency.
I never would pay AF unless I am getting big benefit out of it. For example TD CVI was waived with AI account. HSBC Premier was given back with TEC. SPG is a very niche card. It is a perceived value and locks you into Starwood properties (ie no air bnb).
I used to feel the exact same way until I did the math. By paying a $100 annual fee I could be getting an additional $400/year in cash back. I kicked myself for not doing the math earlier.
to get more money
plus more benefits
The other thing to keep in mind for SPG points is that they are transferable to many airline partners (with most airlines having a transfer ratio of 20k SPG = 25k miles). A lot of folks like having that flexibility to use their points, and attribute a certain amount of value to the ability to convert. Another way to look at it is that it is a good way to buy hard-to-come-by points (such as Lufthansa) if you need them.mech9t5 wrote: ↑ SPG is a very niche card. It is a perceived value and locks you into Starwood properties (ie no air bnb).
Paying an extra $100 in AF is not really worth it.
People will tell you that you will get 3-4% return but those are not easily found and you will really have to make your travel plans around getting that "value". Not only that, their perceived return of 3-4% doesn't take into account discounts you might get on sites like Hotwire or loyalty credits on sites like Orbitz.
As an example, I went to Abbotsford last month. There were hotels.com gift cards for 15% off. On top of that there was a 10% off coupon. I ended up paying $80 a night after tax.
SPG doesn't even have a property in Abbotsford.
I also just came back from Vancouver. Scored a deal at the Pacific Rim for $190 after tax. The equivalent SPG property would have been at least 12000 pts which would be a $12k spend. That's a 1.6% return.
To me SPG points arent that useful or worthwhile and you have to pay $120 for the card. I have had about 18k SPG points for almost a year and have done 6 trips. None of the trips gave me at least 2% value or didn't have a property that was convenient. So I couldn't use the points.
Points that you have to sit on is not useful.
You still have cards with AF, but qualify for AF waivers. Adding this to the poll would just overcomplicate it, hence the ability to discuss in thread.
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