Question
Interesting new option http://www.penfed.org/loans/creditcards/platinumrewards.html
Their Visa Platinum Travel Rewards program awards 2 cents worth of airline ticket for each dollar charged, according to a grid that isn't online yet. You can get info by phone at 877-700-9150, 8am-12am EST 7 days a week. (That number will ask you for a membership number, but you can bypass it.) They currently don't have any grid online, but I got the highlights via phone. It works similar to Capital One's Miles prgoram: rather than awarding FF miles, you earn credit towards any airline flight originating in the 50 states.
18,000 A round-trip coach ticket to anywhere within a "zone"—a value of up to $360.
25,000 A round-trip coach ticket to anywhere within the contiguous U.S.—a value of up to $500.
35,000 A round-trip coach ticket to anywhere in Mexico/Carribean—a value of up to $700.
40,000 A round-trip coach ticket to anywhere in Hawaii/Alaska—a value of up to $800.
50,000 A round-trip coach ticket to anywhere in Europe—a value of up to $1,000.
If the ticket costs more than the stated maximum, the cardholder may use their card to make up the difference. 21-day advance purchase and Sat night stay required. No blackout dates.
There is a $50 annual fee, but it's waved if you charge $25K or more a year. 1,000 bonus miles for signing up. While the sight says there's a backlog keeping processing up to 30 days, the operator indicated that wasn't an issue at the moment.
Very good phone payment mechanisms. You can use ACH to pay off an unlimited amount.
While not as good as 2% cash, this amounts to _somewhat_close to the same thing for travellers who would use the miles.
Answer
Membership in the Pentagon Federal Credit Union is limited to Army and Air Force officers, DoD professionals, and some other groups.
Just for kicks, I looked up the corresponding TravelValue® Visa card at the Navy Federal Credit Union (also limited membership, but at least I'm a member there). Here's their "package":
15,000: One ticket, any class, any airline up to $300, or $150 cash deposit to account
20,000: One ticket any class, any airline up to $500, or $200 cash deposit to account
25,000: Marriott Gold North American Weekend Award
35,000: Ritz-Carlton Royal Prestige Club Award
40,000: One ticket, any class, any airline up to $1,000 or $400 cash deposit to account
50,000: Marriott European/Middle Eastern Select Award
60,000: One ticket, any class, any airline up to $1,500 or $600 cash deposit to account.
$49 fee, no word about waivers or sign-up bonus. Skimpy credit limits - only up to $15K.
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The NFCU card looks interesting because it (1) allows redemption at the 15,000 point level, and (2) doesn't have destination restrictions.
Do you know if you can pay extra to get an award? For example, if I find an ORD-CDG ticket that costs $310 R/T with all the taxes, can I pay 15,000 points + $10 to get the ticket?
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pdhenry, you can join PFCU as long as you join an organization that supports the military (details on the web site.)
I have no connection to the military, and joining was a piece of cake.
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When do these miles expire after the first use?
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Originally posted by DaveH:
pdhenry, you can join PFCU as long as you join an organization that supports the military (details on the web site.)
I have no connection to the military, and joining was a piece of cake.
And probably once you're a member of the PFCU, they don't care whether you continue to belong to the organization...
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Or in my case, as a long-time PFCU member, if the reason you were able to join (as a dependent) has been dead for 18 years. Interesting--I should call and see if my trusty PFCU Visa can have this added on. The other nice benefit is that the PFCU Visa has no surcharge on currency conversions.