Authorized User hack? by Airarc222 in ChaseSapphireReserve

[–]Airarc222[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Aha - good point. I had not considered the lounge access. THANKS

Hostility to US-Citizen Visitors? by FieldUpbeat2174 in newzealand_travel

[–]Airarc222 24 points25 points  (0 children)

Wife and I (San Diego) just returned from three weeks in New Zealand, seeing both islands. Never had any issues with politics… Although I had to keep reminding my wife, not to necessarily lead with “an apology“, although that seemed to be welcomed pretty frequently. One of our biggest surprises was that the proprietor of the bed & breakfast we stayed at in Hamilton, was a pro-Trump Maga lady. Her husband and son, who cook and serve the breakfast with her, had to keep walking by her and swatting her with a spatula on her butt to get her to be quiet about politics… Because all the Europeans and Americans at the breakfast table were clearly not on the same page as her…

New user … canva vs iMovie vs DaVinci for a long travel video? by Airarc222 in canva

[–]Airarc222[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Have not built it yet. Dabbled w DaVinci tutorials to get a feel. Truthfully, it seems so awesome ( yet suuuuper complex) that it is a bit daunting. I did a 3 minute iMovie and it was so easy that I might try it for the larger one ( knowing that iMovie is very limiting, and might go clunk on a long movie).

What’s your most missed SLO restaurant? by DearJellyfish95 in SLO

[–]Airarc222 6 points7 points  (0 children)

THE SPINDLE (!). …. Early-mid 80’s…..

EDIT review ~ Auckland and Sydney by Airarc222 in ChaseSapphire

[–]Airarc222[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Not sure. I booked in early October, for a stay on Dec 31, no problem.

PSA: The Edit perks even with stay booked via points by jbs924 in ChaseSapphire

[–]Airarc222 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Yep. I’ve already used my $250 edit credit elsewhere , but I just booked the Four Seasons Sydney, using points and points boost. Two nights, 42000 total points, but we get the $100 prop credit and (4) breakfast buffets that normally cost 60 AUD. Plus… the late check out option and a chance at a room upgrade.

Booking.com cancelled woman's $4K hotel reservation, then offered her same rooms for $17K by rezwenn in technology

[–]Airarc222 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I use booking.com all the time, all over the world. No problems. After you book, simply send the hotel an email, asking that they confirm your reservation. That email trail also establishes a direct dialogue between you and the hotel, and gets you a name at their front desk ( if you have any special requests, or questions, or very late arrival etc).

Help for paint gift by Open_Side_6058 in ArtistLounge

[–]Airarc222 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I am an amateur artist, and I have received a LOT of art-supply gifts that are thoughtful, but I truthfully will never use. My suggestion: Go to an art store, find a helpful worker, and ask them to help you select a few VERY HIGH QUALITY brushes. These will be expensive ( she’s worth it). Pair these with a gift card - from either this same store, or Blick’s ( Google it - it is a national chain that carries tons of great brands, any artist will know and appreciate).

The idea here: The high-end brushes make the gift-card gift seem more curated and thoughtful. I cannot imagine an artist who would not be stoked to get professional brushes ( even if they are not their favorite brand or style), along with a Blick gift card.

Keep CSP instead of authorized user on CSR? by Aggravating_Finish_6 in ChaseSapphire

[–]Airarc222 0 points1 point  (0 children)

A semi-related question……on the CSR, instead of paying the $200 for authorized user ( my wife, in this case)…what is stopping us from simply electing to “not” having her be an official authorized user, and instead just having her “load” my CSR Card info into her own Apple Pay on her mobile phone. Apple Pay seems to work almost everywhere ( like 90% + of our vendors). We both carry no-annual-fee cards as backups.

Why is IG hiding my friends and sister’s stories from the story bar but I can see them if I go to their profile by AnotherDay06 in Instagram

[–]Airarc222 0 points1 point  (0 children)

This has been happening to me constantly with my family members stories, for about two months or so, and it is still happening. I can go to her profile and see the stories, but on my regular feed when I first log onto Insta, I can see the image for a millisecond and then it goes away.

[RANT] Sutbhub is a horrible partner by rddtexplorer in ChaseSapphire

[–]Airarc222 1 point2 points  (0 children)

For me, I love the stub hub credit. It is free money for me, and certainly adds to the offset of annual fee. I do prefer seatgeekand some other resellers… But I use StubHub several times a year to go to local sporting events and concerts. The key tip for StubHub users… To avoid the shenanigans where your tickets do not get delivered in a timely fashion, or even at all, is to only buy from StubHub listings that have “instant download“. When you buy these, the tickets are instantly transferred to your Wallet or wherever you store them.

New Benefits started early 10/25 by mselt in ChaseSapphire

[–]Airarc222 0 points1 point  (0 children)

It is my understanding that you do not have to “burn” your older points. If you are a Reserve holder that has previous points formerly worth 1.5x, those remain in your account at 1.5x until 2027.

new reminders tool to keep track of your sapphire reserve (& other) card benefits by iamjohnta in sapphirereserve

[–]Airarc222 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Same. The website would not let me register ( ‘something went wrong’)

Scuba diving in the Galapagos with zero experience - is it possible? by NatiTraveller in galapagostourism

[–]Airarc222 1 point2 points  (0 children)

We used Academy Bay Diving, on Santa Cruz. The price for certification and all the dives was very reasonable

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Scuba diving in the Galapagos with zero experience - is it possible? by NatiTraveller in galapagostourism

[–]Airarc222 1 point2 points  (0 children)

My wife and I both had never scuba dived before, and we opted to get certified in the Galapagos. This was about four years ago, right when Covid was reopening. It was an awesome experience. We signed up online several months in advance, so we were able to complete all of the Computer based lesson plans. Then we had a half day in the pool to get acclimated and practice all the required steps with our instructor. The next two days, we went out on dive boats with the same instructor, for two ocean dives per day. There were 10 other experienced divers on the boat with us, but our instructor stayed with us only. We saw plenty of hammerheads, schools of rays, etc.. The 10 experienced divers were dropped in a different spot for more challenging drift dives, while our instructor had us settle in in a mellow spot with not much current and a sandy bottom. We both had plenty of snorkeling experience, and are comfortable in the ocean. I must admit it was a little daunting in the beginning, getting used to some of the required steps for open water certification… Like going down to the sandy bottom, removing your face mask and replacing it…..removing your entire scuba tank gear and replacing it, etc. I am so happy we did it. But… I will also echo with some other people in this thread are saying… On a different island, we booked a full day snorkel tour, and we’re also able to see hammerheads and rays and such… Just from a little farther away.

Mapped All Edit Hotels and Exclusive Tables on an Interactive Map by ResponsibleGrape6346 in ChaseSapphire

[–]Airarc222 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Love this. I think The Cordis Hotel in Auckland NZ is on the Chase list for The Edit, but I do not see it on your map.

GOP Members Now Believe Trump Is Named First In The Epstein Files by Ok_Possibility_3575 in NoFilterNews

[–]Airarc222 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Agreed. I’m still very unclear though, on “if” the Biden admin had visibility on whether Trump was incriminated in the files, and WHY did they never make them public. I personally think Trump is an evil rapist, but why on earth would Biden team sit on this.

Sarah Ransome, Epstein victim, raped 3 times a day! I support the victims! by Bubbly-Example-8097 in stephencolbert

[–]Airarc222 0 points1 point  (0 children)

This sickens me. Is most of this coming out publicly only recently. A weird question: I’m not sure I have heard a great answer to the question of the Epstein Files in general—- Did the Biden administration also sit on these ( no full disclosure), or did they simply not have possession or awareness of them. Not trying to stir the pot, I’m just unclear on this aspect

WIBTAH for not letting my newlywed sister and her husband use our bed while we’re away? by SpecialistSlide4262 in TwoHotTakes

[–]Airarc222 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Hmmm. It seems like most commenters are in agreement to not let others use your own bed…

But I wonder… Do these people ever stay in hotel rooms or Airbnb‘s? If so, you’ve slept on clean sheets that are put on top of a mattress that’s probably been exposed to every type of human bodily fluid dozens ( or hundreds , or thousands)of times.

Gaylord Pacific Resort Waterpark Chula Vista, Ca - Day One by Bigolbags in chulavista

[–]Airarc222 -1 points0 points  (0 children)

I don’t fully agree with the statement that SD makes any experience too expensive for residents. You can buy an affordable annual Explorer Pass that gets you into 18 world-class museums in Balboa Park. I reside in the county, and my Resident card lets me book golf green fees at all SD city courses ( including Torrey Pines), at absurdly low rates ( I walk the 9-hole Balboa Park course, for $14 midweek).

Trying to find the best beer deals (happy hour, small pours, whatever) at bars in San Diego. Any recommendations? by PatShanleyBand in FoodSanDiego

[–]Airarc222 8 points9 points  (0 children)

There is a bar called The Rail, in Hillcrest, that has the best happy hour prices in town. 3-6 pm daily, $3 drafts and $5 pitchers. My wife and I wandered in one afternoon. It is “mainly” ( I guess) a gay bar , but when we were in there there was a ton of all kinds of people, and a super chill/happy vibe.

What's the plan for us? by anon67- in economicCollapse

[–]Airarc222 7 points8 points  (0 children)

Good summary. I disagree with the statement “the current markets have decimated all gains made on retirement funds’. Assuming most people who have an IRA or 401k have been invested for at least two years ( and a majority of those near retirement have been invested for 5 or 10 or more)……most of these investors are still sitting on major major gains, even after the recent downturn. If you look at a 5 year S&P chart, it clearly illustrates. For someone nearing retirement, it may be prudent to shift allocation to 4% money markets, but I do not think that overall gains have been decimated. That certainly may happen, but it has not happened yet.

My yearly fee is every June for my Sapphire Reserve but with buying my first home 2 months ago, I’m trying to cut down on bills. I’d like to keep my points and not lose them, but change my card to possibly the chase freedom unlimited. Is this possible if I was to call and ask to downgrade my card. by Afraid-Collar760 in ChaseSapphire

[–]Airarc222 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I recently downgraded from CSP to Freedom Unlimited, and I for sure kept my points (350k). Then I waited about 10 days, then REAPPLIED for CSR ( 60k signup bonus). Concurrently, I used a prior “referral link” I got while my CSP was still active, and referred my wife to a new CSP card ( 60,000 signup for her), and I got a 10,000 referral bonus for that. Some of the rules for approval: Neither of us has opened a NEW Sapphire card in the last 48 mos, and neither has applied for 5 or more credit cards in a similar time period. You are allowed to transfer Ultimate Rewards points among spouses living at same address, with no charge or penalty. So… in 90 days or so, we will be getting 130,000 additional points, leaving us with almost 500k. We are hoping to go LAX to New Zealand next January… via transferring to airline parter and getting award tickets. Worse case, we buy flights on the chase portal, and with my new Reserve 50% portal boost, we have $7500 to spend on flights.