Royal Caribbean Credit Card

[RazorbackIslandGirl]

I have had it for well over 10 yrs maybe even 15. I use it to pay for all my cruises & any RCL purchases. At double points they rack up quickly! I run a lot of expenses through it. I have other cards I use for flight points as well. I always pay them off during the grace period so the interest rate is of no concern to me. It really helps to offset travel costs. I have $1000 OBC for my next cruise & am flying first class on Amex points. Play the game right & it's totally worth it! Just don't rack up debt doing it. Only charge what you know you can pay off each month. I was really doing well when I was paying double college tuition & had kids getting married! Now that all those expenses are behind me the points don't add up as quickly. So, getting double points every time I pay for a cruise is awesome!

[molly361]

29 minutes ago, cruisinfanatic said:

You are leaving a LOT of credit card incentive on the table by using only that card.

Citi^® Double Cash Card

  (I have it) that pays 1% for charges and an additional 1% when you pay it.

The only thing Royal's card is good for is the first time bonus you get. That's about all especially for using only for OBC

That's what we use now.  

[island lady]

6 hours ago, Host Clarea said:

 

Correct, no annual fee.

 

Thanks!  Sounds like a back up plan then!  Have to get back home from our "land yacht" cruise up here in Maine for the summer before I apply.  😉 

[island lady]

6 hours ago, SilkySal said:

Yep, we do a lot of the above! We use our RCCL Visa for absolutely everything and pay it off before the due date to avoid any charges, rack up our cruise points, and then redeem all of the available OBC for our upcoming cruise!!! Even if you don't use all of the OBC, any leftover from the cruise goes right back as a credit on your Visa to help pay any incurred expenses!! Win!! Win!!

 

My sister has one, she uses it for the OBC.  🙂 

[mitsugirly]

We have one and just use it for the double points. I haven't cashed in any for OBC yet though. I was kinda shocked that this is the only way to cash it in (I believe??). I also have a NCL and Carnival card. I only use them for those cruises.

 

But, just my thought...and this is just me...I personally wouldn't allow them to pull my credit and take a "ding" on it just for $100 OBC and then cancel. When you pull credit, it goes on your report and then your length of credit history takes a ding too with added cards (although utilization gets better if you get a high amount). Of course it may not matter if your history is very long or other reasons and it does fall off in 2 years. But I guess I'm just credit conscious still I have a very high score that I cringe every time I see it go down a notch. LOL  (Of course you may already know these things and all about credit and how the scoring system works...just wanted to bring it up in case you didn't). 🙂

[cruisinfanatic]

5 hours ago, orville99 said:

You are also leaving a lot of $$ on the table. Amazon Prime Visa gives me 5% on Amazon purchases, 2% on gas, pharmacy and restaurants, and 1% on everything else.

I'm leaving nothing on the table if I don't buy much on Amazon. How is 2% on gas, pharmacy and restaurants, and 1% on everything else better than 2% on everything???

[orville99]

16 hours ago, cruisinfanatic said:

I'm leaving nothing on the table if I don't buy much on Amazon. How is 2% on gas, pharmacy and restaurants, and 1% on everything else better than 2% on everything???

It's not if you're a person that never shops on Amazon, but for those for whom Amazon is a part of every day shopping, 5% on everything one buys from them beats 2% you'd get by buying the same products elsewhere. I guess the point is that credit cards are a thoroughly personal choice based on what and how you intend to use them. If you're happy getting 2% back on the same products and services that give me 5% back, that's your personal choice.

[island lady]

7 minutes ago, orville99 said:

It's not if you're a person that never shops on Amazon, but for those for whom Amazon is a part of every day shopping, 5% on everything one buys from them beats 2% you'd get by buying the same products elsewhere. I guess the point is that credit cards are a thoroughly personal choice based on what and how you intend to use them. If you're happy getting 2% back on the same products and services that give me 5% back, that's your personal choice.

 

What is the annual fee for the Amazon charge card?  

[Keasel]

23 hours ago, orville99 said:

You are also leaving a lot of $$ on the table. Amazon Prime Visa gives me 5% on Amazon purchases, 2% on gas, pharmacy and restaurants, and 1% on everything else.

How is that better than citi double cash card (except for amazon purchases)?

 

If you are a member of Costco, get the credit card for no additional fee, and you get 3% back on travel.

[ashleyhaugh]

49 minutes ago, island lady said:

 

What is the annual fee for the Amazon charge card?  

There isn't one

[island lady]

2 hours ago, ashleyhaugh said:

There isn't one

 

Thanks!  I buy a lot on Amazon, may have to check it out!  🙂 

[orville99]

4 hours ago, island lady said:

 

What is the annual fee for the Amazon charge card?  

Zero$$

[orville99]

4 hours ago, Keasel said:

How is that better than citi double cash card (except for amazon purchases)?

 

If you are a member of Costco, get the credit card for no additional fee, and you get 3% back on travel.

There is no fee for the amazon card either. As for being better, worse, or equal to any other card it all depends on what you use the card for. I only use my RCL card for booking RCL cruises, so 2% on everything. I use my amazon card for gas, dining, and pharmacy (2%) and about 90-95% of my retail purchases (all 5%). The only other things I use a CC for are scheduled monthly expenses like power, water, etc. (1% on those.).

 

Based on my personal mix, my monthly average % on the Amazon/RCL card combo is ~3.4%, so for me it is the best of the bunch. YMMV

[RSLeesburg]

Quick Question about the RCI Visa.  I went to the link that was posted earlier in the thread.  If I was reading that page correctly, the OBC can be applied to Celebrity cruises too, or can they just be used on RCI?   We have two upcoming cruises - one on RCI, and one on X.  Could I apply to OBC to the X cruise?   

[Clarea]

9 minutes ago, RSLeesburg said:

Quick Question about the RCI Visa.  I went to the link that was posted earlier in the thread.  If I was reading that page correctly, the OBC can be applied to Celebrity cruises too, or can they just be used on RCI?   We have two upcoming cruises - one on RCI, and one on X.  Could I apply to OBC to the X cruise?   

 

Yes, you can use the RCI Visa point redemptions for Celebrity cruises.

[RSLeesburg]

27 minutes ago, Host Clarea said:

 

Yes, you can use the RCI Visa point redemptions for Celebrity cruises.

 

Awesome.  Thanks.