Thanks! I appreciate the tips on the Holiday Inns. I should definitely look into those. Not sure if I'll be able to hit that 40k spend target on the card, but not sure if I'll ever stay 70 nights either haha. We'll see if I even make 20 nights per year, but getting those milestone awards sounds great!

Thanks so much! Glad you found the video helpful!

Thanks so much Matt! Yeah, that elevated offer was hard to ignore, and since I wanted to start exploring the IHG program, this was a great time to dive in and get the card! We both had the same thought too haha! Will be nice once that first anniversary night kicks in!

Haha! It was definitely a long wait! But I applied for this card in May so I made it like 5 months, but that's still pretty good!

@@TheCreditFrog To lose patience is to lose the battle

Thanks Joker! I'm looking forward to giving this card a whirl and seeing what IHG properties are like compared to what I'm used to with Marriott and Hilton. If anything, I'll have more flexibility with the 4th night free, as you mentioned, which is a little easier to do than staying in a single property for 5 nights!

Thanks so much! Yes, I'm keeping an eye on the Ink Preferred 120k offer. I'd like to get it online through a referral if possible, but if it doesn't show up soon, referring P2 for the 100k offer with a 40k referral bonus would be better.

@@TheCreditFrogjust do it now and send them a SM asking them to match it. I did it last week no issue.

Same Jacob! You speak so highly of them, and you're building an IHG arsenal between you and your wife. I think we'll probably do the same .. but probably over the next several years, hah!

Yeah, I agree. IHG may not be as popular as the bigger hotel chains, but this card is definitely a keeper. Nice that you were able to get the 175k offer as well. Great work!

Thanks so much Cody! Yeah, I definitely took advantage of the 100% points bonus that came around in late June and maxed that out. There's a lot of good redemptions and when coupled with 4th night free, it can be a lot of value. I agree this card is a no brainer! That's awsome that you booked the Regent! You'll have to tell me how it is. I'd love to go to Hong Kong one day (and just more countries in Asia in general), which is why I'm personally excited about IHG!

Thanks so much Ron! That 4th night free is so good! Sounds like you now have a lot of points to work with. Hope you enjoy your trip in Bozeman!

Of course JP! Definitely happy to share you and your expertise with the community, and I'm looking forward to staying at more IHG properties and find out how they'll fit in my hotel strategy!

Thanks Thi! Yes, me too. Looking forward to try out some of these IHG properties!

Thank you Jimmy James!! 🙌

Noice! Thats going to be a great stay and it’ll be even better with that 4th night free!!

Thanks Shawn! And congrats on your new card as well! I'm happy to hear that C1 gave you a respectable credit limit since sometimes they can be stingy. Yeah, we'll have to see what they do with the Walmart card!

Thanks so much CJ! Yeah, remember that Intercontinental lobby in DC? Like wow! I need to stay there one day.. as an Amabassador 😀

Oh man - you got some ways to go, but that's going to be a big day when that happens for you!

Do you plan to get some Alex business cards or citi AAdvantage business while you wait?

I agree! I didn't realize Chase did the auto-reallocation, but I'm pretty happy that they do because it saves me a step .. if they would approve me automatically, haha!

Thank you!

Thanks Jayson! Yes, the 4th night free is going to great for my trip, and I was able to take advantage of the 100% points bonus at the end of June! Already have a few Intercontinentals lined up for this year!

Such a fantastic offer on the personal version of the IHG Premier card!

Hey nice! Thanks for the recommendation. We're still building out our itinerary, but I'll definitely put it in my list of things to check out!

Hate is kind of a strong word. I actually think there's a lot of people who like IHG and their lineup, but certainly Marriott, Hilton, and Hyatt get much more love.

Thanks! I appreciate that, and I hope I have a good experience at the Intercontinentals too. Yeah, same. I really like the way how Marriott does it, but sadly they got rid of lifetime Titainum. I'm about a year away from Lifetime Gold, but tbh, probably will never hit Lifetime Platinum 😕

Thanks Juan!

Thanks man! Yeah, these 40k FNAs are great for those nights before a travel day. Nothing like waking up next to the airport so you don't have to rush so much! I book hotels the night before long flights all the time. It's so worth it.

Haha, yeah, I know what you mean! In this case, it was nice that they were able to transfer limits over, but I've also had it the other way where a card was denied, and I had to call in to transfer limit over to open up a card. I certainly prefer the automatic method because even if they draw CL from a card, you can always reallocate later if it wasn't your first choice card to draw that CL from!

Very exciting for you! It's a great card and will be playing a more prominent role in my setup soon!

@@TheCreditFrog I am guessing that you have not used any of your three Club Level upgrade certificates. Once you do let me know how easy (or difficult) is to use them.

@@Leoprieto74 I haven't used any of them yet, but they're pretty easy to use. The main thing is that they must be on paid stays, and you have to call in to redeem them (they can't be redeemed online).

@@TheCreditFrog ​​⁠ I knew about being able to use them on pay stays only. But I wasn’t aware I needed to call to redeem those Club Level certificates. Got it. Planning on redeeming my first at the Ritz Carlton South Beach Miami next January.

Thanks so much! Yeah, if you can get that guaranteed upgrade and use that complimentary free night, I think the value is there. The 4th night free is a great perk for sure! Hope you have some nice stays at those ICs this summer!

Well it's a good thing that using it for Asia is exactly my plan!

Thanks WanderingDoc! Yeah, I haven't really tried applying for Chase cards over 5/24 so not really sure about that 😕

Very cool! I hope you have a great trip!

Sounds good Ping Ping! I wonder if there's something specific that you didn't like about the Intercontinentals you stayed at? Or is it more just your preference is for those mid-tier properties. I will say Holiday Inns are a nice use of IHG points and there's a lot of value with those properties (and frankly any property if you get that 4th night free!)

@@TheCreditFrog Haha, I just think that the low to mid-tier hotels offer a lot more bang for your buck. Also, I think that many people in the US have never heard of voco hotels (an IHG brand). They are a semi-upscale brand along with Hotel Indigo. IHG properties seem to not be recognized except for Holiday Inns. You may like Regent HK. I heard that you want to visit Asia once a year and Hong Kong is perfect for it!

@@PingPingTravel I’ll look into it, thanks for the tips!

Marriott has some nice properties so I don't think it's a problem hah! But yeah, I've been looking into more IHG properties since they have a lot of options in Asia, which is where I'm hoping to use them the most!

It's up to your own comfort level.

Yeah, I got this card in May. I decided to release the videos out of order since I thought the Hilton video would be more helpful to people if I got the news out about the DoC link ASAP!

Herr Müntz, I can confirm that the IHG Business card has the $50 United Travel Bank credit! I just used both (one $25 that expires 7/15/24 and one that I just got on 7/1/24) to book a United flight for next year!

Ok thanks 👍

When it comes to hotel cards, the Aspire card is the best one out there! The decision to get one will come down to two metrics: 1. how often do you actually stay at Hiltons - and for the Aspire - specifically Hilton Resorts so you can use the credits, and 2. Can you make use of the statement credits and free night certificate every year to offset the $550 annual fee? I would look into your travel habits and then you'll find your answer. While I applied for the HH card a few weeks ago, I actually applied for the IHG card first back in May, but I decided to release the videos in the opposite order since I wanted to get out my DP of getting out of PUJ ASAP!

@@TheCreditFrog oh only the 100 credit can be used for regular WA or Conrad stays, and since it has to be called in i dont think we can use it since employee booking has to be done online. As for stays all future stays would be using HH program so around 4 to 5 times a year, so in this case is better to look for the lower tier ones? I was really tempted due to the free night award and the diamond status specially for international flights.

@@TheAndyzilla I think in that case, the Surpass is a better choice. You get Hilton Gold status which gets you free F&B credit for breakfast, which is IMO worth it on it's own. The $150 AF is easily handled by either staying in any Hilton once per quarter, or if not, you can purchase a $50 Hilton gift card online to trigger the quarterly credit.

@@TheCreditFrog thank you so much for the insight to help us on our cc journey! Amazing video

Thank you hermano César! Yes, I'm very excited to start staying at IHG properties and seeing how this card works for me!

Oh, interesting! I actually haven't used it on a mobile wallet yet, but that would be weird if it wasn't supported!

@@TheCreditFrog I've tried adding both of my IHG Business cards to my Apple Wallet and it doesn't work. So weird and inconvenient

Well, that's a huge bummer it doesn't work on Apple Wallets. Thanks for leaving your DP Jacob!

The Chase 5/24 rule does NOT involve hard inquiries. It has to do with new credit card accounts that show up on your credit report.

Thanks Neno! I officially dropped in mid-April 2024, and then I applied for the card in May - so not quite right after, I applied at least one billing cycle afterwards.

@@TheCreditFrogawesome thanks for the datapoint

@@TheCreditFrogit’s so gratifying when you garden for period of time and you’re finally rewarded for your patience

@@callmeNeno That's for sure!

I’m not sure. When I purchased mine, I used my IHG Premier that earned 3X. It coded as business services for what that’s worth.

Congrats CJ! You are FIRST! 🥇🏆

@@TheCreditFrog yay! 😃

They're kind of like Hilton points.

LOL! Not to make it worse, but you miss 100% of the shots you don't take.