20. My Rapid Rewards account is just short of 16 credits. How can I top it off? What is the deadline for doing so? How quickly can I expect my flight credit to post?
a. (nsx/gregorygrady) Car rentals earn you 0.5 credit each, as do hotel stays. Sometimes a promotion posted on Flyertalk will double or triple this. The rental car promo thread is
here, but we don't have a generic hotel bonus thread. For hotels, search this forum for the name of your preferred brand. But even without a promotion, the 0.5 credit is a much better value than the small number of miles you could earn in another airline's program. This is especially true for lower-priced brands like Hampton Inn.
b. (BLI-Flyer) American Express Membership Rewards once let you transfer 1,250 MR points for one Rapid Rewards Credit. Since January 1, 2005, the rate is 1500 MR points per credit.
c. (nsx) Diners Club allows you to redeem N times 1500 of the new (1 point per dollar) points for N Rapid Rewards credits, increased from the old level of 1000 points as of April 1, 2005. You can redeem these for your own account or anyone else's. Ask on Coupon Connection: trading or selling Diners Club credits does not violate Rapid Rewards rules. Diners Club also has run a promotion each fall in which you can redeem 18,000 points for one Rapid Rewards free ticket, 25% off the regular rate. You also get 12 credits (not 16) toward Companion Pass qualification.
d. (nsx) Getting the SW Visa card earns you 4 credits, but not until your first statement date. Southwest.com lists only the $59 Signature Visa, but the $39 Classic Visa is still available at this writing if you call and ask for it, and you still get the 4 credits. The bonus is credited to your effective on or shortly after the closing date on your first statement. In particular, you don't have to wait until the statement after you pay the fee. Note that the extra $20 for the Signature Visa card gives you double points accrual for purchases at southwest.com. If you spend more than about $1300 per year on Southwest tickets, the Signature card is a better deal.
e. (nsx) You can double dip with Visa cards, getting 4 credits for a Classic Visa and 4 more credits for a Signature Visa. This is a good value if you need those credits to top off an account.
f. (nsx) Hilton HHonors allows you to redeem 10,000 of their points for one Rapid Rewards credit. This is a poor value compared to the other Hilton awards, which include a Rapid Rewards ticket and even a Companion Pass, but the option is available if you are desperate. Incidentally, Hilton's Companion Pass award is one of the best deals going. For 350k HHonors points, you get not just the Companion Pass, but 100 Rapid Rewards credits and therefore 6 award tickets.
g. (nsx) All credits expire one year after they are earned, first-in, first-out. If your 16th earning activity occurs prior to expiration of a credit, and if you would have qualified for an award had the activity posted immediately, the system will retroactively restore the expired credit and issue you an award. The activity date, not the posting date, determines whether you have earned the award. For a Diners Club transfer, the activity date is typically the same as the request date.
h. (nsx) In my experience, flight credits will appear in your account 3 to 7 days after your flight. If you phone Rapid Rewards and they decide to manually add a missing credit, your account will show the change immediately. (charlieootj) SWA will recognize any flights that you did not receive credit for up to a year back. Just print it out and fax a copy to customer service.