American Express Blue Sky

It was the spring of 2005 when I realized that I needed to start building up some credit for myself.  My parents had never encouraged the use of a credit card as many people warn about racking up a lot in spending, only to pay a lot of fees and interest on the credit card.  I elected to get a credit card at my bank, which is US Bank.

I was excited that I had my very own credit card, but it was after my first billing statement when I was totally disgusted when I discovered that the credit card didn’t have any benefits at all.  The interest rate was very low…..who cares?  I never look at the interest rates on the credit cards for which I apply now.  I wouldn’t care if it was 2000%.  I pay my balance off at the end of each month anyway.  It was a few months later that I decided that I wanted a card with some rewards that were actually going to help me.  I did some research and decided that I wanted a card that didn’t have an annual fee, and provided benefits for travel.

After doing all of my research, I settled on the Blue Sky from American Express℠.  When it arrived in the mail I was so excited.  The card was clear, and I felt like a high roller.  I used it everywhere and kept it as my primary card for over five years.  I earned lots of rewards, and loved redeeming them.  The way that this card works is for every $7500 in spending that is done on the card you receive $100 credit toward your travel.  I now know that it isn’t as sexy as a 75,000 AAdvantage bonus from Citi, but I was actually making an amazing decision.

As I look back I feel fortunate that I was able to build my credit for over five years to have a great reputation and a good solid credit score.  This has allowed me to nail some of the best offers ever when it comes to credit cards.  So, for those of you who don’t have a credit card at all, this is a great place to start.  Get the card and wait a bit before you apply for any others.  Remember that applying for too many accounts in a short period of time when you haven’t established your credit is a NO NO.  Be patient.

The deals will continue coming, but keep reading our blog and watch the stuff happen.  Make a good game plan about hitting the cards that are going to help you.  There is nothing like staying in a great hotel and getting a good nights sleep.  For this reason we love accumulating hotel points.  We aren’t staying in the most expensive hotels every night, but their locations are usually amazing and it’s money I would never spend otherwise.  So for those of you who already have airline miles, get some hotel points.  The Starwood Preferred Guest® Credit Card from American Express will give you access to some amazing hotels.