Hey guys, I have about 52k miles on my Gold Delta AMEX card and I am planning to close it within the next few days. What should I do with my miles??
I read on Delta's website that you can only use miles to pay for airfare if you have the card, but I don't understand if I'll be able to benefit from those miles at all if I close it because I do not know what else I would use the miles for except to pay for a ticket? Should I buy a ticket before I close the account?
Thanks.
@gblb wrote:
I am a very frequent Delta flier and have the card. You can use the card to pay for hotels or car rental or buy goods at the skymiles marketplace (a bad use because of near fixed .01 cent per mile value., this only applies to current card members'. With or without the card (anybody') you can book award tickets (free flights) and 50k is enough to get you one first class domestic or two economy domestic tickets. If you cancel the ONLY thing you lose other than the car rental or hotel for miles is the ability to combine money and miles on a normal ticket. So to summarize reward tickets (anybody can book without card) pay with miles and cash is only for card holders. Like the hotel and car rental option the pay with miles option is once again a terrible option and you are not losing much. 50k miles is valued at .01 cent so it would get you 500 off a ticket. 50,000 miles as an award could get you two coach tickets of much greater value.
So let me get this straight: if you have a gold delta AMEX card, you can pay for tickets with miles + cash, but if you don't have the card, you can only use the miles to pay for a ticket? Thats surprising, would that mean some of my miles will go to waste when I buy a ticket thats not quite 50k miles worth?
Most of my tickets are around $310 coach so I don't know how I can buy two with 50k miles!
From the Delta site:
PAY WITH MILES
Exclusively for SkyMiles members with a Gold, Platinum or Reserve Delta SkyMiles Credit Card from American Express, you can redeem your miles towards all or part of the price of your Delta ticket. Learn More
@score_building wrote:+1 find out what options are on the table to disburse rewards BEFORE closing.
Also, if you have another Amex cc, perhaps transfer the CL prior to closure.
Great idea, thank you for this. I am awaiting a brand new BCP in the mail with 15k and I'm gonna ask them to bring the 9k over from the Delta card to it.
@lhcole77 wrote:Most RT tickets in US cost 25K miles. That's how you can get two.
Hmm I am beginning to see, so if I cancel my Delta card, when I go on Delta to buy my next ticket, I should check "Redeem miles" before beginning my search for flights?
The flights I would ever fly are 31k miles, does this mean I am basically losing 20k miles? Or I can use those for upgrades in the future?
Also what type of help will AMEX give me when I go to cancel my card in regards to the miles, are there some hidden options available?