Credit Cards

An Airline Credit Card Offer To Avoid

a close-up of a plane
Written by Charlie

There are some very lucrative credit card offers, ones like the long-lasting Citi AAdvantage Executive card that (had) offered 100,000 AA miles. Then we have the second tier airline credit card offers like the American Express Delta Skymiles Gold offer with 30,000 miles (we get pretty jaded when a bonus worth at least $300 can be seen as blah!). Then we have the total bottom of the barrel, do-no-touch, what-were-they-thinking card offers. Here is one of them.

The ANA First Flight Bonus Offer

The Japanese airlines (of which ANA is one) have a habit of offering some very strange credit card “bonuses” to American customers. Earlier this year, Japan Airlines tried to entice new customers with the promise of 4,000 miles – but you had to pay the $20 fee for the card and the $50 program fee! At least it was better than their offer last year of a calendar!

Now, ANA is throwing one of those offers out there. Here is what I received in my e-mail:

ANA credit card offer

The ANA credit card offer

The offer is for you to apply for the card with their campaign code, and then fly a qualifying ANA flight sometime before 8/31/2014 and it must depart from North America. After you do that, you will receive 3,000 miles. Oh, and the flight itself must be credited to ANA (not a partner, like United).

Considering that these flights will cost you around $1,500 or more, that is some serious spending to get 3,000 miles! If you really want ANA miles that bad, I have a better idea for you – sign up for the SPG Amex card, use it once, and you can transfer 10,000 miles to ANA if you wanted to!

Seriously, does ANA think they are going to get people jumping on to this card and its expensive mileage offer? Don’t you think about it! 🙂

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About the author

Charlie

Charlie has been an avid traveler and runner for many years. He has run in marathons around the world for less than it would cost to travel to the next town - all as a result of collecting and using miles and points. Over the years, he has flown hundreds of thousands of miles and collected millions of miles and points.
Now he uses this experience and knowledge to help others through Running with Miles.

5 Comments

  • I know. I keep getting these and it seems really weak. I think I got a better one last week for 5,000 miles plus another 5,000 or 4,000 with first flight if I open a new card. Seems really really weak for such expense and long routes. I guess you would get some long miles earned on the flight as well though.

  • I keep getting this offer as well, and having lived in Japan for several years these are the types of offers Japanese people are accustomed too. It seems crazy to us, but a Japanese person living in North America would jump at the chance to have an ANA branded card from a U.S Bank. sad..sad..sad

  • Perhaps the person who decided that is still living in the 90s, when bonus offers like that were more common? I’m curious which bank is sponsoring this?