MegaDO frequent flyer trips are billed as once in a lifetime types of experiences, the kinds of things you don’t get to experience anywhere else.
- Last fall the group chartered United’s first 787. Folks got to sit in United CEO Jeff Smisek’s chair. They had a barbecue on the tarmac in Houston.
- Last January in Dallas American Airlines set up flight simulator time, and the group practiced a water evacuation into a pool. Some participants even changed into American Airlines first class pajamas first.
In addition to all the pre-announced activities, there are often surprise and delights that come along after folks have booked.
The next (sold out) MegaDO is the Scandinavian event in September. Participants already knew they’d be gifted Club Carlson Gold status, but they got an email letting them know that Club Carlson has sweetened things with an offer to Concierge status.
We just received a great offer from Club Carlson today. For the first time ever, they are offering up their 75 night minimum a year black card Concierge level to Nordic MegaDO participants!
If you are holding ONE of the following status levels, your status will automatically be upgraded to Concierge level instead of the promised Gold:
— Marriott Platinum
— SPG Platinum
— Hyatt Diamond
— Nordic Choice Club Platinum or Choice Privileges Diamond
— IHG Royal Ambassador
— HHonors Diamond…. For those of you that don’t have any of the statuses above, you will get your account upgraded to the Gold level. … If you’re a current cc Gold, there will be some goodies for you, they will be announced soon!
I’m not a huge fan of the Club Carlson program although several Radisson Blu properties look nice. However, Concierge status is very cool and not something you can match to or get without earning 75 elite nights.
I am, however, a fan of the Club Carlson Premier Rewards Visa Signature® Card which gives you an 85,000 point signup bonus (50,000 after first purchase and 35,000 more after $2500 spend within 90 days) plus Gold status in the program.
I imagine lots of folks on the trip are already Gold via this card (or from previous status match).
The key benefit of the card, though, beyond Gold is that you get your last night on every award redemption free. That means you can do 2 night award stays for the price of a single night, doubling the value of your points on those stays (up to 50 nights per year).
The annual fee for the card is $75. (The business version of the card has essentially the same benefits with a $15 lower annual fee).
(Note that the personal but not the business version of the card offers me referral credit.)
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Although that card is amazing, good luck getting approved for it if you have any new accounts open. Signed my mom up for it 2 days ago and she was denied because she had 3 new cards opened in the last 6 months. Called reconsideration and even though she has a 20+ year credit history, no missed payments, 780+ score, the credit analyst said that because of those 3 cards, they wanted to wait and see for 6 months if she would pay them off before issuing any new credit to her.
FFU, I’ve read that many others have similar issues with the approval process, so word of caution is good. But as another data point, my wife and I were both approved for the card with multiple apps in prior 6 months. I don’t pay a bunch of attention to what bureau they pull vs where my inquiries hit, though.
Me: Approved for CC Visa 4/8/2013 after 1 app 2/15/2013, 4 apps 11/8/2012 (so 5 in prior 6 months)
Wife: Approved for CC Visa 4/8/2013 after 3 apps 11/2/2012
Forgot to mention, our CreditSesame and CreditKarma scores typically fluctuate in the 750-780 range.
can I still get in on the Scandinavian megado? can I buy from someone who wants to drop out?
I got the personal card from a pre-approval offer earlier this year, thank god. I applied for the business card, was initially denied for the same reasons that every one is, called a reconsideration line, and was approved.
Having both cards is a really powerful combination.
I got the Club Carlson business card a couple months ago and was subsequently able to get the personal card, but it was a heck of an ordeal. However, US Bank then turned me down for their Skypass card and it doesn’t look like I’m going to be able to finagle my way into that one.
I fail to see anything special in the Concierge Status. Granted, it’s better than the Gold, but what’s the fuss about it?
I sooooo, wanted to do this one… I nearly signed up, but alas we’re building a house this year and I had to resist! I will do the next one though…