HAL Credit Card

[islandwoman]

On 7/24/2023 at 3:31 PM, FlaMariner said:

 

We've had the Barclays Card for many years.  

 

We no longer use it. 

 

Why?

 

Cons:

Our Bank of America Premium Rewards cards pays us a much higher "rebate" and has much better travel insurance

 

The HAL card gives you 2% in points for HAL purchases and 1% for other purchases.  Not that great. 

For redemption, the top rate is 2.5% ($4,001 + in a HAL cruise).  Not great either.

 

Pros:

Easy to redeem w/the "statement credit" option.

No annual fee. 

 

We wish HAL would dust off the offering and make it more competitive.  If so, we would be all over it. 

 

I have a recently acquired Barclay's HAL visa that now has 15,000 + points on it.  I have an expensive HAL cruise upcoming in November 2024.  What is the best way to redeem these points?  Or would it be better to use the card to pay for the cruise or part of the cruise?

[aledomom]

On 7/24/2023 at 2:31 PM, FlaMariner said:

 

Cons:

Our Bank of America Premium Rewards cards pays us a much higher "rebate" and has much better travel insurance

We also have the Bank of America Premium Rewards.  For anyone looking if you have a Bank of America bank account and funds at Merrill Lynch the rewards structure on this uses your combined balance to determine the bonus rewards structure.  It has a $95 yearly fee but I use this card almost exclusively and the fee is a drop in the bucket compared to the cash back rewards I earn.

[FlaMariner]

4 hours ago, aledomom said:

It has a $95 yearly fee

 

and it has a $100 annual airline incidental credit (baggage, taxes on points flight, wifi purchases, etc.) that we easily eat up so that cancels the annual fee for us....

 

And once every 4 years $100 towards TSApre/global entry fee.

 

[FlaMariner]

5 hours ago, islandwoman said:

I have a recently acquired Barclay's HAL visa that now has 15,000 + points on it.  I have an expensive HAL cruise upcoming in November 2024.  What is the best way to redeem these points?  Or would it be better to use the card to pay for the cruise or part of the cruise?

 

If it were me.......

 

If I did not want to continue to use the HAL VISA further, I'd put my onboard account on the HAL VISA and once that transaction posts, I'd redeem my points as statement credit.

 

If I planned to use the card in the future, I would not redeem the 15,000 points and I'd put all my purchases on the card and especially my HAL purchases (cruises and onboard account and anything else HAL) and save up until one day I would have at least 164,000 points because that gets me the highest redemption percent of 2.5%.

 

 

[Gail & Marty sailing away]

On 7/27/2023 at 2:09 PM, FlaMariner said:

 

and it has a $100 annual airline incidental credit (baggage, taxes on points flight, wifi purchases, etc.) that we easily eat up so that cancels the annual fee for us....

 

And once every 4 years $100 towards TSApre/global entry fee.

 

Sounds good.

[Reagan0712]

I got sucked into applying for the Barclay HAL card because of the 15000 point offer. The hoops I had to jump through to get it were ridiculous. I already had a Barclay card but they still insisted I submit to them a utility bill, a copy of my driver’s license, and my social security card (which they weren’t getting even if I could find it). Several letters and phone calls later I got the card.

Aside from the no foreign transaction fees, it’s not a great card. I get much better points with my Discover card and local credit union card, both of which also have no foreign transaction fees.

I used the HAL card on one cruise and put it away.

[Mary229]

On 7/22/2023 at 8:00 PM, mcrcruiser said:

Edited July 30, 2023 by Mary229

[VermeulT]

On 7/27/2023 at 9:05 AM, islandwoman said:

I have a recently acquired Barclay's HAL visa that now has 15,000 + points on it.  I have an expensive HAL cruise upcoming in November 2024.  What is the best way to redeem these points?  Or would it be better to use the card to pay for the cruise or part of the cruise?

Pay for your entire cruise.  When you return - you should be able to redeem your points as a statement credit towards the travel.  I believe you have 90 days after sailing to apply the points. (At least it used to be that way.  You should check that this is still the process).

[Langoustine]

On 7/23/2023 at 8:56 AM, Sea42 said:

But it can be difficult, in some countries, to find somewhere that accepts Discover.

It's difficult in some parts of the U.S., also; I closed my Discover card because of this.

[Langoustine]

On 7/26/2023 at 8:51 PM, Susanmaz said:

Never had an annual fee.

Me, either, and I've had the HAL Barclays card for several years. I don't know where that $500 a year fee came from.

[Big Dawg CC]

I cannot recommend any Barclays credit cards.  Without any notice or warning, Barclays closed my Holland America credit card.  I promptly called Barclays customer service and was politely and apologetically told by the customer service agent that the accounts were closed due to our account usage, that a letter would be forthcoming, and that the decision was irreversible and nothing could be done.

 

Due to the account closure, Barclays immediately cancelled all of my rewards points!  No grace period, nothing. 

[islandwoman]

10 hours ago, Big Dawg CC said:

I cannot recommend any Barclays credit cards.  Without any notice or warning, Barclays closed my Holland America credit card.  I promptly called Barclays customer service and was politely and apologetically told by the customer service agent that the accounts were closed due to our account usage, that a letter would be forthcoming, and that the decision was irreversible and nothing could be done.

 

Due to the account closure, Barclays immediately cancelled all of my rewards points!  No grace period, nothing. 

Thank you for the warning.  I will be sure to use my Holland America card now and then to prevent it from being closed for non-usage.  I lost a card from a different bank a few years ago for the same reason.

[FlaMariner]

13 hours ago, Big Dawg CC said:

I promptly called Barclays customer service and was politely and apologetically told by the customer service agent that the accounts were closed due to our account usage,

 

Wow!  Yes, thanks for the heads up......We have not used ours in a while and I'd hate to loose the few points I have. 

[Haljo1935]

Similar thing happens to us with Barclays Princess card - I believe Barclays periodically does a "sweep" of accounts. A notice to use rewards by XX date would be in order, IMHO.

[islandwoman]

18 minutes ago, Haljo1935 said:

Similar thing happens to us with Barclays Princess card - I believe Barclays periodically does a "sweep" of accounts. A notice to use rewards by XX date would be in order, IMHO.

Can you tell us how long it had been since you'd used that card when Barclays cancelled it?  I'd rather only use my Holland America card for double points on HAL purchases, but those might be few and far between. So I'd like to know how often I need to "waste" my purchases by using my HAL card for single points when I might have used a double or multi-point card instead. 

[Haljo1935]

47 minutes ago, islandwoman said:

Can you tell us how long it had been since you'd used that card when Barclays cancelled it?  I'd rather only use my Holland America card for double points on HAL purchases, but those might be few and far between. So I'd like to know how often I need to "waste" my purchases by using my HAL card for single points when I might have used a double or multi-point card instead. 

No, but it was at least 6 months, possibly even more than a year. Did not apply for the HAL card because it was also Barclays.

[Susanmaz]

We keep a second, backup card that I use once a month for gas… keeps the card active.

[Fivelinks]

On 7/31/2023 at 3:05 PM, islandwoman said:

Can you tell us how long it had been since you'd used that card when Barclays cancelled it?  I'd rather only use my Holland America card for double points on HAL purchases, but those might be few and far between. So I'd like to know how often I need to "waste" my purchases by using my HAL card for single points when I might have used a double or multi-point card instead. 

I was told by Barclays that you need to use the card at least once in a rolling year to keep it active and not loose your points.

[Fivelinks]

On 7/27/2023 at 9:05 AM, islandwoman said:

I have a recently acquired Barclay's HAL visa that now has 15,000 + points on it.  I have an expensive HAL cruise upcoming in November 2024.  What is the best way to redeem these points?  Or would it be better to use the card to pay for the cruise or part of the cruise?

A few things to consider. For HAL purchases $4001+ you will get the highest statement credit redemption of 2.5%. Your points are 2x on HAL 1x on all other purchases and the points you have at redemption are the number you multiply by 2.5%. Ex. 25000 points x 2.5% on a $4001 final HAL purchase = $625 statement credit. Keep in mind the purchase can't be split. Ex. $500 deposit one time then final $3501 payment later won't give you the $4001 to claim the credit from. Having said that when I booked my last cruise the deposit was only $50 so, I have put everything I could on the HAL card and paid it in full each month. Now my final payment is due and it is over the $4001 mark which gives me the 2.5%. I am going to take it a little further though and pre-book dining, shore excursions, and pay gratuities with my final payment to rack up the points. Once all of that hits my statement and the points are there, I will redeem the credit. It makes me feel like I got a nice discount on my cruise this way since it will post towards that final payment statement. Only if I plan to sail HAL on the next cruise will I use that card for my on-board spending. If not, I use the card with the best rewards at the time. Hope that helps...

[VermeulT]

15 hours ago, Fivelinks said:

A few things to consider. For HAL purchases $4001+ you will get the highest statement credit redemption of 2.5%. Your points are 2x on HAL 1x on all other purchases and the points you have at redemption are the number you multiply by 2.5%. Ex. 25000 points x 2.5% on a $4001 final HAL purchase = $625 statement credit. Keep in mind the purchase can't be split. Ex. $500 deposit one time then final $3501 payment later won't give you the $4001 to claim the credit from. Having said that when I booked my last cruise the deposit was only $50 so, I have put everything I could on the HAL card and paid it in full each month. Now my final payment is due and it is over the $4001 mark which gives me the 2.5%. I am going to take it a little further though and pre-book dining, shore excursions, and pay gratuities with my final payment to rack up the points. Once all of that hits my statement and the points are there, I will redeem the credit. It makes me feel like I got a nice discount on my cruise this way since it will post towards that final payment statement. Only if I plan to sail HAL on the next cruise will I use that card for my on-board spending. If not, I use the card with the best rewards at the time. Hope that helps...

ok but spending $5000 on HAL at 2 x points is only 10,000 points.  To get the 25,000 points you are referring to would be a $12,500 on HAL or a lot more on non-HAL purchases.

 

[Fivelinks]

2 minutes ago, VermeulT said:

ok but spending $5000 on HAL at 2 x points is only 10,000 points.  To get the 25,000 points you are referring to would be a $12,500 on HAL or a lot more on non-HAL purchases.

 

In the question from islandwoman she already had the 15,000 bonus for signing up. However even if she had no bonus points and only used it for that $5000 purchase, you could still consider the $250 credit you earned as a total savings on that cruise. I like my HAL card for other reasons like cell phone insurance when I use it to pay that bill each month. Rental car insurance, some travel insurance benefits, and more. All depends on the benefits I find most beneficial as a consumer, and what rewards I want as to which card if any I utilize.

[islandwoman]

18 hours ago, Fivelinks said:

Keep in mind the purchase can't be split. Ex. $500 deposit one time then final $3501 payment later won't give you the $4001 to claim the credit from. Having said that when I booked my last cruise the deposit was only $50 so, I have put everything I could on the HAL card and paid it in full each month. Now my final payment is due and it is over the $4001 mark which gives me the 2.5%.

Fivelinks, I don't understand what you said here because I found this on Barclay's website at the "Terms & Conditions"  for "Holland America Line Rewards Visa Card":

"Statement credit redemption value toward Holland America Line purchases will vary based on the amount of the Holland America Line purchase. The sum of eligible transactions made on the same date will be assigned to the appropriate rule as described below:

Holland America Line purchases within the last 180 days:

$50 to $499.99 will have a redemption value of 1%

$500 to $1,499.99 will have a redemption value of 1.25%

$1,500 to $2,000.99 will have a redemption value of 1.50%

$2,001 to $4,000.99 will have a redemption value of 2.00%

$4,001 and up will have a redemption value of 2.50%" 

(underlining is mine)

Now I'm even more confused because I don't know what Barclays means by "The sum of eligible transactions made on the same date".

[mcrcruiser]

We got the HAL credit card ,We will put on $500 & get the $200 credit & then not use it because the pay back is not worth it .We have other credit cards which are far better for travel 

[Fivelinks]

20 minutes ago, islandwoman said:

Fivelinks, I don't understand what you said here because I found this on Barclay's website at the "Terms & Conditions"  for "Holland America Line Rewards Visa Card":

"Statement credit redemption value toward Holland America Line purchases will vary based on the amount of the Holland America Line purchase. The sum of eligible transactions made on the same date will be assigned to the appropriate rule as described below:

Holland America Line purchases within the last 180 days:

$50 to $499.99 will have a redemption value of 1%

$500 to $1,499.99 will have a redemption value of 1.25%

$1,500 to $2,000.99 will have a redemption value of 1.50%

$2,001 to $4,000.99 will have a redemption value of 2.00%

$4,001 and up will have a redemption value of 2.50%" 

(underlining is mine)

Now I'm even more confused because I don't know what Barclays means by "The sum of eligible transactions made on the same date".

The sum of eligible transactions made on the same date will be assigned to the appropriate rule as described below: This simply means that you can't split the transaction or add mutiple HAL purchases like I referenced for making a deposit in one transaction, then coming back later to pay in full. Those two amounts don't combine. Therefore, to have a redemption value of 2.5% of your total points the transaction you are redeeming them for must be $4001 and up. Be careful if you make more than one HAL transaction and be sure you are redeeming against the highest cost to maximize your credit.  

 

This is what I have done in the past and have been told to do so by a representative at Barclays. Feel free to give them a call and they will use your scenario / transaction(s) specifically to advise you how best to redeem.

 

[Overhead Fred]

The Barclay's website is not the clearest with regard to how some point redemptions work.

 

I interpreted the HAL Visa statement redemption values to be tied to the number of points redeemed. To get the 2.5% rate one needs to redeem enough points to "equal" $4001, or 160,000 points. If one redeems 5,000 points on a $4001 purchase, I believe you would get a 1% redemption rate ($50) rather than a 2.5% rate ($125). 

 

I have not put this to the test yet and would be happy to be proven wrong! 

 

In the meantime, I am keeping my powder dry until I accumulate 160,000 points...