Just a quick heads up post- if you have an eligible American Express card, one of the Offers right now through July is 2x points on qualifying Amazon purchases. I got the email about it this morning since I have the Everyday Preferred card, and was pleased as punch about it since I buy a lot of books and travel gear on Amazon.
I have the Everyday Preferred card, so I get 3x points on grocery, 2x gas, 1x on everything else but if I make 30 qualifying transactions within a statement period I get 50% bonus on those points. One Mile At a Time has a pretty good write up about it. It's a pretty great way to build up a bank of Amex Membership Points on everyday spend. Adding in this 2x point promotion is really convenient timing as I'm trying to build up my points this year for 2017 travel.
For the record, I'm not sponsored by Amex; I actually really like the card and Amex Membership Points because they have a lot of flexible travel use and will transfer into almost every airline I fly, and transferring points is pretty quick too. The transfer ratio for Virgin America is kind of the pits at 2:1 Amex points to Elevate points, but most of the other transfer rates are 1:1
So if you have an eligible card and are looking to build up more points, check your account and apply it to your card.
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Europe is a continent well-connected by train, making it easy to hop from city to city or country to country. Between IC trains, locals, high-speed rail or Eurostar trains, you'll find yourself fairly spoiled for choice when it comes to riding the rails. It's also a great way to catch the scenery if you aren't in a massive hurry.
That being said, if you've never travelled by rail in Europe before and embark on this adventure, there's one quick tip I wanted to share that seems so simple on paper but can be totally overlooked.