The HfP chat thread – Saturday 30th January

This article is closed to new posts. Discussion continues in the HfP Forums.

• Gothbe says:

  30 Jan30 January 13:03

  I created a trading 212 account on 21/1 from a referral link and have been allocated the free share. I can’t find the referral link on my own account. I though accounts created prior to 26/1 were eligible to create referrals? If so has the link been buried somewhere in the app?

  • Jon G says:

    30 Jan30 January 14:09

    IIRC you need to have some trading activity before it shows up!

    • Anuj says:

      30 Jan30 January 16:13

      It’s vanished from my app too, and I’ve had account for a while now with activity. It’s probably related to GME

      • Ste Cox says:

        30 Jan30 January 16:50

        Still showing for me in the app

  • Ralph says:

    30 Jan30 January 17:05

    Worrying number of people asking about trading accounts here recently. Normally a very bad sign for markets…

    • Sloth says:

      30 Jan30 January 21:05

      Whilst normally you would be correct, I think in this case most people are doing it for the free share only

      And/or to take on the hedgies… 😉

      • Gothbe says:

        30 Jan30 January 22:12

        Yep free shares 😆

• Anna says:

  30 Jan30 January 13:20

  Just continuing on from Rob’s earlier post re summer UK travel (the reply thread is getting rather long), I’ve just noticed today that I can’t get any availability to use the IHG credit card free night. I don’t know if it’s an IHG IT glitch (entirely possible) or whether hotels are now deliberately blocking non-cash stays.

  Points rates (and some cash) are still quite reasonable at most places so it might be worth making a few speculative bookings.

  The Langley is 36k points on some week nights! You could theoretically get a 5 night stay for 144k points if you pick the right dates. Cash prices still around £400 per night so that’s awesome value.

  • Anna says:

    30 Jan30 January 13:22

    Possibly an IT glitch – there are now some nights coming up, after being prompted to sign in about 3 times before it would accept the search!

  • Harry T says:

    30 Jan30 January 15:03

    I booked the first weekend in March and the following Saturday for 36k a nigh but it’s not looking good…

    • Harry T says:

      30 Jan30 January 15:04

      Any IHG hotels you would recommend in the UK?

      • Anna says:

        30 Jan30 January 15:17

        I think you’ve been to the Durham Indigo, that’s very nice. If you ever need to be in Manchester the Kimpton Clocktower is lovely, they were very generous to us as Spire when we stayed and the on-site restaurant is worth a visit even if you’re not staying.
        Other than that most of my stays last year were cancelled so I’m still waiting to try out the ICs. Got the Indigos Bath and Stratford Upon Avon provisionally booked for later in the year …
        I’m going to have another go at celebrating my birthday at The Langley. Hope springs eternal and all that 🤣

        • Capt Hammond says:

          30 Jan30 January 16:30

          Stayed at the Stratford upon Avon Indigo in September. Would recommend

        • Darren says:

          30 Jan30 January 21:31

          Second the Indigo in Stratford, very pleasant location and the restaurant attached is good. Nice garden attached as well for al fresco food and drinks.

      • Rob says:

        30 Jan30 January 15:31

        Outside London …. high level of luxury …. not in a business city …. no (unless you want to book a Mr & Mrs Smith hotel, but those are revenue-based redemptions).

        There is the new Holiday Inn Express on the main road outside Bodmin where we stayed in the Summer (search for our review) ….

        To be fair, Indigo Bath has decent reviews. Indigo York? Not sure Voco Cardiff really counts as touristy. Holiday Inn Bournemouth is functional but not much else. IC Edinburgh, but a city. Same with Kimpton Manchester.

        The p*ss-poor transport system in this country means that no-one will invest in luxury properties in coastal towns because they can’t get the conference business they need to survive out of season. Look at what Brighton has due to its quick rail link to London (but the IHG options are dire there).

        • TGLoyalty says:

          30 Jan30 January 18:49

          If you build it they will come 🙂

        • Rob says:

          30 Jan30 January 22:53

          I doubt it 🙂

• Anna says:

  30 Jan30 January 13:59

  Airline query! I’ve booked 2 nights at the Kimpton St Honore in December in the hope that Christmas might be a thing this year! My direct flight choices seem to be easyJet or Air France, similarly priced. I’ve only ever flown Air France once about 6 years ago in long haul economy (just before I discovered HFP!) Would there by any reason not to pick them over EJ?

  • Oli says:

    30 Jan30 January 14:10

    Likelihood of strikes?

  • ChrisBCN says:

    30 Jan30 January 14:37

    On the off chance the flights might get cancelled (and let’s hope not) I get the feeling that you will have less of a battle for a refund with EJ. Other than that, and if fares are similar, the only real differences for a flight this short is which inflight menu you prefer!

    • kitten says:

      30 Jan30 January 15:18

      Agree with ChrisBCN. Although you could earn a tiny amount of Virgin miles with Air France, or alternatively use an enormous amount of Virgin miles to buy an AF ticket, higher chance of it going wrong and them ignoring you about a refund.

      If you weren’t in MAN I would say Eurostar without question or BA from (or even via) Heathrow.

      Why not use up some of your FTV’s and book via Heathrow? you might get some excess paid back in cash and still be able to take another FTV if it doesn’t happen.

      • Anna says:

        30 Jan30 January 15:22

        If we had more time I would definitely give Eurostar a go but it’ll likely be out Friday night, back Sunday night so also going via LHR would eat into the weekend too much.
        I’m just debating whether to book now while prices are hovering around £100 return, or risk waiting until travel is definitely back on the cards when prices will probably shoot up!

        • kitten says:

          30 Jan30 January 17:45

          If you’ve got any Marriott pointsbthe Renaissance is wrll recommended and is actually within the Eurostar St Pancras building, some suites/rooms overlook the Station concourse and the building is a Hogwarts-type delight.

          Through fares from Manchestet to Paris might be quite reasonable or a Eurostar return with another offer or wait for Eurostar promo later i year.

          An Amex Plat would get you the Eurostar lounges at both ends. The Paris one at least is better than almost anything at CDG. You could walk to the hotel from the station if you wanted it’s so close or 5-10mins ( if traffic) in a taxi.

          CDG now has some very long walks from plane to public transport and the transport wont take you much less than an hour after that to the centre still needing a connection via Metro or a walk or a taxi if you didn’t take the bus.

          Alternatively you can sit in your Standard Premium or Business Class on Eurostar for 2 hrs 15mins or so from St Pancras, eat a meal, and arrive in the City Centre 5minsvftom your hotel. Or a shorter walk than you had to get outside CDG.

          I know which I’d choose as that schlep from CDG is miserable.

        • Lyn says:

          30 Jan30 January 20:07

          Kitten, the difference with the journey from CDG to to the St Honore is that it is just around the corner from the Roissy Bus stop outside the Opera, which is direct from CDG. No need for the RER or Metro.

        • kitten says:

          30 Jan30 January 20:20

          Yes that’s correct Lynn. Think i mentioned unless you take the bus [to Opera] then you will have to do a change Metro/RER-wise otherwise.

          Is the Intercontinental the old Hotel Scribe? I really can’t place it in my head which building it is.

        • Rob says:

          30 Jan30 January 22:49

          Le Grand has always been Le Grand – not sure how long IC has run it.

    • Anna says:

      30 Jan30 January 15:19

      Thanks – yes I would agree about EJ refunds, they have been exemplary on both lots of flights I had cancelled last year.

• Paul Pogba says:

  30 Jan30 January 14:19

  Looking at other schemes in other countries, how are EuroBonus (SAS) able to offer a Mastercard credit card paying 1pt per Euro, or 10pts per 100SEK when we’re told the EU interchange regulations put a practical cap of around 0.5% rebate on Visa/MC cards? Business redemptions to N America are around 100,000pts so the points seem to have a similar value.

  • RussellH says:

    30 Jan30 January 14:35

    SEK100 = £8.50, so 1.175 points per £1, which is less than the paid for Virgin M/Card.
    What is the annual fee for the SAS M/Card?

    • Paul Pogba says:

      30 Jan30 January 18:00

      Basic card is 197.5SEK first year (£17.25), 395SEK (£34.47) after that; premium card 1495SEK (£130.47) with an earning rate of 15pts per 100SEK and includes status points: https://www.sas.se/eurobonus/kreditkort/

      It must be as Rob suggests that they use a slightly more creative revenue sharing arrangement. I wish MBNA had entertained this before culling their cards.

  • Rob says:

    30 Jan30 January 15:39

    The Virgin cards are run as a JV with the airline. They share everything – interest income, FX income etc. I would imagine the miles are sold at a very competitive rate, below what others pay. SAS may do the same.

• RussellH says:

  30 Jan30 January 14:22

  ==> Kitten

  Thanks for your comments in yesterday, 29 Jan Chat thread at 15:24, re e-Rewards. I have only just seen it and replied there.

  • kitten says:

    30 Jan30 January 15:55

    agree probably best

• Alex D says:

  30 Jan30 January 14:52

  Has anyone got a Bulb energy supplier referral code?
  Also a question; We are going to be moving either way but was wondering if anyone pays with a CC? I have Amex(s), Virgin+, IHG and Curve Metal – whats the best option? thought i could set up a DD and then pay a day before minus £1 for example just to keep the DD going like i do with my phone

  • M says:

    30 Jan30 January 15:00

    https://www.bulb.me/mark42

    • Alex D says:

      30 Jan30 January 15:04

      Just used it – Thank you very much! Any knowledge of payment methods?

      • M says:

        30 Jan30 January 15:25

        https://hfp2022.headforpoints.blog/2020/04/14/using-american-express-to-pay-your-gas-and-electricity-bills-with-bulb/

      • M says:

        30 Jan30 January 15:26

        And thank you!

  • Buxton says:

    30 Jan30 January 16:47

    Used to love bulb, moved to Octopus for a better price but they also allow this, confirmed as i forgot to test but thanks for the reminder!

  • 747_Brat says:

    30 Jan30 January 17:26

    I recently switched to Igloo. They offer lower rates than Bulb & Octopus, and allow Amex top-ups keeping the direct debit low. The cherry on top is that they pay 3% interest on the account credit! 🙂

    Their Trustpilot reviews are also very very good.

    In case you would like to switch to Igloo, here’s my referral link. We both get £50. Thanks.
    https://refer.igloo.energy/neerajg3609

• Martyn Ford says:

  30 Jan30 January 14:55

  When ordering a Sainsbury`s delivery do check if you have any coupons. I have just found this:

  Triple points when you spend £0.01 or more Value is3x points

• Richard T says:

  30 Jan30 January 15:33

  At some moment in the next few months I will need for a variety of legal reasons to go to my second home in Germany. I’m wondering what counts as a permitted reason for travel outside the UK? And where is the legislation that enables and defines this restriction (I have been looking at published statutory instruments but can’t find anything giving the government the power to prevent me leaving the UK. Assume it is there somewhere).

  • Anna says:

    30 Jan30 January 16:08

    There isn’t a power to stop you leaving the UK. What the police or designated individuals can do is fine you and make you go home if you’re found to be away from it for none of the exceptions (work, exercise etc). There’s a link to the actual legislation somewhere on this site! It expires on March 31st so may well change at that point so it depends how pressing your need to travel is. Also, of course, we may still be shut out of other countries for some time!

    • Rob says:

      30 Jan30 January 18:08

      The police can’t make you go home, according to something I read the other day by a senior officer. They can recommend it but if you insist on proceeding they can’t do anything except issue a fine.

  • A says:

    30 Jan30 January 16:41

    As @Anna says, there is at present no specific ban or restriction on international travel – the restrictions that apply are those on being outside of your home without a reasonable excuse.

    https://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2020/1374/contents

    Schedule 3A sets out the restrictions that apply to a Tier 4 area (at present that’s the entirety of England).

    Paragraph 1 sets out the restriction on leaving home without a reasonable excuse.

    Paragraph 2 contains a (non-exhaustive) list of circumstances that are automatically reasonable excuses.

    If your reason(s) for travelling to Germany fit into a category in para 2, you’ll be fine.

  • kitten says:

    30 Jan30 January 17:50

    I think Germany has now put an absolute ban on entry from the UK and 4 other countries as of today or yesterday. For about 2 weeks but I would expect it to be extended for longer.

    • Richard T says:

      30 Jan30 January 20:17

      I have a German passport so I think I am exempted from the ban. However I will have to quarantine once I get there.

This article is closed to new posts. Discussion continues in the HfP Forums.