Mirror Mirror on the Wall…

…which Barclaycard is the fairest of them all? Yes, the headline is a bit of a blast from the past.

Yesterday, Lufthansa Premier Miles and More card bonus was increased to 50,000 miles, $79 annual fee not waived (pays commission). Sure, you have to spend $5,000  in 3 months, a steep requirement. But you could get 4 one-way tickets on United within the Continental U.S. from just one bonus. That’s a good deal, for sure.

Additionally, the US Airways Mastercard official bonus offer is now 40,000 miles after the first purchase, $89 annual fee not waived. This is the first time when the bonus that pays me commission on this particular card also happens to be the best available offer.

And of course, there are Arrival and Frontier cards. If you are planning an app-o-rama, the question arises: Which Barclaycard to pick? You have to be very careful when making this decision. Barclay’s  has tightened their requirements as of late. In the past, people have been able to get 4 or 5 cards from that bank at one time. Not anymore.

Read this post on Rapid Travel Chai blog, where the author said he wasn’t able to get a card from Barclay’s in quite some time. Reconsideration attempts got him nowhere. My personal theory is that one of Barclay’s execs stumbled upon his blog and got jealous of Stefan’s rugged good looks, as well as the fact that he had visited North Korea, and blacklisted him!

My advice? The same as it has always been: Get US Airways MasterCard. Sure, it’s supposed to be around for a few months at least, but you may not get approved for it then if you go with another Barclaycard now. Why take  a chance?

This is the case of “you snooze, you lose.” Unless you will have absolutely no use for (future) AAdvantage miles in the next few years, IMO, it makes no sense to pass on the opportunity to stock up while you still can. Sure, we don’t know what changes are in store for the new award chart, but that’s the case with all mileage programs.

Remember Chase AirTran Visa? It’s no longer available. There wasn’t much talk about it in the blogosphere since it paid no commission, but it offered 2 free roundtrip flights as a sign-up bonus. It was in my “Best deals” page and I got one for my husband.

I debated on whether to get one in my name as well. Well, when I clicked on the application, it was no longer working. If anyone knows where to find it, please, chime in in the comments! But it looks like that ship has sailed and is no longer coming back.

I actually just applied for US Airways Barclaycard in my husband’s name and he got approved. First, I canceled all his other accounts from that bank. I have read it can help with approval, though YMMV. Result: Success! I got a second bonus on that card within 6 months of applications, so I expect the same result with his card as well.

This offer also comes with two $99 certificates that you can use, as long as the cardholder books a fare of $250 or more on US Airways (within the contiguous 48 states or to Canada). That’s a great benefit for families. I try to promote “close to free” travel as much as I can, but there are times when paying for airfare makes more sense than using miles.

Of course, do what  works for you. As always, you don’t have to use my links and can apply through another blogger’s site instead. Just don’t let it become a case of “you snooze, you lose 40,000 AAdvantage miles.”

Click here to view various credit cards and available sign-up bonuses