Paying Tuition With a Credit Card

Now that September is close, some readers have asked: Can I pay my university/college tuition by credit card (and get the points)? 

The short answer is maybe, but don’t do it. There are a number of ways by which money can be drawn from your credit card for payment to a school. You can draw a cheque on the credit line, take cash out, etc. All these transactions will count as a cash advance, where you will incur interest from the date of the transaction (no 21 day grace period), and will likely incur a service fee. Further, most creditors don’t award points or cash-back on cash advances. Evidently, this is not the way to go.

California Bound (again)!

Last year I did a backpacking trip through the San Francisco Bay Area by myself. Tonight, I head back to California with a friend, and we’re backpacking from SFO to LAX. I won’t be posting much until I get back on Aug 28. If anything awesome comes up (i.e. fare mistake, dramatic news, etc.) I’ll try and post.

a screenshot of a hotel

How I cancelled a Priceline ‘Name Your Own Price’ hotel reservation for free

Yesterday I made a bid for a Priceline ‘Name Your Own Price’ hotel in San Diego, CA. Unfortunately, I did not get the hotel rate/place that I wanted. I had to figure out a way to get the reservation refunded. Unfortunately, Priceline is pretty darn tough about cancelling Priceline NYOP reservations, and the only (known) exception is death of a family member.