I’m sure you’ve already figured this out, but travel hacking slows down this time of year because reasons. As a result, we have just a single item for today:
Giftcards.com has 5% off of virtual Visa Gift Cards through the end of the year with promo code VV5T216. The maximum face value is $250, and the promo code only works for up to $750 total in purchases. Buying $750 in cards will cost $730.35, and should earn cash back or miles when purchased through a portal. A few notes:
- These are Metabank gift cards, have a liquidation (cash-out) plan in-mind
- If your order gets cancelled, your email address is probably burned — just create a new account with a new email
- These will earn rewards on American Express cards
Because this is the only item today, let’s talk liquidation (cashing-out gift cards). There are a few options that aren’t exactly secrets but aren’t well published either; most of them involve a fee of some sort, and the loan options carry a risk of default that you can largely mitigate but not eliminate. They are:
- Bravo (works with MetaBank)
- Money orders (needs a physical GC unless you’re really crafty, sometimes works with MetaBank)
- Kiva (works with MetaBank)
- Plastiq (doesn’t usually work with MetaBank)
- Kickfurther (works with MetaBank)
- Melio (doesn’t work with MetaBank)
- Local utilities (often they accept debit cards, and often they’re required to refund any overpayments by local law)
- Amazon in a pinch (works with MetaBank)
Of course there are other options too, but they’re more closely guarded. You can find them with some digging. Check bill payment services, fintech companies, and payment processors.
