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September 23, 2025 โ€ข 54 mins
Welcome to the Hurdy Gurdy Travel Podcast! ๐ŸŽป Justin and co-host Darren explain the sudden Comenity/Bread Financial shutdownsโ€”what likely triggered them, how to de-risk, and smart pivots to keep earning points & miles. Breaking news: a War on Happiness report: sudden account shutdowns, why they maybe happened, and why it was absolutely worth it. Accounts closed, no email, no warning, just mass confusion and zeroed credit limits. Miles and points drama for sure! 00:00 ๐Ÿ‘‹ Intro: low-cost travel with points & miles 00:45 ๐Ÿงฑ Comenity/Bread shutdownsโ€”what happened 01:51 ๐ŸŽ™๏ธ Darrenโ€™s experience & takeaways 03:16 ๐Ÿงฉ Card benefits & stacking (what still works) 05:50 ๐Ÿคฏ Surprise closures & service headaches 13:18 ๐Ÿงช Likely triggers & risk factors (patterns we saw) 22:46 ๐Ÿ›ก๏ธ De-risking playbook & future considerations 26:41 ๐Ÿ˜ฎ Most surprising elements 28:44 ๐Ÿ“ฃ Announcements & speaking engagements 30:29 ๐Ÿงฐ Rewards tools & CardPointers shout-out 31:15 โœˆ๏ธ Meetups: travel & points community 32:40 ๐Ÿง  Maximizing ongoing card benefitsโ€”safely 39:30 ๐Ÿงญ Navigating shutdowns without losing momentum 48:18 ๐Ÿ“š Lessons learned from past deals 52:55 โœ… Closing notes & whatโ€™s next โ€” ๐ŸŽ™๏ธ ๐Ÿ“ข Listen to the Hurdy Gurdy Travel Podcast: ๐Ÿ‘‰ SoundCloud โ†’ https://soundcloud.com/hurdygurdytravelpodcast ๐Ÿ‘‰ Apple Podcasts / iTunes โ†’ https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/hurdy-gurdy-travel-podcast/id1489093490 ๐Ÿ‘‰ Spotify โ†’ https://open.spotify.com/show/0PRUx83Z4XKHengsgOoLWg ๐Ÿ‘‰ TuneIn โ†’ https://tunein.com/podcasts/Podcasts/Hurdy-Gurdy-Travel-Podcast-p1275539/ ๐Ÿ‘‰ iHeartRadio โ†’ https://www.iheart.com/podcast/269-hurdy-gurdy-travel-podcast-51807405/ ๐Ÿ‘‰ Podbean โ†’ https://www.podbean.com/podcast-detail/vvdph-a3425/Hurdy-Gurdy-Travel-Podcast ๐Ÿ‘‰ Pocket Casts โ†’ https://pocketcasts.com/podcasts/1a722d50-2d0a-0138-96d6-0acc26574db2?_prerender=true ๐Ÿ‘‰ Podchaser โ†’ https://www.podchaser.com/podcasts/hurdy-gurdy-travel-podcast-1153719 ๐Ÿ‘‰ Podcast Addict โ†’ https://podcastaddict.com/podcast/hurdy-gurdy-travel-podcast/3497422 ๐Ÿ‘‰ Castbox โ†’ https://castbox.fm/channel/Hurdy-Gurdy-Travel-Podcast-id4351553?country=us ๐Ÿ‘‰ โ€ฆand many other podcast platforms worldwide! ๐ŸŒ๐ŸŽง ๐Ÿ“ก Prefer using your favorite app? Simply copy & paste my podcast RSS feed: http://feeds.soundcloud.com/users/soundcloud:users:706382626/sounds.rss โ€” ๐Ÿ’œ Support My Work & Unlock Special Perks: ๐Ÿ‘‰ Visit the Support Tab on my website to contribute via SubscribeStar โ†’ https://www.subscribestar.com/hurdygurdytravel ๐Ÿ‘‰ Support me through helpful referral links on my site. ๐Ÿ‘‰ Use my CardPointers affiliate link to save on annual and lifetime memberships โ†’ https://www.cardpointers.com/hurdygurdytravel CardPointers helps you activate card-linked offers and take advantage of other powerful credit card features. ๐Ÿ‘‰ Earn 500 miles when signing up for Rove Miles using my referral link: www.rovemiles.com/?signup&referralCode=8AS1JSG9 โ€” ๐ŸŽ Subscriber & Supporter Perks Include: โœจ One-on-one calls with me โœจ Advance notice of upcoming podcast guests (submit your questions!) โœจ A custom podcast episode recorded just for you ๐ŸŽ™๏ธ๐Ÿ’ฌ โœจ Bonus content ๐ŸŽ โ€” ๐ŸŒ Stay Connected With Me: ๐Ÿ”” Subscribe on YouTube โ†’ https://www.youtube.com/@HurdyGurdyTravelPodcast ๐Ÿ‘ Like on Facebook โ†’ https://www.facebook.com/HurdyGurdyTravelPodcast ๐Ÿฆ Follow on Twitter / X โ†’ https://x.com/HurdyGurdyTravl ๐Ÿ“ธ Follow on Instagram โ†’ https://www.instagram.com/justinvacula/ โ€” โœจ Thank You for Listening & Supporting the Hurdy Gurdy Travel Podcast! Stay tuned for more tips, strategies, and stories to help you optimize your travel, rewards, and lifestyle. ๐Ÿš€๐ŸŒ๐Ÿ’ณ
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