Airline/Hotel Loyalty Programs

[Pelado]

Updated (and additional) referral links since somebody requested these from me recently:

Ultimate Rewards cards

• Sapphire Reserve – 100k bonus points after spending $6k in first three months, $795 annual fee, 8x on travel purchased through Chase portal, 4x on travel directly with airlines/hotels, 3x points on restaurants, Sapphire Lounge and Priority Pass Lounge access included, IHG One Rewards Platinum Elite Status included, $300 annual travel credit, $500 annual The Edit credit, Global Entry/TSA Precheck credit, bunch of other credits
• Sapphire Preferred – 100k bonus points after spending $5k in the first three months, $95 annual fee, 5x on travel purchased through Chase portal and Lyft rides and Peloton equipment, 3x points on restaurants and vacation rentals, 2x on other travel, $50 annual travel credit, a few other credits
• Sapphire Reserve for Business – 200k bonus points after spending $30k in first six months, $795 annual fee, 8x on travel purchased through Chase portal, 5x on Lyft, 4x on travel directly with airlines/hotels, 3x points on social media and search engine advertising, Sapphire Lounge and Priority Pass Lounge access included, IHG One Rewards Platinum Elite Status included, $300 annual travel credit, $500 annual The Edit credit, $250 select hotel credit, $200 Google Workspace credit, Global Entry/TSA Precheck credit, bunch of other credits
• Ink Business Preferred – 100k bonus points after spending $8k in first three months, $95 annual fee, 5x points on Lyft, 3x on shipping, travel, social media advertising, and internet/phone/cable services
• Ink Business Unlimited – 100k bonus points after spending $8k in the first three months, no annual fee, 5x points on Lyft, 1.5x points on all other purchases
• Ink Business Cash – 100k bonus points after spending $8k in the first six months, no annual fee, 5x points on internet/phone/cable services, office supply store purchases, 2x points on gas stations and restaurants
• Chase Freedom Unlimited – 20k bonus points after spending $500 in the first three months, no annual fee, 5x points on travel purchased through Chase portal, 3x on restaurants and drugstores, 1.5x points on all other purchases
• Chase Freedom Flex – 20k bonus points after spending $500 in the first three months, no annual fee, 5x points on travel purchased through Chase portal and on rotating categories each quarter, 3x on restaurants and drugstores, 1x points on all other purchases

United MileagePlus cards – holding one or more of these cards unlocks award availability for booking with points that is not available to those who don’t hold a card or have elite status with United

• United Business – 100k bonus MileagePlus points after spending $5k in the first three months, $150 annual fee, 5k bonus miles each card anniversary, 2 United Club passes each year, first checked bag free, 2x miles on United purchases and gas stations and restaurants and office supply stores, various credits available
• United Club Business – 100k bonus MileagePlus points after spending $5k in first three months, $695 annual fee, 5k bonus miles each card anniversary, includes United Club membership for accessing United Club lounges with a guest, Premier Access for priority check in and boarding and baggage, first and second checked bags free, 2x miles on United purchases, 5x miles on hotels prepaid directly through Renowned Hotels and Resorts, 1.5x miles on all other purchases, various credits available
• United Gateway – 30k bonus MileagePlus points after spending $1k in the first three months, no annual fee, 2x miles on United purchases and gas stations and other travel
• United Explorer – 50k bonus MileagePlus points after spending $3k in first three months, $150 annual fee waived for first year, 2 United Club passes each year, first checked bag free, 3x miles on United purchases, 2x on restaurants and other travel, Global Entry/TSA Precheck credit, various credits available
• United Quest – 60k bonus MileagePlus points after spending $4k in the first three months, $350 annual fee, first and second checked bags free, 4x miles on United purchases, 5x miles on hotels prepaid directly through Renowned Hotels and Resorts, 2x miles on other travel and restaurants and select streaming services, various credits available
• United Club – 80k bonus MileagePlus points after spending $5k in first three months, $695 annual fee, 5k bonus miles each card anniversary, includes United Club membership for accessing United Club lounges with a guest, Premier Access for priority check in and boarding and baggage, first and second checked bags free, 5x miles on United purchases and hotels prepaid directly through Renowned Hotels and Resorts, 2x miles on other travel and restaurants, various credits available

[Pelado]

For those considering the Chase Sapphire Reserve card - it comes with various credits that can be useful for football season.

For those looking to score tickets on the secondary market, the card offers two $150 credits to StubHub - one for January - June and another for July - December.

For those traveling to the games, there's the $300 travel credit for pretty much any travel type. Just use the card for the purchase and they automatically issue the credit.

There's also a monthly $10 Lyft credit available, for up to $120 benefit annually. Also, purchases from Lyft that don't qualify for the credit earn 5x points per dollar spent. Another Lyft benefit not tied to the Sapphire Reserve card - you can earn Alaska Atmos points for every Lyft purchase. You just have to designate that in the Lyft app.

For even less expensive Lyft rides, you can pair the complimentary DoorDash DashPass which gets you discounted Lyft rides. There's also DoorDash credits of up to $25 per month ($5 for restaurant, two $10 credits for non-restaurant orders).

If you stay at The Edit hotels/resorts, you can get two $250 credits. There are also two $150 dining credits available at select restaurants. Both of those credit programs run Jan - Jun and Jul - Dec.

For airlines and hotels booked directly that don't qualify for any of the credits, you earn 4x UR points per dollar spent. If you book through the Chase travel portal, you get 8x points per dollar spent.

If you don't already have TSA Precheck or Global Entry, there's also a credit of up to $120 which covers the cost of either program.

Having the card also grants you status with a few different travel programs:

• Marriott Bonvoy Gold Elite
• IHG Platinum Elite (which also gets you Hertz Gold Plus Rewards Five Star)

And, it comes with complimentary access to Chase Reserve airport lounges and other Priority Pass lounges globally. Sadly, the domestic Priority Plus lounge network isn't particularly robust.

It also comes with pretty much the best insurance protections of any credit card (primary rental car, trip cancelation, trip delay, lost luggage, etc.) for the cardholder and/or any immediate family of the cardholder (spouse, parent, grandparent, brother, sister, child, grandchild, but not in-laws), as long as at least a portion of the travel cost was purchased with the card (even on flights purchased primarily with points).

If you take advantage of all the credits on the card, it's worth a lot more than the steep $795 annual fee, even before taking into consideration the current sign-up bonus - 125k Ultimate Rewards points after spending $6k in the first three months of having the card.

So the Chase Sapphire Reserve might be a card worth getting before buying tickets and/or traveling to the games. And if you're going to get it, make sure you use a referral link so a fellow CSer gets a referral bonus benefit.

[Pelado]

The Sapphire Reserve sign-up offer above is no longer available. It's been replaced with something...better (at least in my mind).

The new sign-up bonus offer is for 125k Ultimate Rewards points after spending $6k ion the card in the first three months. It's a 20% increase in the spend requirement, which is not great, but I'd rather have the extra 25k points instead of the $500 travel credit.

After reading the fine print on the $500 bonus, I realized it's not what I was originally thinking. I was thinking it would be pretty much the same as the $300 credit that gets applied as adjustments to the account - wiping out the first $300 in travel expenses for the year.

In fact, the credit is up to $500. After earning the sign-up bonus, the credit becomes available to use, but only in the Chase travel portal. I believe it is applied to the first booking in the portal after earning it. If that reservation is less than $500, then that's the extent of the credit. If not used within 12 months, the credit expires.

The 25k points would not expire, can be transferred to travel partners to book directly (instead of using a stupid third-party agency like Chase Travel), can often be worth more than $0.02 per point on redemption, and can be used in as many transactions as they last for instead of having to use all the points in a single reservation.

I called Chase and asked if they could switch my sign-up bonus (that I haven't earned yet) to the latest offer. They said not yet but to check back for the marketing department to give the OK next week.

When I checked back the next week, they said no, they couldn't/wouldn't switch my sign-up bonus to the new one. Darn.

[Pelado]

Adding some new cards, updating for the current offers, and refreshing the referral links:

Chase Sapphire Reserve or Sapphire Preferred card - Sapphire Reserve is revamped with a hefty new annual fee ($795) to accompany its many travel benefits. Currently offering 100k bonus points +$500 travel credit after spending $5k on the card in the first 3 months. I believe that $500 travel credit is in addition to the $300 travel credit the card carries even without the bonus offer. The Sapphire Preferred has a very good but relatively modest bonus (75k points) to accompany its more humble annual fee ($95)

The Sapphire Reserve sign-up offer above is no longer available. It's been replaced with something...better (at least in my mind).

The new sign-up bonus offer is for 125k Ultimate Rewards points after spending $6k ion the card in the first three months. It's a 20% increase in the spend requirement, which is not great, but I'd rather have the extra 25k points instead of the $500 travel credit.

After reading the fine print on the $500 bonus, I realized it's not what I was originally thinking. I was thinking it would be pretty much the same as the $300 credit that gets applied as adjustments to the account - wiping out the first $300 in travel expenses for the year.

In fact, the credit is up to $500. After earning the sign-up bonus, the credit becomes available to use, but only in the Chase travel portal. I believe it is applied to the first booking in the portal after earning it. If that reservation is less than $500, then that's the extent of the credit. If not used within 12 months, the credit expires.

The 25k points would not expire, can be transferred to travel partners to book directly (instead of using a stupid third-party agency like Chase Travel), can often be worth more than $0.02 per point on redemption, and can be used in as many transactions as they last for instead of having to use all the points in a single reservation.

I called Chase and asked if they could switch my sign-up bonus (that I haven't earned yet) to the latest offer. They said not yet but to check back for the marketing department to give the OK next week.

[bluegoose]

AA has probably the most uncomfortable seats I've ever flown in. Just had a 4 hour flight from Chicago last week that was awful. Similar experience two years ago. That, and their cabins are old with no upgrades. They have been reliable. No delays or cancellations. and their app is fine.

[Bo Diddley]

I had a terrible experience with American a while back and I haven't flown with them since. I need to get over that, especially now that they're flying out of Provo.

[Jeff Lebowski]

I haven't tried the app yet but was playing around on their website yesterday and it seemed to be pretty easy to navigate selecting award travel. They have a calendar view to see when the best pricing is and you can filter it for number of stops and such. Seems pretty easy to use.

American's site was way better than trying to book award flights on the British Airways site (also a OneWorld alliance member). BA shows how many award spots are remaining on particular flights but doesn't tell you how many points they require until you select the flight. Also, for the sample flights I looked at, booking award flights on Alaska or American through BA Avios was yielding a much less favorable result than through Alaska Atmos points or AAdvantage miles.

As for my inquiry about American, though, I was wondering more about the in-plane experience than the app or website. What makes it "just OK?" Are the seats more narrow or less comfortable? Less leg room? Poorer in-flight service from the flight attendants? Worse on-time percentage? Something else?

Cancellations, delays, etc.

https://thepointsguy.com/airline/best-us-airlines-2025/

Surprised they have Alaska Air above American. Alaska Airlines is terrible.

[Pelado]

I am flying American more because they now fly out of Provo. Delta is still the gold standard. American is just OK. Their app used to be horrible, but it is better now.

I haven't tried the app yet but was playing around on their website yesterday and it seemed to be pretty easy to navigate selecting award travel. They have a calendar view to see when the best pricing is and you can filter it for number of stops and such. Seems pretty easy to use.

American's site was way better than trying to book award flights on the British Airways site (also a OneWorld alliance member). BA shows how many award spots are remaining on particular flights but doesn't tell you how many points they require until you select the flight. Also, for the sample flights I looked at, booking award flights on Alaska or American through BA Avios was yielding a much less favorable result than through Alaska Atmos points or AAdvantage miles.

As for my inquiry about American, though, I was wondering more about the in-plane experience than the app or website. What makes it "just OK?" Are the seats more narrow or less comfortable? Less leg room? Poorer in-flight service from the flight attendants? Worse on-time percentage? Something else?

[Jeff Lebowski]

How bad is flying American, really? It's been a while for me - maybe since my mission. I have recent experience with both United and Southwest.

I am flying American more because they now fly out of Provo. Delta is still the gold standard. American is just OK. Their app used to be horrible, but it is better now.

[Pelado]

Other than you have to fly American occasionally, seems like a solid plan.

How bad is flying American, really? It's been a while for me - maybe since my mission. I have recent experience with both United and Southwest.

[Omaha 680]

The recent addition of American Airlines as a transfer partner of Citi ThankYou points has me considering a slightly different travel rewards points strategy than I have previously employed. The Citi Strata Elite and Premier (and no-longer accepting new applicants) Prestige allow for the 1:1 transfers. Lesser Citi ThankYou cards allow for transfers to non-American programs, but generally at a less-favorable rate. But those lesser cards can be paired with a Strata card to unlock the 1:1 ratio and American transfers.

American doesn't have a big presence at my primary airport (Boise), but Alaska does. And Alaska is now a OneWorld alliance partner of American. So AAdvantage miles can be used to book flights through American on Alaska metal.

So I'm thinking of getting the Citi Strata Premier card (with primarily travel bonus categories) and the Citi DoubleCash card (with 2% on all purchases). I wouldn't probably use the Strata Premier (annual fee of $99) much after getting the sign-up bonus, but I would use the DoubleCash card (no annual fee) for pretty much all my non-bonus category spending.

Anyone have either of those cards? Any problems with this plan? Any possible improvements?

Other than you have to fly American occasionally, seems like a solid plan.

[Bo Diddley]

Wells Fargo also has a 2% cash back visa I keep in my wallet.

[Copelius]

I only fly when someone else is paying, so I am a straight cash guy. I have the Fidelity 2% cash back card, which was an upgrade from the Quicksilver 1.5%. I do gas and dining with Sam's @ 5% and 3% cash back respectively. I had Alaska when I lived up there, but no need anymore since we don't fly. I use the AMEX 2% cash back for my business and Capital One Ink at 1.5% for those that don't accept AMEX (stupid Utah Court System).

[Pelado]

Citi® / AAdvantage Business™ World Elite Mastercard. 65K miles IIRC.



Looks like they don't have a referral bonus.

Jerks.

[Jeff Lebowski]

The business card on Citi - is that the Citi AAdvantage Business World Elite Mastercard? Or the Citi Business ThankYou Card? Or something else? Do you remember what sign-up bonus you got for it?

Citi® / AAdvantage Business™ World Elite Mastercard. 65K miles IIRC.

Also, do you have a referral code for the Double Cash card? Might as well get you some additional ThankYou points if/when I sign up.

Looks like they don't have a referral bonus.