The Chase Travel℠ program is easily the best option for both newbies and seasoned travelers. Why? Not only are Chase Ultimate Rewards® (UR) points lucrative in every sense of the word, but they’re extremely flexible to boot. Usually, it’s best to transfer your Chase points out to a travel partner, but sometimes, it pays to redeem through the Chase Travel℠ portal.
Should I check the Chase Travel Portal or not?
The flexibility component of UR points is mainly supported by the fact you can transfer Chase points to several top-tier loyalty programs. Once you start racking up some Chase points thanks to some of the best Chase credit cards, you can quickly turn them into British Airways Avios or Southwest Rapid Rewards points at a 1:1 ratio, for example. Or, you can opt for one of their other transfer partners like Marriott, IHG, or Hyatt.
Still, there is another, less popular use of Chase points that gives them even more clout in the flexibility area. In addition to redeeming your Chase points for cash back or gift cards, you can book travel through the Chase Travel℠ portal as well. It’s easy to see how some Chase cards are considered some of the best credit cards for travel miles.
5 Times it Pays to Check the Chase Travel Portal
While many experts hem and haw about this option and consider it less desirable than transferring your points to travel partners, I would argue that the Chase Travel℠ portal has its own share of gems. It’s always worth weighing the pros and cons and exploring several options, of course, but there are instances where the Chase Travel℠ portal will leave you far ahead. Here are a few of those situations.
1. Before You Transfer Points to a Hotel Partner
Before you transfer those valuable Chase points to a hotel transfer partner, do your homework. You can often find better deals at Chase loyalty partner hotels through the Chase travel portal. That’s especially true if you travel off-peak. Either way, it always pays to check.
Here’s an example of how this works. Let’s say you want to spend a few free nights at an IHG resort in Montego Bay, Jamaica, and plan to transfer Chase points to cover the trip. A normal night at the property rings up at 50,000 IHG points if you were to transfer and then book directly, yet you could also go with points and cash and pay 30,000 points plus $200 for a four-night stay.
Check the Chase portal, and you might find something interesting. This hotel often costs fewer points per night if you use the portal.
Some of the best hotel credit cards are also part of the Chase family.
2. Before You Transfer Points to an Airline Transfer Partner
Chase points are usually most valuable when transferred to travel partners—or are they? It really depends on the dates and the transfer partner itself. I always suggest comparing a few options and shopping around before you transfer your points to any of the Chase airline travel partners.
Here’s an example (this is just an example, and the prices of these flights can change anytime) of a time when checking the Chase Travel℠ portal paid off. I was considering flying from Minneapolis to Las Vegas and assumed Southwest Airlines was the best bet. After checking, however, I found that the cheapest Southwest flight for my dates rang at 31,396 points plus $11.20.
I found a similar yet nonstop flight on Spirit Airlines for just 17,296 Chase points round-trip and on the same exact dates. If you’re not picky about your airline, you can book directly through Chase and save.
Here are the Chase airline transfer partners:
- Aer Lingus AerClub
- Air Canada Aeroplan
- British Airways Executive Club
- Emirates Skywards
- Air France KLM Flying Blue
- Iberia Plus
- JetBlue TrueBlue
- Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer
- Southwest Airlines Rapid Rewards
- United MileagePlus
- Virgin Atlantic Flying Club
3. When You Want to Book an Off-Brand Hotel
You can join all the hotel programs you want, but sometimes, your lodging option will be off the beaten path. Want to stay in a converted monastery on the Amalfi coast? A hostel in Madrid? A bed and breakfast in Mumbai? Chances are good you won’t be able to use your hotel points for any such stay, which is why it helps to have flexible travel points on hand.
You could, of course, use points from a fixed-value travel credit card that offers “travel credit,” like the Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card. But booking through the Chase Travel℠ portal is often just as good. And since you score a 25 percent redemption bonus when you book travel through the Chase Travel℠ portal and own the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card or Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card, it is often cheaper, too.
And yes, you can have Chase Sapphire Preferred AND Ink Business Preferred cards.
The current Chase hotel transfer partners are:
- IHG Rewards Club
- Marriott Bonvoy
- World of Hyatt
4. Any Time You’re Booking an Activity or Excursion
If you book a lot of day trips and boat trips, you probably look to local sources or websites like Viator.com. I check prices on these websites all the time, and I sometimes find that Chase Travel℠ offers a better deal – and on the same excursions to boot!
For instance, a while back, I found a four-day tour of classical Greece departing from Athens. Through Viator.com, I would pay $584.69 per person. Considering this trip includes coach transportation, overnight stays in three—and four-star hotels, entry to all included attractions and sights, and two meals a day, this was a stellar deal.
But do you know what’s even better? Paying less. Through Chase Travel℠, the same excursion was either $563.27 or 45,061 points per person.
This is just one example, and there are thousands of others. The bottom line is you should check through Chase to compare prices.
5. Whenever You Book a Rental Car
To save on rental cars, you might want to check the Chase Travel portal for pricing. This isn’t always the case, but it is worth considering. For example, I looked up rental cars in my home city of Indianapolis and found a Budget car starting at around $51 per day on Expedia.com.
On the other hand, through the Chase Travel℠ portal, I could get the same Budget economy rental for $36.60 or 2,928 points per day. Pretty sweet, huh?
Final Thoughts
While it’s true that Chase transfer partners can be crazy-lucrative and valuable for any traveler, there are times when it pays to check the Chase Travel portal, which may have better value. This is yet another reason Chase’s points are so helpful for most people who participate in this hobby. With the ability to transfer points to travel partners, book directly through the Chase portal, or redeem for cash or gift cards, you really can’t go wrong.
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I have yet to find a great Rental Car deal ANYWHERE, no matter the discount codes, Corporate Codes, etc. I have try SLASHER services.
ALL of the cars, one way from a Cal airport to another (RDD to SFO) are all in over $210 PER DAY.
This is a nightmare rate when you consider that we rented from the same companies two years ago for under 80 bucks US.
I agree! Car rental rates are crazy right now.