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Continuing our series of success stories, I wanted to share a story from 1TP subscriber Roxy, who was able to redeem points and secure a last minute, one-way transcontinental flight for cheap.
Let’s take a look at the deal…
Timing is everything!
A few days ago, you posted a success story from Tosha and it was extremely inspiring.
Ironically, I found out later that afternoon that I needed to make a one-way, cross-country trip next week.
I look forward to all your blogs but I make sure that I bookmark all the blogs that appear to be tips and tricks for redeeming points. Fortunately, I had bookmarked Travel Hacking: How to Redeem Points For Cheap Tickets Through The Chase Travel Portal.
I quickly read it again, logged into my Chase Sapphire Preferred account, followed the steps and booked a $55 cross-country ticket for ~4000 points. I attached the pic to this email.
I’m not sure if that is “great value” but I suspect since you wrote about it (and put travel hacking in the title) that it’s a good idea. Regardless, I’m happy with my purchase and even more excited with $0 spent because my mission is to keep as much money in my pocket as possible.
Thanks Jamal.
– roxy
Let’s take a look at the attached photos…
As you can see, Roxy booked a one-way ticket from Los Angeles (LAX) to Philadelphia (PHL). The price was indeed $55.
Proceeding through the Chase Travel Portal, you can 1) purchase the tickets with cash credit card or 2) redeem points in exchange for the entire cash value – no taxes, no surcharges, etc.
Depending on what card you possess, here are the redemption values:
- Chase Sapphire Reserve: you can redeem points for 1.5 cents each towards the cost of a travel purchase
- Chase Sapphire Preferred: you can redeem points for 1.25 cents each towards the cost of a travel purchase
- Chase Ink Business Preferred: you can redeem points for 1.25 cents each towards the cost of a travel purchase
In this case of using the Chase Sapphire Preferred, Roxy is redeeming 4,408 points for a $55 ticket ($55.10 / .0125 = 4,408 points). Alternatively, if Roxy had used the Chase Sapphire Reserve, the redemption would’ve been 3,673 points for a $55 ticket ($55.10 / .0150 = 3,673 points).
FINAL STAMP
In the grand scheme of things, the 700 point difference is not life altering. However, when redeeming points for a much more expensive ticket, say, a $1000 business class ticket;
- Chase Sapphire Reserve: $1000 / .0150 = 66,667 points
- Chase Sapphire Preferred: $1000 / .0125 = 80,000 points
…a ~14,000 point difference may give you pause.
But as I always say, everyone has different goals with their points. If YOUR points accomplished YOUR goals, there’s nothing additional to discuss.
But imagine how many ~4000 point, transcontinental flights you can purchase with the current 80,000 points welcome bonus on the Chase Sapphire Preferred!!
Again, there’s little downside to the points and miles hobby as long as you stay organized and manage your expenses and credit responsibly.
If you’re new to points and miles. Start by checking out our beginner’s guide and learning basic strategies to maximize your rewards. And if you have questions, don’t hesitate to comment on the blog or simply respond to the daily email.
Have you had an experience where points have saved you a lot money?
p.s. You should share this information with your friends and anyone that is interested in traveling. Forwarding the daily email, or posting this blog on social media takes less than 5 seconds. Friends help friends travel better (and cheaper). We should all be saving money!!
1TattedPassport 