Redeeming Chase Ultimate Rewards – Transfer Partners

Chase Ultimate Rewards points are some of the most valuable and flexible points on the market. If you tuned into my post last week then you saw how you could earn 55,000 Chase Ultimate Rewards points by signing up for the Chase Sapphire Preferred (CSP) card! And for those of you who pulled the trigger on applying or for those of you still on the fence, I wanted to give you a brief introduction on some of my favorite uses of Chase Ultimate Rewards points and how to obtain the greatest value by transferring to Chase travel partners:

Chase advertises that the 50,000 bonus on the CSP is worth $625 in travel rewards when redeemed through Chase Ultimate Rewards portal (the portal is essentially just a travel booking site where it is possible to use Ultimate Rewards points to pay instead of or in combination with cash). Now while this is a good value, I will show you how transferring to Chase’s transfer partners will provide you with much greater value and much more FREE TRAVEL!

Before we get into the examples it is important to note that Chase Ultimate Reward transfers are final, so make sure you are sure of the transfer as it cannot be reversed.

Here are my top 5 favorite Chase Ultimate Reward point transfers to make:

1.       Transfer points to United MileagePlus – There is so much you can do with United MileagePlus, including flying domestic and international award flights on United Airlines, as well as flying on other Star Alliance Partners.

2.       Transfer points to Southwest Airlines Rapid Rewards – Southwest is one of my favorite airlines operating the skies these days, and since they operate a number of direct routes out of my home airport (TPA) I find myself flying them more often than not. With cancellable flights for full refunds and no bag fees, Southwest Rapid Reward points great to have in your pocket in order to take those domestic US trips you’ve  been thinking about (although Southwest does have some International destinations too!).

3.       Transfer points to Korean Air SKYPASS – The reasoning behind this suggestion to transfer to the Korean Air frequent flyer program – that most of you have never heard of – has little to do with Korea, and everything to do with Hawaii. This is because the way that the Korean Air Award Redemption chart allows you to fly on Delta from anywhere in the US mainland to Hawaii for only 25,000 points in Economy or 45,000 miles in Business Class (when transferred from Chase Ultimate Rewards to Korean Air SKYPASS).  This is all made possible since Korean Air and Delta are both part of the SkyTeam Alliance, and work together in order to make travel possible across the world.

4.       Transfer points to Hyatt Gold Passport – Hyatt Gold Passport points are one of the more valuable hotel point currencies, since a standard room at a top tier hotel can be redeemed for 30,000 Hyatt Gold Passport points. Hyatt has a variety of hotel levels ranging from the top-tier (Park Hyatt) to other the other mid-tier (Grand Hyatt) and standard levels (Hyatt Place).

5.       Transfer points to Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer – Believe it or not, KrisFlyer Miles can be redeemed  for much more than you may think! They can be redeemed for travel on Singapore Air (which flies in/out of New York, San Francisco & Los Angeles), or they can be redeemed for travel on United Airlines. In fact, you can actually get more value (i.e. stretch your points farther) out of the Ultimate Rewards transfer by transferring to points to Singapore Airlines and then redeeming Singapore miles for United flights (for economy seats only – and you will have to call Singapore Air directly). It is a little backwards, but I have done it in the past and it makes for a great value!

I wanted to keep this post as simple as possible, but if you have any questions on how any of this works then email me for more information! 

My Thoughts?

Transferring Chase Ultimate Rewards points to Chase Travel Partners can be very lucrative and provide a better all-around value on a per point basis than redeeming points through Chase Ultimate Rewards portal. But make sure you always check back to the Starter Guide, as the best use of your points will always be whatever allows you to achieve YOUR travel dreams!

If all of this seems a bit confusing and convoluted then you are not alone, as many people’s largest complaint with points and miles is that they are so hard to use! If you find yourself in this position then make sure to visit AYP Consulting Services and send an email to accountingyourpoints@yahoo.com to see how AcCounting Your Points can help you achieve your travel dreams!

DW