How To Road Trip To Bryce National Park On Points

 

Road tripping to the National Parks is probably the best way to travel right now. It's outdoors and easy to socially distance. And pretty easy to do on points and miles. This past week since my daughter is on remote school and I work from home, we took a road trip to Zion and Bryce National Parks. 

You might recall that we did a huge family National Park trip last summer to Glacier, Yellowstone and the Grand Tetons. And all we could say was wow. So I was pretty excited to set off on this road trip plus I've been itching to travel. 

Bryce and Zion National Parks are about a 2-hour drive apart. Depending on where you are coming from could determine which one you do first. But if you can, I highly recommend visiting Bryce first. The hoodoos in Bryce are spectacular and different, BUT Zion is stunning. 

There is a small town, Bryce Canyon City, just outside of the gate to Bryce National Park. There are about a dozen hotels, a campground, and a dozen restaurants. The FREE park shuttle stops several times on the main drag and runs from 7am-8pm. We left our car in the hotel parking lot and just hopped the shuttle. 

We stayed at the Best Western Plus Bryce Canyon Grand Hotel for two nights (one night with a promotion award certificate and one night with 20,000 Best Western points). There is another Best Western hotel called Ruby's Inn across the street which is advertised as historic and cozy. The rest of the hotels in town are independent so you may be able to book with Chase Ultimate Reward points through the travel portal (the Chase Sapphire Preferred credit card has an 80,000 point bonus offer right now) or you can pay for them with your Capital One credit card or Bank of America Travel Card and erase the purchase. 

The hotel included a hot buffet breakfast. Due to Covid, there is staff serving the customers in the line. The wifi is good enough for remote school and work and there is a lot of FREE parking. 

Inside the park, I recommend checking out the view from Bryce point, then hopping the shuttle to Sunrise point. From there, you can walk the Rim Trail to Sunset Point (.5 mile) and walk down the Queens Garden Trail into the hoodoos. Remember you will have to walk back up! 

The Bryce National Canyon Lodge may be worth checking out as well. 

There are bikes to rent right outside the gate and the Visitor Center has a super informative museum.

If you plan to visit both parks, you may want to buy an annual National Parks pass for $80. It's good for 13 months if you plan it right since it's good for the month you buy it plus a year. Even if you ride the shuttle into the park, you still need to show your pass or pay your entry. 

If you decide to apply for the Chase Sapphire Preferred credit card which is offering the highest bonus we have ever seen at 80,000 Ultimate Reward points, consider applying through my referral link. 

While in Bryce Canyon City, definitely check out Bryce Canyon Pines for homemade soup and pie. YUM! 

 

Why I Just Booked a Day Trip To San Francisco on Southwest

 

This is one of the best promotions we have ever seen and it's the reason I just booked a day trip to San Francisco. It doesn't take much to convince me to head to SF anyway for clam chowder and bread bowls from Sabella & La Torre seafood stand on Fisherman's Wharf. 

But with $49 fares from San Diego to Oakland, this seems like a no brainer. 

Here's how it works:

• You have to register for the promotion at this link 
• Purchase your ticket by Thursday, September 24th 
• Travel by November 15th. 

If you do all of that, you will earn a mini companion pass good for almost two months of BOGO travel. 

I have had the Southwest Companion Pass for the last five years, yep, you read that right. It has saved me thousands in airfare. From trips to research colleges for two children, move-in dates, family weekends, family trips. vacation in Cuba, Mexico, Costa Rica, Washington DC several times, my companion pass has gotten a lot of use. 

Now because I have the companion pass already and Southwest extended the expiration date to June 2021, I bought my daughter's flight to San Francisco and used points for my flight. My daughter will qualify for the companion pass since there is no age limit. 

I'm not sure where we will go in January or February, but now with our family of 5, two people will fly for FREE. Woohoo! 

Remember you have to book your flight by Thursday! 

Find Out How You Can Get A BOGO On Southwest

Amazing offer from Southwest Airlines! 

 If you have never had a Southwest Companion Pass before which is probably the best deal in travel, here's your chance to try it out. The companion pass is BOGO for two years. You need to earn 125,000 points in a calendar year to earn it. You can check out my past post to see how it works. Let's walk through this offer because the details are very specific.  

1. You must register by logging into your Southwest Rapid Rewards Account

2. You must buy your ticket by September 24th, this Thursday! 

3. You must travel by November 15th

4.  If you do both of those things, you will get a companion pass good for one companion pass for unlimited flights between January 6, 2021 and February 28, 2021. You can even change your companion up to three times during the promotional period. 

If this fits with your travel plans, it's a good deal and could save you some dollars. Remember to use your Southwest Airlines credit card to purchase the ticket so you get 4-6x points. 

4th Quarter Rotating Chase Categories Announced

 

It's that time of the year, time for the announcement of Chase 4th quarter rotating bonus categories for 5% cash back. Drum roll, please. This year, 4th quarter includes:

• Walmart 
• Paypal 

The new categories start October 1st, but you can activate your card now by clicking this link. 

There is a note on the website that if you use Paypal at Walmart, you still earn only 5%. 

The new FREEDOM FLEX card is offering a $200 bonus when you open the card and spend $500 in the first three months. This is a no annual fee card that earns 5x points (5% cash back) on travel booked through the Chase Ultimate Rewards travel portal, 3x points (3% cash back) at drugstores and restaurants, and 1x points (1% cash back) on everything else. 

Personally, the FREEDOM card (not open to new applicants) has been my go-to personal card for years, but now I'm considering switching to the new FREEDOM FLEX. And if you have the Sapphire Preferred which is offering a huge 80,000 point bonus right now or the Sapphire Reserve, you can transfer the Ultimate Reward points to dozens of airlines, a few hotel chains or get a discount in the Chase Ultimate Reward travel portal. 

Chase Pay It Back Tool Ends on 9/30

 

Chase  Pay Yourself Back tool is ending Sept. 30th so you might want to take advantage of this in the next two weeks. 

Since travel is so limited, Chase added a way to use your Ultimate Rewards points to erase grocery and dining purchases. 

So what does this mean and why is it so exciting? Here is your step to step guide. The Chase Sapphire Reserve, Preferred, Freedom, Freedom Unlimited, and Ink credit cards all earn Chase Ultimate Reward Points. Personally, these are my favorite points right now just for their flexibility and for the travel portal. They are flexible because you can transfer the points to dozens of airlines, hotels and you can use them to book travel through the Chase travel portal. 

And if you are a Preferred or Reserve credit card holder, you get a bonus. Chase will actually offer you extra value on the points so instead of 1:1, you get 1:25:1 for Preferred credit card holders and 1:50:1 for Reserve credit cardholders. 

You can check out my previous blog post that outlines exactly how to use this tool. Any purchases made in the past 90 days are eligible. 

Two New Chase Credit Card Offers Available Now

 

Two great new offers from Chase today! Probably the highest ever bonus offer we have ever seen for the Chase Sapphire Preferred credit card, 80,000 points. Wow! 80,000 Chase Ultimate Rewards points can be worth up to $1,000 in travel or right now, $925 in FREE groceries. 

So who is eligible for this card? According to Chase, if you have never held a Sapphire credit card before, you are eligible OR if it's been at least 48 months since you have held a Sapphire credit card, you are eligible. 

The fine details include a $95 annual fee which is not waived for the first year and $4,000 minimum spend in the first three months. 

The Sapphire Preferred is one of my favorite travel cards because Ultimate Rewards points are so flexible. You can transfer them to dozens of airlines plus several hotel chains. You can also use them in the Chase travel portal with a 25% bonus. Through the end of the month, you can also pay yourself back by using the points at a 25% bonus to erase grocery purchases. 

If the $4,000 minimum spend is to much for you, then take a look at the new Chase Freedom Flex. The new Freedom Flex comes with a $200 bonus after a $500 minimum spend in the first 3 months also. Plus 5% on groceries up to a max of $12,000 in the first year, unfortunately, Target and Walmart are excluded from the bonus. There is no annual fee. It will also include the rotating 5% cashback categories and the new bonus categories included with the Unlimited card. 

The Flex card is considered a new product since it will be a Mastercard instead of a Visa so if you currently have a Freedom or Freedom Unlimited card, you are eligible to apply for this card as a new customer rather than upgrade and secure the bonus.

Two great offers from Chase, which one are you going to take advantage of?

How You Can Get FREE Tickets On Southwest

 

If you are ready to fly for FREE, here's an easy way to do it. All three Chase Southwest credit cards are offering a bonus 65,000 points when you reach the $2,000 minimum spend. Wow! This is the highest offer we have seen. What will 65,000 points get you on Southwest? 

• Well, it could get you more than halfway to earning the Southwest Companion Pass, one of the best deals in travel. The companion pass is a buy one, get one on Southwest anywhere you fly. You can check out my past post. 
• It could get you two round trip tickets to Hawaii when you are able to fly there again. 
• It could get you four round trip tickets to anywhere in the continental US. 

That's pretty sweet. 

So let's look at the three different cards so you can choose the one that makes the most sense for you:

1. Southwest Rapid Rewards Plus - $69 annual fee, 3,000 anniversary points each year, 

2. Southwest Rapid Rewards Premier - $99 annual fee, 6,000 anniversary points each year, no foreign transaction fees.  

3. Southwest Rapid Rewards Priority - $149 annual fee, 7,500 anniversary points each year, no foreign transaction fees, $75 Southwest travel credit, 4 upgraded boardings.

Right now, all three cards carry the 65,000 bonus so which one is the best deal? All three cards earn 2x points on Southwest Airlines purchases and 1x on all other purchases. Personally, I think the Priority card is the way to go if you plan to fly anytime in the next year due to the $75 Southwest credit. Once you use the credit, the annual fee drops to $74, you get an extra 1,500 points and if you use the upgrades now the annual fee is $0. 

While you can only get one personal Southwest card and you can only get one every 24 months, you can apply for a business card at the same time which would give you enough points to earn the companion pass. 

This offer started on August 14th and has no end date right now. But offers like these disappear as quickly as they arrive.