Already Have the Chase Sapphire Preferred? Here’s How You Can Still Get the 100,000 Point Bonus

 

By now, you have probably heard about the incredible 100,000 bonus point offer on the Chase Sapphire Preferred credit card. This is already one of my favorite travel credit cards and with this high bonus offer, wow! 

But what happens if you already have the Chase Sapphire Preferred credit card? Are you shut out of this amazing offer?

Not necessarily. 

You are qualified to earn a bonus on the Sapphire Preferred credit card every 48 months. So you need to check to see when you earned the bonus the last time on the Chase Sapphire Preferred credit card you are holding. If you are holding the Sapphire Reserve credit card, you can only hold one Sapphire card at a time so you will need to either cancel or downgrade this card as well before you can apply for the Chase Sapphire Preferred credit card. Although there are some reasons why you may NOT want to do this. 

 

You can two that two ways:

1. Check your AlmostFREEFamilyTravel personal tracker which you get included for FREE as part of our coaching program. 

2. Check your credit report. Several credit cards and banks offer a free credit report or you can check once a year on annualcreditreport.com 

If it's been more than 48 months since you earned the bonus, then you are qualified to earn it again.

But you can't just apply since you can only hold one Chase Sapphire Preferred credit card at a time, you must do the following first:

1. Call the Chase phone number on the back of your Chase Sapphire Preferred credit card

2. Ask to downgrade the card - DO NOT CANCEL. Why? If you downgrade, you can apply as soon as you get your new credit card, you will also keep your card number in case you have any automatic charges and you will keep any Chase Ultimate Reward points you have on this account. If you cancel, you will need to wait at least 30 days to apply for your new card, you will lose your number and your points. 

3. You should downgrade to either the Chase FREEDOM FLEX or the CHASE FREEDOM UNLIMITED credit cards. Both are no annual fee credit cards. The big difference is that the FLEX has quarterly 5x bonus categories and the UNLIMITED earns 1.5x points on all purchases. 

4. Wait two weeks and then apply for the Chase Sapphire Preferred credit card. 

Woohoo! Now what can you do with 100,000 CUR points, check it out here. 

As always, if you need more guidance, please join our Travel Coaching Program, you can find out more about our personal coaching here. Use FREETRAVEL for $50 off the cost. 

Why You Shouldn't Care About Southwest Travel Credits Expiring

Southwest has announced yet another change to the beloved airline and customers are hopping mad. But here's why we don't care about this change either. 

A few weeks ago, I told you why we didn't care about the change Southwest made to how many points you earn when you fly. And now they are changing the expiration date policy for travel credits. 

But we don't care about this one either because we never have any travel credits. I'll tell you why in a minute. 

Why You Shouldn't Care About Southwest Travel Credits Expiring

First, the new policy will go into effect with tickets purchased or changed starting on May 28, 2025.  

• After that date, travel credits will expire 12 months from the date of the original ticket purchase. 
• Travel credits from the new basic economy fares will expire just 6 months from date of original ticket purchase. 

Here's where it gets tricky, if you buy a Basic Economy fare ticket 6 months in advance and cancel, you will get no credit at all. The ticket basically becomes non refundable. Ouch. 

Gone is the Southwest Airlines that we knew and loved. 

Why You Shouldn't Care About Southwest Travel Credits Expiring

So what should you do? 

The hack is to always use points to buy your Southwest flights. This way, you never get stuck with a travel credit. If you cancel, your points are just returned to your Southwest account. No problem! 

The easiest way right now to get a ton of Southwest points is to apply for my favorite travel credit card, the Chase Sapphire Preferred. The new offer is a whopping 100,000 Chase Ultimate Reward points for $5,000 minimum spend in the first three months. 

• This card carries only a $95 annual fee
• You get a $50 hotel credit in the Chase Travel Portal
• 25% more value in the Chase Travel Portal 
• 5x points on hotels booked in the Chase Travel Portal
• 2x points on travel purchases
• 3x points on dining purchases

And you can transfer the Chase Ultimate Reward points to a dozen different airlines and several hotel chains including Southwest. 

What can you do with 100,000 Southwest points? How about flying from Washington DC to San Diego ten times?

That's pretty crazy, right? And if you are part of our travel coaching program and monthly live zoom sessions, you know how to book the lowest point flight and then change to a better flight without spending any more points. 

So now you can see that there are still work arounds so all the LUV is not gone from Southwest Airlines. 

As always, if you need more guidance, please join our Travel Coaching Program, you can find out more about our personal coaching here. 

Use FREETRAVEL for $50 off the cost. 

How You Can Squeeze More Value Out Of 100,00 Chase Points

 

One of the questions I get all the time is about the value of points and miles. Since the value changes for each type of points and miles, it's hard to figure out their worth. 

But with the new whopping 100,000 bonus offer on the Chase Sapphire Preferred credit card, let's take a look at the value of those points specifically to figure out what they are worth.  

I love Chase Ultimate Reward points because they are what I like to call flexible points. Flexible because you can use them in many different ways depending on where you want to travel. Chase advertises that 100,000 points are worth $1,250 of travel. 

But they actually could be worth much more. 

Let's take a look at the different ways you can use the points. 

You can: 

• transfer them to dozens of hotels and airlines
• you can use them in the Chase Travel Portal
• you can use them for statement credit or cash back 

If you choose to use the points for a statement credit or cash back, they are worth $1,000. Pretty good, right? 

But if you choose to use the points to purchase flights, hotels, car rentals, cruises and tours then your points are worth $1,250 because Chase gives you 25% more value when you use your points to book travel in the portal. The portal is similar to using Expedia. That's a pretty good deal. 

But the best deal could be transferring your points to one of a dozen different airlines or Hyatt, Marriott or IHG. You can read about how I used them to take my family to Ireland. 

• The sweet spot is transferring these points to FlyingBlue.com which is the loyalty program for Air France and KLM. You can see a one way flight is priced for just 20,000 points from Washington DC to Amsterdam. Recently, I was able to snag a flight from Athens to LAX for just 15,000 points and $90. This flight was being sold for more than $700. 
• Or transfer the points to Hyatt to snag a hotel room for as low as 3,500 points per night. 
• Or transfer the points to Jet Blue and fly from California to New York for just 13,500 points each way. Wow! 

Now you are squeezing thousands of dollars out of those 100,000 points. Plus the Chase Sapphire Preferred comes with an annual $50 hotel credit when you reserve through the portal. The annual fee on this card is only $95 so it's really a no brainer. 

The fine print, you can only get this bonus once every four years and you can only hold one Sapphire branded credit card at a time. This 100,000 bonus offer requires you to spend $5,000 in the first three months so if you have any big purchases coming up soon, you might want to think about applying. 

As always, if you need more guidance, please join our Travel Coaching Program, you can find out more about our personal coaching here. Use FREETRAVEL for $50 off the cost. 

 

Huge Bonus Offer On My Favorite Travel Card

 

Dreaming about where you are going to travel for summer vacation? Well, you might want to jump on the huge bonus offer just announced by my favorite travel card Chase Sapphire Preferred.

The new offer is a whopping 100,000 Chase Ultimate Reward points for $5,000 minimum spend in the first three months. 

• This card carries only a $95 annual fee
• You get a $50 hotel credit in the Chase Travel Portal
• 25% more value in the Chase Travel Portal 
• 5x points on hotels booked in the Chase Travel Portal
• 2x points on travel purchases
• 3x points on dining purchases

What can you do with 100,000 CUR points? First, these points can be worth up to $1,250 if you spend them in the Chase Travel Portal. If you transfer them to an airline or hotel, they could be worth even more. Read about how I used CUR points for a family trip to Ireland. 

The Sapphire Reserve vs the Preferred is usually a choice you have to make, but this offer is only for the Preferred and it's a great card. Even better, if your partner has the Reserve, you can combine points to squeeze out even more value. 

You can only apply for this card once every 4 years and you can only hold one Chase Sapphire card at a time. This card also follows the rules of 5/24, you will only be approved for 5 cards in 24 months. 

So if you have a big purchase coming up or tuition for a school or summer camp, this may be your chance to also score some FREE travel! 

As always, if you need more guidance, please join our Travel Coaching Program, you can find out more about our personal coaching here. Use FREETRAVEL for $50 off the cost. 

Capital One Venture Rewards 100,000 Point Bonus Offer

 

Woohoo! If you thought the recent bonus offer including a $250 travel credit was awesome, well, we just found an even better limited time offer. This offer is for 100,000 bonus miles rather than a travel credit so you have the flexibility to use the miles any way you want like transferring to an airline or hotel, erasing travel purchases or in the travel portal. 

In fact, we found a hack where you can actually erase travel purchases before you even pay for them! 

We love the flexibility of Capital One miles so 25,000 miles is much better than a travel credit.

The minimum spend on this offer is $5,000 and the annual fee is $95. 

Other benefits included with the Capital One Venture card include:

• 2x points on all purchases
• $120 Global Entry/TSA credit 
• Rental Car Insurance Coverage
• Trip Cancellation/Interruption Insurance

You are only eligible for this bonus offer once every four years. And just a sidenote, there is no lounge access included with this card. Though card holders are eligible for a discounted lounge pass. 

This is a limited time offer and we do not know the end date right now. As always, if you need more guidance, please join our Travel Coaching Program, you can find out more about our personal coaching here. Use FREETRAVEL for $50 off the cost. 

Woohoo! How You Can Get 5x Points On Amazon

 

Woohoo! Chase is out with the Q2 5x bonus categories! And Amazon.com is back. Chase FREEDOM FLEX offer rotating bonus categories that earn 5x points. 

Past categories have included: 

• gas stations 
• grocery stores
• nail salons 
• EV charging 

The categories change every quarter so you can earn lots of Chase Ultimate Reward points quickly. You are limited to just $1,500 per quarter. But that translates to 7,500 points. Woohoo! 

We got a bonus category in March so stay posted to see if we get another one in June. 

You need to activate your card here.  

If you don't have a Chase FREEDOM FLEX credit card, it's a great everyday card. No annual fee and a $200 bonus for just a $500 minimum spend. 

What Are Your Rights When You Miss Your Connecting Flight

I watched the departing time for my flight from Athens to Paris aboard Air France get delayed later and later. I wondered out loud if I would still be able to make my connection in Paris for my flight to Los Angeles. When I purchased the flight with Flying Blue points, I noted the rather tight connecting time at Charles De Gaulle Airport. It's a big airport and usually requires you to pass through secondary immigration even though you are just connecting and not leaving the airport. But Air France let me book for just 15,000 Flying Blue points and $90. Woohoo! 

But now standing in the Athens Airport with the connecting time disappearing, I was pretty sure I would miss the connection and wondered what my fate would be. I hopped on What's App to connect with Air France and immediately got a representative who assured me that I should get on the first flight and they were working on rescheduling me. 

• This should always be your first task. Agents at the airport can't help you and definitely don't leave the gate area to go back to check in. If you aren't comfortable with What's App, try calling customer service. 

We left an hour late and then sat on the tarmac for another 10 minutes so it was looking very unlikely that I would make the connecting flight to Los Angeles. At that point, I realized that it was out of my control and a night in Paris would be fun. 

Approximately 30 minutes before we landed in Paris, the flight attendant came to talk to me with Ipad in hand. He smiled and said "you have a tight connection." He showed me a map of the airport, the gate we were arriving in and the gate for my connecting flight. He told me normally the walk between the two gates takes 25 minutes, you will have 20 minutes. He moved me to a seat at the front of the plane and moved my carry on bag to the front of the plane. We are going to help you have the best chance of making it, but if you don't, go to customer service and they will take care of you. 

So what are your rights as a passenger? And do those rights change if you are flying on points or miles?

Here are your rights, but they may vary by airline. 

Flight Cancellations and Delays:

• Right to a Refund or Rebooking: If your flight is canceled or significantly delayed (more than 3 hours for domestic flights, or 6 hours for international flights), you are entitled to a full refund, including taxes and fees, or the option to rebook on another flight. 
• Right to Assistance and Care: 
  In the event of a significant delay or cancellation, the airline is responsible for providing assistance and care, including food and water, and potentially accommodation and transportation if the delay is lengthy. 
• Right to Compensation: 
  Depending on the regulations of the country where the flight originated, you may be entitled to compensation for delays, cancellations, or overbooking. 
• Right to Information: 
  You have the right to be informed about your rights and the reasons for any delays or cancellations. 

And even if you travel on points and miles, you are entitled to the same compensation. 

• The most important is to contact the airline immediately and document everything. 

Back to the flight into Paris, we landed over an hour late and I started running. There was absolutely no one at immigration so I breezed through. I ran down the hall to the new gate, the agent was still there, but the plane had left just 10 minutes earlier. 

I walked to customer service. The agent said they had already rescheduled me on a morning flight the next day, made a hotel reservation for me, and had issued vouchers for dinner, breakfast and coffee in the airport. Okay, so I would be spending the night in Paris, things could be way worse. 

Hotel Ibis at the airport

The agent had booked me at the The Ibis Hotel located at the airport. It was located near Terminal 3 which was a walk and a tram ride away. It was filled with people who missed flights and connections. Check in was fast. The room was clean. 

The restaurant in the lobby was a buffet filled with Parisian pastries. I slept well and got on my new flight the next day with ease. 

 

The story doesn't quite end there. I had reserved a rental car with Budget in Los Angeles and even though I called to let them know I was a on a new flight, they insisted on charging an extra fee for the one way rental. I filed a claim with Air France to see if they will cover the fee. If not, I will utilize the trip delay insurance on my Chase Sapphire Reserve credit card which has the best travel insurance and car rental insurance coverage around. 

It's always a good reminder that you need to be flexible when traveling, but know your rights and document everything.