Chase is currently offering a mega welcome bonus on the Chase Ink Plus credit card if you apply within a branch. You can earn 70,000 Ultimate Rewards points after spending $5,000 within the first three months.
Ultimate Rewards points some of the most valuable flexible rewards points out there and you can transfer them to any of the Ultimate Rewards transfer partners such as United, British Airways, and Hyatt. With these valuable transfer partners you can get 2+ cents per point in value from Ultimate Rewards points, making this current bonus offer worth upwards of $1,400!
If you have been thinking of grabbing this card now is certainly a great time to do so and you can get a tremendous value from the 70,000 points. Here are a handful of some of the most valuable redemption options with transfer partners.
What Are 70,000 Ultimate Rewards Points Worth?
As I mentioned above, I value Chase Ultimate Rewards points at around 2 cents per point. With that value per point the 70,000 points from the current in-branch offer is worth $1,400---even after paying the $95 annual fee the bonus will be worth $1,305. Not bad from signing up for a single credit card!
Chase offers some of the most valuable transfer partners, and recently added Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer to it’s list of transfer partners. In total Chase Ultimate Rewards has 11 transfer partners to choose from that can get you ultimate flexibility with your reward redemptions. It’s possible to squeeze more value from redemptions than others and even if you don’t value Ultimate Rewards points at 2 cents each you will get a tremendous value from 70k points.
The other option for redeeming points is directly through Ultimate Rewards travel which allows you to get 1.25 cents per point and book any flight or hotel through the portal. Even at this valuation you are getting $875 in travel before paying the annual fee.
Chase’s Ultimate Rewards Transfer Partners
Currently Chase Ultimate Rewards has 11 transfer partners which you can transfer points to.
These partners include: United, British Airways, Southwest, Virgin Atlantic, Singapore Airlines, Korean Air, Hyatt, Ritz-Carlton, Marriott, Priority Club and Amtrak.
From the list of valuable transfer partners there is a multitude of ways to redeem points for 2+ cents per point in value. Here are a few examples of great uses of Ultimate Rewards points for amazing redemptions.
United
Even with United’s unfriendly changes to their award chart last year, the program still holds value. The most valuable award redemptions using United miles are for economy class awards, including on partner airlines, and premium cabin awards on United flights. One advantage of using United miles is that they do not pass on high fuel surcharges or fees, so redeeming miles can be a great value to to almost anywhere in the world.
After hitting the spending requirement you will have 75,000 Ultimate Rewards points, if transferred to United miles, then that is enough points for three roundtrip domestic economy flights within the US! Or they could be used for a roundtrip economy flight to Europe and still have 15,000 miles leftover.
It is only 60,000 miles and $107.20 to fly from Los Angeles to Rome this fall, and you could even venture up to Germany for Oktoberfest and add an open-jaw or stopover at an additional European destination. This ticket would cost $1,650.70 if you were to purchase it with cash, and even after taking into account the taxes and fees on the award ticket you are getting 2.57 cents of value per mile. Not to mention you are only paying $107.20 out of pocket for flights to Europe.
Southwest
The amount of points needed to book an award flight on Southwest depends on the cash price of the ticket. The best use of Southwest points is for redemptions at their cheapest level, the Wanna Get Away fare and award flights will cost 70 points per dollar. This puts a value per Rapid Reward point at 1.43 cents ($1 towards Southwest flights / 70 Southwest points) when redeemed at Southwest’s Wanna Get Away fare level.
However, during Southwest’s sales and generally great value flights you can actually get a value of 1.8 to 2+ cents per point! For example, a Southwest flight from Portland to Los Angeles in September runs around $122 if paid with cash or 6,446 points. Taxes and fees are always low on Southwest award flights and only $5.60 on this flight, so after considering the taxes on the award flight you are getting 1.8 cents of value per point.
The value of Southwest Rapid Rewards points can be doubled if you have the Southwest Companion Pass, which gets a designated travel companion a free flight (only pay taxes) whenever you book a ticket (both paid or with using points). So, if you used the Companion Pass on this flight you could book two tickets for the price of 6,446 and get a value of 3.6 cents per point.
Hyatt
Hyatt offers some of the best value for hotel night redemptions among all hotel programs. For instance, almost any property in Paris will get you a value of 2+ cents per point---the Park Hyatt Paris-Vendrome (category 7) runs around $906 per night or 30,000 points.
With 70,000 Ultimate Rewards points transferred to Hyatt at a 1:1 ratio you would have more than enough for a two night stay at a category 7 property like the Park Hyatt Paris-Vendrome worth $1,812, or 3.02 cents in value per point. Plus you will still have enough for a one night redemption at a category 4 property for 15,000 points.
British Airways
British Airway is yet another great option for transferring Ultimate Rewards points and is among the best programs for short-haul award redemptions. British Airways prices award flights by distance flown and awards start at just 4,500 Avios each way for flights 1 to 650 miles. A one way economy flight from Chicago to Toronto is only 4,500 Avios and $2.50 in taxes and fees. That means you could book 16 one way flights at this price with the 75,000 Ultimate Rewards points earned after hitting the minimum spend. For example you could fly on American Airlines where a paid ticket may cost $200+, or easily 2+ cents per mile.
On top of the great redemptions for domestic short-haul awards, another valuable aspect of the Avios program is that there are no last minute booking fees like many airlines have. This can save you $75 compared to American Airlines or United when you are booking within 21 days of departure---which makes the program valuable for last minute bookings as well.
Korean Air
Korean Air’s SkyPass program is likely one of the most overlooked frequent flyer programs out there. One reason that makes this program valuable is that you get access to SkyTeam’s First Class award space. Due to the fact that Delta does not allow you to redeem miles for international First Class awards there are generally much better opportunities for grabbing First Class award space than in Star Alliance and Oneworld. This is a unique and valuable feature of Korean Air’s SkyPass program and it is hard to match the award space they release with any other airline miles.
With 70,000 Ultimate Rewards points transferred at a 1:1 ratio to Korean Air you will have enough for a roundtrip economy flight from the US to Europe or from the US to South America for only 50,000 miles. Flights from the US to Europe or Southern South American can easily run $1,200 round trip, or ~2.4 cents per mile.
Singapore Airlines
Singapore Airlines recently joined as an Ultimate Rewards transfer partner and offers valuable award redemptions. Take for example, a Business Class flight from Los Angeles to Tokyo that would cost $1,997.90 or 65,875 miles---or around 3.03 cents per mile.
There are many opportunities to get much more value per point using Singapore miles on premium class award redemptions and you also get access to more award seats.
The Bottom Line
There are many ways to get a value of more than 2+ cents per point from Chase Ultimate Rewards. The current 70,000 point offer on the Chase Ink Plus credit card offered at local Chase branches is a supreme deal and can be worth $1,400 in travel when used with valuable transfer partner redemptions.
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