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Sometimes booking the flight is the excuse to travel
I was talking with my buddies about our upcoming trip to Southeast Asia and it really got me thinking. One – bad things can create the amazing, and Two – sometimes booking the flight IS the excuse to travel. See, not only are Miles and I going on this adventure, but two of my best buds, Shane and Dave, are going as well. Dave will be along for the entire journey, Shane for part of it, and the three of us have known each other for over 20 years. ( We’re meeting a third bud, Fritz, too!) To see the incredible with lifelong buds is a privilege. Doing it for little to nothing is a blessing. AND None of this would be happening had Dave and I not booked a flight without knowing how we would use it. That’s nuts or as I like to say, “Snuts.”
Points not only made this trip economically possible, the devaluation of AAdvantage back in March was the excuse. Don’t get me wrong – I was upset about it just like you, but I’m now taking a trip with friends I’ve known for 20 years. Lemons meet lemonade ( hence the photo above )
See Dave and I had a bunch of AA miles burning a hole in our pocket. We’d traveled around the world last year, half with my family, and half on our own. We saw the world’s tallest building, lions and cheetahs, and ate the best sushi in the world.
Yes, those were all amazing, but what meant the most was the time we were able to spend together. So when we got home all we talked about was that WE HAD to book another trip. So when we heard that AA was devaluing their points…that was our excuse.
We picked dates to fly back from Hanoi because we thought Ha Long Bay looked incredible and we wanted to fly Cathay or Japan First Class. Other than finding avail on random dates…we didn’t have anything planned.
I mean…we weren’t even flying on the same day. Dave still doesn’t have a flight back at the right time! Doesn’t matter…we’re going. We will make it work and that’ll be half the fun. The UNKNOWN!
That was it. The devaluation prompted a trip that probably wouldn’t be happening if things had stayed the same. We didn’t know how we would get to Hanoi or where else we would go orrrrrrrrr really even when…but we were going to make use of the deal: 62,500 AA miles to fly first class from Asia to the US. That was all we needed. Once we had that flight booked, everything else has fallen into place.
Now we have an incredible trip planned. Everything isn’t perfectly worked out, but it will be. And Miles is going to trace his roots there too. He’s convinced he may find relatives!
I’m writing this because if you’re looking for an excuse to travel and you come across some incredible deals ( like those $500 flights to Japan) you should really consider doing it. Once the flight is booked…you kinda have to go 😉
To travel or not to travel, that is the question. You will always miss 100% of the trips you don’t take. The only thing we have to fear, is not taking the trip itself. Those are famous sayings, right?
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Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card
The Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card went through a major refresh in 2026 adding new bonus categories, travel protections, statement credits, and remains one of the best travel starter cards in the market. It earns Premium Ultimate Rewards that can be transferred into over a dozen partners many of which are US based including Hyatt, Southwest, United, IHG, and Marriott. Note that Hyatt is now a 4:3 transfer partner
Welcome Offer
Earn 100,000 bonus points after you spend $5,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account openingÂ
Annual Fee
$95
Points Earned
Transferrable Chase Ultimate Rewards
Earn
- 5x on all travel purchased through Chase Travelâ„
- NEW ACCELERATED EARN CATEGORY: 3x points on gas and EV charging
- NEW ACCELERATED EARN CATEGORY: 3x points on vacation homes at top brands
- Cardmembers will earn 3x points on vacation homes at these top brands: Airbnb, Vrbo, Plu Guide, HomeAway, Homestay.com and Vacasa.
- 3x on dining, including eligible delivery services for takeout & dining out
- 3x on select streaming services
- 3x on online grocery purchases
- (excluding Target, Walmart and wholesale clubs)
- 2x on all other travel
- 1x on everyday purchases
- 5x points on Lyft rides Earn 5x total points on eligible Lyft rides including ride share, bike and scooter rides and subscription and membership products through September 30, 2027.
- 5x total points on Peloton equipment Earn 5x total points on eligible Peloton equipment and accessory purchases over $150 through December 31, 2027.
Benefits and Credits
- $100 Annual Chase Travel Hotel Credit via Chase Travelâ„
- NEW: $120 Global Entry, TSA PreCheck or NEXUS fee credit Cardmembers will receive one statement credit of up to $120 every four years as reimbursement for the application fee charged to the card.
- NEW: Complimentary Apple TV subscription for one year
- Points are transferrable to 14 Ultimate Rewards partners
- No foreign transaction fees
- Suite of Travel and Purchase Coverage
- Auto Rental Collision Damage Waiver is my favorite
- Complimentary DashPass which unlocks $0 delivery fees & lower service fees for a min. of one year when you activate by 12/31/27. Plus, a $10 promo each month on non-restaurant orders
We keep an up to date spreadsheet that lists the best ever offers: You can find that spreadsheet here.
Historically 80k is a very, very good offer and hit in both 2022 and 2023. In 2021, we saw the offer hit an all time high of 100k. Who knows if that will ever come back.
Main Cast:Â
Cards that earn flexible points and should be used on the bulk of your purchases.
Supporting Cast:
Cards that earn fixed points in the currency of the airline/hotel and can not be transferred at attractive rates. These cards yield benefits that make it worth keeping, but not necessarily worth putting a lot of your everyday spend on.Â
The Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card is great starter card and offers transferrable Ultimate Rewards, and pairs well with other Chase cards.
If you carry this card alongside Chase’s cashback cards like the Chase Freedom Flex®  and Chase Freedom Unlimited® or the business versions: Chase Ink Business Cash® , Chase Ink Business Unlimited® you can combine the points into the Sapphire Preferred account and transfer into hotel and airline partners
Annual fee remains quite low at $95 a year and if you use the $100 Annual Chase Travel Hotel Credit via Chase Travelâ„ you’ll wipe out that annual fee every year. It has great bonus categories and other useful statement credits to enhance your travel.
One thing that is a bummer is Chase lowered the transfer ratio to World of Hyatt from 1:1 to 4:3.Â
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