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In November of 2022 IHG and Iberostar engaged in a strategic partnership that folded the brand of Iberostra into IHG; however, Iberostar retained 100% ownership. After a little more than a year, it’s now possible to burn some IHG One Rewards at Iberostar properties around the world. Personally, I’m not a huge fan of all-inclusive, but I’m well aware that many people absolutely love them. If I were to check one out, I’d be looking at the Iberostar Grand properties which are more luxury focused and adults only.
A couple of years ago IHG went fully dynamic on pricing which equated into a major devaluation in the redemptive value of points albeit with perhaps more redemption opportunities. I remember the days when 50k was a free night at any IHG property in the world, and in 2021 I stayed at the Six Senses Maldives in 2021 for just 75k points per night…it’s now almost 200k per night.
I did a quick search at the Iberostar in Tenerife during both peak and non-peak times and rates were all over the place, but the point redemption values weren’t great. You can almost consistently purchase IHG points for about 1/2 a penny a piece, and even when factoring in a 4th night free which comes as a perk for most IHG branded credit cards, it doesn’t make a lot of sense.
Sept rates: 96k points vs 306 Euros.
It would cost you $480 to purchase those points vs $340 in cash. Pass.
March – 183k points vs 625 Euros
It would cost you a whopping $902 to buy those points vs paying $690 per night…not that I would, but my goodness, that is terrible IHG valuation.
Zach..does IHG ever value better?
Yes.. here’s a quick example in NYC where a $265 a night hotel could be booked for 28k points, or $140 if you bought them. If you took advantage of a 4th night free, you’d lock it down for 84k points…just $420 for 4 nights in NYC – that’s a steal compared to over $1000.
Opinions, reviews, analyses & recommendations are the author’s alone, and have not been reviewed, endorsed or approved by any of these entities.
Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card
Welcome Offer
60k Points after $4k spend in 3 months
Annual Fee
$95
Points Earned
Transferrable Chase Ultimate Rewards
- 60k points after $4k spend in 3 months
- Worth $750 in Chase Travel℠ and way more if you maximize transfer partners
- 5x on all travel purchased through Chase Travel℠
- 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)
- $50 Annual Chase Travel Hotel Credit via Chase Travel℠
- The begins immediately for new cardmembers and after your account anniversary for existing cardmembers
- 2x on all other travel
- 10% Anniversary Bonus
- Every year you keep the card, your total spend will yield a 10% points bonus. If you spend $10k in a year, you’ll get 1k bonus points
- Chase Sapphire Preferred continues to redeem at 1.25c in the Chase Travel℠ and the slew of other benefits remain in tact including Auto Rental Collision Damage Waiver ( primary ), purchase protections, etc.
- Points are transferrable to 14 Ultimate Rewards partners
- Redeem in Chase Travel℠ for 1.25 cents per point
- No foreign transaction fees
- Suite of Travel and Purchase Coverage
- Auto Rental Collision Damage Waiver is my favorite
- Get complimentary access to DashPass which unlocks $0 delivery fees and lower service fees for a minimum of one year when you activate by December 31, 2024
- $95 Annual Fee
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:
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.
The Chase Sapphire Preferred® is exceptional 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: Ink Business Cash® , Ink Business Unlimited® you can combine the points into Preferred account and transfer into hotel and airline partners
Annual fee is quite low at $95 a year + you get a 10% anniversary bonus on points + $50 hotel credit in Chase travel.
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