Tag Archives: Chase Ultimate Rewards Points

Southwest Airlines Companion Pass – Part 3: Hyatt Points and E-Rewards Transfers

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Southwest Airlines Companion Pass – Part 3: Hyatt Points and E-Rewards Transfers

Good evening everyone, this is part 3 of my Southwest Airlines Companion Pass series.

This post is probably several weeks overdue, but better late than never.  I was waiting for miles and points to transfer and post, then I had to follow up with Southwest Airlines and Hyatt over some issues, and eventually this post got pushed off #backblogged.

Before I get deeper into this post, I have a personal gripe with my Chase Hyatt Credit Card.  This credit card is the only travel credit card (that I know of) where points are deducted from your account if you return something or get a refund to your credit card.  Recently, I canceled an airline ticket that I purchased on my Chase Hyatt Credit Card and the Hyatt Points were removed from my Hyatt account.  Most other travel credit cards will not touch your miles/points if you return an item or get a refund, you will just end up with a positive balance on your credit card.

Chase Hyatt Credit Card Subtractions and Additions Hyatt Points

Because of this “feature” of the Chase Hyatt Credit Card, I mis-spent on my Chase Hyatt Credit Card in terms of earning Hyatt Points.  Oh well, live and learn I guess.

Hyatt Account Balance 11-06-14

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Transfer Chase Ultimate Reward Points from the Chase App

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Transfer Chase Ultimate Reward Points from the Chase App

Chase recently updated their smartphone app for iOS and Android with the ability to transfer Chase Ultimate Reward Points to their travel partners.  I will show you how I recently transferred Chase Ultimate Reward Points to Southwest Airlines on my iPhone.  The process should work the same on an Android phone.  You can follow these steps to transfer Chase Ultimate Reward Points to any of their travel partners.  Without further ado, download the Chase app to your smartphone and log into your Chase account.

Log Into Chase App

Navigate to the Chase account that has Chase Ultimate Reward Points – either a Chase Sapphire Preferred (personal account) or a Chase Ink Bold/Plus (business account).

Select Chase Account

To read the entire post, please click here.  Have a great Thanksgiving holiday everyone!

IHG Rewards Club Unveils Biggest-Ever Redemption Catalog for Holidays (May Explain Into the Nights Promotion)

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IHG Rewards Club Unveils Biggest-Ever Redemption Catalog for Holidays (May Explain Into the Nights Promotion)

[Sarcasm on] Breaking news everyone!  I just received a press release from IHG regarding their new online redemption catalog:

ATLANTA (Nov. 24, 2014) InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) today announces the launch of its new IHG® Rewards Club Global Redemption Catalog. The world’s first, largest and fastest-growing hotel loyalty program is introducing a new and enhanced online catalog, offering thousands of retail redemption choices tailored to more than 200 countries and 20 languages.

IHG is one of the world’s leading hotel companies, with over 4,700 hotels around the world and a family of nine trusted hotel brands to meet a variety of guests’ needs – from a city center Holiday Inn® hotel, to an award winning InterContinental® resort. Its loyalty program offers advantages that no other hotel company can match including; free guest Internet for all IHG® Rewards Club members worldwide across the IHG brand family, value-priced Reward Nights with less restrictions, no blackout dates on Reward Nights, no cancellation penalties – and now, with the wide breadth of offerings in the new redemption catalog, members can truly personalize their rewards to best suit their needs.

The new redemption catalog will also give all 82 million IHG® Rewards Club members worldwide the new ability to add items to a personal wish list and to use their IHG® Rewards Club points to send gifts to friends and family in other countries.

Susanna Freer Epstein, senior vice president, Customer Loyalty Marketing, IHG said: “At IHG® Rewards Club, we are constantly looking to enhance and evolve the program in ways that truly recognize and reward our members’ loyalty – not just by giving them points but by giving them the opportunity for rewarding experiences. Our new redemption catalog makes it even easier for our members to access rewards for whatever they like – from jewelry to electronics, to the trip of a lifetime.”

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Amtrak Pacific Surfliner Day Trip and my Confusion with Orange County Metrolink and San Diego Coaster

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Last month, I shared my experience riding the Amtrak Coast Starlight from Seattle down to Los Angeles (link).  A few weeks ago, I shared my thoughts on taking public transportation (buses and Amtrak) from Orange County to Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) and San Diego International Airport (SAN) (link).  Today, I will share my experience booking the Amtrak Pacific Surfliner and some of the scheduling roadblocks I ran into.

The first thing you should know is that the Pacific Surfliner is part of Amtrak’s special routes, where it costs only 1,500 Amtrak Points per person each way, regardless of how long or short the ride is.

Amtrak Special Routes

The Pacific Surfliner runs multiple times every day from San Diego to San Luis Obispo, a 5 hour and 45 minute journey if you go end to end.  Along the way, the train passes through 29 stations.  Important: not every Pacific Surfliner train stops at every stop.  This partially screwed me up on my trip from Irvine (IRV) to Carlsbad Village (CBV) to visit a friend on Tuesday afternoon, I’ll explain later.

Pacific Surliner Maps and Stops

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San Francisco Weekend Trip – Part 1: Cable Car Ride and Hyatt Fisherman’s Wharf Hotel Review

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San Francisco Weekend Trip – Part 1: Cable Car Ride and Hyatt Fisherman’s Wharf Hotel Review

Good evening everyone, this is a short trip report from my short weekend trip to San Francisco with my parents.  If you like pictures of cable cars and inside hotel rooms, this post is for you.  In part 2, I will share some of the other activities I did in San Francisco.  First off, I’ve wanted to ride a cable car for as long as I knew what a cable car was.  I finally got the chance to take a ride from the Powell Street BART Station down to Taylor Street, which is a few blocks from the Hyatt Fisherman’s Wharf.  Taking the BART from SFO to Powell Street took about 30 minutes and cost $8.65 per person, each way.  The cable car ride lasted about 20 minutes and cost $6 per person, each way.

Cable Car Route Powell Street to Fisherman's Wharf

When you exit the Powell Street BART Station, you will see a big wooden turntable where the cable cars turn around.  Line up behind everyone else and wait for your turn to ride.  We waited about 25 minutes, but the time went by quickly since there were many street performers entertaining us nearby.  You buy your ticket when you board, $6 cash, no credit cards.

SF Cable Car Turntable1

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