Tag Archives: Hyatt Hotels

Grand Hyatt at Baha Mar in the Bahamas (Category 4) and Holiday Inn Express Solvang (Into the Nights Promo Drama)

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Grand Hyatt at Baha Mar in the Bahamas (Category 4) and Holiday Inn Express Solvang (Into the Nights Promo Drama)

I received an email yesterday afternoon from Hyatt and noticed a new Grand Hyatt at Baha Mar hotel opening in the Bahamas.  It looks like a very nice hotel/resort (hotel link).

Grand Hyatt Bahamas

Clicking through, it appears to be a category 4 hotel, requiring only 15,000 Hyatt Points per night.  The best part of this, is that if you have a Chase Hyatt Credit Card, you get a free night certificate every year you pay the annual fee good for any category 1-4 Hyatt hotel in the world.  This new hotel/resort qualifies!  Reservations cannot be made until June 2015.

Hyatt Points Reservation

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Southwest Airlines Companion Pass – Part 2: Hyatt and Chase Ultimate Reward Points Game Plan

Southwest Airlines Companion Pass Logo

Southwest Airlines Companion Pass – Part 2: Hyatt and Chase Ultimate Reward Points Game Plan

Before reading Part 2, please read Part 1.  As a refresher, to get a Southwest Airlines Companion Pass, you need to earn 110,000 Southwest Airlines miles in a calendar year.  Southwest Airlines has a handy page to track your current Companion Pass status (link).  As of today (October 23, 2014), I need to earn 41,522 more Southwest Airlines miles to obtain a Southwest Airlines Companion Pass good through the rest of 2014 and all of 2015.

Grant Thomas Current Companion Pass Status

Last year, I converted 50,000 Hyatt points into 30,000 Southwest Airlines miles.  I plan to do the same thing this year (image is from last year).

New Hyatt Account Balance

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Southwest Airlines Companion Pass – Part 1: Obtaining the Companion Pass the Hard Way

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Southwest Airlines Companion Pass – Part 1: Obtaining the Companion Pass the Hard Way

Every travel blog out there will tell you how awesome the Southwest Airlines Companion Pass is and how easy it is to get.  Here is the Cliff Notes / Spark Notes version:

  • Apply for 2 Chase Southwest Airlines Credit Cards between October 1 and December 31.
  • Don’t spend a penny on the cards during any statements periods that close in 2014.
  • Spend $2,000+ during the statement periods that close in 2015.
  • Collect 52,000 Southwest Airlines miles x 2 = 104,000 miles.
  • Get the remaining 6,000 miles from Hyatt, Marriott, or other points transfers.
  • Travel for “free” with a companion for all of 2015 and all of 2016.

If that sounds like something you want to do, please consider signing up for a Chase Southwest Airlines Credit Card through one of my credit card referral links.

However, this post is not about the easy way to get the Southwest Airlines Companion Pass.  This post is about the hard way to achieve the Southwest Airlines Companion Pass.  Let’s say your name is Grant and you find yourself somewhere between no Companion Pass and a Companion Pass for 2015.

Let’s assume you got the Chase Southwest Airlines Premier Credit Card last year and the Chase Southwest Airlines Plus Credit Card earlier this year.  Let’s also assume you cannot get a Chase Southwest Airlines Business Credit Card since you just got a Chase Ink Plus Business Credit.  Lastly, let’s assume you are 41,522 Southwest Airlines miles away from qualifying for the Companion Pass next year.  What do you do?  To view your current Southwest Airlines Companion Pass status, please log into your Southwest Airlines account first and then click this link (you may want to bookmark this link as well).

Grant Thomas Current Companion Pass Status

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Random News: Chase Fraud Warnings, 2 Admirals Club Passes from Citi, Happy Birthday from Chime, Fandango BOGO with US Bank FlexPerks, and Several AMEX Offers

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Random News: Chase Fraud Warnings, 2 Admirals Club Passes from Citi, Happy Birthday from Chime, Fandango BOGO with US Bank FlexPerks, and Several AMEX Offers

Good morning everyone, it is a very busy morning.  Alibaba (BABA) IPO opens today, lots of attention in the financial markets.  All the attention is overshadowing Apple’s iPhone 6/Plus debut.  My iPhone 6 should be arriving any minute now from FedEx.  I am catching a flight this afternoon to Las Vegas to attend Boarding Area’s Conference (BACon).  With that said, here are some random news from the past week…

Here is an email you never want to get – an email from Chase asking if you made the following purchases.  I didn’t make these purchases, uh oh.  I clicked the big red NO button and called Chase to ask for a new card.

Chase Fraud Email

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Is the Chase Sapphire Preferred Credit Card Worth the $95 Annual Fee?

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Is the Chase Sapphire Preferred Credit Card Worth the $95 Annual Fee?

Thank you Amanda for asking me why the Chase Sapphire Preferred credit card was not used on my recent trip to Cabo.  Great question Amanda, let me explain why…

There is no doubt that the Chase Sapphire Preferred is a great credit card.  Double points on travel and dining purchases is awesome.  Transferable points to many of the best airline and hotel loyalty programs is awesome.  No foreign transactions fees and no annual fee (for the first year) is awesome.  I think that if you could only have 1 Chase credit card, most people would say the Chase Sapphire Preferred is the best card (we will assume you are not a business owner).  I totally agree 100%.  But what about the second year and the third year and the fourth year when you have to pay the $95 annual fee.  Is it still worth it?

Yes and no.   Continue reading →