A traveler’s guide to the Chase Travel portal

For qualifying Chase cardholders, the easy-to-use Chase Travel℠ portal offers a flexible and convenient way to book hotels, flights, rental cars, cruises and more using points or a combination of points and cash.

What is the Chase travel portal?

A favorite among frequent travelers for its versatility and redemption options, Chase Ultimate Rewards® (UR) is one of the major transferable credit card rewards points programs and UR points are Chase’s flexible rewards currency.

The Chase travel portal works much like an online travel agency (OTA) similar to Orbitz or Priceline where you can book hotels, flights, cars, activities and cruises. But unlike a traditional OTA, with the Chase travel portal you can book travel with your Chase card’s rewards points, cash or a combination of the two.

Who can use the portal?

A handful of exclusively Chase-issued credit cards grant cardholders access to the Chase travel portal, but how you can utilize the portal and the value you can receive is card-specific.

The following credit cards are the only cards that earn Chase Ultimate Rewards points outright:

• Chase Sapphire Reserve®
• Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card
• Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card * The information for the Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card has been collected independently by Blueprint. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer.

But if you or a household member own at least one of the cards above, the rewards on the following cash-back credit cards can be combined with any of the cards listed above and used as Chase Ultimate Rewards points:

• Chase Freedom Flex® * The information for the Chase Freedom Flex® has been collected independently by Blueprint. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer.
• Chase Freedom Unlimited®
• Ink Business Cash® Credit Card
• Ink Business Unlimited® Credit Card

And while the points earned cannot be combined with any of the UR-earning cards, the following pay-in-full card does have access to the Chase travel portal:

• Ink Business Premier® Credit Card * The information for the Ink Business Premier® Credit Card has been collected independently by Blueprint. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer.

Is the portal worth using?

It’s often said that having the right travel credit card is important, but knowing how to redeem your miles and points can be as paramount as which card you use to earn them. However, not everybody has the patience or interest to learn the intricacies of different rewards programs to maximize the value of every mile and point.

So while transferring UR points to individual loyalty programs is still one of the best ways to get the most cents per point at a 1:1 basis, for those who value simplicity, the Chase travel portal offers a straightforward way to book travel, earn and redeem points and still receive a great deal. Best of all, you won’t be limited by any loyalty program or award space availability.

When transferring points, the minimum you can transfer is 1,000 points to the following UR travel partners with either the Chase Sapphire Reserve, Chase Sapphire Preferred or the Ink Business Preferred cards:

AIRLINE LOYALTY PROGRAMS	HOTEL LOYALTY PROGRAMS
Aer Lingus, Aerclub	World of Hyatt®
Air Canada Aeroplan	IHG® One Rewards
British Airways Executive Club	Marriott Bonvoy®
Emirates Skywards®
Flying Blue AIR FRANCE KLM
Iberia Plus
JetBlue TrueBlue
Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer
Southwest Airlines Rapid Rewards®
United MileagePlus®
Virgin Atlantic Flying Club

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Regardless of how you’re using the Chase travel portal, it’s worth considering the pros and cons.

Pros

• The standard rate for Ultimate Rewards points when redeemed for travel through the Chase travel portal is 1 UR point = 1 cent, but can be worth significantly more with the UR-earning cards. The Chase Sapphire Reserve gets a redemption value of 1.5 cents per point through the Chase Travel℠ portal while the Chase Sapphire Preferred and Chase Ink Business Preferred cards each get 1.25 cents per point.
• Since you’re not limited to any loyalty programs, you can use your UR points to book boutique hotels that you’d otherwise only be able to book with cash.
• Flights booked through the Chase travel portal can earn frequent flyer miles and can be used toward advancing your elite status.
• You can earn a substantial amount of bonus points when booking through the Chase portal depending on the card you’re using.
• You can use a combination of points plus cash to purchase your reservation.

Cons

• Hotels booked through the Chase travel portal do not earn hotel points or credits toward elite status. Any elite status perks you’d receive if booking directly with the hotel will likely be forgone.
• If you experience any issues while traveling, you’d have to go through Chase to resolve the issue. For example, if there is a problem with your hotel reservation, you’ll have to contact a Chase representative for help resolving it since you didn’t book directly with the hotel. Dealing with a middleman during travel emergencies is less than ideal and something to be wary of when considering booking through the portal.
• Southwest Airlines flights do not show up in the UR travel portal, but can be reserved by calling the Chase Travel Center at 855-233-9462.

How to book travel through the Chase travel portal

You can access the Chase travel portal by logging into your Chase account and clicking on the Rewards balance on the right or by going to the Chase Ultimate Rewards website.

Once you’re logged in, if you have more than one UR-earning Chase card, you’ll be asked to select one to proceed with — a crucial step as each card has different earning and redemption rates.

After clicking on your selection, you will be taken to the Ultimate Rewards dashboard. If you click on the Earn / Use dropdown button, all of your Ultimate Rewards options will be presented. Click on Travel to proceed to the portal.

Once in the travel portal, you’ll  have the option of selecting the type of booking you’d like to make.

From there, your user experience will be similar to any other OTA where you can search your travel options.

Flights

Because the Chase travel portal doesn’t limit you to transfer partners or loyalty programs, you’ll be able to search almost all major airlines. One notable exception is Southwest Airlines, which is still bookable using UR points but will require a phone call to the Chase Travel Center to reserve your flight.

One difference compared to a traditional OTA is the option to buy in cash, points or a combination of both.

If you’re short on points or if you’d like to offset the cash price with some points, you’re given the option to choose how to pay.

After that, you’ll be prompted to enter your traveler information and you’re all booked. However, you will have to log into the specific airline with your reservation code in order to reserve seats.

Hotels

Booking hotels through the Chase travel portal is a similar process. And with the portal’s easy-to-use search function, you can find boutique hotels that would otherwise be unbookable with loyalty-program-based points.

However, if you have elite status with a hotel chain, you’ll want to book directly rather than going through the Chase portal in order to access status benefits and have that hotel stay count toward achieving a higher status. Or, you can transfer UR points to one of three UR hotel loyalty program transfer partners, including Marriott Bonvoy, World of Hyatt or IHG One Rewards.

Cars

Rental cars can also be booked through the portal in a similar fashion. And as in many cases, being aware of which card you’re booking your car rental with can make a big difference in case of an accident as both the Chase Sapphire Reserve and Chase Sapphire Preferred offer primary car insurance, an uncommon, money-saving benefit, which saves you from having to file a claim with your private car insurance carrier first.

A quick guide to the Chase Ultimate Rewards program

As some of the most sought-after flexible points, Chase Ultimate Rewards can be accrued through several avenues. The most lucrative way is by applying for Chase credit cards and earning their respective welcome bonuses — but be wary of Chase’s 5/24 rule, which blocks applicants from opening a Chase credit card if they’ve opened five or more cards from any issuer in the past 24 months.

If you have two Chase cards that earn UR points, you can then transfer the rewards earned to the card that carries the most redemption value. For example, you can open the Chase Sapphire Preferred card and then the Chase Freedom Flex and move any points earned on the Flex card to the Preferred card, which has a boosted value of 25% more when redeemed through the portal.

Looking to add more than one new credit card to your wallet? Here’s why you shouldn’t apply for multiple cards at the same time.

Outside of regular credit card spending, you can also grow your Ultimate Rewards pile by using the Chase shopping portal. By adding just one extra step to your online shopping, you can earn bonus points for your future travels.

While transferring points to partners is one option to maximize the value of your Chase Ultimate Rewards points, there are numerous other ways to use the Chase Ultimate Rewards program to your benefit. Whether it’s redeeming your points as a statement credit for eligible, rotating categories throughout the year through the “Pay Yourself Back” feature, booking special dining experiences with your points or using the portal to book your next vacation, the Chase Ultimate Rewards program’s flexibility makes it a great option regardless of your lifestyle.

Frequently asked questions (FAQs)