We know, —we all love to travel, and we love to travel using points and miles. Many of us already have a credit card with travel insurance, so it might feel like there’s no need to read this article. But hear us out: this travel insurance is something you should buy. Not only does it cover your miles redeposit fee if you need to cancel your trip with miles, but it also protects you from other losses and damages, all while giving you peace of mind with an easy and quick claims process.(If you have filed claim with credit card before, you know what I mean)
This comes from PointsYeah’s co-founder’s personal experience.
The Flight That Turned Around, and the Claim That Didn’t
In 2022, Troy, our co-founder, was flying from Istanbul to Belgrade. A points master, travel pro, and co-founder of PointsYeah, he was halfway through the flight when the plane turned around due to weather.
Troy didn’t wait. He booked a hotel inside the terminal, paid for dinner, and went to sleep, while everyone else was still waiting for airline accommodation
A few days later, he filed a claim through Allianz. He was reimbursed without drama. No line. No delays. No stress.
That moment changed how he thinks about travel insurance. It wasn’t about the money. It was about keeping the trip together when things fell apart.
Stolen Laptops. A Missing Wallet. Covered.
That wasn’t the only time Allianz came through.
In Cancun, one laptop and an iPad were stolen from Troy’s hotel room. In Madrid, his wallet (yes, he still carries 20+ cards in his wallet nowadays) was snatched while out exploring. Both times, Allianz handled it. He filed a claim online, attached the documents, and got paid back in less than a week.
Not every plan includes baggage loss or theft coverage, but most do. You can review your plan details before you buy to see what’s included, and cancel within 15 days if it’s not the right fit.
Plan changed, charged miles redeposit fee?
We all know by now that U.S. airline programs no longer charge a redeposit fee to cancel mileage bookings. However, most non-U.S. programs still do. The Annual Executive Plan will reimburse up to $500 for these fees
The Kind of Coverage That Matters
Travel insurance from Allianz is built around real-life problems, the ones travelers actually face. Depending on your plan, benefits may include:
Miles redemption redeposit fee
Trip cancellation
Trip interruption
Emergency medical and dental
Emergency transportation
Baggage loss, damage, or delay
Travel delay reimbursement
24-hour assistance line
Concierge support
You’ll see all of these listed in your policy documents, along with covered reasons, exclusions, and limits. The point is, this isn’t fluff. It’s designed for the kind of travel we actually do.
How It Works
Travel insurance is designed to protect you from the unexpected so you can focus on the part that matters, actually enjoying your trip.
Getting started with Allianz is simple. You don’t need to sort through dozens of policies or decode complicated language. Just follow the basics:
Enter your trip details Include your travel dates destination
Explore plan options Allianz will show you coverage options tailored to your trip.
Choose the plan that fits Select the coverage that works for your travel style, budget, and needs.
That’s it. No guesswork. No long forms. Just straightforward protection that travels with you.
The Claims Process That Doesn’t Make You Want to Scream
Allianz rebuilt their entire claims system based on customer feedback. It’s now one of the most intuitive in the industry.
You’ll get a short walkthrough when you start your claim
A clean dashboard shows exactly where your claim stands
You’ll get a personal document checklist
You can file and track everything from the Allyz app
You can also choose how you want to be paid. Direct deposit and debit disbursement are the fastest, often arriving within a few business days.
If you’re already traveling and something goes sideways, the 24-hour assistance hotline is your lifeline. From lost passports to medical emergencies, the support team is ready when you need them.
Not Sure Yet? You’ve Got Flexibility
Still not sure? Allianz offers a 15-day free look period (or longer, depending on your state). That means you can buy now, review later, and cancel with a full refund, as long as your trip hasn’t started and you haven’t filed a claim.
You don’t have to commit blindly. You can see exactly what’s included and make sure the plan fits your needs.
In other words, you can plan responsibly without overthinking it.
When One Thing Goes Wrong, You’ll Be Glad You Did
We spend hours building perfect trips. We choose routes with better aircraft, hotels with better lounges, transfer partners with better value. But even the most optimized itinerary can fall apart with one delayed flight, one missed connection, one stolen bag.
That’s why travel insurance isn’t just backup. It’s part of the strategy.
It protects your time. It protects your momentum. And it makes recovery feel manageable instead of overwhelming.
Because when things go right, you’ll never think about your policy. But when something goes wrong, you’ll feel like it saved your entire trip.
The Capital One Venture X Business Card was forged from stainless steel exclusively for business owners with a passion for travel. It’s a premium card that comes with hundreds in annual travel credits, bonus points after each account anniversary, airport lounge access, and much more.
And for a limited time, the card offers up to 350,000 bonus miles after completing tiered spending requirements. The scientific term for an intro offer that high is “whopping.” This is the highest bonus the card’s ever had.
Here’s everything you need to know about the Capital One Venture X Business — and how to use its rewards.
How do Capital One miles work?
How to earn Capital One miles
The Capital One Venture X Business currently comes with a tiered welcome offer of up to 350,000 bonus miles:
150,000 bonus miles after spending $30,000 on purchases within the first three months from account opening
200,00 additional bonus miles after spending a total of $200,000 on purchases within the first six months from account opening
That’s a high minimum spending threshold (though businesses with considerable expenses may not bat an eye at that figure). Even if you can only manage to earn the 150,000-mile tier, the bonus is still more generous than just about any card on the market.
The Capital One Venture X Business also has a great return for purchases:
10 miles per dollar on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel
5 miles per dollar on airfare and vacation rentals booked through Capital One Travel
5 miles per dollar on Capital One Entertainment purchases
2 miles per dollar on all other eligible purchases
In other words, if you were to earn the full Venture X Business bonus, you’d end up with at least 750,000 Capital One miles after meeting minimum spending requirements ($200,000 in minimum spending x 2 miles per dollar = 400,000 additional miles).
How to use Capital One miles
Capital One gives you a few simple ways to redeem your rewards. You can:
Offset travel purchases you make with your card up to 90 days later at a rate of 1 cent per mile. You can redeem your rewards for transactions like flights, hotels, rental cars, ferries, timeshares, and more.
You’ll almost always get the most travel from your miles by converting them into airline miles and hotel points.
For example, if you were to purchase the below $366 United flight from Indianapolis (IND) to Miami (MIA), you’d spend 36,600 Capital One miles to offset the transaction. But by transferring Capital One miles to Avianca, the flight would cost just 7,500 miles and $5.60 in fees.
Here’s a look at the airline and hotel programs that partner with Capital One. All transfers are 1:1 unless otherwise specified.
Accor Live Limitless (2:1)
Emirates
Singapore Airlines
Aeromexico
Etihad
TAP Portugal
Air Canada Aeroplan
EVA Air (2:1.5)
Turkish Airlines
Avianca
Finnair
Virgin Red
British Airways
Flying Blue (Air France and KLM)
Wyndham Rewards
Cathay Pacific
JetBlue (5:3)
Choice Privileges
Qantas
No matter where you want to visit, a Capital One partner can get you there. And PointsYeah makes finding the perfect award seat super easy. Enter your origin and destination into the PointsYeah search bar and filter results by Capital One partners. We’ll show you all your options in seconds.
If you’re feeling adventurous, try our Daydream Explorer tool to explore entire countries or continents at a time. You can even search all of Earth at once by typing “anywhere” as your origin and/or destination.
Is the Capital One Venture X Business worth a $395 annual fee?
The Capital One Venture X Business charges a $395 annual fee. But with one ounce of effort, you’ll be able to recoup that fee. We consider this card to be effectively a no annual fee card thanks to the following benefits.
Yearly bonuses
Here’s the key to squeezing more value from the Venture X Business than you’re investing in its annual fee. You’ll get two annual rewards that post to your account after each anniversary year:
Up to $300 in travel credit to be redeemed through Capital One Travel for flights, hotel stays, rental cars, etc. (you receive this credit upon account opening, as well)
10,000 bonus Capital One miles (beginning on your first account anniversary)
Remember, the 10,000 bonus miles are worth a minimum of $100 in travel. Between the annual travel credit and the bonus miles, Capital One is basically giving you $400 in free travel each year.
But transferring your miles to travel partners can make the deal even better. Check out our guide to where you can go with 5,000 miles or less for some inspiration.
Access to airport lounges
While walking through the terminal, have you ever noticed the sliding glass doors that business travelers are always ducking into? You don’t have to be a big shot to get in. You just need a card like the Capital One Venture X Business.
It gives you access to more than 1,300 airport lounges around the world. Airport lounges often come with free food and alcohol, fast Wi-Fi, conference rooms, lots of electrical outlets, and sometimes even showers and day beds.
You can visit Capital One Lounges, a collection of upscale lounges, as well as Capital One’s new restaurant-first concept, Capital One Landing. You can also use Priority Pass lounges — which are just about everywhere. And you can bring two guests for free.
More freedom to charge big expenses
The Capital One Venture X Business is a NPSL (No Preset Spending Limit) card. This means you don’t have a firm credit line. Instead, the card learns your spending habits and gives you extra leeway if you’re in the habit of making large purchases.
If the nature of your business demands that you charge tens of thousands of dollars at a time, you’re likely better off with a NPSL card than a standard credit card. Just note that you must pay your debt in full each month — the card doesn’t allow you to carry a balance month-to-month.
Expedited airport security experience
Every four years, the Capital One Venture gives you up to $120 in credit to reimburse you for the application fee to “trusted traveler” programs TSA PreCheck and Global Entry.
TSA PreCheck costs $78 for a five-year membership. It gives you the ability to (practically) sprint through the domestic airport security checkpoints without having to remove your shoes or belt — or even take your laptop out of your bag. Plus, you’ll go through an exclusive security lane that processes much faster.
Global Entry costs $120 for a five-year membership. It helps you to skip the immigration line when entering the U.S. from overseas. Instead of getting grilled by an immigration officer, just find a dedicated kiosk and it’ll quickly confirm your identity. Global Entry also comes with TSA PreCheck privileges.
Get special access to restaurants and events
Capital One caters heavily to dining and entertainment. It partners with some restaurants to help you land a reservation even when the joint is fully booked. Its Capital One Dining platform also hosts special experiences like cooking classes with prominent chefs.
And through Capital One Entertainment, you can book super popular music and sporting events and experiences through presale opportunities — so you can be one of the first to buy.
Is the Capital One Venture X Business right for you?
The Capital One Venture X Business is a uniquely capable business card that can serve just about any entrepreneur. But it’s especially great for business owners that answer “yes” to the following questions.
Is your business spending unconventional? If your business expenses don’t fall into a typical bonus category (think office supplies, shipping, online advertising, gas, etc.), this 2X everywhere card is a stellar option to funnel all your purchases through.
Does your business have lots of expenses? If you need a sizable credit line to make big business purchases, the Capital One Venture X Business is one of your best options since it has no preset spending limit.
Do you have travel aspirations? This card is meant for travelers. if you don’t travel for pleasure or business, a cash back credit card may better serve your goals.
Is the Capital One Venture X Business easy to get?
Again, the Capital One Venture X Business is a premium travel card. But it’s not notoriously hard to get. Here are some guidelines to follow:
You must own a business. This card is exclusively for business owners compared to the Capital One Venture X built for all travelers.
You have a good credit score. As a premium card, lower credit scores might not get accepted.
Abide by the 1/6 rule. Capital One usually won’t approve you for more than one credit card application within a six-month period.
So yeah, that’s the deal
Though the Capital One Venture X Business is a premium business card, its $395 annual fee is notably lower than its high-end competitors. You can very easily negate that fee thanks to its anniversary bonuses such as a $300 travel credit and 10,000 bonus miles.
And for a limited time, the card offers one of the biggest welcome offers we’ve ever seen: up to 350,000 bonus miles after meeting tiered spending requirements.
The way you explore with points just changed completely.
We didn’t just update Daydream Explorer, we reimagined how award travel should feel.
It now starts with a first-of-its-kind map that lets you search from anywhere to anywhere, across both flights and hotels. Toggle between them, zoom into regions, and start spotting possibilities instantly.
When you hone in on a destination, you’ll drop into a list view that feels familiar to Daydream of the past, letting you compare cabins, airlines, transfer partners, and more side by side.
You might start out looking for a trip to Paris… and end up planning something entirely different. That’s the magic of Daydream.
Whether you’re ready to book or just playing around, it’s the most inspiring way to use your points.
Explore Like Never Before
No departure city? No destination? No problem.
Start by choosing a region, or just hit “Anywhere”, and Daydream Explorerwill instantly find flight and hotel options based on your filters. You can have up to three continents, Regions, countries, States or airports in each departure and arrival
It’s built for open-ended exploring, flexible planning, and those “just browsing” moments that turn into real trips.
And it’s not just about flights. Daydream also includes access to theHotel Collection, a curated set of inspirational stays you can book with points. From beachfront escapes to boutique hideaways, it’s your gateway to unforgettable hotel experiences.
Cabin Class Colors on the Map
A quick visual guide to help you scan with confidence.
Every cabin type is color-coded on the map, so whether you’re browsing one class or all of them, it’s easy to compare. It’s a fast, intuitive way to spot the cabins you care about most, especially if you’re casually browsing or comparing options across the world.
🔵 Blue – Economy 🟢 Green – Premium Econ 🟣 Purple – Business Class 🟠 Orange – First Class
Filters That Actually Matter
Daydream Explorer lets you fine-tune your search to match exactly what you’re looking for.
On the flight page, you can filter by:
Cabin class
Airline program
Bank program
Number of stops
Max points
Max taxes
Trip themes like beach, city, honeymoon, golf, family, and even to the moon
Once you’ve found a destination you’re excited about in Daydream, you’ll land on a search card, a smart summary that shows you everything available for that specific route.
Here’s what you’ll see:
All currently available award options
Points pricing across multiple days
All airline program options for that route
Clear cabin labels (economy, business, etc.)
Latest updated time
It’s a bird’s-eye view of what’s possible with your points. And when one of those options looks right, just click to preview and tap ‘Real-Time Search’ to confirm availability instantly.
Explorer Alerts: Your travel sidekick
Not ready to book yet? That’s what Explorer Alerts are for.
You’ll find the orange bell icon at the top near the search filters or next to any deal you want to keep an eye on.
Click it, and you can customize your alert with flexible settings like:
Where you’re departing from
Travel dates
Number of seats
Travel theme
Airline program
Bank program
Maximum taxes
Set it and let it run in the background. We’ll let you know when something hits your criteria, so you don’t have to keep checking back. You can track these alerts alongside your Price Point Alerts and Hotel Alerts in your account.
Explorer Alerts are free, unlimited, and built for travelers who like to keep their options open. Learn more about Explorer Alerts.
A few ways to use Daydream Explorer
Whether you’re browsing the map, diving into a search card, or setting up alerts, every part of Daydream is designed to turn ideas into action, and points into travel
✈️ Fly to London in business class for just 29,000 points
Not loving the new Daydream Explorer flow? You can toggle back to the old view at any time by pressing “Detail view” button. You can even set this as your preference in your user settings.
Collecting travel rewards is about more than just fancy lie-flat business class seats to Asia and Europe. Sometimes you just want to book a quick jaunt to Grandma’s house a couple states away for Thanksgiving — or maybe a weekend getaway to the nearest beach for a mental recharge.
Award travel has changed. You don’t need to stack up a whole lot of points—instead, you can book your next free trip for 5,000 miles or even less. PointsYeah makes these flights easy to find. Here’s how it works.
How to find 5,000-mile awards with PointsYeah
To begin our search for these 5K-point awards, we began with the Daydream Explorer tool. Its interactive map and extensive filters make it simple to get inspiration about possible trips. The tool is an excellent way to unearth great flight deals to just about everywhere.
You’ll find Daydream Explorer in the menu on the left side of the home page.
Click it, and you’ll be brought to a snappy interactive map. Enter your origin or destination airports, and you’ll see awards for routes to all over the world. Or, if you’re really feeling adventurous, you can search from “Anywhere” to “Anywhere.”
You can then filter the results displayed on the map by price. Enter 5,000 under the “Max Points” tab to find flights that can be booked for 5,000 points or less.
You can also filter by airline or bank program to give you a better snapshot of what you can book with the specific points you’ve got.
Which airline programs offer 5,000-mile flights?
Let’s take a look at some fun examples of 5,000-mile flights you can book with popular airline programs.
United MileagePlus
You’ll most often find the lowest-priced United Airlines awards when hopping around California — and in some cases, Western Canada. Most (not all) tend to start or end with San Francisco (SFO), a major United hub.
For example, you can fly between San Francisco (SFO) and Vancouver, BC (YVR) for 5,000 United miles and $5.60 in fees. Not bad for an 800-mile flight.
Delta is one of the rare breeds that prices a select few awards under 5,000 miles. You can typically find them all around the Northeast between Boston (BOS) and regional airports like Augusta (AUG), Adirondack (SLK), Nantucket (ACK), and more. But other routes around the U.S. occasionally pop up. Be on the lookout for Delta flash sales.
For more popular routes, be prepared to pay 5,000 miles. Here’s a route between Fort Lauderdale (FLL) and New York (JFK) for 5,000 Delta miles and $5.60 in fees.
American Airlines is considerably generous with its presence of 5,000-mile routes. Flights priced this low tend to have a travel distance of 500 miles or less.
For example, a 453-mile flight from Detroit (DTW) to Philadelphia (PHL) costs 5,000 AA miles and $5.60 in fees.
If your upcoming AA trip is under 500 miles, you’ve got a decent chance at scoring a low price. Of course, it’ll help to be flexible with your travel dates.
Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan
Alaska Airlines has an extensive loyalty programs allowing flights below 5,000 miles on both its own metal as well as on partner airlines.
For example, here’s a flight on Alaska Airlines between Oakland (OAK) and Seattle (SEA) for 4,500 Alaska miles and $5.60 in fees.
And here’s one on partner American Airlines between Miami (MIA) and Grand Cayman (GCM) for 4,500 Alaska Airlines miles and $18.10 in fees.
For some routes (typically around the West Coast), you can find economy seats for just 4,000 miles each way.
JetBlue TrueBlue
JetBlue, known for its strong presence in the Northeast part of the US, has plenty of 5k point redemptions from major hubs.
For example, the below flight from New York (JFK) to Nashville (BNA) costs just 3,200 points and $5.60 in fees!
Aside from some niche intra-Caribbean routes, Virgin Atlantic saves its 5,000-mile routes for those jumping around Europe. And there arelotsto choose from, thanks to partners like SAS, Air France, and KLM.
Here’s a flight from Amsterdam (AMS) to Vienna (VIE) for 4,000 points and (an admittedly high) $93.41 in fees.
Spirit Airlines prices its award flights similarly to JetBlue in that the amount of points you pay is directly proportional to the seat’s cash price.
As an ultra-low-cost airline, Spirit’s got plenty of inexpensive routes. Awards start at just 2,500 points. For example, a flight from Chicago (ORD) to Cancun (CUN) costs 2,500 points and $48.13 in fees.
Pretty simple, yeah?
Lots of airlines give you the ability to book a seat for 5,000 miles or less — even on international flights. They’re often shorter trips, but they can represent a great value.
PointsYeah can help you to find these flights with Daydream Explorer. And be sure to sign-up for the PointsYeah newsletter — we’ll send you an alert when we see a screaming 5,000-mile deal.
Editorial Disclosure: Opinions, reviews, analyses & recommendations are PointsYeah’s alone, and have not been reviewed, endorsed or approved by any of these entities. Some links on this website will earn an affiliate commission.
I’ve had the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card for over 10 years. I’ve used its points and travel perks to hop all over the world for nearly free.
Case in point: My first award flight was to the Philippines for 40,000 Chase Ultimate Rewards® points and $5.60. That’s less out-of-pocket than the Grande six-pump Cinnamon Dolce Flat White I nursed while waiting for my flight.
You don’t have to know a ton about travel rewards to squeeze lots of trips out of its points.
The rewards it earns can be transferred to over a dozen airline and hotel programs. In other words, it’s a good points currency to invest in if you don’t have firm travel plans.
Its travel insurance is fantastic. It’s saved me thousands of dollars over the years.
And get this: For a limited time, the Chase Sapphire Preferred offers a whopping 100,000 Chase Ultimate Rewards® points after you spend $5,000 on purchases within the first three months from account opening. You can do just about anything with that big of a points stockpile. I’ll show you what I mean — and why the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card is worth opening even without this huge bonus.
How do Chase Ultimate Rewards work?
How to earn Chase points
For a limited time, theChase Sapphire Preferred® Card comes with 100,000 bonus points after you spend $5,000 on purchases within the first three months from account opening. That’s 40,000 points higher than its standard offer. It’s been nearly four years since the card has touted a bonus this juicy.
Beyond its welcome bonus, the Chase Sapphire Preferred earns points at the following rates:
3 points per dollar on dining (including eligible delivery services)
3 points per dollar for online grocery purchases (except for Target, Walmart, and wholesale clubs)
3 points per dollar for eligible streaming services
2 points per dollar on travel purchases (flights, hotels, Airbnb, rental cars, rideshare services, tolls, etc.)
1 point per dollar on all other eligible purchases
You’ll also earn 5 points per dollar when you book flights, hotel stays, rental cars, etc. through Chase Travel℠ (excluding expenses that are reimbursed by the card’s annual $50 hotel credit — we’ll talk about that in a minute).
How to use Chase points
You’ve got a lot of options when it comes to redeeming Chase points. You can cash them out at a rate of 1 cent per point; you can “buy” flights, hotels, and more through Chase’s proprietary booking platform, Chase Travel℠, at a rate of 1.25 cents per point.
But you’ll typically get the most travel (by far) when you convert points into airline miles and hotel points with Chase’s travel partners.
Here’s a quick look at all the loyalty programs that partner with Chase.
Aer Lingus
Emirates
IHG One
Singapore Airlines
Virgin Atlantic
Air Canada
Flying Blue (Air France and KLM)
JetBlue
Southwest
World of Hyatt
British Airways
Iberia
Marriott Bonvoy
United Airlines
PointsYeah lets you filter your award flights and hotel stays by bank program — giving you a quick and easy look at fun ways to use your Chase points no matter where you’re heading.
With the exception of that frigid white continent to the south, you can get just about anywhere with the current 100,000-point bonus.
PointsYeah also lets you set alerts to help you find inexpensive awards for super popular flights and hotels. I managed to book an $1,800 room at the Park Hyatt New York with 45,000 Chase points thanks to PointsYeah Hotel Alerts.
You’ll pay a $95 membership fee when you open the Chase Sapphire Preferred — and after every cardmember anniversary. But those who book even a couple of trips each year can easily justify the card’s fee.
Let’s take a quick look at the card’s best benefits. If you think these are worth more than $95 per year, the card is worth its annual fee.
Loads of statement credits
The Chase Sapphire Preferred comes with several credits and refunds. With very little effort, you could conceivably save hundreds of dollars per year:
$50 hotel credit. Each account anniversary year, you’ll get up to $50 in statement credits toward prepaid hotels booked through Chase Travel℠. If you regularly book your hotel stays through an online travel agency, like Expedia or Kayak, you’ll have no trouble using this credit.
DashPass membership. Get 12 months of free DashPass ($0 delivery fees, exclusive offers, and more) and $10 per month in non-restaurant orders when you activate the offer by Dec 31, 2027. DashPass otherwise costs $9.99 per month, so this is a nice value if you already pay for DoorDash.
Chase Offers. These are digital coupons and promotions that you can manually add to your card from your online account. Many times you’ll see offers that can save you money on purchases you planned to make anyway, such as gas, wireless services, streaming, etc.
Top-notch travelinsurance
The most compelling reason I keep the Chase Sapphire Preferred in my wallet year after year is its travel insurance. Coverage is automatic as long as you pay for your travel with the card. Here are some of the perks you’ll get:
Primary rental car insurance. Instead of paying the $10+ per day for a rental agency’s in-house insurance plan, the Chase Sapphire Preferred covers you up to $60,000 for theft and collision damage on most cars.
Trip delay insurance. If your flight is delayed by more than 12 hours (or requires an overnight stay), Chase will reimburse you for up to $500 in “reasonable” expenses — including a hotel night and meals.
Baggage delay insurance. When your bag is delayed by more than six hours, Chase will give you $100 per day (up to five days) to buy things that you need for your trip. This includes clothes, toiletries, a phone charger, etc.
Trip cancellation and interruption insurance. You’ll get reimbursed up to $10,000 per covered traveler (max $20,000 per trip) when your nonrefundable travel is canceled or cut short for a qualifying reason (such as inclement weather or injury).
Here’s an amusing/nightmarish anecdote: During a trip to Dublin, United Airlines lost my checked bag for over a week. Because I had paid for my flight with the Chase Sapphire Preferred, Chase reimbursed me for $500 in new clothes. And on the same trip, I ended up scraping my rental car and was charged $2,300 by the rental agency. I sent the bill to Chase — and they cut me a check for the full amount within a few weeks.
No foreign transaction fees
A lot of credit cards will stick you with a 3% fee when you make purchases outside the U.S. That can add up in a hurry, especially if you book expensive hotels or do a lot of shopping.
The Chase Sapphire Preferred waives this ridiculous fee — so it’s a great companion if you’ve got international travel plans.
There are a handful of questions you can ask yourself to quickly determine if the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card is a good match for your wallet. Say yes to any of these and the card is a no-brainer.
Can you make $5,000 in purchases within the next three months? The card’s100,000-point bonus after spending $5,000 within the first three months is too good to pass up. Again — while the points are best used by transferring to airline and hotel partners, you could simply cash it out for $1,000. It’s like Chase is giving you a free $1,000 just to try the card out. That’s crazy.
Do you pay for travel insurance? You know how airlines and hotels often have a travel insurance add-on during checkout? If you typically opt for this coverage, the Chase Sapphire Preferred can save you a lot by giving you similar protections automatically.
Do you travel at least a couple times each year? For those who almost never travel, there are better cards out there with benefits that are more relevant to your lifestyle — such as cash back credit cards.
Do you spend a lot on dining, streaming, or online grocery shopping? The Chase Sapphire Preferred earns 3 points per dollar on eligible purchases in these categories. You could easily earn many tens of thousands of points each year from these expenses alone.
The Chase Sapphire Preferred isn’t more difficult to get than most other travel credit cards. Still, there are a few things that will guarantee you an application denial:
Credit score. The Chase Sapphire Preferred is recommended for those with a credit score of 670 or above. If your credit score isn’t quite there yet, keep exhibiting good credit habits. You’ll get there.
Chase “5/24 rule”. If you’ve opened five or more credit cards from any bank in the past 24 months (excluding most small business credit cards), you won’t be approved for the Chase Sapphire Preferred.
Sapphire 48-month rule. If you’ve earned a welcome bonus from a Chase Sapphire card in the past 48 months (including the Sapphire Preferred’s fancy sibling, the Chase Sapphire Reserve®), you aren’t eligible to earn another bonus.
One Sapphire rule. If you already hold the Chase Sapphire Preferred or Chase Sapphire Reserve, you’re not eligible to open another Sapphire card and earn the bonus. To open the Chase Sapphire Preferred again, you’ll have to either cancel your current card or downgrade it to a no annual fee Chase Freedom Flex℠ or Chase Freedom Unlimited®.
So yeah, that’s the deal
The Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card is one of our absolute favorite rewards credit cards. Chase has crammed a lot of great travel benefits inside its thin metal chassis.
And best of all, the card comes with a monster 100,000 bonus points after meeting minimum spending requirements. I know it’s only April — but this may be the best credit card offer we’ll see all year.
Our goal is to create the simplest and best award search site to make award planning easier for everyone. However, achieving this is not easy, we have devoted countless hours to ensuring accuracy, reliability, and speed simultaneously. As a real-time search site, we don’t have much room for errors as we do understand the trust from all of you. With that trust, we built our product without shortcuts, ensuring that every live search is reflective of what you will see on direct sites. We DON’T falsify results nor do we use partner A results for partner B without actually searching B.
I am sure all of us know, when we are searching for revenue tickets, there are times you see “sorry, your fare no longer available, XXX is our new price or please select different flights.”
The reality for award search is far more complicated than revenue ticket, and we have decided to share some stories about how the award travel search system works in 2025.
Every airline has designed its system differently from another, making a one-size-fits-all solution impossible. Some airlines have very sophisticated systems using the newest technology, while others are legacy systems. To make matters more complicated, sometimes these airlines with technology miles apart are partners who share inventory.
Partners no longer share the same inventory space as they did five years ago due to changes in financial models and system. Delta was the first mover, with Virgin Flying Club, Delta and Air France and KLM Flying Blue also implementing changes. As travel advances, these practices are likely to be implemented by other airlines/alliances over time.
Even if they share inventory spaces on some routes/some alliances(old system vs newer one), the differences in each airline’s system setup may cause discrepancies. For example, Iberia has married segment restrictions only on their and British Airways flights, not on some partners. British Airways, on the other hand, has them on almost all partners. So, some SEGMENTS redeemable on Iberia Avios may not be visible on British Airways Avios because Iberia Avios allows multi-segment mixed matches.
Airlines’ front ends are also built differently. While we get results from the backend, airline frontends may miss airport codes. We have 9000+ airport codes, but many airlines don’t have that many as they were not designed for award search. For example, Iberia Avios doesn’t have IST code, and used BUE instead of EZE or AEP for Buenos Aires or Qantas Frequent Flyer, Etihad Guest don’t have some airports too. As we built our airport code repository, our team even missed many airports that were discovered by our amazing users.
How you search on airline sites will yield different results. For instance, Lifemiles and Turkish Airlines, when searching for their partners, lifemiles.com may not show all Star Alliance results if you use all partners, for lifemiles.com select Star alliance BEFORE Search or Carrier BEFORE search on top of departure airports. Turkish Airlines has two places to search for Star Alliance, each with different results. The accurate one is under my account-miles transactions-star alliance awards. Not the standard alliance search from front.
Frontend blocking: Some airlines block redemption from the frontend for specific routes or carriers for various reasons.
Sync delay: Internal systems have sync delays between partners or even within the same company but different sites. For example, the Air France site may have a delay compared to the KLM site, and the same goes for their apps
Phantom inventory: This issue has persisted for over 20 years between partners.
Request Timeout : There are two types of timeouts—either the request is timed out by the receiver, or we timeout the request. Regardless of the type, you just need to search one more time.
With over 50 systems interacting simultaneously, we cannot guarantee 100% accuracy. Nevertheless, we are doing our best to achieve as close to 100% accuracy as possible.
We want to thank you again for your understanding and we and the airlines are continuing to improve to make your points travel planning effortless.
At PointsYeah, we believe that there is no “one way” to book travel. We built our products with that in mind, building our Daydream Explorer product for those who want to search the globe and be inspired for their next trip. Our Explorer Alert feature is often overlooked and misunderstood, so we want to spend time raising awareness to how you can use these for your next booking.
What are Explorer Alerts?
Explorer Alerts are tied to our Daydream Explorer product. These alerts allow you to find inspiration as broad or narrow as you like, sending these ideas directly to your inbox. We all love new flight ideas and don’t want you to miss any of them.
What is the difference between Explorer Alerts and Points Price Alerts?
Explorer Alerts track flights from the most searched routes globally. Points Price Alerts are more specific to your exact needs, tracking price changes and new seats on almost any route around the globe.
Is there a limit on Explorer Alerts?
No, Explorer Alerts are free and unlimited. You can set up as many as you want in any way you want.
Where do I find Explorer Alerts?
Explorer Alerts can be found in a few places;
In the Alerts tab on the left sidebar. From there, toggle to Explorer Alerts under the flights tab.
In the Daydream Explorer product. Once you navigate to the list view, you will see the alerts icon in the filter section.
How do I set up the alerts?
Similar to Points Price Alerts, you can set up to three departures and arrivals, including continents, regions, countries, or airports for each alert.
How do I get notified?
After creating an alert, you will receive notifications via email and on the Alerts page whenever we find a deal that matches your criteria.
Points Price Alerts – Set Your Own Price The only alert continuously tracking both the price changes of points and the availability of newly released seats with multiple dates.
1. What are the Points Price Alerts – Set Your Own Price?
Unlike other alerts where you either have to enter lots of information to track one flight or only receive an alert once, our Points Price Alerts, we track both points price changes, similar to Kayak or Google’s price alerts, and newly available seats based on the maximum points you wish to spend.
2. How to set up the alerts?
You can set up your alerts via the search result page or under my account page with only a few clicks, follow the steps to customize filters and the maximum points you wish to spend.
3. Is this really free, unlimited, and continuous tracking?
Yes, our points prices alerts offer unlimited and continuous tracking with maximum 4 active alerts. We will keep searching for available options unless the alert is paused or deleted, or the pre-set travel date has passed. You can pause or delete any alert at any time. When an alert is paused or deleted, or the travel date has passed, the limit will be reset. Keep in mind that many award tickets are fully refundable, enabling you to book now and exchange for a better option if the points price changes.
4. How are 4 active alerts counted?
Each day will be counted as one active alert. If you set up alerts for three days in a row, it will be counted as three alerts. However, each alert can be set for all the programs you want to track.
5. How can I get more active alerts?
Upgrade to our membership to have access to 32 active alerts.
6. How do I get notified?
You will receive notifications via email and on the My Points Price Alerts page whenever we detect a change to your alert.
Got a whole bunch of credit card points but aren’t sure how to spend them? PointsYeah’s search tool is a foolproof way to make your travel planning easier. From converting points into airline miles to formally booking your travel, we hold your hand the whole way.
Although PointsYeah does the heavy lifting, it’s still worth understanding simple details like:
Which airlines partner with each points program?
Which credit cards can you open to quickly amass the points that’ll best fit your travel goals?
American Express Membership Rewards points
Which airlines partner with Amex Membership Rewards?
Aer Lingus
Cathay Pacific
Iberia
Aeromexico
Delta
JetBlue
Air Canada
Emirates
Qantas
ANA
Etihad
Qatar Airways
Avianca
Flying Blue (Air France and KLM)
Singapore Airlines
British Airways
Hawaiian Airlines
Virgin Atlantic
While looking for award flights, PointsYeah displays live search results that show you how many points you’ll need to transfer to each specific airline program. It even shows you active transfer bonuses.
Most transfers are instant — so you can book your travel immediately after you initiate the conversion.
Another quick note: When transferring Amex points to a U.S. airline (like Delta or JetBlue or Hawaiian Airlines), you’ll be subject to a fee of 0.06 cents per point. For example, you’ll pay $60 for every 100,000 points you transfer. You’ve also got the option to redeem Amex points at a rate of 0.5 cents each to offset the fee.
Again, this doesn’t apply to foreign airlines — only those based in the U.S.
How to transfer American Express Membership Rewards to airlines
Step 1. Log into your American Express online account and select a Membership Rewards-earning card (like the Amex Platinum Card).
Step 2. Click the “Rewards & Benefits” tab. Under the “Earn and Redeem” drop-down menu, find the “Transfer Points” option. This will take you to a page listing all Amex transfer partners.
Step 3. Choose the airline program you’d like to transfer your points to. Before you transfer, Amex will ask you to enter your airline loyalty number. It’ll save your info for future use.
Step 4. Review and submit your transfer. You’ll need to authenticate the transfer by inputting the three-digit code on the back of your card, entering a temporary code sent to your email, or completing another verification method.
Bilt Rewards
Which airlines partner with Bilt Rewards?
Aer Lingus
Cathay Pacific
TAP Portugal
Alaska Airlines
Emirates
Turkish Airlines
Avianca
Flying Blue (Air France and KLM)
United Airlines
Air Canada
Iberia
Virgin Red (Virgin Atlantic)
British Airways
Southwest
Again, PointsYeah will show you live award inventory and give you links to help you transfer your points instantly (in most cases) to your preferred airline program — and even alert you of transfer bonuses to make your flight even cheaper.
Which credit cards earn Bilt Rewards?
Card
Annual fee
Welcome bonus
Bilt Mastercard®
$0
N/A
How to transfer Bilt Rewards to airlines
Step 1. Open the Bilt Rewards app on your phone and click the “Rewards” tab at the bottom of the screen.
Step 2. Find the “Transfer” button at the top of the screen and select it. This will bring you to a page with all of Bilt’s transfer partners.
Step 3. Choose the airline you want to transfer your points with. Input the number of points you’d like to transfer.
Step 4. Review and submit your transfer.
Capital One miles
Which airlines partner with Capital One miles?
Aeromexico
Etihad
Singapore Airlines
Air Canada
EVA Air
TAP Portugal
Avianca
Finnair
Turkish Airlines
British Airways
Flying Blue (Air France and KLM)
Virgin Red (Virgin Atlantic)
Cathay Pacific
JetBlue
Emirates
Qantas
Transferring Capital One miles to airlines is typically instant. And because PointsYeah displays live award availability, you can transfer your miles to the airline and book your trip in just a minute or two. We’ll tell you how many miles you need to convert for your desired flight — and also let you know of any Capital One miles transfer bonuses.
Which credit cards earn Capital One miles?
Card
Annual fee
Welcome bonus
Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card
$95
75,000 bonus miles
Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card
$395
75,000 bonus miles
Capital One Venture X Business Card
$395
75,000 bonus miles
Capital One VentureOne Rewards Credit Card
$0
20,000 bonus miles
Capital One Spark Miles for Business
$95 (waived the first year)
50,000 bonus miles
Capital One Spark Miles Select for Business
$0
50,000 bonus miles
Capital One Spark Cash Plus
$95 (waived the first year)
$750*
Capital One Savor Rewards Credit Card
$0
$200*
Capital One Quicksilver Cash Rewards Credit Card
$0
$200*
Capital One QuicksilverOne Cash Rewards Credit Card
$39
N/A*
*You can convert the cash back you earn with Capital One credit cards into transferable miles as long as you also hold a Capital One miles-earning card, like the Capital One Venture. The transfer rate is 1 mile per cent. For example, you could convert $50 in cash back into 5,000 Capital One miles.
In other words, even cash back Capital One cards are great for earning travel rewards.
How to transfer Capital One miles to airlines
Step 1. Log into your Capital One online account and click the “View Rewards” button on your dashboard. You’ll then be taken to the rewards page with several different redemption options.
Step 2. Click the “Transfer rewards” box to find the list of all Capital One airline partners.
Step 3. Choose the airline program you’d like to transfer your miles to. You’ll need to enter your airline loyalty number if you haven’t previously linked it to your Capital One account.
Step 4. Enter the number of miles you’d like to convert. Review and confirm your transfer.
Chase Ultimate Rewards points
Which airlines partner with Chase Ultimate Rewards?
Aer Lingus
Flying Blue (Air France and KLM)
Southwest
Air Canada
Iberia
United Airlines
British Airways
JetBlue
Virgin Atlantic
Emirates
Singapore Airlines
Chase Ultimate Rewards points convert to airlines programs instantly. PointsYeah gives you a live look at award seats — so when you find the flight you want, you can have it reserved in minutes. The search results will tell you how many Chase points you’ll need to book the flight, as well as any current transfer bonuses.
Which credit cards earn Chase Ultimate Rewards?
Card
Annual fee
Welcome bonus
Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card
$95
75,000 bonus points
Chase Sapphire Reserve®
$550
75,000 bonus points
Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card
$95
90,000 bonus points
Chase Freedom Unlimited®
$0
Up to $300*
Chase Freedom Flex℠
$0
$200*
Ink Business Cash® Credit Card
$0
$750*
Ink Business Unlimited® Credit Card
$0
$750*
*You can convert the cash back you earn with Chase credit cards into transferable points — but you must have a Chase Ultimate Rewards point-earning credit card, like the Chase Sapphire Preferred. You’ll get 1 point per cent, meaning, you could convert $100 in cash back into 10,000 Chase points.
How to transfer Chase points to airlines
Step 1. Log into your Chase online account and click on an Ultimate-Rewards credit card. You’ll see a “Redeem” button near the top of the page. Alternatively, you can head directly to the Chase Ultimate Rewards website and choose your Ultimate Rewards credit card.
Step 2. On your account dashboard, you’ll see a “Travel” tab at the top of the page. Find and click the “Transfer points to partners” link from the drop-down menu.
Step 3. From Chase’s list of airline partners, choose the program you’d like to transfer your points to. You’ll need to link your airline account to Chase if you haven’t already. Just enter your loyalty number when prompted.
Step 4. Enter the number of points you’d like to convert. Review and confirm your transfer.
Citi ThankYou points
Which airlines partner with Citi ThankYou points?
Aeromexico
EVA Air
Singapore Airlines
Avianca
Flying Blue (Air France and KLM)
Thai Airways
Cathay Pacific
JetBlue
Turkish Airlines
Emirates
Qantas
Virgin Atlantic
Etihad
Qatar Airways
Citi ThankYou points generally transfer to programs instantly. PointsYeah will quickly show you how many points you’ll need for your flight (accounting for active transfer bonuses), and it’ll display live award availability. Just choose your flight, and we’ll show you how to quickly book it.
Which credit cards earn Citi ThankYou points?
Card
Annual fee
Welcome bonus
Citi Strata Premier℠ Card
$95
75,000 bonus points
Citi Prestige® Card
$495
N/A
Citi Rewards+® Card
$0
20,000 bonus points*
Citi Double Cash® Card
$0
$200*
Citi Custom Cash® Card
$0
$200*
*You can turn any rewards you earn with Citi’s cash back cards into transferable ThankYou points as long as you also hold a ThankYou points-earning credit card like the Citi Strata Premier. You’ll get 1 point per cent, meaning, you can turn $100 in cash back into 10,000 Citi points.
It’s also worth noting that the Citi Rewards+ Card’s redemption options are effectively identical to Citi’s cash back credit cards. So to unlock the full potential of that card’s rewards, you’ll also need to hold a card like the Citi Strata Premier.
How to transfer Citi points to airlines
Step 1. Navigate to ThankYou.com and login with your Citi credit card credentials. You may need to manually select the Citi Strata Premier — or another card that earns fully transferable points, like the Citi Prestige.
On the home page is a “More Ways to Redeem” tab. Click “Points Transfer” from the drop-down menu.
Step 2. You’re now looking at a list of all Citi transfer partners. Find the airline you want to transfer to and click “Continue.” Link your airline loyalty account (if you haven’t already) by entering it into the ThankYou website when prompted.
Step 3. Enter the number of points you’d like to convert. Review and confirm your transfer.
Wells Fargo Rewards
Which airlines partner with Wells Fargo Rewards?
Aer Lingus
Flying Blue (Air France and KLM)
Avianca
Iberia
British Airways
Virgin Atlantic
In most cases, rewards will deposit into your airline account immediately after initiating a transfer from Wells Fargo. Take a quick look at available flights through PointsYeah’s live award search, and we’ll give you instructions for how to quickly transfer points and book your travel. We’ll even tell you when there’s a hard-to-ignore transfer bonus.
Which credit cards earn Wells Fargo Rewards?
Card
Annual fee
Welcome bonus
Wells Fargo Autograph℠ Card
$0
20,000 bonus points
Wells Fargo Autograph Journey℠ Card
$95
60,000 bonus points
Wells Fargo Active Cash® Card
$0
$200*
Wells Fargo Attune℠ Card
$0
$100*
Even Wells Fargo’s cash back cards that aren’t marketed as “travel” credit cards can be a boon for collecting travel rewards. If you’ve got a Wells Fargo points-earning card, like the Wells Fargo Autograph Card, you can convert the cash back you earn into Wells Fargo points at a rate of 1 point per cent — meaning $20 equals 2,000 travel points.
How to transfer Wells Fargo points to airlines
Step 1. Sign into your Wells Fargo online account and roll over the “Use Rewards” tab at the top of the page.
Step 2. From the drop-down menu, find and click the “Rewards Points Transfer” link. This will take you to a list of Wells Fargo transfer partners.
Step 3. Choose the airline you want to use and enter the number of points you’d like to transfer.
Step 4. Review your transfer and click “Submit.”
Cautions, caveats, and advice
Take advantage of transfer bonuses
Banks often publish bonuses which can help to stretch the rewards you earn by rewarding you for transferring your flexible points to specific airline partners.
For example, you may find that American Express is offering a 30% bonus when transferring to Virgin Atlantic. This improves the standard 1:1 transfer ratio to 1:1.3. That’s an extra 300 miles for every 1,000 points you transfer.
Transfers are final
When you convert transferable points to an airline, you can’t convert them back. For this reason, we don’t recommend transferring points until you’re ready to book.
Some points take a while to transfer
In most cases, transferable points deposit into your airline account within a day (typically within minutes). But some partners may take longer to process. If you’re uniquely cursed, the award seats you want may have disappeared by the time you get your miles.
It probably won’t happen to you, but it’s something to be aware of.
Pretty simple, Yeah?
Transferring bank points to an airline is simple and takes only a minute or two. The stressful part is trying to figure out how to best use those rewards. PointsYeah eliminates all that mental strain and feeds you the top options in seconds.
Save your brainpower for earning travel rewards. We’ll do the rest.
