20+ Trip Ideas with Chase Ultimate Rewards®

It’s no secret that Chase Ultimate Rewards® are our favorite kind of points overall — even more so for beginners. We’ve decided the whole first season of our podcast to a deep dive on these points and have a detailed downloadable guide about how to use these points, too.

One of the top requests we get is for more trip ideas and trip inspiration for using points! So today we have 20 ideas for you. We’d love to expand this post! Leave us a comment if you have another idea we should add!

If you have started following our Three Year Plan, or have started with our favorite beginner card — the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card, this post is for you!

Many of these require transferring your points to partners like Hyatt — be sure you’ve read and understand all about how to transfer points!

Some of these will require more than one welcome offer to book these trips and some will leave you with extra points to spare.

See Hamilton on Broadway in NYC

Through the Hyatt FIND program, you can use your Hyatt points to book a variety of experiences around the world. And since Chase points transfer to Hyatt points at a 1:1 ratio, you can book these if you have a stash of Ultimate Rewards! Your cost will be tied directly to the cost of the experience. We found tickets to Hamilton lower than 10,000 points per person — which leaves plenty of room to also book a Hyatt hotel in Manhattan! One popular option is the Thompson Central Park New York — standard rooms cost 25,000 points per night. Hyatt Place New York City/Times Square (among other hotels) is also an option that would include free breakfast and be a little cheaper at 20,000 points per night.

Visit a World Class Zoo in Omaha, Nebraska

Staying 3 nights in Omaha at the Hyatt Place Omaha/Downtown Old Market will cost you just 24,000 points. These rooms are 8000 points per night at the standard rate. The two queen rooms can sleep up to 6 thanks to the sofa bed. And you’ll get free breakfast! Go to Henry Doorly Zoo — which has been consistently rated in the top zoos in the world! Explore Old Market, too.

Stay Across from the St. Louis Arch

The Hyatt Regency St. Louis at The Arch is closer to the St. Louis Arch than that official Arch parking lot! Nights in the Executive Suite King room start at 13,000 points per night. Or book a standard room for just 8,000 points a night (ask if you can be upgraded to the King Bed Arch View Deluxe if it’s available!) Go to The Arch (of course) and check out a St. Louis Cardinals game (Busch Stadium is within walking distance). City Museum is a must (this is our favorite museum in the world!) and enjoy all the free activities in St. Louis like Grant’s Farm — home of the Anheuser Busch clydesdales. The Zoo and the Science Center are also free there.

Walk to Major Sights in Chicago

There are lots of Hyatt hotels to choose from — one great option is Hyatt Regency Chicago. It has a great location right on the river and is easy walking distance to the Magnificent Mile, Maggie Daley Park, Millennium Park, Broadway shows, great pizza, Navy Pier, the Riverwalk, and more! You’ll be right by the Chicago Architecture Foundation, too, for some great tours. Standard rooms cost 15,000 points per night or splurge on a Club Access room for 21,000 points per night.

Spread out in 3 Bedrooms on Siesta Key Beach

For 129,000 points you can book 3 nights in a 3 bedroom Village View room at The Residences on Siesta Key Beach. This vacation rental style room is 1750 square feet with 2 king beds, a queen bed and a chef’s kitchen and furnished private porch. It’s perfect for a family that likes to cook for themselves while traveling. This is harder to find availability for — so use MaxMyPoint to set alerts.

Visit Flamingos, Pyramids, and Cenotes in Merida, Mexico

To fly to Merida, Mexico with Chase points, you have a few options. One is to fly to Cancun (book on almost any airline, Katie usually flies Southwest), and then rent a car to drive to Merida, about 3 hours. It’s an easy drive mostly on a tollway. You could also either transfer to British Airways and then book on its partner American, or transfer to Air Canada Aeroplan to book on its partner United for about 25,000 points round trip, depending on your home airport. This could also be booked through Qatar Avios for fewer points but requires a few more hoops to jump through.

Book a room at the Hyatt Regency Merida with club access for just 6500 points per night — or get a suite for 8000 points per night.

From Merida, there are so many neat day trips. Katie and her family have enjoyed the cenotes, flamingo watching in Celestun, visting Uxmal pyramid, watching Pok Ta Pok in the square in Merida and more.

This trip is best in the winter — by March it is already quite hot in Merida!

Universal Studios Florida Trip

The Hyatt Place across from Universal Orlando Resort costs just 24,000 points (transferred to Hyatt) for a 3 night stay. You’ll also get free breakfast. You could use the rest of your points for flights or cash them out for a statement credit to help cover the cost of tickets. See more ways to save at Universal here.

See Dinosaur Tracks Near Dallas

Just 60,000 points can get you a 5 night stay at the Hyatt Regency Dallas. Or pick one of the many Category 1 Hyatts in Dallas for just 5,000 points a night. Along with all of the Dallas things to do — take a one day road trip to Dinosaur Valley State Park where you can see some of the best preserved dinosaur tracks in the world!

Relax in Grand Cayman

Transfer points to IHG to stay at the Kimpton Seafire Resort and Spa Grand Cayman. This bonus will get you just under 2 nights (unless there’s a transfer bonus to IHG), but if you combine this sign up bonus with an IHG One Rewards Premier Credit Card (even during a typical sign up bonus) you’ll be able to get 4 nights covered on points. That’s because one of the card perks is the 4th night free when you hold it.

Drive the Pacific Coast Highway in CA

Use points to fly into LAX and out of SFO. You could fly on Southwest, booking via Chase Travel^SM, or any way that works for you. Rent a car (you could rent via Chase Travel^SM) and then plan a 4 day drive up the Pacific Coast Highway. There are plenty of Hyatt hotels to choose from! See a similar trip report here.

Dig for Fossils Outside of SLC

There’s plenty of other activities near Salt Lake City, too! Visiting American Fossil Quarry has just been on our minds since we watched this video. You get to keep all the fossils you find and people report finding at least 100 in a 4 hour dig. Salt Lake City has Hyatts starting at 8,000 points per night.

Explore Puerto Rico’s Rain Forests and Beaches

You can split a stay in Puerto Rico between Hyatts in San Juan and a resort like Hyatt Residence Club Dorado, Hacienda del Mar. The rooms bookable with points are studios which include a king size bed and queen sofa sleeper along with a small kitchenette that has a fridge/freezer, microwave, toaster and sink. The standard rate for these rooms are 20,000 points per night.

While in Puerto Rico, you can visit Old San Juan, hike around El Yunque Rainforest, ride horses at Carabali Rainforest Park, zipline in the rainforest, and check out the Bioluminescent Bay. See Erin’s trip report here.

Visit Joshua Tree National Park and Las Vegas

Combine two trips in one with a one way car rental. Fly into Las Vegas and out of Ontario, CA or Palm Springs Airport.

Stay at Hyatt Vacation Club at Desert Oasis for 12,000 points per night — villas include kitchens! In Las Vegas, you can find a few Hyatt Place hotels for 12,000 points per night, too.

Some trip recommendations: The Lion Habitat Ranch just outside Vegas, the Red Rocks Canyon National Conservation Area, Las Vegas Natural History Museum, Mandalay Bay Aquarium, Joshua Tree National Park, The Living Desert Zoo, and the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway. Read more here from a family who took this trip!

Ski in Colorado

Hyatt Place Keystone has a great location with free breakfast and hot tubs overlooking the mountains! It’s hard to find ski season weekend availability, so you’ll want to book early (up to a year in advance) and set alerts to find rooms as they open. Tip from reader Tabitha: look into lift tickets nearby at Arapahoe Basin instead which can be a lot cheaper than Keystone!

Visit South Carolina’s Coast and Dunes

Wild Dunes Resort has multiple properties bookable with Hyatt points, you’ll likely find the most availability at the Boardwalk Inn. Standard pricing is 20,000 points per night. Enjoy beach time, resort activities, and a day trip to Charlestown.

Free Breakfast and Dinner at your Hyatt in Japan

Many of the Club Lounges at Hyatts in Japan have an amazing spread for both breakfast and dinner. These include many hotels that start at just 21,000 for Club Lounge access in Tokyo, Fukuoka, or on Okinawa. Browse our map here for inspiration or read Katie’s trip report about Japan.

Fly 4 People Round Trip To Ireland

Aer Lingus is another transfer partner for Chase Ultimate Rewards® and you can transfer points at a 1:1 ratio (sometimes even with a bonus!)

The best deal for Aer Lingus flights is to fly on a non-stop flight from Chicago or farther east to Ireland. Flights are priced per segment and by distance. Off-peak dates cover 2/3 of the year. It will cost 13,000 points each way in economy.

For non-stop flights on Aer Lingus booked via British Airways, Aer Lingus, or Iberia (prices shown off-peak/peak), here is the pricing:

13K / 20K for flights 3,000-4,000 miles flown

16,250 / 25K for flights 4,001 to 5,500 miles flown

Taxes on the flights vary but are usually $100-$200 per ticket.

Read more about flying to Europe with points

Fly To Europe with a Free Stopover in France or Amsterdam

Flying Blue is the name of the loyalty program that AirFrance and KLM (based in the Netherlands) share. FlyingBlue tickets are usually about 40,000 points round trip — and sometimes even cheaper with monthly promos! Even better, kids get a 25% discount on standard award pricing!

You’ll typically pay $200 on a round trip ticket in fees – but you can get a free stopover in Paris or Amsterdam!

One of the easiest ways to find availability with FlyingBlue is to use SeatSpy.

Read more here on this sweet spot.

Stay in a Suite in Paris with Club Access

It’s hard to find a Hyatt hotel in Europe that sleeps a family of 4 — but Hyatt Regency Paris Etoile does just that in a suite! Even better, when you book a suite here, you’ll automatically get club lounge access which includes breakfast and appetizers that can double as dinner. Suites costs 24,000 points per night with standard pricing.

Island Hop in Hawaii

You don’t need to island hop to use your points well in Hawaii! Hyatt has some stellar properties on Maui, Oahu, and Kauai! Here are some of our favorites. If you’re stretching your points, pick Hyatt Place Waikiki Beach — you can sleep 6 here in a 2 queen room, will get free breakfast — for just 15,000 points per night (standard rates). Or splurge on a beach resort!

Flights on Southwest between the islands are often below 3,000 points per night. See more ways to fly to Hawaii with points here.

Fly LAX to Tahiti (discount for kids, too!)

Air France operates a route from LAX to Tahiti with great pricing. You can fly for 27,500 each way–so 55,000 points round trip. Kids under 12 will get a 25% discount which means their flights will only be 41,250 round trip. You’ll also pay taxes and fees of about $150-$200 round trip.

Once you’re in Tahiti, you could use points to stay at a resort (Hilton is a popular option, but you’ll need to set alerts to find availability), or you could stay at an Airbnb which can be quite affordable compared to a US beach stay.