What counts as travel with Chase Sapphire Reserve?
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The Chase Sapphire Reserve® card has a solid sign-up bonus and lots of other amazing perks, including helping you earn points faster by way of the 3x Chase Sapphire Reserve travel and dining categories.
That’s great, because eating and traveling are two of the most popular spending categories.
Let’s take a look at what types of purchases do and do not qualify for bonus points in the travel category.
Chase Sapphire Reserve travel categories
You’ll earn 50,000 Chase Ultimate Rewards points after you spend $4,000 in the first three months of opening the Sapphire Reserve card.
You’ll also get a wide range of benefits, including:
- 10x points on Lyft rides (through March 2022)
- 3x points on travel (excluding $300 travel credit, below) and dining worldwide
- One point per dollar on all other purchases
- Up to $300 credit each account anniversary year for travel purchases
- Up to $100 statement credit for Global Entry or TSA PreCheck
- $60 DoorDash credit in 2020 and 2021
The $550 annual fee is not waived the first year, and we’ve written about whether or not the Sapphire Reserve’s annual fee is worth it for you.
The card comes with a Priority Pass Select membership, which gets you access to 1,200+ airport lounges worldwide. You can save 15% off Lyft rides with a complimentary year of Lyft Pink (normally $19.99/month), as long as you activate the membership by March 31, 2022. Cardholders are also eligible for at least a year of free DashPass, which comes with waived delivery fees at select restaurants on orders of $12+.
Travel categories that earn 3x points with the Sapphire Reserve
Travel is a broad category, so here’s what will qualify for 3x Chase points when you use your Sapphire Reserve:
- Airlines (including tickets, baggage fees, change fees, etc.)
- Hotels
- Motels
- Timeshares
- Campgrounds
- Vacation rentals (like Airbnb)
- Car rental agencies
- Cruise lines
- Travel agencies
- Discount travel sites (like Orbitz and Expedia)
- Trains (like Amtrak, subway and metro tickets)
- Buses (like city bus tickets, Greyhound tickets and Megabus tickets)
- Taxis
- Limos
- Ferries
- Ride-sharing services (like Uber or Lyft)
- Toll bridges and highways
- Parking lots and garages
If you have to pass through a toll on your way to work every day, you could earn 3x Chase points for paying with your Chase Sapphire Reserve. Or maybe you’re planning a cruise to the Caribbean? Use the Chase Sapphire Reserve to pay for your tickets and earn 3x Chase Ultimate Rewards points for that purchase too.
Travel categories that do not earn 3x points with the Sapphire Reserve
Here’s what does not earn 3x Chase Ultimate Rewards points:
- Inflight goods and services
- Onboard cruise ship purchases
- Sightseeing activities
- Tourist attractions
- Airport purchases
- Miles and points purchases
- Rentals of equipment and vehicles used for moving purposes (like U-Haul)
Things like food and drink purchases during a flight or that Sasquatch lawn ornament from the SkyMall magazine will not count as a travel purchase. And your ticket to The Empire State Building Observatory won’t earn you bonus points, either.
But you will still earn 3x Chase points on travel and dining when you’re overseas and you won’t pay foreign transaction fees.
Bottom line
Along with a great sign-up bonus and numerous perks, the Chase Sapphire Reserve card earns 3x Chase Ultimate Rewards points on travel (excluding the $300 travel credit) and on dining purchases worldwide. If you like to spend in these categories, your bonus Chase Ultimate Rewards points can add up fast. Travel purchases such as airfare, bus tickets, train rides, tolls and parking fees will count as travel purchases.
But tickets to tourist attractions, purchases you make in the airport and inflight purchases will not qualify as a travel purchase.
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Chase Sapphire Reserve®
Earn 50,000 bonus points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening. That’s $750 toward travel when you redeem through Chase Ultimate Rewards®
$300 Annual Travel Credit as reimbursement for travel purchases charged to your card each account anniversary year
3X points on travel immediately after earning your $300 travel credit. 3X points on dining at restaurants & 1 point per $1 spent on all other purchases. $0 foreign transaction fees.
Get 50% more value when you redeem your points for travel through Chase Ultimate Rewards. For example, 50,000 points are worth $750 toward travel
1:1 point transfer to leading airline and hotel loyalty programs
Access to 1,000+ airport lounges worldwide after an easy, one-time enrollment in Priority Pass™ Select
Up to $100 application fee credit for Global Entry or TSA Pre✓®
One Year Complimentary Lyft Pink ($199 minimum value). Complimentary DashPass subscription from DoorDash after activating by 12/31/21.
Intro APR on purchases
N/A
Regular APR
16.99%-23.99% Variable
Annual Fee
$550
Balance Transfer Fee
Either $5 or 5% of the amount of each balance transfer, whichever is greater
Rates & Fees
Other
MORE INFO
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Join the Discussion!
Would paying for TSA Precheck qualify for for the Travel category?
If I pay rent on a 2nd property (not my primary residence), does that qualify for 3x travel rewards?