The best ways to use 80,000 Chase Ultimate Rewards points

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Chase Ultimate Rewards remain my favorite points and miles currency because of their flexibility, ease of accumulation and overall fantastic value. My first points-earning credit card, the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card, got me hooked on award travel, and that card still holds a top spot in my wallet today.

Chase recently increased the sign-up bonus on the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card card, you can now earn 80,000 Ultimate Rewards points after spending $4,000 in the first three months. This is the highest bonus we’ve ever seen for this card and quite frankly one of the best credit card bonuses available in the last few years.

Sapphire Preferred 80,000 point welcome bonus

The Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card welcome bonus now offers an increased 80,000 Ultimate Rewards points after you spend $4,000 in the first three months after account opening. For some, $4,000 may seem like a high spending threshold, but you might be able to achieve it more quickly than you think by using our tips on how to meet minimum spending. 

Keep in mind that you won’t be eligible for this new bonus if you’ve received a Chase Sapphire bonus in the last 48 months. You should also ensure you’re not violating Chase’s 5/24 rule, another exception which would make you ineligible for the 80,000 point bonus.

We value Chase Ultimate Rewards points at 1.7 cents each making this sign-up bonus worth ~$1,360 when transferred to partners. That’s a huge bonus and makes it one of the hottest cards on the market right now! Here are a few ways you can spend those 80,000 Ultimate Rewards points for amazing value.

Best ways to use 80,000 Chase points

$1,000 in travel from the Ultimate Rewards Portal

For some folks, the simplicity of redeeming 80,000 Ultimate rewards points through the Chase travel portal will be tough to beat. You can book almost any flight, hotel, car rental and more at a rate of 1.25 cents per point, making your points worth $1,000 in travel. Booking though the Chase portal is like booking through Expedia, there are a plethora of options and no black out dates in site.

As a bonus, Chase Sapphire Reserve® cardholders will enjoy an increased 1.5 cents per point value for a total of $1200 worth of travel!

A ton of short-haul flights within the US

By transferring your Ultimate Rewards points to United miles or British Airways Avios points, you can book numerous short-haul flights for 80,000 points. United offers one-way flights starting at 5,000 miles per person (such as San Diego to San Francisco) while Avios points can be redeemed for short flights starting at just 7,500 points one way (on partners like American Airlines and Alaska). With this bonus, you could hypothetically take 16 one-way flights on United!

Luxurious Hyatt stays

Hyatt is my favorite hotel brand, and I’ve often redeemed Hyatt points (transferred from Chase Ultimate Rewards) for incredibly luxurious stays. Enjoy 4 nights at category 5 Hyatt properties, like the Park Hyatt Washington D.C. or the Grand Hyatt Baha Mar in the Bahama for just 80,000 Hyatt points.

Hyatt is currently offering some fantastic promotions to sweeten the deal even further, like up to 25% off award stays. Meaning 80,000 points could get you 5 nights at one of the above properties.

Cheap award flights to Hawaii

There are multiple ways to visit Hawaii with Chase Ultimate Rewards points (if you’ve got any questions, read our post on award flights to Hawaii). The secret weapon, however, is Chase transfer partner Singapore Airlines.

Singapore Airlines and United Airlines are partners. You can reserve cheaper awards by booking United flights through the Singapore Airlines website. Coach awards from anywhere in the continental U.S. to Hawaii cost 17,500 Singapore Airlines miles each way. It makes no difference if you’re flying from Miami or Los Angeles — you’ll pay no more than 35,000 miles (AKA 35,000 Chase points) round-trip to fly to Hawaii.

Considering these tickets can easily cost more than $800 round-trip, you can bank on getting a value of at least 2 cents per point. You could reserve two round-trip flights to Hawaii with the Chase Sapphire Preferred 80,000 point bonus (potentially $1,600+ in value), and still have thousands and thousands of points left! Just note that you should book these saver level award flights as far in advance as possible — they go fast!

Business class to Japan on ANA

If you prefer to fly in luxury, you can transfer your Ultimate Rewards to Virgin Atlantic to book a roundtrip business class flight to Japan on Virgin Atlantic’s partner, ANA. This “sweet spot” redemption requires just 90,000 Virgin Atlantic miles for a roundtrip flight in a lie-flat seat from the west coast to Tokyo, or 95,000 miles when flying from the Eastern U.S. These tickets usually go for $4,000 to $5,000, so you’re getting incredible value for your points.

Keep in mind that you’ll have at least 84,000 Ultimate Rewards after meeting the $4,000 minimum spending–only a few thousand points away from an incredible roundtrip in business class.

Flexible flights on Southwest (even better with the Companion Pass!)

With international travel mostly on hold, Southwest remains a great option for award flights within North America. I particularly love transferring Ultimate Rewards to Southwest points because you get free award changes and cancellation until 10 minutes before your flight departs. Flexibility is highly valued to me these days, so this is another great option. 80,000 Southwest points can fly you and a friend to just about anywhere and back (probably even multiple times!). We value Southwest points around 1.5 cents each, meaning you can get up to $1,200 in travel on the airline.

Even better, this option “doubles” in value if you hold the Southwest Companion Pass.

2-week stay at a Hyatt Category 1 hotel

Hyatt’s top properties are tough to beat, but you can also enjoy a ridiculously long 16-night stay at a Hyatt category 1 property which charges just 5,000 Hyatt points per night. This could be appealing for folks looking for a dedicated “work from home” space or for someone trying to quarantine/socially distance themselves for an extended period of time.

Chase “Pay Yourself Back” for $1,000 in statement credits

Finally, you may find yourself looking for some financial relief during this unprecedented year. Chase has created a new feature called “Pay Yourself Back” which allows you to redeem your 80,000 Ultimate Rewards to cover $1,000 worth of purchases at grocery stores, restaurants (including take out and delivery) home improvement stores or select charities. $1,000 cash back in your pocket may be the most compelling option of all!

Bottom line

No matter how you choose to use them, 80,000 Ultimate Rewards points would be a valuable addition to anyone’s points and miles inventory. If you’re not excluded by the 5/24 rule or Chase Sapphire limitations, I would highly consider signing up for the Chase Sapphire Preferred with this massive bonus.

Once you’ve received the 80,000 Ultimate Rewards (after spending $4,000 in the first three months), the real fun begins! How would you use 80,000 Ultimate Rewards points? Do you plan to sure them as soon as possible or save them for future adventures? Let us know in the comments — and subscribe to our newsletter for more inspiration posts like this delivered to your inbox once per day.

Featured photo by Joseph Hostetler/Million Mile Secrets