Top 10 Easiest Awards to Book

Update:   One or more card offers in this post are no longer available.  Check our Hot Deals for the latest offers.  Update:   Beginning July 23, 2017, the Citi Prestige 4th night free perk will refund the average cost of a 4-night stay, NOT including taxes.  And Citi ThankYou points with the Citi Prestige card will be worth 1.25 cents each toward flights.

To get really Big Travel with Small Money, it’s wise to invest some time and effort learning award booking tricks.  It takes practice!

But there are some deals that are so easy to earn and book, even folks who are new to miles & points can get traveling right away!

I’ll share my favorite no-brainer awards and deals that can get you on the road to Big Travel in no time!

Best “Easy” Deals for Big Travel

Link:   Beginner’s Guide to Miles and Points

Here are my favorite deals which don’t require messing with award charts or transferring points!

1.   Southwest Award Flights

Link:   How Will Southwest’s New Award Pricing Impact You?

Link:  Southwest Rapid Rewards® Premier Credit Card

Link:  Southwest Rapid Rewards® Premier Business Credit Card

Link:  Southwest Rapid Rewards® Plus Credit Card

Southwest award tickets are easy to book.  Their frequent flyer program is revenue-based, which means the number of points required for an award flight depends on the cash price of the ticket.

So there’s NO award chart.  You can use Southwest points at a rate of 70 to 80 Southwest points per $1 towards an award ticket.

And there are no blackout dates!  As long as there’s a paid seat available, you can book it with Southwest points.

Keep in mind, you’ll pay fewer points if seats are on sale.  And more if the ticket you want is very expensive (for example, if you’re booking last-minute).

And folks who’ve earned the Southwest Companion Pass get an especially good deal.  With the Companion Pass, a friend or family member flies with you for almost free on both paid and award tickets!

This is my favorite travel deal!  And it’s easy to earn lots of Southwest points quickly by signing-up for the Chase Southwest Premier (personal or small business) or Chase Southwest Plus cards and completing the minimum spending requirements.

Or if you’ve earned Chase Ultimate Rewards points from cards like the Chase Sapphire Preferred or Chase Ink Plus, you can transfer your points to Southwest at a 1:1 ratio.

2.   Chase Hyatt Card

Link:   Chase Hyatt

Link:   My Review of the Chase Hyatt Card

One of the easiest (and most valuable) hotel award deals is the Chase Hyatt card.  You’ll get 2 nights at ANY Hyatt hotel after you spend $1,000 on purchases in the 1st 3 months of opening your account.

And if you’ve had a Hyatt stay since May 1, 2015, there’s an even better offer which also comes with a $50 statement credit after your 1st purchase.

There’s no worrying about an award chart with this deal, because all Hyatt hotels are eligible for the free nights.  And each year on your card anniversary, you’ll get another free night in a category 1 to 4 Hyatt hotel!

Emily and I have had terrific experiences at many Hyatt hotels, including the Park Hyatt Goa, Hyatt Regency Huntington Beach, Grand Hyatt Kauai, Hyatt Regency Maui, Park Hyatt Milan, Park Hyatt Paris – Vendome, Park Hyatt Sydney, and Park Hyatt Zurich.

You can even use the nights from the Chase Hyatt card at 1 of Hyatt’s all-inclusive resorts in Mexico!

3 & 4.   Citi Prestige 4th Night Free and $250 Yearly Airfare Credit

Link:   Citi Prestige

Link:   My Review of the Citi Prestige

The Citi Prestige is a card that gets more valuable the more you use it!

You can make the most of this card’s best perks – the 4th night free on paid hotel stays and the $250 airfare credit – as soon as you get your card!

Using these perks is simple.  To get the 4th night free on a paid stay, just call the Citi Prestige concierge to book your room.  I’ve found the prices to be similar to what other sites charge.

To earn the airfare credit, use your Citi Prestige card to book a paid flight directly from the airline.

And because you’re booking paid rooms and tickets, there are no blackout dates.  Plus, you’ll earn miles and points for your stay or flight.

When you sign-up for the Citi Prestige card and complete the minimum spending requirements, you’ll earn 50,000 Citi ThankYou points.  You can transfer them to airlines or Hilton hotels for Big Travel.

Or use them at a rate of 1.6 cents per point on paid American Airlines (and partner) flights, or 1.33 cents per point on other airlines.  That’s potentially worth up to $800 in airfare!

5.   Citi Hilton HHonors Reserve 2 Weekend Nights

Link:   Citi® Hilton HHonors™ Reserve Card

Link:   My Review of the Citi Hilton HHonors Reserve

You’ll earn 2 weekend (Friday, Saturday, or Sunday) night certificates after you spend $2,500 in the 1st 4 months of opening your Citi Hilton HHonors Reserve account.

This is a terrific deal because you can use your certificates at almost any Hilton.  Even their most expensive luxury resorts!

So you don’t have to worry about calculating the number of Hilton points required for your stay.

Plus, the card gets you Hilton Gold Elite status, which means free breakfast at many Hilton hotels, plus possible room upgrade.

Hilton hotels include Conrad, DoubleTree, Embassy Suites, Hampton Inn, Hilton, Hilton Garden Inn, Home2Suites,  Homewood Suites, and Waldorf Astoria brand hotels.

You’ll earn the certificates after you’ve met the minimum spending requirements on the card.  And they’re good for 12 months from the date of issue.

Here are some of my top picks for using these certificates:

• 5 Great Hotels in Europe
• 5 Top US Hotels
• 5 Amazing Hotels in Australia and the South Pacific
• 5 Spectacular Hotels in Asia
• 5 Beautiful Hotels in the Caribbean
• 5 of the Best US Beaches

6.   Chase Fairmont Card

Link:   Chase Fairmont

Update:   Accor Hotels is buying Fairmont hotels.  I don’t know what this will mean for the Fairmont award program or the Chase Fairmont card.  But I’ll update as soon as I know!

Here’s another easy way to get 2 nights at a luxury hotel.  You’ll earn 2 stay certificates good at any Fairmont hotel after you complete the minimum spending on the Chase Fairmont card.

The $95 annual fee on this card is waived for the 1st year, which makes this deal even more amazing!

Note:   There are blackout dates and some hotels have booking restrictions.  Check this page for all the exclusions.

You’ll earn the certificates once you spend $3,000 on purchases in the 1st 3 months of opening your account.  And they’re valid for 1 year from the date of issue.

This card is an easy way to earn very Big Travel quickly!

7.   Chase Ritz-Carlton Card

Link:   Chase Ritz-Carlton

Link:   My Review of the Chase Ritz-Carlton

Don’t be turned off by the $395 annual fee on the Chase Ritz-Carlton card.  After you spend $4,000 on purchases in the 1st 3 months of opening your account, you’ll earn 2 complimentary nights at a tier 1 to 4 Ritz-Carlton hotel.

And those nights could be worth hundreds of dollars more than the annual fee!

You’ll receive your complimentary night certificates after you complete the minimum spending requirements.

Note:   The certificates are good for 6 months from the date of issue, not a year like other cards.

Keep in mind, you can almost make up for the annual fee because this card comes with a $300 annual travel credit.  You can use it for airline lounge day passes, a yearly lounge membership, airline seat upgrades, baggage fees, in-flight internet & entertainment, in-flight meals, and Global Entry fees.

However, you can NOT claim the credit for airfare purchases.

8.   US Bank FlexPerks Cards

Link:   US Bank FlexPerks Travel Rewards Visa Signature

Link:   US Bank FlexPerks Travel Rewards American Express

If you don’t want to fuss with available award seats or navigate airline award charts, the US Bank FlexPerks cards are a good choice!

You’ll earn 20,000 US Bank FlexPerks points after you spend $3,500 on purchases in the 1st 4 months of opening your US Bank FlexPerks Travel Rewards Visa Signature or US Bank FlexPerks Travel Rewards American Express account.

And you can redeem those points for a paid airline ticket worth up to $400 on over 150 airlines.

It makes the most sense to book a ticket as close to $400 (but not above) as possible.  That’s because you’ll pay 20,000 US Bank FlexPerks points whether your ticket costs $99 or $399!

I’ve shared the secret for how to get the full $400 on Southwest flights…even if your flight doesn’t cost that much!

And US Bank has added a nice new perk to the US Bank FlexPerks Travel Rewards Visa Signature card.  You’ll now get 12 Gogo in-flight Wi-Fi passes each year.

9.   Chase Ultimate Rewards or Citi ThankYou Points for Paid Flights (& More)

Link:   Save Points (and Money) Using the Chase Ultimate Rewards Travel Portal

Link:   Book International Flights With Citi ThankYou Points

Link:   How to Get 1.25 Cents per Point Towards Cruises, Hotels, & Car Rentals With Citi ThankYou Premier

Here’s another way to avoid having to search for available award seats.  Instead of transferring Chase Ultimate Rewards or Citi ThankYou points to travel partners, use them instead to book paid flights.

Folks who have the Chase Sapphire Preferred Card, Ink Plus Business Credit Card, or Chase Ink Bold (no longer offered) cards can use their Chase Ultimate Rewards points at a rate of 1.25 cents each when they book flights, hotels, and more through the Chase Ultimate Rewards travel portal.

And if you have the Citi Prestige card, your Citi ThankYou points are worth 1.6 cents each toward American Airlines (or partner) paid flights.  Or 1.33 cents each on other airlines.

If you just have the Citi ThankYou Premier card, you’re still able to use your Citi ThankYou points for paid flights, hotels, car rentals, and cruises at a rate of 1.25 cents each.

This is a terrific use of points if you want the most flexibility.  And remember, you’ll earn miles and points for your flights and stays, without blackout dates!

For flights, I prefer to transfer to Chase’s partners and use my Chase Ultimate Rewards points for international Business and First Class on United Airlines and their partner airlines.  But do what works best with your schedule!

10.   Barclaycard Arrival Plus Travel Redemption