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Updated 06.05.2023
As of June 1, United airline mileage redemptions went up significantly. I've summarized them in the article below, so you might want to check it out.
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Last time "Conceptualizing Chase UR" As I explained in the article, one of the great things about the UR program is that it's transformable.
If you have a Dorrance card, this means that you can not only use your UR points like cash, but also transfer them to airline miles or hotel points.
The problem is that not all transfer partners' miles and points are equally good deals. In some cases, you'll even lose money as soon as you hand them over!
So before you convert URs to airline miles or hotel points, make sure you know if it's a good deal or a bad deal.
In today's post, we've put together a ranking of UR conversion partners.
Table of Contents
1. Where it's okay to turn over: Hyatt, United
First, there are UR's unique conversion partners* that guarantee a certain level of value no matter when you hand over.
The hotel is Hyatt and the airline is United.
(* Of course, the The new Bilt program also allows 1:1 conversions to Hyatt and UnitedYes, but I don't think it's a major transmogrification point since you can't get a lot of Bilt points).
1) Hyatt
While Hyatt has fewer hotels than its competitors, the overall quality of its hotels and its track record of taking care of its top-tier elite, Globalist, make it a popular option among Magicians.
Chase UR points are convertible in real-time at a 1:1 ratio.
The $1,000-a-night Manhattan hotel in the Park Hyatt New Yorkis available for 3.5 to 4.5 thousand points per night.
200,000 yen per night, or about $1,400-1,500 in today's dollars. Park Hyatt in Kyotois also available for 3.5 to 4.5 thousand points per night.
Of course, at these popular hotels, it can be very difficult to get a room with points during peak season.
That's why It looks like you'll need to make sure you have a room before you hand over the points to make a reservation.
If no rooms are available Open Hotel AlertYou can sign up for a site called Room.com, specify the tier of room you want for the dates you want (usually the lowest tier), and get an email or text the moment the room becomes available.
For example, on Christmas Eve Seoul Park HyattIn this case, if you want to set an alarm notification just in case, you can select "1 King Bed" and press Alert Me.
2) United Airlines
When it comes to airline miles, it's United Airlines that's a no-brainer.
Not only does United fly nonstop between San Francisco and Incheon, but they also offer several options to Korea through several partners in the Star Alliance (Asiana, ANA, EVA).
United, in particular, is offering one-way economy seats from the US to South Korea at a relatively reasonable price point of $3.5K to $3.85K.
This is especially true when you consider that Delta's mileage deductions have skyrocketed to the point where they are now meaningless.
Add to that the access to XN class seats with a United partner card, and I'd say the dream of an economy ticket to South Korea for a family of four during peak season is not entirely out of the question.
Shortcuts: United Credit Card: A Must-Have
In fact, if you do a one-way search for a family of four from LA to Seoul in late May/early June next year, 2023, I think it's safe to say that UA is almost the only airline that can ticket for 3.85 million miles, even though it's a one-stop trip.
2. where it's okay to pass in some cases: Air Canada (Aeroplan), currently running a 30% promotion
For international economy ticketing, United is the correct answer in most cases.
However, if you're looking to book an international business ticket, Air Canada's mileage program is better than United's, as it's a better value. There are times when Aeroplan is better.
- The lowest redemption price for a one-way business ticket from the US to Korea is 8.8k miles with UA, but 7.5k miles with Aeroplan.
- Plus, if you're traveling with a child under 2, Aeroplan is just plain right.
Some of you may be asking, "I've heard that Air Canada should be avoided at all costs, is Air Canada really good?
You're asking because you're missing the difference between redeeming Air Canada miles and flying Air Canada.
Redeeming Air Canada Miles does not guarantee that you will fly with Air Canada. Flying Asiana when Air Canada miles are used to book an Asiana flight.
In fact, if you transfer UR to Aeroplan for a month starting November 1 this month, you'll get a 30% conversion bonus.
Yaw conversion bonuses and Thanks to @albot for the heads up on the release of business seats on Asiana to LA and Seattle after next spring.in combination with As @edta450 explained on the board, this is a fantastic jackpot deal.in the file.
For example.
If I search for a one-way business ticket from LA to Incheon for two people on July 5 next year, Asiana seems to have seats available.
If you're using United miles, you'll need 8.8 million miles = 8.8 million UR points per person.
But if you're using Air Canada's Aeroplan miles, you'll need 7.5K miles, and if you use the 30% promotion now, you'll need to spend 5.8 million UR points for a US-South Korea nonstop business one-way ticket on Asianain the file.
This means you can fly the same Asiana Business flight for a fraction of the points.
Of course, in this case, date changes, ticket cancellations, etc. would be subject to Aeroplan's rules, not United's or Asiana's.
So it's worth keeping in mind that change and cancellation fees may be higher than with United.
It's also good to know that ANA miles can be much better in some cases, with a 1:1 transfer from MR to ANA, although round-trip tickets have fuel surcharges and a 3-year mileage expiration date.
3. places you should never pass up: IHG, Marriott Bonvoy
Now, here are the places you're screwed if you flip.
This option is a good way to get around the "Isn't there a case where that's okay?" question. Options that will blow up in your face if you pass them by.
1) IHG
As a hotel chain, IHG points are practically unlimited, costing about half a cent per point.
That's why exchanging UR points for IHG points, which are guaranteed to be worth 1 cent when redeemed for cash, is an option you don't want to make a mistake.
2) Marriott Bonvoy
The same goes for Marriot's affiliate program, Bonvoy.
Bonvoy is offering a 40% conversion bonus right now, so if you're not familiar with the magic, you might be thinking, "Oh, this is a great deal.
But this is a fast track to total collapse.
Bonvoy is worth about 0.7 cents per point at best, so even if you get the 40% bonus, it's not even close to the minimum value of 1 cent for UR points.
For this reason, you should never pass UR to Bonobo.
If you absolutely must transfer to a hotel, then you should transfer to Hyatt as I mentioned earlier. Otherwise, it's much better in most cases to use UR like cash and book the hotel directly.
4. options that are so readily available elsewhere that passing UR is not helpful
Now, finally, let's briefly discuss two options that are not bad in their own right, but are so readily available elsewhere that handing over UR is not a good deal in terms of opportunity cost.
1) Virgin Atlantic
First up is Virgin Atlantic, a British airline.
For Virgin Atlantic, it's optimized for ANA first class or business ticketing, so it's a no-brainer if you're able to get a qualifying ticket.
ANA first class, especially the new first class, is the experience of a lifetime.
But with Virgin Atlantic, MRs also go 1:1, and Citi ThankYou points go 1:1.
Additionally, MR and Citi run conversion bonus promotions at the 25% or 30% level about once a year on average.
So, in terms of opportunity cost, handing over your valuable URs to Virgin Atlantic without an award is not a great option (although I'm sure there are exceptions on a personal level).
2) Avios affiliate, Flying Blue (Air France + KLM)
The same is true for Avios partners British Airways, Iberia, and AerLingus.
The same is the case with Flying Blue, the mileage program of Air France / KLM.
These mileage programs are often a great choice for some specific situations.
For example, the
- Avios have a pretty good redemption rate for short, nonstop flights from the East Coast to Europe on AA.
- Similarly, Flying Blue uses Promo Reward at certain times of the year and on certain routes, you can often get pretty good economy and business tickets to Europe for a pretty good price.
However, the problem is that these miles are also transferable to other transferable programs like MR, Citi ThankYou, and Capital One miles, and there are occasional bonus promotions, so I would say that using UR is not the best option from an opportunity cost perspective.
Of course, as we saw with Virgin Atlantic, it's going to be a case of individual differences, but I don't think you want to make the mistake of trying to save UR and then missing out on the ticketing opportunity, because you're going to want to use your miles when you can.
5. How to earn UR points
Finally, a quick reminder on how to earn UR points.
There are currently eight cards that earn UR points: four personal cards, four business cards, and a total of eight cards in total.
| Card name | Personal/Business | Transition features | Summation functions | When using URMall |
| Freedom Flex | Personal | X | O | 1 cent per 1 point |
| Sister Freedom | Personal | X | O | 1 cent |
| Sapphire Preferred (Sharp) | Personal | O | O | 1.25 cents |
| Sapphire Reserve (Sari) | Personal | O | O | 1.5 cents |
| Ink cache | Business | X | O | 1 cent |
| Ink Sister | Business | X | O | 1 cent |
| Ink Prefers | Business | O | O | 1.25 cents |
| Ink Premier | Business | X | X | 1 cent |
Of these eight cards, only three include the ability to convert to airline miles or hotel points.
- Sapphire Preferred (Sharp card)
- Sapphire Reserve (Sari Card)
- Ink Prefers
There are some cards that are currently running promotions.
1) First, the Dorrance card, the Sapphire Reserve (Sari) card, is running an 80,000 point promotion.
The promotion ends on 12/1 at 9am ET.
| Chase Sapphire Reserve® (Sari) |
|---|
| You can apply on the partner site linked to the English site. |
| * 60,000 UR points after spending $4,000 in the first 3 months of card issuance |
| * 60,000 UR points are worth $600 when converted to cash |
| * Convertible to airline miles (United, etc.), hotel points (Hyatt, etc.) at a 1:1 ratio |
| * Redeemable for $1.50 when redeemed for travel expenses on the Chase Travel Portal, meaning 60,000 points = $$900 value. |
| * The annual fee is $550 for the first year. However, a $300 annual credit is automatically applied for travel expenses, so the actual annual fee is $250 (based on the year of membership). |
2) Ink Cash Card, Ink Sister Card 90k offer
In addition, the annual fee-free Ink Cash Card and Ink Sister Card are having a great promotion. 90,000 points is the highest offer we've ever seen.
For those who are eligible to apply for a business card, this is an unprecedented opportunity.
We've written an article on how to fill out a card application that you might find helpful.
Shortcuts: How to fill out the Chase Business Card application
| Chase Ink Business Cash |
|---|
| * Earn UR 35,000 points worth $350 in cash after spending $3,000 in 3 months. Spend an additional $3,000 within the next 6 months ($6,000 total) to earn UR 40,000 points worth $400 in cash. For a total of UR 75,000 points. |
| * No annual fee card. The best choice for a business card with no annual fee. |
| * Earn 5 points per $1 spent on office supply store, internet, cable, and phone (up to $25,000 in a year) |
| * 2 points per $1 spent at gas stations and restaurants (up to $250,000 in a year) |
| You can apply on the partner sites linked on the English page |
| Chase Ink Business Unlimited® Credit Card |
|---|
| * Earn 75,000 UR points worth $750 in cash after spending $6,000 in 3 months |
| * No annual fee card. The best choice for a business card with no annual fee. |
| * Earn 1.5 points for every $1 spent |
| You can apply on the partner sites linked on the English page |
Let's wrap up today's post.
Chase UR points are the pinnacle of the transferable points system.
However, not all transition partners are a good deal.
There are some partners that fall apart as soon as you hand them over, so it's a good idea to look at your travel plans before making a decision.
English 
Korean
52 Comments. Leave new
1p
Congratulations!
Underline where it shouldn't be, lol.
It's too good to be true, so I pass, but maybe there will be another time.
This is another thing I'm learning. Thank you. Good night.
If you're not familiar with the value of points, it's easy to be fooled ;);
Hayat, UA is the best, the last Andaz was great, the room we got for you when you came to visit us in Korea, the Grand Hayat in Jeju Island was great.
UA is a little hard to find in my area because there are only layovers, but I think UA hubs are really good deals. Even in peak season, if you have one person, you can often get partner beads.
Hyatt, UA, it would be nice if the value was consistent.
Thanks for the great information.
How often do IHG points go on sale for half a cent?
They have frequent sales.
Otherwise, if you book with points + cash and then cancel, what should be a cash refund will be refunded as points. You're essentially buying points, but you'll need to pay attention to the value of the points as it may vary by hotel.
You've always been so helpful. Now that COVID is over, I'm starting to regain some of the airline and hotel tiers I've lost.
It's just that I had a BofA card, then opened a Chase Sapphire Preferred 6 years ago, a Chase UA card 5 years ago, didn't open any cards, then opened an Amex Hilton Aspire this November (mermaid). In this case, since I have nowhere to put my Chase UR points, do you think I could switch the Sharp to the Freedom and then open a new one later when a good Sharp offer comes out and get the signup bonus again?
I've been using Sharp for so long that I'm kind of attached to it, but I'm wondering if I should switch to Freedom in advance... or if I can downgrade and open a new one when the offer comes up. Thanks!!!
You're right. I think you can download the Sharp to Freedom and wait. If you think the Sari is better, get it before the Sari promotion ends.
I read your post and checked Aeroplan and it's really 75k biz one way (LAX to ICN) on my preferred date next April and I've booked it now for 30% added points. I was giving up on going to Ikon this time but I feel like a windfall this morning. Thank you so much. Now I'm going to go cancel the United 38.5k I had ticketed....
We hope you all have a great week.
Congratulations, that's great!
Is there any other airport besides LAX that has such good mileage business ticketing?
Seattle to Incheon is currently available.
I'm looking for 3 digit May/June on the Air Canada site... is there any way to find it but day by day?
The next day it took too long every time I went.
It's easy to search for seat availability on the UA site and only ticket on Air Canada.
Air Canada I checked the same date, but no seats are available~ I guess everyone has already booked~~haha
When you see an Asiana business seat, don't hesitate to book it. The moment you think about it, it's too late ;;
For whatever reason, it's interesting that Southwest Airlines isn't even mentioned, because it's a neither good nor bad option, right?
I love Sway, but I'm not a fan of giving up UR. Sway points are worth about 1.2 cents, and I think it's better to transfer them to better partners (mainly Hayat). Of course, if you're a little short, it's better to give them away 🙂 .
You are correct. I don't think you need to intentionally hand over URs for Saweh because the value is fixed, unless of course you have a companion pass and prefer to book points rather than cash.
I should have opened a Business Ink Preferred, but I opened a Business Ink Only last week and haven't received my card yet, can I reapply for a Preferred?
It's already open and won't be for a while.
One of Chase's unspoken rules is that you can only be approved for one business card every 30 days, so it's probably a good idea to apply after 30 days.
Get the Ink Only bonus and upgrade to Preferred.
I'm thinking of converting UR to Marriott points for a 4+1 night stay at the St. Regis or Ritz in the Maldives... I may be doing the math wrong... I think it's about 2.5 cents per point, but would this work?
2.5 cents is fine, but if I were you, I'd consider buying points. Right now, 25% is on sale, so you can buy them for 0.94 cents per point. If your spouse also has a Maryette account, you can both buy them -> combine them into one. (There is a limit of 100,000 points per year to send and up to 500,000 to receive) And you can also transfer points if you don't have enough.
Yes, I'll consider buying points - thank you 🙂 .
At 100,000 points per night and 4+1, the total points required would be 400,000 points, which would make the cash night cost $10,000, or 2.5 cents, is that how the math works? I think you might want to check it out.
I think it was over $10,000 for a cash stay, but I'll double check - thanks!
I applied for an Aeroplan point transfer... Isn't this supposed to be instant? I'm getting impatient because I'm afraid I'll lose my spot!
I've seen some cases where it's teleportation and it takes a day or two to connect for the first time.
My spouse and I have enough UR points for 4 people (232K), but I don't think I have enough points to ticket them separately since it only sends to my account.
Combine family points like Korean Air
I think Hyatt used to be able to send points to households, but is there no way to do that?
Do you mean UA? AC? AC allows family combining, but UA does not, so for UA you'll need to combine in your UR account and then transfer to airline miles.
The AC Family Totals page is here.
https://www.aircanada.com/ca/en/aco/home/aeroplan/family-sharing.html
Get the Ink Sister bonus and upgrade to Preferred.
Can Aeroplan be third-party ticketed?
Yes, you can.
I have some points on INK, can I transfer them to Hyatt points? When I do the combine nothing comes up, what do I need to have? ㅡㅡ Newbie question
What type of Ink card do you currently have? If it's a Preferred, you can convert it to Hyatt, but if it's an Ink Cash or Ink Unlimited, you can't. Do you have a personal card like the Sapphire Preferred or Sapphire Reserve?
For more information, we think you'll find this article helpful.
https://www.milemoa.com/ur-basics/
Happy New Year, Mamo,
I was lazy and didn't even realize when I signed up last year, so I missed it,
I transferred my UR from Chase to Hyatt... Does Hashim need to have a Hyatt credit card?
Or can I just sign up for the rewards program on Hyatt's website (for free, anyone can do it) and still get the UR over?
You can convert to UR by simply signing up for a free membership on the Hyatt website. The key is to have a UR Dorrance card.
Is it better to get the Ink Sister or Cash card sign-up bonus and then cancel it after a year or so?
Can I get a sign-up bonus again for an Ink family card a few months after receiving the sign-up bonus?
I was wondering if I could upgrade Ink Unlimited to Preferred and still get the signup bonus?
No, you'll need to apply for a new card. If you're upgrading an existing card, you won't receive a sign-up bonus.
According to the terms, it's 24 months from when I got my last sign-up bonus. Since it's a no annual fee card, I'd recommend keeping it and canceling it about a month before you want to make a new one.
Oh thank you so much for the detailed answer.
I received the signup bonus on my Sapphire card about a year and a half ago, and I don't currently have the card. Would I be able to get the signup bonus if I opened a Reserve card at this point? My question is if the Sapphire and Reserve cards are linked and I have to wait 24 months, or is the Reserve card separate from the Sapphire? Thanks!
The Sapphire Preferred and Sapphire Reserve cards are considered the same product when it comes to sign-up bonuses, so you'll have to wait 48 months after earning the Sapphire Preferred card sign-up bonus. Keep in mind that the Sapphire cards have a longer term of 48 months, whereas Chase cards typically have a 24-month rule.
How are you?
As always, thank you for your valuable information.
I had a question today that I was really curious about, and after reading and getting some help, I decided to write this post.
I have a business ink cash/ ink sister. I can't convert.
But I want to switch to Hyatt, how do I do that?
I don't have any other cards, only the Chase Ink Cash/ Ink Sister.
Then I'm here,
If I open a new business Ink Preferred, can I switch to Hyatt through Ink Preferred?
I have over 200,000 points and would like to transfer them to Hyatt...
Is there a way?
That's right. You'll need to create a Dorrance card, and I'd recommend either the Business Ink Preferred card or the Sapphire Preferred, which is currently on promotion.
Mamo
I checked today (6.2.23) and UNITED Incheon/USA one-way increased to 53,100,
I would appreciate a sober analysis of this.
Thank you as always.
We published a new post today.
https://www.milemoa.com/united-devaluation-2023/