Questions and Answers

Two 70-ish yo people going to dive in Indonesia in Oct of 2019 and have about 350,000 Chase Points. We need to go business class because of back pain, so we’re trying to use all the miles and make up the rest in cash. We have never tried this and need advice for beginners.
Does getting tickets go through Chase or the airlines?
How do I connect my other airline cards points with Chase?
I know no flights are available yet, but we want to do this right! So we need help. We’re able to fly from Baltimore area, Phila, Newark, or JFK to Denpasar, Bali. Thanks

Hi – you’re asking at the right time. Schedules for October 2019 open up very soon!

Have you seen Spencer’s post about using Chase points? It’s a very comprehensive guide.

[URL]https://onemileatatime.com/best-ways-to-use-chase-ultimate-rewards-points-to-fly-to-asia/[/URL]

You mention you have other points? With which airlines?

[QUOTE=”rickyw, post: 61116, member: 1436″]Hi – you’re asking at the right time. Schedules for October 2019 open up very soon!

Have you seen Spencer’s post about using Chase points? It’s a very comprehensive guide.

[URL]https://onemileatatime.com/best-ways-to-use-chase-ultimate-rewards-points-to-fly-to-asia/[/URL]

You mention you have other points? With which airlines?[/QUOTE]
I’ll look at Spencer’s post real soon, gotta walk the dogs, so after that. Insofar as points, Delta, Alaska, American, Southwest, and United. What you people do with miles just amazes me.

OK, I read over the post. It seems as if out of the airlines listed British Airways would be the best for me. How do I go about it? Do I call B/A or deal directly with Chase. What are the steps this newbie needs to take?

[QUOTE=”moliken, post: 61127, member: 4719″]OK, I read over the post. It seems as if out of the airlines listed British Airways would be the best for me. How do I go about it? Do I call B/A or deal directly with Chase. What are the steps this newbie needs to take?[/QUOTE]
Be VERY careful with British Airways because of their extraorbitant fees! Recently they increased those fees even more. I recently checked prices on United and could find plenty of availabilities for 90k/one way for business class. So you would need 360k for both of you, roundtrip, for United (could be transferred FROM your UR account). United’s taxes and fees are nothing compared to BA’s, even when flying on codeshare flights.

Thanks, Daniel B, so I have these UR miles and probably a few on United. Who do I call to make res when they become available and how do I transfer points. Sorry to be thick, but in as many of these threads as I’ve read(probably 20), they don’t seem to deal with the nuts and bolts that somebody with my LACK of experience needs. The threads to us are confusing and more for someone who knows the ins and outs of the system or an expert. I don’t even understand what “codeshare flights” means and had to google it

[USER=4719]@moliken[/USER] – if you’re not comfortable transferring your points yourself, I’d work with Points Pros (link at the top under the Award Help) tab and let them handle this for you. If you think this is something you’d like to learn more about in the future I’d keep an eye out for the Frequent Traveler University locations or for the Chicago Seminars next October to learn more about it.

[USER=4719]@moliken[/USER] and [USER=184]@MidSouth Skier[/USER]
I agree with [USER=184]@MidSouth Skier[/USER]’s recommendation. If you find this task of arranging your own saver award tickets overwhelming, by far the best solution is to work with Points Pros. You can rest assured that you will get the best possible deal with zero headache.

Am I correct that they’d get $600 for arranging it for two people? A bit too much. I’ll need to learn, but thanks for the possibility anyway.

There are other companies performing the same function so you may want to shop around a bit. Otherwise I’d dig into beginner sections on this site, TPG, Million Mile Secrets, Travel Codex, View from the Wing, Mile Value, etc. and learn the basics of transferring points to partners.

Moliken –

If it’s any consolation, I believe Points Pros only charges you if they find an itinerary you are comfortable with. (someone else may be able to verify that).

However, the process is relatively simple on your own once you have the basics. Chase Ultimate Rewards have many transfer partners. For airlines, this includes British Airways (Avios), JetBlue (TrueBlue), Singapore Airlines (KrisFlyer), Southwest (Rapid Rewards), United Airlines (MileagePlus), Virgin Atlantic (FlyingClub). So, in your situation, since you already have some United miles – that may be a good option since you can combine your totals.

Once you find availability on the flights you want, you can transfer your Chase points to any of those partners. At this point, your points are no longer Chase points – they are the currency of the program you transfer to. [B][U]Transfers are non-reversible.
[/U][/B]
Almost all of the major airlines in the world belong to airline alliances (SkyTeam, StarAlliance, OneWorld). These alliances allow you to book a flight on an associated airline, using a different airline’s frequent flyer program. For instance, United is part of StarAlliance, and so is ANA (Japanese airline). So, you could use your United miles to book a flight on ANA.

Hope that helps. We are happy to answer your questions and provide some guidance – but all of the guides that are mentioned above are incredibly comprehensive and meant for beginners. We were all there at one point 🙂