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🤙🏿 Welcome back to the Better Than Points Newsletter - the premier place for all things Credit Card Points News and Travel

My name’s Luis and I’m the one writing this (hit me up here!)

We have some super secret updates that might be dropping this month.

Along with some promos you might want to take advantage of.

So lets get to it!

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A Message from Me

I wasted hours and overpaid in points, but the right help would've changed that ✈️ 

I still remember the first time I tried booking a flight with points. I thought I was getting a deal, but between confusing award charts, hidden fees, and bad redemption rates, I spent way too many hours (and way too many points) just to book a single ticket.

Looking back, I could’ve booked it in half the time and saved thousands of points if someone had just shown me how.

That’s where I come in.

Here’s how I can help:

✅ Tell me where you want to go, and I’ll make it happen— in style (business & first class).
✅ Leverage my 10+ years of experience to save time and maximize your miles.
✅ Skip the frustration of award searches and hidden fees— I’ll find the best deals for you.
✅ Fly better, for less— experience business and first class without paying out of pocket.
✅ Get your trips booked for the year— rates start at $1k for two people roundtrip, and the experiences are priceless.

👉 Book an intro call today and start planning your dream trips!

Travel News

Updated Sapphire Reserve Card (LINK)

As the week has gone on, I started hearing more about potential updates coming to the Chase Sapphire Reserve card.

There's talk of an announcement around June 17, with changes supposedly going live by June 21.

While there's buzz about a better sign up bonus, looking at the perks, I'm not sold on recommending the card.

Based on what I've gathered online, here’s what's reportedly in the works.

The annual fee is set to go up from $550 to $795, a move to compete with the Amex Platinum card.

To justify the new fee, they’re adding several new credits:

• A $10 monthly Peloton credit.

• Twice a year, you can get $250 in hotel credits, similar to what Amex offers with Fine Hotels & Resorts.

• There’s also a $150 dining credit, twice annually, through Sapphire Reserve Tables.

• Another $150, twice a year, for StubHub.

• Plus, a $250 credit for Apple TV+ & Apple Music.

• On top of all that, a $500 Southwest credit if you spend $75,000 in a year.

While these credits sound good, they don’t align with how I spend.

It feels like I’d have to go out of my way to get the full value from them.

Compared to the Chase Sapphire Preferred card, which still offers 80% of the benefits at a much lower $95 annual fee, it’s a tough sell for me.

Personally, I find more value in the Amex Platinum Card, especially with its access to Centurion and Delta lounges.

The Platinum and CSP combo fits my travel style better.

But if you’re eyeing the Sapphire Reserve, and you’re hesitant about the new fee hike, it might be worth switching one of your other Chase cards to it to snag those new credits without the hefty price tag.

Hawaiian Dreamliner Trades Hawaii for Rome (LINK)

Back in 2018, before Hawaiian and Alaska Airlines even considered merging, Hawaiian placed orders for its Boeing Dreamliners.

The goal was to connect Hawaii with Europe and expand routes across Asia, leveraging the longer flight range of these new aircraft compared to their current fleet.

Now, Alaska Airlines is taking delivery of these planes and launching them on their own routes.

The first route? Seattle to Rome.

While Rome might seem an weird choice, it's actually a welcome option for Hawaii residents looking for easier access to Europe without having to piece together multiple flights.

It's disappointing that Hawaiian's original plan to connect Hawaii directly to Europe is on hold, at least for now, but it's intriguing to see how these new routes will develop.

Hyatt Place = Bonus Points (LINK)

Check to see if you’re eligible and have activated this offer with Hyatt, where you can earn a bonus from staying at Hyatt Place, House, and Studio locations.

While these locations may not be my first choice, this promo is ideal for those looking to mattress run nights to hit status.

Many of these properties are bookable for as low as 5,000 points per night, making this bonus a great way to offset the cost of those nights in cash or points.

Additionally, the Hyatt app has introduced a new “Offers for you” section allowing you to easily check available offers directly from your phone.

This update simplifies the process compared to the past, where you had to keep an eye out for emails.

Anytime they make things easier for us, you can't argue with that.

🤓 Hack

• If you’re flying internationally into the US, you may have noticed longer lines for customs and immigration. Consider booking your return flights through airports with US Pre-Clearance, where you can clear customs before landing in the US, as if you’re on a domestic flight. There are currently 15 locations offering US Pre-Clearance, including 9 in Canada, 2 in Ireland Dublin (DUB) and Shannon(SNN), and one each in Abu Dhabi (AUH), Aruba (AUA), Bermuda (BDA), and The Bahamas (NAS). I added some business class non stop flight from Dub for 45k Miles one way in the Flight of the Week section.

🛋️ Luis’ Lounge

Each week, I’ll share something cool I’ve discovered or tackle a question from the community. It’s my little corner to explore ideas, offer fresh perspectives, and hopefully spark your own curiosity.

Earlier this week, I was returning from Minneapolis MSP and had the chance to hang out in the flagship Delta lounge.

I shared the experience on my Instagram story with some cool plane pictures.

If you’re not familiar, Minneapolis is a Delta hub, with over 70% of airport traffic coming from Delta flights or their affiliates. The only busier hub is Atlanta.

While there, I visited the flagship Delta Lounge. There are three lounges in the airport, but my favorite and the biggest is in Concourse G, which opened in April 2023.

I accessed it using my Amex Platinum perk, which grants me 10 lounge visits per year.

One of the great hacks is that each of these 10 vouchers is valid for 24 hours.

So, if you’re connecting through another airport with a lounge, like I was en route to Austin, you can take advantage of it.

While lounging, I thought about Delta cardholders and how switching to the Amex Platinum could offer almost identical or even better benefits:

• You can still use Delta points, as Amex points transfer to Delta.

• Some Delta cards offer Delta credits, but so does the Amex as you can designate your Amex incidental credit to Delta.

• Plus, you get lounge access through the Amex platinum, not just at Delta lounges but also at Priority Pass lounges, American Express Centurion lounges, and Escape lounges.

So if you have a Delta card, this is your friendly reminder to consider the Amex Platinum card instead, which offers nearly all the same benefits and more.

And if you do apply for it you should use my affiliate link 🙂 

Check out these crazy award deals!

🔬 Secret Travel Research

This section includes some of the best award flights of the week bookable with points and miles.

• Some of these had up to 6 seats

• 45k Business class one way was through Alaska. You can still transfer points from Amex to Hawaiian and convert to Alaska until the end of the month

  

👀 My Favorite Finds

This section includes some of the best links videos and articles of the week around the points and travel community

• Plane rolls off runway in BOS (LINK)

• These newsletters are changing the game (LINK)

• Air India plane crashes after takeoff with only a few survivors (LINK)

• Japan soon to crackdown on tourism with needing to apply to enter (LINK)

• Chase is getting rumored to launch a sapphire business reserve card (LINK)

• Airlines have been selling your information to Customs and Border Protection (LINK)