Chase Sapphire Reserve Rumored Change

[VGCgroupie]

Chase has me very disillusioned with points because the exchange rate through their Ultimate Rewards is awful.

I really only transfer out to partners. Many like the portal and say they save money and many say it's overpriced.

 

[Brian Noble]

And that's the problem with it. Some bookings are at (or better than) par, others are at an inflated cash price vs. direct booking. I'm tired of my travel being that much work.

 

[AstroBlasters]

And that's the problem with it. Some bookings are at (or better than) par, others are at an inflated cash price vs. direct booking. I'm tired of my travel being that much work.

 

[davidhr]

I transfer most of my Chase points to Hyatt. No much work figuring it out. For the worst redemptions, Hyatt will give you a pretty decent return.

Sometimes I transfer to JetBlue as the redemptions from my local airport are generally decent, so I don’t have to look for the best redemptions.

 

[Orbiter_Fan]

I'm with the majority here...if these changes happen, we're out. Our primary card is Southwest for the companion pass. After we reach companion status, we've been using the Chase card. But I think we'll switch to our bank's simple 2% cash back card.

 

[VGCgroupie]

For redemption via travel portals I am actually loving Amex Travel w/ the Platinum Business for Delta flights. Delta is king at my home airport and saving 35% on point bookings is great!

 

[Brian Noble]

I transfer most of my Chase points to Hyatt. No much work figuring it out. For the worst redemptions, Hyatt will give you a pretty decent return.

I've thought about that as a way to just close out the CSR. I don't generally do a lot of Hyatt stays, and suspect I'd end up stranding points there.

 

[PolyRob]

I really like the CSR for it's insurance, especially rental car insurance. The Platinum and Venture X don't come close. Sure Chase could also nerf that in a rebrand, but I will probably keep it for one year and reevaluate after that. I have too many URs to just cash out 1:1 right now.

I would be surprised to see it go to 1x for ALL travel booked outside of the portal. Amex as least gives 5x on flights regardless of how you book.

 

[Tatebeck]

I usually use the reserve for our flights with the 1.5x bonus and it is almost always exactly the same listed price as direct from the airlines. I wonder if the flight prices are more reliable than hotels or what.

 

[Unclelude]

We rotated out of chase a little over a year ago... We tend to do a welcome bonus a year ( sometimes more) ... I don't really miss chase. Only have the 5x rotating category chase left... And that's basically for stacking $1500 worth of Disney Gift card purchases ... I guess the Amazon card is chase too ... Lol...

Currently walking amex offers ... (one bonus per card/lifetime... decided to play) so far did Delta Amex gold , then plat 6 months later... Got both welcome offers.. prob go up to reserve in a year( I might actually keep both plat/reserve for 2 companion certs... Haven't used/earned one yet, but they work for Hawaii... Should be nice for aulani)

I agree the games can get old...

Good Luck!

 

[J-Dog]

I have the Venture X and it's pretty much a "free" premium card, so almost a no-brainer to get.

The annual fee is $395 but you get a $300 travel credit (can apply directly when booking a flight through Capital One) and you get a 10,000 point anniversary bonus which is worth $100 (comes about 2 months after a new annual fee is billed). I can confirm that, for the flight I booked via Capital One, the prices were identical to United. Maybe it gets dicier with modifications or cancellations, so I book travel that I am highly confident I will complete.

They have a small airline lounge footprint (DEN, IAD, DCA, DFW, LAS) and it's expanding to LGA and JFK. We visited the one in Denver and it's very nice. Moreover, they still allow guests (I think up to 2) into the lounge and additional cardholders (can also access lounges) have no additional annual fee.

It also offers President's Circle on Hertz, which was a primary consideration for me at the time (before Amex Platinum also also added that in 2022)

The Venture X travel credit used to be able to be used for anything that you paid for that was coded as travel, but then 2 years ago they made it necessary to use their travel portal in order to get the credit.

The point is that all brands of travel card's perks are slowly eroding. If it keeps up, they all might not be worth using before long...

 

[glamdring269]

Just read that rumor too - and it adds that the $300 general travel credit will go away to be replaced by "coupon-line" credits where every 1-3 months you need to remember to claim a credit or lose it.

• $500 Chase hotel Edit credit ($250 semi-annually) $250/semi-annual (hotel portal run by Chase for select hotels. More info here)
• $300 Sapphire Reserve Tables dining credit ($150 semi-annually)
• $300 StubHub credit ($150 semi-annually)
• $300 DoorDash credit ($25 a month)
• $120 DoorDash membership
• $250 credit toward Apple TV+ and Apple Music
• $120 Lyft credit ($10 a month)
• $120 Peloton credit ($10 a month)

The Amex Platinum card has been doing that for quite a few years now. Forces me to use things like Uber Eats ($15/month) and Sacks 5th Avenue (I use the $50 semi-annual credit on overpriced body wash) that I would never spend on otherwise. I hate it...

If Chase does this I may have to ditch the card and stay with the Amex Platinum and Venture X.

If earning remains the same then these benefits would be far better for me than the blanket $300 travel credit.

Nevermind. I just went to the link and there are a lot of negative changes not listed above. I’ll drop the card if they do this.

 

[DanCali]

If earning remains the same then these benefits would be far better for me than the blanket $300 travel credit.

Nevermind. I just went to the link and there are a lot of negative changes not listed above. I’ll drop the card if they do this.

These types of changes are pretty bad...

It's enough that I have the $25 monthly dining credit on the Bonvoy Brilliant card I need to remember to use, and the $15/month Platinum Amex Uber credit (that I use on Eats), now I'd get another 40+ "coupons" I need to use every year to try and recover the new exorbitant fee?

If the intent was benevolent, they would give you a $120 annual Lyft credit that even the occasional user may use on rides when they travel 2-3 times a year. Or an annual $300 DoorDash credit that you can use to order 4-6 times a year and not be out of pocket on each order. And how many people get just Apple TV+ and Apple Music, but not the Apple One bundle (to which the credit would presumably not apply)? Here's the Apple One cost for an individual/family vs the itemized cost of TV+ and Music.

Since most people would go with the bundle price (that also includes arcade and extra storage for less money), those people couldn't use the $250 Apple credits...

This was the "problem" from their perspective with the $300 travel credit that was probably used close to 100%. The intent here is totally to get you to not use the credits by making them attractive on paper ($2000+!!!) but difficult to monetize.

 

[MsChristy12]

If Chase gets rid of the 3x on travel, they would really be shooting themselves in the foot (especially if they demand a higher annual fee for that privilege).
Do I believe there will be some changes (including a higher annual fee)? Absolutely. But I would be shocked if they eliminate 3x on travel.

The Amex Platinum card has been doing that for quite a few years now. Forces me to use things like Uber Eats ($15/month) and Sacks 5th Avenue (I use the $50 semi-annual credit on overpriced body wash) that I would never spend on otherwise. I hate it...

They used to have a better selection of Kiehl's products that both my husband and I use, and it was actually kinda nice to have "free" products every 6 months. But since the pandemic, I have noticed they've been trimming down their products, and it's getting harder to find stuff to buy every 6 months. Skincare is pretty much the only practical purchase for me.

If Chase does this I may have to ditch the card and stay with the Amex Platinum and Venture X.

If these are even close to correct, I'll drop my CSR. Quickly. I already am on the fence about keeping both it and the Amex Plat, and have been burning my UR points. Not a bad time to accelerate that.

AGreed to all the above! We also have both the Amex plat and CSR. I've debated getting rid of one, but in the end we do see the benefits from both cards that we utilize, it's still worth it to us at the moment despite the hefty AF. I've transferred my points out to partners before and got a couple of good deals for international flights, business/premium class too. If they get rid of 3x points on travel, there's absolutely no reasons for us to keep the card. I imagine they will lose a large amount of cardholders as well.

 

[PolyRob]

These types of changes are pretty bad...

It's enough that I have the $25 monthly dining credit on the Bonvoy Brilliant card I need to remember to use, and the $15/month Platinum Amex Uber credit (that I use on Eats), now I'd get another 40+ "coupons" I need to use every year to try and recover the new exorbitant fee?

If the intent was benevolent, they would give you a $120 annual Lyft credit that even the occasional user may use on rides when they travel 2-3 times a year. Or an annual $300 DoorDash credit that you can use to order 4-6 times a year and not be out of pocket on each order. And how many people get just Apple TV+ and Apple Music, but not the Apple One bundle (to which the credit would presumably not apply)? Here's the Apple One cost for an individual/family vs the itemized cost of TV+ and Music.

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View attachment 965065

Since most people would go with the bundle price (that also includes arcade and extra storage for less money), those people couldn't use the $250 Apple credits...

This was the "problem" from their perspective with the $300 travel credit that was probably used close to 100%. The intent here is totally to get you to not use the credits by making them attractive on paper ($2000+!!!) but difficult to monetize.

This angers me so much about Amex too. The banks just want high breakage.

I have Disney+ billing to one Platinum card and Hulu (No Ads) to another Platinum when the bundle would be so much cheaper because this is "free."

 

[MsChristy12]

Anyone visited all the CS airport lounges? Which one is your favorite? I was hoping the Vegas one would be opened by now so I can try it later this month when I'm there, but guess not and they don't even have a opening date announced yet. My husband tried the one at JFK and he said it's nice but too small.

 

[Steelers0854]

Anyone visited all the CS airport lounges? Which one is your favorite? I was hoping the Vegas one would be opened by now so I can try it later this month when I'm there, but guess not and they don't even have a opening date announced yet. My husband tried the one at JFK and he said it's nice but too small.

IMO Capital One lounges are beating CS at the moment, especially the Capital One Landings, the food there is better than most restaurants I eat at.

 

[Sprinkles&Sprints]

Anyone visited all the CS airport lounges? Which one is your favorite? I was hoping the Vegas one would be opened by now so I can try it later this month when I'm there, but guess not and they don't even have a opening date announced yet. My husband tried the one at JFK and he said it's nice but too small.

I have visited a few - agree JFK is on the small side. Philadelphia’s was pretty nice.