Best way to mix & match CC rewards/airline miles

[Johnny Aloha]

I'm pretty new to the travel hacking game.  Where can I learn how to mix and match awards and points?

My goal is to get 4x plane tickets (1 of which is an infant under 2) from the southeast to Hawaii in January or February 2017.  I currently have about 90k United Miles, 88k Delta Miles, 90k Chase Ultimate rewards points, and 44k Citi Thank you points.

Thank you!

[catccc]

I don't have a ton of advice, but if you have a Chase Sapphire card, I think you can convert the Ultimate reward points to specific airlines.  I don't think this works with Chase Freedom, though.  It really varies, but sometimes it is a better deal to leave redeem them through Chase.

[boarder42]

you're pretty late to the game to do all of this.

if you're willing to split up you can probably make it work.. but the cheapest flights are all best booked over a year in advance. just have flexible dates and search the fare calendars.  an infant if you want to hold them the whole time on that flight would be free i think. 

[JoJo]

you're pretty late to the game to do all of this.

if you're willing to split up you can probably make it work.. but the cheapest flights are all best booked over a year in advance. just have flexible dates and search the fare calendars.  an infant if you want to hold them the whole time on that flight would be free i think.

Agreed.

For the fun of it I checked at United.com.  There are just a few flights left for super saver in January  (I looked at MIA to HNL), so 45,000 points for the round trip per person if you pick the right days to travel.  That looks to be your best bet assuming you can transfer the Chase points and book right away.


But... your connections are pretty much going to suck at the lower point options... the 45,000 RT flights take 25 hours to get from MIA to HNL - MIA to San Fran to Houston to Honolulu, as opposed to 12 hour flights costing 90,000 RT per per person.

[Johnny Aloha]

you're pretty late to the game to do all of this.

LOL, I know.  Normally we are way out ahead of this, but this trip just popped up.

[Jaguar Paw]

Option 2: get a chase sapphire preferred card and get 50K more points for free then get chase sapphire reserved card for 100k more points plus $300 more in travel credit for 495 sign on fee. Minimum spending limits apply with bonuses. We've been churning with chase for 5 months now and are around 220K points.

[myhotrs]

Good thing is you have lots of options, sspecially if your schedule is flexible (if its not, I would suggest just going for $ back cards and sign-ups and buying the tix that work for you). Here are a few good primers on getting to HI:

http://onemileatatime.boardingarea.com/2015/10/06/redeeming-miles-to-hawaii-can-be-tough/ (great blog, just keep in mind the miles cost in the article is for first class)
http://10xtravel.com/use-chase-ultimate-rewards-points-fly-hawaii/

Delta flights booked with Korean Air miles are the best value, Singapore air also has a sweet spot when used for United flights. It may make sense to pay an award booking service (just google it, lots of options). Those guys are very knowledgeable and have booked hundreds or thousands of award flights.

Feel free to PM me, I do not work for anyone in the business, just been travel hacking a long time.

[klystomane]

Based on what you have, without knowing where you're flying out of, and assuming you're flying economy:

1. Pick either a United or Delta flight that you like and use points to redeem.
2. Use Chase and TY points to purchase the remaining tickets for the same flight. If needed, pay the extra $.