Travel cards are a great way to earn rewards points or miles for your spending that you can later redeem for flights, hotels, and rental cars. You can also get access to airport lounges, free checked bags and priority boarding, trip insurance, and discounted in-flight purchases.
For frequent travelers who want to supercharge their savings, welcome bonuses can certainly sweeten the deal.
One of the most generous offers on the market: the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card welcome bonus.
What is Chase offering?
Chase is now offering Chase Sapphire Preferred members a new intro offer: 80,000 bonus points after spending $4,000 on purchases in the first three months from account opening. And heads-up: This offer is ending soon.
What’s more, this card grants card holders a $50 annual Ultimate Rewards Hotel Credit that will automatically be applied to your account when your card is used for hotel accommodation purchases made through the Ultimate Rewards program, up to an annual maximum accumulation of $50.
Cardholders will also earn 5x points on travel purchased through Chase Ultimate Rewards®, excluding hotel purchases that qualify for the $50 Annual Ultimate Rewards Hotel Credit, 2x points on all other travel, 3x points on dining, 5x points on Lyft rides through March 31, 2025 (that's 3x points in addition to the 2x points you already earn on travel), 3x points on select streaming services and online grocery purchases, and 1 point per $1 spent on all other purchases.
With this card, members will also get to take advantage of other perks like six months of complimentary Instacart+, complimentary access to DashPass, a monthly statement credit from GoPuff, and more.
Qualifying for the Chase Sapphire Preferred and welcome bonus
There are a few requirements you have to meet to qualify for this welcome bonus.
In order to approve you for the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card, Chase will review your credit profile and application. If you're approved for an account, your credit access line will be at least $5,000. Cardholders who currently have any Sapphire card or have received a new cardmember bonus for any Sapphire card in the past 48 months are not eligible for this welcome bonus. Just keep in mind that this card has a $95 annual fee.
Deciding if you should get a new travel card
A bonus offer shouldn’t be your only reason for getting a brand-new credit card, but a bonus offer, paired with a lucrative rewards structure that aligns with your everyday spending could make sense.
And if you have travel plans in the foreseeable future, it could be an optimal time to take advantage of this generous welcome offer. For context, 80,000 points redeemed through Chase Ultimate Rewards® are worth $1,000 when redeemed for travel purchases, or $800 when redeemed for cash.
The takeaway
Before you apply for a new credit card, be sure to read the terms, conditions, fees, and eligibility requirements to determine whether or not it makes sense to add a new card to your wallet. If the card rewards your regular spending and helps you save on purchases you plan to make anyway—it could be a smart money-saving move.
