✈️ Chase's 100K Sapphire Offer, Delta's Caribbean Expansion, & Marriott's Name Change Crackdown

Hello, miles and points enthusiasts! Welcome to another episode of Miles & Points Daily Podcast. I'm your host, Lucas, ready to bring you the latest updates from the travel rewards world. Let's jump right into what's been happening! First up, it looks like Chase has made a huge splash with a limited-time offer for the Sapphire Preferred Card. They're now offering a whopping one hundred thousand Ultimate Rewards points after you spend five thousand dollars in the first three months. As Summer Hull at The Points Guy noted, the points and miles world is going absolutely bananas over this offer—and with good reason! Those one hundred thousand points are worth at least one thousand two hundred fifty dollars toward travel when redeemed through Chase Travel, and potentially much more when transferred to Chase's airline and hotel partners. If you're eligible for this card, now is absolutely the time to apply. Speaking of eligibility, remember that you can't get the Sapphire Preferred if you currently have any Sapphire card or if you've received a Sapphire bonus in the past 48 months. Greg from Frequent Miler has published a comprehensive Q&A about this offer, addressing all the common questions about qualifying. One important tip from The Points Guy: if you're planning to downgrade your existing Sapphire card, make sure to transfer any Ultimate Rewards points to a travel partner before doing so, or you could lose access to those valuable transfer options. In airline news, there's some concerning information about foreign visits to the United States. According to Ben Schlappig at One Mile at a Time, foreign visits to the U.S. were down sharply in March, with a decline of about twenty percent. This appears to be part of a broader economic trend that has travel industry stocks taking a hit. View from the Wing reports that American Airlines stock has fallen below its pandemic low, which is certainly a troubling indicator for the travel sector. On a more positive note, Delta Air Lines is ramping up its Caribbean service. According to The Points Guy, Delta will be adding ten routes, including two brand new island destinations in the Caribbean. Starting in December, Delta will fly nonstop from Atlanta to St. Vincent and Bequia in the Grenadines, expanding their tropical footprint. Interesting hotel news for Marriott members—Gary Leff at View from the Wing has discovered an internal Marriott memo indicating that name changes on reservations are now being flagged as potential fraud. This could lead to account lockouts or even program bans. According to the memo, properties shouldn't handle name changes directly, especially within 48 hours of check-in. For paid reservations, they're being instructed to remove the loyalty number and require new payment details from any new guest. If you frequently book rooms for friends or family, this is something to be aware of. There's good news for Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan members. Nick Reyes at Frequent Miler reports that Alaska elite qualifying miles are now posting for award flights. This was part of the program changes announced last year, and it's exciting to see it actually implemented. This is a great benefit that only a few airlines offer, making it easier to maintain elite status with Alaska. For those of you who might be planning a trip to Bangkok, Ben Schlappig reports that the Park Hyatt Bangkok has opened a club lounge. However, there's a catch—it's not a traditional club lounge that comes with certain room rates or elite status. Instead, it's an add-on purchase option, which follows a trend some loyalty program members certainly won't be thrilled about. In credit card news beyond the Chase Sapphire offer, there's an interesting tidbit about Hawaiian Airlines credit cards. Frequent Miler has discovered that there are actually two consumer Hawaiian Airlines credit cards—the standard Hawaiian Airlines World Elite Mastercard issued by Barclays, and another version called the Hawaiian Airlines Bank of Hawaii World Elite Mastercard. Some savvy travelers have been able to get both cards and both welcome bonuses, which is worth considering if you're interested in boosting your Hawaiian Airlines miles. For American Express cardholders, check your accounts for some targeted offers. Doctor of Credit reports several streaming service credits, including offers for Peacock and Disney Bundle where you can get statement credits matching your subscription cost—essentially making these services free for several months. If you're a Cash App user, there are some new 'boosts' available, including ten percent cashback at Target and Walgreens (with a five dollar maximum), and fifteen percent cashback on DoorDash orders with a fifty dollar maximum. These limited-time offers can provide some nice savings if you were planning to make purchases at these merchants anyway. For United Kingdom travelers, Head for Points reports that British Airways appears to have extended elite status for some members who were due to lose it during the current membership year. This seems to be targeted, so it's worth checking your account if you were expecting a status drop. Finally, here's an interesting piece of information for those with Avios points: according to Head for Points, you can now convert Avios into Accor Live Limitless hotel points. This is possible thanks to the partnership between Qatar Airways and Avios, which allows free transfers between British Airways Club and Qatar Airways Privilege Club. It's another option for using your Avios, though you'll want to do the math to make sure you're getting good value from the conversion. Looking for the best award flights? Use AwardTravelFinder.com to search availability across Qatar Airways, British Airways, Cathay Pacific and more. Try it for free with our link in the shownotes. That wraps up today's miles and points news! Thanks for tuning in to Miles & Points Daily Podcast. If you found this information helpful, please subscribe to our podcast on all major platforms or visit milesandpointsdaily.com for more great content. Until next time, happy traveling and smart earning!