Using the Sapphire Reserve Travel Credit to Purchase Tickets to Disney
Update: Some offers mentioned below are no longer available. View the current offers here.
These days lots of premium rewards credit cards come with an annual travel credit of some sort that you either lose or use each year. Some of these credits such as the The Platinum Card from American Express $200 airline incidental fee credit run on a calendar year schedule, and others like the Sapphire Reserve $300 travel credit run on a different schedule based on your December statement date. Since we are now into mid-November, it really is time to act on all of the annual travel credits you have access to, but this is especially true if you need to use the credit before your final statement date of 2016 because that date may sneak up on you if you aren't careful.
That is a general reminder to examine and use all of your cards with an annual travel credit sooner rather than later, but a specific common travel credit related question I wanted to answer is how to use the $300 Chase Sapphire Reserve travel credit to purchase tickets to Disney to take that quintessential family trip to the 'Happiest Place on Earth'.
What the Chase Sapphire Reserve Credit Does and Does Not Cover
The $300 annual travel credit from the Sapphire Reserve card is one of the most generous credits out there both in amount offered and in what it covers. Per the Chase site, the annual travel credit from the Sapphire Reserve automatically issues up to $300 in statement credits for travel-related purchases charged to your card. That sounds simple enough, but let's breakdown some of those terms to see exactly what they mean in practice.
Annually, in this case, means "the year beginning with your account open date through the first December statement date of that same year, and each 12 billing cycles starting after your December statement date through the following December statement date." It does not mean January 1st - December 31st, so plan accordingly.
Travel related means charges from hotels, motels, airlines, timeshares, campgrounds, car rental agencies, cruise lines, travel agencies, discount travel sites, operators of passenger trains, buses, taxis, limos, ferries, toll bridges and highways, and parking lots and garages.
Also of note are highlighting those charges that are expressly not covered by the Sapphire Reserve's travel credit including: websites or owners who rent out vacation properties, in-flight goods or services, on-board cruise line goods and services, sightseeing activities, tourist attractions, merchants within airports, merchants that rent vehicles for the purposes of hauling, and the purchase of miles and points.
How to Use the Annual Sapphire Reserve Travel Credit to Purchase Tickets to Disney
So, while tickets to Disney are indeed travel related in a lot of ways, it is also something that often will probably fall under a "tourist attraction" and thus expressly not covered for the Sapphire Reserve annual travel credit. However, there are tons of ways to purchase tickets to Disney, and how and where you purchase tickets to Disney will ultimately determine how it codes to your credit card and whether or not it is covered by your annual travel credit.
Generally speaking, if you are able to purchase your Disney tickets via a larger package from a hotel or travel agency then it would probably qualify for the Sapphire Reserve travel credit under those expressly covered categories, but that is general advice and I want to give you something a little more concrete.
If you want to purchase discount tickets to Disney and use your Sapphire Reserve travel credit towards those purchases then you might want to consider Undercover Tourist.
I have personally used Undercover Tourist multiple times to purchase our own discounted tickets to Disney World and you can not only save money going directly to their website, but if you subscribe to their monthly newsletter that goes out the 15th of each month you can save even more by going through their newsletter to purchase tickets to Disney.
While I have not yet personally purchased tickets using Undercover Tourist with our Sapphire Reserve, I have seen multiple reports of Undercover Tourist posting as a charge from a travel agency and thus triggering the travel credit. Here is one example, but there are many more available online. I have also read multiple successful reports of the Sapphire Reserve travel credit being triggered by paying Disney Vacation Club dues and also some reports of simply adding to your Disney Vacation Account also triggering the statement credit.
I also recommend checking out this post if you want to save on Disney tickets while adding to your Disney Vacation Account.
I'd love to hear how you used your $300 Sapphire Reserve travel credit in 2016 and what your plans are for 2017!
TPG featured card
at American Express's secure site
Terms & restrictions apply. See rates & fees.
| 3X | Earn 3X Miles on Delta purchases. |
| 1X | Earn 1X Miles on all other eligible purchases. |
Pros
- Delta SkyClub access when flying Delta
- Annual companion ticket for travel on Delta (upon renewal)
- Ability to earn MQDs through spending
- Various statement credits for eligible purchases
Cons
- Steep annual fee of $650
- Other Delta cobranded cards offer superior earning categories
- Earn 100,000 Bonus Miles after you spend $6,000 or more in purchases with your new Card within the first 6 months of Card Membership and an additional 25,000 bonus miles after you make an additional $3,000 in purchases on the Card within your first 6 months, starting from the date that your account is opened. Offer Ends 04/01/2026.
- Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card Members receive 15 Visits per Medallion® Year to the Delta Sky Club® when flying Delta and can unlock an unlimited number of Visits after spending $75,000 in purchases on your Card in a calendar year. Plus, you’ll receive four One-Time Guest Passes each Medallion Year so you can share the experience with family and friends when traveling Delta together.
- Enjoy complimentary access to The Centurion® Lounge in the U.S. and select international locations (as set forth on the Centurion Lounge Website), Sidecar by The Centurion® Lounge in the U.S. (see the Centurion Lounge Website for more information on Sidecar by The Centurion® Lounge availability), and Escape Lounges when flying on a Delta flight booked with the Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card. § To access Sidecar by The Centurion® Lounge, Card Members must arrive within 90 minutes of their departing flight (including layovers). To access The Centurion® Lounge, Card Members must arrive within 3 hours of their departing flight. Effective July 8, 2026, during a layover, Card Members must arrive within 5 hours of the connecting flight.
- Receive $2,500 Medallion® Qualification Dollars with MQD Headstart each Medallion Qualification Year and earn $1 MQD for each $10 in purchases on your Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card with MQD Boost to get closer to Status next Medallion Year.
- Enjoy a Companion Certificate on a Delta First, Delta Comfort, or Delta Main round-trip flight to select destinations each year after renewal of your Card. The Companion Certificate requires payment of government-imposed taxes and fees of between $22 and $250 (for itineraries with up to four flight segments). Baggage charges and other restrictions apply. Delta Basic experiences are not eligible for this benefit.
- $240 Resy Credit: When you use your Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card for eligible purchases with U.S. Resy restaurants, you can earn up to $20 each month in statement credits. Enrollment required.
- $120 Rideshare Credit: Earn up to $10 back in statement credits each month after you use your Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card to pay for U.S. rideshare purchases with select providers. Enrollment required.
- Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card Members get 15% off when using miles to book Award Travel on Delta flights through delta.com and the Fly Delta app. Discount not applicable to partner-operated flights or to taxes and fees.
- With your Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card, receive upgrade priority over others with the same Medallion tier, product and fare experience purchased, and Million Miler milestone when you fly with Delta.
- Earn 3X Miles on Delta purchases and earn 1X Miles on all other eligible purchases.
- No Foreign Transaction Fees. Enjoy international travel without additional fees on purchases made abroad.
- $650 Annual Fee.
- Apply with confidence. Know if you're approved for a Card with no impact to your credit score. If you're approved and you choose to accept this Card, your credit score may be impacted.
- Terms Apply.
- See Rates & Fees