5 ways to use Chase Points on vacation (beyond flights and hotels)
For many travelers, Chase Ultimate Rewards points are synonymous with flights and hotel stays. And while those can certainly be some of the most valuable ways to redeem points, they're far from the only options available.
If you've built up a stash of Chase points, you may be surprised by how many vacation expenses you can cover beyond airfare and lodging. Through the Chase Travel℠ portal, eligible cardholders can redeem points for everything from guided tours and attraction tickets to rental cars and cruises.
Whether you're looking to reduce out-of-pocket costs or splurge on a bucket-list experience, here's how to use Chase points to help enhance your next vacation.
Related: Why the best point redemptions are sometimes the most practical
When does it make sense to use Chase points for expenses beyond flights and hotels?
Before redeeming Chase Ultimate Rewards points for vacation expenses beyond flights and hotels, it's worth understanding the trade-off.
In many cases, transferring Chase points to airline and hotel partners will offer the highest potential value, especially for premium-cabin flights or high-end hotel stays. Depending on the booking, Points Boost redemptions through Chase Travel may also provide solid value.
By comparison, Chase Travel redemptions for experiences, rental cars, cruises and attraction tickets often provide around 1 cent per point. That makes them easy to understand — a $100 activity will cost around 10,000 points — but it also means you may be getting significantly less value than you would from a high-value transfer partner redemption.
TPG's June 2026 valuation pegs Chase Ultimate Rewards points at 2.05 cents apiece, so redeeming at around 1 cent per point effectively gives you about half of that value.
In other words, these redemptions are best viewed as a way to offset travel costs rather than maximize the value of your points.
That doesn't mean these are bad redemptions. They can still make sense if you want to reduce out-of-pocket travel costs, have a large stash of Chase points or are struggling to find award availability for flights and hotels.
They can also be useful for budget-conscious travelers who want to cover as many trip expenses as possible — including attractions, rental cars and tours — even if they aren't fully maximizing their value.
Related: Why all travelers should earn transferable credit card points
How to earn Chase Ultimate Rewards points
To access these redemption options, you'll need an eligible card that earns Chase Ultimate Rewards points. The easiest ways to build your balance are to earn a welcome offer on a new Chase credit card and to maximize bonus categories on everyday spending.
Here are four top cards that earn Chase Ultimate Rewards points:
- Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card (see rates and fees): Earn 100,000 bonus points after spending $5,000 on purchases in the first three months from account opening.
- Chase Sapphire Reserve® (see rates and fees): Earn 100,000 points after spending $6,000 on purchases in the first three months from account opening.
- Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card (see rates and fees): Earn 100,000 bonus points after spending $8,000 on purchases in the first three months from account opening.
- Chase Sapphire Reserve for Business℠ (see rates and fees): Earn 200,000 bonus points after spending $30,000 on purchases in the first six months from account opening.
Welcome offers on these cards can be one of the fastest ways to build a Chase points balance, but before redeeming, compare the points price with the cash price to make sure the redemption makes sense for your trip.
Related: The complete guide to Chase Ultimate Rewards
How to book vacation experiences through Chase Travel
Before diving into specific redemption options, it's worth understanding where to find them.
In addition to flights and hotels, the Chase Travel portal offers tours, sightseeing excursions, attraction tickets and other travel experiences that can be booked with cash or Chase Ultimate Rewards points.
To browse available options, log in to your Chase account and navigate to the Chase Travel portal. From there, select the tab you'd like to search and enter your destination and travel dates.
Availability varies by destination, but major tourist hubs, such as Hawaii, London and New York, often offer hundreds of bookable experiences ranging from guided tours and museum tickets to food experiences and outdoor adventures.
Use points for tours and excursions
Tours and excursions can be some of the most memorable parts of a vacation — and they're also among the many travel experiences you can book with Chase points. Depending on your destination, options may range from guided sightseeing tours to outdoor adventures and specialty experiences.
For example, while searching for activities in Kauai, Hawaii, I found options including a Secret Falls kayak-and-hike excursion for approximately 13,500 points, a boat tour of the Nā Pali Coast for 22,629 points and a private helicopter tour over waterfalls and canyons for roughly 44,990 points (prices are per person).
At the time of my search, the cash rate for the Secret Falls excursion was $135 (compared to 13,500 points), while the Nā Pali Coast boat tour cost $227 (or 22,629 points). In both cases, redeeming points provided roughly 1 cent per point in value, which is typical of many Chase Travel redemptions.
While that can help offset travel costs, it's not necessarily the highest-value use of Chase points. Cardholders will generally get more value by transferring points to airline or hotel partners. However, using points for tours and excursions may still make sense for travelers who have already booked their flights and hotels with points and want to offset additional vacation costs without spending cash.
Redeem points for attraction tickets
While helicopter tours and other once-in-a-lifetime experiences can be an exciting way to use Chase points, not every redemption needs to be a splurge. Chase points can also help cover everyday sightseeing costs.
Many destinations offer attraction tickets, museum admissions and city sightseeing passes through Chase Travel, allowing travelers to offset expenses they may have otherwise paid out of pocket.
For example, a search for activities in Chicago surfaced options including architecture river cruises, admission to the Skydeck at Willis Tower, museum tickets and multi-attraction city passes.
As I researched attractions for an upcoming trip to Paris, I found everything from a Seine River sightseeing cruise for 1,977 points (or $20) to a hop-on hop-off tour for 4,530 points (or $46) and a guided tour of the Louvre starting around 8,600 points.
While not the strongest value of Chase points, these redemptions can be especially useful for families or travelers planning busy sightseeing itineraries. Instead of spending cash on multiple attraction tickets throughout a trip, you can use points to cover some or all of those expenses in advance.
These types of redemptions can also stretch a relatively small points balance. Many attractions cost only a few thousand points, making them accessible even if you don't have enough points for a flight or hotel redemption.
Cover rental cars
After flights, hotels and activities, transportation is often one of the biggest remaining vacation expenses.
Depending on your destination, you might be able to redeem Chase points for rental cars. This can be particularly valuable in places where having a car is essential, such as Hawaii, national park destinations or smaller cities with limited public transportation.
For example, when searching for Maui rentals for July 1-4, I found options ranging from an intermediate Kia K4 from Thrifty for $267 or 26,692 points to a Nissan intermediate SUV for $313 or 31,294 points.
In both examples, points offset the rental cost at a fixed-value rate. These redemptions make sense for travelers who want to offset a major vacation expense and preserve cash for other parts of their trip.
Travelers booking rental cars through Chase Travel can also take advantage of their card's rental car coverage benefits. For example, the Chase Sapphire Preferred and Chase Sapphire Reserve provide primary rental car collision damage waiver coverage when the rental is paid with either Chase points through the portal or the card itself.
(You'll still need to present the eligible Chase card at the rental counter to cover any incidental holds or fees. Check your card's guide to benefits for complete details, terms and exclusions.)
Related: Chase Sapphire rental car insurance guide
Book cruises
Cruises are another travel expense that can be booked through Chase Travel using points.
Because cruises are notoriously difficult to book with traditional airline and hotel points, some travelers may find value in using Chase points to offset these costs directly.
For example, cruise options available through Chase Travel ranged from a seven-night Northern Europe sailing for about 57,000 points per person to a 14-night Italy and Adriatic itinerary aboard Cunard's Queen Victoria for roughly 130,000 points per person.
While this isn't the most lucrative way to redeem Chase Ultimate Rewards points, it may appeal to travelers who want to reduce the out-of-pocket cost of a cruise or use points for a travel expense that can otherwise be difficult to cover with rewards.
Use points for dining and entertainment experiences
Depending on your destination and travel dates, Chase Travel may offer food tours, culinary experiences, cultural events and entertainment options that can be booked using points.
Travelers can also find opportunities to use points for select event tickets and special experiences, helping offset costs that might otherwise come out of pocket.
While researching activities for a trip to Paris with my mom this fall, I found a variety of food and entertainment experiences available through Chase Travel that could be booked with points. Available options included bakery tours in Paris for about 11,000 points and dinner cruises along the Seine starting at 15,700 points.
These redemptions may make sense for travelers looking to offset the cost of a special meal, cultural experience or entertainment activity without spending additional cash.
Bottom line
Flights and hotel stays may offer some of the highest-value Chase Ultimate Rewards redemptions, but they're not the only way to put your points to work.
Through Chase Travel, cardholders can redeem points for everything from sightseeing tours and attraction tickets to rental cars, cruises and other vacation experiences. While these redemptions often provide less value than transferring points to airline and hotel partners, they can be a practical way to offset travel costs and make a trip more affordable.
Before booking, compare the points cost with the cash price and consider whether another redemption option offers better value. But if using points helps you take the trip you want — or enjoy a few extra experiences along the way — it can still be a smart redemption.
Related: Beyond transfer partners: 6 easy ways to get strong value from your Chase Ultimate Rewards points