You can once again book Disney tickets with Ultimate Rewards, but you shouldn't
Well, this is interesting.
Purchasing Disney tickets through Chase's Ultimate Rewards website had long been considered one of the best ways to acquire passes with points. However, in 2018 the ability to do so disappeared, and while a brief revival occurred in the end of 2018, tickets had since vanished, along with any trace of Disney packages for purchase.
Until now.
A perusal of the activities section for both Anaheim and Orlando reveals Disney tickets available for purchase, even with points:
However, the savvy Mouseketeer will probably spot something a little...off with these ticket prices. Take a look at the cost for a one-day park ticket at Disneyworld in Orlando via Chase's website:
That's right, a one-day, one-park ticket to Disneyworld will run you $278 or a whopping 18,587 points. It doesn't look much better at Disneyland, where a one-day, one-park tickets is still $246.81 or 16,454 points.
In contrast, here's the cost for a single-day single park ticket to Disneyworld on a peak day via Disney's own website:
And for Disneyland:
For some reason that likely has to do with the fact that these park tickets are being sold by a third party provider, the cost to buy via the portal is over $100 more than buying directly with Disney.
At least you can still pay with points, right? Well, yes, but that's probably not a good idea. At this rate you're redeeming your points at a value of just 0.91 cents each (based on a one-day one-park ticket at Disneyworld). That's less than half TPG's valuation of 2.0 cents each and a worse rate than redeeming them for gift cards. So, unless you've got points literally falling out of your ears, you're better off paying with your card and pocketing the additional points.
Also suspect is this third party seller, Aotutour, whom I've never heard of and whose website looks like this:
Though they do look like a legitimate business, I am slightly concerned about what they're doing on Chase's travel center, let alone how they're managing to offer overpriced Disney tickets.
Bottom Line
So while it looks like the ability to purchase Disney tickets with Ultimate Rewards has returned (in a slightly different capacity), they're ridiculously overpriced. Unless you've got a ton of points to waste, you're better off buying tickets directly with Disney or using other methods to fund your Disney obsession.
TPG featured card
at Bilt's secure site
Terms & restrictions apply. See rates & fees.
| 1X | Choose to earn up to 1X points on rent and mortgage payments with no transaction fee |
| 2X | Earn 2X points + the option to earn 4% back in Bilt Cash on everyday purchases |
Pros
- Choice to earn up to 1 Bilt Point per dollar spent on rent and mortgage payments
- Elevated everyday earnings with both Bilt Points and the option to earn Bilt Cash
- $400 Bilt Travel Portal hotel credit per year (up to $200 biannually)
- $200 Bilt Cash annually
- Priority Pass membership
- No foreign transaction fees
Cons
- Moderate annual fee
- Designed primarily for members seeking a premium, all-in-one card
- Earn points on housing with no transaction fee
- Choose to earn 4% back in Bilt Cash on everyday spend. Use Bilt Cash to unlock point earnings on rent and mortgage payments with no transaction fee, up to 1X.
- 2X points on everyday spend
- $400 Bilt Travel Hotel credit. Applied twice a year, as $200 statement credits, for qualifying Bilt Travel Portal hotel bookings.
- $200 Bilt Cash (awarded annually). At the end of each calendar year, any Bilt Cash balance over $100 will expire.
- Welcome bonus (subject to approval): 50,000 Bilt Points + Gold Status after spending $4,000 on everyday purchases in the first 90 days + $300 of Bilt Cash.
- Priority Pass ($469/year value). See Guide to Benefits.
- Bilt Point redemptions include airlines, hotels, future rent and mortgage payments, Lyft rides, statement credits, student loan balances, a down payment on a home, and more.