First look at this new points feature

☀️ Good morning and welcome back to Daily Drop — the newsletter that books $10,000 flights for almost free but still complains about the quality of the $4 airport coffee.

Speaking of booking premium travel for cheap:

• 🚀 Points Boost: A first look

• 🏨 Save 40% at dreamy all-inclusives

• 😳 AI-Powered Scams Are Making Your Privacy Worse

• 🥂 How to book ANA first class with points

🚀 Points Boost: A first look

Now that the revamp of the Chase Sapphire Reserve® is live, there’s one major change that’ll affect how you redeem your points.

The fan-favorite 1.5x redemption multiplier on the Sapphire Reserve (and 1.25x multiplier with the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card) through the bank’s travel portal is officially gone.

In its place? A new feature called Points Boost, which lets cardholders redeem Ultimate Rewards points in the portal for up to 2 cents each.

Let’s just say… It’s not a flat upgrade. But there are some clear wins — especially if you know where to look.

Hotels: Surprisingly great value — and even elite-qualifying

Points Boost seems to shine brightest when it comes to hotels.

For starters, it’s fairly easy to find redemptions at 1.7 to 1.8 cents per point — a solid jump from the old 1.5x redemption rate.

Even better? Many of these hotels are marked as “Loyalty Program Eligible,” meaning you can earn elite night credits and hotel points even when redeeming your Ultimate Rewards points.

Take this hotel in Savannah, Georgia — a 4-star Hotel Indigo property that normally runs $200 per night. With Points Boost, it costs just 11,448 points, giving you 1.8 cents per point (cpp) in value.

Or hop over to Europe, where a night at the stylish Nhow Marseille in France costs $299 or 17,112 points — also around 1.8 cpp (and loyalty-eligible 🤘🏼).

Even all-inclusives are showing up at a discount. A beachfront stay at the Hotel Riu Palace in Costa Rica, for instance, costs $213 or just 12,189 points — again, 1.8 cpp.

So if you’re looking to book hotels with Ultimate Rewards points, this is now one of the best options around.

Flights: Higher cents-per-point, but mixed value overall

Things get trickier on the flight side.

Airlines currently eligible for Points Boost include United, Emirates, EVA, Singapore Airlines, Qantas, and Air Canada — and many of the fares do show better-than-normal redemption value.

For example, I found a United business-class flight from Los Angeles (LAX) to Tokyo (HND) priced at $3,469 or 173,425 points — a perfect 2 cpp redemption.

Sounds great, right? Until you realize that it has two layovers and that you could book ANA’s amazing "The Room" business class nonstop for just 75,000 UR points transferred to Aeroplan.

So yeah, you’re getting more value per point than before, but this still isn’t your best booking option.

That said, there are still sweet spots.

For instance, I found a first-class flight from Chicago (ORD) to Liberia, Costa Rica (LIR) for $734 or 36,651 points, which hits that 2 cpp threshold and feels reasonable given the distance (though still doesn’t beat transfer partners).

Plus, when you get there, you can book that all-inclusive I told you about earlier. 😉

So… what’s the move?

Right now, Points Boost seems to be most rewarding for hotels, especially when you find loyalty-eligible properties offering 1.75 to 2 cpp redemptions.

Yes, flights can offer solid value, but if you’re eyeing premium cabins, transfer partners will almost always be your better bet.

My recommendation? Use Points Boost for hotels you’d be booking with cash anyway, especially for properties that often aren’t available to book through transfer partners. Save a stash of Ultimate Rewards points for high-value award flights via transfer partners.

🏨 Save 40% at dreamy all-inclusives

If you’ve ever dreamed of sipping sangria in Mallorca or soaking in thermal waters on the Black Sea — without worrying about your tab — now’s your chance.

Hyatt is offering a whopping 40% off cash stays at its all-inclusive resorts in Europe, including gems in Spain, Greece, and Bulgaria.

Here’s what you need to know:

• Book by July 2, 2025

• Valid for stays through December 31, 2025

• The discount applies to cash bookings only

• Must book directly with Hyatt

These are full-fledged Hyatt properties — so you’ll still earn World of Hyatt points, rack up elite night credits, and even redeem Milestone Rewards like Suite Upgrade Awards if you qualify.

And despite being all-inclusive hotels, many of these properties are already quite budget-friendly.

As I mentioned earlier, you don’t need to go to the jam-packed tourist hotspots to find deals with this sale (though there’s nothing wrong with that).

You could even book this AluaSun property in Helios Beach, Bulgaria, for just over a hundred bucks a night:

So, whether you’re craving sangria, spa time, or just a break from reality, this is one of the best ways to do it — with elite perks, extra points, and 40% off.

🥂 How to book ANA first class with points

Remember earlier when I mentioned ANA’s business-class flight from Los Angeles to Tokyo?

Well, I’m pleased to say that that example is about to be completely overshadowed by something even better: ANA’s first-class suites. 😎

Daily Drop’s own Brendan and Erin recently had the pleasure of flying this seat, and in this week’s Daily Drop YouTube video, they’ll tell you exactly how they did it – for $300.

That’s all for today, my friends.

If you made it to the bottom, you’ve officially earned elite status in newsletter endurance (but don’t expect any benefits 😉).

See you tomorrow ❤️

7.0849° S, 107.4461° E

With contributions by Tiffany Eastham, McKay Moffitt, and Benji Stawski