In this episode, we talk about how Rove matches your Mesa, we talk about whether or not you should buy IHG Diamond status, and we announce this year’s picks for Bonvoyed of the Year.
The 2025 Bonvoyed Awards
Watch here:
Or listen here (or click “Follow” on the player below to select your preferred podcast app instead):
Giant Mailbag
(01:09) – Changing names on reservations/workarounds for using the Fine Hotels and Resorts the Hotel Collection benefit
Mattress Running the Numbers
(03:59) – IHG Lock in 2026 Diamond status by buying points (targeted)
Bonvoyed
(12:52) – Chase re-edits The Edit by Chase Travel℠: 1.65x boosts
Awards, Points, and More
(16:12) – Rove: Match Your Mesa (up to 5,000 free miles)
Main Event: The 2025 Bonvoyed Awards
(18:36) – What are the Bonvoyed Awards?
(20:03) – 2024 winner
(21:11) – 2025 Honorable mentions
(21:55) – 2025 Contestants
(40:05) – Nick’s Pick: Southwest
(44:36) – Greg’s Pick: Sapphire Reserve® Refresh
Question of the Week
(50:02) – Any last-minute ideas for using Hilton resort credits?
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Music Credit – “Ocean Deep” by Annie Yoder
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I made an advance purchase pre paid Hilton reservation and got the $50 amex biz plat credit.
I was using Wyndham points for both Vacasa and Wyndham Vacation Club rentals (and I was getting some strong value from the redemptions). Vacasa redemptions are now gone and Wyndham Vacation Club (managed by Vacasa) doubled the rate of some of its best properties (especially Hawaii).
But Wyndham and Vacasa weren’t done. I tried to book a Wyndham Vacation Club stay on Kauai to burn up my remaining points and, even though it showed as available, I got a pop-up that gave me an 800 number to call to get my 10% discount as a Wyndham card holder; otherwise, I was short on points. Called the number and the CSR said the booking I wanted was not available with points even though it was visible online. Called back three times and got the same story. Finally, I broke down and bought the points I needed and was able to simply book the stay online. I even got the 10% discount but only after I had enough points in my account to cover the non-discounted rate! So, the extra points I bought are now hanging out at Wyndham, but I would rather have stranded points then no points.
Can’t wait for my renewal coming up next month (a retention offer of less than the AF is a “no fly” for me).
I feel there’s an argument that Mesa is not even a Bonvoy.
When a company intentionally screws customers and maybe even pretends it’s an enhancement, or double crosses you, that’s a Bonvoy.
Mesa just outright failed. I’m sure they didn’t want to run out of money or whatever happened to disappoint everyone.
Disqualified.
possibly hot take – for me it was Hilton. I pivoted pretty hard to them last year and now have points that devalued 40% at the high end.
I don’t fly SW and I’m Chase dead so by far the worst hit was the Altitude Reserve devaluation. It’s incredibly frustrating because it was just such a simple solution for the vast majority of my spend.
It has been a bad year if the Citi Strata Elite rollout, locking accounts, 4506-C requests, unlocking accounts, followed by closing accounts did not make the list. These issues actually hit the mainstream press (WSJ had some coverage on it). Of the items discussed in this episode, the only other one to get mainstream coverage was Southwest (that I saw at least), which I would probably say deserves the top spot, since it affects the most people.
The best perk Citi could offer for a card is to not have to deal with Citi.
The Citi Strata Elite roll-out was not a product being Bonvoyed. Yes, it was a screw up but it was not a product devaluation.
Interesting way to look at it. As Greg describes in the video, the term generally is applied when an airline, hotel program, etc does something customer unfriendly. Definitely a devaluation is customer unfriendly, and qualifies as being Bonvoyed. Many use the term more broadly, to include general acts of “dis-loyalty” (as Greg & Nick described in the 2024 awards). So I would include Citi’s Strata Elite roll-out because a lot of customer unfriendly things went on. I still agree with Nick that the worst was Southwest, given how broadly that will be felt in upcoming years.
As someone who was affected by the botched CSE rollout, my annual fee was completely refunded for the first year, and I only needed to spend half of the minimum spend to get the bonus points.
That’s a good enough recovery for m,e unlike some other contenders who completely ignored that their decisions impacted their customers or tried to spin it as positive.
A company Bonvoying something is an intentional act. Pierre’s experience suggests the outcome was accidental. Yes, Citi did what it die. But, Citi probably didn’t foresee the outcome. Citi WAS trying to deny the card to those who didn’t truly qualify. Some who did truly qualify were accidentally treated as they were. But, Citi tried to make things right. To me, at least, there’s a difference.
Chase dropping earnings at cruise lines, public transportation, parking, etc., made my CSR move out of my wallet. Kinda done with Chase.
Yes, the loss of 3x travel on rental cars, cruises, and other travel categories was a major ‘nerf’… 4x direct to hotels softened that blow a little, but never enough. *sigh*
I’d like to see you nominate programs, not individual “events”. So Chase Ultimate Rewards would have gotten the nomination (and won) for their cumulative devaluations and misteps during the year.
US Bank would be in there.
I would give two awards, one for most disloyal program of the year and one for worst individual devaluation. As Bonvoyed has become synonymous with policy devaluations, I would keep that for individual policies. Since Southwest will probably go on record as the worst and most rapid companywide program destruction, perhaps that award could be the “Rapid Ruined” award. Now you can either get Bonvoyed (bad policy) or RR’d (bad program). Granted, Bonvoy was holistically a devalued program, but it’s colloquially come to mean you got screwed by a bad policy.
So for 2025, Southwest is given the honor of inaugurating the “Rapid Ruined” award for most unfriendly program of the year, and I’d say the changes to the Chase Sapphire Reserve gets the Bonvoyed title (although they certainly gave Southwest a run for their money with all the other Chase policies).
For the Hilton Resort credit, every semi-flex rate I have booked has had a deposit processed and credit provided
think its time to retire the “bonvoyed” moniker. yeah dynamic pricing sucks but is anyone with a straight face going to say that “bonvoyed” should be the term for shitty devals instead of “hiltoned” based on the last couple of years. i mean come on
2 more comments:
1) The Emirates thing continues to amuse me greatly. Has any airline on earth benefited more from points people bragging and showing off their cabins on social media??? Most of the braggy airline behavior is on Emirates and they benefited from all this free marketing for years! And now they want to alienate and basically screw over those same people giving them all the free publicity. Obviously they will be fine in the short term, but if they keep this going long term, once the A380s retire and they don’t have that halo effect they will suffer the consequences of losing that marketing (its significant).
2) The funniest thing about the Chase 2x/1.65 Edit/change is that according to them, the plan all along was to: start at 2x on all properties, then immediately lower after 2 months to 1.65 on half the properties???? That’s the worst plan I’ve ever heard!! Have they never heard of underpromise and overdeliver? This is literally overpromising and underdelivering. Truly outrageous levels of incompetence by Zach Honig and team
No, it’s never time to retire “Bonvoy’d”… it shall live on for a thousand years!!
Over time, US Bank has had a consistent track record of product devaluation.
Wow, it is amazing how much stronger the competition was this year compared to 2024.
No doubt Southwest thought they had this year’s award in the bag by destroying an entire airline, but they didn’t count on Chase going from first to worst in such a spectacular fashion. Up until this year the CSR was my favorite card and I couldn’t have imagined dropping it. But after the refresh it went to being literally the worst card in my wallet and I didn’t think twice in cancelling. Hard to compete with that.
But you can spend $75k on the CSR and get Southwest status and a $500 credit! Isn’t that premium! Just… so premium!
Structurally, the recent inflation eventually has to percolate down into devaluations across the board. Assume all currencies will drop at least 20 percent in the next year or two like we saw with Hilton.
The roll-out of the Citi Strata Elite was unfortunate. Citi has a way to go on service. But, the underlying product, for some but not all, is workable. Earn multipliers are good for targeted spending. Statement credits are not overwhelming and easy enough to use. Transfer partner list is strong. And, Citi Travel’s pricing is typically competitive.
I really want to like the Strata Elite but can’t quite see my way to keeping after the first year. On the positive side the credits are very easy to use. The hotel credit works well and the splurge credit is simple for me to use at Best Buy. Initially I was skeptical of Blacklane, but we used them twice for airport trips and both times the drivers were very good and safe, not something I can usually say for Uber. (Not that I would pay for Blacklane without the credit.)
The problem is that when I add up the credits I am barely over the annual fee even if I take the credits at face value, which of course I don’t. Even with generous valuation I end up with maybe $500 in value for a $595 card. And the earning multipliers are not nearly good enough to make up the difference.
I should add I don’t fly AA, and suspect for a lot of people the 4 AA lounge passes might be the break even point.
Citi created the best ecosystem for points earning this year. Between the Strata Premier, Strata Regular and DoubleCash, it’s a pretty much unbeatable trio. Throw in a CustomCash if you want for good measure. C1VX/Savor comes close perhaps.
The problem with the Strata Elite is that there’s no there there. Because there are no lounges. 4 AA passes does not move the needle when you are marketing a premium credit card to the masses – that’s one roundtrip with the family (2 passes each way). It’s not a lot. The points on the Elite are fine – 12x on the portal and 6x weekend dining – great I guess. Yes you can get a card to clip coupons and maybe come out ahead if you do the “double/triple dip” or whatever. Yes you can get the SUB. But after that, to your point, is this a card that has a place in your wallet versus the Amex Platinum? Of course not.
But… the Strata Premier / Strata Regular / DoubleCash sure does. For $95 for the Premier (and if you use the $100 credit, call it a wash), it’s a points earning machine. Other than it being offered by Citi (yes they have a ways to go on customer service), not much to fault. And it’s an easy default points earning strategy to now recommend (versus CSR/F.Un. which has both been self-immolated and surpassed).
Agree 100%. And the Strata Premier is a fantastic card for international travel. In some ways the strength of the Strata Premier makes the lackluster Strata Elite all the more perplexing.
If they keep the calendar credits, I could see myself upgrading/downgrading between the Strata Premier to triple dip the credits on the Strata Elite
Peter’s correct; Citi gets so much negative feedback, and some of it is well-deserved (horrible travel portal, for instance), regardless of their Strata Elite rollout issues (for those that used the Chinese link and got banned); but, for real, especially in light of Chase’s CSR nerf, Citi is looking better. I’ve set my no fee Strata to barber shops and hair salons, so that when P2 spends hundreds of dollars on ‘things,’ at least we get 3x points to transfer to AA or B6, eventually. LOL.
Once the undisputed king of the credit card world, the Chase Sapphire Reserve (CSR) built its empire on the KISS (Keep It Simple, Stupid) principle. It offered straightforward, high-value rewards without the headache. Today, however, the CSR is a shadow of its former self—a clear winner for the “Bonvoyed of the Year” title due to its drastic decline in user-centric value.
1. The Death of Simplicity
Chase continues to market “added value,” but in reality, they have dismantled the card’s underlying fundamentals. What used to be a seamless $300 travel credit has been buried under layers of forced partnerships with apps like Lyft, Peloton, and Instacart. Instead of a premium travel tool, the card has morphed into a high-fee “Coupon Book” that forces users to change their lifestyle just to break even.
2. A Crisis of Confidence
The issue isn’t just the rising annual fee; it’s a matter of trust. If the value proposition is so convoluted that you can no longer recommend it to a friend, why keep it in your own wallet? By leveraging its market-leading position to force these complexities onto loyal customers, Chase is making a short-sighted move that could prove disastrous for long-term brand loyalty.
3. Superior Alternatives in a Crowded Market
The landscape has changed, and competitors like the Capital One Venture X and Amex Platinum are now offering much more transparent value. While Chase tries to lure people with its new lounge network, it still pales in comparison to the established and vast Global Lounge Collection offered by American Express. For many, the math simply no longer favors Chase.
4. Time to Send a Message
The only language a massive bank like Chase understands is “churn.” Calling for a retention offer in January or downgrading to the Chase Sapphire Preferred (CSP) is more than just a financial move—it’s a necessary protest. Until customers abandon the CSR in droves, Chase will have no incentive to reverse these “disastrous” changes.
You just fed Peter’s comment through ChatGPT?
Ha. I’m… flattered?
CSR is clearly the Bonvoyed of the Year winner. Hands down. As you said, they took the ultimate KISS (keep it simple stupid) card that made people have a positive association with Chase (the market leading bank by far) and completely destroyed it. They can say they “added value” all they want in their marketing materials, but we all know that they changed the underlying fundamentals of the card itself. It’s not about the annual fee, it’s about the structure of the card itself.
If one can no longer recommend the card to others, can we really still recommend it to ourselves?
I’ll be calling up in January for retention offers or to downgrade to CSP. The only way that Chase will get the message is if folks abandon the CSR in droves. And they should – too many other good options out there. While I might miss some of the CSR lounges, somehow I think I’ll survive with the Amex Platinum and others.
What a shame. Heads should and will be rolling at Chase over this complete disaster.
It’s sort of hilarious that Chase is connected to both of the Bonvoy Award winners, in that they have the cobranded Southwest credit card as well
Not to mention limiting the referral bonuses to only new businesses, or limiting signup bonuses on multiple ink cards. Chase as a company really took first prize this year for me.
The unlimited INK SUBs had to stop! There are so many UR points flooding the partners that the partners all had to devalue. Hyatt was the worst as now even low level Hyatt awards are difficult to find. And I don’t blame the partners. Hyatt awards primarily exist for Hyatt’s best customers. Who could not find availability of awards at most properties. Whereas before, Hyatt elites could always find award nights at the 90-120 day mark before, at the majority of Hyatt properties. Thankfully Hyatt did not double awards prices like all their competitors have done this year!
So you’re glad they got rid of the multiple ink SUBs and ink referrals? I can certainly understand that if you earn Hyatt status by staying in their hotels alone and not from credit card spend or signup bonuses. However, with that logic Chase (and every other issuer) should do away with signup bonuses completely. This would lower the supply of points and limit devaluations.
People were signing up for 6-8 or more INKs per year. And did so for the last 5 years. These same individuals moaned about hard it was to find award seats and stays. “Pigs get fat, hogs get slaughtered.” Their behavior brought about Chases’ change in INK SUBs. Bloggers also encouraged the same behavior. It was a vicious cycle that had to change because it was affecting the awards supply for every one else. As far as other card issuers, your point is moot. No other card issuers (even Chase) has unlimited SUBs for personal cards. As far as business cards, only Chase was allowing unlimited apps for INK business cards. Now that has stopped.
Thanks for sharing – I think people forget about the third Chase refresh United Cards in March. (Thanks for posting – I hadn’t taken a critical eye at what was a solid value but no more with all the changes at JPMC.
Chase had three brand refreshes – even the United (Quest & Biz cards) is a crap shoot on win/lose – the Quest’s 10K award miles discount / $200 Travelbank credit – have to be used during the Card member year or expires (can’t book future flights outside the 12 months).
The $100 ride share credits are solid as they can be banked – the $15 Instacart credits ($10 and $5) the $5 isn’t worth the hassle the $10 off $35 pickup is ok if you can find a store offering pickup & in-store prices for IC.
But definitely rethinking the card (esp P2 after the new $350 at next renewal). Honestly not just P2s but even my current UA Biz/Quest combo is likely not a long term keeper without easy Chase UR SUBs to supplement UA miles for award bookings.
I see a lot of cards in our stables (54 currently) getting the Axe.
Most of our Chase cards will subject to the new AF at next renewal.
Wow – I hadn’t realized just how.much the ground shifted under us and cards with AF that had offered solid value and better ROI vs AF – no longer do without URs.
I had been thinking about add Hyatt cards this next year for P1/P2 – but again URs
Except Hyatt cards earn Hyatt points and an annual free night. Plus, Hyatt maybe introducing a premium card. They are not the same as other Chase partners.
None of the Chase hotel cards we’re refreshed and many of the Chase IHG/Bonvoy card earn hotel pts and offer FNC.
I PC’d Boundless to Ritz earlier this year – may get another Boundless with SUB and and annual 35K FNC for $125 AF.
Even adding an IHG Biz for another 40K FNC – I’ve gotten at least 2x-3x the AF from IHG FNC.
That said I wouldn’t be shocked if the Chase Hotel cards get refreshed in 2026.
Aspire was refreshed Oct 2023 and Delta cards in late 2024?? or early 2025 .Alaska Atmos in Sept alongside the Amex Plats. The Alaska refresh broke in our favor.
So will Amex/Chase refresh the Marriott cards in 2026?
“I had been thinking about add Hyatt cards this next year for P1/P2 – but again URs” My comment is about Hyatt being a great stand alone program and not acting like other hotel chains. The other hotel chains almost all doubled their aspirational property awards.
With the economy shrinking, I think most travel suppliers are looking to shrink expenses. But who knows! I also avoid Marriott like the plague. I don’t trust them, never have!
Well at least the Southwest cards can still make some sense under the right circumstances. I will probably hold onto one Southwest Priority card for preferred seat selection until I burn up a bunch of Southwest miles and credits. However, I can’t see any reason for both P1 and P2 Priority cards with the loss of the $75 flight credit given that my wife and I always travel on the same reservation. So we will cancel one and have one less annual fee to worry about.
We have the SW CP for one more year with Performance Biz card renewal at $299 in Sept 2026 and no path to a cheap PC to a no/lo AF Card – the $299 has almost zero ROI vs AF offset 9K SW RR miles is a joke and the free Wifi for all has been awful on the last 8-10 flights since they rolled it out
– I’m thinking free upgrades to extra legroom seats will be a bust for card holders (for up to 8 on your reservation) it will be like all the other airlinea status upgrades and where do A-listers fall in the pecking order? How long till SW cheap sells upgrades in the week leading up to departure.
We have flown in the new extra legroom seats on several flights this year basic Comfort or domestic PE.
We basically got the SW CP because we decided to piviot from a focus on Int’l travel to US/Canada for 2025-2026. Then pivot back to focus on Int’l in 2027.
Peter gets it.