Capital One makes changes to its Quicksilver card, but only for some?

1️⃣ Hyatt: It's official, changes are coming on May 20th

We knew that May would be the month Hyatt would implement changes to its award chart and that it would also coincide with the annual category adjustments they make to certain hotels. 

There was speculation that it could be as early as May 1st, but they have been a bit "generous" (if we can call them that) and the official date is May 20th for both adjustments.

Starting this day, not only do the new prices officially begin according to the new table, but 136 hotels will change categories: 112 will move up a category (mainly in the United States and Japan) and 24 will move down.  

👉 If you have a category 4 hotel in your sights that will become a category 5, your "Free Night" certificate (Free Night Award) will stop working at that hotel next month, so now is the time to redeem it.

At the same time, if you have any hotel in mind with points, it is practically guaranteed that starting May 20th it will cost more thanks to the new pricing structure, so book now! 

🔗 You can see the changes to both the award chart and the hotels that will be changing categories here.  

Personally, we are planning several trips for next year, including several destinations in Europe, quite possibly the Riviera Maya which we love, and we are considering adding Hawaii. If we reserve everything, it means we will wipe out our Chase and Bilt accounts, but we know it will be 100% worth it. 

💳 The point of this news: You have until May 19th to lock in reservations at the current points price. Seriously, don't wait!

2️⃣ Capital One makes changes to its Quicksilver card, but only for some?

The Capital One Quicksilver has always been a card that doesn't tell us much, and that's why we barely even mention it. There are many better options, like the Savor itself which we recommend with our eyes closed because it is excellent. 

However, it seems that Capital One is doing some kind of test with this card as many users have started receiving emails informing them of a radical change: their card will stop being Mastercard to migrate to the Discover network (if you're not aware, Capital One bought Discover a while ago). And also, it will start earning 3% cashback at gas stations and grocery stores, in addition to the unlimited 1.5% on everything. This is excellent! 

The curious thing is that if you want to apply for this card now, you will find the version we all know (1.5% on everything, and that's it). But we believe it's a matter of time before they apply these changes to all existing accounts and new applications. 

💳 The point of this news: Don't ignore emails from Capital One this week if you have this card. The 3% category on gas stations is very powerful, especially now that there are rumors that changes may be coming to the Citi Strata Premier. 👀

3️⃣ Last chance for $250 with no annual fee.

The offer of a $250 bonus when spending $500 on one of the no-annual-fee cards we recommend most ends on April 30th at 9 am EST. This is an excellent time to get into this ecosystem if you are not in it already.

Those $250 are actually 25,000 points that can be worth much more if you transfer them to one of the bank's travel cards once they are in your account.

We love this card because it also offers 15 interest-free months, which is spectacular if we plan to make a large purchase and don't want to pay for it all at once. We do this a lot when we have to buy equipment or for trips like cruises that can easily cost $4,000. Clearly we prefer to pay $270 a month rather than $4,000 all at once, while our cash continues to earn interest in our accounts. 

💳 The point of this news: If you are thinking about this card, apply before April 30th or you will lose those extra $50! 

View Offer ↗️

4️⃣ PointsBoost: 2.5x redemptions at selected hotels

PointsBoost is a feature within Chase Travel for Sapphire cards, where you can get higher value for our Ultimate Rewards points. 

Specifically for Sapphire Reserve cards (personal and business), we can get 2.5 cents in value when redeemed at certain luxury hotels through the Chase portal. The participating hotels are:

• Four Seasons Hotel Osaka — Japan 🇯🇵

• Four Seasons Resort Rancho Encantado — New Mexico 🇺🇸

• Gardena Grodnerhof Hotel — Italy 🇮🇹

• Grand Hyatt Deer Valley — Utah 🇺🇸

• Hotel du Couvent, a Luxury Collection Hotel — France 🇫🇷

• InterContinental Dominica Cabrits Resort & Spa — Dominica 🇩🇲

• Nobu Hotel San Sebastian — Spain 🇪🇸

• Salterra, a Luxury Collection Resort & Spa — South Caicos 🇹🇨

• Sofitel Legend The Grand Amsterdam — Netherlands 🇳🇱

• The Ritz-Carlton, Portland — Oregon 🇺🇸

• The Surrey, A Corinthia Hotel — New York 🇺🇸

Keep in mind that this is subject to change, but for now, being able to get 2.5 CPP at any of these hotels is an excellent value for our points, especially because several of them exceed 5 figures per night. 

The bad news is that at the same time, the redemption value of hundreds of hotels was reduced from 2 CPP to 1.5/1.6 CPP, which is much worse than increasing just a few to 2.5 CPP. 

We must say that PointsBoost started off very well, but gradually the changes we have seen are more negative than anything else and we are fairly certain we will end up downgrading or cancelling our Sapphire Reserve for Business at our next renewal. 

💳 The point of this news: PointsBoost is a great tool if you focus exclusively on luxury experiences. If you choose one of these hotels for your next trip, you'll be getting phenomenal value out of your points. On the other hand, if you prefer the flexibility of mid-range hotels, the PointsBoost strategy forces you to be a bit more selective, although there is definitely still value even outside of this list. 

5️⃣ Rakuten Big Give Week (15% cashback/15x Amex or Bilt)

Rakuten announced that from May 4th to 11th, Big Give Week begins, where dozens of stores will be offering 15% cashback. 

If you have your account configured to earn Amex Membership Rewards points or Bilt points, this translates to 15 points for every dollar spent.

If you are going to buy at any of the already announced stores, it is worth waiting for that week. Buying a $1,000 laptop would yield 15,000 Amex/Bilt points, which is enough for a one-way flight to almost anywhere within the United States or even Europe on promotion. If you're not interested in the points, $150 back in your pocket doesn't hurt at all.

In our case, we are going to book a tour with Viator for our upcoming trip to Italy, which will give us a 4,500 bonus.

If you don't have a Rakuten account, you can get $50 (or 5,000 points) upon making your first purchase of $50 or more (basically free) during the first 90 days with our link. 

💳 The point of this news: If you have a major purchase on the horizon, waiting for the week of May 4th can make a massive difference in your points accumulation or cashback strategy.