Kate's on a Plane

In February of 2025, I used points and miles to take my 7-year-old son on a bucket list trip to Paris. We had a totally magical trip, including a dreamy stay at the Hyatt Regency Paris Etoile. Although I booked our trip for four nights, it turned into five when our flight home was canceled due to a snowstorm in the US.

When I learned that our flight home would be delayed by a day, I quickly ran through my options. There was no availability to book another night at the Hyatt Regency on points. I could have moved to one of the airport hotels, and paid either points or a cheap cash rate, but we were enjoying the Hyatt Regency so much, I figured, why not stay? After getting four nights for free, it wouldn’t kill me to pay cash for this fifth and final night. So I did. The hotel was even kind enough to extend our club access for an extra day. 

This fifth night didn’t come cheap, but we were happy to have the extra day in Paris, and we loved the hotel so much, I determined it was worth the $261.45. We flew home the next day and returned to our lives. 

About a month later, I was hit by a realization–I had paid the taxes on our award flight with my Chase Sapphire Preferred!

Even though I’m almost always working on a new card sign up bonus, I don’t use my new card do jour to pay taxes on my award flights. Instead, I always use either my Sapphire Preferred or my Venture X, because both of these cards offer excellent travel protections. These include:

• Baggage delay insurance: If your luggage gets lost and you need to buy toiletries or clothes while you wait for it to arrive, you can get reimbursed.
• Luggage loss/damage insurance: You can be compensated if your bag is permanently lost or damaged in transit.
• Trip cancellation/interruption: You can be reimbursed for nonrefundable expenses if your trip is canceled or cut short.
• Rental car insurance coverage: On these two cards, this coverage is primary, meaning you can receive these benefits before filing a claim with your regular auto insurance.

And, most relevant to this situation:

• Trip delay insurance: You can be reimbursed for meals and lodging if your flight is delayed.

I realized that maybe I didn’t have to pay for the fifth night after all! I visited the link to file a claim with my Chase Sapphire travel insurance policy. The documents I had to submit included:

• Evidence that I’d paid for the flight with my Sapphire card
• Evidence that the flight was delayed, including the reason for the delay
• A receipt for the hotel stay

About two and a half weeks after I filed my claim, I received a message requesting additional documentation. Life got in the way, and I kept putting this chore off. A week after that, I got an email telling me that my claim had been approved, even though I hadn’t submitted anything additional! 

I used a secure link to provide my bank information, and I received a deposit for $261.45 that day. This is more than double the cost of the annual fee on this credit card!

Here’s my advice to fellow travelers after this experience:

• When considering which credit card to use to pay for travel, weigh the benefits of using a card with travel insurance against multipliers or progress toward a sign up bonus. 
• Familiarize yourself with the travel protections on your specific travel card(s). They’re not all the same! For example, American Express requires that travel be round trip in order to be covered, but Chase and Capital One do not. Trip delay for the Venture X kicks in after six hours, but for the Sapphire Preferred, it’s 12 hours.
• Keep records of which cards you use to pay for which trips, so that you know which bank to file a claim with if you need to.
• In the event of baggage delay/loss or trip delay/interruption, document everything. Save all communication with the airline and be sure to get the reason for the delay in writing. Save receipts for any expenses related to the delay or interruption.

If you don’t yet have a credit card with travel protections, consider the Capital One Venture and the Chase Sapphire Preferred. At $95 per year, these cards are keepers, and can pay for themselves if your travel doesn’t go as planned.