What is the new $250 Chase Sapphire Reserve® hotel credit? (Aug 2026)

We're halfway through 2026 and there are still a variety of credit resets, removals, and additions. The Chase Sapphire Reserve® currently has a special $250 credit just for 2026 that many cardholders will find genuinely useful. The stacking opportunity with existing benefits like The Edit makes it even better.

TL;DR

• The Chase Sapphire Reserve® and Sapphire Reserve for Business℠ has a new, temporary up to $250 "select hotels" credit for 2026, valid on prepaid stays of 2+ nights at seven hotel brands: IHG, Montage, Pendry, Omni, Virgin Hotels, Minor Hotels, and Pan Pacific.

• No enrollment needed; the credit posts automatically as a statement credit after your stay. Book through Chase Travel and pay with your Sapphire Reserve.

• This credit is completely separate from the ongoing up to $500 Edit Credit, and the two can be stacked together at overlapping properties (173 hotels qualify for both, as of August 2026).

• Use HotelMaxxer to find where the ~173 hotels that qualify for both credits reside

• This credit expires 12/31/2026, so use it before the year is out.

What is this new $250 Select Hotels credit for 2026?

This is a special credit for the Chase Sapphire Reserve® and Sapphire Reserve for Business℠ only available for 2026: earn a one-time $250 statement credit for eligible prepaid hotel stays booked through Chase Travel through December 31, 2026.

There are a few important terms & conditions to note:

1. Two-night minimum: Book a minimum two night stay to qualify for the $250 credit.

2. Prepaid bookings only: The stay must be paid in full through Chase Travel (portal) at the time of booking; paying at the hotel will not qualify

3. Limited brands eligible: This credit is applicable for qualifying bookings made at 7 hotel brands

Just to be clear: this is totally different from the Edit credit & could be considered a supplement to it altogether.

Which hotel brands qualify?

This new benefit for 2026 lets you get up to $250 in statement credits for prepaid stays (2 night minimum) booked through Chase Travel at the following hotel chains:

1. IHG Hotels & Resorts: the largest of the seven, with 6,000+ properties across brands like InterContinental, Kimpton, Crowne Plaza, and Holiday Inn. You have a ton of options here, from budget-friendly Holiday Inns to upscale Kimptons.

2. Montage Hotels & Resorts: a small collection of luxury U.S. resorts. Standout properties include Montage Laguna Beach and Montage Beverly Hills. Fewer locations, but top-tier experiences.

3. Pendry Hotels & Resorts: boutique luxury brand under the Montage family. Great options include Pendry San Diego and Pendry Manhattan West.

4. Omni Hotels & Resorts: mid-to-upscale full-service hotels, mostly in the U.S. Popular picks: Omni Nashville and Omni Grove Park Inn in Asheville.

5. Virgin Hotels: lifestyle-focused hotels in major U.S. cities. Locations include Virgin Hotels Las Vegas, Virgin Hotels Nashville, and Virgin Hotels New Orleans.

6. Minor Hotels: an international hospitality group with brands like NH Hotels, Anantara, and Avani. Strong presence across Europe, Asia, and the Middle East.

7. Pan Pacific Hotels and Resorts: upscale brand with properties across Asia-Pacific and North America. Notable options: Pan Pacific Seattle and Pan Pacific Vancouver.

If you login to your Chase account and view your benefits, you'll see this new tracker:

No activation/enrollment is required to use this credit. As noted above, there is also a 2-night minimum and you must book a prepaid reservation. Prepaid reservations are where you "Pay Now" for the entire reservation at booking.

Is the $250 Select Hotels credit the same/different as the up to $500 Edit Credit?

It is totally different. This "$250 select hotels credit" (as we'll call it) is a special 2026 benefit for Sapphire Reserve cardholders. In fact, you can see it explicitly separated from the Edit Credit:

The cool thing is that you can stack both credits with each other.

Are there restrictions on the type of hotels I can book with this "$250 select hotels credit"?

Outside of the 2 night minimum + brand restriction + prepaid requirement, this question arises in the context of the type of hotels within a brand.

For example, can you book a prepaid 2 night stay at a Holiday Inn (IHG) with this credit?

As far as we know, yes. It meets all of the requirements listed (IHG is one of the 7 qualifying brands after all), so it should work, even though it's not a fancyseque "Edit" style hotel. Just make sure to book through Chase Travel!

How do I book a hotel to use the Select Hotel credit for 2026?

Booking is straightforward, but a few details matter. Here's how to do it:

1. Log in to Chase Travel at travel.chase.com using your Chase Sapphire Reserve account.

2. Search for a hotel from one of the seven eligible brands: IHG, Montage, Pendry, Omni, Virgin, Minor, or Pan Pacific.

3. Select a prepaid rate — look for the "Pay Now" option. Rates where you pay at the hotel will not qualify.

4. Book 2+ nights in a single reservation. A one-night stay will not trigger the credit, regardless of the brand or price.

5. Pay with your Chase Sapphire Reserve card. No enrollment needed — the credit will post as a statement credit after the stay.

How can I maximize this new "$250 select hotels credit"?

The beauty of this credit is that it can be combined with The Edit credit. Again, they are separate credits, but there are overlaps.

As an example, using the nextcard "HotelMaxxer" tool, I applied a custom filter to view hotels eligible for both credits. You can see there are 173 hotels worldwide eligible for both credits (nice).

Now that I had a list of hotels, I then went through a few cities that I know have historically low pricing (thanks to user submitted datapoint) and checked for some dates/prices that would be relevant for me.

Take the Kimpton Marlowe in Cambridge for instance. 2 nights on a random weekend in February costs a total of $567. Yet, this booking is eligible for two credits:

• $250 Edit Credit (since it's an Edit property)

• $250 Chase "select hotels" Credit (since it's IHG)

This makes the stay effectively $67, if you count credits as face value. Notably, this property's redeemable points are worth 2 cents each, meaning this is an extremely high value stay:

I found several IHG properties that also provided similar value:

• Kimpton Qiantan Shanghai

• Kimpton Hotel Monaco Salt Lake City

Basically any IHG that has decent rates (check here for pricing data) will be an incredible use of the credit.

Can you stack this "select hotels credit" with anything else outside of the Edit?

If you're lucky, your Sapphire Reserve might also have this offer in your Chase Offers: Get $100 back when you spend $600+ through Chase Travel in a single transaction. This offer was last seen in August 2026!

Once you activate this offer, you now have a "triple stack" opportunity at hand for a single 2 night, prepaid booking made via Chase Travel:

• $250 Edit Credit

• $250 Chase "select hotels" Credit

• $100 back when you spend $600+ through Chase Travel

Essentially, if you find a $600+ booking for an Edit hotel that is also part of the "select brands," you're about to make off pretty well. Example booking below:

Final Thoughts

Chase's decision to drop this additional $250 credit helps bolster the positioning of the Reserve. While (in my opinion) it still falls short of the American Express Platinum Card® in several aspects, for hotel bookings that work, the Reserve can deliver incredible value.

If you're able to use this new credit alongside at least one Edit credit, you'll pretty much well on your way to making good on the annual fee.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does the $250 select hotels credit expire?

Yes. This credit is a 2026-only benefit and expires on 12/31/2026. If you don't use it before the end of the year, it goes away; there is no rollover.

Do I need to enroll or activate this credit?

No enrollment or activation is required. Book a qualifying prepaid stay of 2+ nights through Chase Travel at one of the seven eligible brands, pay with your Chase Sapphire Reserve®, and the up to $250 credit will post automatically as a statement credit after your stay.

Can I use this credit at a budget IHG property like a Holiday Inn?

Yes, as far as we know. Any IHG property meets the brand requirement, regardless of tier. So a 2-night prepaid stay at a Holiday Inn booked through Chase Travel should qualify, not just upscale Kimptons or InterContinentals.

Can the select hotels credit and the Edit Credit be used on the same booking?

Yes! This is the best way to maximize both. ~173 hotels qualify for both credits at the same time (primarily IHG properties that are also part of The Edit collection, like certain Kimptons). On a single qualifying booking, you could offset up to $500 in credits combined (awesome)

What counts as a prepaid booking?

A prepaid booking is one where you pay the full cost at the time of reservation. Look for the "Pay Now" option on Chase Travel. Rates that let you pay at the hotel will not qualify for this credit.

Is this credit per card or per account?

The credit is per account, so you get one up to $250 Select Hotel credit for 2026 regardless of how many authorized users are on the account.