What is the new Chase Sapphire Reserve® benefit for 2026?

Starting next year (Jan 01, 2026), Chase Sapphire Reserve® cardmembers will receive up to $250 in statement credits for bookings through Chase Travel℠ for select hotel chains.

What are the restrictions?

The small but important caveat with this benefit is that a minimum stay of two nights is required to be eligible. This may mean that you have to look for hotels that aren’t ultra luxurious in order to get good value.

What hotel chains are eligible for the benefit?

Here are the hotels that you can book for a 2 night stay with this benefit:

• IHG Hotels & Resorts
• Omni Hotels & Resorts
• Virgin Hotels
• Pendry Hotels & Resorts
• Montage Hotels & Resorts
• Minor Hotels
• Pan Pacific Hotels & Resorts

Can you earn Chase points on your Chase Sapphire Reserve® with this benefit?

Yes, you can earn Chase points on any spend beyond the $250 statement credit. Meaning, if an eligible hotel costs $300, you will only earn points on the $50.

That said, since you're going to be booking through Chase Travel with your Chase Sapphire Reserve®, you'll earn a healthy 8 points per $1—pretty awesome.

What are some examples of redemptions?

I will admit that you will have to do a bit of digging to receive good value with this new benefit but it's worth it. If you are stopping in Orlando for business or for personal travel you could get a 2 night stay for just $2.

I looked into stays in Orlando for October 10-12 (for two people) for this year and found the Holiday Inn Express Orlando International Airport by IHG for $252 total. With this rate, you can get one king bed or two queen beds for the room. As for the points earned, you would receive 2,016 Chase points upon making this booking.

Or you might be thinking of going abroad—you can find affordable stays in other countries as well. I looked into the same dates (October 10-12) for two people in Lisbon, Portugal. I found the Holiday Inn Express Lisbon - Alfragide by IHG that was going for $277 total for the two night stay.

Does the $250 Chase Travel credit help justify the $795 annual fee on the Chase Sapphire Reserve®?

On the surface, it seems as though Chase is adding this $250 Chase Travel credit to ensure that folks keep the Chase Sapphire Reserve®. Right now, there are a lot of people that paid or are going to pay the old $550 annual fee for the card. And there are those who are paying the $795 annual fee for the Chase Sapphire Reserve® welcome bonus. And then they are probably considering downgrading to the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card or cancelling the card.

I am currently in the position where I heard about the increased annual fee Chase Sapphire Reserve® before it came out so I got the card beforehand. That means I will be paying the $550 annual fee in October but I will receive all of the benefits that come with the $795 annual fee for the first year. The $250 Chase Travel credit for a minimum 2 night stay is unlikely to help convince me to keep the card. The $300 annual travel credit and the Doordash benefits are the only things I find have real value for me. That would only total to around $450 in value—way below the cost of the $795 annual fee.

While I will definitely be taking advantage of the $250 Chase Travel credit next year, I can’t say that will convince me to keep the Chase Sapphire Reserve®. Maybe Chase will come out with another cool benefit to keep me on the card.

Final Remarks

The Chase Travel credit can be a tricky but useful benefit. With the two night stay requirement, it will take a decent amount of searching to find a hotel that will get you solid savings. If you have the Chase Sapphire Reserve®, you should definitely take advantage of it. But I wouldn’t go out of my way to apply for the Chase Sapphire Reserve® if you were on the fence about applying before this benefit.