Primary pick
Chase Sapphire Preferred
Chase Ultimate
- Welcome bonus
- 75,000 pts
- Annual fee
- $95
after $5,000 spend in 3 months
Northeastern USA · Family trip points
Best credit card for a family trip to New York City
Short-haul from anywhere, but NYC hotels are punishingly expensive in cash. Marriott and Hyatt point bookings cut a $400/night room to ~$120 in opportunity cost.
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The honest math (family of 4, 5 nights)
238,000
points total · cash equivalent $3,025 · 1.27¢ per point realized
Flights
88,000 pts
Southwest Rapid Rewards · 22,000/traveler RT
Hotel
150,000 pts
World of Hyatt · Andaz 5th Avenue (Cat 7)
The two cards to earn for this trip
Sapphire Preferred → Hyatt is the highest-value NYC hotel play (Andaz 5th Ave at Cat 7 is a $700/night room for 30K points). Amex Gold's MR points transfer to Delta (NYC hub) and JetBlue (LGA / JFK) for flights.
Apply for Chase Sapphire Preferred
Pair with it
Amex Gold
American Express
- Welcome bonus
- 100,000 pts
- Annual fee
- $325
after $8,000 spend in 6 months
FAQ
How many points does a family of 4 actually need for New York City?
238,000 points total covers a family of 4 with 5 hotel nights at saver / off-peak pricing — 88,000 for flights (Southwest Rapid Rewards at 22,000/traveler round-trip) and 150,000 for the hotel (World of Hyatt at 30,000/night). Cash equivalent ≈ $3,025, which works out to about 1.27¢ per point.
Why these two cards specifically?
Sapphire Preferred → Hyatt is the highest-value NYC hotel play (Andaz 5th Ave at Cat 7 is a $700/night room for 30K points). Amex Gold's MR points transfer to Delta (NYC hub) and JetBlue (LGA / JFK) for flights.
What if I already have one of these cards?
If you already have one, look at whether you've actually earned that card's welcome bonus and the second-card pick still makes sense on its own. If both are already in your wallet, run the New York City math in the Family Trip Calculator with your actual scenario — you may already be close to the point total without a new application.
Should I apply for both at once?
Generally no — space applications 60–90 days apart so each welcome bonus has a clean spend window and neither pulls double-counts against Chase's 5/24. The Family Trip Calculator's earning math assumes one welcome bonus at a time.