Is a Cheap San Diego Honeymoon right for us?
San Diego calls itself “America’s Finest City”. With nearly constant sunshine and year round temperatures in the seventies, it certainly has a strong claim on America’s best weather city. San Diego has fantastic sights and experiences. It contains a world famous zoo, beautiful parks, and more than 60 beaches. Outdoor recreation galore with amazing hiking and surfing make this city a great destination for a domestic US honeymoon.
San Diego International Airport (SAN) serves the greater San Diego area. San Diego is a hub of Alaska Airlines and Southwest Airlines, but is served by all major US airlines.
Honeymoon Hacker Method
San Diego is a fantastic destination for a domestic US honeymoon. Warm weather and beautiful beaches, incredible outdoor activities and fun nightlife make San Diego a great choice for a fun honeymoon. I’ll show you how to put this trip together for nearly free. To make this trip happen you and your future spouse will need to open a few new credit cards and use them for your regular spending and wedding expenses in order to earn the significant signup bonuses that were offered with those cards.
San Diego Itinerary Overview
Two Roundtrip Flights from the United States to San Diego
7 Hotel nights at Andaz San Diego
Retail Honeymoon Price: $3,150
Honeymoon Hacker Price: $260
Pieces of the Puzzle
4 Credit Cards
- 1x World of Hyatt Credit Cards
- 1x Chase Sapphire Preferred
- 1x Southwest Airlines Rapid Rewards Plus
- 1x Capital One Venture
Where will we stay in San Diego?
Andaz San Diego
The Andaz San Diego is located in the bustling Gaslight Quarter. The hotel is centrally located for easy access to all of the wonderful sights and adventures that San Diego has to offer. Look out over the bustling Gaslamp Quarter from the rooftop of Andaz San Diego, where you can find a bar and pool. The hotel has contemporary stylish rooms filling out a historic building—originally opened in 1913 for the World’s Fair celebrating the completion of the Panama Canal.
The Honeymoon Hacking game plan is to spend 7 nights at the Andaz San Diego Hotel, a category 4 Hyatt property for 15,000 Hyatt points per night. The stay will require 105,000 Hyatt points which you will earn through the welcome bonus from the World of Hyatt credit card and transfer of Chase Ultimate Rewards Points.
World of Hyatt Credit Card Details:
- Earn 50,000 World of Hyatt Points after making $6,000 in purchases within the first 6 months
- $95 annual fee is not waived the first 12 months
- The 50,000 miles plus the 6,000 miles you earn for the $6,000 in spending = 56,000 miles worth $1,100
105,000 Hyatt Points will be needed to book your seven nights at the beautiful and centrally located Andaz San Diego. You will need to transfer 49,000 from the Chase Sapphire Preferred to meet the points required for your seven night stay at the Andaz San Diego.
For more details on the World of Hyatt Card, click here.
Click Here to Apply for the World of Hyatt Credit Card
Chase Sapphire Preferred
- Earn 60,000 Chase Ultimate Rewards Points after making $4,000 in purchases within the first 3 months
- $95 annual fee is not waived the first 12 months
- The 60,000 points plus the 4,000 points you earn for the $4,000 in spending = 64,000 Ultimate Rewards Points worth at least $800 in travel expenses.
Hyatt is a transfer partner of Chase Ultimate Rewards. Transfers from 1:1, 1 and transfers are available almost instantly.
For a more in-depth review of the Chase Sapphire Preferred, click here
Click Here to apply for the Chase Sapphire Preferred Credit Card
Hacking the Flights
There are multiple options for hacking the flights between your home airport and San Diego (SAN). This example will use Southwest Airlines due to their strong point value, less expensive credit card and strong service to their hub in San Diego. Southwest’s extensive network and fixed value points make this an easy redemption as there are no black-out dates.
Southwest Airlines Rapid Rewards Plus Credit Card Details:
- Earn 40,000 Southwest Airlines Miles after making $1,000 in purchases within the first 3 months
- $69 annual fee is not waived the first 12 months and billed on your first statement
- The 40,000 points plus the 1,000 points you earn for the $1,000 in spending = 41,000 Southwest Rapid Rewards Miles worth at around $600.
Southwest Airlines is a transfer partner of Chase Ultimate Rewards. Transfers from 1:1, 1 and transfers are available almost instantly.
Even though you book your trip with miles, you still are required to pay for some airport taxes with dollars. My test bookings came up with around $11 in taxes per person. You will offset this $22 cost by paying for this with your Capital One Venture card and “erasing” the cost after the fact.
This card is the perfect solution for paying the hotel “destination” fee of $25 a night and the taxes on the airfare because it allows for flexible travel redemptions; you just pay for the “travel” purchase with your credit card like you normally would.
Capital One Venture details:
- Earn 50,000 Venture® miles after making $3,000 in purchases within the first 3 months
- $95 annual fee is waived the first 12 months
- The 50,000 miles plus the 6,000 miles you earn for the $3,000 in spending = 56,000 miles worth $560
This card is so easy. Once you meet the bonus, you essentially just reimburse yourself for travel expenses. So nobody knows or cares that you have “miles” — you just simply pay for your travel expense with that card and after the fact you log into your online account to redeem your miles for a travel statement credit which reduces your credit card bill.
Goodbye airfare taxes and “destination fees”
Click to apply for the Capital One Venture card
Booking Summary
Below is the sample itinerary and the points necessary to book this honeymoon.
Person 1: Chase Sapphire Preferred ($95), World of Hyatt Credit Card ($89), Southwest Airlines Rapid Rewards Plus ($69)
Person 2: Capital One Venture
