Should I purchase airfare through Ulitmate Rewards Mall or directly from the airline?
I will be traveling to Russia (Moscow & St. Petersburg) from May 5 to May 15, 2013.
I want to fly Aeroflot.
I was pleasantly surprised recently to find out that I can purchase a ticket directly from Aeroflot's website for the same price as the online discount agents, such as Expedia, Orbitz and Travelocity. I always like to buy direct, and eliminate the middle man as much as possible. The only thing is that I have a Chase Sapphire Preferred credit card, which I can use to purchase my ticket through the Ultimate Rewards Mall and get 2 pts/$1 on flights bought on Travelocity.
What should I do?
Also, my credit card gives me 2X points for every dollar spent on flights; does this mean that I will get 2X points from my credit card plus another 2X points for purchasing my airline ticket through the UR Mall on Travelocity, for a total of 4X Ultimate Rewards points?
So, is my following calculation correct?
Option 1: purchase directly on Aeroflot's website= 2X points per dollar spent (cost of ticket is $734) using my CSP card= 1,468 Ultimate Rewards points, plus another 734 Delta Sky Miles (I'm a member).
Option 2: purchase through Ultimate Rewards Mall on Travelocity= 4X points per dollar spent using CSP card= 2,936 Ultimate Rewards points, plus another 734 Delta Sky Miles (or less-- I'm not sure if I'll get credited at a 1:1 ratio if I purchase through a discount site).