Originally Posted by
pinniped
Whether to fly Y or premium is a personal decision, but if you're flying long-haul I'd at least include them in my searches. You may find routes where the Y seat costs you the "double miles" award and the J seat is a regular award. If J costs the same as (or less than!) Y, why not book it?
Yes, if it costs the same, of course I consider them. I just have never seen that situation. When only the double-miles awards are available for economy, I can book the economy flight as a cash fare at 1.5cpp, and that turns out to still be fewer points.
Actually, Chase UR is pretty good here: all three alliances, plus a couple of major players like WN and Virgin Atlantic. Of course that doesn't cover every LCC in the world, but when you have 1 point that can transfer into each of the three alliances in addition to other airlines and hotels, that's a pretty good selling point for UR.
I'm not saying UR is bad, just that it is short of covering every airline in the world.
In any case, for you the UR points might be worth the most as Hyatt points, assuming you travel to cities where there are some Hyatts...
I don't know, I don't think I have ever stayed in a Hyatt in my life before.
In the past, I wasn't chasing points, and as cash rooms the Hyatt were never really on my radar. I have some favorite hotels in some cities also that are not with any chain - and again, the Chase 1.5cpp redemption rate come in handy to book them.