Jarrett,
I have found Thank You points to be very useful for travel to/from HI. For economy, that is.
The cost per ticket is 35k points and you don't have to pay any taxes. The tickets they buy you are miles and upgrade eligible. You can accumulate thank you points relatively fast, as they have some double points areas and if you get a citibank PP elite card, you can earn 1 extra point per mile flown.