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Apply for a Hawaiian Air Visa Card. It offers you 60,000 bonus miles with a $99 annual fee. It has direct flight from Honolulu to Sacramento daily.
The cheapest fare is the last week of November (after Thanksgiving) and first week of December. Round trip ticket can be as low as below $300.
Other than X'mas and July/August, the flights can be bought with 35,000 miles +$11.20. But the same miles can also buy you a round ticket from Honolulu to Boston or NYC in low or shoulder season.
Chase Sapphire is a good credit card. If you deem Reserve Card charge a high annual fee, then get a Preferred Card which charges $99 annual fee. The best perk is for car rental. Chase Sapphire seems to be the only card that offers primary car rental insurance.
Also consider apply for a no fee Citi Dividend Card. In every 3rd quarter it rebates 5% on any travel expense. Costco Citi Visa Card offers 3% travel rebate year round.
Chase Sapphire and both Citicards offer trip cancellation insurance but Hawaiian Air Visa Card doesn't.
Why would anyone pay an annual fee to have a credit card? What am I missing?
If you frequently travel - especially business travel - it makes no sense to have a no fee card as the benefits far outweigh the fee. There are no - no fee cards - that have the benefits of fee cards.
If you don't spend much on a card - then yes, it makes no sense.
If flying long haul, i.e. from East Coast, better choose direct or at least choose the connecting flights with at least 90 minutes in between.
I have once flown Delta with 50 minutes connecting time. The first flight got delayed and I could not get on the second flight. Because there is usually only one flight daily from Mainland to Hawaii, so I was given one night hotel stay but I still preferred coming home on the same day.
The problem with Alaska Air is usually it requires long transit in SEA, i.e. 6 hours or more, if you fly from East Coast.
I have once flown Delta with 50 minutes connecting time. The first flight got delayed and I could not get on the second flight. Because there is usually only one flight daily from Mainland to Hawaii, so I was given one night hotel stay but I still preferred coming home on the same day.
Generally, the best airline if you have to connect is United - they have 4 flights per day from SFO and 4 flights per day from LAX. They provide the most seats between Hawaii and the Mainland.
Most UA flights departing from East Coast are usually from EWR instead of JFK (New York area) or BWI instead of DCA or IAD (DC area). A little bit humbug.
Most UA flights departing from East Coast are usually from EWR instead of JFK (New York area) or BWI instead of DCA or IAD (DC area). A little bit humbug.
EWR is closer to much of Manhattan. As I write this at NYC rush hour, under an hour from Manhattan to EWR - over an hour to JFK. UA flies out of IAD not BWI.
"EWR is closer to much of Manhattan. As I write this at NYC rush hour, under an hour from Manhattan to EWR - over an hour to JFK."
You can take a train from EWR straight to Manhattan Penn Station and never have to step into the filth that is Newark. It's been awhile, but I think it was like $12. If one likes to spend time in Manhattan but doesn't like $400/night hotel rooms (or whatever they are now), there is a Hilton at the Newark Penn Station that is physically connected to to the rail line. So you can pay Newark hotel rates, not have to actually ever step foot in Newark, and you're a 15 minute train ride from Manhattan. And they have a free shuttle to EWR, or you can take the train.
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