How I earned 5x points while saving money on Disney gift cards

It feels like we’re on the brink of a significant travel resurgence. After months of minimal travel, my family now has a relatively packed schedule for spring and summer. Topping our travel list is our favorite destination, Disney World.

To save money on our upcoming Disney trip and accumulate more points for future travels, I opted to take advantage of this quarter’s Chase Freedom Flex 5% cash back (5x) bonus category at wholesale clubs by purchasing discounted Disney gift cards from Sam's Club. There's a $1,500 quarterly limit for the 5% cash back (5x bonus points), and you needed to register for the quarter's bonus by March 14. Although I registered on time, I hadn’t charged any expenses to this card in the 5x bonus categories like wholesale clubs, internet, cable, phone services, and streaming.

Because of this, I had plenty of spending opportunities left (before the quarter ends on March 31) to earn 5x on theme park expenses I anticipate in the coming weeks.

Warehouse clubs offer discounted gift cards

If you don't often shop at warehouse clubs like Costco or Sam's Club, you might not be aware that they offer discounted gift cards for a variety of retailers and attractions, in addition to their bulk items like giant boxes of mac and cheese and massive packs of granola bars. This includes travel brands such as Southwest Airlines, Amtrak, Hotels.com, Airbnb, Alaska Airlines, and ... Disney.

The discount percentage varies by gift card, but when it comes to Disney, saving a little is definitely better than saving nothing. For instance, right now, a $500 Disney gift card at Sam's Club is priced at $484.98. While saving $15 on $500 that I know I'll spend on Disney resort hotels, food, tickets, etc. is great, that amount alone may not be compelling enough to deal with the logistics of ordering and managing gift cards.

However, the combination of saving $15 per $500 and earning 5x points that I value at 2 cents each makes the extra effort worthwhile.

Use Freedom points with the Chase Sapphire Preferred Card or Chase Reserve

Points earned with the Chase Freedom Flex are typically worth 1 cent each when redeemed for gift cards or similar options. If you only have the Freedom Flex, these points can't be transferred to Chase Ultimate Rewards hotel and airline partners.

However, if you possess both the Freedom Flex and a card like the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card or Chase Sapphire Reserve®, you can transfer the points earned with the Freedom Flex to your Sapphire account, increasing their value.

For instance, you could redeem them at 1.5 cents each for travel booked through the Chase Travel site. Alternatively, I’ll likely transfer my points to Chase partners like Hyatt or United when I want to maximize an award redemption through those programs. A recent example is when I transferred Chase points to Hyatt to secure a stay at the ski-out Park Hyatt Beaver Creek hotel, which had cash rates exceeding $1,000 per night.

If I redeem these points for at least 2 cents each in value (which I typically do), this means that by purchasing Disney gift cards this way, I not only saved money but also earned 10% back in travel rewards for a future trip simultaneously.

Bottom line

Even if I reach the maximum of $1,500 in 5x spending this quarter, that will only net me 7,500 points. While saving some money along the way is nice, it’s not likely to be a game-changer. However, these small adjustments in how you spend can significantly enhance your points strategy over time.

One last tip for anyone doing something similar: using a gift card to pay for purchases means you may have less protection and flexibility compared to using a credit card.

In this instance, even if my upcoming Disney trip doesn’t happen, I know I can use the gift cards later. Additionally, I don’t require the valuable built-in travel protections that a credit card provides for airfare purchases when it comes to Disney churros, t-shirts, or settling a hotel balance, so I felt comfortable stocking up on Disney gift cards given my own travel habits.