Costa Rica

An expensive dream. A very good deal.

HOW THIS TRIP CAME TOGETHER

Can I build a trip where all three line up?

Points worth 3¢+ each.

My first big Chase points booking had to get the Hyatt value I'd heard so much about: every point replacing at least 3¢ of the cash price.

The right place at the right time.

Not somewhere just because the points worked. The season and conditions had to fit the trip we wanted.

A trip that uses my body now.

Snorkeling, hiking, wildlife, and adventure: things I can do now that may be harder someday.

If any one didn't work, we weren't going.

THE PLACES THAT CAME CLOSE

Four places almost made it.

Portugal: The trip we wanted, but no Hyatt redemption that met my target.

Napa Valley: The redemption was there, but only in the colder months, and it wasn't active enough.

Tokyo: Cherry blossom season didn't work for us, and I didn't want to force the wrong time of year.

The Maldives: The closest call. Hyatt availability and snorkeling, but not during the calm-water season.

THEN I FOUND COSTA RICA

Costa Rica checked all three boxes.

It wasn't on my original list. But once I researched what we could do there, it fit.

Hiking · Snorkeling · Wildlife · Waterfalls

Andaz Peninsula Papagayo: cash price $7,922.66, paid with 225000 Hyatt points, 3.52¢ per point.

THEN THE GOAL CHANGED

How do I make what may be our only Costa Rica trip count?

Under $5,000.00 cash. Use that cash to see more of Costa Rica.

TWO STAYS

Points for the coast. Cash for the adventure.

Andaz Peninsula Papagayo: Snorkeling, beaches, wildlife, and coastal hiking.

Rio Perdido: A private reserve for a different kind of hiking, white-water tubing for Sean, and a naturally heated river.

That river mattered most to me. Cold water makes my muscles seize up, which limits what I can do in the water. A heated river removes that barrier.

I wanted a trip that uses the physical abilities I have now, not one that asks me to save the adventure for someday.

HOW I PAID

Points where they earned their place. Cash where they didn't.

Andaz paid with 225000 Hyatt points; outbound flights paid with 44000 AAdvantage miles. Total cash for booked flights and hotels: $4,017.32. Cash price: $13,147.56. Under the cash target by $982.68.

$9,130.24 less cash than the cash comparison. That's a comparison, not literal savings. I wouldn't necessarily have paid every cash rate.

The goal was never to use points everywhere. It was to build the Costa Rica trip we wanted.

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