The Sapphire Reserve perk that made our Fiji trip more affordable

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When my friend invited me to New Zealand for her work conference in March, saying "yes" was an absolute no-brainer. I hadn’t been to New Zealand yet, after all, and I’m a huge fan of Lord of the Rings. We decided to stop somewhere that made geographic sense on the way to New Zealand, and we settled on the islands of Fiji.

Not only did my friend want to get acclimated to the time change before her conference, but our searches also found that flights to Fiji weren't that expensive. We worried the same might not be true for food, drinks, and hotel rooms, but a credit card perk I’d been sitting on made the whole thing more affordable than expected.

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Once we decided on Fiji, I quickly realized that Chase offered a few different hotels through The Edit. Launched in early 2024, this is Chase’s hand-picked collection of luxury resorts around the world.

The program is exclusive to Chase Sapphire Reserve, Chase Sapphire Reserve for Business, and J.P. Morgan Reserve cardholders, all of whom can get up to $500 back on The Edit stays (up to $250 twice a year).

I have the Chase Sapphire Reserve, meaning I was eligible for $250 off a Fiji hotel stay if we booked through the program. I found the Sofitel Fiji Resort, located about 20 minutes from the airport, and we decided to book three nights.

Beyond the $250 biannual credit, booking the hotel through The Edit got us:

• Daily breakfast for two
• A $100 property credit for food and beverage
• A room upgrade on arrival
• A welcome amenity

I opted for an upgraded room at the resort's adults-only Waitui Beach Club. This got us even more perks, including free laundry, a free massage, and free drinks and snacks throughout the day.

The adults-only club also had a free happy hour from 5:00 to 6:00 p.m. that included non-stop drinks (cocktails, wine, and beer) and unlimited trays of appetizers.

Over the course of three days, we had an excellent time at this beautiful hotel. We spent most of our resort time in Fiji at the Waitui Club's beachfront infinity pool, where staff played drums and yelled "Bula" on the hour while passing around trays of freebies to keep us happy and fed.

The $100 food and beverage credit I got through The Edit also came in handy for the meals we had at the resort, although we only had a real "dinner" one night because the free appetizers offered during the happy hour were more than enough to get by.

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While we only had four days in Fiji, we were able to get off the resort twice to see some sights. First, I used Chase Ultimate Rewards points to book a private market tour that took us to a handicraft market with homemade goods and a local fruit and vegetable market.

We also got a free visit to a floating bar off the coast of Fiji called Seventh Heaven as part of our resort stay. That trip wasn't much of a "cultural experience," but it was fun to swim and snorkel off a floating bar in the middle of the Pacific with a bunch of new friends.

All in all, we had an awesome time during our short stay in Fiji. We also got quite the deal on our stay due to the $250 resort credit through The Edit, the included free breakfast, the $100 property credit, and all the free snacks and drinks that came with our stay. If you have the Sapphire Reserve or Sapphire Reserve for Business, it’s worth at least checking your options through the hotel collection as you plan your next trip.

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