Wells Fargo Autograph Journey Adds A New Transfer Partner — With A New Way To Get More Value From Points

A real sleeper card is the Wells Fargo Autograph Journey which launched two years ago.

When readers ask me what to do because they used to put their Airbnb stays and cruises on Sapphire Reserve but that spend is no longer bonuses (unless they’re booking what’s available through Chase Travel) I say to consider Autograph Journey.

• Intro bonus: 60,000 bonus points after $4,000 spend within 3 months
  
• Earning: 5x on hotels; 4x on airlines; 3x on other travel; 3x on dining; 1x other purchases
  
• Statement credit: $50 annual statement credit for airfare purchase
  
• Other benefits: No foreign transaction fees; trip cancellation; lost luggage; cell phone protection
  
• Annual fee: $95

The earning here is great for a general travel and dining card. And with the $50 airfare credit against its $95 annual fee, it’s a great value at the price.

The challenge is that they’ve got limited transfer partners. They’ve promised more, but this has come slowly. They just added Wyndham, at an impressive 1:2. Wyndham is a Citi, Capital One and Bilt transfer partner at just 1:1.

This makes Wells Fargo transfer partners:

• Star Alliance: Avianca LifeMiles
  
• oneworld: British Airways Executive Club, Iberia Plus
  
• SkyTeam: Air France KLM Flying Blue, Virgin Atlantic Flying Club
  
• Non-alliance: Aer Lingus Aer Club, JetBlue TrueBlue
  
• Hotel: Choice Privileges, Wyndham Rewards

I value Wyndham points at around 7/10ths of a cent apiece, so I don’t see a use case for Citi, Capital One, or Bilt transfers. Wyndham’s portfolio doesn’t align well for me personally with the end of their Vacasa partnership. But 1:2 transfers make this a valuable add for many cardholders.

The good thing is that Wyndham has flat pricing for base room redemptions, with three categories:
7,500 points; 15,000 points; and 30,000 points. That’s not nearly as good as it used to be, but it means that at peak times during special events you can still get outsized value.

Perhaps an even better play is linking your Wyndham account to Caesars Rewards and get 2 cents per Wells Fargo point:

• They allow you to transfer up to 30,000 points a year from one account to the other.
  
• Caesars points are worth a penny apiece
  
• 15,000 Wells Fargo points transfer to 30,000 Wyndham points which transfer to 30,000 Caesars points, worth $300.

I’d consider pairing Autograph Journey with a no annual fee Active Cash card which earns 2 points per dollar on all spend. Those points can be transferred into this one and moved to miles. What’s more, there are no transfer minimums which means no wasted or stranded points (no transferring 1,000 points when you need only 311, for instance).