How to Travel to Scottsdale With Points and Miles for a Bachelor/ette Party

Whether you’re looking to celebrate pre-nuptials with a raucous good time or a relaxed, classy weekend, bachelor or bachelorette parties in Scottsdale, Arizona, may be just the ticket. From spas to golf to live entertainment, there’s plenty to keep a cadre of revelers entertained for a weekend of fun.

And much of it can be booked in points and miles. Here’s how to make a budget-friendly bachelor or bachelorette party happen in Scottsdale.

Flights to Scottsdale

Your best bet when it comes to flying into Scottsdale is to arrive at Phoenix Sky Harbor, or PHX. Not even 15 miles away, it’s the most convenient airport.

All the major domestic airlines (and some international airlines) fly into Phoenix, so your chances are good for finding an award flight, no matter where you’re coming from. These airlines use Phoenix as a hub or at least a focus airport:

• American Airlines.

• Southwest Airlines.

American Airlines uses a region-based award chart, so how many miles you need to book will depend on where you’re coming from and what type of fare you prefer. The airline offers a few different types of award flights: MileSAAver and AAnytime Awards, plus off-peak MileSAAver and occasional Web Specials.

If you’re traveling fewer than 500 miles, you could find award flights for as few as 7,500 miles, but if you’re coming from farther away (still within the contiguous U.S.), expect to shell out between 12,500 for a MileSAAver award and between 20,000-30,000 for an AAnytime award.

Southwest also offers an abundance of inexpensive award flights. One search for flights from Seattle to Phoenix showed one-way tickets priced as low as 4,446 points for a Wanna Get Away fare.

Prices fluctuate based on day, time, and distance. Even from Orlando, we found award flights for as few as 8,476 Rapid Rewards points. Overall, it seems like Southwest is often the better deal compared to American when it comes to booking award flights to Phoenix.

JSX is a hop-on jet service that offers air travel from private terminals between a handful of destinations, including Reno-Tahoe, Concord, Oakland, Monterey, Burbank, Los Angeles, Orange County, San Diego, Las Vegas, Dallas, Austin and Houston. You can even earn a flat rate of up to 250 TrueBlue Points for JSX flights (150 for Hop On Fares). However, you can’t use TrueBlue points to book award travel on JSX.

Of course, flying into Phoenix is only the first step. If you’re planning bachelor/ette parties in Scottsdale, you’ll also need to know how to get around once you arrive.

Naturally, there are numerous rideshare options, plus taxis and shuttles. You can also take public transportation that will likely involve Valley Metro’s PHX SkyTrain, rail or bus, or a combination of those.

Hotels in town

Here are some of the best hotels in Scottsdale for bachelor or bachelorette parties, broken down by relative cost and type.

Check out The Hyatt Place or Hyatt House in Scottsdale/Old Town if you’re looking for a good deal in points and miles. You’ll be right in the middle of all the action and can get a room for as few as 15,000 World of Hyatt points per night.

If you need Hyatt points, you can transfer them from Chase Ultimate Rewards® or earn the sign-up bonus on the World of Hyatt Credit Card: Earn 30,000 Bonus Points after you spend $3,000 on purchases in your first 3 months from account opening. Plus, up to 30,000 More Bonus Points by earning 2 Bonus Points total per $1 spent in the first 6 months from account opening on purchases that normally earn 1 Bonus Point, on up to $15,000 spent.

If you’d prefer to splurge, book a suite for the whole crew at the W Scottsdale using Marriott Bonvoy points. A suite could cost you in the ballpark of 360,000 points per night, but the suite has a private full kitchen, 2.5 bathrooms and floor-to-ceiling windows. Plus, the Category 6 hotel offers plenty of amenities to make it worth it.

To give your current points balance a boost, apply for the Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant™ American Express® Card. The welcome bonus offer is: Earn 75,000 Marriott Bonvoy bonus points after you use your new Card to make $3,000 in purchases on the Card within the first 3 months. Terms Apply.

You can also earn United miles on Airbnb stays. Simply purchase a digital gift card via the United MileagePlus X app, then use it to pay for your stay. If you have a United MileagePlus credit card, you’ll get a 25% bonus on miles.

Bachelor/ette group activities

There’s plenty to do in Scottsdale during a bachelor or bachelorette weekend.

For an intimate and upscale experience, check out The Beverly for a gastropub menu and a full cocktail bar. Prefer live music and a more electric atmosphere? Visit the Wasted Grain.

Get active by taking a strenuous hike up Camelback Mountain or scheduling a bicycle tour, then refuel (or recover after a wild night out) at Hash Public House or Clever Koi for dumplings, ramen and steamed buns.

To round out the weekend, relax for an afternoon at Inspire Day Spa or lounge by the pool — or play a quick round of nine holes at one of Scottsdale’s famous golf courses. TPC Scottsdale, Grayhawk Golf Club or Legend Trail Golf Club are all nearby, among others.

Earning points on a bachelor/ette party

Want to earn more points as you celebrate?

• Book and pay for the whole group’s hotel rooms using a travel credit card that earns bonus points and miles on hotels.

• Pay for the group’s dinner using your rewards card. Earn even more miles for every dollar spent by registering it on a dining rewards program, like AAdvantage Dining, and eating at a participating restaurant.

• Reserve rental cars, tee times, tours and more with your rewards card.

Final thoughts on budget group travel to Scottsdale

Planning bachelor/ette parties in Scottsdale doesn’t have to eat up your entire budget. There’s plenty to do in the area, including low-cost activities like the always free Scottsdale Museum of Contemporary Art.

It’s easy to book travel and accommodations using the points and miles you’ve already got, and you can keep the party going by earning even more rewards on group expenses during the trip.

You want a travel credit card that prioritizes what’s important to you. Here are our picks for the best travel credit cards of 2022, including those best for: