Maximizing Credit Card Points for Travel
We have been utilizing credit card points to travel for over five years now. When I first started, I did what most of you probably did - booked hotels and flights through the credit card portal, in my case it was Chase. This strategy is not much of a strategy at all and, is the easiest way to waste points. I have since learned that it’s all about maximizing my points to benefit me. Since then, I have ALWAYS transferred my points to wherever I see fit. I’m going to try and explain my strategy below! We have utilized points to travel first class on Emirates, business class on United, Lufthansa & British Airways, Delta One Suites, Upper Class on Virgin and I have two trips coming up where we booked business class on Singapore and first class on Qatar. Not to mention the countless times we have used miles to fly domestically.
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Get a good credit card
First, you’re going to need a credit card (or several) that earns you points. If you’re only going to have one credit card, make it the Chase Sapphire Preferred card. It has a low yearly fee of only $95. This is the main card that we use, but we do have several. Obviously, don’t get a credit card if you can’t pay it off every month, we want to encourage responsible use. We use our credit cards for everything but we make sure to pay the statement balance off every month. We also love our American Express Gold card and our Capital One card. Each card has its pros and cons and you just need to figure out which one will work best for you.
Next, if you’re a loyalist when you travel , consider investing in a branded credit card. We like to stay in Hilton hotels a lot of the time so we invested in a Hilton credit card. We only use this card for Hilton stays and Hilton gives us 14 points to every dollar we spend at their properties. Plus you get a free night every year, diamond status, etc. We are currently sitting on about 1 million Hilton points that we are planning to redeem for a stay in the Maldives. Same for your flights, if you always fly United, consider getting the United branded card, or Delta. You usually get free checked luggage, possible upgrades and some come with lounge access.
Credit cards will give you a welcome offer when signing up for a card. Take advantage of these to stockpile points.
I utilize certain tools to help me find the best deals.
Google Flights - This one is obvious but I utilize Google Flights for several reasons beyond just viewing the price of a flight. I look to see what airlines fly what routes, which planes have a first class section, the timing of the flights and the overall demand.
Thrifty Traveler - This subscription has been my favorite tool for finding great travel deals. When you sign up, you can pick which airports you want alerts for and they will send you the best flight deals (both cash and point deals). This is how I’ve booked over 90% of my business and first class flights - including the Emirates first class flight in the video above. I got an alert that this flight was being offered for 100,000 miles and I jumped at the chance to fly on this “double decker” plane. You can use my referral link to get $20 off your first subscription. If you travel frequently THIS is the subscription for you. It is my absolute favorite tool.
Point.me - Point.me is another subscription that I have that can also be helpful for booking flights with points. It’s a little more work than thrifty traveler and you have to be specific in your search but if you’re looking for a very specific flight, it will help tell you what it would cost in points. My referral link will get you $5 off.
What not to do:
Stop booking through Expedia, booking.com, Travelocity or any of those other sites. Yes, it can be easier because the information is all in front of you but (1) you’re not getting any frequent travel points awarded, (2) hotels flag these customers and sometimes provide a lesser quality of service to these clients, (3) if you book through the hotel or utilize a travel advisor, you often get special perks, free upgrades and more.
Make sure your kids have loyalty accounts with airlines - they get miles too! Mason has accumulated so many miles because I started his accounts when we had to start buying him a seat.
Don’t be rigid when planning - that almost never works in your favor.
A final word:
When booking award travel, you have to be flexible. I’ll give you some examples. When traveling to Europe, I always find a flight that just gets me to that side of the world. The above Emirates flight was from New York to Milan. This required me to fly from San Diego to New York then New York to Milan then Milan to Paris. Now, that’s sort of an extreme example because I really just wanted to fly on Emirates. But I’m always flexible with my planning. For my upcoming trip to Europe, I’m flying from Houston to Manchester then Manchester to my destination because I found a great deal on business class with Singapore Air. Flexibility is key. If you want to book economy flights, the availability will be better.
You should always plan your flight first. If you find a good deal that is from your home airport to Paris, then start and end your trip in Paris. Be flexible with your days too, as much as you can. I know it’s harder for people that need to get PTO approved. But the more flexible you are, the more likely you will be able to find award availability.
Look at partner airlines! I can use my United points to book travel with Lufthansa. You can use Delta points to book a flight on Virgin. You’ll need to utilize this when it comes to transferring points from credit cards to airlines. Some airlines don’t allow you to transfer miles (like American only allows it with a Bilt card). But you can book some American flights on British Airways. Always check partner airlines.
Lastly, don’t transfer points until you’re sure you have your flight picked out and there is availability because it cannot be reversed. Most point transfers are automatic but you don’t want to be in a situation where you have just transferred 100k points to British Airways and now you can’t use them.
I hope some of these tips helped you when booking award travel! Have points but don’t know where to go? Check out my itinerary to the Basque Region.
