How do 8 nights in Italy for $0 sound? My husband and I recently spent 3 nights in Lake Como, 2 nights in Venice, and 3 nights in Florence. The best part? Our stays were completely free, thanks to points! Here’s a breakdown of how I did it…   Lake Como In Lake Como, we […]

I may have found my new favorite award flight search engine. Meet seats.aero award booking engine—ideal for last-minute award bookings (free) or flights further out. The free version lets you look at last-minute flights (3 months out), but it is only $7.99/month or $79.99/year for the Pro version and completely worth it in my opinion […]

All three of us have stayed at the Kimpton Seafire in Grand Cayman. And all three of us would like to go back. We also think it is a great place for a family trip, so our Friday Family Vacation to Grand Cayman is here!   Flights Flights to the Caribbean can be made on […]

On a recent trip to Italy with my husband, I booked a business class round-trip flight on Emirates from JFK to Milan. Emirates operates this as a fifth freedom route, and it’s a popular route with miles and points enthusiasts as it allows you to experience Emirates without flying all the way to Dubai. Throw […]

Taking that flight that offered a “shower in the sky” has been on my bucket list for some time. Did it live up to the hype I had built up in my mind? Hang on, I’m about to spill the beans with my review of Emirates first-class seats Milan-JFK. Flying Emirates first class was a […]

When it comes to travel, one of the most difficult parts is planning it! Where should you go? When should you go? Where will you stay? What will you do? And let’s not forget, how will you pay for it?! Well, if you know us at all, you know that’s the easy part! We’ll use […]

Let’s see how cheap we can do the Hyatt Ziva Cancun, a very popular THM location, for a family of four.  Our family is flying from Dallas this week. Here is our Friday family vacation to Hyatt Ziva Cancun! 🇲🇽   Flights One of the greatest deals in credit card points and miles is the […]

Do you have a place you want to travel to (or several)? Maybe a type of flight that you have heard about and you really want to fly sometime in your lifetime? Alex, Jess, and I have had a multitude of bucket list travels that credit card points and miles have made possible.  The amazing […]

One of the great deals in points and miles is using Virgin Atlantic to save on Delta flights. It always boggles my mind that you can book on one site and fly another airline for even fewer miles than booking on the airline’s site.  These same “magic tricks” can be used to redeem Virgin Atlantic […]

Usually, we plan our flights around where we want to go. We just returned from a trip where EVERYTHING was planned around a flight. Years ago, I saw a commercial with Jennifer Aniston wanting to take a shower on a flight. In the commercial, they told her she needed to be on an Emirates plane. […]

Recently, my sister took me on a birthday trip to Sedona. I have wanted to go there for years (even though I grew up in Arizona, I had never been). To say that I was impressed with the beautiful rock formations is an understatement. It was much more beautiful than I imagined. Known for its […]

One of our favorite readers, Maggie, sent us this reader success story. She recently took the Award Travel Academy course and then booked an incredible stay at the Secrets Impression Moxché all-inclusive resort—one that we have each booked for later this year. It is supposed to be incredible. Here is our Award Travel Academy Reader […]

I remember a couple of family trips to Yellowstone Park from when I was young. I always enjoyed looking for a bear, seeing Ol’ Faithful, and enjoying cool mountain air (especially since we were coming from Arizona for summers). In those days, it was a sacrifice for my family to take us there because my […]

Caitlin has a reader success story to Puerto Rico for us today. I went to Puerto Rico a few years ago with my sister and loved it! Here’s her story: I got into using credit card miles/points a little over a year ago after seeing some Facebook and Instagram posts about people traveling for free. […]

Say it isn’t so! United has devalued award flights to Europe! This has long been one of my “go-to” ways to fly to Europe. I guess I’ll have to earn more points in the future because it will now cost 33% more in points/miles when you redeem United miles for European flights. In the past, […]

Our latest reader success story to Hawaii comes from Lexi, where she utilized not only a Player 2 but also a Player 3 so that 4 people could go. Here is her story:   Lexi’s Story Since October, we have been able to sign up me (Player 1), Player 2, and Player 3 for cards […]

While we are all about family trips using points and miles, we also believe in couples’ getaways and the value of spending time reconnecting with your significant other. We also love when newlyweds use points and miles to save on their honeymoon. Here are some honeymoon trip ideas—on points and miles, of course!   Costa […]

This airport lounge geek is excited that the first Chase Sapphire Lounge by the Club in the U.S. is open in Boston. Even better, I have an award flight through Boston soon! I can’t wait to check it out! Previously, one opened in Hong Kong. The list of projected Chase Sapphire Lounges includes: Austin-Bergstrom International […]

Costa Rica is a beautiful destination for a family vacation. There are plenty of activities to enjoy and locations to visit that will make for a fun and memorable experience. Jess went there on a family vacation and her daughter, Molly, still talks about it! Friday Family Vacation to Costa Rica is happening today—let’s recreate […]

IHG often has great signup bonuses on their cards, but they fall “under the radar” compared to the other hotel brands. They have long been my second favorite brand (after Hyatt, of course). We have many readers asking us about how we use our IHG points, so here goes! First of all, there are several […]

Recently, I was trying to book a ticket to London for an upcoming trip to visit my daughter. I travel to London frequently and have used many different carriers and points for my trips. I am traveling at the start of 2024 and ended up using an airline transfer bonus to reduce my cost in miles […]