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 […]

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 […]

Today, we (Alex, Pam, and Jess) shared our experiences and compared two fantastic Hyatt properties in Hawaii – the Grand Hyatt Kauai and the Hyatt Regency Maui. Let’s dive into our adventure and see which resort came out on top! Listen on Apple Podcasts Listen on Spotify Watch on YouTube First, let’s talk about the […]

We have often flown and stayed in Hawaii on points and miles, but we usually stay on just one island. For this family trip, Alex wanted to try out two islands and two Hyatts to compare them. I figured that if she was up for doing this with four crazy boys ages 2-11, I could […]

Sometimes, we get so caught up in international experiences that we forget there are amazing destinations right here in the United States.  One of my daughters has been taking her family to Florida almost yearly, and they have the BEST time. Let’s do a Friday Family Vacation to Florida this week! My daughter, Kelly, loves […]

If visiting a country with a diverse landscape of rolling hills, rugged coastline, mountains, forests, and numerous freshwater lochs (lakes) is your dream, you must plan a trip to Scotland on points and miles. Recently, myself and three of my daughters fulfilled one daughter’s dream of visiting Scotland (Unfortunately, Alex couldn’t leave her busy boys and […]

Welcome to Points Talk with the Travel Mom Squad podcast! Today Jess spills the beans on some incredible tips and tricks for saving money and making the most of points on Disney cruises. So, grab a cup of coffee, sit back, and let’s dive in!   Listen on Apple Podcasts Listen on Spotify Watch on YouTube   […]

Our reader success story comes from Justine who planned an amazing honeymoon on points/miles to the Maldives and Japan. Here’s her story:   Background My [now] husband and I got engaged in March of 2021, and I immediately went into brainstorming an epic honeymoon (before wedding planning even ). We already had traveled a ton […]

Raising a family can be expensive! Groceries, healthcare, clothes, etc., etc., etc.! You might as well be rewarded for what you have to pay for anyway! We love to use our credit cards to meet minimum spending and grab a big sign-up bonus so we don’t have to pay a lot for family travel, which […]

For years, my husband and I ALWAYS applied jointly for each credit card. Both of our names were on each and every card. That worked fine for years. Then I found how to use credit card points and miles, and we quit that for good. Most major credit card issuers don’t even allow joint accounts […]

I don’t use card points and miles for cheap seats. Now that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t, but I have some reasons I’d like to share with you regarding why I’ve made that choice. Free is free, though. If you are buying 4 airline tickets domestically, I know it can add up. It may make total […]

In today’s special episode, we’ll be discussing the evolution of our credit card strategies over time. We will be sharing insights into our unique approaches and how we have adapted our points stratagies over the years! Listen on Apple Podcasts Listen on Spotify Watch on YouTube Jess began her journey of traveling on points back […]

Sometimes, you may want to downgrade a card instead of canceling it. Let’s go over the basics of how to downgrade a Chase card.   Steps to Downgrade a Chase Card You can downgrade a Sapphire Preferred or Sapphire Reserve by calling the number on the back of your card. The credit card number and […]

We hear from many of our readers that they’d love to go to London for a family trip. I love London – the red double decker buses, Big Ben, and those red telephone booths are some of my favorite sights. Because one of my daughters has lived there for 17+ years, it is the international […]

Hey there, are you dreaming of visiting Paris without breaking the bank? Well, it’s definitely possible! In this episode, we’ll share our experiences visiting the magical city of lights using points and miles. If you are new around here, we are Pam, Jess, and Alex! We are the Travel Mom Squad and have visited Paris multiple times, […]

One of the perks of most hotel credit cards is getting a free annual night certificate each year. You have to remember to use them during the year that they are issued, though, and last year I almost forgot about using an IHG free night certificate. Yikes! I only had 24 days to use it […]

Amber sent us her reader success story to Maui/Oahu. Here is her story: Last June my husband and son flew to Maui/Oahu to visit family and celebrate my husband’s grandfather’s 100th birthday!     We used Southwest points to book the trip as well as a Southwest® Companion Pass that we earned with the Southwest® card […]

New York City is home to some of the most famous landmarks in the world, such as the Statue of Liberty, Central Park, the Empire State Building, and the Brooklyn Bridge. Whether you want to see one of these landmarks, catch a sports game, see a Broadway show, or enjoy the diverse food in the city, […]

There are so many ways that you can use credit card points and miles, and credit card issuers constantly give you ideas. Not every idea is a great point or mile redemption, so let’s go over the do’s and don’ts of credit card point redemptions.     How NOT to Use Your Points Shop at […]

Let’s talk about credit card minimum spend! This is a GAME CHANGER for racking up those valuable points and miles fast. If you’re new to award travel, this concept may seem a bit daunting, but don’t worry, we’ve got some tips and tricks to help you out. Listen on Apple Podcast Listen on Spotify  Listen […]