We see so many people in our Facebook Group asking people about where to go with their points and miles. Last night, on our coaching call with our Award Academy Next Level Group, we helped a woman who had a lot of points but didn’t know where to go. I thought it would be good […]

We just enjoyed a huge family trip to Costa Rica. There were 16 or us in total! Here’s how we used points and miles to get to Costa Rica – well partially!   Flights to Costa Rica This trip was to celebrate two graduating seniors, and our daughter, Kelly from Colorado Springs, invited us to […]

New York City is a frequent spot for me to position to for an award flight. I prefer to travel in business class for my international flights, using credit card points and miles. My biggest fear is not making one of those award flights on time. Because of this, I would prefer to arrive in […]

Kayla shared her 8-day reader success story to the United Kingdom in our Facebook Group and said that we could share it with everyone here. We love, love, love to hear about your successes and know that they inspire all those who read about them.    Flights to the United Kingdom My husband and I […]

Hilton has a new way to book stays with points—you can now book luxury campsites with Hilton. This includes luxury campsites and custom Airstreams, cabins, and luxury tents in scenic locations near national parks and beaches across America. Billed as AutoCamps, they are a great alternative to hotels and Airbnb. There are mandatory fees with […]

Before our recent African Safari on credit card points and miles (that didn’t happen), we were supposed to spend a couple of nights at the JW Marriott Nairobi. We used 37K Marriott points/night for this hotel, which has an average cash price of about $300-$350/night. We still stayed at this hotel before we left Africa […]

This post about traveling to Sardinia, Italy on credit card points and miles, was not something I expected to write about today. I was supposed to be on an African Safari instead. If you’ve been following my adventures, you know how well that turned out. Sardinia is an enchanting island in the Mediterranean Sea, off […]

The trip I planned for my birthday was not the one I ended up taking. I had planned a safari in Kenya for my birthday in May. First, we went to Mauritius, and on our second to last night, we got an email at dinner that changed everything. This post is about when your safari […]

When we decided to use credit card points and miles to book an African safari in Kenya, I knew I wanted to go to another country or island since we had traveled so far. I considered the Seychelles and Mauritius and settled on Mauritius on credit card points and miles.  Mauritius is a small island […]

Last year, shortly after the  JW Marriott Masai Mara Lodge opened, I heard that rooms could be booked for about 75K Marriott Bonvoy Rewards per night, including a safari. Having previously been on a safari, I was anxious to see if I could book this with my stash of Marriott Bonvoy points. The 75k/night deal […]

It’s no secret that we love Hyatt Hotels. We also love the Park Hyatt brand of Hyatt Hotels. Jess has raved about the Park Hyatt Aviara in Carlsbad, California, so when Alex was looking for a Spring Break location, this was a no-brainer. Luckily, she often invites my husband and me along for those trips. […]

I’m about to make a pretty definitive statement: Air France to Europe might be the best deal there is—at least consistently. I seem to find great deals on the Air France site repeatedly. I also find a lot of Air France flights on other sites like Virgin Atlantic, both in economy class and business class. […]

We often get asked this question, “Do we use points/miles for ALL travel?” The answer is no. While credit card points and miles cover most of our travel, it does not cover all of it. If you are trying to cover every single expense for your own travel, you might end up frustrated. Or, at […]

What is a waitlisted flight, and is it a viable option? Recently, I had an experience with one on Singapore Airlines. Alex, Jess, and I decided to book a trip to Singapore, and Jess did an outstanding job of convincing us that the Premium Economy on Singapore would be “just fine.” There was this incredible […]

With the recent Hyatt award chart changes, the Hyatt Place Kyoto is one of the hotels making a rare downgrade in a category. It was previously a Category 3 Hyatt hotel, but as of March 26, 2024, it is a Category 2. This makes standard nights only 8k points per night! While traveling during the […]

Tokyo was the last city we visited on our 2.5 week family trip to South Korea and Japan. There are so many hotels in Tokyo that it was difficult to narrow down where our family of 5 would stay for our three nights. Pam and Jess had previously stayed at the Andaz Tokyo Toranomon Hills […]

On my recent trip to Roatan, Honduras, I had pizza at Pizzarama. This restaurant is located at Bananarama, a Dive and Beach Resort less than half a mile from the Kimpton Roatan, where I was staying. While the pizza was good, the resort was not somewhere that I would ever want to stay. Once again, […]

Seoul, South Korea was the first stop of our family of five’s 2.5 week trip to South Korea and Japan. I originally booked two rooms at the Holiday Inn Express Seoul Hongdae with IHG points. However, after realizing we would want more comfort for our first few nights in Asia while we adjust to the […]

Earlier this year, Hyatt announced the end of its partnership with Small Luxury Hotels of the World as of May 15, 2024 (😢). They also announced their partnership with Mr. and Mrs. Smith Hotels. For those unfamiliar with these brands, let’s talk about Hyatt and Mr. and Mrs. Smith Hotels.   Mr. and Mrs. Smith […]

Generally, hotels attached to airport terminals don’t excite me. There are a few exceptions. One is the Westin at Denver International and, more recently, the Grand Hyatt at SFO. I was pleasantly surprised by my recent stay at the Grand Hyatt at SFO. Alex, Jess, and I arrived at SFO too late to continue to our […]

Getting a hotel room upgrade is easier than you think. Sometimes, all you need to do is ask. Of course, it helps if you are celebrating a special occasion too. Honeymoons, birthdays, and anniversaries are all things that can help your cause. However, writing a nice letter asking for an upgrade or letting the general […]