Last year I visited Monterey, California for a promotional opportunity with IHG. I had never been to the rugged, central California coastal town but I was really excited to check it out as I had only heard great things! Spoiler: It did not disappoint. With so much natural beauty and plenty to explore, Monterey is […]

The sweltering London heat brought on one of my favorite points and miles activities—hotel hopping! Luckily, no one was traveling with me since I am probably the only person on earth who loves this activity! I was spending the days at my daughter’s flat but ran to an air-conditioned hotel to sleep well at night. […]

This NYC Andaz 5th Avenue Review comes from our friend Julie from Family Trips and Travel.   You can find her on Instagram here.  Be sure and check out her NYC with family posts here.   Andaz 5th Avenue in NYC Overview The Andaz on 5th Avenue is an upscale hotel located in the heart of […]

Remember when we planned a trip around a flight? Crazy, but true. Our hotel ended up being the Villa Orselina in Orselina, Switzerland. We were looking for a Hyatt stay and found a Small Luxury Hotel we could get to easily from Milan. Here is our Villa Orselina Switzerland review. (This hotel is no longer […]

After our crazy three-day trip to Switzerland (to basically fly home in Emirates first-class), we made a two-day stop in New York City. Here’s how 48 hours in NYC on points and miles went down.   First Stop, TWA Hotel Since we were flying in from Milan to JFK and arriving at 9:00 at night, […]

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 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 […]

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 […]

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 […]

Prague is one of my favorite places to visit: it’s cosmopolitan, it’s rich in history, it’s walkable and it’s budget-friendly. It’s a place you can do cheaply without points and miles, but utilizing points and miles for your airfare and upscale hotels will help cut your costs to pennies on the dollar. Here’s everything you […]

Alex and I just returned from a luxury beach stay at the Kimpton Seafire resort in the Grand Cayman Islands. I’ve been to Grand Cayman twice from cruise stops. Honestly, I wasn’t that impressed. I guess that is why I like to stay a few nights at a destination rather than just a few hours […]

Hi, I’m Samantha from almostfreetraveling.com, an expert on using credit card points/mile to Disneyland using points and miles. Today we’re looking at four different ways to use credit card bonuses to purchase Disney park tickets on points.    Citi Premier Citi offers 60,000 Citi Thankyou Rewards Points as a welcome offer for opening the Citi Premier […]

  Pretty much every kid wants to visit the “Happiest Place on Earth,” and many parents want to see the magic in their kid’s eyes as they experience Disneyland for the first time. But do you know what’s not so magical about the “Happiest Place on Earth”? How expensive it is!! Luckily, there are ways […]

In the fall of 2021 my kids and I went to Disneyland with my mom, sisters, nieces, and nephews. We had a group of 14 and we had such a great time! Of course, we visited Disneyland on points. Credit card points and credit card benefits helped us save big time for this trip. We […]

One of my favorite trips was when I joined my mom and my sister, Lindsey, to visit Greece! Greece and Santorini, in particular, had been on my bucket list ever since I saw Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants. I know I’m not the only one who felt that way after seeing that movie! I knew […]

I love Greece. It is a beautiful country of white sand, crystal clear turquoise waters, and gorgeous sunsets. Who wouldn’t want to go there as a family? While any international trip will cost more than a domestic trip, Greece is certainly doable. Let’s check out our Friday Family Vacation to Greece today! Our flights will […]

Back in 2018 my family took a trip to Kauai and fell in love with it. While we didn’t stay at the Grand Hyatt Kauai on that trip, we did have dinner there and decided the Grand Hyatt was the place to stay for our next visit. Throw in the pandemic and it took us […]

Can you beat sun, beach, and waves? Only if you can do it on points and miles AND you take your family to create some lasting memories. I still remember fondly being a child in San Diego with my parents and siblings! We had such fun times that I thought it was surely the best […]

When I decided to go to Australia with points and miles, I knew I would also add on a trip to New Zealand. I always hesitated to go to both places due to the distance involved. Fast forward to many LONG trips taken, like to the Maldives, Thailand, Vietnam, Dubai, etc., and Australia and New […]