London Stopover

On British Airways, we scored a direct flight from our home airport, Orlando (MCO), to London (LGW). I used 115,000 American Airlines miles and paid $1,400 in taxes and fees. I know there are probably better redemptions out there, but having the luxury of a direct flight to Europe from our home airport was worth every penny. We stayed at the Trafalgar St. James London for two nights using 160,000 Hilton points. It was a fabulous hotel in a great location. We were upgraded to a St. James King room with a view thanks to Diamond status from the American Express Hilton Honors Aspire card.

Santorini on Points and Miles

We booked a cash ticket via EasyJet for $175 per person from London Gatwick Airport (LGW) to Santorini (JTR) and spent three nights at the incredible Canaves Oia Suites. I booked using 120,000 Chase points transferred to Hyatt before the partnership with Small Luxury Hotels ended. (Thanks to a Facebook tip from Travel Mom Squad that availability had opened up!). This hotel is what Greece in luxury is all about!

The hotel was breathtaking, the service was top-notch, and we especially loved the complimentary “breakfastes.” (Pam is smiling at this!) We rented a motorcycle and explored the island for three days. It’s truly a magical place.

Athens

We finished our trip with three nights at the Grande Bretagne Hotel in Athens using 287,000 Marriott points. This hotel was absolutely fabulous, had an awesome rooftop pool, and was in a great location. We enjoyed complimentary breakfast (from our Marriott Platinum status using the Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant® American Express® Card) at the rooftop restaurant overlooking the Acropolis and Syntagma Square.

The hotel was about a 20-minute walk to the Acropolis, which we booked first thing in the morning to avoid the brutal heat. We also caught an evening concert at the Odeon of Herodicus, which was a once-in-a-lifetime experience!

Meteora Monasteries

We rented a car using the $120 Avis credit (plus $100 cash to upgrade to a cute little Mercedes A class!) from the Citi® / AAdvantage® Executive World Elite Mastercard® and took a road trip from Athens to the majestic Meteora monasteries. It was a beautiful drive through the Greek countryside, and we even made a pit stop at the historic site of Delphi.

I used the Capital One $300 travel credit to book two nights at the Grand Meteora Hotel, which had a stunning view of the mountains from our balcony. We toured the monasteries for a day, had dinner in an authentic Greek tavern, and the next day, we made the 3.5-hour drive to Athens and returned our rental car.

Meteors Monasteries

Flight Home in Emirates First Class

Our grand finale was the flight home from Athens (ATH) to Newark (EWR) on Emirates first class. I originally booked a business class for 87,000 points each and could upgrade to first class at the check-in counter for 39,000 points each (thanks to a tip from Pam on the podcast!).

Bottom Line

Thanks to the tips and advice the Travel Mom Squad shared, I was able to level up our travel experience beyond what we could have done on our usual travel budget. I’m so grateful for the content you share. I will continue to support your group and recommend it to all my friends and family. Thanks, Travel Mom Squad!!! Greece in luxury was made possible by points and miles!

Great job, Heather! Your trip gave me so much FOMO – I’m ready to head back to Greece (and I just returned a month ago!)

Related Posts

• How to Go on a Grece Girl’s Trip and Not Go Broke – Including a Luxury Flight
• Reader’s Success Story to Greece
• Greece on Points and Miles
• Podcast 88. Adventures in Greece & Beyond: Alex & Pam’s European Escapades