Capital One Venture Rewards 100,000 Point Bonus Offer

 

Woohoo! If you thought the recent bonus offer including a $250 travel credit was awesome, well, we just found an even better limited time offer. This offer is for 100,000 bonus miles rather than a travel credit so you have the flexibility to use the miles any way you want like transferring to an airline or hotel, erasing travel purchases or in the travel portal. 

In fact, we found a hack where you can actually erase travel purchases before you even pay for them! 

We love the flexibility of Capital One miles so 25,000 miles is much better than a travel credit.

The minimum spend on this offer is $5,000 and the annual fee is $95. 

Other benefits included with the Capital One Venture card include:

• 2x points on all purchases
• $120 Global Entry/TSA credit 
• Rental Car Insurance Coverage
• Trip Cancellation/Interruption Insurance

You are only eligible for this bonus offer once every four years. And just a sidenote, there is no lounge access included with this card. Though card holders are eligible for a discounted lounge pass. 

This is a limited time offer and we do not know the end date right now. As always, if you need more guidance, please join our Travel Coaching Program, you can find out more about our personal coaching here. Use FREETRAVEL for $50 off the cost. 

Woohoo! How You Can Get 5x Points On Amazon

 

Woohoo! Chase is out with the Q2 5x bonus categories! And Amazon.com is back. Chase FREEDOM FLEX offer rotating bonus categories that earn 5x points. 

Past categories have included: 

• gas stations 
• grocery stores
• nail salons 
• EV charging 

The categories change every quarter so you can earn lots of Chase Ultimate Reward points quickly. You are limited to just $1,500 per quarter. But that translates to 7,500 points. Woohoo! 

We got a bonus category in March so stay posted to see if we get another one in June. 

You need to activate your card here.  

If you don't have a Chase FREEDOM FLEX credit card, it's a great everyday card. No annual fee and a $200 bonus for just a $500 minimum spend. 

What Are Your Rights When You Miss Your Connecting Flight

I watched the departing time for my flight from Athens to Paris aboard Air France get delayed later and later. I wondered out loud if I would still be able to make my connection in Paris for my flight to Los Angeles. When I purchased the flight with Flying Blue points, I noted the rather tight connecting time at Charles De Gaulle Airport. It's a big airport and usually requires you to pass through secondary immigration even though you are just connecting and not leaving the airport. But Air France let me book for just 15,000 Flying Blue points and $90. Woohoo! 

But now standing in the Athens Airport with the connecting time disappearing, I was pretty sure I would miss the connection and wondered what my fate would be. I hopped on What's App to connect with Air France and immediately got a representative who assured me that I should get on the first flight and they were working on rescheduling me. 

• This should always be your first task. Agents at the airport can't help you and definitely don't leave the gate area to go back to check in. If you aren't comfortable with What's App, try calling customer service. 

We left an hour late and then sat on the tarmac for another 10 minutes so it was looking very unlikely that I would make the connecting flight to Los Angeles. At that point, I realized that it was out of my control and a night in Paris would be fun. 

Approximately 30 minutes before we landed in Paris, the flight attendant came to talk to me with Ipad in hand. He smiled and said "you have a tight connection." He showed me a map of the airport, the gate we were arriving in and the gate for my connecting flight. He told me normally the walk between the two gates takes 25 minutes, you will have 20 minutes. He moved me to a seat at the front of the plane and moved my carry on bag to the front of the plane. We are going to help you have the best chance of making it, but if you don't, go to customer service and they will take care of you. 

So what are your rights as a passenger? And do those rights change if you are flying on points or miles?

Here are your rights, but they may vary by airline. 

Flight Cancellations and Delays:

• Right to a Refund or Rebooking: If your flight is canceled or significantly delayed (more than 3 hours for domestic flights, or 6 hours for international flights), you are entitled to a full refund, including taxes and fees, or the option to rebook on another flight. 
• Right to Assistance and Care: 
  In the event of a significant delay or cancellation, the airline is responsible for providing assistance and care, including food and water, and potentially accommodation and transportation if the delay is lengthy. 
• Right to Compensation: 
  Depending on the regulations of the country where the flight originated, you may be entitled to compensation for delays, cancellations, or overbooking. 
• Right to Information: 
  You have the right to be informed about your rights and the reasons for any delays or cancellations. 

And even if you travel on points and miles, you are entitled to the same compensation. 

• The most important is to contact the airline immediately and document everything. 

Back to the flight into Paris, we landed over an hour late and I started running. There was absolutely no one at immigration so I breezed through. I ran down the hall to the new gate, the agent was still there, but the plane had left just 10 minutes earlier. 

I walked to customer service. The agent said they had already rescheduled me on a morning flight the next day, made a hotel reservation for me, and had issued vouchers for dinner, breakfast and coffee in the airport. Okay, so I would be spending the night in Paris, things could be way worse. 

Hotel Ibis at the airport

The agent had booked me at the The Ibis Hotel located at the airport. It was located near Terminal 3 which was a walk and a tram ride away. It was filled with people who missed flights and connections. Check in was fast. The room was clean. 

The restaurant in the lobby was a buffet filled with Parisian pastries. I slept well and got on my new flight the next day with ease. 

 

The story doesn't quite end there. I had reserved a rental car with Budget in Los Angeles and even though I called to let them know I was a on a new flight, they insisted on charging an extra fee for the one way rental. I filed a claim with Air France to see if they will cover the fee. If not, I will utilize the trip delay insurance on my Chase Sapphire Reserve credit card which has the best travel insurance and car rental insurance coverage around. 

It's always a good reminder that you need to be flexible when traveling, but know your rights and document everything.  

Why Southwest's Big Changes Don't Matter To Me

 

I'm seeing that a lot of people are very angry and upset over Southwest Airlines big announcement regarding baggage fees and the way we earn points when we fly. 

Why Southwest's Big Changes Don't Matter To Me 

Southwest announced that they are joining other airlines and starting May 2025 will be charging for checked bags. We don't know the price yet, but the going rate is $35 per bag. Only A-List and Business Select fares will get two FREE checked bags. 

If you are a Southwest credit card holder, you will also get a FREE checked bag. Right now, you can apply for any Southwest personal credit card and get 30,000 bonus points plus a companion pass valid through February 28, 2026. This is a good offer, but I can show you how to get 135,000 points and the companion pass for almost two years in my Travel Coaching Program. Bonus, anyone on your reservation including your companion on your pass will get their own FREE checked bag. 

Southwest announced that it is modifying how many points you earn when you fly. In fact, this started already on March 4th 2025. 

Why Southwest's Big Changes Don't Matter To Me 

But for me and my clients in the Travel Coaching Program, these changes don't matter much. Let me tell you why. 

First, we don't check luggage. Yes, I know sometimes, you have to if you are moving a child across the country or moving things to other places. But in general, we believe that traveling lighter is better. So we are on TEAM CARRYON all the way. In fact, we recently tried traveling to a conference with just a personal item. You can read about that adventure here. And if you really need a checked bag, don't worry. Since we help our clients earn a Southwest Companion Pass, the best travel perk around, that would equal two FREE bags. You are right, it's still less than the four bags you get currently, but it's more than zero. 

Second, we don't pay cash for flights. Period. As a rule, we also don't earn points for flying on Southwest because we fly for FREE. So whether passengers earn 2 points per mile or 6 points per mile, it doesn't matter to us since we don't earn any points when we fly. We earn points in different ways. 

If you are interested in learning more about how we earn points and fly for FREE or how to earn the Southwest Companion Pass, check out my Travel Coaching Program. I would love to meet you! 

Woohoo! We Are Featured On A National Podcast!

 

Woohoo! Almost FREE Family Travel is featured on The Thought Card podcast with Danielle Corbett. We focused on luxury travel for families.

How do you stay at the over water bungalow in Tahiti with a family of 5? How do you manage different interests of your family members?

Check it out here:

Read/Listen: How To Plan Luxury Family Travel on Points and Miles with Stephanie Antin

Here's the summary of what we talked about: 

"Discover how to make luxury family travel affordable. Stephanie Antin shares tips for maximizing points and miles for unforgettable adventures. Often, with a large family, luxury travel seems out of reach, but this doesn’t have to be the case. Using points and miles, luxury family travel has become more affordable than ever. Traveling with your family can be one of the most rewarding experiences, but it can also be quite expensive. Fortunately, with the right strategies for maximizing points and miles, you can explore the world without breaking the bank. Since 2013, Stephanie Antin has mastered the art of points and miles travel, turning her family’s bucket list dreams into reality. She joins us to share her insights on how families can leverage points and miles to plan luxury family trips."

Listen to the podcast to get a promo code for $50 off my Travel Coaching Program. 

How To Find JetBlue Flights For Just 7000 Points

 

Let's just say this is number one zillion why I love Chase Ultimate Reward points. The option to transfer points to JetBlue. 

Jet Blue has six hubs, JFK, Orlando, Fort Lauderdale, Boston, San Juan and Los Angeles. And if you search flights, you can find one way flights for as low as 7,000 points and $5.60 in taxes. Wow! 

JetBlue partners with Hawaiian Airlines, Iceland Air, Eithad, Qatar, TAP Portugal, Singapore Airlines and South African Airways. You book all of these airlines on the Jet Blue website so it's fairly easy. To find these incredible deals, go to the JetBlue.com website. Enter your departure airport and destination airport and a date. Be sure to click use true blue points. 

Look at this flight from JFK to Orlando, Florida. 

To get a monthly overview, click on the date.

But it gets even more interesting if you want to fly across the pond. Look at this one way flight from LAX to Lisbon, Portugal. Taxes are shown as $5.60 and the cash price is more than $800. Wow! 

What's amazing about this is your Chase Ultimate Reward points transfer to Jet Blue 1:1 which makes these flights very cheap plus the taxes are low. In my travel coaching program, I show you how you can earn thousands of CUR points easily with just your normal purchases. 

Now whenever you are planning to transfer points from Chase, Citi or Amex to an airline, be sure the flight is available BEFORE you transfer points because you can't get the points back. 

The transfer should happen immediately though the fine print says it could take a few days. 

I usually put the flights I want in the cart and then make the transfer. You may have to log out and back in for the points to show up in your Jet Blue account. 

My favorite way to earn Chase Ultimate Rewards is with my Chase Sapphire Reserve credit card. Right now, you can earn 60,000 bonus points with a $4,000 minimum spend. It also includes a Global Entry credit, Priority Pass Lounge Access and travel delay and cancellation insurance. If the $550 annual fee for the Sapphire is too heft, my next favorite is the Chase Sapphire Preferred credit card. It comes with the same bonus offer and less benefits, but only has a $95 annual fee. 

Need guidance finding and making these redemptions, join my travel coaching program and let me help you. Use the promo code "FREETRAVEL" for $50 off. 

New $1,000 Bonus Travel Offer On Capital One Venture

 

Great new offer from Capital One! 

Apply for the Capital One Venture credit card and get $250 to use as a travel credit in the Capital One travel portal plus 75,000 points. That's $1,000 in free travel. Wow! The minimum spend is still $4,000 and the annual fee is just $95. 

This offer is equivalent to the Venture X offer, but the annual fee is $300 less. Amazing! 

Read here about my hack to use travel purchases to reach the minimum spend and erase them BEFORE you have to pay. It's crazy!

This is my go to credit card for any purchases that don't earn bonus points on the Chase FREEDOM or Sapphire Reserve credit cards. The Capital One Venture card earns 2x points on all purchases. The beauty of these flexible points is you can transfer points to a dozen different airlines including my new fave FlyingBlue.com, a few hotel chains and of course, you can erase travel purchases. 

The travel credit is only good for travel purchases made in the Capital One Travel portal, but I have found that the portal has improved and is actually quite reliable and easy to use. 

I actually got this card when we were going on a family trip to Costa Rica. By family, I mean extended family trip, you know, like a group of 20 people. The deal was everyone had to pay for their own airfare, but then once in Costa Rica, the trip would be a gift. Pretty sweet! The only other catch is we all had to fly on the same Delta flight. Since I didn't have enough Delta miles for 5 round trip airline tickets, my husband and I each applied for the Capital One Venture card. We charged the plane tickets and everything else to those cards to meet the minimum spend and we ended up getting three of the tickets FREE. 

Now I still like this card, however, I like the Chase Sapphire Preferred and Reserve cards better. Here's why:

• Capital One every purchase earns 2 points per dollar
• Chase Sapphire Preferred and Reserve - most purchases earn 1:1, but dining and travel earn 2:1 and there are categories where you can earn 5:1 if you have Chase FREEDOM, FLEX or INK cards. 
• Capital One points value are 1:1 when you use them to erase purchases
• Chase Sapphire Preferred values points at 1:1.25 if you use them in the travel portal or as a statement credit
• Chase Sapphire Reserve values points at 1:1.5 if you use them in the travel portal or as a statement credit 
• Capital One and Chase offer 1:1 transfer values to airline miles, but Chase offers way more partner airlines and hotels. 

I still think the Chase Sapphire Preferred and Reserve offer more flexibility than the Capital One.  But if you already have the Sapphire cards or the airline partners on the Capital One list work better for you, this is a great option. 

If you decide to give this one a go, consider using my referral link. You get the same great bonus offer and I get a little something for referring you and can use it to bring you more great ideas on how to travel for Almost FREE. 

If you would like to join my travel coaching program, you can use this link.   I would love to help you and your family travel for almost FREE. Use the promo code FREETRAVEL for $50 off.