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. 

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. 

Lessons Learned From My 2024 Year End Summary

 

Even though it is already February, I wanted to share my 2024 year end summary. I recommend to all my clients to do a year in review to see what points they used,  how they used them and look for trends. 

This exercise will help you in planning your travel goals for the next year. 

During the January live group coaching session last month, we did this exercise as a group. One of my clients completed the task and said 

"Wow! I knew we saved a lot of money this year by using points, but until I did this exercise, I didn't realize how much." 

Amazing!

Lessons Learned From My 2024 Year End Summary 

 

I do the same exercise with my own points and miles journey because we are always learning. So when I look at the above summary, here are some things I notice:

• I see that my family and I took 48 FREE flights in 2024 which is incredible. Most of those were on Southwest Airlines so we got a lot of use out of the Southwest Companion Pass. My pass expired December 31st, 2024, but I am working on earning another one for 2025-2026. 
• We stayed 28 FREE nights at hotels. Most of those were Hyatt Hotels which I really just discovered this past year and I love the value the chain offers. Most of those FREE nights were booked transferring Chase points to Hyatt. Most of those hotels cost between 5,000-12,000 point per night and included breakfast. 
• I used Capital One points for 1 FREE car rental that saved me $1,200 and 1.5 weeks in an Airbnb. Both utilized the "travel erase" feature. I don't tend to transfer Capital One points to airlines or hotels rather I use them to "erase" purchases that I can't use points for like car rentals, tours and Airbnb. This strategy may not be the right one for you, you may extract more value by transferring the points. 
• I only used the Chase Travel Portal one time to book travel using points. Just interesting to note. 
• I utilized my IHG points for a college family weekend stay because you can book 3 nights with points and get your 4th night FREE. This was a huge win because I booked the hotel early for very few points and as the college family weekend got closer, the rates skyrocketed and the hotel sold out. 
• For the March East Coast College Trip, we stayed at a lot of chain hotels that included breakfast so were able to use FREE nights that came with credit cards and minimal amount of points per night. The hotels varied between Hyatt, Hilton, IHG and a Marriott or two. 

Lessons Learned From My 2024 Year End Summary 

Reflecting on how I used points and miles this past year for travel:

• I'm excited that I was able to save approximately $40,000 and take my family on a spectacular 3 week trip to Tahiti. 
• I also love how we were able to visit lots of colleges and not stress about the cost of the trip. 
• We also spent more money on experiences and restaurants because we knew the flights and hotels were FREE. 
• I feel very good about how I spent miles and points and the value I was able to extract from them.

What will I do differently or improve for 2025? I would like to keep better track of the benefits and FREE nights that come with my cards. I just realized that Lyft Pink membership comes with my Chase Sapphire Reserve credit card and would have saved me $150. I also ended the year with one FREE night at an IHG hotel that almost expired without being used. 

How To Find Amazing Point Deals On Virgin Atlantic

People ask me all the time how I find great flight deals to Europe. There are no tricks, but there are some tips to find them. 

#1 is planning early. If you haven't started planning for next summer, you are late! But I'm here to help. 

#2 is knowing where to look for those deals

#3 is having the points available to jump on them when you find them

Let's go step by step and see what we can find. Suppose we are looking to go to Europe in summer 2025. Usually, I look for flights at least a year in advance so I can find the best deal and get my points earned in time to buy the flights when they open 330 days in advance. But sometimes you can't plan that far out so let's see what's around now. 

My two favorite airlines currently to hop across the pond are Virgin Atlantic and Flying Blue (KLM and Air France).

First, let's check Virgin Atlantic to see how many miles we would need to book Washington DC to London on July 8th.

Even now, you could book a flight from Washington Dulles to London for just 6,000 Virgin points and $73 in taxes in July 2025. Pretty sweet. Last month, Chase was offering a 40% transfer bonus and this month American Express is offering the same deal. With the transfer bonus, this flight would only cost approximately 4,000 points. Crazy! 

For a family of 5 like mine, you are talking just 20,000 points and less than $400 to hop across the pond. 

Now let's check Flying Blue. 

Flying Blue is the loyalty program for both KLM and Air France. It's not the loyalty program for Virgin Atlantic, but that airline shows up on the portal as well. But now look at the points. On Flying Blue, it would cost you 20,000 miles and $124 in taxes for the one way flight from Washington Dulles to London. Still a great deal, but definitely not as good as on Virgin Atlantic. Occasionally, Chase and Amex will offer transfer bonuses to Flying Blue as well making this deal even better. 

To find these deals on Virgin, you will need to start at the reward seat checker. Once you enter your departure and destination airport, you will get a view of the month you choose and available reward seats. 

Then you go to the actual website and put in your dates to locate the flights. 

Now here's where it gets interesting. You might be saying this is all great, but I don't have any Virgin Atlantic or Flying Blue points. 

That's true, most of us don't. 

But if you follow my blog or have worked with me in the travel coaching program, you know how much I love flexible points. My favorite flex points are Chase and Capital One and this is when they come in especially handy. 

Both Chase and Capital One are transfer partners for Flying Blue and Virgin Atlantic. You can read here about how to transfer your flex points to dozens of different airlines and several hotel chains. 

Remember once you transfer your points, you can't get them back even if the flight is no longer available. 

Right now, you can pick up 75,000 Capital One points by applying for the Capital One Venture or Venture X cards. 

• Both come with a 75,000 bonus for a $4,000 minimum spend. 
• The Venture card has a $95 annual fee and the Venture X has a $395 annual fee because it also comes with a $120 Global Entry credit, Priority Pass membership and a $300 travel credit. 

For Chase points, our favorite cards are the Chase Sapphire Preferred and Sapphire Reserve credit cards. 

Both come with a 60,000 point bonus for $4,000 minimum spend. The Preferred has a $95 annual fee and the Reserve has a $550 annual fee, but comes with a $300 travel credit, $120 Global Entry credit and Priority Pass membership. 

Don’t spend tons of money on your next vacation. Instead, let us help you travel for almost FREE forever. Join our coaching program today, and start making your travel dreams a reality—just like this success story!

We can’t wait to see you in the program and help you unlock all the amazing travel rewards waiting for you.

Woohoo! Let’s make your next trip an AlmostFREE adventure!

https://travelplus.virginatlantic.com/reward-flight-finder/results/month?origin=LHR&destination=JFK&month=02&year=2025

Travel Insurance: Do You Need It And Which Should You Choose

Are you travelling for the holidays? A lot of us are and well, when we travel things happen. So the question is should you buy travel insurance? 

Well it depends. 

Our client, Deborah, said that travel insurance recently saved her thousands of dollars when she and her partner came down with Covid while on a trip to Croatia and Greece. They had to change plans and stay at an island hotel for 5 days while they recovered. Travel insurance covered the additional hotel nights, cancelled hotel nights, food and transportation. 

Some credit cards include travel insurance if you buy your flights, hotels or car insurance with it. If you use points to buy your flights and/or hotels, coverage will depend on how you booked the flight and hotel. Did you transfer the points to an airline or hotel partner, if you did, then Chase considers itself no longer responsible for the trip. And you would only be covered if you purchased travel insurance from the carrier or hotel brand. 

If you booked through the Chase Travel Portal, then Chase would still cover your trip and would refund you in cash rather than points. 

The credit cards we like that include travel insurance are:

Chase Sapphire Reserve -  details about coverage from Chase.com 

• Travel and Emergency Assistance Services: If you run into a problem away from home, call the Benefit Administrator for legal and medical referrals or other travel and emergency assistance. (You will be responsible for the cost of any goods or services obtained.)
• Trip Delay Reimbursement: If your common carrier travel is delayed more than 12 hours (six hours for Sapphire Reserve) or requires an overnight stay, you and your family are covered for unreimbursed expenses, such as meals and lodging, up to $500 per ticket.
• Trip Cancellation / Interruption Insurance: If your trip is canceled or cut short by sickness, severe weather and other covered situations, you can be reimbursed up to $10,000 per person and $20,000 per trip for your pre-paid, non-refundable travel expenses, including passenger fares, tours and hotels.
• Baggage Delay Insurance: Reimburses you for essential purchases like toiletries and clothing for baggage delays over six hours by passenger carrier up to $100 a day for 5 days.
• Lost Luggage Reimbursement: If you or an immediate family member check or carry-on luggage that is damaged or lost by the carrier, you're covered up to $3,000 per passenger.
• Auto Rental Collision Damage Waiver: Decline the rental company's collision insurance and charge the entire rental cost to your card. For Sapphire Reserve cardmembers, coverage is primary and provides reimbursement up to $75,000 for theft and collision damage for rental cars in the U.S. and abroad. Sapphire Preferred Cardmembers can be reimbursed up to the actual cash value of the vehicle, but coverage excludes certain cars, such as high value and exotic vehicles.
• Travel Accident Insurance: When you pay for your air, bus, train or cruise transportation with your card, you are eligible to receive accidental death or dismemberment coverage of up to $500,000 ($1,000,000 for Sapphire Reserve).
• Certain travel reimbursement, cancellation protection and emergency services are available to Chase Sapphire Reserve® cardmembers on eligible travel booked with their credit card. Here’s some more information about the benefits offered with the card.
• Emergency Evacuation and Transportation - If you or a member of your immediate family are injured or become sick during a trip far from home that results in an emergency evacuation, you can be covered for medical services and transportation up to $100,000.
• Roadside Assistance - If you have a roadside emergency, you can call for a tow, jumpstart, tire change, locksmith or gas. You’re covered up to $50 per incident 4 times a year.
• Emergency Medical and Dental Benefit - If you're 100 miles or more from home on a trip, you can be reimbursed up to $2,500 for medical expenses if you or your immediate family member become sick or injured.

Chase Sapphire Reserve is one of our favorite cards, it comes with 60,000 bonus points, $300 travel credit, Priority Pass Lounge Membership, $120 Global Entry credit and more.

Capital One Venture X - details about coverage from Capitalone.com 

• Trip cancellation and interruption insurance - If you booked and paid for your trip with a card belonging to a network that offers trip cancellation and interruption insurance, you may qualify for reimbursement in certain situations. For example, they can include unexpected health issues or accidental injuries. The death of an immediate family member or someone in your travel party may also qualify. Maximum reimbursement depends on your card and can vary significantly. For example, some Capital One consumer credit cards may offer up to $2,000 per trip. (For others, it could be less or more.)
• Trip delay insurance - Travel schedules don’t always go as planned. Flights may get delayed or severe weather may affect your travels. Or you may need to pay for a meal or last-minute hotel room while you wait. If you paid for your trip with a card that has trip delay insurance, certain reasonable costs you incur during the delay might be covered.
• Rental car insurance - If you pay for a rental car with your card, you might be able to skip the added cost of buying insurance through the rental company. Credit card rental car insurance through some Capital One cards could cover collisions and theft.
• Lost or delayed baggage insurance - Lost, delayed or even stolen baggage can interrupt your trip. If you need to buy replacement items, you could be reimbursed.
• Travel accident insurance - In cases of severe injury or death, you or your family members could receive benefits if you booked and paid for your trip with a card that offers travel accident insurance.

Capital One Venture X is my second favorite credit card because it earns 2x points on every purchase, offers a 75,000 bonus, $300 travel credit, $120 Global Entry credit and access to Capital One Lounges. 

If your credit card doesn't cover your needs or if you need additional travel insurance for a cruise or tour, I recommend Faye Travel Insurance. It's generally inexpensive and you can adjust coverage on the company website to suit your needs. 

I am an official partner with Faye Travel Insurance so reach out if you need help with this. 

Another Client Success Story: $3,000 Off A Trip To Croatia and Greece

 

Woohoo! Another AlmostFREEFamilyTravel.com Success Story!

Are you dreaming of a European getaway without the hefty price tag? Well, get ready for some exciting news!

One of our amazing coaching program students just completed a three-week trip to Croatia and Greece this past summer with her partner, and they saved over $3,000 on their entire trip by leveraging the power of points and miles! Yes, you read that right—$3,000 in savings!

How Did They Do It?

With a little guidance and strategy, they turned their dream vacation into a budget-friendly reality. Here’s how they pulled it off:

• Partner Airlines & Repositioning Flights: By flying with partner airlines and booking repositioning flights, they saved big on international and regional travel.
• Strategic Earning & Redeeming of Points: They mastered the art of earning and redeeming Chase Ultimate Rewards and Capital One points to cover flights, hotels, and even upgrades!
• Airport Lounges & Premium Economy Upgrades: Instead of spending money on expensive meals and cramped flights, they relaxed in airport lounges and enjoyed premium economy seats. Talk about luxury for less!

Sounds amazing, right? We’re thrilled to see them experience such incredible success—and you can do the same!

How You Can Do It Too!

By joining our AlmostFREEFamilyTravel.com Coaching Program, you'll gain access to all the insider knowledge and tools that made this success story possible. Here’s what you’ll get:

• Video Series: Learn how to maximize your travel rewards and points with easy-to-follow lessons.
• Custom Tracker: Stay organized and on top of your travel goals with our personalized tracker.
• 1:1 Consulting Session: Get expert advice tailored to your travel plans.
• Live Monthly Group Coaching: Join a community of like-minded travelers, ask questions, and get feedback in our monthly live coaching sessions.

And here’s the best part— You can join right now for just $197! That’s a one-time payment for a lifetime of travel hacks, strategies, and savings!

But wait… we’ve got something extra special for you!

Black Friday Special: Save $50!

Use the coupon code “BlackFriday” at checkout to get $50 off the coaching program! This is the best deal we offer, and it expires November 30th at 11:59pm PST.

Don’t Miss Out on This Opportunity!

Don’t spend tons of money on your next vacation. Instead, let us help you travel for almost FREE forever. Join our coaching program today, and start making your travel dreams a reality—just like this success story!

We can’t wait to see you in the program and help you unlock all the amazing travel rewards waiting for you.

Woohoo! Let’s make your next trip an AlmostFREE adventure!

---

P.S. The $50 off Black Friday deal won’t last forever, so grab your spot now and start planning your next European getaway (or wherever your heart desires)!

Guide To Getting Your First Credit Card

Watching the Northern Lights from inside an igloo in Lapland, Finland

For the second time in a week, a young person in their 20's has asked me how to get started using points and miles. When I ask them what credit cards they have, they look at me with a blank look. "I use my debit card." 

Guide To Getting Your First Credit Card 

So let's take a step back and talk about how to dump the debit card, build a credit score and responsibly use a credit card. This is the first step towards using points and miles to travel. 

I have published a guide to getting started with 5 easy steps and one bonus tip so here you go:

1. Become An Authorized User - Ask your parents, partner, sibling or other trusted person if you can be an authorized user on their credit card. If they have a Capital One Venture X card, even better, because it’s FREE to add you and you get Capital One and Priority Airport Lounge access. But being an authorized user on any card will help you build a credit score. If you can't be an authorized user though, it's okay, just go on to step 2. 
2. Open Your First Credit Card - I recommend walking into the bank where you have your checking account to open your first travel credit card. If you do not have a checking account yet, then walk into the bank where your parents have their accounts. Open a checking account and apply for your first travel credit card.
3. Your First Credit Card - The first credit card should have NO annual fee. You will keep this credit card forever to boost your credit score. It doesn’t matter if it’s a Chase, Bank of America or Wells Fargo credit card. I recommend the Chase FREEDOM Flex, Unlimited or Rise no annual fee credit cards or the Bank of America Travel Rewards no annual fee credit card.
4. Set Up Auto Pay - The most important thing to remember is to pay your credit card balance in full every month. Credit cards charge crazy 25% interest on outstanding balances and you want no part of that. The easiest thing to do is to set up auto pay so you don’t forget.
5. Reach The Minimum Spend - Mark the date on your calendar that you opened the card and then mark a second date 90 days later. This is the date when you need to reach the minimum spend on the credit card to earn bonus points or cash.
6. Bonus tip: You will need to continue to use your new credit card and pay the bill on time every month for approximately one year. At that point, you should have a healthy credit score and be able to open your next card.

If you need more help, feel free to schedule a 1:1 coaching session with me or enroll in my travel coaching program. Both are super affordable and will help you be successful in traveling for almost FREE. 

You Got Capital One Lounge Access, Now What?

 

Enjoying an alberol spritz in the Capital One Lounge in Denver! So even though my flight was delayed, I was able to charge my phone, do some work, enjoy a drink or two and a nice meal. 

Lounge access comes with my Capital One Venture X credit card. In fact, I added my three children as authorized users which is FREE and they get lounge access too. Well worth, the $395 annual fee. 

But while I was waiting in line, I heard so many people confused about how lounge access works and how much it costs. 

So let's try to sort this out. 

You Got The Capital One Venture X Lounge Access, Now What?

For simplicity, I am going to focus on the Capital One Lounges (currently in Washington DC Dulles, Denver, Dallas and coming soon to Las Vegas) and the Priority Pass (a network of 1,600 lounges worldwide). I know there are other lounges out there for business class and various airlines, but we are just going to focus on these. 

First question, how do you get lounge access:

• Capital One Lounge - Capital One Venture X credit card holders get unlimited lounge access for Capital One Lounges. They can also bring two guests with them. Capital One Venture credit card holders get 2 lounge passes per year. 
• Priority Pass Lounge - Capital One Venture X credit card holders get membership included as a benefit for the card holder and authorized users. Chase Sapphire Reserve credit card holders get membership for the card holder only. Amex Platinum and Business Platinum cards holders also get membership included. Chase Sapphire Reserve, Amex and Capital One Venture X card holders can bring two guests. 

The Chase Sapphire Reserve credit card used to include a restaurant benefit as well which was awesome, but it dropped that benefit in July 2024. 

You Got The Capital One Venture X Lounge Access, Now What?

Once you activate your membership online to the Priority Pass, you will get a card in the mail and a digital card that you show at the lounge entrance along with your boarding pass. You can download the app and find lounges worldwide. 

You can only visit the lounge while you are waiting for a flight departure and not  upon arrival unless you are connecting to another flight. 

For the Capital One Lounges, you show your boarding pass and your Capital One credit card. Since there are only three lounges currently, they are packed and often have a waitlist. 

It's a good idea to get on the wait list, but it's a bit tricky to find in the app. 

You Got The Capital One Venture X Lounge Access, Now What?

• Login to your Capital One account
• Click on Explore rewards and benefits
• Click on Lounges in the upper right corner
• Click on the lounge
• You will see the current capacity and then a button to join the waitlist 
• Once you do that, you will get a text when it is your turn to enter 
• You have 10 minutes to show up or you will lose your turn and have to join the waitlist again

Both the Capital One Venture X and Venture card come with a 75,000 bonus for a $4,000 minimum spend. The Venture X carries a $395 annual fee, but you get a $300 travel credit, $120 Global Entry credit, Priority Pass membership and Capital One lounge access for the card holder and up to 4 authorized users for FREE. The Venture card only carries a $95 annual fee and comes with 2 lounge passes each year. 

The Chase Sapphire Reserve carries a hefty $550 annual fee, comes with a $300 travel credit, $120 Global Entry credit, Priority Pass lounge access and 1.5 to 1 value for Chase Ultimate Rewards points in the travel portal. 

Both Capital One and Chase Ultimate Reward points are considered flex points and can be transferred to dozens of airlines and hotels. 

If this sounds interesting to you, I recommend going through my points and miles course which includes a 1:1 strategy session with me, a custom tracker and ongoing group coaching. Let's get you traveling for almost FREE and making those priceless memories! 

🌟 Brand Loyalty: Friend or Foe?

 

We've all been there – falling head over heels for a particular travel brand. Maybe you're always flying with United, or you can't resist a Marriott stay. But is this unwavering loyalty serving you well? Let's break it down and see how flexible points can be a game-changer for family travel.

✈️ Flight Comparison: LAX to Tokyo

Imagine you're planning a family trip to Japan. As a United loyalist, you check their rates first:

• United Airlines: 110,000 miles round trip
• American Airlines: 70,000 miles round trip

That's a whopping 40,000-mile difference per person! For a family of five, that's a 200,000-mile saving. Talk about a loyalty tax!

🏨 Hotel Showdown in Tokyo

Now, let's look at accommodation options:

• Hyatt Regency Tokyo: 15,000 Hyatt points per night
• Moxy Tokyo (Marriott): 33,000 points per night (with 5th night free)

Both are great options, but what if you're locked into one brand? You might miss out on the best deal for your family.

💳 The Power of Flexible Points

This is where flexible points shine! With programs like Chase Ultimate Rewards, AMEX Membership Rewards, Capital One Miles, or Citi ThankYou Points, you can:

• Shop around for the best deals
• Transfer points to various airlines and hotels
• Use travel portals for bookings
• Erase travel purchases with points

Flexible points give you the freedom to choose the best value for your family's needs.

🌟 Brand Loyalty: Friend or Foe?

Right now, I am recommending two credit cards for most of my clients:

1. Chase Sapphire Preferred - 60,000 bonus points plus $300 travel credit for a $4,000 minimum spend and a $95 annual fee. This card also comes with a $50 hotel credit  You can only hold ONE Sapphire credit card and you are only eligible for the bonus every 48 months. 

2.  Chase Ink Business Unlimited - $900 cash (it's really 90,000 points), $0 annual fee, $6,000 minimum spend. Be sure to apply for the Business Unlimited.  Popup will redirect you to the offer. 

If you would like help planning your next adventure or using points and miles to take a bucket list vacation, check out our website for travel advising and our new Travel Coaching Program. We would love to help you and your family make memories! 

#FlexiblePoints #FamilyTravel #TravelHacks #PointsAndMiles #AlmostFreeTravel

Your Guide to Scoring Holiday Season Flight Deals

 

It's that time of the year. Time to look for holiday flights. Whether you are looking to take a holiday trip or bring a child home for the holidays, you may be searching for a cheap flight or at least a travel deal. 

Twice in the last week, clients have asked me for help finding discounts on holiday flights. So here is your guide to finding those cheap flights or at least cheaper:

1. Start with google.com/flights to see what's available and the going rate. Try various airports, days, times etc. to see if you can move the needle. We are going to search for flights from New York to LAX. Look at the difference just by flying from JFK or Newark. 

Try using the date grid to check out different combinations of days to get a lower price. 

2. Be flexible - You may want to travel on certain days, but if you stay an extra day or leave a day early, you could save a lot of money. For example, over Thanksgiving, if you can stay an extra day and travel on Monday, December 2nd, the price for the flight may drop in half. A hack is using the flexible calendar on google flights. 

3. Check travel portals like Chase or Capital One. - Will the portals offer you a deal if you use points? And if you end up having to buy the flight, at least, you will earn 5x points on the purchase. Be sure to check the flexible dates calendar here too. 

Even if the prices aren't lower, this is one of the times, flexible points come in handy. You get a discount if you use your Chase Ultimate Rewards points because they are worth 1.5:1 with the Chase Sapphire Reserve credit card and 1.25:1 with the Chase Sapphire Preferred credit card. You can see with my Reserve card, I could pick up this $697 flight for 46,438 points. Still painful, but at least there is a discount. 

Worse comes to worse, you buy this flight through the portal and earn 5x points. You can also set an alert through google.com/flights or in the travel portal to let you know if the price drops. It's unlikely, but you never know. 

The bottom line is that the more flexible you can be on your dates and times, the more you can save. And remember, most people plan their travel about six weeks out. In the case of travel deals around the holidays, the early bird gets the worm. 

If you would like some help, please reach out. We love finding travel deals and planning amazing vacations using points and miles.