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Friday, March 13, 2026

Client Success Story! 100,000 Point Bonus Earned

Love getting emails from clients about their wins! This one made my day because it’s the first time this client has used points and miles for a trip—and it’s a big one. 🎉

They’re heading to Europe to celebrate their anniversary. The plan starts in Amsterdam during tulip season 🌷, then a flight to Prague, followed by a train ride to Vienna. Not a bad way to celebrate an anniversary!

Honestly, I wish I could tag along.

They reached out because they had some Chase Ultimate Rewards points but weren’t sure how to use them effectively. They wanted help turning those points into a memorable anniversary trip to Europe.

We talked through the best strategy: how to use their Chase points for flights, how to structure the itinerary, and how to leverage the rest of their travel spending to earn even more points that could offset additional costs.

Here’s what we put together:

✈️ Flights

75,000 Chase Ultimate Rewards points covered two round-trip flights from LAX to Amsterdam

🏨 Hotels

$300 Capital One Venture X annual travel credit applied toward a hotel stay

💳 Additional travel

100,000+ Capital One bonus points available for hotels and their flight from Amsterdam to Prague

We estimate this client will save approximately $3,000 on their anniversary trip! Woohoo! 😄

And that brings up a great question: What can you do with 100,000 Capital One points?

Quite a lot.

Depending on transfer bonuses and award availability, that balance could potentially cover multiple flights to Europe or several hotel stays.

Here are a few of the ways we like to use Capital One points:

✈️ Transfer to airline partners for award flights
🏨 Transfer to hotel partners for hotel stays
💳 Use the travel purchase eraser to offset travel charges
🌍 Book through the Capital One Travel Portal

You can read here about how I used Capital One points to get a free rental car and Lavatubing tour in Tahiti or how I used Capital One points for a 2 week family trip to Ireland.

One thing we generally don’t recommend: redeeming points for gift cards or statement credits. Those options typically deliver the lowest value for your points.

If this is your first time using points and miles, this is exactly the kind of strategy that can turn a pile of credit card points into a memorable trip. And honestly, there’s nothing better than seeing it all come together. ✈️🌍

Want more personal help using points and miles for almost FREE travel? Book a 1:1 consulting call, download my ebook, custom tracker or Join my Travel Coaching Program and we will design your personal strategy to travel for almost FREE and guide you through the process.

Right now, you can use the promo code "FREETRAVEL" to get $50 off the coaching program. I would love to help you make priceless family memories affordable.

*For every new client, we will donate 10% of the proceeds to one of our favorite charities.

Tuesday, March 3, 2026

How To Get Thousands of FREE Airline Miles Without Spending Extra $

I talk about shopping portals all the time because they’re one of the easiest ways to earn airline miles and hotel points on spending you’re already doing. 🛍️✈️

Today I want to show you a few real examples — plus some bonus offers that can help you stack even more points and miles.

Rakuten is my current favorite shopping portal 💻✨

Rakuten.com has become my go-to for earning extra rewards on everyday purchases.

For example: I buy cat food from Chewy.com every few months. If I take the extra step of starting at Rakuten and then clicking through to Chewy, I’m still shopping at the exact same website — but now I earn:

2% cash back from Rakuten
Plus 1x–2x points from my credit card

Chewy is listed on a bunch of shopping portals, so it’s always smart to check cashbackmonitor.com before you buy. When I checked, most portals were offering 1x points or miles at Chewy… but the Chase Freedom portal was offering 2x. 👀

The best part: Rakuten can pay out in points 🎯

Rakuten lets you earn rewards as:

Cash back
American Express Membership Rewards points
Bilt points

I linked my Rakuten account to Bilt, so every 4 months my Rakuten rewards automatically transfer into my Bilt account.

Quick Bilt refresher (because these points are legit)

Bilt points are a newer flexible currency — similar to Chase Ultimate Rewards, Amex, Citi, and Capital One.

You can transfer Bilt points to airline and hotel partners like:

Southwest
Alaska
Iberia
Virgin
Flying Blue (Air France/KLM)
Hyatt

A huge current Rakuten offer: Kraken 💰

Right now on Rakuten, the crypto platform Kraken is offering:

$150 back on a $225 deposit and purchase

If you’re earning in Bilt points, that’s essentially 15,000 Bilt points (since it transfers 1:1).

To put that into perspective:

My last flight from San Francisco to Los Angeles cost 4,500 Alaska points
The one before that cost 2,500 Southwest points
And yes, I brought a companion along for free 😅

Want to stack the deal even more? 🔥

If you open a Rakuten account using my referral link, you’ll get an extra 5,000 points after you spend $50.

So if you did the Kraken offer, you’d be looking at 20,000 Bilt points total.

And just to show how real this is: transfer those points to FlyingBlue.com and you can potentially book a one-way economy ticket on Air France from Los Angeles to Athens. Seriously.

Not into crypto? Totally fair 😄

If crypto isn’t your thing, you can still use the referral offer and earn the bonus on a normal purchase.

I used it once to send flowers to a friend as a thank-you and earned the 5,000 points that way. You could also use it on something basic like… cat food. 🐾

More bonus offers to earn points on everyday life ✈️🍽️🚗

United + Instacart 🛒

If you link your Instacart account with your United account and make a grocery purchase within 60 days, United will give you:

500 miles for free

If you’re a new Instacart customer and make 4 orders in 8 weeks, United will give you:

5,000 miles

I just did this and added another stack. I clicked on Rakuten.com which was offering 3x points on Instacart then placed an order with my Capital One Venture X to earn 2x points and 500 bonus United miles. Woohoo!

Lyft partnerships 🚙

Link your Hilton, Alaska, Bilt, or United account with Lyft and earn points every time you ride.

Prefer Uber? You can link Uber + United for extra miles too.

Airbnb miles 🏡

Book through Delta Airbnb to earn Delta miles
You can also earn British Airways Avios on Airbnb stays through their earning portal

Rental car miles 🚗

I’ve linked my Budget Rental account to my Southwest Airlines account — so every rental earns me 500 Southwest miles.

VRBO + United 🧳

United also has a partnership with VRBO, so you can earn United miles on stays.

Dining points through IHG + OpenTable 🍷

On the IHG website, you can access OpenTable and earn:

150 IHG points every time you dine out

The takeaway

None of these require extra spending — they just require one extra click or a quick account link. And over time, these little wins can add up to real flights and hotel nights. 😎

There are even more offers like this out there, so check the websites (or social pages) for your favorite brands and see who they partner with for rewards.

Right now, you can use the promo code "FREETRAVEL" to get $50 off the coaching program. I would love to help you make priceless family memories affordable.

*For every new client, we will donate 10% of the proceeds to one of our favorite charities.

Saturday, February 21, 2026

How to Attend a Destination Wedding in Cancun (Without Blowing Your Budget)

TRS Coral Costa Mujeres, a Registry Collection Hotel

How to Attend a Destination Wedding in Cancun (Without Blowing Your Budget)

Beautiful Cancun, Mexico 🌊
Destination weddings are more popular than ever. For the bride and groom, they often mean a stunning setting and a more affordable celebration. For guests, though, they can quickly turn into a pricey commitment once you factor in flights, hotel minimums, and resort rates.

So what do you do when you’re invited to a destination wedding—but don’t want to drain your savings? Here’s exactly how I approached a recent invitation and ended up saving thousands.

The wedding hotel reality check

We were invited to a wedding at the TRS Coral Costa Mujeres—gorgeous, no question. The couple reserved a wedding room block at a “special” rate of $408 per night 😬
But there was a three-night minimum stay.

That’s over $1,200 before flights or transfers.

Step one: look beyond the wedding block

A quick search showed that TRS Coral Costa Mujeres is an all-inclusive Wyndham property. On the Wyndham website, rooms were priced a bit more than the wedding rate—but with no three-night minimum 👀

Even better:

Rooms were available for 30,000 Wyndham points per night

I already had 18,000 Wyndham points, so I was part of the way there. But how do I gather enough points?

Step two: run the math on buying points

Wyndham offered me the option to buy points with a 45% discount. To cover three nights, I’d need an additional 72,000 points, which would cost $514.

For three nights at an all-inclusive? $514 is already a huge improvement over $1,200.

But could I do better? Of course.

Step three: stack promos and transfers

Wyndham was also running an 80% bonus on purchased points. Buying 72,000 points would cost about $520—roughly the same.

Then I asked the most important question:
Do any flexible points transfer to Wyndham?

✔️ Yes—Capital One and Citi Thank You transfer 1:1.

I had 14,000 Capital One points. If I transferred those to Wyndham, I’d only need to buy 58,000 points, dropping my cost to about $420 💡

The points sale runs through February 18th, so there’s also time to:

Shop through the Wyndham Shopping Portal to earn more points
Keep earning points on my Capital One card
Reduce the number of points I need to buy

Step four: consider staying fewer nights

What if I stayed at the wedding hotel for just two nights?

Two nights = 60,000 points
With just Wyndham points, I’d need 42,000 additional points
→ Cost: about $300
With the Capital One points transfer to Wyndham, I would need 28,000 additional points
→ Cost: about $200

But is that the best value for my Capital One points? or does it make more sense to pay the $300 and use Capital One points to erase other travel purchases like the shuttle or flights? 14,000 Capital One points will erase a $140 travel purchase and I will have 90 days to continue erasing. Unfortunately, purchases to buy points do not usually code as travel so they cannot be "erased".

Step five: mix in another hotel

So where would I stay the remaining nights? Easy.

I checked the Chase Travel Portal and found:

InterContinental Presidente Cancun Resort by IHG for 18,428 Chase points
I could use the $250 Sapphire Reserve IHG hotel credit and pay just 6,000 Chase points.

I could:

Stay three nights for 35,000 Chase points + the $250 Sapphire Reserve IHG hotel credit, or
Use my IHG credit card free night + 8,000 points for one night 🏨and the $250 Sapphire Reserve IHG hotel credit for a the second night.
There were also several Edit hotels in the area where I could use my Chase Sapphire Reserve Edit credit and points.

The takeaway

With a little flexibility and some points strategy, I turned a $1,200 hotel stay into a much smaller out-of-pocket cost—while still staying at the wedding resort and celebrating with the couple 🥂

Destination weddings don’t have to wreck your travel budget. Celebrate the bride and groom—and keep your savings intact.

Right now, there is a hot 75,000 bonus offer on the Capital One Venture credit card, you can read about it here.

Want more personal help using points and miles for almost FREE travel? Talk to me about your next trip and I'll figure out the best way to use your points and miles, Book a 1:1 consulting call, download my ebook, custom tracker or Join my Travel Coaching Program and we will design your personal strategy to travel for almost FREE and guide you through the process.

Right now, you can use the promo code "FREETRAVEL" to get $50 off the coaching program. I would love to help you make priceless family memories affordable.

*For every new client, we will donate 10% of the proceeds to one of our favorite charities.

Monday, January 26, 2026

New Offer On One Of My Favorite Flexible Point Cards

Capital One just rolled out a surprisingly strong bonus on the reliable Venture Rewards Credit Card, and it’s worth a closer look 💳✨. This has long been one of my favorite “workhorse” cards because it earns 2x points on every purchase, no categories to track. It pairs especially well with cards that only earn 1x on everyday spending, like non-bonus Chase purchases.

One of the biggest advantages of Capital One points is flexibility ✈️🌍. You can transfer them to more than a dozen airline partners, including favorites like Flying Blue (Air France & KLM) and Air Canada Aeroplan which are my favorite ways to get to Europe.

Prefer something simpler? You can also use points to “erase” travel purchases at a 1:1 value, which is an easy and effective option. I don’t recommend using points for a statement credit, though—the value drops to just 0.5 cents per point, which isn’t great.

There’s also a lesser-known Capital One trick I love: you can sometimes use points before the purchase is even paid off 😮🎉. Yes, really—and it’s as satisfying as it sounds.

Current Capital One Venture Bonus Offer

Here’s what’s included with the latest offer:

75,000 bonus points after $4,000 in minimum spend 🎁
$250 Capital One Travel portal credit - read about how to use this credit here 🏨
$120 Global Entry or TSA PreCheck credit 🛂
$95 annual fee

All in, this is a very solid offer on a card that’s easy to keep long term 👍. If you’re thinking about applying, you can use this link to see if you’re pre-approved—no impact on your credit score to check.

Right now, you can use the promo code "FREETRAVEL" to get $50 off the coaching program. I would love to help you make priceless family memories affordable.

*For every new client, we will donate 10% of the proceeds to one of our favorite charities.

Sunday, December 21, 2025

The Chase Combo That Changed My Points Game 💳✨

The Chase Freedom Unlimited + Sapphire Combo That Changed My Points Game 💳✨

Want to know a points-earning strategy that actually makes sense? Pair the no-annual-fee Chase Freedom Unlimited with either a Sapphire Preferred or Reserve card. (I've got a full breakdown of how this duo works )

Here's why this matters: The Freedom Unlimited earns 1.5 points on literally everything, plus 3x at restaurants and drugstores, and 5x on travel booked through Chase. The real magic happens when you transfer those points to your Sapphire card—suddenly they're worth way more when you redeem them for travel.

Right now, there's a $300 bonus after you spend $500 🎉

Since there's no annual fee, this card pays for itself (well, technically it costs nothing). It's one of those rare no-brainer additions to your wallet that keeps working for you year after year.

Use my referral link to get the increased bonus

Want more personal help planning your next trip? Book a 1:1 consulting call, download my ebook, custom tracker or Join my Travel Coaching Program and we will design your personal strategy to travel for almost FREE and guide you through the process.

Right now, you can use the promo code "FREETRAVEL" to get $50 off the coaching program. I would love to help you make priceless family memories affordable.

*For every new client, we will donate 10% of the proceeds to one of our favorite charities.

Wednesday, December 17, 2025

Score Big Points: Chase Freedom Q1 2026 Categories Are Here! 💳

Chase just dropped the Q1 2026 rotating bonus categories for the Freedom (no longer available) and Freedom Flex cards, and there's some surprisingly specific earning potential this quarter.

Why These Cards Matter

Both Freedom cards charge zero annual fees and pair beautifully with premium Chase cards like the Sapphire Preferred or Sapphire Reserve. Since all your points pool together in the Chase Ultimate Rewards ecosystem, you're essentially earning 5x points that can transfer to travel partners or boost redemptions through the Chase portal.

Q1 2026 Categories (Jan 1 - Mar 31)

Here's where you'll earn 5x points:

Norwegian Cruise Line 🚢
American Heart Association
Dining 🍽️

The Cruise Opportunity

Planning a Norwegian cruise in 2026? Here's a pro move: wait until January to book or pay your balance. A $3,000 cruise booking would generate 15,000 Chase points—that's serious value from a no-fee card. Even final payments on existing bookings should qualify if processed during Q1.

Dining Never Gets Old

The dining category remains one of the most practical bonus opportunities. Whether you're grabbing coffee, ordering takeout, or enjoying a nice meal out, those 5x points add up quickly over three months.

Don't Forget to Activate! ⚠️

Activate your card by March 14th to earn bonus points. The good news? Activation is retroactive to January 1st, so you won't miss out on early purchases.

New to Chase Freedom?

The Freedom Flex currently offers a $200 welcome bonus after spending $500 in the first three months. That's a solid return for everyday spending, plus you'll be ready for future rotating categories.

If you don't have a Chase Sapphire Reserve credit card yet and these credits sound interesting to you, there is an increased 125,000 point offer right now for a $6,000 minimum spend. You can read more about the benefits of the card here. If that's too steep for you, the Chase Sapphire Preferred is also offering an increased 75,000 point bonus offer for $5,000 minimum spend.

Right now, you can use the promo code "FREETRAVEL" to get $50 off the coaching program. I would love to help you make priceless family memories affordable.

*For every new client, we will donate 10% of the proceeds to one of our favorite charities.

Friday, December 5, 2025

Stack, Stack, Stack To Earn The Most Points And Miles

This is the best time of the year to earn so many extra points and miles! The secret is to stack the offers when you are doing your holiday shopping online. A few things to keep in mind, you don't have to use the credit card that matches the shopping portal. For example, you can shop in the Southwest Shopping Portal, but pay with your Capital One credit card to get 2x points. Make sense?

I'll give you several examples that I've actually done in the past week.

Example #1

Southwest Shopping Portal is offering 1,000 extra points if you spend $200 in the portal. That's easy, let's stock up on pet food.

The Southwest shopping portal is also offering 2 points per $1 spent on purchases at Chewy. Awesome. Then we pay for our purchase with Paypal and our Chase FREEDOM FLEX credit card which nets us 5x points since this card has the 5x bonus rotating categories.

So this one pet food purchase should earn:

1,000 bonus Southwest points
400 Southwest points
1,000 Chase Ultimate Rewards

Example #2

I was referred to Rakuten.com and bought flowers for a friend through 1-800flowers. I spent $65 on flowers, but got a FREE $50 for following the referral link plus 10% bonus cash back. Then I linked my Bilt account with my Rakuten account. Rakuten transferred more than 5,000 points into my Bilt account. You don't need a Bilt credit card, just create an account. Be sure your email is the same on both accounts. Woohoo! When I'm ready I can transfer the Bilt points to dozens of airlines or hotels like Air France, KLM, Southwest, Hyatt and more. On the first of the month, Bilt offers transfer bonuses too so I may be able to squeeze more value out of those points.

So this flower purchase earned:

$50 referral cash
10% cash back
5,500 Bilt points that I can transfer the points to dozens of airlines or hotels

Example #3

I wanted to buy a new Iphone, Capital One Shopping was offering 10% back on Apple purchases and I could pay for the phone with Paypal and my Chase FREEDOM FLEX credit card for 5x Chase Ultimate Rewards points.

So this phone purchase earned:

$69.90 Capital One shopping rewards which I can use to buy gift cards for stores like Home Depot, Ulta and REI. Use this referral link and you get a FREE $40.
3,000 Chase Ultimate Rewards points

To find these deals, start with cashbackmonitor.com and my new fave Rakuten.com. The $50 referral offer is still active so use my link.

Right now, you can use the promo code "FREETRAVEL" to get $50 off the coaching program. I would love to help you make priceless family memories affordable.

*For every new client, we will donate 10% of the proceeds to one of our favorite charities.

Tuesday, November 4, 2025

Points Ecosystems: A 4-Person Portugal Field Test

Points Ecosystems: A 4-Person Portugal Field Test ✈️

Portugal is absolutely one of those bucket-list destinations! Sun-drenched cities, incredible food, and history around every corner. Even better? With some clever planning, it’s also an incredibly affordable one. Before we dive into what to eat and see in Lisbon and Porto, let's look at the most exciting part: free flights!

I often hear from clients who get stuck at the points-redemption stage. They have the points, they want to book, but they freeze up worrying they aren't getting the best deal or doing it "right."

I’m about to show you that there isn't one "right way." There are many different ways to get to the exact same destination using different combinations of points and miles, and all of them are wins! Hopefully, this case study takes some of the pressure off your next big booking.

The Ultimate Points Challenge

Recently, my family of four headed to Portugal for a much-needed getaway. But this wasn't a simple round-trip for four. Because of different schedules and starting points, we were traveling from four different cities on four different days to converge on Lisbon.

This logistical challenge turned into a perfect, real-life points-and-miles case study, demonstrating how powerful diverse redemptions can be. Here’s a look at the strategy for each traveler:

Traveler 1: The Multi-City Mixer

LAX → MAD | Nonstop via Iberia Airlines | 18,000 Iberia Avios + $60 | |
Seville (SVQ) → LIS | Positioning flight (booked via portal) | 8,000 Chase Ultimate Rewards (UR)
ATH → CDG → LAX | Return via Air France/KLM (Flying Blue) | 20,000 Chase UR (transferred to Flying Blue) + $80
Total Cost | | 46,000 points + $140 | The takeaway here is using Avios for low-tax redemptions and then transferring Chase points to a partner (Flying Blue) for the long-haul return.

Traveler 2: The Direct & Diversify

LAX → LIS | Direct via TAP Portugal (booked via portal) | 22,000 Chase UR
OPO → AMS → SAN | Return via KLM (Flying Blue) | 20,000 Chase UR (transferred to Flying Blue) + $80
Total Cost | | 42,000 points + $80 | A great reminder that sometimes the easiest redemption is through a portal (Chase) for the outbound, while a partner transfer (Flying Blue) is best for the inbound.

Traveler 3: The Flying Blue Promo Fare Hunter

SFO → CDG → LIS | Air France Promo Fare | 18,750 Chase UR (transferred to Flying Blue) + $120
LIS → AMS → SFO | KLM Promo Fare | 18,750 Chase UR (transferred to Flying Blue) + $177 | |
Total Cost | | 37,500 points + $297 | This person shows the magic of Promo Fares. They saved the most points overall by being flexible with connections and leveraging a great monthly transfer bonus.

Traveler 4: The Avios Madrid Hub Master

ORD → MAD | Iberia Avios Redemption | 20,750 Iberia Avios + $67
LIS → MAD | Cheap cash positioning flight | $50
MAD → ORD | Iberia Avios Redemption | 16,000 Iberia Avios + $36
Total Cost | | 36,750 points + $153 | The Avios sweet spot is real! By routing through Madrid, they used significantly fewer points for a transatlantic trip and spent only a little extra cash on the positioning flight.

The Grand Total & The Earning Strategy

To move four people from four different starting points across the Atlantic, we used:

Total Points and Miles Redeemed

Chase Ultimate Rewards: Approximately 107,500 points
Iberia Avios: 45,750 Avios
Total Cash Paid (Taxes/Fees/Cash Leg): ~$670

That’s four transatlantic flights and two positioning flights for minimal cash! 🤯

How We Earned the Points

Now for the second most-asked question: How do you have so many points?

Chase Points: My large stash came primarily from my Player 2 (P2) downgrading his Chase Sapphire Preferred credit card earlier this year and immediately reapplying to snag a huge 100,000-point welcome bonus. This is a classic, powerful strategy.
Iberia Avios: I earned 100,000 Iberia Avios a few years ago when Chase offered a whopping bonus on their co-branded Iberia Visa. I canceled the card after a year, but I kept the points alive by making a small, occasional purchase through the Iberia Shopping Portal—a simple trick to prevent expiration!

That's how it's done! Once you knock the big ticket item—the flights—out of the park for practically free, then you can relax and move on to redeeming for hotels, activities, and rental cars. If you aren't using points yet, focus on earning them for your next big trip. It’s absolutely worth the effort!

Right now, you can use the promo code "FREETRAVEL" to get $50 off the coaching program. I would love to help you make priceless family memories affordable.

*For every new client, we will donate 10% of the proceeds to one of our favorite charities.