What It's Like Using The Yosemite Day Pass

 

It looks like a painting, but it's real. This is Yosemite National Park in California. It's a beautiful and awe-inspiring home to El Capitan, Half Dome, and Yosemite Falls. Amazing! 

This summer, you need a reservation to visit the park. Starting May 21st, every car that passes through the gate needs either a day pass reservation or a reservation at a hotel, lodge, or campground inside the park. 

The day pass costs $35 and is good for 3 consecutive days. You can buy it at recreation.gov.  I did a quick check and there were still tickets available for some days in July and most of August. I entered a date that showed no availability and the computer indicated that more tickets would be released about a week before. So keep trying! 

And if you have a National Park annual pass, be sure to check the box so you don't pay for the day pass. I missed that, but the ranger at the entry gate told me how to ask for a refund. I arrived at the entry gate at 7:30am and there were only 4 cars in line ahead of me. A friend of mine left the park in the afternoon the week before and said the line was 2 miles long. 

So it may be smart to arrive early. Gates open at 5am. There are multiple gates to enter the park depending on from which direction you arrive. Hwy 41 is closest to Fresno, Hwy 140 is closest to Merced and Hwy 120 is closest to San Francisco. 

I entered on Hwy 120 which is a super windy road known as the New Priest Grade with nearly 100 hairpin curves. Apparently, the new Priest Grade is actually better than the old Priest Grade. Hard to believe. If you are prone to car sickness, I do not recommend this route. 

I exited by Highway 41 which is much less curvy and you pass the Mariposa Grove with the giant Sequoias. However, there are no shuttle buses this summer so the hike to the Grove is 4 miles roundtrip. 

Once inside, Highway 41 will lead you through a long tunnel and then let you out into the valley. Spectacular! Down on the valley floor, day pass parking is available near the Yosemite Lodge. It's a good starting point since it's just a 5 minute walk from there to the Lower Yosemite Falls. The Lower Falls is an easy walk. The Upper Falls is a 6-8 hour hike. 

From the Falls, you can continue walking into Yosemite Village where there is a souvenir shop, Ansel Adams Gallery, and a giant Sequoia stump. If you continue walking towards the Ahwahnee Lodge, you will come upon a meadow with a great view of Half Dome. 

As far as accommodations, if you book early or are super lucky, you may find something inside the park. The only campground that offers reservations the day before is camp 4 located next to the Yosemite Lodge. Reservations open at 12:01am the night before. All the other campgrounds filled up months ago. 

There were a few rooms available when I checked but they were priced upwards of $300 per night. 

Oakhurst is a popular town 16 miles outside of the Hwy 41 Entrance Gate with all the major hotel brands and a couple of grocery stores. 

Enjoy the park and remember to get your day pass! 

How You Can Get 5x Marriott Points on Gas Purchases

 

If you have a Chase credit card, chances are you have a bonus offer waiting to be activated that will get you 5x or even 10x points on certain purchases. 

For example, I entered my Chase Marriott Premier credit card and this offer came up. 10x total points at Marriott including for gift cards and 5x points on travel and at gas stations. Pretty Sweet! 

The bonus offer is good through August 15, 2021, but you do need to activate the card. 

I'm hearing that the bonus offers are good on Chase Disney, Hyatt, IHG, Marriott, United and Southwest co branded credit cards. But you have to activate the card first. 

So take advantage of the bonus! Makes the high gas and hotel prices just a bit easier to handle right now. 

50x Points Promotion from Southwest Airlines on June 11th

Wow! Wow! Mark your calendar for this one! In honor of its 50th birthday, Southwest is doing a one-day 50x Rapid Reward Points on all Southwest purchases. And I think I found a way to make this deal a little bit sweeter. 

First, in order to get 50x points, you need to purchase directly from Southwest.com on June 11th between 12am EST and 11:59pm EST. For those of us out here in California, be sure to pay attention to the time difference. You must make the purchase with any Southwest credit card. If you don't have one yet, consider using my referral link to apply. You can read about the cards here to decide which one suits you best. 

You will get 50x points on Southwest purchases up to $100. So you may be asking what kind of flight am I going to take for $100? or sure, I'll spend $250 on a flight, but only get 50x points on $100? Hold on. This promotion is good on gift cards and buying points. The bonus points count towards the companion pass, but not towards A-list or A-list preferred. 

Southwest is also currently running a 40-45% discount sale on Rapid Reward points. 

So my plan is to buy $100 worth of points on June 11th. I will actually have to spend $115 for 7,000 points with the sale since you have to buy points in thousands. That purchase should qualify for the 50x bonus points. So I will actually get 12,000 points for $115. Not bad. 

Since I already have the companion pass, I can use those points to fly myself and my companion anywhere I want to go. Nice! If you are trying to earn the companion pass, this bonus will help. 

I don't usually recommend buying points, but in this case, I think you will get more value and it's easier to change travel plans when you pay with points at Southwest than using a gift card. 

If you don't want to buy points, then buy a $100 gift card and you will still get the 50x bonus. Just make sure you do it on June 11th. 

And Southwest has another promotion going, this one is a play-to-win type. Here is the link, you can play once a day through June 18th and try to win some FREE points. You will have to enter your information every day which is kind of tiresome, but you may win some points. I've played twice and haven't won anything yet. 

 

Here's the link and good luck! 

High Gas Prices Means More Southwest Points

 

High gas prices making you crazy? Well, consider this. Right now, Southwest is offering 5x points when you purchase gas with your Southwest credit card. Other travel will earn 5x points too. 

From 5/15/2021 - 8/15/2021, use any Southwest credit card to purchase gas and earn 5x points. You will also earn 6x points on any Southwest purchase. You must register first for this bonus offer. You can do that at this website. 

It makes the high gas prices just a bit easier to handle if you can dream about your next trip! 

Spend $10, Get $10 On Amazon

 

Here's a deal for you. 

Spend at least $10 on small business products between June 7th and June 20th and you will get $10 credit to spend on Amazon Prime Day. Amazon Prime Day is June 21 and 22 this year. 

Typically, Amazon offers amazing deals on thousands of items on this day or days. The credit will be sent via email. 

For more information on this promotion, click here. 

How You Can Get $1,000 In 3 Easy Steps Thanks To Chase

 

Here's a great way to travel FREE this summer. Chase is offering 100,000 points (value $1,250) for the Sapphire Preferred credit card. Now, this is one of my favorite cards anyway, but coupled with this amazing bonus offer, woohoo! 

Here's the deal: 

• $4000 minimum spend in the first 3 months
• 100,000 Ultimate Reward Points
• $95 annual fee, not waived the first year
• 2x points on travel and dining
• 1x points on everything else
• Redeem points at 1.25 in the Chase travel portal and Pay Yourself Back
• Complimentary Dashpass subscription with Door Dash
• $60 credit on Peloton membership

You qualify for this deal if you have excellent credit, do not currently hold a Sapphire card, and have not received a new member bonus in the past 48 months. 

The Sapphire Preferred and Reserve are my favorite cards right now due to the flexibility of the Ultimate Reward Points. You can transfer the points to more than a dozen airlines and hotels including Southwest, IHG, Hyatt, and Marriott. 

If you decide to hop on this offer, please consider using my referral link. That's how we do it at almostfreefamilytravel.com 

Easy Way To Earn 65,000 Southwest Airlines Points

 

One of the best travel rewards out there is the Southwest Airlines Companion Pass (a BOGO on flights) and now Southwest is offering a huge bonus to make it easier to earn. 

Through July 14th, open any of the personal Southwest credit cards, spend $2,000 and you will earn a bonus of 65,000 points. Wow! This is one of the highest offers we have ever seen. 

You earn the companion pass when you accumulate 125,000 points in a single calendar year. However, the earlier in the year, the better since the companion pass is good for the rest of the year in which you earn it AND the following year. 

I have saved thousands of dollars by having the companion pass. Just recently, we flew to New York for graduation and my youngest daughter was my companion so she flew FREE. 

Easy Way To Earn 65,000 Southwest Airlines Points 

There are three personal Southwest credit cards to choose from, but you can only hold one at a time. 

And before you choose the one with the lowest annual fee, read on. 

• Plus - $69 annual fee, 3,000 anniversary points, 2 points per $1
• Premier - $99 annual fee, 6,000 anniversary points, 2 points per $1, no foreign transaction fees
• Priority - $149 annual fee, $75 Southwest credit, 7,500 anniversary points, 2 points per $1, no foreign transaction fees, 4 upgrade passes

If you look closer, the Priority card is the best deal with the credit, upgrade passes and increased anniversary points. 

If you decide to apply for any of these cards, please consider using my referral link. Same deal, but it helps me keep flying and finding ways to save you money.