Over the years, we’ve had many readers share their success stories with us. Folks for whom traveling domestically once a year was a luxury are now traveling the world with just a few credit card sign-up bonuses. And the best part? They are sharing their stories with us and others who benefit from knowing that it is possible to see the world at prices we can all afford.
If you have your own success story to share, please email us and if it gets published, we’ll send you a $25 Amazon gift card as a thank you.
I have always loved to travel to new places and spent a lot of my younger, single days travelling internationally as much as possible. But, now that I am married and have two kids, travelling has become much more expensive if we want to take the whole family. It is also harder to find the time and money to travel with a family of four and school schedules and extracurricular activities, etc. As a result, I had begun to try to make peace with the fact that my travelling was going to come to a screeching halt for the indefinite future.
But then, last summer, I was fortunate enough to stumble across this blog via a Pinterest post about travelling the world inexpensively. I became obsessive and compulsively read old posts, beginner posts, and new posts religiously. Although the idea of first class cabins and luxury travel is very appealing, I was more excited by the idea that by just using credit cards to pay for our everyday expenses and through signup bonuses, I would be able to travel the world with my family at reasonable prices, even if it is in coach.
After reading posts for several weeks, I started by opening a US Airways Dividend Miles card (now an AAdvantage Aviator Red card). We live in Arizona and fly US Airways/American often since Phoenix is a hub and, thanks to your blog, I knew that the upcoming merger meant that this card would not be available much longer. I got 50,000 miles as a signup bonus after my first purchase. Next, a couple of months later, I opened a Citi AAdvantage card – also for a 50,000-mile signup bonus (after spending $3,000 in 3 months). Between those two bonuses and the miles I already had from other travel as an AAdvantage member, I now had enough miles to take my family somewhere. My husband and I decided to target Hawaii for our older daughter’s spring break and 15th birthday (since they were the same week). Fortunately, our younger daughter is only a year and a half and still a lap infant, so I only needed enough miles for 3 people to fly free. So, we booked three tickets to Maui for only $33.60 out of pocket! Plus, since I booked the flights with the AAdvantage card, we also got 3 free checked bags, which definitely saved us some more money!
My husband and I each then opened Marriott Rewards cards, earning 80,000 points each after the $3,000 initial spending requirement. With the Marriott Rewards 5thnight free program, this gave us enough points for 5 free nights at the Wailea Beach Marriott Resort and Spa in Maui. While we did still have to pay the resort fee, which made the hotel $170 for the 5 nights, that is still a great deal for almost a week in Hawaii and the hotel was absolutely beautiful! We never would have been able to afford to stay there if we had been paying the nightly rate in addition to the resort fee!
The vacation was wonderful and very memorable. It was so great to celebrate my daughter’s 15th birthday at a luau and also to get to make those memories with our new daughter at the beach and in the ocean. I am so thrilled about how it all turned out and thankful to FrugalTravelGuy for making it possible! This is the first, real family vacation that we have been able to take since our baby was born and we certainly couldn’t have afforded the trip if it wasn’t for the points and miles we earned and the advice of your blog. Plus, because the hotel and flight were so cheap, we felt like we could spend a little more on food and activities (like snorkeling and a luau) to really enjoy our time on the island. I am sure I probably made mistakes and didn’t maximize points and miles here and there along the way, but my family had a great time and that’s what matters most to me. I am definitely hooked and already trying to plan future trips using points and miles! Thank you!!!
-Ali L.
[Image via Getty]
Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card
- Annual Fee: $95 fee waived for the first year
- Foreign Fees: No
- Card Type: Bank
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- Earn 50,000 bonus points when you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening. That's $625 toward travel when you redeem through Chase Ultimate Rewards®
- Named Best Credit Card for Flexible Travel Redemption - Kiplinger's Personal Finance, July 2016
- 2X points on travel and dining at restaurants worldwide & 1 point per dollar spent on all other purchases.
- Earn 5,000 bonus points after you add the first authorized user and make a purchase in the first 3 months from account opening
- No foreign transaction fees
- 1:1 point transfer to leading airline and hotel loyalty programs
- Get 25% more value when you redeem for airfare, hotels, car rentals and cruises through Chase Ultimate Rewards. For example, 50,000 points are worth $625 toward travel
- No blackout dates or travel restrictions - as long as there's a seat on the flight, you can book it through Chase Ultimate Rewards
Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card
- Annual Fee: $95 fee waived for the first year
- Foreign Fees: No
- Card Type: Bank
| FTG Review | Reward Breakdown | Points Breakdown |
|---|---|---|
Breakdown
Earn (pt.)
Spend
First 3 months
50,000
$4,000
Travel Purchases
2.00
$1
Restaurants Purchases
2.00
$1
Coffee Shops Purchases
2.00
$1
Fast Food Purchases
2.00
$1
Alcohol & Bars Purchases
2.00
$1
All Purchases
1.00
$1
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Already have this card? Maximize your rewards.
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