Points and Miles Travel Chats

Ask Me Anything: Points & Miles Travel Edition

This episode pulls back the curtain on the real-life systems we use as a family to earn and stretch our points. It’s full of practical answers, honest numbers, and lessons learned the hard way—so you can shortcut your own strategy.In today’s episode, we’re chatting aboutHow many personal and business credit cards I actively keep openWhy my credit score stays above 800—even with frequent applicationsWhat I do with cards after the first year (your 4 options)The real (and shocking) number I pay in annual fees each yearThe always “annual spend” question debunkedHow I think about using points vs cash for flights and hotelsThe #1 item I will not travel withoutThe biggest mistake I made when I started—and how it held us back for years👋 Hi! I'm Michele! A points and miles expert, using points for family vacations to Japan, Hawaii, Thailand, Greece, Italy, Spain, theme parks and so much more. I don't believe in spending more to earn more points. The key is knowing how to earn the best points and getting massive value from them. With a teenager in competitive sports & public school, traveling during the busiest of times is our family's norm. I'll show you my best tips & strategies to use points for making incredible family travel happen. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Fancy Travel Pointers is part of an affiliate sales network and receives compensation for sending traffic to partner sites, such as Bankrate.com. This compensation may impact how and where links appear on this site. This site does not include all financial companies or all available financial offers. Opinions expressed here are the author’s alone, not those of any bank, credit card issuer, hotel, airline, or other entity. This content has not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of the entities included within the post.

Earn & Use Capital One Miles Like a Pro

In today’s episode, we’re chatting aboutComparing personal Venture cards – which one is actually worth itThe new Capital One welcome offer eligibility rules — and the order they want you to apply inVenture X Business: huge welcome bonus, no 5/24 impact, and how it compares to the personal cardLounge access changes coming Feb 1, 2026 — how to pivotWhy my husband and I both keep the Venture XCapital One’s strongest transfer partners and my favorite ways to use the milesHow to combine miles with anyone who also has milesCash-back cards (Spark, Quicksilver, Savor) that secretly earn miles if you know the trickThe obscure referral rule that burned me — so you don’t repeat my mistakeCapital One Shopping Portal's underrated multipliers (and why it can beat Rakuten)Using Capital One miles to cover Disney/Universal tickets — and the coding mistake to avoid  FROM THIS EPISODEComparing Credit Cards with Airport Lounge Access👋 Hi! I'm Michele! A points and miles expert, using points for family vacations to Japan, Hawaii, Thailand, Greece, Italy, Spain, theme parks and so much more. I don't believe in spending more to earn more points. The key is knowing how to earn the best points and getting massive value from them. With a teenager in competitive sports & public school, traveling during the busiest of times is our family's norm. I'll show you my best tips & strategies to use points for making incredible family travel happen. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Fancy Travel Pointers is part of an affiliate sales network and receives compensation for sending traffic to partner sites, such as Bankrate.com. This compensation may impact how and where links appear on this site. This site does not include all financial companies or all available financial offers. Opinions expressed here are the author’s alone, not those of any bank, credit card issuer, hotel, airline, or other entity. This content has not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of the entities included within the post.

Thailand & Hong Kong Luxury Vacation with Points

In this episode, we're chatting about...How we planned a Christmas/New Year’s Asia itinerary despite zero date flexibilityThe exact routes we booked—including our long-haul KLM business class flights and how we secured three seats at onceHow we avoided $35k+ cash prices by using transferable points What to do when award space disappears Why searching manually—smartly—matters, and the tools that helped us narrow down valid routesHow early-morning arrivals, club lounges, and Hyatt status shaped the tripReviews of each hotel we stayed at, including Hong Kong, Phuket, Bangkok, and TaipeiThe mindset shift for planning high-demand award trips, and how to build multiple backup plansWhether luxury or quantity is right for your points strategy, and how I make that choice for our family📋 READY TO LEVEL UP YOUR POINTS TRAVEL?🫶🏼 Free points & miles guide - PDF downloaded over 17K times🫶🏼 Free online, self-paced course - join over 1800 students🫶🏼 Best card offers - tailored by category for your needs🫶🏼 Fancy Travel Pointers Instagram - keep up to date on all the latest points news🫶🏼 Fancy Travel Pointers Facebook - great place to share wins, ask questions 🫶🏼 Fancy Travel Pointers Newsletter - sent weekly to over 24K points lovers!👋 Hi! I'm Michele! A points and miles expert, using points for family vacations to Japan, Hawaii, Thailand, Greece, Italy, Spain, theme parks and so much more. I don't believe in spending more to earn more points. The key is knowing how to earn the best points and getting massive value from them. With a teenager in competitive sports & public school, traveling during the busiest of times is our family's norm. I'll show you my best tips & strategies to use points for making incredible family travel happen. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Fancy Travel Pointers is part of an affiliate sales network and receives compensation for sending traffic to partner sites, such as Bankrate.com. This compensation may impact how and where links appear on this site. This site does not include all financial companies or all available financial offers. Opinions expressed here are the author’s alone, not those of any bank, credit card issuer, hotel, airline, or other entity. This content has not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of the entities included within the post.

We Saved 87K Points with this Award Flight Tip

In this episode, we’re chatting about…Why booking one-way award flights gets you a better deal than round-tripThe key airline alliances — and how to use partner programs like Air Canada or Virgin Atlantic to save tens of thousands of pointsReal-life examples of booking premium flights (like Singapore Airlines business class) for 60K instead of 89K pointsHow to find hidden award availability and when it’s worth “repositioning” to another airportThe best times to book award flights — and why early (or super late) searches often winMichele’s favorite award search tools — including Thrifty Traveler Premium, Seats.aero, and AwardTool — plus how to use them effectivelyWhy flexibility, realistic expectations, and a little curiosity can unlock huge value from your points📋 FROM THIS EPISODEGet $20 off your 1st year subscription with Thrifty Traveler Premium NewsletterOverview of 4 great search tools to help you find the best award flightsTutorial for best result driven searches on seats.aero📋 READY TO LEVEL UP YOUR POINTS TRAVEL?🫶🏼 Free points & miles guide - PDF downloaded over 17K times🫶🏼 Free online, self-paced course - join over 1800 students🫶🏼 Best card offers - tailored by category for your needs🫶🏼 Fancy Travel Pointers Instagram - keep up to date on all the latest points news🫶🏼 Fancy Travel Pointers Facebook - great place to share wins, ask questions 🫶🏼 Fancy Travel Pointers Newsletter - sent weekly to over 24K points lovers!👋 Hi! I'm Michele! A points and miles expert, using points for family vacations to Japan, Hawaii, Thailand, Greece, Italy, Spain, theme parks and so much more. I don't believe in spending more to earn more points. The key is knowing how to earn the best points and getting massive value from them. With a teenager in competitive sports & public school, traveling during the busiest of times is our family's norm. I'll show you my best tips & strategies to use points for making incredible family travel happen. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Fancy Travel Pointers is part of an affiliate sales network and receives compensation for sending traffic to partner sites, such as Bankrate.com. This compensation may impact how and where links appear on this site. This site does not include all financial companies or all available financial offers. Opinions expressed here are the author’s alone, not those of any bank, credit card issuer, hotel, airline, or other entity. This content has not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of the entities included within the post.

Using Southwest/Hyatt Points to Visit Hawaii on Repeat + Maui Hotel Reviews

Hawaii is the dream vacation — but that $10K+ price tag? Hard pass.The good news: Hawaii is actually one of the easiest places to use your points.We’ve been using the same Southwest + Hyatt combo points strategy for years — and it’s taken us to Hawaii five times since 2019, with next year’s trip already booked. 🏝️This is my favorite rinse & repeat strategy for family travel — simple, realistic, and crazy rewarding.Today, we're chatting about...The Southwest + Hyatt combo we use for 90% of our domestic trips — including Hawaii.4 tips to always get the best Southwest deals.The magic of the Southwest Companion Pass (my son flies for $5.60 each way!).Why I love Hyatt redemptions in Hawaii — no resort fees, lower point prices, and easy-to-earn transferable points.Our Maui trip recap — hotel reviews, favorite restaurants, and top excursions you’ll love.Why luxury doesn’t have to mean spending big — how we stayed at the Andaz Maui  for 45K points a night instead of $1K cash. 📋 FROM THIS EPISODEHow we earn so many points to transfer to Hyatt📋 READY TO LEVEL UP YOUR POINTS TRAVEL?🫶🏼 Free points & miles guide - PDF downloaded over 17K times🫶🏼 Free online, self-paced course - join over 1800 students🫶🏼 Best card offers - tailored by category for your needs🫶🏼 Fancy Travel Pointers Instagram - keep up to date on all the latest points news🫶🏼 Fancy Travel Pointers Facebook - great place to share wins, ask questions 🫶🏼 Fancy Travel Pointers Newsletter - sent weekly to over 24K points lovers!👋 Hi! I'm Michele! A points and miles expert, using points for family vacations to Japan, Hawaii, Thailand, Greece, Italy, Spain, theme parks and so much more. I don't believe in spending more to earn more points. The key is knowing how to earn the best points and getting massive value from them. With a teenager in competitive sports & public school, traveling during the busiest of times is our family's norm. I'll show you my best tips & strategies to use points for making incredible family travel happen. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Fancy Travel Pointers is part of an affiliate sales network and receives compensation for sending traffic to partner sites, such as Bankrate.com. This compensation may impact how and where links appear on this site. This site does not include all financial companies or all available financial offers. Opinions expressed here are the author’s alone, not those of any bank, credit card issuer, hotel, airline, or other entity. This content has not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of the entities included within the post.