A Beginner’s Guide to Traveling Using Points and Miles

If your love of travel didn’t come with a trust fund, you probably can’t journey as far and wide as you would like. Enter: Travel hacking. 

Travel hackers strategically collect points and miles with credit cards to earn free travel. While you probably won’t earn a free trip to Hawaii in a week, points and miles do add up quickly. Once that happens, you can start dreaming big. 

Whether that dream is to hop on a plane to Rome, spend a week at an all-inclusive resort in the Caribbean, or finally fly first class, here’s what you need to know to make your everyday purchases finance your next trip.

The case for travel hacking

Put simply: Dollars are worth more as points and miles than they are as cash back. Where you might be able to cash in 100 points for $100, those same points could be used to purchase $150 worth of travel (or more).     

Additionally, if you stay loyal to one card issuer, your points will go further. For example, you can combine points across several Chase credit cards, where you cannot combine points from a Chase credit card and an American Express card.  

Consider flexibility vs. brand loyalty 

You’ll get the most flexibility from a credit card that allows you to convert points into miles. This is a good introductory option, because you can use them across different airline or hotel brands. For example, the Chase Sapphire Preferred card allows you to convert points to United miles or Hyatt points.   

However, some people like to stay loyal to one airline or hotel. This approach makes sense for more frequent travelers, who prefer a certain airline or stay often at the same hotel chain. If, for example, you always stay at Hilton properties, it might make sense to use a Hilton-branded credit card for everyday purchases, and they will eventually cover your stay. 

An added bonus to using airline- and hotel-branded credit cards is that they provide perks, like priority boarding, free checked bags, free breakfast, or late checkout. Savings from these perks add up fast if you travel often. If you only travel a couple of times a year and aren’t loyal to a specific brand, this probably doesn’t make sense for you. 

Take advantage of sign-up bonuses and category spending