My Free Travel Journey

My free travel journey was slow to launch. I spent decades not understanding how credit cards work. Sure, I knew banks made money off of interest payments. I had them there – I always pay off my credit cards monthly! At some point I discovered that places that accept credit cards also pay a 2-3% convenience fee to the bank. So I was paying something to use my credit card, albeit indirectly, through either higher prices or service fees. But still I soldiered on with no changes to my habits.

Note: If you apply for a credit card on any of the links provided below, I may receive a referral bonus.

Early Discovery

For years I held only two credit cards, a Chase Freedom card and a Citibank AAdvantage MileUp card. I put most of my spending on the Chase card. I charged something periodically to the Citibank card to keep my American Airlines AAdvantage miles from expiring. At some point I discovered that the Chase Freedom card was a cash back card. So I began cashing out points each year to use as spending money on my yearly international trip for work.

Seeing the Light!

About two years ago, my free travel journey launched! I started hearing murmurs about the Chase Sapphire Preferred travel card. I heard that worked in tandem with the Chase Freedom card I already held. The card also had the benefit of no foreign transaction fees, primary insurance on rental cars, and travel insurance. These are all perks that I didn’t currently have on my cards. I’ve never paid an annual fee for a credit card. But the $95 Chase Sapphire Preferred fee seemed like a small price to pay for these benefits. So I took the plunge.

I applied for the card, met the minimum spending requirements, and earned 80,000 Ultimate Rewards Points. The Chase Ultimate Rewards portal is the same place my existing Chase Freedom points live. Holding the Chase Sapphire Preferred card now opened up more options for me within that portal. I can combine my Chase Freedom points with my Chase Sapphire Preferred points and use them to transfer to travel partners such as Southwest and United or hotel partners like Marriott and Hyatt at a 1:1 ratio. I can also use the Chase Ultimate Rewards portal to book flights, hotels, and other travel excursions directly. Using the portal makes each of my points worth 1.25 cents rather than 1 cent each. (For more information, see my post on Chase Ultimate Reward points.)

Earning a big chunk of points hooked me! I wanted to maximize my points earnings and dug in further. I did some more research and developed a plan.

Chasing the Chase Trifecta

My free travel journey continued when I read about the Chase Trifecta. This happens when you pair a Chase Freedom card and a Chase Sapphire Preferred card with a Chase Freedom Unlimited card. Then you can pick and choose which card you use for various expenses to maximize your points earnings. For example, travel expenses earn 2 points and dining earns 3 points for every $1 spent on the Sapphire Preferred card. The Freedom card has rotating categories quarterly that earn 5 points for every $1 spend in that category (i.e. groceries, gas, home improvement stores, Paypal, etc.). The Freedom Unlimited card gives you 1.5 points for every $1 spent on anything. With a little strategy and all three cards, you can maximize your points earnings on every day spending.

There was a nice bonus on the new Freedom Flex card at that time. Since I had a Freedom card that had the same rotating categories as the Freedom Flex, I called Chase to product change that card to a Freedom Unlimited. Then I applied for the Freedom Flex so that I had both options. This was easy peasy! It took only a few minutes. Also, a product change doesn’t impact the opening date. So I protected my long credit history on the Chase Freedom card.

Earning Free Flights on Southwest

Around the same time, Southwest Rapid Rewards credit cards had a great bonus offer. Since we often fly domestically on Southwest, it made sense to apply for one of these cards as well. I opened the card with the lowest annual fee, made the minimum spend, and earned the rewards points. I closed the card one year later after the annual fee was posted and my annual bonus points for holding the card hit. The phone call to cancel took about 10 minutes. It resulted in me keeping my newly earned annual bonus points and a waiver of the annual free. Score!

Sharing the Wealth

This was when I started talking about my free travel journey to anyone who would listen. People are skeptical, just as I was, but they are starting to listen. My biggest convert to date though, is my husband. He was convinced this new hobby would lower our credit scores. Since I’ve been able to prove to him that it does not, he’s opened the Southwest Rapid Rewards and Chase Sapphire Preferred card. This has further expanded the points pool we have available for travel. Plus he was able to earn a Southwest Companion Pass! One member of our family traveled with him for free during 2021-2022. Cha-ching!

Starting a Business

After this flurry of activity, I stayed in a holding pattern for about a year. I knew it was time to apply for another card, but I wasn’t sure which path to take. Finally, it dawned on me that I would qualify for a business card. I am sometimes paid to give workshops and presentations as an independent contractor. In addition, I have a travel blog! I don’t make a ton of money on these activities, but that doesn’t matter. I was able to open up a Chase Business Cash Ink and then a Chase Business Ink Unlimited card. Both cards allow me to transfer the bonus points I earned from them to my Chase Sapphire Preferred card and use them in the Chase Ultimate Rewards portal to use for personal travel. Hello 150,000 more points for my family vacations!

What the Future Holds

The future is bright for this new convert! My 2022 travel hacking plans include:

Goal 1: Investigate possible product change options to my oldest but least used Citibank AAdvantage MileUp card. Jan ’23 Update: Instead of doing this, I went all in with two new cards with flexible rewards currencies. I now have an American Express Gold card and a Capital One Venture X card.

Goal 2: Apply for a United credit card in May 2022 to earn miles for a family trip to Europe in 2023. Jan ’23 Update: I used up two of the slots of my 5/24 status (see my post Travel Hacking Mistakes to Avoid for more information on this) on the AMEX Gold Card and Venture X, so I decided not to take up another one for a United card. Instead, I investigated other ways to get to Europe in 2023 and ended up transferring points from Chase Ultimate Rewards to Virgin Atlantic airlines for flights to London.

Goal 3: Investigate other flexible rewards currency such as American Express Membership Rewards, Citi Thank You Points, and Capital One Rewards. Decide which points currency family to join next and apply for the appropriate card in September 2022. Jan ’23 Update: Done! As I said above, I now have access to AMEX and to Capital One. By the way – I love the Capital One card!

Goal 4: Apply for both a personal and business Southwest Rapid Rewards credit card in December 2022 to earn a Southwest Companion pass for 2023 and 2024. Jan ’23 Update: I applied for both the Chase Southwest Rapid Rewards Plus card and the Chase Southwest Rapid Rewards Business Performance card in November 2022 and met the spending requirements in early January ’23. By doing this, I earned 155,000 bonus points, which is more than enough to qualify for the Companion Pass. I’m just waiting for it to show up in my account. Check out my post for more on how to fly free on Southwest!

I’ll be sure to take you along on my journey deeper into the world of travel hacking! Subscribe below to get our newsletter with all of our latest posts, and follow us on on Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest! 

What are your best travel hacking tips and goals for this year?

Share them in the comments section below! Also check out my related posts on travel hacking in the Saving Money on Travel section of our website.