Straight to the Points

Courtney Gardner
  • 5.0 (3)
  • PLACES & TRAVEL
  • WEEKLY SERIES

Do you want to take your family on amazing vacations for almost free? It's possible with the help of credit card points and miles. I'm here to teach you how! Travel is an important way to connect, restore, and celebrate. Unforgettable travel is possible with a limited budget. This podcast is designed for busy people who want to learn how to take unforgettable trips with minimal out of pocket cost, but don’t want to devote a ton of time to figuring out the world of points and miles. I’ll help you get your first trip booked in just a few months. Let’s get Straight to the Points! straighttothepointspodcast.com

Episodes

  1. 1. Learn How to Travel for Almost Free!

    EPISODE 1

    1. Learn How to Travel for Almost Free!

    I’m here to help you take your family on amazing vacations for almost free with the help of credit card points and miles. I’m a mom and primary care physician, and I believe that travel is an important way to restore, connect, and celebrate. This podcast is designed for busy people who want to learn how to take unforgettable trips with minimal out of pocket cost, but don’t want to devote a ton of time to figuring out the world of points and miles. I’ll help you get your first trip booked in just a few months. Let’s get Straight to the Points… Here’s what you’ll find on this podcast: A beginner-friendly straightforward way to learn how to travel for almost freeA method of points teaching that is designed for busy people who don’t want to deep dive and listen to dozens of hours of podcasts or spend days worth of time reading points and miles travel blogs. I will focus on family travel because that is the season of life I am currently in, but will also share strategies that will work great for individualsAdvice tailored to all income brackets. You don’t have to spend a lot to earn free travel.This can work for medical student with no income and VERY limited budget, residents with limited income and limited flexibility, and attendings who have higher than average spend who want to leverage their spending to earn free travel!Website-Straight to the Points Podcast Credit Card Referral Links- Card Referral Links

    15 min
  2. 2. Is Traveling on Points and Miles Right for You?

    EPISODE 2

    2. Is Traveling on Points and Miles Right for You?

    Travelling on points is accessible to more people than you might think! A common misconception is that you have to spend a ton of money or travel super frequently to travel for free on points and miles. The truth is, you can leverage your regular expenses, no matter your budget, to earn free travel! I’ll share tips that you can adapt to work for you regardless of your monthly budget or travel frequency.

    20 min
  3. 3. How to Earn the Most Valuable Type of Points- Transferrable Points

    EPISODE 3

    3. How to Earn the Most Valuable Type of Points- Transferrable Points

    Many people start into points and miles by getting a credit card of a hotel or airline company that they use frequently. On this episode, we will discuss why earning transferrable points is the key to getting more for your points. Why are transferrable points more valuable? Transferable points are FLEXIBLECan get started without having a goal in mind If one program devalues, you have other options You can snag last minute deals or take advantage of transfer bonuses Not all points have the same value. In general transferrable points are going to have more value due to their flexibility.

    27 min
  4. 4. How to Earn Chase Points

    EPISODE 4

    4. How to Earn Chase Points

    Chase points are my favorite points! They can be transferred to a long list of hotel and airline partners. The key secret to getting more value from your points is transferring points out of Chase and to partner programs, then booking directly through that program. You do also have the option to book through the Chase portal, however you are very often getting the most value from your points when you transfer points to a partner and book directly with the airline or hotel. Here you will learn the best ways to earn lots of these valuable points.

    29 min
  5. 5. How to Earn Transferrable Points Without Opening a Credit Card

    EPISODE 5

    5. How to Earn Transferrable Points Without Opening a Credit Card

    Learn ways to earn lots of valuable transferrable points without having to open a single credit card! If you’re looking to get started earning free travel but aren’t ready to open cards, this episode is for you! If you already have some points-earning cards and want to boost your earnings, this episode is also for you! Bilt Rewards- Bilt – Earn rewards on rent. Rakuten- https://www.rakuten.com/referral/default.do# Rove- www.rovemiles.com/?signup&referralCode=9CPGSRPO Simply Miles- SimplyMiles Capital One Shopping- Capital One Shopping Fetch- Use code FTT2HW to get a bonus when you submit your first receipt- https://referral.fetch.com/vvv3/referralqr?code=FTT2HW Upside-Download Upside with my link or use my code B56YCS to get 15¢ per gallon extra cash back on your first gas fill-up and 10% extra cash back on your first restaurant or grocery purchase- https://upside.app.link/B56YCS

    28 min
  6. 6. How to Redeem Chase Points for the Best Value

    EPISODE 6

    6. How to Redeem Chase Points for the Best Value

    Chase points are some of the most valuable points, but you have to know some tricks to get the most value for them. By learning how to transfer your Chase points to partner programs like Hyatt, Southwest, Virgin Atlantic, and Flying Blue, you can get 2-5x the value (or even more!) from each point you redeem. Knowing how to effectively redeem your points is the difference between taking one trip a year and taking several trips a year! There are 2 main ways to redeem Chase points- portal bookings, and transferring points out to partners. In general, you are going to get the most value from your points if you transfer your points to partners rather than booking in the portal. Portal Bookings Pros of portal bookingsSimplicityYou can book things you couldn’t by transferring points out – rental cars, cruises, certain hotels. I prefer to do these bookings on cash and use as a points-earing opportunityFixed value (sort of)- 1 cent per point (ccp), unless “points boost” which is 1.5-1.75 with Chase Sapphire Preferred or 1.75-2 ccp for Chase Sapphire ReserveCons of portal bookingsCons of portal bookingsHotel stays don’t always count towards statusGlitches related to using a 3rd party booking service – harder when things go wrongTypically not the way to get the best value for your points. But remember, there is truly no “wrong” way to use your points!I like to use the portal to EARN points with cash bookings – 8x points on my Chase Sapphire Reserve, and $500 annually ($250 every 6 mo) for The Edit Hotel bookingsChase Transfer Partners HotelsHyatt – This is my favorite hotel chain and favorite way to use Chase points! Most of my points go here, because it is incredibly easy to get outsized value from my points when booking with Hyatt.IHG – This includes luxury brands like Kimpton and InterContinental, and more budget brands like Holiday Inn and Staybridge Suites. I typically would NOT recommend transferring Chase points here- the transfers are 1:1 and a Chase point can be worth a LOT more than an IHG point. Marriot –I typically would NOT recommend transferring Chase points here- the transfers are 1:1 and a Chase point can be worth a LOT more than a Marriot point. Marriot is great, but transferring points from Chase is not the best way to book with them.Airlines (Not all listed)UnitedSouthwestIf you’re loyal to Southwest, a cobranded card is likely worth making a part of your strategy. If you travel a lot domestically with a partner or a family, you should consider trying to earn a companion pass. I will do a deep dive on this laterJet BlueBritish AirwaysVirgin AtlanticYou can book Delta and Air France/KLM through them- often for fewer pointsAir CanadaFlying Blue – Air France/KLM25% off kids' flightsMonthly dealsHow to transfer points out Create a loyalty account for the program you want to transfer intoBottom R of app “more”—down to Rewards and Benefits à redeem points on R and select your Chase Sapphire Reserve or Chase Sapphire Referred to click on transfer pointsWebsite-Straight to the Points Podcast Credit Card Referral Links- Card Referral Links

    45 min
  7. 7. Should You Book with Cash or Points? - How to Know if a Points Booking is a Good Deal

    EPISODE 7

    7. Should You Book with Cash or Points? - How to Know if a Points Booking is a Good Deal

    One of the biggest hangups when booking award flights or hotel stays is knowing whether or not you are getting a good deal by spending your points, or if booking with cash makes more sense. I don’t book ALL of my travel on points- I save my points bookings for when I am going to get the greatest VALUE for my points. This means that I am able to stretch my points further by choosing to book some things with cash. Let’s dive in to how to take the guesswork out of this. In this episode, I'll demystify figuring this out, so that you can book with confidence! Award redemption value (Cents per point/ccp) Calculating the value of an award redemption requires a simple formula: Redemption value = (cash price – taxes and fees) ÷ points or miles used × 10This gives you the value of each point or mile in cents (Cents per Point or ccp)Example1: 3 night stay in Hyatt Place in Kansas City- ($585-0)/15,000 points = 3.8 ccp Example 2: Flight to Portugal($1018-372)/24,000 points= 2.7 ccp KLM flight booked on Virgin Atlantic (Points transferred from Amex) How to decide if it’s a good deal Compare portal booking cost in pointsThink about reasonable redemption value (RRV)- RRVs are intended to be mid-point values that are reasonably easy to achieve for that specific points type.RRV 1.5 ccp for Chase and AmexIs the value there for you and your situation personally?How many points do you have and how many are you willing to part with? Other upcoming trips?You may decide that getting a rental car and “purchase erasing” with Capital One miles makes sense if you want to bring your purchase cost to zeroThink about a lowest acceptable ccp – for me it’s usually 1.5 ccp for my transferrable pointsExample: Flights to Charlotte American Airlines- I had miles in that program. American AAdvantage RRV = 1.4 ccp124,000 points or $1674 - ($1674-22)/124,000 points= 1.3 ccp1.3 ccp is less than reasonable redemption value, but I’m ok with that! We booked Air BNB on cash, and I wanted to limit my out of pocket cost. Not an amazing deal, but I got my family there for almost free!Keep in mind hotel points for many chains are often lower- Hilton 0.4 ccp, IHG 0.6 ccp, Marriot 0.6 ccp, that’s why you don’t want to transfer Chase points to Marriot in general- not going to be a good deal Calculating ccp is a simple way to assess whether a book is a good deal. Avoid analysis paralysis! If it is below the RRV for the type of transferrable points, think about it. It might be a better points earning opportunity- in that case look into how to earn the most points for that booking. If it’s “good enough” and it gets you a free trip, go for it! Website-Straight to the Points Podcast Credit Card Referral Links- Card Referral Links

    24 min
  • 7 Episodes

Ratings & Reviews

5
out of 5
3 Ratings

About

Do you want to take your family on amazing vacations for almost free? It's possible with the help of credit card points and miles. I'm here to teach you how! Travel is an important way to connect, restore, and celebrate. Unforgettable travel is possible with a limited budget. This podcast is designed for busy people who want to learn how to take unforgettable trips with minimal out of pocket cost, but don’t want to devote a ton of time to figuring out the world of points and miles. I’ll help you get your first trip booked in just a few months. Let’s get Straight to the Points! straighttothepointspodcast.com

Information

  • Creator
    Courtney Gardner
  • Years Active
    2K
  • Episodes
    7
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © Courtney Gardner
  • Show Website
    Straight to the Points