Award Travel Misconceptions
Today, we’re touching on some of the most common misconceptions about award travel. Read on to see how we debunk them!
Opening a lot of credit cards is bad for your credit score
First off, we are not financial advisers and we are only speaking from our personal experience. Having said that, we always:
Wait approximately 90 days between credit card applications. This tends to be the general rule of thumb in the award travel space.
Leave cards open for at least a year before canceling (most, we leave open longer).
Pay off credit card balances on time and in full every month.
We’ve followed these rules stringently and haven’t had any challenges. In fact, our credit scores have only increased over time. Both my credit score and Mark’s are currently well over 800.
You have to charge a lot of money on your cards to earn a lot of points
Leveraging credit card points and miles for award travel isn’t about spending more. It’s about spending more strategically in order to meet a card’s minimum spend and earn the welcome bonus.
For example:
Let’s say you currently spend $2,000 per month on your everyday expenses (groceries, gas, shopping, restaurants, other miscellaneous expenses).
Instead of swiping your debit card or a credit card you’ve had for years that earns you about 1% cash back, you decide to open a Chase Sapphire Preferred and charge the $2,000/month to that card instead.
After two months, you would hit the minimum spend of $4,000, earning you 60,000 Chase Ultimate Rewards. You could use those points for flights or hotel stays, and therefore get a lot more value by spending the same amount of money.
You must be in debt with all these credit cards
Nope! In order to make this hobby worthwhile, you have to be financially responsible and stay within your budget. We like to think of our credit cards as debit cards, i.e. we only charge what we can afford based on our monthly budget. It wouldn’t make sense to earn points and miles for free travel while simultaneously racking up credit card interest.
It’s hard to keep track of all your cards
I understand this one because I felt the same…until I discovered the Travel Freely app. Travel Freely is a free app that tracks the following:
Credit card stats (date opened, deadline to hit the minimum spend, date bonus was achieved, annual fee amount and due date, points earned from welcome bonus)
Benefits/perks of the card and reward program details
Chase 5/24 status
90-day countdown from last credit card approval
List of cards you’re eligible to apply for next
Travel Freely will help you keep your credit cards organized, but it doesn’t manage your actual finances. In terms of tracking credit card balances, due dates, amount spent, and our monthly budget, we use YNAB (You Need a Budget) and we love it.
It’s too confusing to learn
Don’t panic! That’s a very normal reaction. The world of award travel can be very overwhelming, and it takes time to digest.
When I first started learning about award travel, I read lots of articles, followed IG accounts, and combed through any resources I could find. I cobbled it together the best I could, learning by experience as time went on.
I’d recommend being patient and taking your time. Follow along and we’ll teach you in an organized, methodical way over time.
If you’d rather press the easy button, we recommend scheduling a personalized 1:1 tutorial with Liz via the Services page on our website. There is no better way to quickly absorb how to get started traveling with points and miles and have your specific questions answered!
I don’t have enough time for this / It’s not worth it
Is that the overwhelm talking?? Life is all about choices. If you want to learn how to take incredible trips with your family for nearly free, over and over again, this hobby is more than worth it. Once you learn how to leverage credit card points and miles, it’s a gift that keeps on giving. Watch how our family achieves almost free vacations and start doing it yourself!
If you have any additional concerns, let me know! I’d love to help strategize with you and I’m happy to answer any questions.
