How I Travel the World for Free on Credit Card Points

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I’ve flown Emirates First Class (where I ate caviar and took a shower at 40k feet!). I’ve booked round-trip economy flights across the country and one-way business class flights across the world. I’ve even booked week-long rental cars for epic road trips right here in the USA.

And I didn’t pay for any of it. All of these things were booked for “free” using credit card points.

This isn’t to brag—it’s a wake-up call. If you aren’t using travel reward credit cards it’s time to get started!

Travel reward credit card points are a GAME CHANGER.

While the points & miles game can seem extremely mysterious and almost too good to be true, I’m going to break down specific examples of when I’ve redeemed points, how I did it, and how much it saved me. And, in the case that you are already using travel reward credit cards, I’ll give you some insight into my personal favorites!

Here’s how I travel the world for free (using credit card points!).

First things first, I have 5 travel reward credit cards.

Yes, that may seem like a lot, but they all serve a slightly different purpose and I’m getting the most bang for my buck. Or in this case, the most points for different purchases.

Here’s what’s in my wallet:

• Chase Sapphire Reserve – My go-to card for everyday spending and travel

• Chase Ink Business Preferred – For all business-related purchases

• AMEX Gold – For dining out, groceries, all food-related purchases, and also… you guessed it…travel

• Capital One Venture – Another favorite for travel spending

• AA Advantage – My preferred airline card

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Again, I use ALL of them, but for different reasons!

I use my credit cards whenever, and I mean WHENEVER possible. I use my credit cards to pay for everything from my taxes to my car insurance to my everyday expenses.

The key is to pay attention to where reward credit cards earn bonus points.

For example, my AMEX Gold card earns 4x points per dollar spent on groceries and dining out—that’s better than my Chase Sapphire credit card. So, I’ll always reach for my AMEX whether I’m out to dinner or at Trader Joe’s.

Whenever you’re booking flights and hotels, you should also use whichever credit card gives the best bonus on travel.