Best Credit Card Strategy for Travel Hacking

If you are new to travel hacking, you may be wondering “How do I know which credit card to apply for next?” Or you could be trying to figure out some kind of credit card strategy 😳😬 It is our hope to share some helpful hints and principles that can help in this important phase of your travel hacking journey!

As you probably know, not all points/miles are created equal. Think of your precious points and miles as Currency. Just like the US dollar is considered more valuable than say, the peso…some points/miles are much more valuable than others.

For example, many credit cards are associated with an airline or Hotel brand. Like our Marriott Bonvoy card we have had for years. It earns Marriott points on all purchases. While it is possible to earn enough points to stay for free using these points, it could literally take months or even years 😱to save enough points for a week long stay somewhere. So, these types of points that come along with a co- branded card (co-branded meaning it is issued by both the bank and the Hotel/Airline) are great, but not as valuable as some points out there.

MVPs (Most Valuable Points) in Travel Hacking

And the trophy award for MVP in Travel Hacking goes to…..Transferable Points! So in our opinion, the most valuable points currency out there today are transferable points. Some examples are: Chase Ultimate Rewards, American Express Membership Rewards, Citi Points and Capital 1 Miles. These are all transferable to travel partners like airlines and hotels. Think of them as the wild card in Uno! They can be pretty much be any kind of points you need them to be! 😄 So like in the case of the Marriott card I mentioned earlier, say I earned 30,000 points from spending on my card. That might get me 1 free night at (only)a Marriott hotel. If I had, say, 30,000 Amex rewards, I could transfer those to KLM airlines and fly round trip to Amsterdam from the Midwest. That ticket might cost me anywhere from $800 to $2000! The free Marriott night value would sadly only be about $200-$250. What a difference in value!

So, your best option in earning points/miles is to go for the transferable kind. Chase Ultimate Rewards are so versatile and one of their travel partners is World of Hyatt. They have some of the best points redemptions out there and we love 💗 using Chase Rewards at Hyatt. So, in planning a strategy, it might be good to apply for Cards that earn Chase Ultimate Rewards. Their 2 most popular cards are the Sapphire Preferred and the Sapphire Reserve. Chase also has some great Business Cards (if you have a small business or even a side hustle) like the Ink Preferred, Ink Cash and Ink Unlimited. These all have great bonuses from 60,000 to 100,000 Ultimate Rewards after you meet initial spending. Chase does however, have the infamous 5/24 rule so this may mean you would do well to get all the Chase cards you are interested in first, and then move on to other banks.

Other transferable options

After you have applied and gotten your Chase Bonuses, you can move on to either Amex Membership Rewards, Citi points  or Capital 1 miles. These are all very valuable as they can transfer to several airlines at a 1 to 1 ratio. Some hotels partner with these banks as well. For a helpful guide to transfer partners we like this one.

Resources

A wonderful app we use often that has helped us in our credit card strategy is Travel Freely. It’s free! After entering in the current credit cards you hold, the app lets you know what cards/bonuses you are eligible for, and when is best to apply! It has been very useful to us and we highly recommend it! Also, we enjoy The Points Guy daily newsletter. The research this company puts into their articles is impressive and we try to follow many of their recommendations. They also do great credit card reviews- explaining all the goods (and bad ) of practically every card available.

Bottom line

While all points and miles have value, a strategy that has proven successful is: focusing first on sign up bonuses with transferable points. These are the most valuable points out there and can get you better opportunities for those awesome redemptions! We wish you so much success in your credit card strategy and all your future travel!