Vacation for free? Does this sound like a dream? According to the United States Travel Association, travel is on the rise with domestic and international travelers spending $1.1 trillion in 2018. The travel you book in 2023 can pay for your travel in 2024. First step is planning!
How Do I Vacation For Free?
Here are my tips to take a free vacation or at least cover a large chunk of the cost!
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Utilize Credit Card Points to vacation for free
Credit card companies are giving reward points for every dollar spent on their credit cards. Should you earn a large number of points, the points can be cashed in for free travel. How do you gain the most points possible this year to use to vacation for free in 2021?
To gain a large sign on bonus of reward points, open a new credit card. Research large, travel specific credit cards that offer 40,000-60,000 points as a sign on bonus if you are approved. Make note, the majority of these cards have a minimum spending requirement before they give you the points to redeem for travel next year.
I recommend checking the latest credit cards offered by your favorite hotel or airline. Make sure to research the sign on bonus, the required spending, any annual fee required, and the benefits before making a decision.
In addition, I would recommend only opening new credit card accounts if you are able to pay off the balance each month. Having an additional credit card where you will be accumulating interest on any unpaid balance is counterproductive. This is not really saving money at all!
If you are able to stagger enrollment in two credit cards this year, you will be able to accumulate approximately 100,000 travel points. In addition, attempt to find a credit card that is offering travel insurance benefits. As you book trips, having travel insurance covered by your card can save you $100-$500 per person depending on the cost of the trip!
My free travel opportunity
I recently applied and was approved for the Chase Sapphire Preferred credit card. I charged $4000 on my Chase card over the course of the first three months, and subsequently was awarded 60,000 reward points which I can use toward travel. This spending minimum was easy to do! I put all of our household expenses on our credit card and pay it off each month. In addition, this credit card offers travel insurance benefits up to $10,000. This will save us additional money as we will not have to book travel insurance through an outside entity.
I have already booked several free hotel stays. We stayed two nights for free in Asheville, North Carolina. We had a wedding in Safety Harbor and stayed for free at the Safety Harbor Spa and Resort. In addition, my family and I intend to go to Disneyland and I have booked two nights for free in Anaheim. By simply putting our normal day to day expenses on our credit card, we already are able to vacation for free!
(Should you click on this link and apply for the Chase Sapphire Preferred credit card, at no cost to you I will receive bonus points for the referral).
Book all travel on your credit card for extra points to travel for free later
Travel credit cards offer additional points for travel booked. For example, should you book your trip on your Chase Sapphire Preferred Credit card, you will earn double points for travel booked. More points equals more opportunities to gain free travel.
The Hilton Honors loyalty program allows you to earn 10 points for every dollar spent when staying at a Hilton hotel. Should you book your stay on a Hilton credit card, earn an additional 7-14 points per dollar. The same applies to an airline branded credit card and frequent flyer miles.
“airplane”by Kuster & Wildhaber Photography is licensed under CC BY-ND 2.0
Pick a hotel group and airline:
When booking travel, choose a specific hotel group. Stick with it after signing up for the chain’s loyalty program. The goal is to be able to pay for your hotel stay next year by using rewards from travel booked this year. If you plan to travel to a certain location in 2021, look for hotels in that area that you would wish to stay. Book your 2010 hotels stays with the same brand. If you travel for work, you can use hotel loyalty programs from your work trips, too. Hotels chains that provide travel rewards include: Marriott, Hilton, Hyatt, IHG, Wyndham, Best Western, Radisson, or Choice Hotel.
The same philosophy applies to airlines. Fly this year and earn points to vacation for free in 2021. Choose an airline that flies to the destinations on your wanderlust wish list. Sign up for that airline’s frequent flyer program. Book all flights with your chosen airline to accumulate as many frequent flyer rewards as possible to be used on future flights. Remember, airfare tends to spike within two weeks of the travel date so try to book your flights in advance to save money.
Recommended Link: Five Easy Ways To Save Money For Travel
Be Strategic In Everyday Spending
As mentioned before, you should be strategic in your everyday spending. Placing all expenses on your credit card , you can earn between 1 and 2 points per dollar spent. This will add to your total reward points as well as help you meet the minimum spending requirement for your sign on bonus. Most cards boost points in a certain category such as using it at restaurants or to purchase gas.
Another money saving travel hack is to sign up for Rakuten. Rakuten provides cash back on normal, everyday online purchase you make. Examples include Amazon, Walmart, Macy’s, etc. They offer cash back if you book your hotel or travel through certain merchants. The only requirement is to utilize the Rakuten application on your phone or go the website prior to making the online purchase to get the cash back. As I am writing this article, Rakuten is offering 10% cash back for any travel booked through Orbitz. They are offering 6% cash back on Booking.com and 10% off a hotel stay with IHG. If you are going to book travel, why not utilize this free service to gain cash back?
(Should you click on this link for Rakuten to sign up, at no cost to you I will receive a referral bonus. You will get $10.)
In Summary:
Planning and implementing a few changes in your spending habits can make travel within reach. The travel you book this year can result in free travel in 2021!
Do you have additional ways you save money to travel? Drop me a comment. I would love to hear from you!
Recommended link: Find A Travel Bargain
Disclaimer: This article may include affiliate ads. At no additional cost to you, I may earn a commission if you click on the ad and purchase something.
These are some useful tips on how to save money on travel! I’m a frequent flyer at KLM and sometimes the points add up nicely and I can get a discount on my next flight 🙂
Brenda,
Yes, the points can add up! Put the flight on a credit card for that airline and they can double or even triple!
Thank you for the comment!
–Chris
I totally agree with using credit card points for flights. People don’t realize how easy it is! I am a big fan of the Alaska Airlines card!
Ann,
Great tip! Why Alaska Airlines? Can you give my readers more feedback on the benefits associated with this card?
–Chris
I recently got a Chase Sapphire card so I start getting points! I don’t think I have enough to get a free trip soon, but hopefully in the future I can travel for free 🙂
Julia–
I did, too! I am looking forward to my large sign-on bonus. I think I can definitely cash 60,000 points in for at least a free night or two at a hotel of my choice! And the perk of travel insurance is just a bonus!
–Chris
I collect with a British Airways Amex and it always feels so exciting when i get a free flight!
Debbie,
Free travel is the best!
–Chris
That’s a good list of tips! Most of these work for us but I know that many people swear by these hacks. It’s so awesome it works for your family.
Jenia,
I am always on the search for a way to save money to travel.
–Chris
Love these strategies. I’ve used many of them with our travels as well.
Kristi,
Thank you for the kind words. Travel is always within reach!
–Chris
This article is gold!!! I personally love my Sapphire Chase rewards card. It’s what I use for all my trips and happen to get a lot of trips almost completely covered!
Reina,
I am working on my first sign on bonus with the Chase Sapphire card. I am most excited about the included travel insurance!
–Chris
This is a helpful list of travel hacks!
Luliya,
Thank you so much for your kind words! Travel is always within reach.
–Chris
These are some great tips! Traveling is so much more affordable than people think, you just have to be strategic!
Maggie,
I agree! Thank you for the kind words!
–Chris
This is so true! We use a travel rewards credit card offered through our bank and rack up points all year. We pay everything off at the end of the month to be sure we are being responsible with it. We usually have enough points to get 2 free roundtrip flights from the US to Europe and more!!
Michelle,
That is amazing! We try to put all of our household expenses on the credit card to get points, too. As long as you pay it off at the end of the month, it is a win,win!
–Chris
We have started doing these same things to cut our travel costs too. Thanks for the recommendation on credit cards – will have to look into it!
Jenn–
So far we are happy with Chase Sapphire. The travel benefits alone makes the annual fee completely worth it for us. Just saving money on travel insurance pays us back for the annual fee.
–Chris
So many great tips. I will have to look into the Sapphire card for the travel insurance! I’ve been saving our points to use for something big!
Julie,
The annual fee for the Sapphire more than makes up for the cost of the travel insurance they offer!
–Chris
we have done some of them but the one which never seems to pay off enough is using the credit card point. I have the Amex for travel and even though I pay absolutely all with that, I never got enough to travel further than a few cities away 🙁
Hi,
Thanks for the input. In my experience, credit card points seems to go farther if you use them for hotels.
Chris
Travel Clans,
Thanks for the comments. The credit card points may not go as far as they did in the past after the pandemic ends. I am sure many companies will be attempting to gain back their losses over this time of no travel.
Chris