Travel Hacking 101
What is Travel Hacking? 
Strategically collecting miles and points and 
using them to travel for the world for pennies 
on the dollar
Outline 
Real Life Example 
Different Types of Miles & Points 
How To Redeem Miles & Points 
Main Strategies for Earning Miles & Points 
#1 Strategy for Earning Miles & Points 
Frequently Asked Question 
Questions & Attempted Answer
Real Life - Costa Rica
Earning Miles 
25,000 50,000
Redeeming Miles 
Round Trip Flight = 35,000
Flight Cost - $105
Types OF Miles & 
Points
Different Types of Points 
Airline Miles 
Hotel Points 
Fixed Value Points 
Transferable Points
Airline Miles 
Redeemed for Free Flights based on 
Zones or Distance
Zone Based Award Chart 
30,000 Miles
Zone Based Award Chart 
40,000 Miles
Distance Based Award Chart
Distance Based Award Chart 
BNA > DFW = 631 Miles – 4,500 Avios
Distance Based Award Chart 
BOS > DUB = 2,993 Miles – 12,500 Avios
Hotel Points 
Redeemed for FREE nights based on 
category/level
Category Based Award Chart
Category Based Award Chart
Fixed Value Points 
Arrival Miles Venture Miles 
1 Point = $.01
Redeeming Fixed Value Points
Transferable Points 
Easily Transferred to Airline and Hotel 
Partners
Transferable Points 
Transfer the points to an airline or hotel 
partner and redeem based on their award 
chart
Earning Miles & Points
Strategies for Earning Miles & 
Points 
Credit Card Signup Bonuses 
Strategic Spending 
Travel 
Online Shopping Portals 
Dining Programs
Credit Card Sign Up Bonuses 
9 Credit Cards: 520,000 Points
Strategic Spending 
Rotating Category Spending Bonuses 
Q1 - Amazon.com 
Q2 - Gas Stations 
Q3 - Kroger 
Q4 - Amazon.com 
Fixed Category Spending Bonuses 
5X - Office Supply Stores 
2X - Gas 
2X - Hotels
Travel 
Another Day…
Online Shopping Portals
Dining Programs 
Skymiles Dining 
Mileage Plus Dining 
AAdvantage Dining 
Rapid Rewards Dining
#1 Points Earning 
Strategy
APP PARTIES
Frequently Asked 
Questions
What Will Happen to MY Credit 
Score?
What About Annual Fees? 
Downgrade 
Cancel 
Keep
The End!
Bring on the questions! 
Website - natebuchanan.org 
Social Media - @natebuchanan

Travel Hacking 101

Editor's Notes

  • #2 Experienced Travel hackers – repetitive Beginners – Drinking out of a fire house Get everyone on the same page before taking a deeper dive into other topics
  • #3 Travel hacking includes - earning points, mistake fares, mileage running, find cheap deals
  • #4 Travel hacking includes - earning points, mistake fares, mileage running, find cheap deals
  • #5 Sounds to good to be true
  • #6 Explain transferring SPG points to American Airlines
  • #9 Different types of miles & points & how to go about redeeming them
  • #10 What they are and how to redeem them
  • #11 Four major frequent flyer programs Zone based award carts Distance based award charts Only Redeem on the airline you earned miles on
  • #12 United Award Chart U.S. to Europe Zone based award charts are the most popular - United, Delta, and American Airlines all have zone based award charts
  • #13 U.S. to Australia/New Zealand As the zones get further apart the award flights get more expensive
  • #14 British Airways Award Chart The distance you fly determines the cost. Distance is segmented in to chunks. Take advantage of sweet spots
  • #15 Round trip flight 9,000 On american would be 25,000 British Airways is the cheapest way to fly to Dallas
  • #16 Round trip cost 25,000 Round trip on American or United would cost 60,000
  • #17 Just like airline miles there is no transferring between programs
  • #18 Categories based of two things Location Quality of the property Radisson Blu in the middle in the middle of a popular city – Country Inn & Suites in the middle of nowhere
  • #19 Categories based of two things Location Niceness
  • #20 Two main cards that offer fixed value points It’s exactly what it sounds like each point has a fixed value $500 Flight to California would cost 50,000 miles
  • #21 Book an over night train from Milan to Venice – Using arrival miles to erase the cost
  • #22 Transferable points are the most value because they’re flexible Transfer chase points to United, Southwest, Hyatt and British Airways Transfer to travel partners at a 1 to 1 ratio Starwood only partners with Airlines
  • #23 If you transferred Chase Ultimate Rewards to United, those Ultimate Reward points would turn into United miles Then you’d book the award flight through United
  • #24 Summarize – Airline, hotel, transferable, and fixed value points
  • #25 5 main strategies for earning miles and points
  • #26 Delta – Miami for a cruise SPG & American for Costa Rica American Platinum 100,000 points sign up bonus – Africa or Australia Club Carlson – Two free nights in Vienna & two free nights in Austra Chase Sapphire – Transferred Ultimate Reward points to United to book flight back from Thailand
  • #27 Chase freedom an example or rotating categories Chase in an example of fixed categories Think about which credit card will earn you the most points with every purchase Might not seem like a big deal at the time, but strategically spending on the right card adds up
  • #28 Earn points through flying and staying at hotels
  • #29 Online mall with store fronts Target earns 3 points per dollar spent. Points stack on top of the points your already earning for spending on your credit card Might not seem like much at the time but it adds up over time
  • #30 After signing up 3X – 5X Per $1 Spent at Qualifying Restaurants Sign Up Bonuses the main reason use these
  • #31 I could give a “overview” presentation without giving briefly discussing the number 1 strategy for earning miles and points
  • #32 I AM NOT A FINANCIAL ADVISOR – CAN’T Guarantee this won’t hurt your credit score Strategically applying for multiple cards on the same day every few months. Keeps your credit score in the best condition possible. Hard check when applying for cards decrease your credit score 2 – 5 points Recover back from that dip over 3 or four months Don’t know the exact reasoning. It just works
  • #35 $925 If paid all my annual fees 3 Optoins Keep if the benefits outweigh the cost of the annual Club Carlson 25,000 point annual bonus Always downgrade if possible Canceling hurts credit score because it reduces your length of credit history
  • #36 Travel Hacking is hobby and it takes some effort, but it totally worth it!