Category: Airline and Hotel Program Guides

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How I Saved $866 in One Week by Tracking my Reservations
By Sarah Cash

Key Takeaways
- Track and rebook regularly: Monitoring your existing hotel reservations using tools like PointsYeah Hotel Collection Calendar view can lead to significant savings through better rates or award availability.
- Optimize free night certificates: Use hotel loyalty program benefits and credit card perks at higher-value properties for maximum return.
- Consider unique accommodations: Alternative lodging like capsule hotels can offer local experiences while saving money. Search for this with PointsYeah Hotel Collection.
- Leverage flexible cancellation policies: Airlines like United offer free award flight cancellations, making rebooking risk-free.
- Set price alerts: Use tools like PointsYeah Points Price Alerts, Explorer Alerts, and Hotel Alerts to automatically monitor award flight prices.
- Strategic point usage: Reserve cash for expensive award periods and use points when rates are favorable.
The Digital Nomad Advantage

As a digital nomad with no home base, I book flights and accommodation almost every week of my life. That might sound exhausting to some, but it also means I have booked, canceled, and rebooked hundreds of reservations to maximize savings and discover new experiences. Here’s how I strategically manage my reservations and saved $866 in just one week.

Capsule Hotel Stay: Saving $196 on Tokyo Accommodation

The Opportunity

A fellow nomad recently reminded me about Tokyo’s famous capsule hotels – known for being clean, comfortable, and offering premium amenities like hot tubs, and complimentary breakfast. I discovered a capsule hotel featuring free champagne and a traditional sauna for approximately $50 per night. You can do this by searching for Unique Hotels when searching PointsYeah’s Hotel Collection.

The Decision

I had already booked a two-night stay at an Intercontinental Hotel, leveraging my Ambassador status to receive one free weekend night. However, I decided to cancel this reservation for two reasons:
1. The cost was relatively high compared to other Intercontinental properties worldwide.
2. I genuinely wanted to experience Japan’s capsule hotel culture.
The Savings
- Original IHG cost: $452 for two nights
- Capsule hotel cost: $256 for five nights
- Total savings: $196
The Intercontinental would certainly have been more luxurious, but the capsule hotel provided a cultural experience while allowing me to save my Ambassador Weekend Free Night certificate for a higher-value property.

Searching by Hotel Type
1. Navigate to PointsYeah Hotel Collection, which you can select from the left sidebar on the main page.
2. Search for the desired category of hotels on PointsYeah by clicking the relevant circle underneath the search bar.
3. Click “Unique Hotels” for local accommodations that you won’t find elsewhere.
Key Lesson: Always evaluate whether unique local accommodations might offer better value than luxury hotels, and reserve your loyalty program benefits for maximum impact. To do this, search for “Unique Hotels” in PointsYeah’s Hotel Collection.

United Award Flight Optimization: $670 in TravelBank Savings

The Situation

I had originally booked two United business class flights in the South Pacific using United TravelBank funds. While monitoring award availability using Points Price Alerts, I discovered these flights were available in economy for just 15,000 miles plus $13 in taxes.

The Analysis

Both flights were overnight routes under two hours – short enough that business class wouldn’t significantly enhance comfort compared to longer routes where lie-flat seats provide real value.

The Rebooking Strategy

Thanks to United MileagePlus’s free cancellation policy, I was able to:
1. Cancel the original TravelBank bookings (refunding $833).
2. Rebook using 15,000 miles + $13 in taxes for both flights, a value of over 5 cents per point!
3. Preserve TravelBank funds for future premium cabin flights on longer routes.
Key Lesson: Regularly monitor award availability using PointsYeah Points Price Alerts for existing bookings, especially with airlines offering free cancellations. Short flights may not justify premium cabin costs that could be better used on long-haul routes.

Hyatt Taipei Strategy: Mixed Bookings for Optimal Value

The Challenge

While attempting to optimize a Hyatt reservation in Taipei, I discovered that three of my eight planned nights were only bookable with cash, not points. I had originally planned on booking my stay solely with points.

The Current Booking
- Total cost: $448 cash + 25,000 Hyatt points for 8 nights
- Expected earnings: 16,000 points through a Hyatt promotion
- Net point usage: 9,000 points (25,000 redeemed – 16,000 earned)
Searching by Hotel Collection Calendar
1. Navigate to PointsYeah Hotel Collection, which you can select from the left sidebar on the main page.
2. Search for desired hotels on PointsYeah.
3. Click “Award Calendar” on the tile for the hotel you want to stay at.
Key Lesson: Even when you can’t immediately optimize an award booking, continue monitoring for improvements in award space using the Hotel Collection Calendar view. Mixed cash-and-points bookings can still provide excellent value.

Future Planning: New Zealand Award Alerts

The Strategy

Looking ahead to my trip to New Zealand next year, premium cabin award flights are currently expensive. Rather than booking immediately, I’m using PointsYeah Points Price Alerts and Explorer Alerts to monitor fare changes.

Setting Up Points Price Alerts for my exact route
1. Search for desired flights on PointsYeah.
2. Click “Create Alerts” in the top right corner.
3. Receive notifications when award prices drop or availability improves.
Setting Up Explorer Alerts for a broader search
1. Navigate to PointsYeah Daydream Explorer, which you can select at the top or from the left sidebar on the main page.
2. Search for flights from anywhere in the US to New Zealand over your desired period of time to find more flights for your trip.
3. Click the “Create Explorer Alerts” toggle at the top of the search.
4. Receive notifications when award prices drop or availability improves.
Key Lesson: For future travel, especially to expensive destinations, set up automated price monitoring with PointsYeah Points Price and Explorer Alerts rather than settling for current high rates.

Essential Strategies for Travel Savings
- Maximize Credit Card Benefits
- Embrace Unique Experiences
- Master Flexible Booking Policies
- Implement Systematic Monitoring
Conclusion: The Power of Strategic Rebooking

This single week of tracking my reservations underscores how significant savings are possible through strategic rebooking. The $866 I saved is money that I can spend on travel experiences or invest elsewhere.

I’m so grateful to live my life on the road. While this digital nomad lifestyle can be expensive, points and miles save me tens of thousands annually on flights and accommodations. The key is developing a routine for consistent monitoring and optimization.

Your action items:
1. Review your existing reservations this week.
2. Set up price alerts for future travel with PointsYeah Points Price Alerts, Explorer Alerts, and Hotel Alerts.
3. Understand the cancellation policies of your preferred airlines and hotels.
4. Consider local accommodations by using PointsYeah’s Hotel Collection for your next destination.
What could strategic rebooking save you on your upcoming travels?
August 5, 2025
Breaking: Citi ThankYou Points now transferrable to American Airlines

We’ve been waiting for this, and it’s finally here. With the launch of Citi’s newest travel card, ThankYou Points are now transferable to American Airlines AAdvantage at a 1:1 ratio.

Until now, AAdvantage was the only one of the big four U.S. airlines without a major points transfer partner. Delta? Transfer from Amex. United and Southwest? Chase. But American had no option, until now. This opens the door to far more flexibility in finding high-value award seats.

AAdvantage has many low cost redemptions starting at 5k miles as of the time of this search. A quick browse through daydream explorer found over 100 nonstop flights priced at that 5k mile mark.

Looking to stretch out?

We’re currently seeing First Class seats to Tokyo for around 80,000 AAdvantage miles, on top-tier carriers like Japan Airlines.

Most recent news regarding transfer partners has been negative. This however is great news for users of PointsYeah who now have even more flexibility to book their next trip. Be sure to update your filters, adjust your strategy, and explore the latest tools (and cards) that can help you take advantage of this change.. Learn more about the featured cards this month.

July 27, 2025
How to use Points and Miles within Europe
By Sarah Cash

Key Takeaways for European Flight & Hotel Redemptions
- Low-cost redemptions beat budget airlines: Some European routes cost as little as 4,000-7,500 miles plus minimal taxes
- Orphaned miles find perfect use: Stranded airline miles and hotel points are an excellent use for short European stays
- Business class flights offer exceptional value: Premium cabin flights can cost much less using points vs. paying cash
- Transfer bonuses maximize value: Strategic transfers from credit card programs can slash redemption costs
- Flexible routing creates adventures: Use search tools to discover unexpected destinations at low mileage rates
- Hotel program perks: Know specific hotel loyalty program discounts, like getting a fifth night free when you book with Marriott Bonvoy points.
Ryanair, easyJet, and other low-cost carriers abound in Europe, setting low prices for intra-European flights. While you can typically only redeem miles for flights on more full-service airlines like Turkish Airlines and Lufthansa, that may seem like a waste of points in comparison to the cash cost. However, there are many cases and reasons why using points for flights and hotel stays within Europe may actually be the wise decision.

When Points Beat Budget Airlines on European Routes

Let’s examine a flight from Bologna to Paris. This flight costs 4,000 Virgin Atlantic Flying Club miles and $21 in taxes—an extremely low cost, even compared to the cash price of $114. Because this is such a low-cost point redemption, it makes perfect sense to use points here rather than cash.

Summer Olympics in Paris

Orphaned Airline Miles

Use Air Canada Aeroplan to fly nonstop intra-Europe

This flight from Krakow to Istanbul costs 7,500 Air Canada Aeroplan miles and $44 in taxes, compared to $138 in cash. Whether you should pay cash or use points becomes less clear-cut here. Though you come out slightly ahead when you use points, the cash cost may be low enough that you prefer saving your points for higher-value redemptions. Make sure you consider the cost of cancelling or changing the flight as well, since that is typically easy to do with an award flight, but much more costly with a cash ticket.

This scenario perfectly illustrates when you might want to use “orphaned” miles—those stranded in your airline or hotel loyalty account that cannot be transferred back to credit card programs like Chase Ultimate Rewards. These orphaned points remain in your account until they expire or are used, making intra-European flights an excellent redemption opportunity since they often cost fewer points. In short, if you have orphaned miles, or plans that may change, using points for your ticket will be more cost effective. If not, spending cash may be the smarter option if you have the money.

Maximizing Business Class Value on European Routes

Within Europe, business class journeys offer good award redemptions with much more convenience and flexibility. Take this example from Milan to Paris, which costs 8,000 Virgin Atlantic Flying Club miles and $28 in taxes, compared to $413 in cash for business class one-way.

Flying business class for your journey will help ease travel stress, especially when you’re not paying much cash. Keep in mind that European business class typically won’t include wider seats, though you will receive increased baggage allowance, plus a more premium check-in and airport experience. For example, on an economy ticket, Air France lets you take one bag up to 50 lbs, and the ticket costs $111 in cash. But for the above business class ticket, you can take two bags at up to 71 lbs each, for just 8k points + $28 in taxes. If you’re on a longer trip and are carrying more luggage, this can be a great way to alleviate travel worries, and save time and cash.

Building Flexible European Adventures with Miles

Use Daydream Explorer to help you find these hidden gems

If you’re planning a European vacation, consider building your trip around cheap flight redemptions. Daydream Explorer serves as the best flight search tool when you have date and destination flexibility. Searching from Eastern to Northern Europe over the next couple months reveals opportunities like a nonstop flight from Warsaw, Poland to Riga, Latvia for just 6,000 United MileagePlus miles and $25 in taxes—compared to $150 cash. This highlights a super low-cost way to build an adventure while making your points and miles work efficiently for your travels.

Strategic Hotel Point Redemptions

Complement your flight strategy by leveraging points for European hotel stays to create an almost entirely free vacation. Transferring Citi ThankYou points to Choice Hotels at a 1:2 transfer ratio delivers exceptional value—4,000 Citi points becomes 8,000 Choice points for a free night in Paris. Even when cash rates are relatively low, using only 4,000 points for accommodations in a major European city is difficult to beat.

Transfer bonuses apply to hotel programs just like airline loyalty programs. Through August 15, 2025, Chase is offering a 50% transfer bonus to Marriott, enabling luxury stays in Belgrade, Serbia, for 37,000 points per night at a St. Regis property. While substantial, you can optimize this redemption by combining it with Marriott’s “Fifth Night Free” benefit—stay five nights for the cost of four when booking with points. This strategy stretches your point balance while potentially accessing luxury properties that might otherwise exceed your budget.

Bottom Line: European Points & Miles Strategy

When searching for flights and hotels within Europe, follow these essential strategies: always compare cash rates against points redemptions, prioritize using orphaned points from your loyalty accounts, take advantage of credit card transfer bonuses, evaluate business class rates, maintain flexibility with both destinations and travel dates, and utilize hotel program perks like getting an extra free night.

These optimization tips help you save cash for on-the-ground adventures throughout Europe. After all, it’s a lot harder to use points and miles for your crepes and concerts than for your flights and hotels!
July 24, 2025
How I am Booking my 2025 Dream Trips using Avianca LifeMiles
By Sarah Cash

When planning to book your next award flight, Avianca LifeMiles may not be the first airline loyalty program that comes to mind. But Colombia’s largest airline program has some quirks that absolutely work in your favor. In that vein, I’ve planned a few dream trips I want to take in the second half of 2025, and they’re all bookable using Avianca LifeMiles.

Key Points:
- Mixed-cabin bookings can significantly reduce award costs by factoring economy airtime into pricing
- Business class flights to Europe from the US start at 69,000 miles each way with low taxes and fees
- Many domestic US flights start at 6,500 miles one-way in economy.
- US to Central America flights can be found under 3,000 miles one way!
- African destinations like Cairo and Kenya offer excellent business class value at 78,000-80,000 miles
- Buy miles during sales at 1.2-1.4 cents per point for maximum value
Getting Started with Avianca LifeMiles

There are a few things you should know about Avianca LifeMiles before we dive in. The easiest way to accumulate LifeMiles would be to transfer points from most US credit card programs, like American Express, Citi and Capital One, to Avianca LifeMiles, especially during a transfer bonus. Avianca also regularly sells its miles at a large discount, often from 1.2 – 1.4 cents per point. If you find a premium cabin ticket for an overseas flight, it may be worth it to buy the miles rather than transferring your hard-earned points. There’s no wrong answer here; simply do the math and see what makes the most sense for you before purchasing your ticket!

The Mixed-Cabin Booking Strategy

Another way to reduce the total cost of an Avianca LifeMiles award booking is to book one leg in economy, and one leg in business class. Essentially, by booking a mixed-cabin ticket- where all the flights are not in the same cabin- you lower the total cost of the ticket because Avianca discounts the award rate by factoring in how much of the airtime is spent in economy. So as long as you’re fine with one leg in economy, this could be a great way to experience premium seats for fewer points.

Stroll through London: Concerts and Business Class

London has incredible concerts and festivals. From Stevie Wonder to Sabrina Carpenter, you can rock out to artists from every genre. And London in particular is a great place to use points and miles, since you have so many options. If you book through LifeMiles, you can fly to London for 69,000 miles in business class each way. While there are cheaper award options out there via Air France/KLM’s Flying Blue or Virgin Atlantic Flying Club, the taxes and fees are generally low when you book with Avianca. For example,Virgin Atlantic charges upwards of $585 in taxes for a business class flight to London, while Avianca is charging $46 – $56 for the same route. And if you bought LifeMiles during a sale, this could be a great way to spend fewer miles and taxes.

Domestic US Flights

Avianca LifeMiles is not only a great program to book international flights, but has strong pricing for certain regional and domestic routes as well. For example, I could fly to North Carolina for an upcoming bachelorette party for 10,000 miles in economy one-way. If you wanted to check out Detroit’s evolving art scene, you could also fly there for 10,000 miles one-way. Thankfully, these flights will typically have low fees as well, though Avianca does charge a $25 booking fee, as well as change and cancellation fees. You should also compare these award rates to the cash cost of these tickets to ensure you’re getting the most from your points. Often, I will set a cash limit for what I’m willing to spend on tickets, and if the price rises above that threshold, I’ll book using points as long as it makes sense.

African Adventures: Cairo and Kenya

For Thanksgiving, let’s fly to the impressive new Grand Egyptian Museum, or GEM, in Cairo with views of Giza and the pyramids. You can get to and from Cairo in business class seats for 80,000 LifeMiles each way. But why stop there? From Cairo, you can take a short flight to another country in Africa and return home, all using Avianca LifeMiles. You could hop over to Kenya and go on a safari in the capital of Nairobi, or drive to other Kenyan hotspots like coastal Mombasa or the world-famous Masai Mara National Reserve. And your return home comes to a cool 78,000 miles in business class. It really doesn’t get better than that for a premium experience in the sky!

The Bottom Line: Your Multi-Continent Adventure

Let’s pause for a moment and see how we’ve fared. For the first trip to London, your total cost comes to 138k miles for roundtrip business class. Both domestic economy tickets were 20k miles roundtrip, which adds up to 40k miles total. The trip to Cairo and return from Kenya in business class costs 158k miles. That means, for 336k miles, you’ve visited 3 continents, with all overseas flights in business class. And all your domestic flights add up to roughly the cost of one economy ticket to Europe. Not too shabby! The takeaway: when you go to book your next trip, check out Avianca LifeMiles for great award rates for partner flights.

Booking tip

Find the perfect flight on PointsYeah but cant seem to find it on the LifeMiles website? Try adjusting the dropdown menu shown below.

Typically we see this needed when booking partner award flights. The Smart Search will cover most searches but in the rare case you dont see your flight, try manually adjusting this dropdown to the operating carrier you want to fly.
July 15, 2025
Ended: Amex to Hawaiian (and Alaska) Transfers
If you’ve been using American Express Membership Rewards points to build up your Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan miles, heads up: Starting June 30, 2025, you won’t be able to transfer Amex points to HawaiianMiles — which means no way to turn them into Alaska miles.

What’s Happening?
- American Express will end transfers to HawaiianMiles on June 30, 2025.
- This means no more converting Amex points to Alaska miles through this method.
- HawaiianMiles will also end partnerships with other airlines and shopping partners on the same date.
Why This Matters

For a while, this HawaiianMiles path gave Amex cardholders a simple way to move points into Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan, even though Amex doesn’t transfer to Alaska directly.

By going Amex → HawaiianMiles → Alaska, travelers could top up their Alaska balances for some of the best award deals out there. But with Amex transfers to Hawaiian ending June 30th, 2025, this backdoor option is about to disappear for good.

How to Transfer Membership Rewards to Hawaiian (and Alaska)
1. Log in to your American Express account and go to the “Rewards & Benefits” page.
2. Transfer Membership Rewards points to HawaiianMiles. (You can transfer up to 999,000 points per day.)
3. Once in your HawaiianMiles account, use the transfer tool to move them to your Alaska Mileage Plan account.
Pro Tip: Alaska Mileage Plan miles don’t expire as long as you keep your account active. That means you can transfer them now and save them for a future trip.
May 20, 2025