The great thing about getting into the world of credit cards and travel hacking is just how much it opens up the world to you, not just with where you can travel, but also with how often you can do it. Inspired by traveling attorneys like MVMT blog and Jen on a Jet Plane, I’ve been on a bit of a mission to get in as much travel as I can this year while also working as a full-time attorney without a lot of vacation time.
So far, things are going well. I’ve gone on six trips since the beginning of the year, with more planned in the coming months (I basically define a trip as any time I take a plane to go somewhere – I don’t travel for work, so a plane trip is still a special event for me). As I punch this post out, my wife and I just got back from a four-day trip to Iceland for the Memorial Day weekend – a European destination that surprisingly isn’t that far away. The weekend before that, I went to Las Vegas to celebrate a friend’s graduation from law school. And last month, my wife and I traveled every weekend around the country to visit friends and family.
For most people, travel (at least plane travel) is a big deal – something that has to be planned out, saved for, and completed over a long(ish) period of time. From a personal finance and value perspective, this makes sense. If you’re going to spend hundreds or thousands of dollars on flights and hotels, you don’t really want to spend all of that money just to hop on a return flight a few days later. You need to make your flight worth it, which often means that travel is something you can only do once you’ve saved up the money or, more likely, once you’ve saved up the vacation days.
But when you’re sitting on a ton of points and miles (and accumulating more points and miles every few months), destinations suddenly become much closer than you think. Instead of having to wait to travel, traveling becomes possible even without a lot of time, money, or vacation stored up. Despite all of the travel I’ve done this year, I still haven’t paid for a flight yet. And I’ve only had to use one vacation day this entire year.
Embracing Fast Travel in 2018
Having this big stash of points and miles is pretty nice. So far in 2018, I’ve traveled to the following places, all using the points and miles I’ve accumulated from the past year of travel hacking:
- February = Arizona to visit Saguaro National Park and enjoy some warm weather
- April = Atlanta to visit friends; Chicago for our 1-year anniversary; DC to visit family
- May = Las Vegas to hang out with friends; Iceland just for fun
Along with free flights, I’ve also been able to avoid paying for hotels during this travel spree.
- In Arizona, I paid for our hotels using points.
- We stayed with friends and family in Atlanta and DC.
- In Chicago, I used points to book us a room downtown.
- And in Las Vegas, I used points to book me and my friends a last minute room on the strip (the value wasn’t too bad either since there was some huge music event going on that weekend that resulted in really high hotel prices).
The only place I’ve paid for lodging so far is this recent Iceland trip, where my wife and I opted to go with the Airbnb route. Hotel options weren’t that great and we had a few hundred bucks of Airbnb credit to use from being Airbnb Superhosts.
Later this summer, I’ll fly to South Dakota for a wedding – a surprisingly expensive flight when paid for with cash. It’s a Friday wedding, so for the rest of the weekend, my wife and I will hike to Harney Peak (the highest point in South Dakota), hit up Mt. Rushmore, and then probably try to swing by Wind Cave National Park or Badlands National Park before we return home on Sunday evening. In July, we’ve got another wedding to go to in DC, so we’ll be back out that way again for a weekend.
Since my wife and I have the Southwest Companion Pass, we’re sticking to domestic travel in 2018 (if you don’t know, the Companion Pass is basically the best perk you can get if you want to do a ton of trips with your significant other like I’m trying to do).
I’d like to try to get another international trip in over a long weekend or holiday – somewhere in the Carribean would be nice, especially since it’s not that far away. We’ll see how things shake up with our free time. Ideally, I’d love to do 10 to 12 trips by the end of the year. With 6 trips already in the books, plus another 2 planned, I think I can get there.
Appreciating the Advantages of Fast Travel
Naturally, slow, longer trips would be preferable – I’d love to be able to spend a week or two in a place before having to leave. But the problem is, I’m not financially independent and my job isn’t that great on the vacation front. I only get two weeks of vacation each year, plus holidays. That doesn’t leave a lot of time for me to go on extended trips.
What embracing fast travel does is that it makes travel possible for someone like me. I’m just a regular working stiff. I need to make travel work with my lifestyle. And while traveling to exotic, really far-off destinations can be fun, there are advantages of opting for the quick, weekend trip, including:
You Get To See Your Friends And Family. Probably the best thing about accumulating all of these points is that it lets me see friends and family that I otherwise wouldn’t see because I can’t afford the flight. I flew to Las Vegas a few weekends ago to celebrate a friend’s graduation from law school, and given my work schedule, I arrived on Saturday morning and left Sunday night. There’s no way I would have paid for that kind of flight if I had to use cash – it wouldn’t have felt worth it to me to drop the dough for such for such a short trip. But when you’ve got points, who cares? A three-hour plane ride and I was able to be there in Vegas celebrating with my friend.
You Save Your Vacation Days. I wish we were like other countries that had more vacation days, but sadly, this isn’t the case here in the US. I only get a measly two weeks of vacation per year. What I do get though are weekends and holidays. By taking advantage of this fact, it’s possible to travel a lot without having to burn through your vacation days. For my trips, I try to leave on Friday evening and return on Sunday evening. Most of the time, my employer doesn’t even know I went anywhere. And it’s usually enough time for me to explore a place, at least for a little while.
Travel To Recharge Your Batteries. Traveling can be stressful for some people, but for whatever reason, it’s never really stressed me out. I always feel invigorated once I get back. If you’re like me, this is a great way to recharge your batteries and do better at work.
It’s Fun. I’ve been having a ton of fun looking at a map and figuring out random places I can go to for free over a weekend or long weekend. Since I live in Minneapolis, a lot of places are only a few hours away from me, so I’ve got a lot of options for places to go.
Travel Hacking Makes Fast Travel Possible – Take Advantage Of It
For a lot of people, travel hacking is something that requires travel to far-off, exotic places – that’s all you’ll see in the blogosphere, in any event.
Unfortunately, my situation doesn’t really work with that type of travel. But it doesn’t mean travel is out of reach. By travel hacking and using points and miles, I can hop on a plane whenever I have the time, visit a place over a weekend, and be back at work on Monday, all without having to feel like I’m not getting the full value out of my plane ticket.
If you’re thinking about embracing this fast travel lifestyle, here are some things to think about:
Don’t Underestimate Domestic Travel. We live in a huge, varied country, and I think a lot of us forget that. I’ve been in the Midwest for a while now and the way things look here is totally different compared to other parts of the country. I’d never really thought about desert locations until I went to Arizona this past winter. I was in Atlanta in 80-degree weather while a foot of snow dropped on Minneapolis. And there are many more places in this big country that I’d like to check out. Domestic travel is legit travel – don’t forget that.
Nearby International Destinations. It’s actually interesting just how many international destinations aren’t really that far away. Iceland was only a 6-hour flight from Minneapolis – easy enough to do for a long weekend. Places like the Carribean or Mexico aren’t very far away either. And any city in Canada is easy enough to get to from anywhere in the US.
Keep Accumulating Points (And Actually Use Them). One thing that a lot of travel hackers do is constantly hoard points and miles, waiting for that perfect, optimal use for them. This is totally fine, but in my view, points and miles aren’t really that hard to come by. You’ll always spend your points and miles, but you’ll just keep getting more of them.
Marvel At How Far You Can Go
I still get amazed whenever I step off a plane and realize that I’m hundreds or thousands of miles from where I started a few hours before. It used to take people months or years to make those trips – now we do it in hours. It’s pretty incredible when you think about travel in that way.
If you want to embrace this fast travel lifestyle, playing the credit card game is where it’s at. It’ll allow you to fly for free, so you won’t feel like you’re not getting your money’s worth. I keep adding more and more cards to my collection (currently sitting on 15 credit cards now), and at the moment, I pretty much have more points than I even know what to do with. I don’t think I’ll have to pay for a flight for at least another year or two – and that’s assuming I don’t keep adding more points and miles to my stash.
There’s a lot that goes into the travel hacking world, but if you want a starting point for your travel hacking journey, consider starting with the Chase Sapphire Preferred or Chase Sapphire Reserve. If you want to do it the best way possible though, you’ll want to snag them both at once (read my post about the One Sapphire Rule to understand the process of getting both cards and make sure you understand the 5/24 rule). And if you can get it, the Southwest Companion Pass is probably the best thing you can ever have when it comes to fast travel.
Or consider starting off your travel hacking journey with a business credit card like the Chase Ink Preferred (and read my post on business credit cards to understand why they’re the ultimate travel hacking tool).
Travel is attainable, even if you don’t have a lot of free time on your hands. You just need to understand the ways you can do it and figure out how you can fit it into your lifestyle.
How do you fit travel into your world?
More Recommended Ebike/Scooters
Check out these other ebikes/scooters I've had the chance to do a review for:
- GEN3 Outcross Bike – The GEN3 Outcross is a solid, affordable fat tire ebike that does a good job of doing what I need it to do. It works great for city riding, giving me a smooth ride in all conditions. It’s works really well as a winter ebike since the fat tires give it good traction over snow and ice. Check out my GEN3 Outcross Review.
- Himiway Escape Bike – The Himiway Escape is an interesting bike for anyone looking for a moped-style ebike. If you’re a gig economy worker, the Himiway Escape is particularly interesting and it’s possible to think of it as an investment, especially if you can opt to do deliveries with the Himiway versus using a car. It’s not cheap, but you can definitely make your money back when you compare the mileage you’ll put on your car versus using an ebike. Check out my Himiway Escape Bike Review.
- Espin Sport Bike – The Espin Sport is a good ebike for someone who is looking for an ebike that feels and rides more like a regular bike. There are many ebikes that are really only bikes in name. In reality, they’re basically electric mopeds. The Espin Sport, by contrast, is a bike you could probably ride without the battery and you’d feel like you’re just riding a regular bike. Check out my Espin Sport Review.
- Varla Eagle One Scooter – The Varla Eagle One is an excellent scooter that can make sense for a lot of people. It can work as a primary mode of transportation. You can use it to work on gig economy apps like DoorDash, Uber Eats, and Grubhub. And it can also be a recreational vehicle if you’d prefer to use it for that. Check out my Varla Eagle One Review.
- Fucare H3 Scooter – The Fucare H3 is a fun scooter and I’ve enjoyed testing it out. For a daily commuter or quick trips or errands, the Fucare H3 is probably the scooter I’ll use. It’s portable and easy to maneuver, so it’s just easier to take on the road when I need it. Check out my Fucare H3 Scooter Review.
More Recommended Investing App Bonuses
For additional investing app bonuses, be sure to check out the ones below:
- M1 Finance ($10) – This is a great robo-advisor that has no fees and allows you to create a customized portfolio based on your risk tolerance. You also get $10 for opening an account. Check out my M1 Finance Referral Bonus – Step-By-Step Guide.
- SoFi Invest ($25) – SoFi Invest is an easy brokerage account bonus that you can earn with just a few minutes of work. Use my SoFi Invest referral link, fund your SoFi Invest brokerage account with $100 and you’ll get $25 of free stock. I also have a step-by-step guide for the SoFi Invest referral bonus.
- Moomoo (5 free stocks) – Moomoo is a free investing app currently offering 5 free stocks (usually worth around $75-$100) if you open an account using a referral link and deposit $2,000. Read my Moomoo referral bonus guide for more information.
- Webull (5 free stocks) – Webull also gives you 5 free stock valued between $3-$3,000 each if you open an account using my referral link. Here’s a guide I wrote about how to earn your free stocks using Webull.
- Robinhood (1 free stock) – Robinhood gives you a free stock valued between $2.50-$225 if you open an account using my referral link.
- Public (1 free stock) - Public gives you a free stock valued between $3-$70 if you open an account using my referral link.
More Recommended Bank Account Bonuses
If you’re looking for more easy bank bonuses, check out the below options. These bonuses are all easy to earn and have no fees or minimum balance requirements to worry about.
- Chime ($100) - Chime is a free bank account that offers a referral bonus if you use a referral link and complete a direct deposit of $200 or more. In practice, any ACH transfer into this account triggers the bonus. This bonus is easy to earn and posts instantly, so you’ll know if you met the requirements as soon as you move money into the account. I wrote a step-by-step guide on how to earn your Chime referral bonus that I recommend you check out.
- Upgrade ($100) – Upgrade is a free checking account that’s currently offering a $100 referral bonus if you open an account and complete three debit card transactions. These bonus terms are easy to meet, so it’s well worth doing this bonus as soon as you can. Importantly, this bonus says that it’s now scheduled to end on October 31, 2022. As long as you get your account opened before October 31st, you should be eligible. Here’s a post I wrote with more details: Upgrade $100 Referral Bonus – Step By Step Directions.
- SoFi Money ($350) – SoFi Money is a free checking account from SoFi. They’re currently offering a $25 referral bonus if you open a SoFi account with a referral link and deposit $10. You can also make an additional $300 as well if you complete a direct deposit. This is a good bank that is also 100% free, so you won’t have to worry about managing this account. Here’s a post I wrote with instructions on how to earn your SoFi Money bonus: SoFi Money Referral Bonus: Step By Step Guide.
- Fifth Third Bank ($250) – This offer is limited to customers in the following states: Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, North Carolina, Ohio, Tennessee, West Virginia, and South Carolina. If you don’t live in one of those states, you won’t be able to open an account online but you can still open an account in-branch if you happen to be visiting a city that has a branch. This is a fairly easy bank bonus to earn, especially since there are plenty of data points showing what will trigger the direct deposit requirement. In addition, you can open the Fifth Third Momentum Checking bank account, which comes with no monthly fees or minimum balance requirements. Read my guide on this bonus here.
- Current ($50) – Current is a free fintech bank that’s offering new users a $50 referral bonus after signing up for an account using a referral link.Current is an easy bonus to earn and also gives you access to three savings accounts that pay you 4% interest on up to $2,000. That means you can put away up to $6,000 earning 4% interest. That’s very good and makes Current an account I recommend to everyone. Check out my step-by-step guide on how to earn your Current Bank bonus.
- OnJuno ($100) – OnJuno is a fintech/neobank that is currently offering a $100 referral bonus if you open an account using a referral link and complete a direct deposit of $250 or more. The account has no fees or minimum balance requirements. Even better, the bonus posts immediately after you meet the requirements. If you can meet the direct deposit requirements, OnJuno is an easy bank bonus that’s worth snagging. Check out my OnJuno referral bonus guide here.
- Varo ($50) – Varo is a free fintech banking app similar to Chime or Current. It’s currently offering a $50 bonus to new users that open a new Varo account with a referral link. The bonus for this bank is very easy to meet, all you need to do is spend $20 within 30 days of opening your Varo account. Check out my step-by-step guide to learn how to earn this bonus.
- Fairwinds Credit Union ($100) – Fairwinds Credit Union is offering a referral bonus for users that sign up using a referral link. Fairwinds has no fees or minimum balance, so this is a particularly easy bonus to earn. Since this is a smaller credit union, my gut instinct tells me this offer won’t be around long, so if you’re in a position to meet the bonus requirements, grab this bonus before it’s gone. Here is my step-by-step guide on how to earn your Fairwinds Credit Union bonus.
- Novo Bank ($40) - Novo bank is a free business checking account that’s currently offering a $40 bonus if you open a Novo business checking account using a referral link. In addition to being a good bank bonus, Novo is also a good business checking account. It has no monthly fees or minimum balance requirements and operates a good app and website. Indeed, it’s the business checking account I currently use for this blog. Check out my post on how to easily open a Novo account.
- Spiral ($50) – Spiral is a fintech bank that's currently offering new customers a $50 signup bonus after opening a free checking account with them. The Spiral referral bonus is especially good because it's a free checking account and doesn't require a direct deposit to earn the bonus. Here is my step-by-step guide on how to earn your Spiral Bank bonus.
- One Finance ($50) – One Finance is a fintech bank that’s currently offering a $50 signup bonus if you open an account using a One Finance referral link and have a direct deposit of $250 or more. This is a completely free bank account with no minimum balance requirement, so if you can meet the requirements, it’s worth doing. Check out my One Finance referral bonus guide here.
- Albert ($150) – If you can manage to do a real direct deposit, Albert is an easy account you can use to earn a referral bonus. Here’s a review about Albert I wrote. And here’s a step-by-step guide on how to earn your Albert referral bonus.
- Netspend ($20 + 5% Interest Savings Account) – Netspend is a company that provides 5% interest savings accounts. If you sign up using my referral link, you’ll get a $20 signup bonus once you make your first deposit into your Netspend account of $40 or more. That means you get a 5% interest savings account and a free $20 to start! Make sure to check out my in-depth guide on how to set up these accounts.
Kevin is an attorney and the blogger behind Financial Panther, a blog about personal finance, travel hacking, and side hustling using the gig economy. He paid off $87,000 worth of student loans in just 2.5 years by choosing not to live like a big shot lawyer.
Kevin is passionate about earning money using the gig economy and you can see all the ways he makes extra income every month in his side hustle reports.
Kevin is also big on using the latest fintech apps to improve his finances. Some of Kevin's favorite fintech apps include:
- SoFi Money. A really good checking account with absolutely no fees. You'll get a $25 referral bonus if you open a SoFi Money account with a referral link, and an additional $300 if you complete a direct deposit.
- Upgrade Bank. Upgrade is a free checking account that’s currently offering a $100 referral bonus if you open an account and complete three debit card transactions. These bonus terms are easy to meet, so it’s well worth doing this bonus as soon as you can. Note that it’s now scheduled to end on October 31, 2022.
- Novo Bank. Novo bank is a free business checking account that’s currently offering a $40 bonus if you open a Novo business checking account using a referral link. It’s the business checking account I currently use for this blog.
- M1 Finance. This is a great robo-advisor that has no fees and allows you to create a customized portfolio based on your risk tolerance. You also get $10 for opening an account.
- Personal Capital. One of best free apps you can use to monitor your portfolio and track your net worth. This is one of the apps I use to track my financial accounts.
Feel free to send Kevin a message here.
My wife and I were inspired by your description of travel hacking and have already earned ~200,000 points in a month and a half through credit card sign-ups! We’re going to visit family in WI in December, but we also talked about starting something fun with the kids. We haven’t decided exactly what yet, but we’re thinking of either eating at a park or taking a picture on 1st Street in all 48 continental states.
As a teacher, I have a lot more time off, and we’re going to start this summer with a couple states around us, just driving. I’m excited to see what hotel options points can cover with four kids!
200k points in a month! That’s awesome. Enjoy the credit card journey (and take your time with it too – there’s always more points to get out there!)
I had no idea you can get two of the same business credit cards from using your SSN and EIN. The in branch 100k sign up bonus is a hidden gem too. How does that work, just go into the branch and say you want the 100k bonus? Thanks for the tips!
To get the 100k Chase Ink Preferred offer, you need to go into a branch and talk to a Business Relationship Manager. Basically, let them know you heard there is a 100k offer and ask them for it. But, you also need to have a real business (or be good at bsing them).
If you already got the first Chase Ink Preferred, then no need to go in branch, just refer yourself using your referral link from your first Chase Ink Preferred and you’ll get the same 100k.
Thanks to travel hacking my wife and I recently visited Rome, Italy for FREE! We flew business class and stayed at a Marriott luxury hotel (a part of their “autograph” collection) all by using miles and points. It was a trip of a lifetime and we pulled it off without a hitch, thanks to travel hacking.
In a world full of people talking about “slow travel” it is great to hear your take. I tend to travel a lot and mostly it has been internationally, but because I run my own practice, I get the luxury to make my own schedule and take vacation time. I have a lot of friends that just scoff at what I do because they only have 2 weeks of vacation time a year. I think your take on this is great for people who want to travel, but don’t have a lot of time. Would love to hear more about your trip to Iceland. We absolutely loved it there!
My husband and I specialize in the quick trip. And we definitely use our Southwest Companion pass/Marriott points to do it. I’m on a mission to hit all 30 ballparks (25 down, 5 to go) and so we’ve been taking weekend trips for the past 2 summers to knock out a bunch. We were in Dallas over Memorial Day weekend and have Minneapolis planned for July (hello!). Last year we hit Cincinnati (Oktoberfest, a lot of fun!), Denver, Seattle, Phoenix and Oakland. It’s been a lot of fun, though the breakneck pace is tough at times. It helps having a travel bag ready to go with toiletries already packed.
I like the idea of travelling domestically. Our country is pretty diverse and I can honestly say I’ve benefited from meeting people from different walks of life/political views through these trips. We like to grab meals at the bar, it saves money and allows us to chat with the locals, and chat.
That’s an awesome goal. Agree with the pace being a bit tiring, I’ve been getting pretty exhausted lately too. If you’re up for it, let me know when you’re in Minneapolis. Would love to grab a beer if I’m around.
Yes , since I got in the point’s hobby I know I can fly every week if I want. This is unheard of to even my friends who make a high salary. It is nothing to travel hackers.