Our luxurious vacation cost 1 million credit-card points and $12,000. We spent 14 days in Europe and never flew less than business class.
October 7, 20240
I used different cards to build my points portfolio.
Kimanzi Constable
I used the American Express Green Card because it earns three points for every dollar spent on travel; the Citi Strata Premier Card for three points a dollar spent on gas, groceries, and dining; and the American Express Platinum Card for Centurion Lounges and Priority Pass lounges.
The Platinum card also reimburses for Global Entry and Clear, which we used throughout the trip to get through security.
As a business owner, I also used the Chase Preferred Ink Business Card to earn three points for every dollar spent on the first $150,000 and the Venture X card by Capital One because it earns two times points for every dollar spent with no spending limit.
Additionally, I earned a 300,000-points welcome bonus offer from the Venture X card.
I had a million points when it was time to start booking the flights and hotels.
We flew business class from Atlanta to Dublin on AirFrance.
Kimanzi Constable
Because I know I can often get more from my points if I transfer them directly to airlines, I used an awards-checker tool called Point.me to determine the best flight redemptions.
The cheapest deals I found were flying out of Atlanta, so I paid $3,040 out of pocket for four first-class round-trip flights to and from our home in Sarasota, Florida. It was a nice way to earn even more points to spend elsewhere.
Then, I spent 410,000 Flying Blue points for four one-way business-class seats on AirFrance from Atlanta to Dublin.
We booked a room at Temple Bar Inn in Dublin with 40,922 Capital One points. But my wife and I decided we wanted our own hotel room, so I spent an extra $658 for that.
The hotel was modern, had a great ambiance, and was in a great location.
From Dublin, we flew to Amsterdam.
KLM’s European-business seats were nothing special.
Kimanzi Constable
Our four European business-class seats on KLM from Amsterdam to Valencia cost 80,000 points.
Valencia was our longest stay, so we booked an Airbnb in the center of Old Town.
It cost $2,284, which was one of the larger out-of-pocket expenses on the trip. But for seven nights, it wasn’t a bad deal at all.
After Valencia, we journeyed to Paris.
It was fun to switch it up and take a train.
Kimanzi Constable
Since getting from Paris to London by train is so easy, I booked first-class seats on the Eurostar for$1,736.
I was able to redeem 21,210 Chase points for one room at the London Marriott Hotel County Hall, and I paid $957 for our second room at the hotel.
County Hall was right in central London, and the hotel was luxurious. Breakfast was included, and we could see the London Eye and Westminster from our window.
It took 230,000 Virgin Atlantic points to book first-class seats back to the US.
I can’t wait to book my birthday trip with points.
Kimanzi Constable
The 1 million points I used were well worth it — without them, we never could’ve made this trip work. I was floored that I was able to cover 20 international plane tickets and several hotel rooms.
We only ended up paying a little over $12,000 out of pocket for a luxurious 14-day trip for four. That might still sound like a lot, but we saved a ton, and I saw it as an opportunity to earn even more points.
Now, I’m saving my points and miles for my December birthday trip to Japan and South Korea. It’s my new go-to way to travel.
