One of the things that I hear the most from people is that they want to travel more, but their budget is too tight. Even when money is tight, there are a few minor things that you can do to supersize your travel budget.
Credit cards that offer cashback or rewards points can be a great way to add money to your travel budget. Cards like Bilt Rewards (1 point per dollar spent on rent, 2 points per dollar on travel, and 3 points per dollar on dining), the Amex Gold (4 points per dollar on groceries and restaurants), and the Capital One SavorOne (3% cash back on dining, entertainment, popular streaming services and at grocery stores, plus 1% on all other purchases) all offer rewards on certain spending categories that can be used for travel. Let’s say that you live in an apartment that costs $2,200/month and you spend $300/month at restaurants. Just this spending will net you 26,400 rewards points from rent + 3,600 from restaurants, which is worth roughly $450 (depending on how you use your points). While that isn’t going to get you a week in the Maldives, it’s still $450 more for travel just by spending your money how you would it anyway. You can also pair these with travel cards like the Amex Platinum or the Capital One Venture X to get even more rewards when you travel. (For reviews on these cards, click here).
Cashback portals like Rakuten can be a great way to save money on the things that you’re planning to purchase. If you can save money on some of the purchases that you make, it can add up quickly, and you can use it to fund your travel. Rakuten offers Amex points as one rewards option, which can then be transferred to travel partners like Hilton and Marriott, or Delta, American Airlines, or British Airways. Rakuten also has a dining program that gives 5% cashback or 5 Amex points at many restaurants on top of the cashback that you get from your credit card. Pairing this with the Amex Gold nets you 9 points/dollar (worth roughly 13.5¢ per dollar total), and the SavorOne nets you 8% cashback total.
Many loyalty programs offer free nights on rewards stays that are booked entirely with points and higher earnings rates for loyalty program members that increase with higher status levels. For instance, because I get Hilton Diamond status through my Hilton Aspire card, I earn 34 Hilton points/dollar spent at Hilton, (10 points for being a Hilton Honors member, 10 additional points because of the 100% match for Diamond members, plus another 14 points by paying with my Aspire card). I also get complimentary room upgrades, which allows me to get much nicer rooms for the price of a standard room.
via nerdwallet.com
Buying points can be a good investment if there is a sale, especially if using points can save you money via lower room rates or free nights. For example, Hilton is offering 2x points up to 160,000 points until May 6th, which comes out to a cost of 0.5¢/point, which is typically below the value of the points, depending on how they are used. Let’s say that you want to book an night stay at Homewood Suites by Hilton in Miami. You can get a suite with 2 queen beds for 40,000 points/night or $238/night. If you use points for the entire stay, you get the 5th night free, so it brings your cost down to 35,000 points/night. If you buy the points for 0.5¢ each, you end up paying $175/night and save yourself about $63/night. However, points are not always the cheapest way to book, so you’ll want to do the math before you make a decision. You can find the different rates by going to the hotel’s website and checking the “use points and money” box to see the daily rate using points.
Many credit cards will periodically offer transfer bonuses, like getting 40% more points when you transfer points from American Express to British Airways or 30% more when you transfer to Hilton. If you have a specific trip in mind and some credit card points saved up, this can be a great way to get more bang for your buck.
Many credit card companies also offer discounts for certain companies. For instance, you can get 6% back on VRBO from Capital One via their discounts page, or save $80 if you spend $200 with JetBlue from American Express. Making use of offers like this, both for travel and your everyday spending, can boost your travel budget.
Lastly, you can save money in other areas of your life by doing things like making your coffee/food at home and prioritize traveling. Little things that you do often tend to add up over the course of a year, so if you can make a few minor changes, you can save a ton. For instance, if you spend $7 at Dunkin or Starbucks on your way to work, that adds up to $1,680 per year! For more on this, check out our guide on how to save money.
Each of these tricks individually probably isn’t going to be enough to get you a phenomenal travel budget. However, if you string a few of them together, there’s a pretty good chance that you can start becoming a regular at the airport.
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