50. New Rules, New Game: Strategies We'd Use If We Were Just Starting

Points Talk with the Travel Mom Squad

Alex, Pam and Jess

Places & Travel, Education, Society & Culture, How To

4.9 • 734 Ratings

🗓️ 14 November 2023

⏱️ 37 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Ever wondered what cards the Travel Mom Squad would pick if they were diving into traveling on points and miles today? In our latest episode, we unveil the strategies and cards we would go for if we were newcomers in this game of savvy travel.

Alex kicks off by sharing her initial strategy involving the Southwest Companion Pass, while Pam reflects on her allegiance to United and Marriott. Jess, a bit more cautious, initially opted for the no-annual-fee Chase Freedom. Now, we each have a fresh top-five list influenced by the current credit landscape and the game-changing Chase 5/24 rule, emphasizing the importance of choosing wisely to maximize travel rewards.

Although there are some similarities in our choices, each of our selections cater to how we travel. Taking a close look at each card's benefits, how to strategically earn points, and the extra perks they offer, we aim to give you all the details you need to make smart choices about which cards work best to fit your preferences. With the evolving nature of credit card benefits, our strategies have to be adaptable to make the most of the offers on the table.

This episode is packed with insights into the strategic choices that shape an award traveler's journey. So, whether you're a seasoned traveler or just starting out, this will serve as a guide to help you through the dynamic world of accumulating and using points for travel.

Are you ready to start your travel journey? We invite you to hit play and join the conversation as we explore the methods we'd use if we were beginning today. Listening in could be your first step towards mastering the art of traveling for less with the most rewarding credit cards in your wallet!

Links For All Things Travel Mom Squad: stan.store/travelmomsquad

Episode Minute By Minute:

00:00 Today’s episode on how we would start if we were starting over!
02:00 Jess gives a quick recap of the Chase 5/24 rule
03:00 Alex talks about the first cards that she opened
06:30 Pam shares how she started and what cards she opened first
08:49 Jess talks about the first cards that she opened when she started
10:29 Alex lists the 5 cards she would open if she were to start today
17:29 Alex shares what her pacing would be with these cards knowing what she knows now
20:06 Pam talks about her travel journey and how she opened her first cards
23:46 Pam shares the 5 cards she would open
28:45 Jess talks about the 5 cards that she would open is she was starting today
35:35 Some final thoughts and how you can get started today!

Transcript

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0:00.0	You're listening to Points Talk with the Travel Mom Squad, previously known as the Travel Hacking
0:04.7	Mom Show. Follow the links in the show notes to stay up to date with what the Travel Mom
0:09.0	Squad has been up to. Ever wonder how we'd handle travel hacking if we were just starting out?
0:14.7	Wonder no more. Today, we're going to take a deep dive into which credit cards we would apply for
0:19.4	if we were new to travel hacking.
0:22.3	Some may surprise you.
0:26.5	Welcome to the Travel Hacking Mom Show.
0:34.2	We are three moms who've discovered how to leverage credit card welcome offers to get hundreds of thousands of dollars in travel expenses for nearly free.
0:38.2	We've used credit card points and miles to take vacations to places like Hawaii,
0:44.2	Paris, Greece, the Maldives, Italy, and so much more. And the best part, we each still have an 800 plus credit score. Imagine being able to book a vacation without having to check your bank account.
0:49.3	It's totally possible and we're here to show you how.
0:52.6	Hey, I'm Alex and I'm Pam, Alex's mom. And I'm Jess. We are
0:57.8	travel hacking moms. So we have all been doing this for a very long time. I started in 2015.
1:05.4	Alex, when did you start? 2017. Pam, same time. All right.
1:11.1	So we all been doing this for over six years at this point, but a lot has changed since we first started travel hacking.
1:20.7	And the cards that we opened six, seven, eight years ago may not be the cards that we would open first today if we were just starting
1:29.5	out. So are you ready to hear which five cards each of us would choose if we were just getting
1:36.6	started with travel hacking? Let's get to it. First of all, I'm going to give a quick recap of the chase 524 rule because this is going to be
1:46.7	really important when we get into discussing which cards we would open and why this rule did not
1:52.9	exist when we first started travel hacking and so that is why we're going to talk about the cards
1:59.4	we opened first this was not a rule back then.
2:02.1	And so we would do things differently today if we had to start over.
	...

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