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Points Talk®: Your Travel Dreams, Made Possible by Points

8. How Jess Took A Luxurious Vacation to Greece for Less Than $500!

Points Talk®: Your Travel Dreams, Made Possible by Points

Alex, Pam and Jess

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

4.9734 Ratings

🗓️ 24 January 2023

⏱️ 27 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Greece is a destination that should be on everyone's bucket list. With its stunning natural beauty and rich cultural heritage, it's a country that has something for everyone. All three of us have had the privilege of visiting Greece and we're here to tell you that if it's not on your list yet, it's time to add it.

But maybe you’re thinking, “can you still experience the best of Greece without breaking the bank?” The answer is yes, and in today's episode, we're sharing Jess's incredible story of how she went on a luxury vacation to Greece that normally would cost $10,000+ and paid less than $500 out of pocket.

So, how did Jess do it? That kind of story is only something award travel can explain! By taking advantage of credit card rewards and loyalty programs, Jess was able to redeem points for flights, accommodations, and hotels.

A trip to Greece is something Jess and her childhood best friend had been dreaming about since they were in college. After looking into a trip in their early 20s, they knew they wouldn't be able to afford it on a student's income.

It was a dream that sat on the shelf for years until Jess and her friend decided to make it happen by combining their efforts and racking up points together! By the end of this episode, you'll see how fast your dream trip can happen with a little teamwork.

Jess started by referring her friend a card with a high sign-up bonus and rewards program that allowed her to redeem (and even transfer points) for travel. Once she had her credit card, they started earning points through her everyday spending.

She paid for everything from groceries to gas with her credit card to hit the minimum spend limit to unlock the most amount of points. This allowed them to fly business class flights, stay in $2K nightly hotel rooms, eat for free during their stay and so much more, all thanks to points!

Jess's experience in Greece is proof that you don't have to spend a fortune to have a luxury vacation. By taking advantage of credit card rewards and loyalty programs, and teaming up with your travel buddy, you can experience the best of what the world has to offer for a fraction of the cost.

So, add Greece to the top of your list and start planning your dream vacation today! To start your points and miles journey or to connect with us, check out the links below!

 

More Of What’s Inside:

  • Why we all love Greece 
  • Learn from Jess's story and plan your luxury vacation for less
  • Why Jess and her friend have been dreaming about this trip for years
  • How a “travel buddy” can be cheaper than traveling with a spouse
  • Jess went on a luxury vacation to Greece valued at $10,000 and paid less than $500
  • Why Jess booked her hotel rooms 13 and 10 months in advance
  • Want to transfer points to a friend or family member? Hyatt is it!
  • Jess recommends for a truly luxurious stay in Greece
  • Why Jess thought there was a greenscreen outside her window
  • A look inside one of the fanciest flights you can take 
  • And much more!

 

Links:

 

Episode Minute By Minute:

  • 0:05 How Jess went to Greece for only $500
  • 0:47 When Jess first started dreaming about Greece
  • 2:00 How Jess helped her “Award Travel Light” friend
  • 4:38 The best time of year to travel to Greece
  • 5:55 How Jess unlocked so many Hotel points for this trip
  • 10:42 Jess’ favorite Hotel of all time
  • 15:29 How to rack up the points to to fly business class 
  • 19:30 Why Turkey’s Airlines is so fancy
  • 22:33 Mind-blowing experiences are still possible 

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

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. Is Greece one of your bucket list destinations? All three of us have been there

0:14.7

and we're here to tell you that if it's known on your list, go ahead and add it. In today's episode,

0:20.5

Jess is sharing how she went on a

0:22.1

luxury vacation to Greece, valued at $10,000 and paid less than $500. Stay tuned to hear how

0:28.8

she did it. Welcome to the Travel Hackey Mom Show. We are three moms who've discovered how to

0:34.8

leverage credit card welcome offers to get hundreds of thousands

0:37.9

of dollars in travel expenses for nearly free.

0:40.7

We've used credit card points and miles to take vacations to places like Hawaii, Paris, Greece,

0:46.1

the Maldives, Italy, and so much more.

0:48.3

And the best part?

0:49.6

We each still have an 800 plus credit score.

0:52.5

Imagine being able to book a vacation without having to check your

0:54.8

bank account. It's totally possible and we're here to show you how. Hey, I'm Alex. And I'm Pam,

1:00.8

Alex's mom, and I'm Jess. We are travel hacking moms. So today, Jess is the star of our show

1:07.6

as we interview her about her recent trip to Greece. So, Jess, how the

1:13.6

heck did this trip to Greece come about? Yeah, it's kind of crazy. So I have wanted to go to

1:20.2

Greece. Like my best friend and I talked about going to Greece 10 years ago when we were much

1:26.4

younger and didn't have as much responsibilities as we do now.

1:30.5

And you probably weren't travel hacking at that point.

1:33.3

We weren't travel hacking.

...

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