Point Me To First Class

What do you do with cards once you've had them for a while and you've already earned the welcome bonus? How many cards is too many for you? What strategy will allow you to accumulate millions of points over one year? These are just some of the questions I'm covering in today's Q&A episode. I'm discussing specific cards, points currencies, and strategies that will help you achieve your points trave...

My guest this week is points expert Traci Siegel, a non-practicing attorney who has been using miles and points to travel around the US and the world with her family of four since 2011. She's been teaching friends how to hack their families' travel for years, and now she's teaching even more new friends how to expand their travel budgets through her Instagram.   Discover the recent announcements t...

Looking to plan your next warm weather vacation? Tune in today to hear a comparison of three tropical Hyatt hotel properties where you can use points for vacation. I'm putting each of these properties head-to-head to give you an idea of what you can expect in each, and which one might be the best fit for your travel plans.   I break down the basics of each of these three resorts including the acco...

Have you ever wondered what it would look like to take your career on the road and live location independent as a digital nomad? Did you know that you can you use your travel points to make this dream a reality? My guest this week has done just that and is here to tell you all about it.   Dr. Kristine Goins is a Board-Certified Integrative Adult and Pediatric Psychiatrist, physician coach, and wor...

Dr. Chandani DeZure is a Board Certified Physician living in California who's been maximizing points for travel since 2014. She started out on a resident's salary, traveling with no kids and tons of flexibility, and now she's taking her kids on her trips and her flexibility has all but vanished. But that doesn't stop her getting an amazing deal.   Discover how traveling with children changes the g...

Amena Bakali is an award travel educator, travel blogger, and family travel enthusiast. While many of us use our points for leisure travel, points can also help with booking travel that is of religious or cultural significance. One example of that is how she used points to book a trip to observe Umrah, the Islamic pilgrimage to their Holy City: Makkah, Saudi Arabia.   Discover her tips for booking...

I'm back with part two of my episode with Kelly, the Points and Miles Doc. In this episode, we're divulging how we decided to spend the treasure trove of points we earned last year. We're letting you see behind the scenes of our points wallets and travel plans, comparing the really fun part of the points hobby: how we used these points to book incredible travel experiences.    Tune in this week as...

Today, I'm joined by my points friend Kelly (The Points and Miles Doc) and we're taking a look back at 2023, breaking down all the points we earned last year, how we earned them, and we're analyzing some current trends in the points and miles world.   Tune in this week as we discuss the highs and lows of the points world in 2023. Kelly and I are sharing our favorite cards, points currencies, and s...

What can you expect from the Point Me to First Class Podcast in 2024? Instead of taking a deep dive into a points earning topic, I'm just bringing you a short and sweet episode about what's to come over the next 12 months. Discover what the next year has in store for the Point Me to First Class podcast and how I'm diversifying the types of travel inspiration and advice offered here.   Get full sho...

If you love earning Chase Ultimate Rewards Points, you're in the right place. Chase has a promotional offer right now that just might be the best points earning gift that you receive all year. Today, we're looking at how you can get double cash-back or double points using your Chase Freedom Unlimited card.   Discover how to get double points with your Chase Freedom Unlimited card. Learn what this...

Today, I'm joined by Dr. Erin Casey, a retired hematologist-oncologist turned hospitalist. As a solo points earner without high expenses, Erin wasn't sure if she could earn as many points as those who play the points game with a spouse or friend. Yet, she implemented a strategy to maximize her points, and if you're in a similar situation, you can too.   Tune in this week to discover how Dr. Erin C...

How do you end 2023 strong and ensure you aren't missing out on any valuable benefits from your rewards credit cards? We're fast approaching the end of the year, so it's time to do some points housekeeping. I'm reviewing five things I do to ensure I'm on track to hit my points and travel goals for the year.   Tune in this week to discover how to round out 2023 while staying on track with your rewa...

A LOT has changed in the rewards card world since I got my first points earning credit card in 2012. Join me today to discover the first five rewards credit cards I got when I started my points journey, why I wouldn't recommend most of those cards to people now, and what I would do differently if I was starting all over again. While the cards I'm sharing today may not be perfect for you, this epis...

Today, I'm joined by another physician-entrepreneur who is taking her travel experiences to the next level by leveraging her business expenses: Dr. Amita Kumar. Dr. Kumar is a primary care physician in San Antonio, Texas. Recently, she decided to take a sabbatical from her clinical practice and since one of her passions is traveling with her family, she has found a more economical way to do so by...

I'm sharing a recent conversation I had on the Analyze Scripts podcast. Analyze Scripts is hosted by Yale-trained psychiatrist Katrina Furey, MD, and psychotherapist Portia Pendleton, LCSW, analyzing the depiction of mental health in TV and film. In this conversation, we discussed the movie The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel and what we can learn about ourselves and travel from the characters in the m...

Last week, Lyn shared how to earn your Southwest Companion Pass and how the pass works. We're picking up right where we left off, discussing the specific points activities that do and don't count toward qualifying for a Companion Pass, and Lyn is sharing a strategy you can use to make sure you qualify for a Companion Pass by early 2024.   Tune in this week to discover how to qualify for unlimited...

I'm joined by Southwest expert Lyn Mettler, and she's breaking down everything you need to know about the coveted Southwest Companion Pass. In 2015, she discovered how to fly her family of 4 free to all the places she'd written about, going from one car trip a year to flying free six times every year around the US, Europe, and the Caribbean. She now teaches hundreds of families this same simple sy...

I'm an advocate for putting as many of your expenses as possible on rewards credit cards in order to maximize your points potential. But as we all know, there are certain expenses that charge a processing fee, or don't offer a credit card payment option at all. Sometimes it's worth paying the fee, but for those occasions when it doesn't, PayPal BillPay is here to help.   Here to show us how to use...

While there are mistakes to be made, there is no one right way of doing points. My guest this week knows this from firsthand experience. After she'd found her feet in the world of points, she took a risk in deviating away from Chase's points ecosystem and started exploring other options in the points space, and she has tons of insights to share about this decision. I'm joined by Dr. Azra Khan Sala...

Are you brand new to points, without a bunch of rewards credit cards or points stocked up? Or do you have your points earning down but are not yet confident about getting maximum value from the points you have saved up? Whether you're a self professed newbie to points travel or are looking for your points redemption skills to match your points earning skills, my online course Points Made Easy can...

Doors are open to enroll in my 6 months, hands on points master course, Points Made Easy - but not for long. You have until this Saturday, October 21 to grab your spot in Points Made Easy before doors close again until next year.   So today I'm dropping this bonus episode to share with you the stories of 3 Points Made Easy members, in their own words - so you can hear firsthand from prior course m...

The key to leveraging your expenses to earn incredible travel experiences is knowing what to do with those beautiful points once you've earned them, and most importantly, what not to do if you want to receive their maximum value. Specifically, I'm sharing five mistakes you need to avoid when redeeming points for travel.   Discover five mistakes that prevent you from getting maximum value when rede...

How would your travel plans next year change if your travel budget doubled?   Whether you're points curious, a points beginner still getting your legs under you, or more experienced earning points but not yet expert at using them, there are only a few things standing between you and saving thousands of dollars in travel using points.   Join my free masterclass, 4 Secrets to Doubling Your Travel Bu...

Did you know you can earn boatloads of American Express Membership Rewards Points through the online shopping platform Rakuten? There are points to be earned on Rakuten, and I'm showing you how to take advantage of some amazing offers in today's episode.   Discover how to use Rakuten to earn a ton of points this winter. Leveraging Rakuten is one of the most lucrative and reliable points-earning me...

I'm joined by two guests, Dr. Kathy Zhang and her husband Jake Jansen, this week and this is the first time I've had a points travel partnership on the show. They're an amazing example of what's possible when two people come together to maximize their points. Although they experienced some difficulty in the early days, they have a two-player points game that's creating some wonderful travel opport...