💳 4 Things You Can Do This Year with Credit Card Rewards ✨

Last Updated: 2024

A bit of time invested in getting the right credit cards can turn an ordinary trip into an extraordinary one. From traveling in business class to staying in super expensive hotels, I've personally used credit cards to travel in style—all without spending more than I would for typical travel.

There are four main things to consider when you're thinking about a new credit card:

Sign-on bonus: Typically earned after you spend a certain amount on the card in the first few months.
Ongoing perks: Think lounge access, free nights, and travel credits.
Earning rate + currency: How quickly can you rack up points, and how versatile are they?
Annual fee: Weigh the fee against the card’s value to you.

Here are five travel goals and how the right credit cards can help you achieve them:

🛫 1. Try Out Flying Business Class

If your goal is to save for a future milestone (a month of travel or anniversary, for example), there are lots of ways to make this year the one when you earn a bunch of points.

What I'd do:

Get a transferable-points card from Chase (Ultimate Rewards), American Express, or Capital One (Rewards).
Match the card to your spending habits:
- AmEx Gold: 4X points on restaurants and groceries.
- Chase Sapphire Reserve: 3X points on travel.
- Capital One Venture X: 2X points on everything.
Apply for the Bilt Card if you pay rent. It’s the only card that earns 1X points on rent payments with no fee and offers 3X on dining and 2X on travel.

Pro Tip: Sign up for Rakuten and link your AmEx card to earn Membership Rewards points on online shopping. You’d be surprised how quickly these add up!

🌟 2. Stay in a Fancy Hotel

I’ve used hotel-branded credit cards to stay in incredible hotels around the world, from the Conrad Tokyo to the Waldorf Astoria in Beverly Hills. With the right cards, this isn’t just possible—it’s easy.

💳 Top Recommendation: Hilton Aspire Card

Annual Fee: $550.

Why It’s Worth It:

A free night at any Hilton hotel each year. I’ve redeemed this at the Waldorf Astoria Los Cabos (~$1,500/night), Conrad Tokyo (~$700/night), and Waldorf Astoria Beverly Hills (~$1,000/night).
Hilton Diamond Status: Perks include late checkout, room upgrades, and breakfast credits.
$200 flight credit annually ($50/quarter), $400 Hilton Resort credit ($200/half-year, though somewhat restrictive), and a $199 yearly Clear credit.

Want more free nights?

Get the Hilton Surpass Card and spend $15K/year for another free night.
Have your partner get the Aspire and Surpass cards, and you’ll rack up four free nights.
Consider Hilton’s business cards if you have a small business.

Prefer Marriott?

Try the Marriott Boundless or Brilliant cards for annual stays at mid-range or luxury properties.
For advanced users, consider product-changing to the Ritz-Carlton credit card—details here.

Prefer IHG?

The IHG Premier Rewards card includes a free night, though is capped so it only works at mid-range properties.

🔠 3. Live It Up in a Lounge

Airport lounges transform travel days into stress-free experiences. Providers like AmEx, Capital One, and Chase now operate their own lounges, offering elevated experiences beyond Priority Pass with great food, premium drinks, and sometimes special experiences like a spa or takeaway gifts.

How to Get Lounge Access:

Match your home airport to the corresponding premium card:
- AmEx Platinum: Access AmEx Centurion Lounges.
- Capital One Venture X: Access Capital One lounges.
- Chase Sapphire Reserve: Access Chase lounges (often the nicest!).
Many of these cards also include airfare credits, TSA PreCheck or Clear, and hotel perks. All of them also include Priority Pass access.

Pro Tip: If you fly a single airline often, consider its co-branded card (~$500/year) for exclusive lounge access. This works best if you’re loyal to one carrier.

✈️ 4. Rack Up Points Fast

Flying business class transforms a long-haul flight from a chore to a luxury-- I recently flew business to Argentina and from the multi-course meal to the lie-flat bed I had such a great time. You can often book a business-class award using just the points from a single credit card sign-on bonus!

How to Book Business Class Awards:

To earn enough points: You want to find where you spend money and ensure you're spending that money on a card that earns multiple points per dollar in that category. However, a shortcut is finding a great sign-on bonus for one of the cards listed on this page. OneMileAtATime maintains a great list of the best bonuses currently available, and you can sometimes find targeted offers if you search a bit on Google.
To find the right award: There are two resources I recommend:
- Straight to the Points: This is a paid ($10/month or $99/year) email newsletter that sends out alerts whenever an airline opens up a bunch of award availability. In the past year, this has helped me get deeply discounted business-class seats to Argentina.
- Seats.aero (limited features for free, else $100/year): This is a great way to search for awards. I often set up alerts here as soon as I know I'm going on a trip and then wait for an email-- just last week, I booked California-London business class awards for than 42,000 points one-way thanks to a Seats-aero alert.

Pro Tip: Keep an eye out for transfer bonuses. Last year, I transferred AmEx points to ANA during a bonus promotion and snagged first-class flights at a fraction of the cash cost.

🔍 Wrapping It Up

Getting started can feel overwhelming, but with just one or two credit cards, you can unlock incredible experiences. Whether it’s a free hotel night, a business-class flight, or just enjoying premium travel perks, I’ve found credit cards to be a fun and rewarding hobby.

If you’re intrigued and want to learn more, check out One Mile at a Time. It’s my go-to source for credit card and travel hacking tips!

One final note: Some links above are my referral links. These sometimes give you an additional sign-on bonus, and sometimes they give you less than the standard offer. Before I pull the trigger on applying for a card, I like to search for "[CARD NAME] best offer" or similar to make sure I'm getting the best sign-on bonus.

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