How We Travel

The cards and programs behind the stays on this site.

Most of the hotels reviewed here were booked with points rather than cash. This page lists what we actually use and links to the trips where each one made a real difference, so you can see the booking behind the review.

Credit cards

Credit card · American Express

The Platinum Card from American Express

The annual fee is steep, and it only makes sense for us because of the status it hands out rather than the points it earns. Hilton Gold is the one that pays for itself on family trips, where breakfast for four adds up fast.

What we use it for

Hilton Honors Gold status, which has covered breakfast on several stays
Hertz President's Circle status
Fine Hotels + Resorts and The Hotel Collection rates
Transfer bonuses into airline and hotel partners

Learn more

Credit card · Bank of America

Atmos Rewards Summit Visa Infinite

The premium Alaska and Hawaiian card that replaced the old Alaska Visa lineup when Atmos Rewards launched. At a 395 dollar annual fee it only works if you fly Alaska enough to use the companion award and the lounge access.

What we use it for

The annual Global Companion Award, which is the main reason to hold it
Alaska Lounge passes and a free checked bag
Bonus earning on Alaska and Hawaiian flights, dining, and foreign purchases

Credit card · Capital One

Capital One Venture Rewards

The standard Venture rather than the Venture X, so there is no lounge access or travel credit to weigh up — just a flat rate on everything and no bonus categories to track. Its usefulness for us is in the transfer partners rather than the earn rate.

What we use it for

Flat rate earning on all spending, with no categories to keep track of
Transfers into airline partners including Flying Blue and Avios programs

Learn more

Credit card · Chase

Chase Freedom

The original Freedom, not the Freedom Flex that replaced it. Chase closed this one to new applicants back in 2020, so it is a card we happen to still hold rather than one you can go out and get today. No annual fee, and the rotating categories take some attention to be worth it.

What we use it for

Rotating quarterly bonus categories, when we remember to activate them
Feeding the same Ultimate Rewards balance we transfer to hotel partners

Credit card · Chase

Chase Freedom Unlimited

A no annual fee card we use as the catch-all for spending that does not fit a bonus category. On its own it earns cash back, but paired with the Sapphire Preferred those points become transferable.

What we use it for

Flat rate earning on everyday spending that has no bonus category
Feeding the same Ultimate Rewards balance we transfer to hotel partners

Credit card · Chase

Chase Sapphire Preferred

The card that makes the rest of the Chase points we earn actually worth something, mostly because Ultimate Rewards transfer to Hyatt at one to one. A lot of the Hyatt award nights on this site started here.

What we use it for

Transferring Ultimate Rewards to World of Hyatt for award nights
Bonus earning on travel and dining
Trip delay and baggage protections when travelling with kids

Learn more

Hotel programs

Hotel program · Hilton

Hilton Honors

We hold Gold through the Amex Platinum rather than by staying enough nights to earn it. Breakfast at most properties is the whole reason it matters to us, and on a longer trip that quietly covers a real share of the food budget.

What we use it for

Gold status via Amex Platinum
Award nights on points

Hotel program · Hyatt

World of Hyatt

The program we lean on hardest. Award nights at the Andaz properties we like tend to price out well against cash, and the half-off second room is what makes a family of four workable without cramming everyone into one room.

What we use it for

Award nights at Andaz and Hyatt properties
The 50 percent off second room benefit, which matters a lot for family trips
Explorist status

Hotel program · Marriott

Marriott Bonvoy

We use this one opportunistically rather than loyally. The footprint is wide enough that there is usually a Marriott where we are going, so points get topped off to reach an award night and free night certificates get burned before they expire.

What we use it for

Award nights topped off with points
Free night awards

Airline programs

Airline program · Air France and KLM

Flying Blue

The program we look at first for Europe, largely because it is a transfer partner of nearly every flexible currency we earn.

What we use it for

Award flights to and around Europe on Air France and KLM
Monthly Promo Rewards, when a discounted route lines up with a trip

Airline program · Alaska Airlines and Hawaiian Airlines

Atmos Rewards

Alaska's Mileage Plan and HawaiianMiles became a single program called Atmos Rewards in August 2025. Balances carried over one to one, so older posts on this site that mention Mileage Plan awards are describing what is now this program.

What we use it for

Award flights on Alaska and Hawaiian
Partner award redemptions across the oneworld alliance

Airline program · American Airlines

American Airlines AAdvantage

Useful mostly for its partner network rather than for American's own award pricing.

What we use it for

Award flights on American and its oneworld partners

Airline program · British Airways, Iberia, Aer Lingus, and Qatar Airways

Avios

A shared currency rather than a single program, which is what makes it flexible. Avios sitting in one account can usually be moved to whichever of the partner programs prices a given route best.

What we use it for

Short-haul European flights, where the distance-based pricing is at its best
Moving the same balance between partner programs to find the better award price

Airline program · Delta Air Lines

Delta SkyMiles

Award pricing moves with cash fares, so there are no real sweet spots to plan around. We treat these as a cash equivalent and spend them when the number happens to look reasonable.

What we use it for

Award flights on Delta and its partners

Airline program · Southwest Airlines

Southwest Rapid Rewards

Not a program for aspirational redemptions, but a genuinely practical one for domestic family travel. Points are tied to cash fares, and being able to change plans without a fee matters more with kids than a good award chart does.

What we use it for

Domestic award flights priced against the cash fare
Free changes and cancellations when plans shift

Airline program · United Airlines

United MileagePlus

More a function of route map and habit than loyalty. Honestly, Travel Bank credit from changed and cancelled flights has paid for more of our flying than redeemed miles have.

What we use it for

Travel Bank credit toward flights

Booking portals

Booking portal · American Express

American Express Travel

We use this as a booking channel rather than as a way to spend points. The Fine Hotels + Resorts rates are the reason to go through it, since the breakfast and credits attached to a stay often beat booking the same room direct.

What we use it for

Booking Fine Hotels + Resorts and The Hotel Collection stays
Applying Amex travel credits

Booking portal · Capital One

Capital One Travel

The price prediction and price drop protection are the genuinely useful part, more so than the redemption rate. We will price a flight here even when we plan to book it somewhere else.

What we use it for

Price prediction and price drop protection on flights
Applying Capital One travel credits

Booking portal · Chase

Chase Travel

Worth comparing, but usually a fallback. Transferring Ultimate Rewards to a hotel or airline partner generally beats spending them here, so we mostly use the portal for the credits and the bonus earning rate.

What we use it for

Redeeming Ultimate Rewards at a fixed rate when no transfer partner works
Bonus earning and travel credits tied to the Sapphire cards

Some links on this page are referral or affiliate links, and Frequent Family may earn a commission if you are approved. That costs you nothing and does not change what we include here. We only list cards and programs we actually travel on. This is not financial advice, and card terms change often, so confirm current details with the issuer before applying.