The Exact Credit Cards I Use to Travel Hack (And How My Family Flies for Free!)

I never imagined my family could regularly travel internationally—not without winning the lottery, at least. But a few years back, I discovered the secret to affordable, frequent travel: leveraging credit card points and miles strategically. Since then, we’ve traveled more often and farther than I ever thought possible. Among all the programs we’ve tried, Chase Ultimate Rewards quickly became our absolute favorite because of its incredible flexibility and unmatched value for family travel.

Why Chase Ultimate Rewards is a Game-Changer for Families:

Flexible Transfers: Chase Ultimate Rewards lets you transfer points to multiple airline and hotel partners, including Southwest, Mariott, United, Hyatt, and more. This flexibility means you can always choose the best deals for your family’s specific travel needs.

More Value for Your Points:

We’ve used our points for everything—from quick weekend getaways to international family vacations. Usually, transferring Chase points directly to travel partners (like airlines and hotels) provides significantly better value compared to standard cash-back or booking through the Chase Travel Portal. However, that’s not always the case—on our recent trip to London, we actually found a better deal booking directly through the Chase Travel Portal. It pays to spend a little extra time comparing options!

The Exact Cards I Use to Maximize My Family’s Travel Rewards:

1. Chase Sapphire Preferred (Our Travel MVP)

Why I Love It: Even with a $95 annual fee, this card pays for itself through significant benefits like no foreign transaction fees—perfect for international family travel.

How It Works for Families: Earn extra points on travel and dining, which naturally aligns with typical family expenses at home and abroad.

My Favorite Perks:

• Trip cancellation/interruption insurance (great peace of mind)
• Primary rental car coverage (big money saver)
• Ability to pool points with other Chase cards

👉 Apply for Chase Sapphire Preferred and start earning points today!

2. Chase Freedom Flex & Chase Freedom Unlimited (The Everyday Earners)

Why They’re Essential: No annual fees make these ideal for everyday family spending—think groceries, gas, and regular shopping.

The Power Move: Points earned on these cards transfer seamlessly to your Chase Ultimate Rewards and all their partners, significantly increasing their travel value.

How We Strategically Spend:

• Freedom Flex: 5% bonus categories each quarter (gas stations, groceries, etc.).
• Freedom Unlimited: Unlimited 1.5% points on every purchase.

👉 Start earning points daily with Chase Freedom! 

How to Combine These Cards for Maximum Impact:

• Use Chase Freedom cards for daily expenses like groceries, gas, and household items.
• Regularly transfer your earned points to your Chase Ultimate Rewards account for optimal travel redemption.
• Book strategically through Chase Ultimate Rewards’ travel partners for maximum value. Recently, we used points to book flights entirely for free.

Family-Friendly Redemptions We’ve Loved:

We’ve used our Chase Ultimate Rewards points for some incredible family (and adult-only!) adventures. By transferring points to Marriott Bonvoy, we’ve booked family-friendly staycations in Orlando, Tampa, and Key West, and even redeemed points for a hotel stay during a family wedding in California.

For flights, we’ve transferred points to Southwest Airlines—covering airfare to that same California wedding—and enjoyed a wine tasting weekend in Austin, also booked with points. We’ve even flown internationally to Iceland and London, with the flights fully covered by points.

These redemptions saved us thousands and allowed us to travel—without the stress of blowing our budget.

Common Questions Families Ask About Travel Hacking with Chase Cards

Is travel hacking complicated?
It’s not overly complicated—but it’s also not totally effortless. After the initial setup, you’ll start to get the hang of it, but it does require a bit of attention. You’ll want to keep tabs on which cards offer the best points for different types of purchases, where the best redemption offers are, and compare options between travel portals and transfer partners. That said, once you get in a rhythm, you can rack up points pretty quickly without changing your lifestyle too much.

Are annual fees worth it?
It depends on the card and how you use it. Right now, we happily pay the annual fee on the Chase Sapphire Preferred because the benefits and redemption value have been totally worth it for our family. But we currently don’t carry any airline-specific cards with annual fees, since we’re not loyal to one airline—that’s just not a priority for how we travel right now. The key is evaluating what works for your goals.

How quickly can we realistically travel for free?
It really depends on your destination, time of year, and how “luxurious” you want your trip to be. With strategic spending and welcome bonuses, many families can earn enough for free or heavily discounted travel within a year—or even sooner. But managing expectations is important. A weekend trip to Chicago might be in reach faster than spring break in Hawaii.

Can I refer other people and earn even more points?
Yes! You can refer household members—as long as they’re not already an authorized user on your account. For example, I opened a Chase Ink Business Card under my FlipFlopWeekend business and referred my husband, who opened one for his tutoring business. I earned a 40,000-point referral bonus, and he got the sign-up bonus. Later, he referred me to a different Chase business card (the Chase Ink Business Cash) which I opened for my real estate business—and then I referred him again. Yep, the same business can have multiple business cards if it makes sense, and having separate business cards also helps tremendously with tracking expenses. Win-win!

Ready to start traveling more with your family—for far less money? Use my referral links above to sign up for these Chase cards. You’ll earn bonus points, and you’ll also help support our family’s next adventure while getting closer to yours—everyone wins! Let me know your dream destination in the comments and happy traveling!

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