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Collect points to allow you to travel for free 💰
1. Get a reward credit card 💳 (or multiple) – you will collect points with every purchase you make (and make sure to pay off the balance). I use my bank Aeroplan credit card for everything (food, gas, entertainment, travel…) and collect about 50K points a year. It is 1 free round trip. A lot of credit cards will give you additional bonus points for specific purchases.
2. Every time I use an airline ✈️ or a hotel 🛏 I sign up for their points system. Over time you will accumulate enough points and become a preferred member (gives you upgrades and perks). But I tend only to use my Aeroplan points
What I pack for trips like this
The things I actually use are in my Amazon store: my packing essentials list and my electronic must-haves for travel list. And my free pre-travel checklist is the list I use before every trip: you can get it here.
3. There are three major airline alliances, and I tend to stick to Star Alliance. Why? When you travel with the same alliance, you will accumulate points with your current reward system. I live in Canada and use Aeroplan, which is their reward program. I collect Aeroplan points with my credit card and will always book my flight with Air Canada or their member airlines like Lufthansa or Turkish Airlines and will still collect Aeroplan points. This allows me to book reward flights.
The same goes for hotels. I tend to stick to the Marriott Brand (who bought Sheraton). I collected enough points to book free hotel stays and become a preferred member.