Smarter travel. Less stress. More memories.

3-minute read

Hey Reader,

In the last edition, I broke down how 150,000 credit card points can turn into business class flights, a week at a 5-star luxury hotel, or trips that would've cost $10,000+ out of pocket.

But here's the question I get every time I share something like that:

"Okay, but how do I actually find those deals?"

That's what today is about.

Because transferring points is a one-way street.

Once they leave your account, they're gone. So before you move anything, you need to know what you're moving them for.

The scenario that really makes this click:

Let’s say you want to fly from New York to Tokyo in business class, the kind of seat where you can actually sleep comfortably.

The cash price? Easily $4,000 to $6,000 per person round trip.

If you have a Chase Sapphire Reserve or Preferred, here’s what’s possible.

You can transfer as few as 60,000 points to Virgin Atlantic Flying Club and book a one way business class seat on ANA, one of the most celebrated airlines in the world.

Those same points might only get you around $900 through Chase Travel.

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Here’s the catch

Award space isn't guaranteed.

Airlines release a limited number of seats for points redemption, and that inventory changes constantly.

This is why you search before you transfer.

You find the flight. You confirm the space exists. Then you move the points.

Here's how to do it.​​

🧭 Travel Tip of the Week: The tools that show you what's actually available

You don't need to check every airline site manually. These three tools do the heavy lifting and all of them have a free version to start with.

Seats.aero: My starting point for almost every search. It scans award space across dozens of loyalty programs and lets you filter by your points currency, cabin class, and route. Fast and powerful, though the free tier limits you to 60 days out. If you're planning further ahead, the paid version is worth it.

Point.me: Great for when you want to see which programs give you the best value for a specific route. Input your destination and it maps out your options across all your points currencies. Free to start, with paid tiers for deeper searching.

PointsYeah: Think of this as the Google Flights for award travel. It searches live availability across programs, surfaces active transfer bonuses automatically, and works well even on the free tier. Good starting point if you're not sure which program to focus on.

The workflow: use PointsYeah to figure out which program has the best rates for your route. Then use Seats.aero or Point.me to confirm there's actually a seat available.

The one mistake that costs people thousands of points

Search first. Transfer second. Every single time.

I hear it all the time. Someone moves 60,000 points to an airline, then goes to book the flight, and the award space is gone.

Points transfers are instant and irreversible.

You can't get them back.

It's the most avoidable mistake in award travel. Don't let it be yours.

🛫 Coming up on the Next Flight Path

Next edition I'm covering the most common new card mistake and the simple fix that protects your points from day one.

Here's to smarter, easier travel.

Until next time,
Joe

Follow the journey → @heavilyinkedpassport​

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