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The Points Guy believes that credit cards can transform lives, helping you leverage everyday spending for cash back or travel experiences that might otherwise be out of reach. That's why we publish a variety of editorial content and card comparisons: to help you find a great card to turn your goals into reality.
Our site may earn compensation when a customer clicks on a link, when an application is approved, or when an account is opened with our partners, and this may impact how or where these products appear. While we don't cover all available credit cards, our editorial team creates and maintains all of the analysis of these cards, and our content is not influenced nor subject to review by any credit card company, bank or partner prior to (or after) publication. Please view our advertising policy and product review methodology for more information.
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From snowy markets to sleeper trains: How I’m spending Christmas in Europe using points and miles
Rachel Craft is a travel writer at TPG. She's excited about introducing more people to the world of points & miles and helping fellow travel newbies make the most of their points.
October 14, 2024 • 9 min read
The cards we feature here are from partners who compensate us when you are approved through our site, and this may impact how or where these products appear. We don't cover all available credit cards, but our analysis, reviews, and opinions are entirely from our editorial team. Terms apply to the offers listed on this page. Please view our advertising policy and product review methodology for more information.Editorial disclaimer: Opinions expressed here are the author's alone, not those of any bank, credit card issuer, airline or hotel chain, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of these entities.
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Quick summary
A traveler leveraged a combination of airline, hotel and transferable points to book a round-trip Denver-Europe holiday trip almost entirely on rewards.
The journey included discounted award flights via a loyalty program's monthly promotion, a luxury hotel stay in Prague, and a historic hotel in Brussels, all covered with points or free night certificates.
Strategic use of transferable points allowed for optimal value, with some redemptions exceeding TPG's October 2024 valuations for those currencies.
Minimal out-of-pocket expenses were incurred, with only taxes, fees and a private train ride paid in cash.
What to consider
Some award deals may be unavailable, as certain offers have expired since publication.
Award flight bookings required payment of taxes and fees, and hotel stays may involve minor charges depending on the program.
Point values can vary significantly depending on redemption choices, with some options offering higher value than others per TPG's October 2024 valuations.
What you'll miss from the article
A step-by-step walkthrough of how to combine multiple loyalty currencies and promotions for a nearly free multi-city European trip.
Generated by AI with support from our editorial team.
Update: Some offers mentioned below are no longer available. View the current offers here.
When TPG Senior Writer Ben Smithson alerted me to Air France-KLM Flying Blue’s July Promo Reward sale — flights from Denver International Airport (DEN) to Europe started at 15,000 Flying Blue miles each way — I was excited. Deals like this aren’t exactly rare, but most of them depart from either the East Coast or West Coast, and I’m based in Colorado. I’ve considered booking positioning flights to take advantage of past deals, but the cost and hassle never ended up being worth it.
Needless to say, I jumped on the chance to fly straight from Denver to Europe for only 30,000 miles round-trip later this year. But since my partner and I were already planning — and paying for — our wedding and honeymoon in October, we decided we would only book the trip if we could get all of it (including airfare and lodging) for basically free using points and miles. Here’s how we did it.
Booking Air France award flights with Capital One miles
Air France economy. CAROLINE TANNER/THE POINTS GUY
Not only did Flying Blue’s July Promo Rewards include flights to and from our home base, Denver International Airport (DEN), but they also included several European destinations. We had our pick of cities in France, Spain, Germany, Sweden, Norway and more.
We ultimately narrowed down the list based on which dates worked best for us and which cities had plenty of hotel options that we could book with our Marriott Bonvoy and World of Hyatt points. We also considered European train routes because we knew we wanted to check an overnight train off our bucket list.
We settled on flying into Prague a few days before Christmas and flying out of Brussels a week later. We would spend three days exploring Prague’s magical Christmas markets, then take the European Sleeper to Brussels and end our trip with two days in the Belgian capital. As an Agatha Christie fan, I was particularly excited to explore Brussels, the home of one of my favorite fictional characters: detective Hercule Poirot.
Our flights from DEN to Prague cost 15,000 Flying Blue miles plus $116 in taxes and fees, and our flights from Brussels to DEN cost 15,000 miles plus $182 — for a total of 30,000 miles and $298 per person.
Our tickets are economy standard, meaning we’ll each get a free checked bag, carry-on and personal item. Interestingly, our journey home from Brussels is one of Air France’s combined plane-plus-train tickets, meaning we’ll depart from the Brussels South/Midi Train Station (ZYR) and take a train to Paris-Charles de Gaulle Airport (CDG) for our flight to DEN.
Chase has a wider selection of transfer partners that I often use, like United Airlines MileagePlus, Southwest Airlines Rapid Rewards, Marriott Bonvoy and World of Hyatt. I have a harder time redeeming my Capital One miles because they don’t transfer to most of my favorite programs. Therefore, I decided to use Capital One miles for this redemption because I’m less likely to find other uses for them.
I happened to have just over 60,000 miles in my Capital One account, so I happily transferred these to Flying Blue and saved my Chase points for future redemptions. I spent a grand total of 60,000 miles and $596 for two round-trip flights to Europe — not bad for tickets that would have cost roughly $3,200 total in cash. I ended up getting a value of around 4.3 cents per mile, significantly higher than TPG’s October 2024 valuation of 1.3 cents for Flying Blue miles and 1.85 cents for Capital One miles.
As a Hyatt loyalist who holds the World of Hyatt Credit Card (see rates and fees), I scoped out my Hyatt lodging options in various European cities before booking our flights. One reason we chose Prague was that it had two well-reviewed Hyatt properties near the downtown area.
I could have gotten great value from my World of Hyatt points at the Category 1 Lindner Hotel Prague Castle, where basic rooms were going for $140 or 6,000 points per night on our dates. This would have provided an excellent value of 2.3 cents per point, well above TPG’s October 2024 valuation of 1.7 cents each for World of Hyatt points, showing that Category 1 Hyatt hotels are a great way to get maximum value from your points.
But the Lindner Hotel wasn’t as centrally located as we were hoping. Since we only had a couple of days to explore Prague and we would be visiting in the coldest month of the year, I was willing to spend more points on a more convenient location. We ended up booking three nights at the Category 6 Andaz Prague, a snazzy hotel within easy walking distance of everything from the train station to the Christmas markets, for a total of 83,000 points. Since the cash rate was $1,266, we got a value of 1.53 cents per point — on the low side for Hyatt points. However, it was the best option for our needs and still saved us over $1,000.
Booking a historic Brussels hotel with Marriott free night certificates
HUGO THOMASSEN/THE DOMINICAN/FACEBOOK
My fiance had just added the Marriott Bonvoy Boundless® Credit Card to his wallet, and the welcome bonus at the time (no longer available) was three free night certificates worth up to 50,000 Bonvoy points each, after spending $3,000 on purchases in the first three months from account opening (certain hotels may have resort fees), which were burning a hole in his pocket. Since Brussels had plenty of Marriott properties to choose from, he decided to use two of his shiny new free night certificates to cover lodging for our two nights in Brussels.
We chose The Dominican, Brussels, a member of Marriott’s Design Hotels collection that started as a monastery in 1465 and now provides luxurious lodging in the center of the city. Award rates on our dates were 46,000 points per night, allowing us to almost maximize our free night certificates. Since cash rates were around $580 on those dates, that welcome bonus saved us over $1,100 — and we still have another free night to use on our next trip.
Unlike World of Hyatt, Marriott Bonvoy does charge some fees on award stays, but these were minimal. Our total cost for the two-night stay was 8.50 euros, or just under $10 at the time of writing.
Currently, the Bonvoy Boundless offers three free night awards* after spending $3,000 on purchases in the first three months from account opening. Plus, earn an additional free night award* after spending a total of $4,000 on purchases in the first four months from account opening. Additionally, earn up to $100 in statement credits (up to $50 biannually) after spending $500 on eligible airline purchases.
*Nights are valued at up to 50,000 points each. Certain hotels have resort fees.
A European Sleeper compartment. JEROEN BERENDS/EUROPEAN SLEEPER
The biggest expense for our Christmas trip was the European Sleeper train, which cost about $465 for a private carrier for two. We booked it with our Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card (see rates and fees) because it earns 2 points per dollar spent on travel, has no foreign transaction fees, and includes trip insurance. We'll arrive in Brussels in true "Murder on the Orient Express" style (though hopefully without the murder part) and earn bonus points while we're at it.
I’m considering booking a guided bike tour of Prague through Hyatt’s Find Experiences platform, where I could earn 4 points per dollar spent with my World of Hyatt Credit Card. And if we eat any meals at our hotels, we’ll pay with my World of Hyatt card or my fiance’s Marriott Bonvoy Boundless card (see rates and fees), which earns 6 points per dollar spent on Marriott purchases.
For all other dining, the Chase Sapphire Preferred will give us 3 points per dollar spent. For activities, souvenirs and other purchases that wouldn’t fall into any bonus spending category, I’ll use my Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card because it earns 2 miles per dollar spent on all purchases and has no foreign transaction fees.
Sometimes, you already have a dream destination in mind and points and miles can help you get there for less — like when my fiance and I planned our lemur-iffic honeymoon in Madagascar using rewards. Other times, when you find a great deal using points and miles, it can inspire you to visit an unexpected destination or try a new experience. Either way, staying flexible in your travel plans can help you get the most value from your points.
Comments
By commenting, you agree to our Community Guidelines to help create a positive space for conversation. The responses below are not provided or commissioned by the bank advertiser, our partners, or The Points Guy (“TPG”). They have not been reviewed, approved, or otherwise endorsed by any of these parties. All responses are submitted by individual contributors, and neither the bank advertiser, our partners, nor TPG are responsible for ensuring that all posts and/or questions are answered.
