How to Travel With Kids Using Points (Beginner Guide + Our Real Family Strategy)

Last year, my kids had never even been on a plane.

This year… we have FIVE airplane trips booked.

And no — it’s not completely free.
But using points has made travel possible for our family in a way I didn’t even realize before.

I’m not a travel hacker. I’m not trying to be a points expert.

I’m a mom who wanted to say yes to more trips… without overthinking every dollar.

So last January, I made a decision. I wanted to create more experiences for my kids.

Because when we looked back at the year, their favorite memories weren’t things we bought… they were things we did together.

So I got really intentional about travel points. Opened the right credit cards, earned the bonuses, and slowly built it up over time.

And now we’re prepping to spend 5 nights at an all-inclusive in Cancun… mostly covered with points.

If you’re curious how this works — or wondering if it’s something you could do too — I’ll walk you through exactly what we did (in the simplest way possible).

What “traveling on points” actually means

Before we get into what we did, here’s the simplest way to understand it:

• You open credit cards that offer welcome bonuses
• You spend a certain amount in a set time (usually 3–6 months)
• You earn a large chunk of points
• You use or transfer those points for flights and hotels

That’s it.

It’s not completely free — but when flights and hotels are covered, the trip becomes way more doable.

What we’ve booked using points

In one year, this is what we’ve been able to plan:

• A trip to California (our kids' first airplane trip!)
• Spring break at an all-inclusive in Cancun
• 2 weeks in Maui, Hawaii
• A week in Maine and Vermont
• Thanksgiving at a Bahamas resort
• New years at a ski resort
• Next Spring Break in Costa Rica!

And none of this would have happened without points.

My biggest recommendation: start with a trip

If you take one thing from this post, let it be this:

👉 Don’t start with credit cards. Start with a trip.

Pick:

• Where you want to go
• When you want to go (ideally ~1 year out)
• What kind of hotel you want

Then work backwards.

How we planned our Cancun trip (real example)

We knew:

• We wanted an all-inclusive resort
• We wanted something family-friendly
• We looked at options and chose a Hilton in Cancun

Then we looked at:

• Cost per night in cash
• Cost per night in points

From there, we built our strategy.

How we earned the points

Here’s what we actually did:

• My husband and I each opened a Hilton credit card
• We completed the minimum spend for the welcome bonus
• That earned us multiple free nights worth of points

Then:

• I opened an American Express card
• Earned the welcome bonus
• Transferred those points to Hilton

That covered the rest of our stay

Bonus:
Hilton gives you the 5th night free when you book 4 nights on points — which helped us stretch even further.

This site is great for seeing hotel points availability and cost!

Why having two people helps

If you’re doing this with a spouse (or even a friend), you can earn points twice as fast.

Because:

• You can each open cards
• You can each earn bonuses

That was a huge advantage for us.

Real talk about spending

This part matters:

• You don’t earn points without spending money
• If you spend more (personal or business), you’ll earn faster
• If you spend less, it will take longer

There’s no magic trick here; just being intentional with spending you’re already doing.

DO NOT go into debt to earn points! Only spend what you have to spend.

But, by intentionally putting spend on cards that earn the most points, you can maximize your earnings.

How to choose the RIGHT cards

This is where people get overwhelmed — so here’s the simplified version:

Step 1: Pick your hotel brand

Look for:

• Hyatt (great value for points)
• Hilton (tons of locations)
• Marriott (tons of locations)

Step 2: Match your points to that hotel

Points come from:

• Chase
• American Express
• Capital One

Each transfers to different partners - here is a great chart to get you started!

What about flights?

Flights are a little more flexible.

What I do:

• Search for deals using points tools like pointsyeah.com
• Then open cards that match those airlines OR transfers to that airline.

Generally it's better to earn "flexible points" like Chase, Amex, Capital One - so you have flexibility. If you earn points for a specific hotel or airline, they can't change.

If you live near a hub:
👉 Focus on that airline

If not (like us):
👉 Stay flexible

The “hidden perks” that actually add up

Most of these cards have annual fees BUT they often include:

• TSA PreCheck credits
• Hotel credits
• Monthly perks (like food or shopping credits)

You just need to track them so you don’t forget to use them.

Important things to know

• This is NOT for you if you carry credit card debt
• It requires organization
• It takes time (this is not overnight)
• It can feel overwhelming at first

For me, this isn’t about points.

It’s about saying yes on vacation. Not stressing over every little expense. Creating memories with my kids!

This is what lets me be a yes mom on vacation.

Final thoughts

Start small. Pick one trip.

Learn just enough to make that trip happen.

Because once you do it once… you’ll realize what’s possible.