How 3 credit card bonuses got me a week in London

09.09.2024 - 15:22 / thepointsguy.com

For me, the best part of traveling with points and miles is the planning. I love choosing a place I want to go and then carefully selecting cards with rewards that can take me there.

I set my sights on London. Even with the best points and miles strategy, I knew it would be a challenge to cover my trip costs in full. However, after researching and analyzing multiple approaches, I settled on one that would work for me.

I felt a surge of triumph when I could finally book my London trip and fully cover my flight, hotels, baggage fees, and train travel with points and miles. Even better, I paid for my trip entirely with the sign-up bonuses from three cards, only one of which carries an annual fee.

I learned to travel with points and miles during my previous life as a high school teacher with a very limited budget and schedule. Even though I have more flexibility now, I still look for ways to stretch my points and miles as far as possible instead of using them to splurge on nicer plane seats or hotel stays.

My London trip is no different. Far from glamorous, I'm flying economy round trip and staying at a midrange hotel just outside the city. Still, I'm going to London without having to pay anything in out-of-pocket travel expenses, so I consider this to be a major redemption success.

After monitoring flight prices, I knew I could probably pay for my flight with the sign-up bonus from the Citi® / AAdvantage® Platinum Select® World Elite Mastercard®. I got the card when it was offering an impressive bonus of 75,000 miles, feeling confident I could find a flight that would work for me within that miles budget.

The information for the AAdvantage Platinum Select World Elite Mastercard card has been collected independently by The Points Guy. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer.

I was right. I ended up booking a round-trip economy flight from Nashville to London for 50,000 AAdvantage miles plus just under $200 in taxes and fees.

Currently, the card is offering a sign-up bonus of 75,000 AAdvantage miles after you spend $3,500 on purchases within the first four months of account opening.

AA.COM

This card also has a $0 introductory annual fee for the first year, and an annual fee of $99 after that. Its perks include preferred boarding and a free checked bag on domestic flights, and it also earns 2 points per dollar spent on American Airlines, restaurant and gas station purchases. With these benefits, I'm planning on keeping this card in my wallet for quite some time.

Related: Citi® / AAdvantage® Platinum Select® World Elite Mastercard® review

The superstar of my hotel credit cards is my Hilton Honors American Express Card (see rates and fees). With this card, I