You can call me The Hotel King. I run Luxury on Points.
Luxury on Points helps people stay in the world’s nicest hotels for free (or almost free).
I also have a day job (hence my pseudonym), a partner, and a dog. We live in Chicago.
Check me out on Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest!
How I got started doing this:
Before we were married, my partner and I discovered a shared love of both travel and personal finance. One year near Christmas, we realized we had a lot of credit card points. Should we use them to purchase about $700 worth of gift cards for our loved ones’ Christmas presents? It dawned on us that maybe we could get more value out of our credit card points than just $700 in gift cards.
We set a goal of extracting $1,400, or double what our $700 in gift cards would grant us, out of travel. And we quickly exceeded that goal. From then on, I was HOOKED on the points-and-miles game. I’m fortunate to have a partner who supports my system.
In 2019 alone, my partner and I consumed over $80,000 in luxury travel. For this, we paid out-of-pocket costs of approximately $4,000.
I want to help you do the same. To be completely fair, I want to be up-front about an advantage I have. My partner travels for work sometimes. This helps us rack up some valuable points for personal travel. But when we tally up all our points gained from my partner’s business travel, vs our personal travel, vs our own credit card activity, it becomes clear: The majority of our luxury travel value is coming from our credit card activity rather than from any business travel.
Why focus on hotels instead of airlines?
I focus on hotels instead of airlines for two reasons:
1. Luxury hotels, and having status AT those hotels, is completely underrated.
Like many people, hotels weren’t a big focus of mine when I went on vacation. I told myself, “I won’t be spending much time in my room anyway, so I’ll just get the cheapest room.”
It wasn’t until I got the Amex Platinum card that I realized how much value there is in obtaining elite status from hotel programs. Because of the Amex Platinum, I suddenly got room upgrades from Hilton, Marriott, and SPG hotels; and free breakfast from Hiltons. Moreover, I noticed a distinct difference in how I was treated. Suddenly it was easy for me to check in early or check out late, at no additional charge. This was all just because I had booked direct and had elite status. I realized I was onto something and decided to keep going with it.
Now, this doesn’t mean I always stay at chain hotels, because I don’t! I provide detailed reviews of The Breakers Palm Beach and Turtle Bay Resort on Oahu, which are boutiques with some great ways of staying for free/cheap. I also discuss The Langham Chicago, which is a very small chain. Elite status helps, but it isn’t everything, so I’m here to tell you how to get the best treatment possible from ALL hotels.
2. There are lots of great sites that teach you about airline miles, but I think I have some exclusive hotel secrets.
There are many great sites that will teach you how to book international business- and first-class airline trips using points and miles. Some of my favorites include The Points Guy, View from the Wing, and 10xTravel. These sites have some great hotel content too. But I focus on luxury hotels simply because I stay in a lot of them, I love them, and I’ve learned some special secrets about them.