Make your next big family vacation affordable with points.
A lot of people are nervous about using credit cards and trying to earn rewards points, but if you have decent credit and are even a little organized, using points can save you large sums of money and allow you to have wonderful experiences that you may not necessarily be able to afford otherwise, especially if you have a large family.
If you’re a beginner, check out our guide for how to travel with rewards points.
But it works best if you have a strategy! Here’s an example of how you can create a strategy that pays for a big trip in 2026 for your entire family.
First, you and your partner apply for an airline rewards card. One of the most valuable is the Southwest Rapid Rewards card, and rather than adding one another as authorized users, you both open your own card. Now, use the card for the bulk of your day to day expenses throughout the year. This works really well with Southwest, since the card sometimes offers a better-than-normal bonus of 100,000 points. Keep an eye out for this bonus – the amount does change throughout the year.
If you use the cards throughout the year, you can also earn companion passes for next year – meaning that one person of your choice can fly free with you whenever you fly. This way, you can each add one child as your companion. Southwest has no blackout dates and you can cancel or change our flights for free if you need to, which is a really great benefit for a large family!
If you don’t want to fly Southwest, American Airlines is a great alternative for earning airline points that you can use to travel. Barclays Aviator AAdvantage Card often offers a really easy-to-earn bonus card (you only need to pay the annual fee and make one purchase!) and when combined with this Citi® / AAdvantage® Platinum Select® card, you can earn a lot of points!
In addition to airline points, you also want to think about your hotel stay. You can use a hotel chain card or a travel card that offers reimbursement for any travel expense, including Airbnb or VRBO stays. Look for one with a large promotional bonus, and make sure each partner gets their own. You may want to time the cards a few months apart so that you can ensure that you will spend enough to earn the bonus (without spending more than you normally would).
Cards like Bank of America Premium Rewards and Venture Capitol One work well, because the points act as a statement credit for any travel expense, maintaining maximum flexibility. But, earning free hotel nights with Marriott Bonvoy, Hilton Honors, or IHG also work really well if you know you’ll want to stay at a hotel.
Finally, think about other expenses such as tours or theme park tickets. For example, if you’re traveling to Disney World, the costt of tickets can really add up when you have a large family. So part of your strategy may be applying for a Disney® Premier Visa® Card to offset the price of tickets. This currently earn us a bonus of $400 to be used at Disney, which will cover a couple days worth of tickets and the annual fee is less than $50, netting $350 each for a total of $700 toward your Disney World tickets for your family.
For pretty much any vacation, rewards cards can be a tool for spending less on your trip. Make sure to spend only what you normally would and pay off your bills by the due date, and the benefits will be significant. If you don’t have a strategy yet for this year, check out our list of favorite cards and make one!
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