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Points and miles have allowed me to book some incredible trips. We’ve already helped PointsAway readers discover how to use miles and points to save countless dollars flying hundreds of thousands of miles, but I thought it would be fun to keep a more precise list of the trips I have personally booked for myself and my family.
A couple notes: First, some of these trips haven’t taken place yet but are already ticketed for travel in the near future. A few don’t include me, such as a trip designed for my parents, but in each case, I’ve handled the booking details. Also, in a few cases, we’ve used a fixed-redemption program like Barclaycard Arrival, gift cards offset by statement credits on American Express Platinum or the Pay-With-Points options available through Ultimate Rewards and Membership Rewards. These flights are often cheaper than traditional miles redemptions, though, since these also totally take care of the taxes and fees!
Below, we use airline codes to describe the programs used. If we used a pay-with-points option for some or all of the ticket, we’ll indicate that by including UR for Ultimate Rewards, MR for Membership Rewards or AR for Arrival Card Travel Credit.
We include the distance of connections and stopovers but not open-jaws in this list, so we’re counting up miles the same way airline programs would.
Without further ado, here’s a running list of all the award trips I’ve booked to date
| Trip Route | Program | Date | Miles Flown | # of Pax | Total Miles |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| JAX-ATL-PDX | DL | 07/13 | 2,442 | 1 | 2,442 |
| PDX-LAS | WN | 07/13 | 763 | 1 | 763 |
| LAS-ATL-JAX | DL | 07/13 | 2,016 | 1 | 2,016 |
| JFK-LHR | AA | 10/13 | 3,451 | 4 | 13,804 |
| CDG-MIA-MCO | AA | 11/13 | 4,780 | 4 | 19,120 |
| MCO-DEN-LAS | F9+AR | 12/13 | 2,175 | 1 | 2,175 |
| LAS-DEN-MCO | F9+AR | 12/13 | 2,175 | 1 | 2,175 |
| JAX-ATL | WN | 2/14 | 270 | 1 | 270 |
| JAX-DEN-PDX | WN | 03/14 | 2,438 | 1 | 2,438 |
| PDX-LAS | VX | 03/14 | 763 | 1 | 763 |
| LAS-ATL-JAX | WN | 04/14 | 2,016 | 1 | 2,016 |
| JAX-BOS | B6+UR | 04/14 | 1,010 | 2 | 2,020 |
| BOS-ATL-JAX | WN | 04/14 | 1,216 | 2 | 2,432 |
| MIA-MXP | AA | 04/14 | 4,930 | 2 | 9,860 |
| ZRH-TXL-MIA | AA | 05/14 | 5,384 | 2 | 10,768 |
| JAX-MIA | AA | 05/14 | 335 | 2 | 670 |
| MIA-JAX | AA | 05/14 | 335 | 2 | 670 |
| JAX-JFK | B6 | 05/14 | 828 | 1 | 828 |
| JFK-JAX | DL(UR) | 05/14 | 828 | 1 | 828 |
| MCO-LAX-NAN-AKL | AA First/FJ Biz (AA) | 07/14 | 9,072 | 1 | 9,072 |
| AKL-SYD | LAN Biz (Avios) | 07/14 | 1,345 | 1 | 1,345 |
| SYD-BKK-HKG | Thai Biz (UA) | 07/14 | 4,479 | 2 | 8,958 |
| HKG-TPE-KIX | CX Biz (Avios) | 07/14 | 1,560 | 1 | 1,560 |
| ITM-HND | JL (Avios) | 07/14 | 251 | 1 | 251 |
| NRT-JFK | JL Biz (AA) | 07/14 | 6,745 | 1 | 6,745 |
| JFK-MCO | B6 (MR) | 07/14 | 944 | 1 | 944 |
| MIA-LAS-ANC | AA | 07/14 | 4,479 | 2 | 8,958 |
| SEA-ABQ-MCO | WN | 08/14 | 2,733 | 2 | 5,466 |
| Total: | 28 Trips to Date | 116,110 Total Miles | Circumference of Earth: 24,901 Miles | 4.66x Around the Earth |
Hotel Redemptions
While less of our points and miles thus far have been used toward hotel stays, we’ve been fortunate enough to use them at some of the finest hotels in the world. Thus far, we’ve booked free (or highly discounted, if noted with an asterisk) rooms using points as follows:
- 2 Nights • 2 Rooms • October 2013 • Hyatt Regency London – The Churchill
- 2 Nights • 2 Rooms • November 2013 • Park Hyatt Paris Vendôme
- 4 Nights • 1 Room • December 2013 • MGM Grand Las Vegas
- 3 Nights • 1 Room • April 2014 • Hard Rock Hotel Las Vegas
- 2 Nights • 1 Room • April 2014 • Park Hyatt Milan
- 2 Nights • 1 Room • April 2014 • Park Hyatt Zurich
- 3 Nights • 1 Junior Suite • May 2014 • Grand Hyatt New York*
- 2 Nights • 1 Room • July 2014 • Sheraton Osaka Miyako*
- 2 Nights • 1 Room • July 2014 • Hyatt Regency Tokyo*
* – Cash + Points Booking.
Last Updated: January 2014
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