How I’m Exploring Credit Card Hacking for Weekend Trips – What Are Your Tips?

With the rising costs of everything and tariffs on the way, that ideal dream vacation stands to become further out of reach. In fact, even a modest staycation seems to be a bit of a stretch, given the threat of tariffs to bring forth a second wave of inflation.

Undoubtedly, postponing trips and travel plans isn’t the worst thing in the world, especially if there are more pressing expenses to get on top of first (think retirement, education for the children, healthcare costs, and all the sort). In any case, strategic use of credit cards (and some reward-rich debit cards) may allow one to afford that dream trip even amid macro headwinds, rising layoffs, and surging prices.

Of course, you don’t need to be a seasoned credit card hacker to pay off hotels or airfare with points or cash back racked up over the years. However, what you do need are the right cards for your spending patterns and the willingness to crunch the numbers when it comes to those cards that have an annual fee attached.

Indeed, a credit card with an annual fee may seem off-putting, especially these days, when more folks are inclined to cut unnecessary items off of the budget. In any case, spending some money to make money can apply in a big way to the world of credit cards. And in this piece, we’ll check in on a few tips from the Reddit community on how someone can finance their next big trip with points.

This Reddit user is on the right track to becoming an effective credit card “hacker.”

This Reddit user seems to already be well ahead in the game since they’ve already got a card that offers a 5% return on select categories (I’m not sure what they are, but I’ll assume groceries is one of the areas that entails 5% back). Also, they’ve got a Fidelity card that offers a pretty simple 2% back on everything. Indeed, this user is getting the best of both worlds, with a 2% or 5% return on everyday items.

Arguably, they’re fine just hanging onto these two cards, rather than “hacking” their way to receive a few more basis points (bps) in return. In many instances, the extra bps aren’t worth the added effort. In any case, if our Reddit user is keen on grabbing those extra points, bringing on another card may make sense. For now, though, I think most of the low-hanging fruit has already been grabbed.

Maxing out cash-back offers and point conversion promos

Perhaps the most useful Reddit comment nudged the original poster to take advantage of any attractive cash-back (or point) offers. Undoubtedly, there’s typically always some sort of promo to sign up for a new card. However, certain times tend to offer more attractive bonuses than others. Though it’s tough to keep up with which card’s offering what bonus, I think that patrolling the credit card or personal finance subreddits every so often is a wise idea. Additionally, taking advantage of friend referrals is another way to get even more bang for the buck.

Aside from maxing out promo offers, those who collect credit card travel points may wish to redeem them when there’s a promo to maximize their value. Indeed, converting a credit card’s points into a hotel chain’s loyalty points could be worthwhile if there’s a 30% bonus offer at any given time. For instance, every so often, American Express points are worth as much as 30% more when a user converts their points to Marriott Bonvoy points during a limited-time promotional period.

Of course, the newly converted points may have a shelf life (AmEx points certainly don’t), but they should be considered if one is aiming to go on a trip at some point within the next year or so. Either way, the point conversion promos some credit cards may offer are worth keeping up with. Indeed, getting 20-30% extra mileage from every point is just another way that credit card hackers can get further without having to spend more.

The post How I’m Exploring Credit Card Hacking for Weekend Trips – What Are Your Tips? appeared first on 24/7 Wall St..