This is the third installment of a Travel Series I decided to start with the intent to share information about places we’ve been to and ways to minimize expenses using travel hacking strategies. Traveling can get expensive but if you’re flexible, plan in advance, and do a little bit of due diligence, you’ll be surprised by how cheap it can actually be.

Our destination for this trip was Miami and Orlando. The main purpose was to join our family and celebrate my nephew’s first communion. As we thought about how much time we wanted to spend in the area, we figured it made sense to extend our stay long enough to enjoy the beach, and also visit a couple of Disney parks. In total, we spent 10 days in Florida and I can honestly say we had a blast.

If you’ve read previous posts, you know I’m an aspiring travel hacker and as such, I try to take advantage of credit cards, sign-up bonuses, and perks that banks are willing to offer so they can get your business.

Time for a New Credit Card

For this trip, we decided to open Chases’ IHG Premier Rewards Club credit card for my wife. This is the first branded card we’ve opened (aside from Southwest); however, they had a sweet deal offering 120,000 points after spending $5,000 in the first 6 months.

Compared to their standard offer at 80,000 points after a minimum spent of $2000 in the first 3 months, this was a phenomenal deal at 13x redemption for every $ spent.

In addition, this card offers no foreign transaction fees, an anniversary free night, automatic platinum elite status, a fourth night reward night for free and last but not least, TSA-pre fee credit which is something my wife had long asked for.

We used this card to pay for all the expenses of this trip; however, our spending habits did not change just because we were trying to hit the minimum spend. We planned the things we wanted to do, used perks from other memberships we carry and had the fortune of being able to stay with family for 7 out of 10 days.

Below is a summary of all our expenses:

If you’re wondering why we spent so much money on restaurants, groceries and Disney tickets the answer is the following:

• First, we didn’t let my relatives buy groceries to feed us. Instead, we tried our best to help out as much as we possibly could.
• Second, we had get-togethers in the evenings and we never showed up empty-handed.
• Third, we are from Venezuela and Miami is home to some of the best Venezuelan food, as such, we couldn’t miss the opportunity to have arepas, tequenos, pasteles, patacones, empanadas, and parrilla.
• Fourth, we invited the grandparents on this trip and food and Disney tickets (2-day tickets for 4 adults and 1 toddler) were on the house.

Family & Airbnb

You gotta love having family in different parts of the country. Not only do you get the chance to see new places, get insights around places to visit – especially those loved by the locals – but you can also save a few bucks by not having to stay at a hotel or Airbnb. Yes, you won’t have your bed made every day nor be able to order food to your room but who cares. Nothing beats free.

We stayed in Miami pretty much free for 7 days. We helped with groceries and whatever was needed but honestly, it was nothing compared to our savings. Even if you assume a $150-$200/night hotel – which would be unheard of unless you’re staying at a dump – you’d be looking at savings in the order of $1,050-$1,400 for one week.

After the celebration of my nephew’s first communion, we headed to Orlando to stay at an Airbnb for a total of 3 nights. A hotel was certainly an option but points redemption for 2 rooms made it less than appealing. Instead, we got a huge place that accommodated the entire group. Total cost for the Airbnb was $412 or $137/night for a group of 4 adults and 2 kids.

Rental Car

Forget about public transportation, Florida isn’t set up that way. If you really want to get out and explore, you won’t have a choice but to rent a car.

If you hold a Costco membership I strongly suggest considering the Costco Travel portal. I spent time comparing prices for car rentals and nobody beats Costco Travel.

We reserved a minivan and spent a total of $316. Additional costs included $120 for gas, $88 for tolls and $30 for parking. I was shocked by the cost of tolls but not sure there was a way around it. All in all, the automotive category was $554 for 10 days.

To be fully transparent the $316 for the minivan was the base price without including liability or coverage for damage. I used my Chase Saphire Reserve which gives you complimentary coverage for damage to or theft of rental cars; however, I opted out of liability insurance.

Rental car agencies make most of their money by selling insurance on the vehicles so even though they know most premier credit cards offer some form of insurance (damage or theft) they will try really hard to freak you out about not including liability. To me it’s BS.

I’m not suggesting this is something YOU should do. In the end, is your decision and you need to be able to sleep at night.

In my case, I’ve done it a few times and I’m comfortable taking the risk.

Create Memorable Experiences

See below some of the best pictures from our trip.

Lessons Learned

• Tolls in Florida are expensive: I never stopped at any toll assuming the minivan had the tag to make the whole thing automatic. I was wrong and I was charged a higher fee. Consider asking the rental agency and if possible get the tag to make sure you don’t pay extra fees.
• Give your Airbnb host a heads up: when we got to Orlando, I thought I could just send a text to my host to have early check-in Needless to say that did not happen. Consider giving your hosts a heads up if you plan to arrive early. An extra fee might be charged but when traveling with kids it might be worth it.
• Fastpass: Disney offers ticket holders up to 3 attractions to choose from for free. This can be done 30 days prior to your arrival or 60 days if you’re staying at one of their resorts. I was aware of this and managed to do a good job for our day at the Magic Kingdom; however, that wasn’t the case at Hollywood studios. I was a little too late and most of the hot attractions were sold out. As a result, we spent almost 3 hours waiting at the Tower of Terror (because we really wanted to get on it). I suggest reading this article for more information about Disney’s Fastpass and please get it done as soon as possible.
• A day off before going back to work: We normally push ourselves really hard making sure we maximize the use of miles and points. This usually means being flexible and selecting flights and times that might not be the most convenient (for the majority). This trip was a little bit unique in that we planned far in advance and got decent tickets to return on a Saturday at noon. That meant having that day to relax and also Sunday to prep for work and school.

Final Thoughts

• Oh, Miami …. once again you did not disappoint us. You can’t beat family time, the beach and best of all the food.
• As mentioned in previous posts, we feel fortunate to be in a position to travel and discover amazing places that the US has to offer.
• We spent a significant amount of money; however, it could have been more. Do your due diligence, plan ahead of time and be intentional about your approach.
• I know of bloggers that have traveled to the Magic Kingdom essentially for free using travel hacking strategies. As you can see our trip was NOT free but hey we did our best.
• We hope to continue to explore the US territory so the journey continues. Stay tuned for my next post on this travel series.

Until next time … JJ