FREE FLIGHTS

• So one of the main reasons I took my big trip a few years ago  is because I was sitting on 1-2 MILLION points and miles. I got half of these from work traveling over the years. The other half, probably more actually, was due to credit card point. When I say credit card point, I don't mean by using them and collecting points. I'm talking about signing up for them, fulfilling the sign up bonus, and then cancelling them. No this does not hurt your credit score. I think may be 10 points for a few months. I just did mine, and My scores were all over 780 each. 

• IF YOU CARRY CREDIT CARD DEBT MONTH-TO-MONTH, THIS WHOLE PROCESS IS POINTLESS and NOT ENCOURAGED. The reason credit card companies offer such incentives for sign ups is because the statistical odds are that they'll make enough money off the interest of most Americans.

• With COVID, I'm not sure what the latest offers are but I have intentionally backed off as you don't want to open up cards before a big purchase like a home. Even insurance companies don't like a person having access to so much credit (aka high credit limit) even if you have zero debt. My rate went up a tiny bit one year and that's how I found out. 

• So with my gazillion points, I flew business class on all the long legs of my global trip back in 2016. It ruined me. International airlines are such a better flying experience when it comes to business/first class.

• Here's how to get points for a free business class ticket. Note, points have higher value when you redeem them for business class on overseas flights just FYI.

  • Look for a good sign up offer for credit cards from airlines or banks. thepointsguy.com or millionmilesecrets.com​ are probably the top 2 sites in this hobby. I'd say 75K points or miles minimum is a good offer. Not sure how COVID has affected offers as of late. Both sites show the best card deals every month

  • Usually it'll be something like spend $3K in 3 months. Be careful not to bite off more than you can chew. I think $5K is pushing it for 3 months. I'd start to keep an excel file to keep your cards straight.

  • Once you finish it, dont use it. I'd keep it for a year and pay the annual fee. I think many now require a minimum year use as they know points hobbyists exist. They can take such a risk because remember in the U.S. I think the average American spends $1.30 for every dollar they earn. 

  • Once you're done with the card, move on to the next one.

  • Give yourself about a 2 month window AFTER you finish your sign up card fulfillment for the points to show up and etc. Maybe even 3.

  • Bank, airline, and hotel cards are the ones I've done the most. Bank points are good because you can flex to either airline or hotel nights with more selection but I've never done it. I use them as backup if a city didn't have one chain I needed or etc. 

• NO ONE GETS TONS OF POINTS BY USING THEM FOR EVERYDAY PURCHASES. I use a Chase Sapphire Card for every day stuff which is mostly food and that card is food friendly. Keep in mind I have never carried credit card. ​

• Before you start all this go fake shopping on the major airlines and see how much a business class ticket is to your destination of choice. Some airlines let you pay for a flight in both points and cash without having to buy the points you're missing. Some do not so be careful as you MAY not be able to get all the points you needs from one credit card. 

• FREQUENT FLIER ACCOUNTS: I know United points never expire and Delta may be the same. Make sure you set up a free frequent flier account with whomever. You need these so your points can land somewhere.

• Start with the airline as that will be the most amount of points. Then work on hotel. I'd start with Hilton on the hotel as their cards are usually good and you can indeed pay for nights with points and cash combined. 

• ANNUAL FEES: expect to pay one year of annual fees. It's just the name of the game even if you cancel the card under a year. I recommend keeping it open a year. Also some offers will be tied to cards with fees as high as $450 or $550. However if you read the finer details, the perks actually more than make up for it. My chase card has an annual fee of $450 but I get $300 back in travel credit (automatically applied) every year so I'm down to $150 already. Then other perks balance it out. Also these cards with these high fees usually offer the best sign up offers and perks but I can't remember the last time the perks didn't more than make up for it. Oh also those cards with the higher fees have higher perks like car rental insurance and etc. I leveraged it one time on a rental I had in South Africa. I scrapped the door against a post. I called Chase and they said it was completely covered. Avis just waived the charge though. My Chase Card also offered free extraction in the case of some global emergency or something.

• AMAZON: If you get stuck and can't fulfill the $3K in 3 months requirement to get the lucrative sign up offers, buy Amazon gift card. Then store that credit on your Amazon account. You're going to buy from there again and by being able to store it on the site, you don't have to keep up with physical gift cards.

• CLOSING: The end of the day it's actually pretty simple. Just do one card at a time, then move on. The name of the game is really just keeping up with managing your spending. Charges take a few days to go through so don't wait till the last month. Start with one card and go from there. Once you get the hang of it, you could probably do it much quicker and with more cards at once but I have never had the need to do that. I do it casually and slowly.

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CURRENCY EXCHANGES

• NEVER EVER EVER EVER EVER use them. Theses are the generic looking booths at airports. Never use them because:

  • the rates are horrible​

  • you have to convert a minimum amount

  • the rates are horrible

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• Rather you will get this card: The Charles Schwab High Yield Investor Checking Account. No minimum. No monthly fees. No ATM fees anywhere in the world with no minimum. I actually still kept this card and still have it to this day as a backup. I probably used this card in 30 countries. You pay the ATM fee upfront then they credit you back. 

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DRY LITE TOWEL

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If doing a long term trip, I recommend this towel for 2 main reasons. 1) it's super light and fold able 2) super absorbent even though it folds up tiny. Just remember these type of towels you do not wipe on yourself but pat. I stayed at Airbnbs for nearly my entire trip and nearly all had towels but it's not required. This is a good backup and folds up to the size of a hand and is just half an inch thick.

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CABLE LOCK
 

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This is more so for those doing long terms trips, like a month or longer, but I'd recommend this lock. The cable part makes it adaptable to almost any scenario and it's light. Yes it probably can be cut with a huge cable cutter but locks are generally visual deterrents. 

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WIKI TRAVEL

So when I landed in every foreign city/country, the way I knew to get out of the airport was Wikitravel. It's freaking AMAZING. It'll even tell you things not to do or buy. It's not a bargain site just FYI but taken from real-world experience.

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This is the screen. 

• I would type in the city name in the search box, NOT the country name.

• I'd then click on "Get Around"

• I usually clicked on rapid transit but if you pick any mode, usually it'll tell you how to get out of the airport too.

I never used that site for anything else but probably should have. I can't tell you how much I used that site just to get out of every major airport. It was the first way I learned the inner workings of the local transit system.

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WATER TAXIS

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In many cities, per Wiki Travel, it'll tell you that the rapid transit pass is good for all forms e.g. bus, train, subway, and water taxi. Sometimes it's unlimited rides for X amount of days based on whatever passes are available and that you buy. 

 

Water Taxis are a GREAT GREAT way to see the city (like my photo of Sydney Australia) and get amazing views all on a boat for no extra cost. Sometimes they are add ons and just cost $4-$5. Wiki Travel, above, will tell you all about all forms of transport in each town.

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VISAS/PASSPORTS

If you've never traveled overseas here are a few comments on Visas and Passports.

• Many many countries require a passport to be valid 6 months beyond your travel date.

• If you need to renew your passport, give yourself 10 weeks just to be safe. 

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(sample Visa, every country's looks different)

• Also make sure you apply and get a visa if you need one. Russia, Vietnam, China, India, and a few others require them for U.S. Citizens. The rules may be different for citizens of other countries.

• Some Visas you can get 'upon arrival' and others, you need to apply online before and probably need to send your passport in to get it stamped with a Visa (a piece of paper about the size pasted on one of your empty passport pages that says you can enter X country from this date to this date. No guaranteed timetable of getting your passport back with the Visa but usually its weeks.

• Visa applications may require you to submit a passport photo with it so get a couple of extra photos when you get your passport photo taken and use them even for the future. 

• Visas may look different for the same country based on the type of Visa (e.g. student visa, work visa, tourist visa, etc) and may or may not have your photo printed on it.

• Make sure you know your rough dates as they are listed on the Visa and some only let you stay a short time like Laos which was 10 days.

• Also if your Visa is 'upon arrival' check and see if you need to bring passport size photos with you. Vietnam was the only place I went to that required this. They will probably also offer you the ability to have them take it but they may charge who knows how much. Could be anything from $1 to $100 because again, you're not in the U.S. so anything is a gamble, even in communist countries.

• Visas and Passport violations are not something you can play around with. I used to work at a major international airline part time and I cannot tell you how many times passengers were denied boarding from the U.S. or denied entry to the U.S. because they were accidentally permitted to go on the plane with the wrong documentation. 

• I didn't go to Russia because I was worried I wouldn't get my passport back in time with the Visa. Brazil now lets you do it electronically just FYI. 

 

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IMMUNIZATIONS

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• On my big trip I went to 31 countries and did all the major vaccination requirements. I don't know if anyone ever really cared about my immunization paperwork but I had it. It's a yellow trifold card where your doctor documents which vaccines you've gotten. 

• There are sites were you can see which countries require what vaccines. 

• It's usually the more remote places that require special vaccines for those rare diseases, etc. 

• Travel vaccine companies are a thing and that's where I did mine. They stock those hard to find vaccines.

• EXPENSIVE.

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LUGGAGE

• If you're doing a trip longer than a month in more than one country or going to more than 4 hotels/spots I can't say this enough: JUST TAKE A CARRY ON BAG AND A PERSONAL BAG.

• In hindsight, this was one of the ABSOLUTE BEST decisions I EVER made aside from the decision to do the trip.

• This will come in especially handy when you're taking trains and getting fro one place to another.

• You may be worried about laundry but if so, there are places you can take your laundry to or if you do Airbnb, like I did, I only stayed in places that offered laundry machines. I will note a good chunk of the world does not use traditional dryers so just a heads up. 

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• Oh also if you do stay at an Airbnb with a washing machine and can't read the dials: Take a picture > Open 'Google Translate' and then have it read the image or do a live read with your camera over the dials.

• One time in my Airbnb in Hong Kong, I never met the family that lived there even though I could hear them. However I met the maid and was so so sweet. She did my entire laundry unexpectedly. Blew me away.

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KIDS

• Don't ever take a child under the age of 13 overseas. I cannot tell you how many screaming foreign kids I ran into that would talk about how they hated what they were doing and etc. You work so hard for your money and it costs too much and at that young age, you won't be able to enjoy your travels fully. As much as you want to "enrich" them, just don't do it. 

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PHONES

• Before I left on my trip, I got many people asking if I was going to create a vlog.  I knew I wasn't going to because it would require me to be behind a cell phone even more than we already are. In hindsight I stand by this recommendation even stronger than before. We are already subconsciously programmed to get our phones out for every major occassion and that's fine but I think the need to capture video content on a regular basis could create a behavior that requires the phone to stand between you and the world much more than expected. All of the video clips I had were complete suprises. I knew I had some but not as much as I did. Just be mindful is my ultimate recommendation. Don't suffer from "Fear of Not Posting".

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