To the point
Find out how Sabrina saved $3,630 on her family trip to the Land of the Rising Sun with credit card reward points and loyalty programs.
Through a series of testimonials from our readers, Milesopedia presents what you can achieve with credit cards and loyalty programs.
Here’s Sabrina and her family’s plan for a trip to Japan, and the savings she’s made with the points.
Sabrina's testimonial - Who are you?
I’m 37 years old and have been reading Milesopedia since summer 2019.
I usually travel in backpack mode.
Transportation
For air travel, we chose Air Canada’s direct flight between Montreal and Tokyo. We paid $3,500 in cash for three round-trip tickets. I then applied 110,000 NBC Rewards points against a $1,000 statement credit.
Transportation savings
As a result, we were able to save $1,000 on our flights to Japan.
Accommodation
On the accommodation side, we chose a mix of Airbnb and hotels. To reduce the cost of our Airbnb, we combined CIBC Aventura Points, BMO Rewards and gift cards. These gift cards were earned by redeeming RBC Avion points on the RBC Rewards portal. It’s not the optimal use of these points, but it suited me at the time I made the swap.
We then booked our hotel in Kyoto via Expedia for the TD. That’s how we were able to use TD Rewards points. For our nights in Osaka, we combined 35,000 Marriott Bonvoy points with two annual one-night free certificates.
Here are our reservations in detail:
| Accomodation name | Number of nights | Number and type of points used | Money saved |
| Airbnb | 10 | 60,000 CIBC Aventura + 82,000 BMO Rewards + Airbnb gift cards | $1,380 |
| Kyoto Four Sisters Residence | 4 | 186,000 TD Rewards | $930 |
| Courtyard Osaka Honmachi | 3 | 35,000 Marriott Bonvoy + 2 annual certificates | $320 |
Savings on accommodation
The savings on accommodation amount to $2,630 for 17 nights.
Testimonial - Credit cards used
For this trip, I sign up for most of the credit cards. For his part, my partner took out both American Express Marriott Bonvoy cards. In total, we subscribed to 8 different cards.
| Credit card | Accumulation period | Points used | Points redemption method |
| CIBC Aventura® Gold Visa* Card | 1 year | 60,000 CIBC Aventura | Statement credit |
| RBC Avion Visa Infinite Card | 1 year | 35,000 RBC Avion Rewards | Airbnb gift cards |
| BMO Ascend World Elite Mastercard | 1 year | 82,000 BMO Rewards | Statement credit |
| National Bank World Elite Mastercard | 1 year and 3 months | 110,000 NBC Rewards | Statement credit |
| TD Platinum Travel Visa* Card | 1 year | 186,000 TD Rewards | Hotels via Expedia for TD |
| TD First Class Travel® Visa Infinite* Card | 1 year | ||
| Marriott BonvoyMD American ExpressMD* Card (x2) | 1 year | Annual one-night free certificate x2 | Hotel reservations |
| Marriott Bonvoy® Business American Express®* Card | 1 year | 35,000 Marriott Bonvoy | Hotel reservations |
The benefits
Thanks to our credit cards, we’ve enjoyed additional travel benefits, including:
- An annual travel credit of $150, free access to the National Bank lounge at Montreal-Trudeau airport and travel insurance for the whole family with the National Bank World Elite Mastercard®;
- No conversion fees on yen transactions with the HSBC World Elite® Mastercard®. I estimate this saving at 106 CAD.
Tips to help you save more
Essentially, the biggest savings come from points earned with welcome card bonuses. I’m disciplined in my card applications and do a round every three months.
Booking my hotel via Expedia for TD on Black Friday during a promotion saved me thousands of points.
I also prepare for certain expenses by buying gift cards, which has enabled me to unlock the welcome bonuses on time, even if I don’t have enough to spend at the time.
As part of my job, I use my personal card to pay for expenses such as licenses, hotels and team meals.
Finally, I optimize the accumulation of points for my organic spending by choosing the card that offers the best accumulation for each spending category. It can be a real headache, but in the end it makes a difference!
Summary
Overall, we saved $3,630 on our nearly three-week trip to Japan!
| Grand total | $3,630 |
| Type of expense | Savings |
| Transportation | $1,000 |
| Accommodation | $2,630 |
The key to cost-effective travel lies in diversifying reward points. In all, we called on six separate programs:
The final word
My favorite card was the HSBC World Elite® Mastercard®. Now that it’s been discontinued, my new essential card is the National Bank World Elite Mastercard®. With the $150 annual credit, it’s practically free. It also gives us access to the National Bank lounge at YUL and to the best travel insurance on the market.
Thanks Milesopedia!
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