How we traveled around the world in luxury for $527

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In our third savings report, we share how Bertaut and I traveled around the world in luxury for only $527 each thanks to using points, miles and reward nights that we’ve earned through our favorite travel reward credit cards (learn more here) and loyalty programs. We saved $67,703.78 thanks to travel rewards on this one vacation! Our trip around the world itinerary started in Washington D.C. and included stops in Oman, the Maldives, Hong Kong and San Francisco before returning to Baltimore. During our 18-day RTW trip, we enjoyed first class and business class flights and 5-star luxury hotels for pennies on the dollar thanks to using our miles, points, and free night certificates to book them. Learn more about our longest distance vacation ever, when we literally circled the globe on miles and points. If you haven’t read our other savings reports, check out how we saved over $74,000 on our family trip to Japan and Singapore, and how we saved over $271,000 through travel points and miles in a few years!

 

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Flying Emirates First Class from Washington D.C. to Maldives on miles, with a free stopover in Dubai

We started our tour around the world off with a bang on Emirates First Class. We booked our flights from Washington D.C. to the Maldives using our Japan Airlines miles, which is a partner of Emirates. Our flight was on the Emirates Airbus A380, and it was phenomenal. Emirates First Class on the A380 is the best flight experience we’ve ever had, thanks to impeccable service, gourmet food, outstanding selection of drinks, a stand-up lounge, and enormous bathrooms with showers! Flying will never be the same once you’ve experienced Emirates First Class. We even got to play bartender in the lounge and try on the stylish hats the flight attendants wear.

The flight would have cost us $16,736.70 each, but we paid just $38.30 each in taxes and fees in addition to 100,000 Japan Airlines miles. Read our full review of Emirates A380 First Class or just check out the highlights of Emirates First Class in 10 photos. We took advantage of a free stopover in Dubai, but since we’d already explored the UAE on a prior trip, we rented a car and took a road trip to Oman.

Emirates First Class Washington DC to Maldives Airfare Savings

Using a Hyatt award night at Grand Hyatt Muscat

In Oman, we stayed at several hotels to explore the different landscapes but started off at the Grand Hyatt Muscat. This luxury 5-star hotel is a Hyatt Category 4 property, which allowed us to redeem a free night award certificate for a completely free stay. We each receive a free night certificate for a category 1-4 Hyatt property every year on the anniversary of our World of Hyatt Credit Card (learn more about that card here).

As Hyatt Globalists, we received a complimentary upgrade to a suite and also enjoyed access to the Club Lounge. We took advantage of happy hour in the lounge, with free cocktails and appetizers on a beautiful terrace with views of the Hajar Mountains. Read our Grand Hyatt Muscat review here for more details on this beautiful beach hotel that exudes Middle Eastern glamour and luxury. Our free award night saved us $545.07 for a night in a suite.

Grand Hyatt Muscat Hotel Savings

Redeeming a LHW Award Night at The Chedi Muscat

We enjoyed another complimentary stay in Muscat at The Chedi, which is known as Oman’s most exclusive resort. We are members of The Leading Hotels of the World, which earns us free hotel stays in some of the most luxurious hotels around the world (check out our reviews of Le Sirenuse, Grand Hotel Excelsior Vittoria, Palazzo Avino, Hotel Santa Caterina, and Mezzatorre).

We redeemed a reward night certificate for a free stay at The Chedi Muscat, saving us $1843.48 at this gorgeous hotel. Our LHW Unlimited Membership (the program has since changed) also provided us with a complimentary couples massage in addition to a bountiful breakfast buffet. Check out our review of The Chedi for more details and photos of this gorgeous resort.

The Chedi Muscat Hotel Savings

Media stay at Anantara Al Jabal Al Akhdar and Sama Al Wasil Desert Camp

In the breathtaking Hajar mountains of Oman, we stayed at Anantara Al Jabal Al Akhdar. We also went glamping in Wahiba Sands at Sama Al Wasil Desert Camp. However, instead of using points for these stays, we enjoyed media stays in exchange for coverage on our blog. We did not include the savings of Anantara or Sama Al Wasil into our savings report since our savings weren’t due to travel rewards, but rather to travel blogging.

If you are interested in starting your own travel blog and enjoying sponsored stays at luxurious resorts around the world or even getting paid to travel, check out our post about how to create your own travel blog. Read our review of Anantara Al Jabal Al Akhdar to see how this amazing resort is a must-visit in Oman. We also tried abseiling and rock climbing in Oman at Anantara, which was both terrifying and exhilarating. Check out our review of our first glamping experience in the Oman desert at Sama Al Wasil, where we also flew in a Micro Light plane over the desert.

Redeeming Hyatt points at Park Hyatt Maldives

After our incredible stay in Oman, we drove back to Dubai and took the 2nd leg of our Emirates First Class flight to the Maldives. Once in the Maldives, we spent a week on points at the ultra luxurious Park Hyatt Maldives, which can best be described as paradise on Earth. While we were there, the resort was a Hyatt Category 6 and cost us just 25,000 World of Hyatt points per night. It has since increased to a Category 7, costing 30,000 points per night. It is still a fantastic deal for using points since the standard rooms can cost as high as $2,000 per night in ultra high season, and even more for the pool villas and overwater villas.

We received a complimentary upgrade to a Park Pool Villa due to being Hyatt Globalists, and then also received a complimentary upgrade for part of our stay in a Water Villa. We saved $19,949.38 by using our Hyatt points for our stay. Note that guests are required to pay the transfer fee to the resort, which includes a flight from Male and a speedboat ride for $520 USD per adult.

The location and resort are so incredibly beautiful and peaceful that photos and words cannot even do it justice. Check out our most recent Park Hyatt Maldives review as well as things to do there to get a glimpse of this oasis of serenity and beauty.

To earn Hyatt points to stay at Park Hyatt Maldives, you could open a World of Hyatt Credit Card (see current offer here). Since Hyatt is a transfer partner of Chase, you could also open a credit card that earns Chase Ultimate Rewards and then transfer them to Hyatt at a 1:1 ratio. We recommend the Chase Sapphire Preferred Card (see current offer here), Chase Ink Business Preferred®️Credit Card (see current offer), or the Chase Sapphire Reserve (learn more about this card here under the Chase personal cards category).

Park Hyatt Maldives Hotel Savings

Flying Singapore Airlines Business Class from Maldives to Hong Kong on Miles

After a blissful week in the Maldives, we continued our around the world trip with a flight to Hong Kong. We flew Singapore Airlines Business Class for 38,250 KrisFlyer miles and $175.28 per person in taxes and fees, which would have cost us $2,209.00 per person without miles. Singapore KrisFlyer miles are easy to accumulate since all the major transferable points can be transferred to KrisFlyer miles.

Our top recommendations for cards with transferable points that you could transfer to KrisFlyer include the Chase Sapphire Preferred®️Card, Chase Ink Business Preferred®️ Credit Card, The Platinum Card®️from American Express, American Express®️Gold Card, and Citi Premier®️Card. Learn more about each of these cards here and see current offers.

Our flight included a brief layover in Singapore at Changi Airport, known as the world’s best airport. You can read our reviews of our flights from the Maldives to Singapore on Singapore Airlines A330 and Singapore to Hong Kong on Singapore’s A350.

Singapore Airlines Business Class Maldives to Hong Kong Airfare Savings

Using Hyatt points and cash at Grand Hyatt Hong Kong over Chinese New Year

We spent 3 nights in Hong Kong during Chinese New Year and had a wonderful time exploring its cultural treasures. We stayed 3 nights at the Grand Hyatt Hong Kong using the points and cash option, which was 12,500 points plus $150 per night. We used one of our confirmed suite upgrades that we receive annually as Hyatt Globalists and enjoyed a beautiful suite.

Our favorite perk of the hotel was the Grand Club Lounge located on the top level with floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking Victoria Harbour. We sipped free-flowing complimentary Ruinart champagne and nibbled on appetizers each night during happy hour in the lounge while enjoying the spectacular views of the harbor and skyline.

Our stay would have cost us $1,443.75 but we paid just $450 plus 37,500 World of Hyatt points for 3 nights. Unfortunately Hyatt’s points and cash option has changed since our stay, and now the cash portion is half the paid rate for the date of stay, which would have been more expensive due to staying over the holiday.

Read our Grand Hyatt Hong Kong review for all the details on this fantastic luxury hotel in Hong Kong. The hotel had a special lion dance performance for Chinese New Year in the lobby, and we were able to try on the lion costumes afterwards!

Grand Hyatt Hong Kong Hotel Savings

Flying Singapore Airlines Business Class from Hong Kong to San Francisco on Miles

After a fantastic time in Hong Kong, it was time to complete the circle around the world and head home to Baltimore. We flew Singapore Airlines Business Class on miles from Hong Kong to San Francisco for just 63,750 KrisFlyer miles and $83.73 in taxes and fees per person. The flight would have cost us $3,355.00 each if we hadn’t used our Singapore KrisFlyer miles.

The flight was very comfortable in our spacious bulkhead seats that converted into a completely flat bed. We enjoyed exceptional service on our flight and arrived to San Francisco relaxed and rested. Read our full review of Singapore Airlines Business Class B777-300ER for more details on this flight.

Singapore Airlines Business Class Hong Kong to San Francisco Airfare Savings

Flying Southwest on points and with the Companion Pass home to Baltimore

The last leg of our journey around the world was from San Francisco to Baltimore, and we flew Southwest Airlines from Oakland. Since Bertaut has the Southwest Companion Pass and has designated me (Alexis) as his companion, I flew for almost free, paying just $5.60 for government-imposed taxes and fees. Bertaut flew using his Southwest Rapid Rewards points, so paid 8,351 points and $5.60 in taxes and fees.

We would have paid $375.96 for our tickets without Southwest points, but spent just $11.20 for both our flights. Find out how we’ve saved over $15,000 from our Southwest Companion Pass and Rapid Reward Points in just 3 years, as well as details on how to earn the Companion Pass even without flying Southwest. See current offers on all the Southwest credit cards if you’d like to earn the companion pass and fly for just the cost of taxes and fees. Our personal favorites are listed at the top, but you can see all the options under Chase Personal Cards and Chase Business Cards.

Southwest Airlines San Francisco to Baltimore Airfare Savings

Traveling around the world on points and miles and just $527 each

Many people think that they can’t afford to travel, but the cost to travel the world is affordable when you strategically reap the rewards of travel credit cards (have you checked out our favorites yet?). We saved $67,703.78 thanks to travel rewards on our around the world trip. We spent just $1,055.26 on $68,759.04 worth of luxury hotels and flights. So that means we paid just $527.63 each to stay in amazing hotels and fly first class and business class around the world!

Total Travel Hacking Savings for RTW Trip

We hope we’ve inspired you to travel with points and miles, whether for a staycation in your hometown, an extravagant around the world trip like ours, or anything in between. Points and miles are our favorite currency for travel and have saved us about $500,000 in 5 years. Read our guide on how we experience luxury travel for less. We’ve experienced things we never imagined possible thanks to traveling with points and miles. What’s your greatest points and miles travel achievement? Or if you haven’t started yet, what is your dream vacation that could be made possible thanks to using points and miles? We’d love to hear your success stories too, so please share in the comments below.

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*Editorial Disclosure-The editorial content is not provided or commissioned by the credit card issuers. Opinions expressed here are author’s alone, not those of any bank, credit card issuer, hotel, airline, or other entity. This content has not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of the entities included within the post.