I haven’t posted anything in the last few days because my I took my little girl on a spur-of-the-moment trip to the beach. One of the great things about living in central North Carolina is that you can get to the beach or the mountains in about two hours! My husband was going out of town so I checked the weather for the beach and saw that it was going to be absolutely perfect while he was gone.
I have a bunch of InterContinental Hotel Group (IHG) Rewards points in my account from a huge IHG credit card sign-up bonus. I checked availability and found an incredible ocean-view room for the next night at the Holiday Inn Resort at Wrightsville Beach. I booked it with my points and we packed up the car the next morning for a girls’ getaway!
I use a credit card to pay all of our bills and then pay the credit card off each month, so I’ve learned how to maximize credit card sign-on bonuses for rewards. I meticulously plan when I’m going to apply for a new card and which cards I will hold on to from year-to-year. I also stick to a tight budget each month which you can read all about here. Learning how to be savvy with credit and living frugally day-to-day is hard work. But staying in a $400/night hotel room for free on a whim while I enjoy quality play time with my daughter is the incredible payoff!
The wackiest thing I've done yet for free travel... - The Frugal South
Friday 8th of January 2016
[…] for several free hotel stays. This past summer I spent some IHG points (and absolutely no money) on a fantastic beach getaway for my myself and my little one. I’ll never forget the fun memories we made together. I also love having hotel points handy […]