Hello! Today I have a great guest post from Lyn Mettler. Lyn explains how her family of four flies for free.
My family just returned from Kauai.
This was our second consecutive spring break flying to Hawaii on free tickets. Last year we flew all four of us to Maui using travel rewards, and this year we used the same strategies to visit the Garden Isle of Kauai.
That trip is only one of four flights we’ve taken in the past seven months. We also visited Miami, Universal Studios in Orlando, and Disney World.
This is how we travel now. Since I learned about travel rewards in 2015, my family has flown four people for free multiple times each year. Back then, flying was something I rarely considered—we couldn’t afford to pay for flights for the whole family. If we were lucky, my in-laws would cover trips to Disney World every few years, and occasionally my husband and I used credit cards for a couples trip to a condo my family owned in Colorado so we could avoid hotel costs. Otherwise, we didn’t travel.
Everything changed in 2015. As a travel writer for outlets like US News & World Report, the TODAY Show, and USA Today’s 10Best, I interviewed travel experts frequently. One day a story pitched to me described a couple flying around the world for free using frequent flyer miles—but they weren’t earning those miles by flying. That surprised me. I assumed you had to fly frequently to earn frequent flyer miles; that was how my dad did it. But they were earning miles through other means and never paying for flights at all.
I was intrigued and determined to learn everything I could. The couponer in me loved scoring deals, and this was like collecting miles instead of coupons and trading them for free trips. I dove in and spent several years learning the methods: earning miles from travel credit card bonuses, shopping through airline portals, getting points for restaurant purchases, and even buying inexpensive subscriptions to publications like the Wall Street Journal or the New York Times when the math made sense. My goal was to accumulate enough points to fly my family for free.
I made mistakes—like signing up for an airline card whose miles were hard to use—but I also discovered game-changing deals such as the Southwest Companion Pass, which lets one person fly with you repeatedly for the life of the pass. Over time I developed a process that lets my family fly about six times per year across the U.S., the Caribbean, and Europe with minimal effort.
We’ve used these rewards to attend Comic-Con in San Diego; hike national parks in Utah; bike through California wine country; see a Pearl Jam concert in Telluride; swim with sea turtles in Maui and stingrays in Grand Cayman; admire the Mona Lisa in Paris and the Pietà in Rome; gaze up at the Sagrada Família in Barcelona; spend Thanksgiving at Disney World; attend the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade in New York—and much more.
How I Learned to Fly for Free
I developed a straightforward process that works for families of many sizes—I’ve helped groups as large as nine fly everyone for free. Best of all, it doesn’t take much time once you learn the system.
If you search online for travel rewards, you’ll find endless information about cards, airlines, hotel chains, and loyalty programs, but few sources give you a clear, step-by-step plan. Many articles highlight individuals who travel first class and stay in luxury hotels using dozens of credit cards. That approach doesn’t suit most families.
My method focuses on collecting and redeeming travel rewards efficiently so entire families can travel together without the extra complexity of pursuing luxury perks. If your priority is free travel for your household, you’ll typically trade first-class perks for consistent, affordable family travel.
Why We Focus on Southwest Airlines
My system emphasizes Southwest Airlines for travel within the U.S. and many Caribbean destinations. Southwest is ideal for families because of the Companion Pass: once you earn it, one designated companion can fly with you for free (excluding taxes and fees). Achieving the Companion Pass is often the first major step for families who want to fly multiple people without paying airfare.
To earn the Companion Pass you must accumulate 125,000 qualifying Southwest points in a calendar year. When you do, the pass is valid through the end of the following year, and you’ll also have 125,000 points to use for booking additional passengers. You can earn the Companion Pass repeatedly, so one person in your household can continue to fly free year after year.
A common and efficient route to the pass is to sign up for two Southwest credit cards when they offer large welcome bonuses. These bonuses typically require a minimum spend within the first few months; meeting those thresholds with normal household expenses can generate the bulk of the points needed. With careful planning, many families secure Companion Pass and the accompanying points by spending only what they normally would on everyday purchases.
Southwest also offers flexible redemption: when you book with points you can change or cancel flights up to 10 minutes before departure without a penalty, which is invaluable for families. Southwest allows two free checked bags per passenger, and its customer service tends to be family-friendly—another practical reason to prioritize this airline for many trips.
Choose the Right Everyday Card
Beyond the Companion Pass, the key to consistent free travel is selecting the right card for everyday spending. Stop using a debit card for purchases—debit cards don’t earn travel rewards. Instead, pick a travel rewards credit card and use it for routine expenses. I recommend paying the balance frequently—daily or weekly—so you avoid carrying a balance and incurring interest. This approach makes using a credit card feel like using a debit card while still earning points.
The goal is not to overspend; only charge purchases you’d already make and ensure you have funds to pay the card off. Even modest everyday spending can accumulate significant rewards over time, whether you’re a couple on a tight budget or a large family paying for groceries, gas, and activities.
Rather than airline- or hotel-branded cards, I prefer flexible travel cards—examples include Chase Sapphire Preferred, Capital One Venture X, or American Express cards—that earn transferable points and often provide more value per dollar spent. Flexible points allow you to transfer to multiple airline partners or redeem through various channels, keeping your options open when booking free travel.
With the right card in regular use and the Companion Pass strategy, your points balance can be replenished steadily even as you redeem them for flights. That combination has been the backbone of our travel success since 2015.
Paying Fewer Points Per Flight
A final essential is learning how to pay fewer points for each ticket. Many U.S. airlines charge a fixed award amount that doesn’t reflect the cash fare, which can make redeeming points expensive. Southwest uses dynamic pricing: its points cost varies with the dollar fare. When fares drop during sales, the points required drop too.
Southwest also offers recrediting of points if the points price decreases after you purchase a ticket, provided you request a refund of the difference—something that’s rare among carriers. Additionally, Southwest points don’t expire, so you can accumulate and use them over time. Using these pricing dynamics can save tens of thousands of points, often enough to fund another entire family trip.
Below are example round-trip point costs my family has paid on Southwest (one person always flies free on the Companion Pass):
- 3,500 points round-trip: Denver to Bozeman, MT
- 4,200 points round-trip: Ft. Lauderdale to Grand Cayman
- 5,000 points round-trip: Chicago to Las Vegas or San Diego
- 5,000 points round-trip: Indianapolis to Orlando, Miami, Ft. Lauderdale, Ft. Myers, or Denver
- 7,500 points round-trip: Indianapolis to New York City
- 8,000 points round-trip: Indianapolis to Los Angeles
- 10,000 points round-trip: Chicago to Maui
I’ve seen deals as low as 1,800 points round-trip. Learning when to buy and how to spot point sales is as important as accumulating points—efficient redemption maximizes the value of your rewards.
Flying Free to Europe
We don’t travel to Europe every year, but we aim to go about every other year. So far we’ve visited Dublin, Paris, Provence, Rome, Tuscany, Bologna, and Barcelona. I used to think a family trip to Europe was out of reach, but in 2017 I flew all four of us across the Atlantic entirely on miles.
Although Southwest doesn’t fly to Europe, other airlines do. Flying to Europe for free takes a bit more planning, but it’s doable. For example, Aer Lingus has offered transatlantic award flights for around 26,000 miles round-trip per person, and transferable points from cards like Chase Sapphire Preferred or Capital One Venture X can be redeemed to book various airlines that serve Europe.
How You Can Start Flying Free
If you want to fast-track your family’s journey to free flights with guided support, consider joining a community that teaches these strategies and provides personalized help. Members receive tailored plans based on their travel goals, weekly live webinars on saving and destinations, hundreds of hours of instructional videos, practical tools, and sample itineraries.
Personal support options typically include one-on-one help via Zoom, email support from a dedicated team, regular Q&A sessions, and a community forum where members exchange tips and feedback. Many families report saving thousands of dollars within months by applying these methods: for example, families with large groups have saved several thousand dollars on single trips and accumulated ongoing travel savings across multiple bookings.
Programs that offer guarantees may refund membership fees if members don’t recoup at least double the cost of membership through documented travel savings, provided they complete program requirements and follow the recommended plan.
Ready to create more travel memories with your family? Start learning the strategies to earn and redeem points efficiently and make travel more affordable this year.
Author bio: Lyn Mettler is a travel journalist who has written for outlets like US News & World Report, the TODAY Show, and USA Today’s 10Best. After developing a simple, repeatable method to fly her family of four for free, she now teaches families how to use travel rewards effectively.
How much do you spend on travel each year? Do you use travel rewards?