Our 2025 Recap
Looking back on 2025, our family had some life-changing moments while traveling together. Most trips have their own blog post, but below is an overall recap of our very memorable year.
1: St. Kitts
If you’re looking for a destination to truly relax and unplug, perfect for a couples getaway, I would highly recommend St. Kitts - and more specifically, a stay at the Park Hyatt St. Kitts. It is such a beautiful island, and the Park Hyatt is true luxury.
Mark and I flew roundtrip on American Airlines for 65,000 points and paid $152 in taxes and fees. The cash price would have been $1,377. For four nights at the Park Hyatt, we paid 130,000 Hyatt points, which would have cost $5,638.60. All-in, we saved $7,015 by using points and miles for this trip!
2: Chicago, IL
Mark took Henry on a surprise 10th birthday trip to Chicago to see the Bulls take on the Lakers. He absolutely loved it, and he’s already asking to see the Lakers play again for his birthday next year! While it was a heartbreaking loss for my little Lakers fan, the ending is still being talked about as one of 2025’s best basketball moments. What an experience!
The guys flew Southwest for just 12,000 points (thanks to one companion pass) and $22.40 in taxes and fees. The cash price would have been $434. They stayed one night at the Hyatt Regency Chicago using a free night certificate, but the cash price would have been $279. Total savings for this quick birthday getaway: $713.
3. Palm Beach, FL
One of our all-time favorite family trips, we have ventured to Palm Beach Gardens the last several years during our kids’ spring break. Pool, beach, dinner out, rinse and repeat. Can’t beat it!
We are lucky enough to have family with a home here, so we only buy flights and rent a car for this annual trip. In 2025, our family of five flew Southwest for 126,555 total points (we leveraged two companion passes) and $56 in taxes and fees. The cash price would have been $2,885.
4: Hilton Head, SC
Our bi-annual trip to Hilton Head with my very best friends and their families will forever be one of our favorite trips. Seven families, 13 adults and 14 kids spending a week at the beach is simply the craziest idea ever, but it’s also the most fun!
We travel by car, so no flights were necessary for this flight. We also book a massive house on VRBO, so no points were used either. While we can’t count this trip as “savings” of any kind, it certainly ranks high in the memory making department!
4: London & Paris
The Petersons’ epic European adventure did not disappoint. We spent 9 days gallivanting around London and Paris, seeing everything through the eyes of our three kids. What an incredible blessing and truly special experience. I have always dreamed of taking our kids to Europe, and while I’m sure it would have happened at some point, the magic of points and miles made this once-in-a-lifetime trip so much more attainable! It’s my favorite thing about points and miles, by far.
We cashed in a lot of points for this one - about 350,000 Avios for our flights, but we saved $8,345. For the hotels, we spent about 300,000 Hyatt points and saved $6,200. All-in, we saved $14,545.50 on this magical vacation. Can you believe it?
5: Geneva on the Lake, OH
The five of us spent a long weekend at the Lodge at Geneva on the Lake this past summer with my dad, who has a house in the area. What a cute town on Lake Erie with plenty of small-town things to do! We explored the “downtown” area, went to the beach, and enjoyed the slower pace for the weekend. The Lodge was beautiful and we would highly recommend staying there if you’re ever in the area!
We drove the ~2 hours to Geneva on the Lake from our home in Pittsburgh, so no flights were necessary for this trip. In fact, we didn’t need use any points and miles for this weekend getaway.
6: Nashville, TN
We decided to spend a long weekend in Nashville, which coincided with our kids’ fall break. While the city is more adult-friendly, we had a blast with our whole crew - although I would definitely enjoy an adults-only trip here too! The live music, southern hospitality, and spicy foods were my favorite parts. Highly recommend!
We flew Southwest for 54,000 points (we leveraged two companion passes) and $56 in taxes and fees. The cash price would have been $1,555. Our beautiful hotel stay at the Hyatt Centric Downtown Nashville cost us 96,000 Hyatt points, which equates to $2,457 for the three nights. In total, we saved $4,012 on this long weekend family vacation.
Conclusion
By leveraging credit card points and miles for certain pieces of our family’s vacations, we saved a whopping $29,170 in 2025!
If this doesn’t prove that figuring out how to leverage points and miles is well worth it, I’m not sure what will! The great news is that I can teach you exactly how our family does it. If you’re interested in learning, we’re here to show you the way!
Cheers to more traveling, more adventures, and more points and miles in 2026!
❤️ Liz
Friendly reminder: We are not financial advisers, we are simply sharing our method and approach with you. Of course, it's important to use credit cards responsibly. Pay off your balance in full each month to avoid interest charges, and never spend more than you can afford just to earn rewards.
