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Published Date: July 12, 2022
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This year is our 20-year Wedding Anniversary and we did a trip to Costa Rica and of course we paid the flights with Credit Card Points! Costa Rica to Denver can be tricky with flight times so we had to be a little creative! Luckily getting home from Costa Rica is easier! It was a bit odd but we made it all work!
How We Booked:
Story Time! Tickets from Denver to Costa Rica were insanely expensive in April..I am talking like $900 or 70,000 points one way and like a 14 hour travel time when it takes 5-hours on a direct flight. We really only had this time window to make it happen so we had to get creative! We decided to fly to Houston,Texas the night before and stay in a hotel (booked with points!) and then fly from there the next day. Flights were only 20,000 points each from Houston and a 3-hour flight early the next morning. It might seem like a hassle but it was fine and saved us a lot of miles in the long run even with the hotel.
The Breakdown:
Denver to Houston, Texas (IAH) we used 7,500 total Southwest Miles earned from my Southwest Airline Card! We paid $5.60 in taxes and fees per ticket.
Stayed at a Marriott Hotel for 8,000 points from my Chase Sapphire Card. I transferred the 8,000 points into my Marriott Account.
We flew Houston to Liberia, Costa Rica on Delta Airlines for 12,000 points each. I booked using points from my this Delta American Express Card that my husband uses for his job! We paid $22.78 per ticket in taxes. (The offer on this card is 90K right now which is great!) If you want less of an annual fee ($0 the first year!) check out this Delta Card!
Getting Home:
Getting home was MUCH easier. We booked a nonstop flight from Liberia to Denver on United using points from my Chase Sapphire card! Each person was 15,000 points which is a steal for a nonstop flight in April. We paid $22.78 in taxes and fees per ticket.
Total: My total points for 3 flights and a night in a hotel was 54,000 +$113.52! In full-disclosure this was a bit on the higher end. I did a quick search of Costa Rica flights in September and they were about half the points and better flight times! We had a small window on when we had a sitter and this was when friends could go so we just had to make it all work! The trip was amazing and totally worth it!
Stay tuned for ways to book lodging in Costa Rica with points!!
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Hi! I'm Aubree
I transformed my life by intentionally find ways to travel the world for less. Over the years, I have been able to take many trips to places like Hawaii, Disney, and the mountains, all without killing my bank account. Now, I get to teach others, like you, do the same!
