Maximizing Everyday Spend, 50k Lie-Flat to Paris, and a Dreamy Provençal Road Trip
Plus an AI Rental Car Ripoff, and an instant 30k Point Re-Booking Refund
Disclosure: This post contains referral links, which may earn me a small bonus. I only recommend products I use or truly believe in.
Whenever friends ask about points and miles, I often get some version of the same skepticism: “It’s just a way to get you to spend more,” or “I don’t spend enough to get anything good.” Sure, spend is the key driver - but everyone can benefit by maximizing their rewards. There are lots of ways to earn points and this is a game you can play at any level. Even small, often automated tweaks can add up fast.
You live in the United States of America in the Year of Our Lord 2025. Even the most frugal among us spend considerably on essentials. And you might be underestimating how much your current expenses can reward you.
I conservatively spend about $3,000 a year on my three cats’ food, litter, and vet bills. By stacking shopping portals, loyalty programs, credit card rewards, and seasonal promos, this spending earns anywhere from 8 to 19 points per dollar - at least 35,000 points a year. That could be enough for:
Two roundtrip transcontinental flights
Three nights at a mid-range Hyatt
A business class seat to Europe
Or a night at a $1,000+ cash rate bucket list resort
(These are all real examples I’ve booked for myself over the next two months.)
That’s just the cats. I also feed, clothe, and shelter myself. My car needs gas. I’ve got strategies to maximize all of it. My hope is over time this newsletter drops a few nuggets to help you turn your everyday spending into your next trip.
On another note: I’ve been thinking about France this week as my friends in the ad world recover from Cannes Lions. My first festival left me unimpressed - crowded, overpriced, and torched by the most unforgiving sun.
But a few years later, I road-tripped from the Riviera through Provence… and it became one of my favorite places in the world. I’d spend the rest of my days in the South of France if I could.
So this week’s newsletter is inspired by that - and might nudge you to tack on a road trip next June once you’re done melting on the Croisette.
🚨 Deal Alert: Heavenly Biz Class to Paris for Summer or X-mas/NYE from 50k Points 🇫🇷🎄🎆
Via Thrifty Traveler: Book Air France lie-flat business class from JFK to CDG starting at just 60k Flying Blue miles (or 50k Citi points with the current 20% transfer bonus) + ~$250 taxes and fees each way. Many dates feature Air France’s new A350 suites, which is the best business class product I’ve flown yet.
Available dates include late July, mid-August, December holidays and into March and April. Transfer points to Flying Blue 1:1 from Amex, Chase, Capital One, Citi, or Bilt. Happy to help you hunt down your flight, just ask!
🧠 Trick of the Week: Double Dip for More Points Every Time You Shop
This is more of a 101 tip, but a lot of you are just starting out: shopping portals are a big way to earn extra rewards from everyday purchases. Just click through your preferred airline or credit card’s portal (Chase, Amex via Rakuten, or Capital One) before checking out at your usual retailers. Many even have Chrome/Safari plug-ins that activate rewards with one click.
These portals constantly run promos. Over the 4th of July, Rakuten boosted Petco to 12X Amex points, so I stocked up on a couple months’ worth of cat supplies.
You don’t need to use a specific form of payment (in fact, this can be done with debit and gift cards for the credit-averse). You’ll still earn your usual credit card rewards - that meant I could stack the portal bonus with my Capital One Venture X, which earns 2 miles per dollar on all spend. That brings the total to 14 points per dollar, which I value around 2¢ each - about a 28% expected return on furbaby necessities.
And if you have a real baby, oh man - those things are elite points-generating machines. They can literally poop their way to Disney, one diaper at a time.
Pro tip: Use shopping portal aggregators like CashBackMonitor or Evreward to quickly find which portal offers the best bonus at any retailer. Just search the store to see a side-by-side comparison of airline, bank, and cashback offers — plus direct links to each portal.
🌍 Your Next Getaway: Lavender Fields Forever in Provence
I normally use this space to highlight at least a few properties I can book for you with extra perks and benefits as a Fora travel advisor, but this week I just want to implore you to road trip through the South of France. Here’s some of the dreamiest places I’ve ever driven through:
🏰 Èze
Before departing the Riviera, head 25 minutes east of Nice for some of the most sweeping views on the Mediterranean. Perched 1,400 feet above the sea, Èze is a fairytale medieval village with cobblestone streets and stone houses dripping in blooms. For the best panorama, head up to the Jardin Exotique, a dramatic botanical garden at the very top of the village filled with cacti, sculpture, and signature sea views. And if you’re feeling ambitious, the Nietzsche Trail (which the philosopher was said to have walked daily) drops you straight down the cliffside to the beach at Èze-sur-Mer.
🏔 Route des Crêtes, Gorges du Verdon & Lac Sainte-Croix
This hair-pin, panoramic loop over the Gorges du Verdon (Europe’s Grand Canyon) serves jaw‑dropping views of emerald-green depths and sheer cliffs. You’ll pass 14 lookout points before descending to Lac Sainte‑Croix (no relation to the seltzer), where kayaking under pine‑framed beaches feels surreal.
💜 Valensole
This is the place from all the photos. Fields of lavender as far as the eye can see - in late June through July, Valensole bursts into purple paradise.
🛶 L’Isle‑sur‑la‑Sorgue
Venice meets Provence: canals laced with water wheels, riverside cafés, and a renowned Sunday antiques market. It’s impossible not to lose track of time wandering iron bridges and boutique-filled courtyards.
🕊 Gordes & Sénanque Abbey
One of the most iconic villages in Provence earns its reputation the second you catch a glimpse of it from the lookout on the D15 - the entire village stacked like stone steps into the hillside, glowing golden in the afternoon sun. Just a short drive away, the austere 12th-century Sénanque Abbey sits tucked in a quiet valley, surrounded by rows of lavender in bloom.
🧡 Aurel
This sleepy, hilltop town feels like it’s been frozen in time. Stone facades, sun-faded shutters, and winding alleys lead to wide open views of the Mont Ventoux foothills.
🌿 Saoû
At the foot of the dramatic Trois Becs massif lies Saoû, a storybook village ringed by a wild forest with limestone cliffs and hidden trails. It’s peaceful, quaint, very much Belle’s small provincial town vibes - perfect for a morning hike before hitting the road again.
📰 Travel Trends: AI Might Add $400 to Your Next Car Rental - Here’s How to Protect Yourself 🚙
Hertz has launched AI-powered scanners in major airports to automatically detect and bill for damage. Think of it as a full-body scan for your rental car — it spots even tiny imperfections that agencies typically let slide (including undercarriage marks), and automatically triggers a repair bill. One customer in Atlanta was charged $440 in repairs and processing fees for a one-inch scratch on a hubcap.
This is just another reminder:
Take detailed photos at pickup and drop-off
Use a credit card that includes primary rental car insurance, like Visa Infinite cards including Chase Sapphire Preferred/Reserve or Capital One Venture X.
Most cards only offer secondary coverage (if any), meaning your personal auto insurance must pay out before the credit card coverage kicks in - and that could affect your premiums.
Pro tip: I’ve been burned by attendants misreporting gas left in the tank at drop-off. I always take a photo of the dash and keep my last fuel receipt - ideally from a station near the airport - for a couple weeks after a rental, just in case I need to dispute a fuel charge.
🏆 Real Booking Win: More Like a “Re-Booking” Win
We’re days away from a big family trip across Europe - and I’ve been following the brand-new Moxy Istanbul Taksim, restored from a historic Afrikahan building built in 1903, since booking ahead of its opening.
I thought I scored a fantastic deal: 57,000 Marriott points total for five nights, thanks to the “Stay for 5, Pay for 4” policy. When revisiting the hotel site for renovation updates, I noticed my dates’ rate dropped to 52,500 points. Since I had three rooms booked under fully refundable rates, it was worth the 30 seconds it took to cancel and rebook - just like that, 13,500 points were back in my account.
I kept checking every few days. Cash rates held steady, but the point rates kept sliding. I rebooked again. Then again. I’ve now done it four or five times, including last night, when the rate dropped to 47,500 points total. That’s 9,500 points saved per room, across 3 rooms, for a total of 28,500 Marriott points back in my account, which I value at around $200.
Pro tip: Fixed award charts used to dominate points programs - where redemptions for a given hotel night or flight route never change. But most airlines and hotel chains now use dynamic pricing, where point redemptions fluctuate daily based on demand, cash rates, and other algorithmic voodoo.
Knowing how each program prices awards can give you an edge. Programs like World of Hyatt and many international airlines still use fixed charts, which means you can score big when cash rates are high but point prices are capped.
On the flip side, with volatile, dynamically-priced programs like United, Delta, or Marriott, it pays to know the cancellation policies. That way, you can regularly check (or set alerts with tools like Points Path or Seats.aero) for drops - and rebook to pocket the difference, like I did with the Moxy Istanbul.
Thanks for reading! As always, I’m here if you want help with cards, points, destinations, or hotel bookings - especially for friends who don’t have time to decode this stuff. Hit me up anytime.