Tips For Travelling With Kids
The practical stuff, written down: how to get four seats together, what flies free with a baby, which hotels sleep a family of five, and how to keep the points side simple. Free to read, no email.
Flying With Kids
The part almost nobody writes down: four seats together, lap infants, car seats and bassinets, whose miles never expire, and where a family of five actually sleeps.
Family · 5 min read
Pooling The Family's Points, Program By Program
Many programs let a household combine balances for free. Who allows it, the member limits and lock-ins, and the programs where you shouldn't bother.
Read it →Family · 4 min read
Lap Infant Fees On Award Tickets, By Program
Adding the baby to an international award costs anywhere from CA$25 to four figures, depending on which program issued the ticket. The four fee models and the program table.
Read it →Family · 4 min read
Four Award Seats, Together
The real bottleneck of family points travel: award space for the whole crew. The one-seat search trick, where four premium seats exist, and how to split a booking.
Read it →Family · 4 min read
Sitting Together On The Plane, Without Paying For Seats
Which airlines guarantee kids sit with a parent free, the fine print that voids it, and the day-of playbook when the seat map says no.
Read it →Family · 4 min read
Family Award Sweet Spots (And The Kids' Discounts Nobody Mentions)
Award charts price per person, which punishes families — except where it doesn't. The programs that discount kids' awards and the redemptions that scale to four.
Read it →Family · 3 min read
The Southwest Companion Pass, Family Edition
One person flies with you for $5.60 each way, on cash and points bookings, for up to two years. How it's earned and what the 2026 changes mean for families.
Read it →Family · 2 min read
Your Kids' Frequent Flyer Accounts, Done In 30 Minutes
Every kid on every trip is earning nothing until their accounts exist. Which programs let minors join, whose miles never expire, and the lap-infant rule.
Read it →Family · 4 min read
Where Does A Family Of Five Sleep On Points?
Hotel points are the family half of this game — until the room caps at four. The brands that sleep five on a standard award, connecting rooms, and suites.
Read it →Family · 4 min read
Flying With A Baby: Car Seats, Bassinets, And What Checks Free
Car seat rules are federal law, bassinet rules are airline-specific, and almost all the gear flies free. The reference table for the airlines US families fly.
Read it →Family · 3 min read
Disney World On Points: The Honest Version
Points won't touch Disney's own hotels or tickets — and a Disney trip on points is still very real. The bookable perk hotels, the gift-card trick, the flight math.
Read it →Family · 3 min read
Skipping Airport Lines With Kids: Global Entry, PreCheck, CLEAR
Global Entry is now free for kids, PreCheck has two age rules every parent should know, and CLEAR waves minors through. What to set up before the next trip.
Read it →Booking & Hotels
The exact processes — finding the seat, working out what a trip really costs, and the upgrade letter Melissa sends before every stay.
Strategy · 3 min read
How Many Points Does A Family Trip Actually Take?
The four-number estimate that turns "a lot, probably" into a target — and how long it realistically takes a two-parent household to earn it.
Read it →Strategy · 5 min read
How I Book Award Flights, Step By Step
Melissa's actual process: FlightConnections, the award engines compared, positioning flights, and the tricks that surface hidden availability.
Read it →Hotels · 2 min read
How to Score a Hotel Room Upgrade (Or At Least a Nice Check-in Amenity)
My approach to upgrades — the exact letter template that's worked again and again.
Read it →Points Programs
The method, once you want it: what each currency is best at and where it flies furthest. Skip this until a trip needs paying for.
Program guide · 5 min read
Chase Ultimate Rewards: The Sweet Spots
Melissa's playbook for the most valuable transferable currency — the Hyatt award chart, the airline sweet spots, and what to do when you're not traveling.
Read it →Program guide · 3 min read
Amex Membership Rewards: The Sweet Spots
How to get outsized value from Membership Rewards — the airline partners that matter, and the redemptions to avoid.
Read it →Program guide · 2 min read
Capital One Miles: The Sweet Spots
The double-dip most people miss, why Venture X is the premium card that pays for itself, and where the miles fly furthest.
Read it →Award prices, airline policies and program rules were accurate when written and do change — treat the numbers as the pattern, and confirm the current rule with the airline or program before you book or transfer anything.