Smart Travel: Upgrade Your Getaways
How to Plan an Itinerary That Saves Money, Avoids Crowds, and Unlocks Hidden Gems
Wed, 28 May 2025
Learn how to plan travel itineraries that save you money, skip tourist traps, and make the most of your points. How can you plan a travel itinerary that saves money without missing out? What travel credit cards are worth it if you don’t want to pay an annual fee? Hosts Sally French and Meghan Coyle talk about how to plan a smart, budget-conscious travel itinerary without sacrificing memorable experiences. But first, Sally breaks down the latest travel news with NerdWallet’s Tess Vigeland, including rising summer flight volumes, the high cost of theme park vacations, Hyatt’s expansion into Croatia, the end of an AmEx points transfer workaround, and a devaluation of Bilt Rewards for rent payments. Then, Meghan joins Sally to discuss how to build a personalized travel itinerary that aligns with your interests, budget, and travel style. They cover how to score deals on big-ticket attractions, use combo passes wisely, find local hidden gems, and get recommendations you’ll actually enjoy. They also answer a listener’s question about whether it’s worth opening no-annual-fee travel cards just for the signup bonuses — and which ones are still worth a look if you’re not ready to splurge on a premium card. Card benefits, terms and fees can change. For the most up-to-date information about cards mentioned in this episode, read our reviews: Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card Review: https://www.nerdwallet.com/reviews/credit-cards/chase-sapphire-preferred Chase Freedom Unlimited® Review: https://www.nerdwallet.com/reviews/credit-cards/chase-freedom-unlimited Chase Freedom Flex Review: Multiple Bonus Rewards Wrapped in One Card https://www.nerdwallet.com/reviews/credit-cards/chase-freedom-flex Hilton AmEx Review: Solid Rewards for No Annual Fee https://www.nerdwallet.com/reviews/credit-cards/hilton-amex-review Resources discussed in this episode: How to Avoid Hotel Resort Fees (and Which Brands Are the Worst) https://www.nerdwallet.com/article/travel/hotel-resort-fees Hotel Resort Fees: Why They Exist, and How to Avoid Them For Max Savings [Video] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DpB4R54lutM The Best Travel Credit Card Welcome Bonus Offers Right Now https://www.nerdwallet.com/article/travel/top-rewards-credit-card-offers In their conversation, the Nerds discuss: how to plan a travel itinerary, travel itinerary tips, avoiding tourist traps, budget travel tips, free things to do on vacation, how to find cheap museum tickets, combo passes for museums, travel planning with points, travel credit card recommendations, best travel cards for beginners, American Airlines shopping portal, how to use GetYourGuide for points, Hyatt points value, Hyatt Regency Croatia, Bilt Rewards changes, how to earn travel rewards without spending more, travel tips for Europe, Universal Epic Universe tips, walking tours in Europe, free walking tours, when to use a hotel concierge, ChatGPT for trip planning, how to avoid bad restaurants when traveling, map-based restaurant planning, hidden gems travel tips, how to travel on points, what credit cards earn bonus travel points, credit cards for booking attractions, public transportation travel savings, smart cruise shore excursions, free hotel amenities, and resort fee benefits.
What are the latest trends in summer travel?
Tess, what is your process like for planning trips?
You know, it's evolved over the years, but I'm mostly now a non-planner. Like, I'll get plane tickets, maybe a hotel, but other than that, it's all improv, and I avoid tours like the plane. But partly this is because I usually travel solo.
Oh, I love solo travel. I feel like it's oddly peaceful.
It is. Just you. You don't have to worry about when somebody else wants to get up or go to dinner or anything like that.
Amazing. But for those who like things a little more buttoned up, later in the show, Megan and I will be talking about how to plan better travel itineraries that are tailored specifically to your interests and budget. Welcome to Smart Travel, a deep dive into the tips, tools, and tactics to maximize your travel dollars. I'm Sally French.
And I'm Tess Vigeland, in for Megan Coyle for this first part of the show.
And we're the travel nerds, ready to help you plan your next big trip. Let's get to some news, Sally. But first, our disclaimer, and that's that we'll talk about a few credit card companies that are nerd wallet partners in this episode, but that does not influence how we discuss them. The benefits, terms, and fees mentioned were accurate at the time of posting, but things can change.
Some offers may have expired by the time you're listening, so for the latest details, follow the links in the episode description. Let's start the news off with an acknowledgement that Memorial Day was just this past weekend, which means summer travel season is officially here.
Yeah, crowded airports, long TSA lines, all that ahead.
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