The Credit Card Strategy That Keeps Us Traveling to Japan
Three types of points, one steady approach - the system that keeps us returning to Japan.
The Reality Behind Award Travel
In the points and miles hobby, we see outsized awards and redemptions all the time. Those wins can seem so easy when someone just posts about how amazing their trips are, with incredible hotels and jaw-dropping luxury flights.
But like anything worthwhile, you have to be responsible, organized, and willing to put in some effort.
Who This Strategy Is (And Isn’t) For
Let me be upfront — if you don’t meet the following criteria, this strategy isn’t for you.
• Credit score 700+
• You pay off your spend every month
• You can meet minimum spend without forcing it
That’s it.
Now let’s dive into the guide.
The Three Types of Travel Credit Cards
Award travel credit cards can be broken down into the following three categories: airline miles, hotel points, and transferable points.
Airline Miles - The Easiest Win
Why Flights Are the First Priority
Early on, my number one goal was to lower my trip expenses so that I could justify another trip to Japan (and afford it). The fastest way to shave thousands off your trip is by booking award flights.
What Airline Miles Actually Unlock
Airline miles do one thing: they book flights. But, oftentimes, people are not aware that you can book partner award flights using certain miles.
Booking Japan Airlines with American Airlines Miles
For example, my favorite airline mile is American Airlines. But I’m not flying American Airlines to get to Japan most of the time. In fact, I’m flying Japan Airlines (JAL), one of AA’s many partners, to get to Japan.
AA.com displays JAL flights, and they can be booked using AA miles. Pricing displayed is per person, one-way
Just because I have AA miles, it doesn’t mean I’m locked into AA flights. With only 70,000 miles, often achievable by getting the sign-up bonus of one credit card, you have enough to fly round-trip to Japan on a Japanese airline (which are often more comfortable and service-oriented).
Ready for this? AA is just one of many airlines with miles that can get you to Japan, so by diversifying your miles, you could have multiple trips accounted for.
Why We Don’t Focus on JAL or ANA Miles
Now, you may be wondering why I don’t just collect JAL and All Nippon Airways (ANA) miles. The reason is very simple - they tend to be much harder to collect (especially JAL) and they pass on their flight fees and surcharges.
JAL vs AA surcharge difference for the same exact flight:
As you can see, it may not seem like a big deal compared to the actual cost of the tickets, but these charges can add up quickly if you are traveling as a couple or a family.
Our Airline Rotation Strategy
Now that you've seen how powerful these redemptions can be, I’ll show you how we’ve rotated certain credit card bonuses to bank a variety of miles.
For example, Cory and I both applied for the Citi AAdvantage personal card and the business version in year one. Our totals were quite high, with around 150,000 miles in each account.
That alone, flying economy on JAL, would allow us to travel to Japan twice! (70k per person per trip)
Next, we would do the same exact thing in year two - but with a different airline. Alaska Airlines (Atmos points) offers a very similar system to AA, albeit a touch more expensive in terms of miles, to book JAL.
They also offer business credit cards, so Cory and I would get one personal card and one business card. And voila! We again have 150,000+ miles in each account. Another two trips successfully covered.
With just four cards, Cory and I could cover four consecutive years of Japan flights. If we wanted premium economy or business class, we could still travel there for free - just in more style - for two full trips.
In years three and four, we would look for alternatives that aren’t as exciting as AA or Alaska, but still get us to Japan.
Can I get the same card again?
If you stay organized, you can track crucial data, such as the exact dates you opened and closed the card, and when the miles were posted to your account.
These data are super important for keeping track of when you are next eligible to get the same card. Most credit card companies allow you to get the bonus again after 24-48 months, but it’s important to understand the bonus restrictions before you apply.
Now that you get the idea, I’ll move on to hotels. Please take a look at this article for a sample application roadmap to earn miles efficiently.
Hotel Points - The next best option
Why Hotels Quietly Add Up
Even budget hotels for two weeks can run $1,400. For more convenience or comfort, that number balloons to $2,100, and for a little luxury, add $100~$300 per night on top of that.
Like airfare, if you cut that number in half with award stays, you suddenly have room for ryokans, upgrades, or cash flexibility elsewhere.
What Hotel Points Actually Do
Much like airline miles, hotel points allow you to unlock free nights at many of the major cities in Japan.
Where Hotel Points Work (And Where They Don’t)
With that said, smaller cities like Sendai, where I often visit family, only have one or two Western hotel brands - making it harder to redeem hotel points for stays.
There is still a way to book non-Western hotels for points, but it usually results in poorer redemption rates.
Our One-Brand-Per-Year Strategy
My main strategy is to apply for the same hotel brand cards with Cory.
For example, if I see many Hilton hotels offering reasonable redemptions in a city that we are visiting, we will each apply for a Hilton card.
You could start small and get the mid-tier Hilton Honors American Express Surpass Card for points and status (free breakfast).
Or you could go big and get the top-tier Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card for more points, higher status (free breakfast, lounge access, and generous upgrades being the notable perks), and a very valuable free night certificate, which can be used at any Hilton hotel with a standard award night (so, not suites or deluxe rooms).
Maximizing Free Night Certificates
If a couple both applied for the Aspire card, they’d walk away with roughly 310,000–380,000 points (depending on the current welcome offer) plus two free night certificates that they could use at top hotels costing up to 150,000 points per night (like Conrad Tokyo 130k, ROKU KYOTO LXR 140k, Sowaka Kyoto 150k).
With the 5th night free perk, you are looking at enough points for a very comfortable Hilton hotel for 5 nights, plus 2 extra special nights at an otherwise out-of-reach property.
Beyond the first year, you would have 2 free-night certificates to use, and any points you have from other Hilton or Amex cards (which transfer to Hilton).
My strategy is to focus on one hotel brand per year or per application and make sure we have enough points to utilize the 5th-night-free perk.
As a result of over a decade of award traveling, we currently have Marriott Platinum membership (free breakfast at most brands), Hilton Gold membership (hoping to upgrade this year to Diamond), and IHG Platinum.
Each program has its own free night certificate system and when used well, even with the annual fees, these can cut the cost of hotel stays by more than half each year.
ROKU KYOTO LXR - view from our room
Keep, Close, or Downgrade?
Much like airline cards, you can earn another bonus on hotel credit cards as long as you adhere to the specific application rules (24-48 months, sometimes longer).
But in our case, we highly value the free nights we get with these cards, so instead of closing the cards to chase another bonus, we often keep them.
If the annual fees for premium cards feel too high after the first year, downgrading to a card with a lower or no annual fee may be a good idea.
The only caveat is that downgrading them to a lower card does not result in a bonus for that card, and you will not be able to earn a bonus on that card as long as you hold it.
Transferable Points - The Flexible Points That Come to the Rescue
The Ace You Don’t Realize You’re Holding
Transferable points are especially powerful when used strategically, but are also the most often overlooked or misunderstood.
Think of it like the ace up your sleeve - it can come to save you in a pinch, and can also be strong enough on its own to power a trip.
What Transferable Points Actually Are
Major banks like Amex, Chase, Citi, and Capital One issue transferable points that can be redeemed for cash or transferred to airline and hotel partners.
Most of the time, cashing out is the worst option - transferring almost always wins.
Cash vs Transfer: A Simple Example
Here’s a quick example comparing 2 methods to use the same transferable points. Chase Ultimate Rewards (UR) points can be redeemed for cash at a 1:1 ratio, meaning 100 points = $1.00.
Let’s say I have 80,000 UR points.
Option 1: Easy, but at what cost?
You could redeem it all for cash and walk away with $800 in your pocket. But as you’ll see below, it leaves a lot of value on the table.
Option 2: Stretching Points for Luxury
Transfer the points to Hyatt Hotels and book 2 free nights at the Park Hyatt Kyoto. (The hotel charges 35k, 40k, and 45k per night depending on the season/ demand). The average room rate at the Park Hyatt Kyoto is around $1,300 per night.
Without doing complicated math, you can see the difference. Instead of $800 cash, you unlock $2,600 in value at a top luxury hotel.
But there’s more.
If you don’t really want to stay at such top-tier hotels, or you want to stretch your miles as far as possible, what can you do?
Park Hyatt Kyoto corner room - so serene
Option 3: Stretching Points for Maximum Nights
Transfer the points to Hyatt and book a cheaper hotel, like the Hyatt House Shibuya. (The hotel charges 17k, 20k, and 23k per night depending on the season/ demand)
At an average of 20k, you can stay for 4 nights at one of the nicest Hyatt House properties you’ll ever see, in a premium location.
The average cost per night ranges from $450~$550 so again, you are getting nearly $2,000 in value.
Topping Off Accounts in a Pinch
Transferable points also rescue you in a pinch.
For example, let’s say you really wanted to stay at a Marriott property, like The Prince Gallery Tokyo Kioicho, and my Marriott account is just short 15,000 points.
I could pay $187.50 for the missing points - or transfer Chase UR and complete the redemption instantly.
If I had Amex Membership points, I could use that to top up my Marriott account as well. (A more in-depth article coming soon on transfer partners and the do’s and don’ts)
Last minute transfers make special stays possible - served with a side of complimentary breakfast!
My Current Transferable Points Strategy
Flexible points top off accounts when you need them - or consolidate into one program for maximum value. Either way, you win.
My strategy is to diversify my points stash by having at least one transferable point available at all times (for emergencies or for limited-time opportunities).
For example, I used a ton of Amex Membership points on our last trip to Japan. I was able to rebuild the points a little bit by getting Cory a personal Amex Platinum card, but my focus has shifted to Chase UR.
Cory recently got the Chase Sapphire Reserve credit card, and I have a small stash thanks to their business credit card line (Chase Ink Business cards).
For our next trip to Japan, I plan on having enough Chase UR points to make last-minute hotel bookings possible, and enough Amex Membership Rewards points to book intra-Japan airfare.
When You Combine All Three
Along the Kamo River in Kyoto - one of our favorite areas to stroll
Why Diversifying Points Changes Everything
Utilizing just one of these three types of credit card points is enough to save you thousands on your next trip to Japan.
Now imagine collecting all three strategically at the same time.
Within a year, the average couple could easily have enough miles to travel to Japan, covering their airfare, hotels, and even be ready for unexpected opportunities or last-minute changes.
Next: How to Plan Your Credit Card Applications for a Japan Trip (12-Month Roadmap)
See also:
The Framework I Use to Plan Every Japan Trip With Points - The Complete Overview
The Framework I Use to Plan Every Japan Trip With Points - Part 1: Flights
The Framework I Use to Plan Every Japan Trip With Points - Part 2: Hotels
