Dropping Airfare, Thailand & The Case Against Points & Miles

The Thrifty Traveler Podcast

It’s the episode where we all get to be jealous of Kyle’s trip to Thailand. Luckily, he tells us how to book it and why his inkling to avoid using points and miles (for part of it) made the trip that much better. Plus, the guys make a bold prediction about airfare, wonder if the lounge overcrowding problem is solved, and ask the question: are hotel points and status even worth it anymore?

Thank you to our sponsor, Bilt Rewards! Earn points on rent and make your entire neighborhood more rewarding with Bilt. Sign up at joinbilt.com/thrifty

Watch us on YouTube!

00:00 - Post-trip clarity: Getting home from vacation

02:18 - Kyle welcomes us back from the pool in Thailand

02:45 - Are we heading for an airfare cliff?

10:00 - SkyMiles & Airbnb: More earnings, weird rules

12:20 - Points & miles rates aren’t rising with airfare

14:38 - United cardholder discounts are getting better

18:30 - Why Jackson is souring on hotel loyalty

21:40 - Is the lounge overcrowding problem solved?

27:25 - A word from our sponsor: Bilt Rewards! 

28:40 - Everything about Koh Kood in Thailand

37:00 - Kyle’s Thailand trip logistics: Flights, hotels, Hong Kong & more

45:14 - Vote for our live podcast topic at thriftytraveler.com/vote

46:00 - A listener asks: Should you avoid London due to high fees?

49:00 - What is Gunnar’s Koh Kood? 

Produced and edited by Sylvia Thomas

Video editing by Kyle Thomas

Show music: “All That” by Benjamin Tissot

Support the show by leaving us a rating and a review wherever you get your podcasts! 

Have a question you want answered on-air or an idea for the show? Let us know at podcast@thriftytraveler.com

Get 20% off your first year of cheap flights and points and miles deals with Thrifty Traveler Premium - use promo code TTPOD to save even more!

See what we’re all about at https://thriftytraveler.com - or subscribe to our free weekly points and miles newsletter, The Extra Mile!

Follow us on…
Instagram
YouTube
Facebook
Bluesky


Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

2026-05-14 51 min

Available Results

Generated results are saved to the knowledge database for reuse and search.

No generated results are available for this episode yet.

Extract Knowledge

Pick what you want extracted first. Model, scope, and chapter options appear after a template is selected.

Generated results for public episodes are saved to the knowledge database so they can be reused and searched later.

Transcript

No transcript is available for this episode yet.
Sign in to generate a transcript for review.
Sign in

Chapters

No chapters available.