Hey there! We are Chai & Sunkist, travel content creators based near Washington, DC. We are just like most of you, with a 9 to 5 job trying to make the most of our paid time off.
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June 7, 2025
Tech makes travel easier and cheaper 📱✈️
Hi Reader,
We usually aim to send these newsletters out on the 1st and 15th of each month, but every now and then, something comes up that we can’t wait to share—like a deal or tool that’s just too good to let expire before the next edition.
This week we shared one of our favorite travel tools over on Instagram, and so many of you replied saying: “Wait, what is this magic and why didn’t I know about it?!” 😯
So we thought… why not pull back the curtain and show you the personal travel toolbox we use all the time—the apps and websites that actually make our trips cheaper, smoother, and way more exciting? And one of them has a limited-time offer that we think you should take advantage of.
We’re saving our usual “Over…” and “Exploring...” sections for a proper drop on June 15—just like we planned. But for now, let’s dive into the tools that keep our travel game sharp.
🔥 Mad Travel Tools
Our Ride-or-Die Favs in the World of Miles & Points
If you’ve ever felt overwhelmed by all the tools out there—or just want to know what actually works—here’s a peek inside our personal toolbox.
These are the tried-and-tested favorites we rely on every week to stack, search, and score the best travel redemptions.
🔔 Thrifty Traveler Premium
Our Top Pick for Timely Flight Deals
Finding sweet spots with miles and points can feel like a full-time job. Thrifty Traveler Premium makes it effortless by delivering flight deal alerts directly to your inbox—whether it's cash fares or points redemptions.
We’ve been subscribers for years and can confidently say: it works. Here are a few ways we've maximized it in the last year alone:
✈️ Sunkist’s First Biz Class Seat—on Turkish Airlines
We booked Turkish Airlines business class to Turkey using miles. But this alert didn’t just tell us the deal—it recommended the right aircraft to pick for the best biz class experience. For the same points, Sunkist got a fully lie-flat seat, chef-onboard service, and a first-class feel.
Screenshot from TTP alerts
🛬 United Polaris from Europe—but not via United
We returned from Europe's Christmas markets in United Polaris class—but thanks to a TTP alert, we knew to book via a partner airline to save points. The email even flagged an active transfer bonus to maximize our value.
Screenshot from TTP alerts
🏝 Dominican Republic for 5K One-Way / 10K Round Trip
A spontaneous tropical escape came together with just 10K points round trip. The alert shared routing tips and booking tricks we never would’ve pieced together ourselves. Zero guesswork, just paradise.
🇵🇹 TAP Air Portugal: 19K Points + $5.60 to Europe
One of the best international economy deals we’ve ever booked. The alert tipped us off to brand-new JetBlue availability on TAP Air to Portugal with ultra-low fees—less than what we’d pay for a domestic flight to the West Coast.
Screenshot from TTP alerts
💥 And this is just a snapshot. Whether you’re just looking for cash deals or you're deep in the points game, TTP has saved us thousands of dollars—and helped us fly further, in more comfort, for less.
🎉 So here's the deal - Thrifty Traveler is celebrating 10 years with a limited-time 50% off sale for new members, but it's only valid until June 9. ⏳
The hardest part about booking with points? Knowing where the best seats are hiding—and which loyalty program offers the best value.
That’s where these two tools come in. They both search real-time award availability across multiple airline programs—but depending on your needs, one might suit you better than the other:
🆓 PointsYeah – Best Free Option
If you're just getting started or need a quick way to check award space on airlines like United, American, Avianca, or Air France, PointsYeah is totally free. We use it as a starting point to spot economy and business class seats.
Their discovery tool, called DayDream Explorer, is best suited for those with flexibility. Searching across multiple days can be sluggish. Play around with this tool to get a sneak peek into the most popular airline programs, banks, routes, and destinations available in the miles and points space.
PointsYeah
💎 Roame – Best Paid Tool
If you're looking for more control, Roame is worth the upgrade. It supports advanced filters and 60-day calendars and even sends alerts when your ideal flight opens up. Its discovery tool is called SkyView.
The main draw of this tool is its polished UI, availability as a mobile app for searches and notifications, and affordability, making it one of the most cost-effective paid tools.
💰 Use code 'MOE' for 10% off on Roame's paid subscription.
If you have more than one credit card, you’ve probably asked yourself:
“Which card should I use to earn the most points here?” Or “Am I using all the credits and benefits I’m paying for?”
CardPointers+ answers that for you—instantly.
It’s the best tool we’ve found to track all your credit cards, organize benefits, and make sure you’re maximizing every swipe, credit, and category bonus without needing to memorize anything.
Here’s why we love it:
🧠 Tells you which card to use at each store or website to earn the most points.
📅 Tracks annual credits (like airline, hotel, Uber, etc.) so you don’t forget to use them.
🔒 Doesn’t require you to link your accounts—just input your card names manually.
If you're juggling a wallet full of points-earning cards (like we are), it’s a game-changer.
🎯 Pro tip: The browser extension can automatically remind you which card to use while you’re checking out online and automatically select offers available in your credit card portal.
In this edition, we focused purely on the tools we use for finding flight deals, redeeming points, and managing credit cards.
But if you want more, like tools we use for itinerary planning, making our time at the airport easier and more efficient, or finding the perfect stays and activities, hit reply and let us know—we’d love to build out more editions around those too.
🚨 Before we let you go, one final reminder for our upcoming webinar on June 14, exactly a week from today. We have only a few seats remaining, so the last day to take advantage of the $5 discount, exclusive to our newsletter subscribers, is June 10. ⏳👇
$29.00
$24.00
How to Fly to India for Nearly Free (Webinar)
A Live Webinar with travel hackers who’ve been there and back, over and over!
🗓️ Date: Saturday, June 14
🕗 Time: 2 PM... Read more
Hey there! We are Chai & Sunkist, travel content creators based near Washington, DC. We are just like most of you, with a 9 to 5 job trying to make the most of our paid time off.
