If there’s one thing I love almost at much as sport, it’s travel. From the age of seven I was going on foreign holidays to Spain and ever since that exciting first trip I have never lost the passion for it.

I’ve been all over Europe as well as further afield to New York City, Japan and Canada. Nothing beats the sense of adventure and the excitement of exploring new places.

But it is my trip to Japan last year that is the real inspiration for this blog. It was not a place I had ever planned to realistically visit, with the cost generally considered prohibitive, but the dream became a reality when I decided to dip my toe into the world of credit card reward points.

After plenty of research and careful planning, I eventually built up enough points to take my family of three 5,800 miles across to the globe to Tokyo, where we enjoyed the most amazing trip.

Flights that should have cost thousands only set me back £600 in fees and taxes for all three of us. The trip was so successful that we are going back again in 2026 after once again saving enough points to achieve our goal.

You do not need to be loaded to do this. I am certainly not and our flights to Japan were in economy, but with some strategic planning you could get yourself on a business class flight across the globe for a fraction of the cash price.

This blog is primarily aimed at beginners and those who want to learn how to maximise their points to achieve their travel goals. It will primarily be focused on Avios points- the travel currency of the One World partnership, which includes British Airways amongst others.

As we go along I’ll also be chucking in some travel ideas, reviews of recent trips I’ve been on and a whole host of tips on how to maximise your points.

So fasten your seatbelts and prepare for take-off!

Richard