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Nice. I just used points a few months back to stay 5 nights at the St Regis Maldives. Fantastic experience. Small tip for food since dining is so expensive on the island. I recommend you go fishing since the excursion isn't that expensive and they will actually cook all the fish you catch if you want so it actually ends up costing less than your dinner
Friend of mine told me the same thing recently. Don't they still charge you to cook your fish for you though? 😄 My strategy was to master the art of eating a big breakfast. That, and pack some Mr. Noodles in your luggage for a quick pinch. Ultimately, we still splurged for dinner on a few nights - it's a wonderful setting, and you don't want to go hungry.
@@PrinceofTravel they charge but it was a flat rate for as many fish I wanted cooked in as many ways as I wanted. It was cheaper than dinner for two plus we got a free fishing trip out of it which was super fun
The catch is, you still have to pay for seaplane and it cost an arm and legs. The higher categories bonvoy the more expensive, plus you have to pay for meals plan other wise it will cost at least $400 a meal for 2 person. I booked 5 nights in JW all on points, but ended up costing me $6000 for meals and seaplane. That is suck 😅
Recently came across your channel Ricky and it's been an eye opener. You talk about meet ups a lot but I checked your website and the last one held was quite a while ago. When next will you be hosting a meet up? and is there a forum or blog where other meetups are posted as well? I live in Toronto and would be interested in coming out to these events for added insight and value exchange.
Hey man, this all sounds great on paper. My question is: how am I supposed to collect enough points to get a week’s worth in any of these places?!? Like... I got my credit card signup bonus... fine. That barely covers one night. We’re talking about anywhere between 500k and 1M points here! How can I, middle class man, collect one million points?!? I understand the principle behind all this, but it would be really helpful to get some more insights on the actual point collecting techniques. Thanks
These luxury type of hotels, 1st Class/Business Class and destinations will just quickly burn through your points. One sign up bonus is maybe enough to cover these type of flights and hotels. Usually you need a significant other or another friend to pool these points together.
I think that's why he said at the beginning of the video, "after years of earning, burning, churning....". This takes time. 500K to 1 M sounds daunting but it really isn't. LIke 500K points in x5 multiplier categories are really 100K. You divide that with player 2 if you have one, then 50k. It's still a lot of money but doable over a few years. Plus a chunk of 500k is going to be and should be from CC sign up bonuses! I am about to hit 400K points and I only started this card game summer of 2019. I did involve player 2 (my wife) but it's definitely possible. And I am a typical middle-class man also. You just have to worry about 2 things. Keep an eye out for a hiked sign up bonus offers (Also make sure that you are ready to apply when it happens) and keep your card churning strategy evolved along with it. And map out a plan to maximize your card point-earning multipliers and really stick to it. (paying rent or mortgage or your tax with your CC helps. And if any family members or friends are expected to spend a large amount, I asked them to put it on mind card and have them give me cash)This almost can become a lifestyle man. I check my points and miles, card offers, my FICO score, and videos like this for future planning like every day. I think I do more research on points and miles more than I do with my stock market search. But when you watch your points grow and realizing I am one step closer to be in a place like this, it's doesn't seem so hard. For me, I think I still need to put in work till next year but I'm hoping we hit a million points and actually get to redeem them soon.
Multiple bonuses. You and your wife can get a bonus on multiple cards. Plus you can get referral bonuses as well. I'm a single guy making less than the poverty line and I was still able to fly myself and my dad first class to stay five nights at the St Regis Maldives. Just gotta play the long game. You can't do this overnight. Like he says in the video plan 1-2 years in advance
I touch upon the Canadian approach in the video, but let's see here for the US strategy. St. Regis / JW Marriott Maldives: 340,000 points for five nights, let's do 75,000 points x2 on the Bonvoy Brilliant and Bonvoy Business, x2 across two people, that's 300,000 points right there. Sign up via each other's referral links for 15,000 points x3 = 45,000 points (if I'm not mistaken), and you've got enough for a five-night stay. Sometimes the Bonvoy cards offer 100,000 points so you'd get there even quicker. Waldorf Astoria: 480,000 points for five nights. Aspire Card and no-fee Hilton Card for two people, that's 150,000 x2 and 95,000 x2 - boom. You could even throw in the two free night certificates on the Aspire and use fewer points if you want. Or, you could buy some points during a 100% promotion to earn the points much faster. *Bottom line:* Set a goal and work towards that goal. As I mention towards the end of the video, a recommended timeframe for a "big" trip like this is to plan 1-2 years in advance. If you want to go even further, meet others at in-person events and pick up some light MS to accelerate that process and you'll get to do these types of trips more often :)
Wish I had enough points for the hotel! Still finding my way through hotel deals on sites like Staypia, unfortunately..good luck on your trip though : )
I just discovered your channel. Going to binge watch all of your videos now, so much to learn. Thanks so much for the tips. When booking Hilton’s MAldives basic villas, would there be a chance of not being able to get an upgrade to the better suites?
@@ivan92845 isn’t it based on availability of the suites though? Eg if you go during peak season? You might not get an upgrade if all the water villas are booked up?
Remember you cannot churn Amex for more Bonvoy points! That amount of Bonvoy points required for a stay like yours are (almost) impossible for average people!
Ricky if I was going to travel from Chicago or Florida in the US what would be the best solution for airfare? I noticed Business class is 300K points per person or 45K economy. I would really like to go 1st class or at least business and trying to figure our the best plan. Great videos keep up the good work and I am looking at beginning my points journey as I am just getting started.
Quite a bit of money. It was US$55 for a wagyu beef burger and US$56 for a pad thai with shrimp. I'll have a blog post on the costs/review soon. Bottom line: master the art of eating a big breakfast. I wasn't even hungry the whole day after a good feast in the morning.
Great video, Ricky. Maldives is one of place I dreamed to visit. Ready to start up credit card strategy, however can I and my wife use one Marriott account to combine all signup bonus, if not, hows separate account gonna work on redeeming , appreciate the insight!
Not here, and not at any of the Marriott properties I believe. However, occasionally the resort might host an elite happy hour with cocktails and snacks for elite members to attend.
The Maldives got their first two cases on the day we left. We were like. Really corona, you couldn't come to our island and keep us there for another 14 days? 😄
Interested in learning all about how to travel the world on points? Join us at The Travel Summit Toronto 2022: The #1 event for elevating your travel! thetravelsummit.com
Nice. I just used points a few months back to stay 5 nights at the St Regis Maldives. Fantastic experience. Small tip for food since dining is so expensive on the island. I recommend you go fishing since the excursion isn't that expensive and they will actually cook all the fish you catch if you want so it actually ends up costing less than your dinner
Friend of mine told me the same thing recently. Don't they still charge you to cook your fish for you though? 😄
My strategy was to master the art of eating a big breakfast. That, and pack some Mr. Noodles in your luggage for a quick pinch. Ultimately, we still splurged for dinner on a few nights - it's a wonderful setting, and you don't want to go hungry.
@@PrinceofTravel they charge but it was a flat rate for as many fish I wanted cooked in as many ways as I wanted. It was cheaper than dinner for two plus we got a free fishing trip out of it which was super fun
I respect you for booking a room in the MALDIVES and then proceed to sit on the bed and make youtube tutorials for us.
Hey, the #content isn't gonna make itself
I always tune in for credit card advice on RUclips. keep it up rick
Congrats on your engagement!! loved the video!!
Thanks Véro! 😃
Great video, can't wait to get all the points and make this trip a reality. Definitely inspiring us to think wayyy bigger. Thanks Ricky!!
I like your videos! You talk about points for travel for Canadians. Every RUclips channel I watch is all for Americans.
Aeroplan Credit Card just came out with Chase with 100k miles plus 2 flights awards certificates for up to 40k miles each
Sick Video Ricky. I am so inspired to hustle points and miles every time I see these types of videos. Thanks! and Enjoy!
The catch is, you still have to pay for seaplane and it cost an arm and legs. The higher categories bonvoy the more expensive, plus you have to pay for meals plan other wise it will cost at least $400 a meal for 2 person. I booked 5 nights in JW all on points, but ended up costing me $6000 for meals and seaplane. That is suck 😅
After the "bonvoyed" video, now I "have" to watch this one again...
Tick tock!!
Congrats on the engagement!! Wonderful video!
Thanks Ron 😁
I’ll be there after I graduate from nursing school.
I think you missed that the Marriott has the Le Meridien and Ritz-Carlton resort in the Maldives too.
Those have opened since I made this video. I’ll make an updated one on the next trip :)
Dude you always smash it with your videos... 👏👏👏
Thanks Wane means a lot 😊
Ooooooh yes. Canadian credit card churning...I'm in.
Best video I have seen about using points to get there. 👍
What about the food & drinks $
Can you buy a all you can eat pass
Beautiful view of Maldives 👍
Recently came across your channel Ricky and it's been an eye opener. You talk about meet ups a lot but I checked your website and the last one held was quite a while ago. When next will you be hosting a meet up? and is there a forum or blog where other meetups are posted as well? I live in Toronto and would be interested in coming out to these events for added insight and value exchange.
Join my Facebook group where people regularly host informal meetups :)
facebook.com/groups/princeoftravel
I thought I had a better way to visit the Maldives....but it seems my favorite RUclips vlogger is spoken for already.... drat. ;-)
Hate to disappoint ;)
Loving your videos, a new fan today! Would you be able to make a video of which US credit cards Canadians can apply for? Keep up the great work! 😊
Check out this one: ruclips.net/video/iyIKw5UQdw0/видео.html
Hey man, this all sounds great on paper. My question is: how am I supposed to collect enough points to get a week’s worth in any of these places?!? Like... I got my credit card signup bonus... fine. That barely covers one night. We’re talking about anywhere between 500k and 1M points here! How can I, middle class man, collect one million points?!? I understand the principle behind all this, but it would be really helpful to get some more insights on the actual point collecting techniques. Thanks
These luxury type of hotels, 1st Class/Business Class and destinations will just quickly burn through your points. One sign up bonus is maybe enough to cover these type of flights and hotels. Usually you need a significant other or another friend to pool these points together.
I think that's why he said at the beginning of the video, "after years of earning, burning, churning....". This takes time. 500K to 1 M sounds daunting but it really isn't. LIke 500K points in x5 multiplier categories are really 100K. You divide that with player 2 if you have one, then 50k. It's still a lot of money but doable over a few years. Plus a chunk of 500k is going to be and should be from CC sign up bonuses!
I am about to hit 400K points and I only started this card game summer of 2019. I did involve player 2 (my wife) but it's definitely possible. And I am a typical middle-class man also. You just have to worry about 2 things. Keep an eye out for a hiked sign up bonus offers (Also make sure that you are ready to apply when it happens) and keep your card churning strategy evolved along with it. And map out a plan to maximize your card point-earning multipliers and really stick to it. (paying rent or mortgage or your tax with your CC helps. And if any family members or friends are expected to spend a large amount, I asked them to put it on mind card and have them give me cash)This almost can become a lifestyle man. I check my points and miles, card offers, my FICO score, and videos like this for future planning like every day. I think I do more research on points and miles more than I do with my stock market search. But when you watch your points grow and realizing I am one step closer to be in a place like this, it's doesn't seem so hard. For me, I think I still need to put in work till next year but I'm hoping we hit a million points and actually get to redeem them soon.
Multiple bonuses. You and your wife can get a bonus on multiple cards. Plus you can get referral bonuses as well. I'm a single guy making less than the poverty line and I was still able to fly myself and my dad first class to stay five nights at the St Regis Maldives. Just gotta play the long game. You can't do this overnight. Like he says in the video plan 1-2 years in advance
@@kevinManhattan just in time for the airlines and hotels to jack up the redemption rates. We have to build inflation into the earning equation.
I touch upon the Canadian approach in the video, but let's see here for the US strategy.
St. Regis / JW Marriott Maldives: 340,000 points for five nights, let's do 75,000 points x2 on the Bonvoy Brilliant and Bonvoy Business, x2 across two people, that's 300,000 points right there. Sign up via each other's referral links for 15,000 points x3 = 45,000 points (if I'm not mistaken), and you've got enough for a five-night stay. Sometimes the Bonvoy cards offer 100,000 points so you'd get there even quicker.
Waldorf Astoria: 480,000 points for five nights. Aspire Card and no-fee Hilton Card for two people, that's 150,000 x2 and 95,000 x2 - boom. You could even throw in the two free night certificates on the Aspire and use fewer points if you want. Or, you could buy some points during a 100% promotion to earn the points much faster.
*Bottom line:* Set a goal and work towards that goal. As I mention towards the end of the video, a recommended timeframe for a "big" trip like this is to plan 1-2 years in advance. If you want to go even further, meet others at in-person events and pick up some light MS to accelerate that process and you'll get to do these types of trips more often :)
Happy engagement Ricky! Can't wait to see your proposal video :)
Thanks Chris and not sure if I'll be releasing that as I was a bit of a bumbling mess! 😆
Excellent work as usual
Great info, thanks for talking about all details. I have enough for hotel, nos trying to figure it out in flights.
Wish I had enough points for the hotel! Still finding my way through hotel deals on sites like Staypia, unfortunately..good luck on your trip though : )
Everything perfectly explained. Thanks!
This is gold!
Could you give me a rough estimate how much food will cost daily !?
Also if we have breakfast and without breakfast!
Thanks
Is it just me or Hilton Conrad now lowest point price of 120k/night? I know this video might be a little old
Do you book seaplane directly with Hilton? Thanks
I just discovered your channel. Going to binge watch all of your videos now, so much to learn. Thanks so much for the tips.
When booking Hilton’s MAldives basic villas, would there be a chance of not being able to get an upgrade to the better suites?
That’s why the Hilton Aspire Credit Card is key 🔑 for your trip because it gives you Diamond 💎 Status which guarantees the upgrade!
@@ivan92845 isn’t it based on availability of the suites though? Eg if you go during peak season? You might not get an upgrade if all the water villas are booked up?
I think this is the first time I heard him mentioned Accor. Lol
Please review them. Because they have strong portfolio in asia
what time of year did you visit?
Remember you cannot churn Amex for more Bonvoy points! That amount of Bonvoy points required for a stay like yours are (almost) impossible for average people!
Who said you can't? Move to Canada 😏😏Otherwise, hit those Office Depots and Walmarts that you guys have south of the border.
Good Watch! Very informative!
Ricky if I was going to travel from Chicago or Florida in the US what would be the best solution for airfare? I noticed Business class is 300K points per person or 45K economy. I would really like to go 1st class or at least business and trying to figure our the best plan. Great videos keep up the good work and I am looking at beginning my points journey as I am just getting started.
I will go next year and my first time there which hotel do you recommend I like luxury but I don’t want to pay a lot lol
Assuming you get free breakfast/brunch, how much would a typical dinner set you back at the JW?
Quite a bit of money. It was US$55 for a wagyu beef burger and US$56 for a pad thai with shrimp. I'll have a blog post on the costs/review soon.
Bottom line: master the art of eating a big breakfast. I wasn't even hungry the whole day after a good feast in the morning.
Very well done!
what points is he talking about ? can anyone explain?
Can Canadians apply for the Hilton Aspire Card?
14:00 Should've made this in the thumbnail
The thumbnail is a bit weird(pool surrounded by ocean)
Where was my invite on this trip? Lol
Great video, Ricky. Maldives is one of place I dreamed to visit. Ready to start up credit card strategy, however can I and my wife use one Marriott account to combine all signup bonus, if not, hows separate account gonna work on redeeming , appreciate the insight!
You and your wife can share up to 100,000 Bonvoy points per year.
Just following up on this thread, does that mean two people with 4 cards can combine points into one Marriott Bonvoy account?
How many cards have you had in total since you've started ? :)
Oh man... at least 50 if not 100
HI Prince, is there a lounge that serves hot food for platinum + member?
Not here, and not at any of the Marriott properties I believe. However, occasionally the resort might host an elite happy hour with cocktails and snacks for elite members to attend.
@@PrinceofTravel thanks for your speedy reply !
Awesome 👏
The airport transfer costs mentioned are roundtrip?
Yes!
@@PrinceofTravel Good, that helps a bit :D
Nice property….
It sure is!
I dunno. To me a beach is beach. Why fly all the way to the Maldives when you can go to Mexico for pretty much the same experience.
I agree. I also recognize some people wanna check of their maldives bucketlist
What do you do for a living?
I run princeoftravel.com :)
@@PrinceofTravel What did you do before that?
@@Yesitssjess I once worked at one of the Big 5 banks in Canada
How's the situation in there ? I'm traveling to Maldives in the first week of April. Any corona effect?
I'm jealous
Hi Ricky, i like the content up put out, i'm a video editor and i would love to work with you.
😭Maldives
Who's holding the camera? You had Jessie walking backwards on the walkway beside the water!!!
Director Ricky has no time for occupational hazards
Cant get coronavirus if you're entrenched on an island 🤔
The Maldives got their first two cases on the day we left.
We were like. Really corona, you couldn't come to our island and keep us there for another 14 days? 😄
@@PrinceofTravel asking the real questions LOL
The video would be great without all the stupid over-done popping noises, dude really?