24. Your Questions Answered: AMA with the Travel Mom Squad

In our latest podcast episode, your favorite trio of the Travel Mom Squad—Pam, Jess, and Alex— give you an exclusive peek into our jet-setting lives. As many of you know, we've spent years perfecting the art of award travel, and we're thrilled to share our insider secrets with our beloved community. For this episode, we did something a little different: we turned to our Instagram followers (@travelmomsquad) to guide the conversation. Yes, every single question we tackle in this episode came straight from you, our loyal listeners! One question that sparked a lively discussion was about our strategy with credit cards—do we keep them open even after hitting the minimum spend? Let's just say, if you've been closing your cards after hitting the minimum spend, you might want to reconsider. But that's just the tip of the iceberg! We answered a wide range of questions...tune in now to hear them all! If you're not already following us on Instagram, we encourage you to do so. We love to engage with our listeners and the IG platform provides a wonderful space for us to do just that. Join our IG family, submit your questions, and you might just hear them answered in our next episode. So, what are you waiting for? Hit play to hear the full episode now and join us on this exhilarating ride. We can't wait to share our adventures with you!   Links:   Free Gifts and Resources To Start Your Points and Miles Journey: Award Travel Academy: Award Travel Academy I https://travelmomsquad.teachable.com/p/thmata?coupon_code=THMWEB150   Our Website: https://travelmomsquad.com   Connect With Us: Newsletter signup: https://travelmomsquad.com/newsletter Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/travelmomsquad/ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@travelmomsquad Facebook group: Travel Mom Squad: Travel on Points | Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/travelmomsquad     Episode Minute By Minute: 0:00 Show introduction 1:09 Question one: Do you keep your cards open? 3:46 American Express “Pop Up Jail” 7:33 Question two: After Hyatt, Hilton or Marriott? 9:26 Question three: How often do you open new cards? 9:58 Question four: What are the most common mistakes beginners make? 13:42 Question five: How do you split business responsibilities? 22:10 Question six: What is a realistic time frame for taking your first nearly free vacation? 23:55 Question seven: Do you ever take trips that are strictly vacation? 30:01 Question eight: Best business credit card offer currently available? 30:50 Question nine: How do I get under 5/24 while still earning signup bonuses? Is getting business cards the only way? 33:00 Question ten: How long does it take a signup bonus to hit your account? 34:12 Question eleven: Do you get nervous that award travel will get over inflated in the future? 35:40 Question twelve: Which cards have you opened so far this year?