How To Maximize Your Credit Card Points

How To Maximize Your Credit Card Points

From How To! with Charles Duhigg by How To!

May 12, 2026 · 29 min · Episode 387

About this episode

Mike Pesca helps Al navigate the complexities of maximizing credit card points with expert Elliot Rosenberg.

Al has over a million American Express points and dreams of booking another once-in-a-lifetime luxury vacation for his family. But the opaque, frustrating system of transferring and redeeming rewards has him completely paralyzed. On this episode of How To!, Mike brings on Elliot Rosenberg, founder of the luxury points concierge Stratys, to demystify the credit card game. They discuss how airlines secretly devalue their miles and why hoarding points is a massive financial mistake. Elliott walks Al through the "earn and burn" philosophy, explains why you shouldn't put everyday spending on premium cards, and shares a simple hack for turning Amex points into five-night stays at elite hotels. Stratys - http://stratystravel.com/ Executive Producer Corey Wara Edited by Geoff Craig Booking by Ben Astaire Do you have a burning question or a problem you need help with? Email us at [email protected] and we will consider your topic for the show. For full Pesca content and updates, check out our website at https://www.mikepesca.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ To receive ad-free content, become a Pesca Plus subscriber at ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://subscribe.mikepesca.com/ For Mike's daily takes on Substack, subscribe to The…

People in this episode

Host: Mike Pesca

Guest: Elliot Rosenberg

Topics covered

  • credit card points
  • travel rewards
  • financial advice
  • luxury vacations
  • points redemption

Keywords

  • credit card points
  • American Express
  • luxury travel
  • points redemption
  • financial mistakes

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Stratys, American Express

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