Kelsey sends us this reader success story where her family takes on Türkiye! I’ve been to Istanbul before but would love to check out Cappadocia sometime, so I was especially excited to read this success story! Here it is:

I have always been in love with travel, but after taking my kids to Spain in 2023, I realized I needed to come up with a way to travel as a family more frequently for less money! I was fortunate to come across the Points Talk Squad. Although I have managed to take some smaller domestic trips already using points, our trip to Türkiye was my first international trip using points, and now my kids and I can’t get enough!

 

Flights

Our trip included my mom, myself and my three children (ages 9, 14, and 19). We started off with at the Chase Sapphire Lounge in Boston, and we were all in heaven. (My kids said it was “bussin’.”) We flew on Air France for 25,000 points and $132 in taxes and fees per person to Istanbul, and fewer points for my youngest because of the 25% Flying Blue discount on children’s award flights. Because we had a long layover (11 hours) in Paris, and since we had never been, we decided to explore the Eiffel tower, River Seine (which had just recently opened for swimming), and try some hot chocolate.

The second leg of our flight was later, and because we arrived in Istanbul after midnight, I booked a local airport hotel through the Chase portal to use up my Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card $50 hotel credit. The hotel’s price was $79, so the credit brought our stay down to $29. And the hotel did accommodate all five of us in one room. 

 

Istanbul

The next day we checked into the Grand Hyatt Istanbul for three nights, booking two rooms with club access. The total points cost for this stay came to 144,000 points. Although the location is not great for tourist activity, we quickly got used to using the metro and I would not have changed our location. Having a beautiful pool was key as we stayed in the summer, and it was hot. Club access allowed us free breakfast at their famous buffet (with a local woman making fresh gözleme), some light snacks and drinks throughout the day, and drinks and appetizers in the evening—often enough to fill us all for dinner. 

 

 

While in Istanbul, we visited the Blue Mosque, Hagia Sophia, Basilica Cistern, Spice Bazaar, and Grand Bazaar. Our favorite experiences were a family-friendly hammam (we knew to bring two-piece bathing suits—thanks, Pam!) and an ebru (Turkish marbling) art class. 

 

Cappadocia

We then paid cash to fly to Cappadocia via Turkish Airlines for $94 per person. In Cappadocia, we stayed in a local cave hotel for two nights for a total of $465, which we put towards a minimum spend. While there, we did a mosaic lamp-making class, a dreamy hot air balloon ride, and visited Uchisar Castle and Kaymakli underground city. 

 

 

 

We then flew Pegasus Airlines to get to Antalya using cash for $82 per person. We stayed at an Airbnb (because we really wanted to stay in Old Town Kaleici) and we used the Capital One purchase eraser to cover this expense. While there we visited Hadrian’s Gate, some local shops, and the salty beaches. 

 

 

Return Home

We positioned to Switzerland by catching a Pegasus flight to Zurich, booked through the Capital One portal using our $300 Venture X credit, bringing the total to $5 per person. We spent a day exploring Zurich—the FIFA museum, the lake, and Swiss chocolate shops. Lodging that night was at Hyatt Place Zurich (one night, two rooms, for 36,000 points), which was a prime location to access the airport and public transportation. We were able to return to Boston from Zurich for 35,000 points and $154 taxes and fees per person booked with Air Canada!

We had such an incredible time and found ourselves able to spend our money on local experiences because so much of our travel was made possible by points!

Thanks for sharing with us, Kelsey. Türkiye sounds amazing and I need to go see more of it!

 

Related Posts

Podcast 53. Navigating the Wonders of Istanbul: An Award Traveler’s Dream Destination

Istanbul on Points

Switzerland on Points and Miles