How I Flew business class around the world for a few hundred dollars!

Each summer, I like to travel internationally for a few weeks during my two months of summer vacation. This year, I chose to travel to three countries that basically took me around the world: Japan, India, and Mozambique/South Africa. Since these flights are quite long and my itinerary was so hectic, I wanted to fly business class on every long flight, but obviously didn’t want to spend nearly $10,000. Here’s how I booked my three week trip almost exclusively on airline miles! I did choose to pay cash for any flight that was under 2 hours long and under $200 (flying in economy), which was a good balance to also not waste too many of your hard-earned credit card points. If you want to learn more about how to earn these points, book a credit card consultation with me! 

Flights: 
Route: San Diego to Tokyo (7 day free “layover”) to New Delhi
Airline: Japan Airlines Business Class
Points Needed: 55k Alaska Airline Miles (plus $46)
How I got the miles: Alaska Airline Business Card sign-up bonus of 70k
Cash Saved: about $2500

Route: Jaipur to Dubai (layover in Mumbai)
Airline: Air India Business Class
Points Needed: 32k Turkish Airline Miles (plus $55 in taxes)
How I got the miles: Transferred from Capital One Venture X Card
Cash Saved: about $600

Route: Dubai to Maputo (layover in Addis Ababa) *I ended up driving to South Africa from Maputo*
Airline: Ethiopian Airlines Business Class
Points Needed: 30k Aegean Airline Miles (plus $45 in taxes)
How I got the miles: Purchased these miles for $400 when they had a huge sale 
Cash Saved: about $2,000

Route: Johannesburg to Chicago (refueling stop in Dublin) 
Airline: Ethiopian Airlines Business Class
Points Needed: 78k Avianca Lifemiles (plus $108)
How I got the miles: Transferred from Amex Platinum (where I had received a 100k signup bonus a few years ago)
Cash Saved: about $2,500

Route: Chicago to San Diego 
Airline: American Airlines Economy
Points Needed: 11k American Airline Miles
How I got the miles: AA Aviator Business Credit Card 80k signup bonus
Cash Saved: about $300

Flights I paid cash for 
Delhi to Jaipur ($35)
Kruger National Park to Cape Town ($160)
Cape Town to Johannesburg ($140)