FT4RL 3 archives

Part one: Meet the Speakers, Apr. 23, 2015

I’m thrilled to announce that the speakers for FT4RL are in place! (Drum Roll please)

Trevor from Tagging Miles and Kenny from Miles4More on Creative Ways to Earn Miles and Points

Dan from Points With a Crew on Panning for Gold in Category 1: Hotel Tips, Tricks, and Steals

Phil from Miles Abound on getting the most out of your miles

Richard Kerr, frequent contributor on The Points Guy, on Asian Destinations with Families

Frequent Community Contributor Haley Bach on Disney Debunked: Making Friends with the Mouse

I’m especially proud of the three new speakers we’re bringing to the table: Rich, Dan and Haley. They each have unique expertise and points of view. Combined with Phil, Kenny and Trevor (all rock stars in the miles/points community) FT4RL brings sessions you won’t see in any other conference.

But what I’m most happy about is you: the FT4RL community. Early Bird tickets sold out quickly and many guests have been to FT4RL 1 or 2 (and a few to both!). If you want to join us October 24th in Tysons Corner, VA, better get your tickets soon. More details can be found on the ticket page.

Are you coming to FT4RL? What do you think of our speakers? Please share your thoughts in the comments.

Part two: FT4RL Recap, Brainstorming #4 and a Twitter Party? Oct. 26, 2015

Just a quick note to get you up to speed on the super-fun weekend we had at Family Travel for Real Life 3 (FT4RL) this weekend. Despite hurricanes, last minute schedule changes and tech challenges the speakers absolutely ROCKED it. I could not be happier by the way Saturday turned out.

Thanks so much to Dan, Trevor, Kenny, Jeff, Haley and Rich for their amazing energy, motivation, and flexibility. Thanks so much to the guests who took time out of their real family lives to attend.

Didn’t get to make it? Dan once again live blogged the entire event, including his own session. However, the best tips stayed in the room…and what happens at FT4RL stays at FT4RL! A few things I found interesting that I AM willing to share include:

Trevor made a great point about family travel not always meaning kids. I have a bias towards “kids” when I think family travel but we also take trips with parents, siblings, etc. I often get the “I don’t have kids, will I still enjoy FT4RL?” question and Trevor gave a better answer than I ever could.
I’ve barely scratched the surface of Disney: and that’s with 5 trips so far in 2015! Haley had me scribbling frantically with every slide. Fortunately she’s agreed to share much of her presentation here in a guest post.
Ditto for Asia. Even after a month this summer the kids I could go again and again. Rich really made we want to take the kids to Singapore after busting the myth that it has to be pricey.
Jeff made a great argument for “splitting the team” by booking two flights for two people each instead of committing to only flying the entire family on one plane. You could even make it an “Amazing Race”!
Kenny and Trevor showed how reselling is a viable option to earn “pajama points” with Amazon fulfillment and the right product. I’ve done eBay for years but it’s really time consuming.
Dan showed some really cool 2 bedroom suite options with Choice hotels. I know to think of Choice for Europe but I need to be more open minded in the States.

The best part for me? The challenge I had keeping the schedule! I built an hour of flex into the sessions and we still went 30 minutes over. Not only did the speakers have so much great info, the guests contributed so much to each session. Everyone in the room had been somewhere someone else wanted to go. The dinners Friday and Saturday night each each had over 25 people and I know at least one group shut down the restaurant on Friday. Saturday I left over 20 folks at the hotel bar at Midnight- not sure how long that party went on!

Now for the audience participation part:

I’m thinking a Twitter party might be a fun way to wrap things up. Wanna join me Thursday night at 9EST? We can chat for 30 minutes or so with whoever might be up for family travel tricks and tips using the #FT4RL hashtag. If you’ve never done a twitter party before it’s simple: just follow along using the hashtag in your responses so everyone else can see them. I’ll just throw out a few questions and see how deep this rabbit hole goes! Let me know in the comments if you’ll be there.
The Family Travel for Real Life Pinterest board is up and running. I’d love for you to join in the fun! Just drop me a note and I’ll get you added as a pinner.
FT4RL 4: I like the “one in DC, one traveling” model so the next one will be on the road. I’m thinking either early March or late April- as in before or after Spring Break. Destination options thrown out so far- Nashville, Orlando, Austin…I want the city to be easy to get to for many, have lots for families to do, and be affordably priced. I’d love your input.

I’d love to hear your thoughts on the conference if you were among the guests, if you can make it to the Twitter party, and your suggestions for locations for #4 in the comments.

Part three: Highlights From the First #FT4RL Twitter Party- Which Won’t be the Last! Oct. 30, 2015

have a lot of crazy ideas. Like deciding I could interest enough of you in a travel conference. Well, three FT4RLs later here we are! In the same vein I thought a twitter party might be fun and last night we had one. It was fun enough for me (and I hope for others) that I think we’ll make it a monthly or possibly every two weeks kind of event.

If you’d like to keep up with FT4RL goings-on, the best way is to follow me (@thedealmommy) on Twitter or just keep an eye on the blog. YES, there will be a #4, most likely in early March or late April. Possible locations include Austin, Nashville, Orlando… Much will depend on local events in each city as prices vary widely when, for instance, the SEC tournament or SXSW is in town. Deal Girl gets her tonsils out next week (meaning of course my life screeches for a halt for a bit) but I’ll try to nail this down by the end of November. Alumni of the first 3, as always, get first dibs on tickets. This one sold out so my guess is the next one will also- but more quickly as we have more alumni now!

Another easy way to follow along on Twitter is to subscribe to the FT4RL list. It contains anyone who tweets using the #FT4RL hashtag.

Prefer Pinterest? We also have a group board for Family Travel for Real Life. I’d love more pinners so if you’d like to pin just drop me a note and I’ll add you.

The best part of a Twitter party is that ideas flow fast and furious- I know I could barely keep up. I thought it might be helpful to share some of the gems that guests threw out. (My notes are in italics.)If you have any to add, please share in the comments.

Question 1: What’s your dream family travel destination? Have you been yet, and if not, why?

@Fullvanfun: Our dream destination was to drive around the US w/ our all of our kids & 10000 mi later, we did it this summer! (WAY too much car time for me, but what a trip!)
@tripswithtykes: : Peru. Machu Picchu. Haven’t gone yet b/c I’m not hiking it with a toddler! (A fave of more than one. At FT4RL a guest reporting doing the Inca trail 7 months pregnant. Wow!)
@brandiparsley: Kids- Disney, they’ve been many times. They just don’t like to think outside the mouse. Hubby- China, Japan. Me- Spain! (I have both grownup and family lists that differ, too.)
@fpc552: Looking forward to NZ/Aus, but a bit challenging with Miles/Points (This was a popular answer. Kenny from Miles4More shared a post with Oz/Nz Redemption ideas.

Question 2: What’s your go-to tip for beginners collecting miles/points? What did you wish someone told you when you started?

@pointswithacrew: Chase the deal, not the destination! (I prefer “experience” to “deal”, but similar principle)
@infrequentmiler: (Expired miles are sad. Don’t let your miles be sad. Miles4More again to the rescue with a points tracking spreadsheet! )
@thepointsjock: Research and understand the credit score equation to boost your credit card earnings potential. (And Don’t start collecting miles if you have credit card debt.)
@bachfancy: I wish I had started the #justdoit style of @kennybsat long weekends from day 1. He is an inspiration. (Ditto.)
@kathylittle2: Research but DO something. Wish I’d started much sooner! (Less talk, more do.)
@aprilfreeburn: Shopping online thru airline portals is a fast, easy, uncomplicated way to accumulate miles buying what you’d buy anyway. (AKA don’t miss the low-hanging fruit.)
@brandiparsley: Go slow, and don’t be afraid to ask for help! ( Forums can be scary, but nice people (like us!) are out here.)

Question 3: What off-the-radar destination really worked for your family vacation? What made it special? Share with us!

@tripswithtykes: Chattanooga, TN. Pouring rain whole time but everything awesome w little kids. Sometimes simple family fun wins the day.
@fullvanfun: Cumberland Falls State Park, KY & the moonbow – one of the only things in the world you cannot take a picture of. (She had me at “moonbow”)
@thepointsjock: Guam – the poor man’s Hawaii and the Hyatt Guam has an awesome pool area and water slides.
@kennybsat: Roatan. We went without kids last year and loved it so much we’re headed back in March with them! Rare return trip. Sooo relaxed! (and no chain hotels!)
@tips4familytrip: Had a great time in Philly this spring and my kids begging to go back to please touch museum. (Franklin Institute and Delaware kids museum were mentioned as well.)
@bachfancy: Nova Scotia CA in the Fall. Awesome hikes, all sorts of cool natural oddities like Bay of Fundy (Eastern Canada got a lot of mentions, such as Bruce Peninsula National Park in Ontario and L’Anse St-Jean in the Saguenay region of Quebec.)
@toptravelista: Mackinac Island in MI
@yvonnejasinski: Flaming Gorge Utah (this one got a bunch of support)
@aprilfreeburn: Olivine Pools in Maui aren’t known as kid-friendly, but fam loved it.
@skywardbd: Our grandkids love the Baltimore aquarium, submarine, wharf area downtown. (I’d also give a shout out to Baltimore- just stay in the tourist areas.)
My own contributions: Osaka, Belfast, Naples

Question 4: It’s time to get your brag on! What has been your best miles/points redemption? Where did you go and what did you do?

@toptravelista: booked 10rt UA tickets to Europe in July 2014. All on the same plane. (We’re not worthy!)
@Tripsforfamilytrip: 10 yr anniversary in Hawaii for 8 days. Spent $900 total for the week and stayed at grand wailiea on Maui. Points put to good use. (you bet!)
@tripswitytykes: Best one was 1st one. Nothing fancy in grand scheme of things (biz class to Europe on UA) but it felt like big deal bc IT WORKED. (That first crush…)
@thepointsjock: ATL-FRA-BKK-DPS-SIN-HND all in First for 120k UA miles with stops in Frankfurt, Bali, and Singapore (Wow.)
@brandiparsley: Hyatt in Dewey Beach over Labor Day weekend!
@kennybsat: Bali and Hong Kong, Cathay Pacific and AA business class! (me too, but Tokyo instead of Bali)
@infrequentmiler: Flying my family of 5 together ORD-LIH for 175,000 MR (5 tickets to Hawaii- nice!)

I had planned to stop at 4 questions, but enough folks stuck around that I asked #5: What’s been your biggest challenge trying to make miles/points work?

@jeffthewanderer: Definitely finding available flights. I’ve learned to let them take me where they want to. No need to control. (Mantra: Just get over the pond. Another way Jeff mentioned to get over this is to split the team- Amazing Race style!)
@bachfancy: Finding 5 seats is always hard but finding a time we all can go is even harder now as kids get older. (The “no flights on my dates, no time on dates available ” dance. I know it well.)
@tipsforfamilytrip: Biggest challenge is I have 5 kids. Making deals work for 7 is HARD. (Yes, but it can be done. @pointswithacrew is an example.)

One more note before I close this post. Something happened at this twitter party (and at the FT4RL 3 conference) that makes me really happy: we had a bunch of folks who had never done a twitter party (or a travel conference) before and reported enjoying the experience. Forgive me for going mushy here, but this is important for newbies to hear:

Friendly people who will help you get where you want to go are out here. You just have to know where to look and not be afraid to ask.