29/05/2025
European summer vacation starting off with a dream destination ~ Venice, Italy! 🇮🇹🍷🍝
Finding business class awards for 5 is always a challenge so I got creative with routing to enjoy a full nights rest for the transatlantic long haul and pieces the connections from there. Membership Rewards transfer to Air Canada and for only 60k MR we enjoyed Lufthansa business class!
Rooms for 3 are rare so we went with renting an apartment in the Grand Canal. If I can’t use points to book a star I definitely maximize the purchase. Buying AirBnb gift cards from an office supply store for 5x/$ makes the rental a little less painful.
After an amazing 3 nights in Venice we caught the train to Milan for a single night at the Hyatt Centric to tour the Duomo di Milano. Next stop Switzerland!
Points & Miles Breakdown per Person:
FSD-IAD 15k United Miles vs $461
IAD-MUC 60k Air Canada Miles transferred from American Express Membership Rewards vs $5900
MUC-VCE Expedia $105
Venice Apartment $600 x 3 nights = $1800 (earned 9k Chase points)
Italian train Venice-Milan $61
Milan Hyatt Centric 20k x 2 nights = 40k Hyatt points transferred from Chase Ultimate Rewards or $339 x 2 = $678
Actual spend $1972 plus points instead of $9005!!
