How I Booked a Round-Trip Flight to Paris for $12 Using Points (Real Walkthrough)

In this article, I'll tell you the the exact, real-time booking process I use to turn everyday spending into international flights, specifically for families and especially those with three or more kids. You’ll see where to search, which partners to use, how transfer bonuses work, and how to evaluate point value so you don’t waste rewards. If booking flights with points has ever felt confusing or out of reach, this is where it finally starts to make sense.

Quick Take: This flight to Paris should have cost over $1,000 — but I paid less than $12 out of pocket.

Not because of a loophole.
Not because I opened a dozen new credit cards.
And not because I earn more than anyone else.

I’m walking you through the exact, real-time booking process I use to turn everyday spending into international flights — specifically for families, and especially for families with three or more kids.

If travel on points has ever felt confusing or out of reach, this is where it finally starts to make sense. 

Over the last two videos in this series, we followed two families:

• Family A, who puts everything on a debit card and pays cash for travel

• Family B, who uses a simple reward strategy to earn points from normal spending

Same income.
Same expenses.
Very different travel outcomes.

Most families assume international travel is something they’ll do later — when the kids are older, when there’s more money, or when life feels less busy. But the truth is, the average family of five already spends enough each year to cover at least one major trip — if they’re earning the right kind of points.

The confusion usually comes from:

• Not knowing where to search

• Not understanding transfer partners

• Assuming you need “more points” before you can book

This walkthrough removes that friction.

Step 1: Start With the Cash Price (What Most Families See)

Like most people, I start with Google Flights.

For this example, I searched a round-trip flight from Salt Lake City to Paris in January. The result?

• Cash prices ranged from $800 to $1,300

• Mostly economy seats

• Often with connections

• Nothing special — just expensive

This is where Family A stops. They see the price and decide the trip isn’t realistic right now.

Step 2: Search for Award Availability (Where Things Change)

Instead of booking with cash, I move to an award search tool that shows flights available with points.

This is where strategy matters.

Using flexible search parameters (dates +/- 14 days), I found:

• A direct flight to Paris

• For 30,000 points

• With just $5.60 in taxes and fees

Same plane.
Same seats.
Different currency.

Step 3: Choose the Right Airline Partner (This Is Critical)

Here’s one of the biggest mistakes families make:

They book through the airline they’re familiar with — even when another partner offers the same flight for far fewer points.

In this case:

• Booking directly through Delta would have cost 110,000 points one way

• Booking the exact same Delta flight through Virgin Atlantic cost 30,000 points

Nothing changed except where I booked.

This is why flexible points matter.

Step 4: Check the Redemption Value (Don’t Skip This)

Before transferring points, I always run the numbers.

For this flight:

• Retail price: $1,242

• Points used: 30,000

• Taxes: ~$6

That’s roughly 4 cents per point — already an excellent redemption.

But it gets better.

Step 5: Use a Transfer Bonus to Stretch Points Further

When I checked my credit card’s transfer partners, Virgin Atlantic was offering a 40% transfer bonus.

That meant:

• Instead of transferring 30,000 points

• I only needed to transfer about 22,000 points

Now the redemption jumped to 6 cents per point — which is exceptional.

This is why “earning more points” isn’t usually the answer.
Using them well is.

Step 6: Book the Flight (In Real Time)

I transferred the points (which posted almost instantly), refreshed my Virgin Atlantic account, and booked the flight.

Final total:

• ~43,000 points round trip

• Less than $12 out of pocket

That’s it.

No new spending.

No new cards.
Just a clear system.

Why This Works for Families (Especially 3+ Kids)

When you’re booking for a larger family, mistakes are expensive.

Using the wrong airline.
Redeeming points at poor value.
Booking through portals instead of partners.

Those errors add up fast.

The strategies I teach — and the tools I share — are designed specifically to:

• Help families with three or more kids

• Keep options flexible

• Make trips repeatable, not one-off wins

• Reduce overwhelm, not add to it

This isn’t about hacking.
It’s about clarity.

A Quick Win You Can Do Today

Take 60 seconds and check one thing:

Are your points flexible, or locked to one airline or hotel?

If they’re locked, you’re limiting your options — especially as a family. Flexible points are what make deals like this possible.

That single shift changes everything.

Free Tool I Use in This Booking

I use my Reward Travel Calculator every time I book to make sure I’m getting strong value and not wasting points.

👉 Download the guide here! 

Final Thoughts

This flight didn’t happen because I had “a lot of points.”

It happened because I understood:

• Where to search

• Which partners to use

• When to transfer

• And how to evaluate value

Everything I share is designed to make incredible family memories feel attainable, especially for families with three or more kids.

Travel doesn’t have to be postponed.
It just needs a better system.