Smart Travel: Upgrade Your Getaways
Room Blocks, Rental Cars, and a Plus-One: Smarter Wedding Travel for Savvy Guests
Wed, 16 Apr 2025
Learn strategic ways to save on wedding travel — whether you're planning the big day or flying in to celebrate someone else's. How can you avoid overspending on wedding travel without sacrificing comfort or memorable experiences? How do you continue earning meaningful travel rewards after you've maxed out your credit card welcome bonuses? Host Meghan Coyle kicks off the episode with Tess Vigeland (filling in for Sally in the news segment) with a roundup of timely travel news, including the opening of the world’s largest cruise terminal in Miami, Delta Air Lines pulling back on its 2025 growth plans, and NerdWallet’s latest Travel Price Index showing a drop in airfare, hotel, and rental car prices. Then, Meghan is joined by co-host (and bride-to-be!) Sally French for a deep dive into the real cost of attending (and hosting) a wedding. They break down how to strategically book flights and hotels, whether it’s smarter to use points or room blocks, how to handle gift expectations, and how to build a sustainable travel rewards strategy that lasts long after the honeymoon. They offer practical tips to help you travel smart and spend wisely, whether you’re walking down the aisle or just attending the afterparty. Card benefits, terms and fees can change. For the most up-to-date information about cards mentioned in this episode, read our reviews: How Much Are Travel Points and Miles Worth in 2025? 2025 Summer Travel Report In their conversation, the Nerds discuss: how to save on wedding travel, cheapest days to fly, best day to book flights, wedding guest travel budget, hotel vs Airbnb wedding, when to book flights for a wedding, room block savings, using credit card points for weddings, Costco wedding cake, Delta Air Lines 2025 forecast, travel prices dropping, travel price index 2025, booking travel with points, long-term credit card rewards, best travel credit card 2025, how to avoid flight delays, affordable wedding planning, budgeting for destination weddings, travel tips for wedding season, NerdWallet travel study, Ultimate Rewards hotel transfer, platinum card no welcome offer, Amex pop-up warning, maximizing lounge access, sustainable travel rewards, using credit cards for wedding expenses, best time to book international flights, cheap airfare tips, skipping wedding gifts, travel budgeting for friends and family, booking wedding hotels with points, Airbnb group wedding travel, and how to save on wedding lodging.
Chapter 1: Who are the hosts and what is the episode about?
Megan, how many weddings are you going to again this year? Eight. Wait, who are you and where's Sally? I'm Tess, your producer. And Sally donned a red and white knit cap and left to travel the world and tell us about it. And from now on, the show is going to be called Where's Sally? I'm kidding, of course.
I kind of love the idea, though.
Right?
Why does she get to have all the fun? I'd like a spinoff called Where's Megan?
Probably at a wedding. Yeah. So, oh my goodness, eight weddings. That's a lot of travel to figure out, Megan, especially if it involves flight and what's likely to be at least two nights in a hotel, maybe a rental car, all to celebrate someone else's love story. And you're doing it eight times.
Certainly makes me qualified to talk about how to budget and plan travel specifically for weddings. Welcome to Smart Travel, a deep dive into the tips, tools, and tactics to maximize your travel dollars. I'm Megan Coyle.
And I'm Tess Vigeland, in for Sally French. And we're the travel nerds, ready to help you plan your next big trip. At least, we're one half of the travel nerds.
Welcome to the front of the microphone test, out from behind that virtual production booth.
Thank you, thank you. Yeah, Sally will be joining you for the back half of the show to talk wedding travel. But right now, she's on a giant boat sailing away. And I mean, you know, it is a travel show after all. You both should be hosting from parts near and far every week.
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Chapter 2: What are the latest travel news updates relevant to wedding travel?
I mean, I would say ask the Friday group who is invited. You can totally ask them. That alone is not awkward, but it is worse when you ask your friends and then someone in the group is not invited.
Yeah. Okay. Another awkward situation. What about gifts? Like if you're already spending $2,000 to attend a wedding, are you off the hook with getting a gift?
Okay. So Megan, you know that disclaimer that we say at the end of every episode that we are not financial advisors? Yeah. I want to add a disclaimer here. We are not friendship advisors either. So true. I'm just going to add my own hot takeoff early.
I think other couples getting married might hate me for saying this, but in my opinion, I'd much rather a guest skip the gift and show up if it's a trade-off between sending a gift and spending all this money on travel. Quite frankly, I will say it is always okay to skip the trip entirely if it's a financial burden.
Yeah, I agree. You shouldn't go into debt for this. And for what it's worth, I don't think that this is that much of a hot take. Many etiquette experts agree that when it comes to destination weddings, or really any wedding requiring travel, your presence is the present. If you still want to give something, a card or a thoughtful gesture goes a long way.
We're just excited to have all our friends under one roof.
So whether you're the one throwing the wedding or just trying to be a good friend with a manageable credit card balance, remember, travel smart, plan ahead, use your points, and don't be afraid to say no if it's not in the budget this year.
And please, no one go into credit card debt to come to my wedding or anyone else's. Let's just get dinner together when we see each other.
So for real, it's hot takeoff time now. Do you have one this week? Okay, I have a second one.
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