Name
Dr. Francois DeAsis
www.instagram.com/whitecoat.wanderlust
How long have you been in the travel hacking game? Briefly describe how you got started.
Since 2013. While trying to plan for the stereotypical once-in-a-lifetime summer graduation trip, I stumbled across Million Mile Secrets and went completely down the rabbit hole. I never actually took that grad trip since I didn’t have enough miles initially, but what happened after was so much better.
What is your day job/ side hustles? Are you able to incorporate travel hacking into this? If so, how?
I am a physician (Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation). I haven’t been able to specifically incorporate travel hacking into this just yet, but I am very passionate about global medicine and the complex itineraries occasionally involved here certainly lend itself for redemption opportunities.
I have a number of side gigs, but my main one is photography. My photography is powered by travel hacking insofar as helping me build a large archive of content, and I have had some of my work featured in National Geographic Travel, Passion Passport, and Business Insider to name a few.
What’s your favorite points and miles redemption story?
I have pulled off a ton of outlandish redemptions, but my favorite one was funding my sister’s honeymoon to Germany and Switzerland. I was able to get them United Polaris First (before it was entirely replaced by Polaris Business) to Munich on the outbound.
This was booked with 220k UA miles with Chase UR. On the inbound, I booked them into Lufthansa First ex Frankfurt so they could experience the legendary First Class Terminal (Ducks, Porsches and Haribo right?).
This was booked via the old Air Canada Aeroplan program for 140k, which I funded with both Amex MR and Chase UR. For lodging, they did Airbnb, which was mostly offset by Airbnb gift cards I had.
I actually didn’t sign up for cards with this as a goal; I already had these miles accumulated. Mind you, I got into the game before 5/24, lifetime offers, and 24/48 month rules existed, and so through a combination of SUBs, referrals, and certain advanced methods, I was able to build a large portfolio of points and miles that I’ve been perpetually dipping into and refilling for years.
Most of my points are already earmarked for specific trips, but I like to have wiggle room for situations like this. Perhaps the best thing out of this was that this inspired them to get into the game themselves, and they have since redeemed for several trips on their own, including ones to Hawaii and Israel.
Give a travel hacking shout-out to someone whose content you find particularly helpful for someone trying to level up their game.
There is a special place in my heart for the OMAAT team. When I was starting out, I found Lucky’s and Tiffany’s articles very helpful, especially in terms of card breakdowns and premium redemptions.
Where can we find you on the internet?
Feel free to DM me at @whitecoat.wanderlust. My IG is moreso for my photography, but I am always happy to chat about travel hacking. My specialty is international first and business class, and I’ve flown on many aspirational products (some of them multiple times).
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geobreezetravel
Julia Menez is a travel hacking coach, speaker, and founder of Geobreeze. Through her content and coaching services, she aims to spread travel hacking to underrepresented communities by featuring the points and miles stories you won't normally find on the first page of Google or in the bigger blogs. Julia has been a speaker for FinconX and has led a travel hacking workshop for thousands of registered attendees at the SHEFACTOR 2020 Launch Your Life Summit, an event that featured speakers such as Bethany Hamilton, Kaitlyn Bristowe, and Missy Franklin. She has also been featured in numerous business and travel podcasts.
