Some trips are about the destination. Some are about the points strategy. And then there’s the trip you plan because your husband is turning 40, your in-laws are flying in from Austin, and you’ve been quietly building toward this moment — one credit card bonus at a time.
Vietnam in late November 2025 was all three. In fact, this Vietnam trip on points (mostly) was a multigenerational adventure: me, Vince (Player 2, the birthday boy), Miss W, Mr. KC, Vince’s parents, and our nephew. Seven people. Three generations. One once-in-a-lifetime property. And a points strategy that made the whole thing possible without blowing up our financial lives.
Here’s how we did it.
Why This Trip
P2’s 40th birthday deserved something big. Not just a nice dinner or a long weekend — something genuinely memorable. Vietnam had been on the list for years: the food, the history, the contrast between the modern energy of Ho Chi Minh City and the quiet luxury of the coast.
We also wanted to do something we’d never done before: stay at an Aman property. If you’re not familiar with Aman, think of it as the kind of place that r/FATTravel on Reddit exists to review — ultra-luxury, ultra-exclusive, and typically, ultra-expensive. Our past years of strategic award travel had built up enough cash savings that for this trip, we were ready to put real money toward one extraordinary stay — our first FAT travel cash splurge. Amanoi, set on a cliff overlooking Vĩnh Hy Bay, was the one.
As for the rest of the Vietnam trip? Points did the heavy lifting.
Getting There
Our family of four — SFO → SGN on Vietnam Airlines Business Class
Lie-flat seats to Vietnam for a birthday trip? Yes, please. Specifically, we booked Vietnam Airlines Business Class through Air France/KLM’s Flying Blue program for 416,000 Flying Blue miles + $1,089.20 in taxes and fees for all four of us, one way. That breaks down to 104,000 miles per person — a serious redemption for a premium cabin on a long-haul transpacific flight.
Conveniently, Flying Blue miles can be transferred from Amex Membership Rewards, Chase Ultimate Rewards, Capital One, and Citi ThankYou Points, so there are multiple ways to accumulate points toward this kind of redemption.
The in-laws + nephew — AUS → SEA → SGN
One of the most underrated parts of managing points for your family is helping the people you love travel better, too. I manage award bookings for Vince’s parents, and for this trip I booked them (plus our nephew) on a routing from Austin through Seattle to Saigon. The full trip came in at 55,000 Alaska Mileage Plan miles + $34.80 per person, with the Seattle to Saigon leg on STARLUX Airlines in Premium Economy — one of the best premium economy products in the sky. STARLUX partners with Alaska Airlines, making this one of the most underrated redemptions in the program.
SGN ↔ CXR — Vietnam Airlines, cash fare
To get all seven of us from Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) to Cam Ranh — the closest airport to Amanoi — we booked a round-trip cash fare on Vietnam Airlines at $84 per person. For an intra-Vietnam flight on a comfortable carrier, that’s a steal. Amanoi arranged a luxury sprinter-style van to pick us up at the airport, included as part of our stay. The drive to the property is about 1.5 hours, and honestly? It was our first taste of the beauty of Vietnam’s coastline. Scenic doesn’t begin to cover it.
Where We Stayed
Property | Location | How We Paid | Program / Details |
Amanoi | Ninh Hạn, Vietnam | Cash — Pay 3, Stay 4 rate | First-ever Aman stay; 4 nights; both pavilions included airport transfers and daily breakfast |
Park Hyatt Saigon | Ho Chi Minh City | World of Hyatt points + Suite Upgrade Award | Park Suite (family, 4 nights); Standard Room (in-laws, 4 nights); Chase UR → Hyatt 1:1 |
Amanoi
I’m going to be upfront: Amanoi deserves its own full post, and that’s exactly what it’s going to get. What I’ll say here is that it is the most extraordinary property I have ever stayed at. Private beach, pavilion-style villas set into a hillside, service that makes you feel like the only guests on earth.
We stayed in two pavilions. Our family of four was in an ocean view pavilion with a king bed and a separate room with two twin beds — $4,547 total ($1,300/night × 3 nights; 4th night free). Vince’s parents were upgraded to a mountain pavilion with a private pool — $3,498 total ($1,000/night × 3 nights; 4th night free). Both rates included airport transfers, daily breakfast, afternoon tea and most kids’ activities; lunch, dinner, activities, and tips were additional. The Pay 3, Stay 4 promo made one night free on each pavilion, lowering the combined cost by $2,300.
All the details on what we did there, what we ate, and what the experience was actually like with kids and grandparents in tow? That post is coming. Consider this your teaser.
→ Amanoi full review — coming soon
Park Hyatt Saigon
After Amanoi, we headed back to Ho Chi Minh City for four nights at the Park Hyatt Saigon — one of the crown jewels of the World of Hyatt portfolio.
Our family of four stayed in the Park Suite at 25,000 World of Hyatt points per night, plus a Suite Upgrade Award (SUA) to lock in the suite category. Four nights: 100,000 Hyatt points total for a suite in one of the best urban luxury hotels in Southeast Asia.
Vince’s parents stayed in a standard room across the hall at 20,000 World of Hyatt points per night — also booked on points — so we had the whole crew under one roof (well, across one hallway).
Both bookings were funded by transferring Chase Ultimate Rewards to World of Hyatt at a 1:1 ratio. Quick reminder: as of now, the only Chase cards that still transfer to Hyatt at 1:1 are the Chase Sapphire Reserve (personal and business). If you’re on the Sapphire Preferred or an Ink card, that ratio has shifted to 4:3 — which is still good, but not the same. If maximizing Hyatt is part of your strategy, the Reserve is the card to hold. (Read more about why here).
What We Did
(Amanoi experiences covered in dedicated Amanoi post)
Walking Tour of the City
We kicked off our time in Saigon with a walking tour of the city — and I’ll be honest, the Vietnamese heat in late November is no joke. I finished the tour. The rest of the crew? They tapped out. Miss W and Mr. KC made it farther than you’d expect, but eventually even P2 and the grandparents called it. I’m counting this as a personal victory.
The city itself is electric. The traffic alone is an experience — motorbikes everywhere, moving in a kind of organized chaos that somehow works. The French colonial architecture mixed with modern high-rises, the street vendors, the temples tucked between buildings — it’s a city that rewards slow observation.
Street Food Walking Tour
This was the highlight of our Saigon days, full stop. We booked through Viator and ran the booking through Rakuten to earn Amex points on the purchase, because stacking is a lifestyle. More on this in a to-be-written dedicated post.
The tour took us through multiple neighborhoods, multiple dishes, and multiple rounds of Vietnamese coffee (thick, strong, and often poured over sweetened condensed milk — a revelation every single time). What genuinely moved me was watching our picky eaters trying everything. Asking for seconds. Leaning in. If you’ve ever coaxed a kid through a restaurant menu only to hear “I don’t like that,” you understand how significant this moment was. My favorite dish was the Bò lá lốt (beef wrapped in betel leaf).
Củ Chi Tunnels
The Củ Chi Tunnels are one of those must-do experiences that sit at the intersection of fascinating and genuinely sobering. The tunnel system was used during the Vietnam War, stretching for hundreds of kilometers underground. The tour gives you real historical context — and then offers you the chance to actually go underground.
Most of us descended into the tunnels via steps. Ever brave, Miss W and Player 2 dropped themselves into a narrow hole in the ground and made their entrance that way — because of course they did.
I went in too. I am claustrophobic. I want that on the record. It wasn’t comfortable, and there may have been a brief episode of panic and shrieking, but it was worth every second.
Food, Coffee, and Just Being There
Beyond the organized tours, some of our best moments in Vietnam were unplanned: stumbling into a local coffee shop, watching the city move from a sidewalk table, getting a bowl of phở at an hour when phở shouldn’t work but absolutely does. The people we met were genuinely warm and kind. Vietnam exceeded every expectation we brought with us.
Final Thoughts
This trip had everything: a milestone birthday, three generations in one place, a bucket-list property, and some of the best food any of us have ever eaten. It also proved something I come back to on this blog over and over — that years of intentional points accumulation create real options. The kind where you can say “Vince is turning 40, let’s go to Vietnam and stay at an Aman” and actually make it happen.
Here’s the breakdown at a glance:
Flight / Stay | Program | Cost |
SFO → SGN Business Class (4 pax) | Flying Blue | 416,000 miles + $1,089.20 |
AUS → SEA → SGN (3 pax) | Alaska Mileage Plan | 165,000 miles + $104.40 |
SGN ↔ CXR round trip (7 pax) | Cash | ~$1,176 total |
Amanoi — Ocean View Pavilion (our family, 4 nights) | Cash — Pay 3, Stay 4 | $4,547 total ($1,300/night × 3; 4th night free) |
Amanoi — Pool Pavilion (in-laws, 4 nights) | Cash — Pay 3, Stay 4 | $3,498 total ($1,000/night × 3; 4th night free) |
Park Hyatt Saigon — Park Suite (family, 4 nights) | World of Hyatt | 100,000 points + SUA |
Park Hyatt Saigon — Standard Room (in-laws, 4 nights) | World of Hyatt | 80,000 points |
Vietnam, we’ll be back. Probably with more points.
