Frequent Miler's latest team challenge, Million Mile Madness, is happening now! Follow us as Greg, Nick, and Stephen compete to earn 1 Million SAS miles by flying 15 airlines before November 23rd. Who will complete the challenge with the most Speed, Affordability, and Style?
If you’re interested in seeing the Frequent Miler team in-person, we’d love to meet you. Consider attending a conference where we plan to speak. Alternatively, if you’re interesting in organizing an event, consider inviting us to speak in your home town by setting up an FM to Go event. Reach out to us via our Contact Us page to suggest dates and location.
What’s new? We’ve added information about this year’s Chicago Seminars Heritage Edition, where you can meet and listen to Greg speak and see the rest of the team on the Virtual Variety Show.
Upcoming Events
Below are the conferences and other events in which members of the Frequent Miler team plan to attend or present in the next 6 months or so.
Check back soon…
Past events
October 25-27, 2024: Chicago Seminars Heritage Edition 2024 (Greg presented)
- Link to our post
- Dates: October 25-27, 2024
- Who: Greg will be attending in person and the rest of the Frequent Miler team will be appearing virtually in the Variety Show on Friday
- Location: Holiday Inn Elk Grove (Chicago)
- Cost:
- Conference ticket: $165 (Includes live and replay access to the online 3rd Chicago Seminars Variety Show.)
- 3rd Chicago Seminars Variety Show: $14. Online access to the Variety Show. No access to the in-person conference. If you purchase a Variety Show ticket and later would like to attend the full conference in-person, return to EventBrite to upgrade your ticket for the cost difference.
- Link to register (note that host hotel booking info is in the ticket confirmation email)
Summary: Greg will be attending this Chicago Seminars event and speaking. Our post includes information about confirmed speakers for 2024. Topics and schedule are yet to be announced, but we’ll include more information here when they are.
September 6-9 Pacific Northwest Points Festival 2024 (Greg presented)
Friday, September 6, 2024:
Festival opening Puget Sound Beach Picnic, 4 – 10 pm, location: Golden Gardens Park, Shelters 1 & 2 (8498 Seaview Pl NW, Seattle, WA 98117; free on-site parking and 45 public bus). Bring warm clothes!
Saturday, September 7, 2024:
Points Festival Main Event, 9 am – 5 pm, location: The Swedish Club NW, Vasa Hall (1920 Dexter Ave, Seattle, WA 98109; free-on-site parking and 62 public bus)
Points Festival Party, 5 – 10 pm, outdoor location: nearby private location, walkable from The Swedish Club NW, details to be sent to registered attendees. Bring warm clothes!
Sunday, September 8, 2024:
Swedish Pancake Breakfast, 10 am – 12 pm, location: The Swedish Club NW, Vasa Hall (1920 Dexter Ave, Seattle, WA 98109;free-on-site parking and 62 public bus)
Additional Sunday social activities may be self-arranged by attendees, will coordinate in the attendee group chat.
Conference Speakers:
- Michael Cao
- Greg Davis-Kean of Frequent Miler
- Stefan Krasowski of Rapid Travel Chai
- Moli of Maple Miles
- Sarah Ramkissoon
- Lela Shifton
- TProphet of Seat 31B
- Plus members of the PNW Points Group and surprise guest speakers
April 26-28, 2024: Travel Summit in Toronto, Ontario (Meet & listen to Nick)
- Dates: April 26-28, 2024
- Who: Nick will be the Frequent Miler team member attending & speaking (along with many other great speakers)
- Location: Metro Toronto Convention Centre (MTCC) in Downtown Toronto, Canada
- Cost:
- Regular (though 3/31/24): $399 CAD + taxes
- Last-Minute (through 4/25/24): $449 CAD + taxes
- Save $25 CAD with coupon code FREQUENTMILER (Frequent Miler will also earn a commission when you use this code). Alternatively, use this link to auto-populate the coupon: thetravelsummit.com/FREQUENTMILER. After taxes and the discount are factored in, the total comes to $394.37 CAD (~$291.50 USD) for a regular ticket.
- VIP Ticket: There is also a VIP Ticket that gets you access to an exclusive Friday evening banquet with event hosts and speakers at the St. Regis Toronto, including dinner and drinks, and other VIP perks over the weekend including a VIP lounge at Metro Toronto Convention Centre, enhanced lunches on Saturday and Sunday, front row seating for presentations, a $250 CAD credit toward hotels booked with Prince Collection and more (I’m not sure what other perks may be offered). The VIP ticket costs $995 CAD, which is about $735.50 USD).
- Ticket Inclusions:
- Access to The Travel Summit Toronto 2024 at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre
- Keynote presentations, panel discussions, and breakout sessions across 2 days
- Networking with expert travelers
- Lunch on Saturday & Sunday
- Saturday evening party (at the Westin Harbour Castle Toronto.)
- Special offers from leading travel brands
- Prize draws and giveaways
- Video recordings of all presentations
- Sessions & Schedule: Found here. Note that there will also industry guests on hand from Air Canada, Air France/KLM and Bilt. This year, attendees will choose breakout sessions from four key travel themes: The Points Beginner, The Frequent Flyer, The Freedom Seeker, and The Content Creator. The full list of sessions and event agenda can be found at https://thetravelsummit.com/#sessions. Attendees will get access to video recordings of the breakout sessions after the event
- My topics: I’ll be speaking about Killer credit card combos and together with Josh Greenberg I’ll discuss Year 2 with a Credit Card: Keep, Switch, or Cancel?
- List of Speakers: Found here.
- Read more about this event in our post found here
Please come and say hello! I always love to say hi to readers. I always love these events not just for the skilled presenters (though there are many this time) and the chance to meet some loyalty program executives, but also for the chance to network with others “in the game”. I often find that the most valuable learning comes from conversations with other points & miles enthusiasts. I look forward to seeing some of you there.
May 6, 2023 FTU Signature Washington, DC
Nick gave the following presentation at FTU Signature DC on Saturday, May 6, 2023:
- It Goes Without Saying: Tips You Were Supposed to Read Between the Lines
Oct 29-30 2022 The Travel Summit: Toronto
Greg presented “Build Your Own Round-the-World Flights.” Greg described ANA’s Round the Word awards and other options for building your own Round the World adventures using sweet-spot awards from programs like Air Canada Aeroplan, Cathay Pacific Asia Miles, British Airways and more.
Oct 21-23 2022 The Chicago Seminars
Greg, Nick, and Stephen from the Frequent Miler team presented the following topics:
- Nick presented: Award programs you shouldn’t ignore – Transfer partner sweet spots from each major transferable currency
- Greg, Nick, and Stephen presented: 3 Cards 3 Continents – Sweet spots leveraged and lessons learned planning a dream trip with 3 credit card bonuses
- Greg presented: How to build Round the World Awards
- Stephen presented: 30+ Ways to Save on Hotel Stays
- Greg, Nick, and Stephen answered questions: Ask Us Anything
3/19/22-3/20/22 NYC Travel and Adventure Show
- Greg & Nick presented “Best Awards Bookable Today”
11/17/21 CardCon Denver
- Greg presented “Keynote: Manufacturing a successful podcast, blog, business, and life”
3/7/20-3/8/20 FTU Washington DC (+ Travel & Adventure Show)
- Greg presented: Travel the World with 40,000 Miles. Three Competitors, One Challenge: To Take 40,000 Points and $400 and Get as Far Away as Possible
Our authors covered a combined 50,000+ miles over the course of a week on less than a single credit card sign up bonus each. Hear how we did it, what we learned, and how you can do even better. - Nick presented: Awards Worth MS-ing For
From $18 domestic flights to round-the-world in business class for less than $400, these are the top awards from each transfer program to motivate your manufactured spending.
2/17/2020 Common Cents at the Wharton Business School
Greg and Nick presented points & miles topics to the Wharton Business School club named Common Cents.
2/16/2020 FM to Go Philadelphia
Greg & Nick met with Philadelphia area Frequent Miler fans and presented the following topics:
- Reading between the lines: the deals we allude to (Nick)
- Miscellaneous tips & tricks (Greg)
10/2019 Chicago Seminars
Greg & Nick presented:
- 40K to Far Away
- Awards worth MS-ing for
- Ask us Anything
9/7/2019 FM to Go Bay Area
Greg & Nick met with San Francisco area Frequent Miler fans and presented the following topics:
- Misc Tips & Tricks (Greg)
- Awards worth MS-ing for (Nick)
- 40K to Far Away (Greg & Nick)
- Ask us Anything
6/29/2019 FM to Go Minneapolis
Greg & Nick met with Minneapolis area Frequent Miler fans and presented the following topics:
- Tips & Tricks (Greg)
- Awards worth MS-ing for (Nick)
- 40K to Far Away (Greg & Nick)
- Ask us Anything
2/16/2019 FM to Go San Diego
Greg & Nick met with San Diego area Frequent Miler fans and presented the following topics:
- Tips & Tricks (Greg)
- Crazy card benefits (Nick)
- Manufactured Spending (Greg & Nick)
- Group discussion / Ask us anything
10/19/18 – 10/21/18 Chicago Seminars
- Top 10 Frequent Miler Insider Tips (Greg / Frequent Miler)
- Ask me Anything with Frequent Miler (Greg / Frequent Miler) – You ask, Greg answers for 1 hour.
- Earn Miles Without Flying: Ways to build your balances without Manufactured Spend (Nick Reyes / Frequent Miler) – Subject says it all. Nick will cover how to spot deals and focus on out of the box ways to rack up tons of points and miles
- #FAIL : The mistakes I’ve made in this game and what you can learn from them (Nick Reyes / Frequent Miler) – From resales gone wrong to redemptions I regret and all the miles I’ve left on the table — Nick will go over what you shouldn’t do and how to avoid making those same mistakes.
8/11/18 – 8/12/18 FTU Signature Washington, DC
Greg’s topics included:
Gaining from Change: Marriott SPG Status & Free Night Opportunities
Marriott and SPG plan to combine loyalty programs in August. And with great change comes great opportunity. I’ll discuss how to position yourself best so that you can book the most luxurious properties worldwide for fewer points than ever before; and how to get meaningful elite status for upgrades, free breakfast, and more.
Beginners Boot Camp: Beginner Manufactured Spend
Huge rewards are available to those who have a way to spend a lot of money on credit cards. “Manufactured Spend” is a set of techniques for increasing credit card spend and getting most of that money back. This session covers the basics.
Nick’s topics included:
Bagging a Bargain: The Tools We Use to Save Big
Advanced techniques for spotting opportunities for significant savings. Useful tools and creative tricks for those looking to find the best deals.
Buying a car: How to maximize your Mileage
Multiple methods for multiplying your miles on a major purchase – without sacrificing your ability to get a great deal.
Additionally, Nick moderated the following panels:
DC Manufactured Spend Panel
Straight from the local experts: hear and share what works and what doesn’t.
State of Miles & Points Panel
The best for last, our attendee favorite free-for-all topic mash-up and Q&A. Don’t book an early flight home or you’ll miss out!
6/8/18 – 6/9/18 FTU Signature New York
Greg presented:
- Gaining from change: Marriott SPG status & free night opportunities (Sat 9-10): Marriott and SPG plan to combine loyalty programs in August. And with great change comes great opportunity. I’ll discuss how to position yourself best so that you can book the most luxurious properties worldwide for fewer points than ever before; and how to get meaningful elite status for upgrades, free breakfast, and more.
- Beginners Boot Camp: Beginner Manufactured Spend (Sat 11:20-12:20): Huge rewards are available to those who have a way to spend a lot of money on credit cards. “Manufactured Spend” is a set of techniques for increasing credit card spend and getting most of that money back. This session covers the basics.
Nick presented:
- Bagging a Bargain: The Tools We Use to Save Big (Sat 1:30-2:30): Advanced techniques for spotting opportunities for significant savings. Useful tools and creative tricks for those looking to find the best deals.
- Guest Panel: NY Manufactured Spend Panel moderated by Nick (Sat 3:50-4:50): Manufactured spend in the Tri-State area? It’s possible! Hear and share what works and what doesn’t.
- Earn Miles without Flying: The Best Ways to Boost your Balances without Manufactured Spending (Sun 2:40-3:40): The best ways to boost your balances without manufactured spending. From Extreme Stacking your shopping to creative opportunities you should be considering.
2/24/18 – 2/25/18 FTU Signature Seattle
Nick presented the following topics:
- Saturday 1:30 – 2:30pm – What Stays in My Wallet: Killer Credit Card Benefits Beyond the Signup Bonuses – After you’ve banked that big signup bonus, some cards have awesome ancillary benefits that make them worthwhile year after year. Find out which ones I’ll keep long-term and why.
- Sunday 9:00am – 10:00am – Bagging a Bargain: The Tools We Use to Save Big – Advanced techniques for spotting opportunities for significant savings.
- Sunday 11:20am – 12:20pm – Buying a Car: How to Maximize your Mileage – Methods for making miles worthwhile when buying a car.
11/17 – 11/19 FTU Signature Chicago ($249) and 11/18 FTU Travel Expo ($39).
Greg and Nick discussed a number of topics, including Manufactured spend from your laptop, Miles for College, Killer credit card benefits, and how we find good deals.
10/20/17 – 10/22/17 Chicago Seminars ($105)
Greg and Nick presented and discussed a number of topics.
- Saturday 830am – 930am – Using Points & Miles to get to Necker Island (Greg / Frequent Miler) – Greg wasn’t able to make it to the Chicago Seminars last year, he and his wife were busy hanging out with Richard Branson on Necker Island — all done with points. He’ll tell his story and hopefully inspire you to up your commitment to points and miles.
- Saturday 215pm – 315pm – Honeymoon Destination: Earth (Nick Reyes / Frequent Miler) – How a year of collecting miles and connecting dots led to a 4-month honeymoon around the world and how you can plan the ultimate romantic getaway — whether to beautiful beaches or off the beaten track.
- Saturday 4pm – 5pm – Ask Me Anything with Frequent Miler (Greg / Frequent Miler) – Greg is an expert on how to pick up mass amounts of points and miles without setting foot on a plane or spending a night in a hotel. Spend an hour picking his brain where you can ask him anything — maybe he’s headed back to Necker?
- Saturday 515pm – 615pm – Cards with Benefits (Nick Reyes / Frequent Miler) – Rewards-earning cards are much more than the points and miles associated with them. Nick will review everything about leveraging your card’s ancillary benefits to get an outsized value to save you time and money.
7/22/17 – 7/23/17 Ann Arbor Art Fair DO (Free!)
Nick discussed South African safaris and all details: How to get to South Africa with miles, where to stay, how to “rent” a camera and make money doing so, and more. Details and registration here.
6/9/17 – 6/11/17 FTU Advanced Minneapolis
Details and registration here.
2/24/17 – 2/26/17 FTU Advanced Seattle
Details and registration here.
8/5/16-8/7/16: FTU Advanced Washington DC
4/29/16-5/1/16: FTU Signature Event Vegas
12/4/15-12/6/15: FTU Advanced Newport Beach
11/7/15: TravelCon II Las Vegas
10/16/15-10/18/15: Chicago Seminars
9/25/15-9/27/15: FTU Advanced Dallas
7/18/15-7/19/15: Ann Arbor Art Fair DO
Details here.
4/17/15-4/19/15: FTU and FTU Advanced Dallas / Fort Worth
Greg presented:
- Using Bluebird, Serve, and REDbird to earn miles
- Intro to Manufactured Spend
- Maximizing Miles Through Online Portals
- Shortcuts to Elite Status (FTU Advanced)
- Ask me anything (FTU Advanced)
3/6/15-3/8/15: FTU Advanced San Diego
Greg presented:
- Manufacturing Spend
- Ask me anything
- Shortcuts to Elite Status
12/5/15-12/7/15 FTU and FTU Advanced DC
Greg presented:
- Using Bluebird, Serve, and REDbird to earn miles
- Maximizing Miles Through Online Portals
- Shortcuts to Elite Status (FTU Advanced)
- Ask me anything (FTU Advanced)
Events prior to 12/5/15 not listed
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Any news on Chicago seminars this year? Will you 2 be speaking?
No news yet. We don’t know.
Southeast anytime soon? Related, what about someway to set up your audience/fans to connect to each other “regionally”? I’d love to meet for coffee once a month in the Birmingham (AL) market with fellow FM subscribers to talk shop in “our market”….what outstanding value bookings did they do out of our local airport (BHM)?
We don’t have any immediate plans.
That’s a good idea about providing a way for regional get-togethers. I’m not sure how that would work though
Hi Greg – what about somehow via the Facebook Community? I’m not sure either besides maybe a facebook post created calling all markets to post if interested?
I met Nick in 2019 in Minneapolis. I wanted to meet Greg, but someone else was really capitalizing on his time. I hope you have ways of discouraging this so everyone can speak with you.
Sorry to hear that!
Please do more events out West! Denver or SLC could be a good hub.
Agree with MSK…. travel summit was extremely disappointing!
I hope it’s better this year! I’ll be attending and look forward to meeting Nick as well as Julia from Geobreeze Travel.
Travel summit was desperately disappointing…
Wasn’t sure how to use the Contact us page to register interest in an FMTG event so I sent an email to the mailbag.
I’m interested in attending one of your events, but this page seems a bit out date. Anything on the schedule?
thanks
Look forward to finally meeting you in person in Toronto! You’ll be proud of my travel plans: 13500 SkyMiles ATL-LGA-YYZ (upgraded with RUC that I had no other use for); 19.4k Aeroplan YYZ-ATL nonstop biz; 2 expiring Hyatt Cat 1-4 certs at HR Toronto.
I wish you were planning to be at FTU in November in Southern California!
Besides for meeting you guys which would be great, is there value in the seminar for those of us in the game for a while? Any hacks given over that aren’t shared here?
Yes go there and Find out u will be a Travel Pro after u leave I bet..V Bernie
Yes you are likely to learn some hacks you didn’t already know but the most valuable thing is the opportunity to make friends with others in the hobby.
Thanks for this post! I wish the Chicago Seminars had been on my radar earlier- couldn’t clear my schedule to make it (fighting some serious FOMO lol).
Would love to see upcoming meet up/event reminders maybe quarterly? Hoping to catch one of the next ones! Thanks for all you guys do- you’re my go-to and first recommendation to newbies
Great suggestion, thanks!
Is there a 1 day option?
I don’t think so
thats a shame, as want to attend but can only make it to the sunday sessions.
So What spend the Money for 1 day. Hang with people who know what u want to Know. Pocket change and V Bernie
Remember, you will need to be vaccinated, and have the booster up to date. That leaves me out! Even Norwegian cruise line isn’t requiring shots or PCR tests anymore.
I had it ALL still got it in May a Doc Flt. HaHa ..V Berine
Oh wow, there goes my FOMO. Thanks for pointing it out-I’ll just wait until those conditions drop to consider future FTUs.
Thanks for pointing this out!
any promo codes for the upcoming chicago event?
In don’t think so
My NORD VPN went down switched to my others. Thanks for having an Encrypted site..
V Bernie