We are three-quarters through our month-long adventure of living + working (my husband is on vacation) in Baja, Mexico.  I talked about this trip in a previous post on how to set up a location independent business. This dream that we made a reality will rank up there as one of the best things we have done.  We plan to rent a house in Loreto Bay again next winter.

Technology has improved so much that connectivity is not the issue it used to be when I traveled for clients in my previous PR business.  Back in the late 90s and early 2000 years, my laptops were heavier and more cumbersome than today’s streamlined laptops.

The technology that allows me to work with ease is Skype.  I simply use Skype to call my clients worldwide for our meetings.  I have the U.S. / Canada and Mexico plan and it’s free!  Occasionally a call will be dropped, but it hasn’t been a problem.

Recently people have asked me how we are able to get so many free miles to use for traveling.  Last year we earned at least 300,000 miles through Chris Guillebeau’s travel hacking site called The Travel Hacking Cartel.

Full disclosure here, I am an affiliate of the Cartel.  That means if you decide to join and click on the link here, I get a small token of change for each member.  I do not do this for the money – trust me.  I do this to help you all learn how to prudently earn airline miles and get loyalty points for hotels.

So in the spirit of helping you make your travel dreams come true, here’s an excerpt from a recent blog on Chris’ site.

Questions And Answers About Travel Hacking

From The Art of Non-Conformity by Chris Guillebeau

A few weeks ago I mentioned I had created a page on the site that lists current airline mileage credit card bonuses. With just a couple of new cards, you can earn 100,000 miles or more—and then book round-trip plane tickets all over the world.

Much to my surprise, card bonuses have continued to get better and better over the past couple of years. It’s never been easier to earn a large stash of points or miles that you can quickly convert to plane tickets and hotel stays.

I’ve now created a whole minisite to serve as a free resource for those who are interested. We’ll keep this site updated with current offers and more detailed information on how you can take advantage of mileage earning for years to come.

Update: we now have a whole website devoted to credit card offers. Check out CardsforTravel.com for the most updated info.

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If you’ve seen the Frequent Flyer Challenge (where Chris earned 300,000 miles in one month without flying), you may wonder what the best cards are.

Wonder no more! Here’s a handy resources page kept up to date with the latest credit card offers in one spot.

The Best Cards

Chase Sapphire—A new card receiving great reviews from travelers of all kinds. Get 50,000 miles that can transfer to United or Hyatt (and others), no annual fee for the first year, and no foreign transaction fees.

Chase Ink Bold—A good companion card to the Chase Sapphire, this business card also offers 50,000 points and no annual fee for the first year.

Starwood Preferred Guest—The go-to card for personal spending now includes a 30,000 signup bonus.

Starwood Preferred Guest, Business Version—If you have a business, you can get an additional card with an additional 30,000 miles. Cha-ching!

Delta Gold AmEX—30,000 base miles with a low minimum spend of $500 in three months.

AmEx Platinum—This card has a pricey annual fee, but you get almost half of it back in annual airline credit, and you also get free access at hundreds of airline lounges. Worth it for the active traveler.

Citibank AA Visa, MC, and AmEx—Reliable bonuses of 30,000 per card, and you can often apply for two cards (one Visa or Mastercard and one AmEx) at the same time.

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