Slow travel runs on a short list of tools we trust. These are the links we use to find flights and stay insured while we're abroad — plus how we book hotels on points. Some of them are affiliate or referral links — they cost you nothing extra, and they help keep us on the road.
Every flight search starts here. Skyscanner compares airlines and booking sites side by side, so we can compare routes — like Seattle to Da Nang with one stop in Seoul — and land on the right one before we book anything.
Search flights on Skyscanner (affiliate link)We book hotels direct with IHG One Rewards (at ihg.com or in the IHG app) and pay with points instead of cash whenever we can. Our Chase IHG card makes every fourth award night free, which stretches our points a long way on month-long stays. The card itself is in the next section.
SafetyWing is the travel insurance we use on long trips abroad. It's built for open-ended travel and runs month to month, so our coverage keeps going for as long as the trip does.
Get a SafetyWing quote (affiliate link)Three cards do most of the work in our wallets. The links below are our personal referral links — if you apply through one, we may earn bonus points or miles, at no extra cost to you. They're credit card referrals, not booking sites.
This is the card that earns the IHG points we spend on hotel stays, and it's why every fourth award night is free when we book with points. If IHG hotels are your thing too, it's the card we'd point you to first.
See the Chase IHG card (referral link)Our other travel card earns flexible points we can aim at flights, hotels, or whatever the trip needs next. It's the catch-all that covers the gaps IHG points can't.
See the Chase travel card (referral link)The third card in the rotation is a Capital One travel card from the Venture family. It earns unlimited miles on what we spend, and the miles go straight toward flights and other travel.
See the Capital One travel card (referral link)Disclosure: Some links on this page are affiliate or referral links — Skyscanner, SafetyWing, and the three card referrals (two Chase, one Capital One). If you book, buy, or apply through them, we may earn a commission, a referral bonus, points, or miles at no extra cost to you. We only list tools and cards we actually use.