About Megan | Travel on a Budget with Journey Currencies

Hi, I’m Megan — the creator behind Journey Currencies.

Every Currency Counts. I’m a former insurance compliance professional turned travel strategist, helping families turn points, miles, dollars, and time into more trips — without overspending or sacrificing what matters most.

Our Financial Wake-Up Call

In 2020, I left my job to become a stay-at-home parent. Like many, that year made my family of three re-evaluate how we spend and prioritize. I started cooking all our meals, hunting grocery deals, and cutting back on convenience. Those simple changes freed up money and time we didn’t realize we had — and shifted how we thought about travel.

How Points Changed Our Travel Game

We’d used credit cards for years, paying off the balance and redeeming points for Christmas gift cards. But then I discovered transferable points — an option that opened doors I didn’t know existed.

Still, points were just one part of the picture. The real game changer was combining points with smarter spending, time management, and a clear plan that fit our family’s lifestyle.

Beginner’s Guide to Transferable Credit Card Points

Booking the Trip We Didn’t Expect

For my first big trip planned with the Journey Currencies mindset, I used points to score amazing business class flights with lie-flat seats and lounge access. By choosing one-way flights into one city and home from another, we visited seven places without doubling back. We mixed points hotels in big cities with vacation rentals in small towns—each with great views and unique touches. Using points, time, money, and flexibility upgraded the experience and downgraded the expense.

Italy on Points and Miles: A 16-Day Itinerary of Savings and Splurges

A Birthday Trip That Sparked a Tradition

Around the same time, I planned a birthday trip for our daughter — a quick flight to Atlanta and a day at the Georgia Aquarium. It was her first time on a plane, and the pilot even let her sit in the cockpit (after landing)!

Now it’s a tradition: every year, we visit a new aquarium. It’s part of how we travel as a family — and part of how we show her what’s possible when you plan with purpose.

She’s become our little adventurer. And Ellie, our dog, always joins us for beach trips… even though she hates the water!

Why I Started Journey Currencies

I realized travel isn’t paid for with money alone—it’s funded by every currency you manage well: points, miles, cash, time, even flexibility.

Banks tend to highlight just one slice, but I wanted to understand the whole system. My background in compliance helped me piece it together—and that’s how our one-income family started traveling more without spending more.

Journey Currencies exists to share that playbook with low- to-moderate spenders and intentional travelers, showing how to weave all those currencies into trips that fit real budgets and real life.

Where We Call Home (and Road Trip Often)

We’re based in North Carolina — a great launching point for both beaches and mountains. Some of our favorites include:

• 🐚 Crystal Coast/ Bogue Banks for family beach days (and Ellie the dog’s dramatic water avoidance)
  
• 🏁 Virginia International Raceway (VIR) for race weekends and overall fun outdoor experiences
  
• 🐟 Aquarium visits up and down the East Coast (and beyond)
  
• 🌄 Blue Ridge Mountains, fall drives, and local getaways
  

Little thing about home that I love: Daylilies. My grandparents were big into daylilies—so much that some were named after them. Now, their daylilies bloom every year in my garden, and I like to include photos of them here and there as a small nod to family and home.

You Don’t Have to Spend More to Travel More

✔️ What I Bring	Why It Matters
12 years in insurance & compliance	I thrive on fine print and find the gotchas before they get you
800+ credit score, zero debt	Proof that points-strategy ≠ risky behavior
Hands-on travel with my family	Real-world testing of strategies that fit everyday budgets and busy lives