About Ashley Onadele
Ashley didn’t travel internationally until she was in her early twenties when she and her then-boyfriend, now husband, gifted themselves with an all-inclusive trip to Cancun, Mexico after graduating from college. Since then there have been a few more all-inclusive resort stays, over a dozen more countries explored, and the added addition of two kids.
Ashley’s travel adventures have evolved to match her lifestyle. While she and her husband still enjoy coveted time away without the kids, the majority of her travel now revolves around family.
Points and miles have made otherwise impossible travel goals a reality for Ashley and her family. Her favorite thing in the world is showing other parents how to pursue the dream of travel through a combination of points, miles, and savvy travel tips.
Formerly the sponsored content writer at The Points Guy, Ashley has also contributed to Conde Nast Traveler, Matador Network, and other online and print publications. She also briefly shared her travels and points and miles tips on her own blog (frommyworld.com) as well as self-published “Your Baby Can Travel” which shows parents how to travel with their babies.
In other media, Ashley has appeared as a guest on podcasts like The Lily and Magnolia Travel Podcast and the Black Women Travel Podcast. She also recently moderated a panel about Black travel at the first-ever AfriCon conference in Los Angeles in 2022.
When she isn’t traveling, Ashley is obsessing over a new fiction novel, spending quality time with her kids and husband or the likeliest activity of researching where her points and miles will take them next!
Follow Ashley on Instagram and Twitter.
Countries Visited: 15
U.S. States Visited: 10
Favorite First Class: TBD!
Favorite Business Class: Singapore Airlines (traveling in March)
Best Redemption Value: Honestly, anything that saves me $$$ is a good redemption to me.
Favorite Type of Points: Chase Ultimate Rewards
Top 3 Cards in Wallet: American Express® Gold Card, Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card, Chase Freedom Unlimited®
Countries Visited
U.S. States Visited
Marriott Bonvoy Platinum Elite
American Airlines Gold
Oneworld
TBD!
Singapore Airlines (traveling in March)
Honestly, anything that saves me $$$ is a good redemption to me.
Chase Ultimate Rewards
Ashley's Latest Articles
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The 10 Best Pumpkin Patches for Unforgettable Fall Fun [2023]
Pumpkin patches have become so much more than just a place to select a pumpkin for your front step. Most pumpkin patches now have rides, games, and seasonal treats to enjoy while visiting. It’s likely that there’s some form of…
West Maui To Reopen to Visitors on October 8 [Latest Update]
After devastating wildfires that displaced 7,000 people, West Maui will reopen to visitors on October 8, 2023. The news comes soon after the Hawaii Tourism Authority announced efforts to encourage visitors to the other parts of the island. Here’s the…
Aloft Denver Downtown Reopens Following Extensive Renovation
The Aloft Denver Downtown has officially reopened after undergoing a $3 million renovation. The hotel welcomes guests to updated rooms and refreshed common areas including the social lounge, lobby, and fitness center. Here’s what you can expect at this newly…
Escape to Paradise: 20 Top Adults-Only All-Inclusive Resorts [2023]
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1 Hotel San Francisco [In-depth Hotel Review]
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Best Fall Weekend Getaways: 10 Cozy Retreats for Stunning Foliage
Fall is such a beautiful time of the year. Changing leaves, cooler weather, and a general slowing down are welcome after an often busy summer season. It’s also a great time for weekend road trips where you can take your…
Limited-Time Anniversary Fares to Colombia on Spirit Airlines
Spirit Airlines is celebrating 15 years of flights between the U.S. and Colombia with special fares from Colombia. With 7 cities in Colombia to fly from, this could be a great deal if you’re based in the country or looking…
Redeem Choice Privileges Points for College Sports Experiences
For the second year in a row, Choice Privileges members can redeem points for college sporting events and experiences. The program will encompass 18 schools and 47 experiences for which you can redeem points. This news comes just in time…
Delta Opens Another Brand-New Sky Club at Newark, With More on the Way
Delta Air Lines had ambitious plans to open 5 new airport lounges this year — and the airline’s done exactly that. It has just opened the doors to its new Sky Club at Newark Liberty International Airport’s (EWR) Terminal A….
Get 20% Off Disney Springs Resort Area Hotels This Fall
Disney has announced a generous promotion through which you can score 20% off at Disney Springs Resort Area Hotels at Walt Disney World for a limited time. This promotion comes just in time for the park’s fall and holiday events,…
IHG Hotels & Resorts Introduces a New Brand Called Garner
IHG Hotels & Resorts has announced that it will launch a new hotel brand that’s scheduled to officially launch later this year. Garner – An IHG Hotel will first debut in the U.S., though there are plans for a global…
[Expired] Elevated Earning Rates and Bonus United MileagePlus Miles for Vrbo Bookings
Update:The offer mentioned below has expired and is no longer available. Through a partnership with Vrbo, United Airlines is offering bonus miles for bookings made with the home rental site. There’s also an additional 2,000 Mileage Plus miles thrown in…
It’ll Soon Be Cheaper To Stay in Abu Dhabi Hotels
Abu Dhabi’s Department of Culture and Tourism plans to reduce — or eliminate altogether — some government fees that are currently compulsory for hotel stays. The capital of the United Arab Emirates hopes the move will increase visitor numbers by…
Safe and Sound: The 7 Best FAA-Approved Car Seats for Air Travel
Earlier in 2023, the Association of Flight Attendants-CWA called on the FAA to ban lap infants for safety reasons.¹ The union’s call-to-action shocked many, especially parents of infants and children young enough to fly as a lap child. But with…
United Collaborates With Sesame Street on New Children’s Travel Kit
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How To Earn and Redeem Miles and Points for Airbnb Stays [Hacks and Tips]
It’s a shame that Airbnb still doesn’t have a loyalty program that rewards travelers for stays with the home rental company. Fortunately, there are ways to earn travel rewards with other loyalty programs when you rent a home on Airbnb….
Greece To Allow Fewer Visitors at the Acropolis in Athens
Simply put, there are too many tourists visiting Greece. Greece is the latest country to impose tourist limits on one of its most popular attractions. Beginning in September 2023, the Acropolis in Athens, a UNESCO World Heritage site, will be…
Fordson Hotel in Oklahoma City To Join Hyatt’s The Unbound Collection
Fordson Hotel, located in the former Ford Motor Company Assembly Plant and the only blue-collar industry historical landmark in Oklahoma City, is now an affiliate of Hyatt. The new hotel will join the World of Hyatt loyalty program in late…
New IHG Vignette Collection Properties in Dubai and Kuwait City
IHG Hotels & Resorts’ first collection brand welcomes 2 new hotels to the portfolio. Th8 Palm Dubai Beach Resort and Vignette Collection in Kuwait City also mark the brand’s entrance into the Middle East. Each hotel will be primely located…
IHG’s Voco Brand Coming to Goa, India, in 2025
IHG Hotels & Resorts is all set to expand its high-end voco brand yet again with the announcement of the voco Goa Arpora, coming to the famous Indian beach destination in 2025. When it opens, voco Goa Arpora will become…
Find out about other members of the team
Alex Miller
Founder & CEO
Founder and CEO of Upgraded Points, Alex is a leader in the industry and has earned and redeemed millions of points and miles. He frequently discusses the award travel industry with CNBC, Fox Business, The New York Times, and more.
Amar Hussain
Senior Content Contributor
Amar is an avid traveler and tester of products. He has spent the last 13 years traveling all 7 continents and has put the products to the test on each of them. He has contributed to publications including Forbes, the Huffington Post, and more.
Andrew Kunesh
Former Content Contributor
Andrew was born and raised in the Chicago suburbs and now splits his time between Chicago and New York City.
He’s a lifelong traveler and took his first solo trip to San Francisco at the age of 16. Fast forward a few years, and Andrew now travels just over 100,000 miles a year, with over 25 countries, 10 business class products, and 2 airline statuses (United and Alaska) under his belt. Andrew formerly worked for The Points Guy and is now Senior Money Editor at CNN Underscored.
Brandon Brunner
Former Content Contributor
Brandon was born and raised in California and really didn’t travel much growing up, even outside of his own state. While attending college, he was constantly looking to find the cheapest fares to any destination abroad, and quickly learned about the motto- “Chase the fare, not the destination”. Luckily, his first international flight was to Costa Rica (under $300 roundtrip) where that “Pura Vida” lifestyle (and Imperials) hit him hard, and he knew he had to see more.
Brian Graham
Former Content Contributor
Brian’s first ever airplane ride was in a private turbo-prop jet. He was merely an intern boy trying to make a good impression, but it turns out the plane made an impression on him.
It wasn’t until Brian relocated to Dallas, TX, and moved in with an American Airlines employee that he truly discovered how incredible travel could be.
Carissa Rawson
Senior Content Contributor
Carissa served in the U.S. Air Force where she developed her love for travel and new cultures. She started her own blog and eventually joined The Points Guy. Since then, she’s contributed to Business Insider, Forbes, and more.
Caroline Lupini
Former Content Contributor
Caroline Lupini always enjoyed traveling, but it became her goal to do as much as possible after a 3-week trip around Europe in 2011. In March 2014, Caroline left her job and embarked on nearly full-time travels.
As a frequent traveler, frequent flyer miles have played a large role in planning her trips. Caroline has enjoyed discovering the ins and outs of how to maximize different types of miles, hotel points, and transferable points currencies.
Charlie Page
Former Content Contributor
Charlie is a Senior First Officer and has been an airline pilot for nearly 15 years. He currently flies long-haul on the Boeing 787 Dreamliner after 10 years buzzing around Europe on the A320. He got into travel and aviation from an early age, fortunate enough to be taken on some great family holidays.
His earliest memory of visiting a flight deck was aged 8 and it was from then on that he was determined to become an airline pilot.
Cherag Dubash
Content Contributor
Cherag was born in a family associated with aviation and was hooked on to planes since the age of 3, the time he undertook his first flight on an Airbus A310 from Mumbai to Dubai.
Based in Abu Dhabi, the London City University graduate is regularly seen on Instagram, travelling over 100K miles each year in First and Business Class while holding down a regular job.
Chris Dong
Editor
Chris is a freelance writer and editor with a focus on timely travel trends, points and miles, hot new hotels, and all things that go (he’s a proud aviation geek and transit nerd). Formerly full time at The Points Guy, his work can now be found at AFAR, Travel + Leisure, Condé Nast Traveler, Washington Post, and Lonely Planet, among others
Chris Hassan
Social Media & Marketing Manager
Chris holds a B.S. in Hospitality and Tourism Management and managed social media for all Marriott properties in South America, making him a perfect fit for UP and its social media channels. He has a passion for making content catered toward family travelers.
Christine Krzyszton
Senior Finance Contributor
Christine ran her own business developing and managing insurance and financial services. This stoked a passion for points and miles and she now has over 2 dozen credit cards and creates in-depth, detailed content for UP.
Christy Rodriguez
Travel & Finance Content Contributor
After having “non-rev” privileges with Southwest Airlines, Christy dove into the world of points and miles so she could continue traveling for free. Her other passion is personal finance, and is a certified CPA.
Daniel Ross
Senior Content Contributor
Daniel has loved aviation and travel his entire life. He earned a Master of Science in Air Transport Management and has written about travel and aviation in publications like Simple Flying, The Points Guy, and more.
David Slotnick
Former Content Contributor
Born and raised in New York, David still remembers his first flight when he was only four years old: a U.S. Airways trip from New York-La Guardia to Palm Beach, Florida. He formed his love of travel around that and other family vacations, including to England at age eight and Namibia when he was 13. During college, a four-country trip around Europe with a friend cemented his passion for seeing the world.
David is currently Senior Aviation Business Reporter and a photographer at The Points Guy.
Erin Miller
Content Contributor
An experienced points hacker, Erin is Alex’s partner-in-crime and contributes to Upgraded Points with in-depth guides and relationship management. Erin’s work has been cited in multiple major publications.
Greg Stone
Content Contributor
Greg got bitten by the travel bug at a young age while traveling with his Dad on business trips to Asia. He took over the family business in 2012 and uses it to maximize his loyalty points earning. His obsession with earning and burning loyalty rewards points allows him to travel over 100 days every year.
James Larounis
Senior Content Contributor
James (Jamie) started The Forward Cabin blog to educate readers about points, miles, and loyalty programs. He’s spoken at Princeton University and The New York Times Travel Show and has been quoted in dozens of travel publications.
Jarrod West
Senior Content Contributor
Boasting a portfolio of over 20 cards, Jarrod has been an expert in the points and miles space for over 6 years. He earns and redeems over 1 million points per year and his work has been featured in outlets like The New York Times.
Jeff Brownson
Former Content Contributor
Since discovering miles and points in 2010, Jeff has traveled to over 35 countries, flying in first class, business class, and sometimes even in coach. Whether he’s staying in a hostel dorm, or in a luxury suite at a 5 star hotel, Jeff is constantly looking for the best deal to make travel as close to free as possible.
Jessica Merritt
Editor & Content Contributor
A long-time points and miles student, Jessica is the former Personal Finance Managing Editor at U.S. News and World Report and is passionate about helping consumers fund their travels for as little cash as possible.
Juan Ruiz
Compliance Editor & Content Contributor
Juan has been involved in credit cards, loyalty, travel, and personal finance for more than 10 years. He has worked for several outlets including The Points Guy and Forbes and was previously Editor-in-Chief at Money Under 30.
Katie Seemann
Senior Content Contributor
Katie has been in the points and miles game since 2015 and started her own blog in 2016. She’s been freelance writing since then and her work has been featured in publications like Travel + Leisure and Forbes Advisor.
Kellie Jez
Director of Operations & Compliance
Kellie’s professional experience has led her to a deep passion for compliance, data reporting, and process improvement. Kellie’s learned the ins and outs of the points and miles world and leads UP’s compliance operation.
Keri Stooksbury
Editor-in-Chief
With years of experience in corporate marketing and with a nonprofit, Keri is now Editor-in-Chief at UP, overseeing daily content operations and reviewing thousands of UP articles in the process.
Lindsey Olander
Former Content Contributor
Currently based in New York, Lindsey spent her childhood in Connecticut dreaming of far-off places. Her first flight was to Disney World at age 11. Her second flight was for a high school field trip to Italy, though travel as a career didn’t stick until she studied abroad in London during college and discovered the true power of her passport. Since then, she’s worked as a travel editor at Jetsetter and Travel + Leisure, where she reported on everything from African safaris to hot hotel openings to, yes, Disney World.
Lori Zaino
Content Contributor
Lori is an intrepid traveler who loves creating itineraries that exude “luxe on a budget.” She’s written for CNN, NBC, The Infatuation, and more, and loves to muse about points-fueled trips to Sri Lanka, Sicily, and Myanmar.
Lukas Picton
Former Content Contributor
Lukas escaped his hometown south of Sydney and moved to the big smoke immediately after high-school, but the bright lights of the city weren’t enough, and he soon set his sights on more exotic international destinations and has been in love with travel ever since.
Coupled with his passion for photography, Lukas is constantly seeking out new places to visit, and ways to get that elusive ‘perfect shot’ whilst on his adventures and as a result is ranked in the top 2% of global travelers by App in the Air.
Michael McHugh
Former Content Contributor
Born and raised in Mobile, Alabama, Michael took his first international trip in 2013 with friends to the Bahamas. Although he didn’t travel much in his younger years, on that trip, he caught the travel bug and has been hooked ever since.
Michael first caught wind of the points and miles game in 2014 while at a bar in Washington, DC where the conversation amongst friends was quickly derailed because of an alert on a friend’s phone about a mistake fare. That’s where the love affair with points and miles began.
Michael Y. Park
Editor
Michael Y. Park is a journalist living in New York City. He’s traveled through Afghanistan disguised as a Hazara Shi’ite, slept with polar bears on the Canadian tundra, picnicked with the king and queen of Malaysia, tramped around organic farms in Cuba, ridden the world’s longest train through the Sahara, and choked down gasoline clams in North Korea.
Nick Ellis
Editor & Content Contributor
Nick’s passion for points began as a hobby and became a career. He worked for over 5 years at The Points Guy and has contributed to Business Insider and CNN. He has 14 credit cards and continues to leverage the perks of each.
Ryan Smith
Content Contributor
Ryan has been on a quest to visit every country in the world and plans to hit his final country in 2023. Over the years, he’s written about award travel for publications including AwardWallet, The Points Guy, USA Today Blueprint, CNBC Select, Tripadvisor, and Forbes Advisor.
Spencer Howard
Former Content Contributor
Always a fan of flying, it was only natural that Spencer was drawn to finding a way to improve the travel experience.
Like many, he started this journey searching for cheap flights to take him around the world. This was fun for a while, but Spencer was intrigued by the idea of flying in business and first class!
Throwing himself into what became an extensive research project, Spencer spent 3-4 hours per night learning everything he could about frequent flyer miles over the course of several months (he thinks this is normal). He runs Straight to the Points, an award-seat alert platform.
Stella Shon
Compliance Editor & Content Contributor
With a degree in media and journalism, Stella has been in the points and miles game for more than 6 years. She most recently worked as a Corporate Communications Analyst for JetBlue. Find her work in The New York Times, USA Today, and more.
Stephen Au
Senior Content Contributor
Stephen is an established voice in the credit card space, with over 70 to his name. His work has been in publications like The Washington Post, and his Au Points and Awards Consulting Services is used by hundreds of clients.
Susan Wright
Former Finance Contributor
While writing about finance and insurance isn’t something that keeps most people awake at night, it is what Susan Wright has focused on for more than 25 years. As a financial copywriter, Susan has an eye for money-related details such as credit and savings, and she loves to pass along helpful information to consumers. Susan holds 11 financial industry designations (including CLU, ChFC, RHU, REBC, ADPA, CITRMS, CIPA) as well as several licenses.
Victoria M. Walker
Senior Content Contributor
Victoria holds a B.A. in Broadcast Journalism from the Howard University School of Communications and is an award-winning journalist, travel reporter, and the founder of the “Travel With Vikkie” newsletter.
UP's Bonus Valuation
This bonus value is an estimated valuation calculated by UP after analyzing redemption options, transfer partners, award availability and how much UP would pay to buy these points.