Expat Logistics

The practical realities of cross-border life: banking, taxes, travel, family, paperwork, and everyday logistics.

Expat Logistics

Buying Virgin Points at ~0.5p via a UK Credit Card

May 14, 2026

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3 min read

Buying Virgin Points at ~0.5p via a UK Credit Card

Pricing the 36,000-point Virgin Atlantic bonus through an expat lens

Expat Vista

Expat Logistics

From 40 Nights to 75: When Marriott Titanium Stops Being a Stretch

May 13, 2026

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3 min read

From 40 Nights to 75: When Marriott Titanium Stops Being a Stretch

How a UK debit card changed a 75-night target from a deliberate strategy into a much smaller year-end decision

Expat Vista

Expat Logistics

The Only UK Marriott Card That Adds Nights to a US Setup

May 5, 2026

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2 min read

The Only UK Marriott Card That Adds Nights to a US Setup

Why the UK debit card behaves differently from the credit card, and how it changes your starting position

Expat Vista

Expat Logistics

Marriott UK Debit Card: What It Really Costs to Run

May 5, 2026

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2 min read

Marriott UK Debit Card: What It Really Costs to Run

An early look at the real costs. The FX isn’t as simple as it appears, and most of the value depends on what you do next.

Expat Vista

Expat Logistics

Apr 27, 2026

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2 min read

The FX Spread You Don’t See

A real $11,100 transfer and how retail banks actually price currency

Expat Vista

Netherlands

Apr 12, 2026

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2 min read

Testing Hilton Credits Abroad: Netherlands

Same test as London, with different outcomes across Hilton-operated and SLH properties

Expat Vista

Expat Logistics

Apr 9, 2026

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3 min read

Amex as a Global Credit Footprint

How Amex’s Global Card Transfer can help when you arrive with no local credit history

Expat Vista

Amex Platinum

Mar 30, 2026

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3 min read

Hilton Credits in London: What Triggers

Testing how payments are processed across hotel bars and restaurants

Expat Vista

Expat Logistics

You Can Use Amex Abroad. We Didn’t Even Need to Try.

Mar 19, 2026

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2 min read

You Can Use Amex Abroad. We Didn’t Even Need to Try.

The Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant dining credit in London, tracked over 41 months

Expat Vista

Expat Logistics

BritRail Passes in the UK: When They Make Sense for Visitors

Mar 12, 2026

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3 min read

BritRail Passes in the UK: When They Make Sense for Visitors

A prepaid rail framework for non-UK residents

Expat Vista

Expat Logistics

Mar 10, 2026

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3 min read

The Cost of Collecting

The final stage of a Capital One Offers experiment from abroad

Expat Vista

Layovers

One Night in Miami: Choosing Certainty Over Scene

Feb 13, 2026

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2 min read

One Night in Miami: Choosing Certainty Over Scene

A structured decision between COTE and MILA on a 20-hour layover

Expat Vista

Expat Logistics

Feb 10, 2026

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3 min read

What Came After

Capital One Offers, tested from abroad

Expat Vista

Amex Platinum

Feb 7, 2026

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4 min read

Taking One for the (Expat) Team

Testing Amex’s new Q3 Resy credit from outside the U.S.

Expat Vista

Expat Logistics

Jan 30, 2026

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5 min read

Capital One Offers: A Test From Abroad

A real-time experiment using Capital One Offers outside the US

Expat Vista

Expat Logistics

Are Frequent Flyer Miles Taxable for Expats?

Jan 29, 2026

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3 min read

Are Frequent Flyer Miles Taxable for Expats?

The border-proof perk hiding in plain sight

Expat Vista

Expat Logistics

Designing a Family Priority Pass System After the Rule Changes

Jan 18, 2026

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4 min read

Designing a Family Priority Pass System After the Rule Changes

How we adapted, what still works, and how others can position themselves now

Expat Vista

Expat Logistics

UK Railcards: the simplest way to stop overpaying for British trains

Jan 16, 2026

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3 min read

UK Railcards: the simplest way to stop overpaying for British trains

How visitors and expats reduce UK train fares without learning the system

Expat Vista

Expat Logistics

Keeping a US Number Abroad: The Year 1 vs Year 2 Math Behind Mint Mobile

Jan 13, 2026

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3 min read

Keeping a US Number Abroad: The Year 1 vs Year 2 Math Behind Mint Mobile

The first year is mostly cash. The second year is where the cost actually drops.

Expat Vista

Expat Logistics

Jan 12, 2026

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2 min read

When Paper Checks Stop Working

An IRS refund, a UK bank, and the quiet failure of an expat fallback

Expat Vista

Expat Logistics

Turning a $100 Splurge Credit into Immediate Marriott Reimbursement

Jan 4, 2026

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2 min read

Turning a $100 Splurge Credit into Immediate Marriott Reimbursement

A case study in redirecting an expiring retail credit abroad

Expat Vista

Expat Logistics

Priority Pass as a Family Travel Operating System

Jan 1, 2026

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4 min read

Priority Pass as a Family Travel Operating System

Why globally mobile families extract far more value than most US travelers ever will

Expat Vista

Expat Logistics

An Expat’s Sweet Spot: Virgin Points, Kenya, and a Closing Window

Dec 29, 2025

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3 min read

An Expat’s Sweet Spot: Virgin Points, Kenya, and a Closing Window

How Virgin points, safari seasonality, and expat geography briefly line up

Expat Vista

Expat Logistics

Buying Virgin Points at ~0.5p via a UK Credit Card

From 40 Nights to 75: When Marriott Titanium Stops Being a Stretch

The Only UK Marriott Card That Adds Nights to a US Setup

Marriott UK Debit Card: What It Really Costs to Run

The FX Spread You Don’t See

Testing Hilton Credits Abroad: Netherlands

Amex as a Global Credit Footprint

Hilton Credits in London: What Triggers

You Can Use Amex Abroad. We Didn’t Even Need to Try.

BritRail Passes in the UK: When They Make Sense for Visitors

The Cost of Collecting

One Night in Miami: Choosing Certainty Over Scene

What Came After

Taking One for the (Expat) Team

Capital One Offers: A Test From Abroad

Are Frequent Flyer Miles Taxable for Expats?

Designing a Family Priority Pass System After the Rule Changes

UK Railcards: the simplest way to stop overpaying for British trains

Keeping a US Number Abroad: The Year 1 vs Year 2 Math Behind Mint Mobile

When Paper Checks Stop Working

Turning a $100 Splurge Credit into Immediate Marriott Reimbursement

Priority Pass as a Family Travel Operating System

An Expat’s Sweet Spot: Virgin Points, Kenya, and a Closing Window

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