My girlfriend and I spent 12 days in Morocco at 5-star hotels. The trip was worth thousands, but I only spent $250 out of pocket.

My girlfriend always dreamed of going to Morocco for her 40th birthday.

Travel is something we’ve connected on early in our relationship. We took several domestic trips to states she’d never visited before to ensure we didn’t rip each other’s heads off before traveling to the other side of the world.

Unfortunately, the coronavirus pandemic stopped us in our tracks. However, while we were stuck inside in 2020, I started learning all about the world of credit-card points and reward miles.

There are a lot of videos and resources out there for free, depending on your needs, but I personally found the online course system Tricks to Travel to be useful.

It taught me how to maximize points and miles using the best credit cards for my spending habits and gave me a great base of knowledge for getting the best deals on luxury travel.

With two full years to build up points before her big birthday, I turned earning strategically into a game so I could make her dream trip a reality — and more luxurious than I ever imagined.

Booking our business-class flights was so gratifying

I knew I wanted to fly business or first class. I took to the private points and miles group I’m in from my Tricks to Travel class to ask if anyone had been to Morocco recently.

Several people told me to book business class on Royal Air Maroc, so I started searching for flights. I found a great roundtrip option with fully reclining business-class seats that cost me 115,000 miles and $93.18 in taxes per person.

My girlfriend had never flown business class before, so I was especially excited to surprise her with this.

I had to get creative to dig up the points for our luxury accommodations

Next up was our hotel accommodations — her only request was to stay in a riad in Marrakesh.

That made things a little more difficult since most of the elaborate houses-turned-hotels are boutique-style and don’t have a points system I could tap into.

I decided to start with an easier task by planning the second half of the trip, which would be in Tangier.

Hilton Tangier Al Houara Resort and Spa is a lovely five-star hotel, and I happen to have diamond status with Hilton Honors, so it worked perfectly for us.

When I booked with points, I was even able to get our fifth night free.

Our five-night stay in a standard room cost us 156,000 points (no extra taxes). However, with my status, I also got a complimentary upgrade to a suite and free breakfast.

After a few months of researching the best way to book a riad with points, the travel gods threw me a bone: Marriott added a riad to its portfolio.

Luckily, the chain had the same great rewards deal — when you book with points, you get the fifth night for free.

I booked a six-night stay for 120,000 points plus about $27 in taxes.

We had an amazing time without breaking the bank

Earlier this year, my girlfriend’s dream trip became a reality.

Before learning about points, I never would’ve been able to make this trip as amazing as it was. But after a couple of years of building up my rewards portfolio, I only paid about $250 for 12 days in the lap of luxury.

Points and miles have completely changed how I travel, and I look forward to booking more business-class flights and five-star hotels on future trips.