I let a $300 flight credit expire, even with reminders set the whole time. I had every intention of using it, but it was on an airline I rarely fly, and none of its routes fit my plans. Most travel credits last about a year, often counted from when you first booked. Delta and JetBlue typically let you book by the deadline and fly later, United and American need your trip to start before it, and with Southwest, the whole trip has to be finished by the expiration date.

That $300 looks small next to a tent that starts at $3,500 a night. Beginning in late December, you can book one of two tented suites at Robert De Niro’s Nobu resort in Barbuda, about a year before its hotel opens. If that’s out of budget, you could stop by the resort’s Nobu restaurant for lunch on a day trip from Antigua.

Also, check your credit card’s app for card-linked offers, which can get you a statement credit or bonus points when you spend with specific brands. November’s batch has plenty of travel deals, so add them to your card before you book.

You don't need a Bilt credit card to earn Bilt Points. Join Bilt Rewards for free and earn points on purchases you're already making while still earning rewards from your credit card.

Take Lyft, for example. Link your Bilt and Lyft accounts to earn 2X Bilt Points on eligible rides. You can also earn bonus points at participating restaurants, Walgreens, and fitness studios through Bilt Neighborhood Benefits.

Volunteering your seat on an oversold flight? Ask for meal vouchers or lounge access on top of the flight credit, not instead of it.

Have a travel or points question? Submit it here and it may be featured in a future episode.

I just let a $300 flight credit expire, and it’s not like I forgot about it. I had reminders on my calendar the whole time.

Welcome back to Departure Digest. Coming up, we’re talking about how to keep your flight credits from expiring, plus a sneak peek at Robert De Niro’s very exclusive Barbuda resort.

Let’s start with my travel credit.

The reminders did their job. The problem was that the credit was on an airline I rarely fly, so I never had a reason to use it. And $300 isn’t nothing. That could’ve covered a whole flight.

We talk a lot about booking a fare you can change or cancel, and I still think that’s the right move. But that flexibility only helps if you’ll use the credit.

A credit on your go-to airline is almost as good as cash. A credit on an airline you rarely fly is more like a gift card to a store you never go into. It just sits in your wallet until it’s worthless.

So now, before I book a flexible ticket on an airline I don’t know well, I ask myself whether I’d fly them again within a year if the trip falls apart. If not, I’ll pay a little more for my regular airline.

Because a year is often all you get. Most airline credits last about 12 months, and on a lot of airlines, the clock starts the day you bought the original ticket. So if you book in January for a September trip and cancel in August, you could have around five months left.

Also check whether your deadline is for booking or for flying. With Delta and JetBlue, you typically just need to book by the expiration date, and the trip itself can happen later. With United and American, your trip has to start before the credit expires. Southwest is the strictest. Your whole trip has to be finished by the expiration date, and on its cheapest fares, you may only get six months.

So log into each airline account you have and look for a wallet or travel credits section. If one’s about to expire on an airline with a book-by date, you can lock in a future trip now and fly later.

One more thing to know. If an airline cancels your flight or changes it significantly, you’re typically entitled to a refund to your card, as long as you don’t accept the new flight they offer. So if it’s an airline you don’t fly much, I’d take the cash over the credit every time.

Okay, now for a price tag that makes my $300 look cute.

Robert De Niro is letting a tiny number of guests stay at his Nobu resort in Barbuda about a year before it officially opens. And by tiny, I mean two suites.

In case you didn’t know, De Niro is one of Nobu’s co-founders. He was a regular at chef Nobu Matsuhisa’s restaurant in L.A., and it took years to talk him into opening one in New York.

Barbuda is Antigua’s quieter sister island, known for long, empty pink sand beaches. The resort is called The Beach Club, Barbuda, and its 36-room hotel, Nobu Beach Inn, isn’t expected to open until late 2027.

But starting in late December, you can book one of two air-conditioned tented suites on a beach Princess Diana used to escape to. Each one has a king bed, a soaking tub, an outdoor shower, and a shaded private terrace.

Rates start at $3,500 a night, including breakfast, beach barbecue dinners, and water sports like kayaking.

I know, $3,500 for a tent is a sentence I never expected to say. But it was designed by a company known for luxury safari camps, so think less camping and more five-star hotel with canvas walls. For me, the real appeal is having two miles of beach almost entirely to yourself.

To get there, you fly into Antigua, then take a short flight, a ferry, or a helicopter if you’re channeling your inner De Niro.

This is a honeymoon or milestone birthday kind of trip. If it’s not in the budget, the resort’s Nobu restaurant is already open, so a day trip from Antigua for lunch is a much easier way to get a taste.

Whatever your next trip looks like, take a minute before you book to check your credit card’s offers, like Amex Offers or [other card-linked offers]. They’re targeted deals, usually a statement credit when you spend a certain amount with a specific brand, and a new batch just showed up for November with plenty of travel ones.

Think of it like clipping coupons. You have to add them to the card you’ll use before you pay. So open your card’s app and add every travel offer now, even without a trip planned, since it costs nothing.

And that’s a wrap friends. Go check those airline wallets, and if anyone books that tent in Barbuda, I’m going to need a full report. Talk to you Friday.