A crazy Euro summer hotel route I'd plan for myself

Hey {{first name | reader}},

Happy Friday!

Okay, today's post is a bit different. No deals to analyze and no points math.

Just me, sitting here thinking about Euro summer, and wondering: if I were planning a trip right now purely around hotels and cities I love, what would it look like?

I have to admit something: I sometimes love planning trips that make very little logical sense. Not everything needs to be optimized. Sometimes you just want to go to the cities that excite you, stay at the hotels that look incredible, and figure out the routing later.

So I did exactly that. I put together a route that makes zero geographical sense, costs probably more than it should, and that I would absolutely still do without hesitating.

Here it is:

Amsterdam → Budapest → Istanbul → Lisbon

Is it logical? Not really. Is it efficient? Absolutely not. Would I still book it tomorrow if I could? Yes.

I love Amsterdam. You can spend the morning walking along the canals, the afternoon at the Rijksmuseum or the Van Gogh Museum, and the evening at a dinner that makes you feel like you became more sophisticated just by sitting down.

I have a soft spot for this city. It has a very specific energy: busy but calm, beautiful but unpretentious, easy to walk and hard to leave.

One thing worth knowing from a travel perspective: Amsterdam is also a very good entry point into Europe because there tends to be a nice amount of award availability into Schiphol. Worth keeping in mind when you are building the points side of the trip.

For the hotel, De L'Europe Amsterdam is one I would be very excited to try. I stayed at Waldorf Astoria Amsterdam a few months ago and loved it, but for something new, De L'Europe has been on my list for a while. It sits right along the Amstel River and has that classic European luxury feel, with a modern polish.

Right now there is a Stay 4, Pay 3 offer available. From June 20 to 24, 2026, a Superior Room with a queen bed and courtyard view prices at €3,090 total for four nights, with zero due at booking and free cancellation until June 18.

Through our preferred partner channel, that rate can also include daily breakfast for two, a $100 food and beverage credit, upgrade subject to availability, and early check-in or late checkout subject to availability.

Yes, it is not the cheapest Amsterdam stay. But let me dream a bit, this is a beautiful way of visiting Amsterdam.

Budapest is one of the best-value cities in Europe for a luxury-leaning trip. Grand architecture, river views, thermal baths, incredible food, and that slightly dramatic Central European atmosphere, all at prices that feel almost unfair compared to Paris or London.

I have been wanting to go back to Budapest for years. Every time I look at photos of the city at night, with the Danube lit up and the Parliament building glowing, I wonder why I have not booked it yet.

Kimpton BEM Budapest is the hotel I would stay at there. It is stylish, well-located, and has the kind of personality that makes a stay feel like more than just a hotel.

There is a complimentary night offer available right now through IHG Destined. From June 25 to 29, 2026, a Deluxe Room prices at €948 total for four nights, with zero due at booking and free cancellation until June 24.

Under €1,000 for four nights in a hotel like this. I love that.

Through our preferred partner access, that rate can include daily breakfast for two, a $100 hotel credit, upgrade subject to availability, early check-in or late checkout, a welcome amenity, and a personalized welcome note.

Budapest gives you so much for so little. If you have never been, add it to your list. Seriously.

From Budapest, we head to Istanbul, and this connection actually makes more sense than it looks. There are plenty of good flight options between the two cities, and once you are there, Istanbul is a city that will blow your mind.

I find Istanbul endlessly fascinating. It sits between Europe and Asia, between old and new, between calm and chaotic, and somehow it feels like all of those things at the same time. You can visit palaces, mosques, markets, rooftop restaurants, and the Bosphorus, and somehow it is too much and exactly enough all at once.

For a stay here, Shangri-La Bosphorus is a very compelling option. The location is beautiful, the sense of place is right, and it feels like a proper luxury base for a city that deserves more than a quick two-night stopover.

There is a Stay 3, Pay 2 offer available through the end of 2026, eligible with Virtuoso benefits. That means you can combine a complimentary night structure with perks like breakfast, hotel credit, upgrade priority, and VIP recognition.

And then we finish in Lisbon. And here is the thing: getting from Istanbul to Lisbon is actually very easy. Turkish Airlines flies this route with a lot of frequency, and it is a very pleasant way to cover that distance. Turkish is a great airline with a comfortable product and genuinely good catering, so the connection between these two cities would’t fell too bad

This city has been on my mind constantly since I last visited. The food is incredible, the neighborhoods each have their own personality, there is ocean air everywhere, and it has that very specific quality of feeling relaxed and exciting at the same time. Sintra is 40 minutes away by train. The coast is right there. The pastéis de nata are impossible to stop eating.

For a more polished luxury base, Four Seasons Hotel Ritz Lisbon is one I would seriously consider, especially for families or anyone wanting more space and a very high service level.

There is currently a special 50% discount on a second guest room, which can be very useful if you are traveling as a family or a group and do not want to squeeze everyone into one room.

Through Four Seasons Preferred Partner, eligible stays can include daily full breakfast for two per bedroom, a $100 hotel credit for guest rooms, a $200 credit for suites, upgrade subject to availability, a welcome note, and early check-in or late checkout.

This is where the booking channel makes a difference. Even when the base rate looks similar to what you see online, adding breakfast, hotel credit, and upgrade priority changes the actual value significantly.

The point of all this

Look, I am not saying everyone should book this exact route. It moves a lot, jumps across Europe in a way that makes no geographic sense, and would absolutely keep a travel agent very busy.

The best hotel booking is not always the cheapest rate you find online. Sometimes the best is a rate that bundles a free night, breakfast, hotel credit, flexible cancellation, upgrade priority, and VIP recognition. That is where the real value shows up, and it is exactly what we help with.

If you are planning Euro summer, a city break, a honeymoon, a family trip, or even just a proper escape, reply to this email and we can put together the right hotel shortlist for you.

That's it for today. Enjoy the weekend, and more deals, news, and trip ideas coming your way on Monday.

Catch you in the clouds, 

Tomi from Points Master