Two-Card Trip to Scotland: Exploring the U.K.’s Hidden Gem with Two Business Cards

Scotland is the hidden gem of the United Kingdom. Overshadowed by other parts of the U.K., from London to the Cotswolds, the rugged landscapes, snow-capped peaks and historic cities of Scotland are often forgotten. Yet, in many ways, this is a blessing—you can enjoy all of what Scotland has on offer with few crowds to bustle your way through and no lines to wait in.

Whether you’re there to see the rugged beauty of the Isle of Skye, walk the white-sand beaches of the northern coastline, climb Great Britain’s highest mountain—Ben Nevis—or enjoy many of Scotland’s other recreational activities (from golf to whiskey tasting), a trip to Scotland should be high on your bucket list.

The best part is that you can travel all the way to Scotland and back for (almost) free, simply by earning the welcome offers on two credit cards. Let’s see how you can make this trip happen.

The Two Cards To Get You To Scotland and Back: The American Express® Business Gold Card and Hilton Honors American Express Business Card

The two cards we’ve chosen for this trip are the American Express® Business Gold Card (see rates and fees) and the Hilton Honors American Express Business Card (see rates and fees). These cards offer lucrative welcome offers combined with useful bonus spending categories and cardholder perks.

While they’re both small-business credit cards, the trips you take with the points you earn from business spend don’t have to be business trips! You can take your family or friends on this trip to Scotland or go solo for some much-needed time away from your business.

If you’re unfamiliar with business credit cards, check out our Best Cards for Business Owners list, learn about opening business credit cards with multiple business owners and discover the best business credit cards for businesses with employees (one of the cards in this article made the list!).

Without further ado, let’s take a look at what these two credit cards offer.

American Express® Business Gold Card

The American Express Business Gold Card offers small-business owners the biggest rewards on purchases in the most popular business categories. The rewards rates change based on how your spending changes per billing cycle, giving you maximum flexibility to continue earning points.

It also comes with $395 worth of annual statement credits, enabling you to easily offset the annual fee of $375 (see rates and fees) year after year.

Here’s what the card has to offer:

• 4X points on the top two following categories you spend the most on every billing cycle on up to $150,000 in combined spending (1X points thereafter):
  • Purchases at U.S. media providers for advertising in select media (online, TV, radio)
  • U.S. purchases made from electronic goods retailers and software and cloud system providers
  • U.S. purchases at restaurants, including takeout and delivery
  • U.S. purchases at gas stations
  • Transit purchases including trains, taxicabs, rideshare services, ferries, tolls, parking, buses and subways
  • Monthly wireless telephone service charges made directly from a wireless telephone service provider in the U.S.
• 3X points on flights and prepaid hotels, and prepaid flight and hotel packages, booked through American Express Travel
• 1X points on all other purchases
• Flexible business statement credit of up to $240 annually, issued in up to $20 monthly increments, for eligible U.S. purchases at FedEx, Grubhub and office supply stores
• Walmart+ membership annual statement credit of $155, issued in monthly increments of up to $12.95 (subject to auto-renewal, Plus Ups not eligible)
• Book a minimum stay of two-nights with The Hotel Collection through American Express Travel and receive a $100 experience credit as well as an upgrade upon check-in (subject to availability).
• No foreign transaction fees

Overall, the card is packed with value for small-business owners.

Hilton Honors American Express Business Card

The Hilton Honors American Express Business Card offers small-business owners the chance to earn thousands of bonus Hilton points on their everyday business expenditure. They can also benefit from complimentary Hilton Honors Gold status with the chance to get an upgrade to Hilton Honors Diamond status after meeting the minimum spending requirement.

The card also offers an annual statement credit of up to $240 with Hilton, issued in quarterly increments of up to $60, enabling you to more than offset the annual fee of $195 (see rates and fees) each year.

Here’s a rundown of all the perks the card has on offer:

• 12X points on purchases made directly with hotels and resorts in the Hilton portfolio
• 5X points on all other purchases on the first $100,000 spent purchases per calendar year (3X points thereafter)
• Complimentary Hilton Honors Gold status, unlocking 80% bonus points on stays, space-available room upgrades and more exclusive perks
• Upgrade to Hilton Honors Diamond status when you charge $40,000 to your card within a calendar year. Upgrade is valid through the end of the following calendar year
• Complimentary National Car Rental® Emerald Club Executive® status
• No foreign transaction fees
• Annual statement credit of up to $240 with Hilton, issued in quarterly increments of up to $60

If you’re a small-business owner who frequents Hilton properties, this card offers a solid set of benefits.

Earning The Two Cards’ Welcome Offers

The two credit cards come with lucrative welcome offers that you can score if you play your cards right.

The Amex Business Gold Card has a typical welcome offer 100,000 Membership Rewards points after spending $15,000 within the first three months of card membership.

If you’re shooting for the welcome offer when it’s at the 100,000-point level, you’ll need to average $5,000 in spending per month.

This isn’t the lowest of spending requirements, meaning businesses with typically low monthly expenditure might find it challenging to meet it naturally. If that’s the case, you’re best off applying for the card at a time when you know you have large expenses on the horizon. For instance, perhaps you need to invest in new capital for your business or renovate the premises. This would be the perfect opportunity to leverage this natural expenditure to meet the spending requirement.

Likewise, the Hilton Honors American Express Business Card has a typical and fairly consistent welcome offer of 130,000 Hilton Honors points after spending $8,000 within the first six months of card membership. That means you’d need to average a monthly expenditure of $1,334—a much easier spending requirement to meet.

Remember that when earning a welcome offer, the key is to leverage your natural expenditure to meet the spending requirement rather than overspending for the sake of earning it. Likewise, ensure you’re able to pay your balance off in full and before its due date to avoid exorbitant double-digit interest charges that will erode the value of the points earned.

Generally speaking, it’s best to apply for one card at a time and earn its welcome offer before applying for the next card, unless you have high monthly outgoings that would allow you to earn two welcome offers simultaneously.

You can also take advantage of two-player mode—whereby you and your significant other, parent, child or even friend both apply for the same cards and earn their welcome offers—enabling you to earn double the number of points cumulatively.

For instance, if both you and your P2 (player No. 2) applied for and earned the welcome offers on the Amex Business Gold and the Hilton Honors Business Card, you’d have a total of about 200,000 Amex points and 260,000 Hilton points.

How To Get To Scotland Using Points

Equipped with 70,000 to 90,000 American Express Membership Rewards points and 130,000 Hilton points—or double those numbers if you’re spending and earning in two-player mode—it’s now time to book your flights to Scotland.

While you could book your flight through American Express Travel, you can only redeem your points at a fixed value of 1 cent apiece. However, by transferring your points to one of Amex’s airline partners, you can get much better value for your points.

To get to Scotland, we’re going to focus on the following transfer partners:

• Virgin Atlantic Flying Club
• Air Canada Aeroplan
• All Nippon Airways (ANA) Mileage Club

Let’s now look at your options for getting to Scotland and back using Amex Membership Rewards points.

Virgin Atlantic Flying Club

Virgin Atlantic Flying Club is a solid option when booking SkyTeam award flights to Scotland.

You can take advantage of cheap award fares with Delta Air Lines and Air France or KLM. Virgin Atlantic uses the following award rates for most of its Delta-operated award flights.

However, you can often find award rates for even fewer points than those in the award chart above.

For example, you could fly nonstop with Delta from New York (JFK) to Edinburgh for just 10,000 Virgin points plus $229 in taxes and fees in economy each way.

That same fare booked directly with Delta would cost you 62,000 SkyMiles plus $6 in taxes and fees in this example. While the taxes and fees may be lower, you still save more by booking via Virgin because 10,000 Virgin points plus $229 in taxes and fees are worth less than 62,000 SkyMiles.

For Air France and KLM-operated award flights booked through Virgin, the following award rates apply.

For example, you could fly with KLM from Atlanta (ATL) to Edinburgh with a connection in Amsterdam (AMS) for 12,000 Virgin points in economy each way.

To fly from Los Angeles to Edinburgh with Air France with a connection in Paris (CDG) you could redeem as few as 15,000 points each way in economy.

From Chicago to Edinburgh with Air France with a connection in Paris you could redeem just 12,000 points in economy each way.

You also can find rates for as few as 15,000 points per direction in economy class from Houston (IAH) to Edinburgh with Air France with a connection in Paris.

The only drawback to booking partner award fares through Virgin is that it’s hard to find premium-cabin award availability. But if you don’t mind flying coach, you can score bargains when it comes to economy award fares.

Air Canada

Air Canada is an option when it comes to booking Star Alliance award fares to Scotland on the cheap.

You can book flights in the 4,001-to-6,000-mile range for:

• 40,000 miles each way in economy
• 70,000 miles each way in business
• 100,000 miles each way in first

For example, you could fly with Lufthansa from New York to Edinburgh with a connection in Frankfurt, Germany (FRA), for 40,000 miles in economy or 70,000 miles in business each way.

Likewise, you could fly with United Airlines from Houston to Frankfurt and onward to Edinburgh with Lufthansa for just 40,000 miles in economy or 70,000 miles in business each way.

And even if you’re based on the West Coast, a United award flight from Los Angeles to Edinburgh with a connection in Newark (EWR) would cost you the same number of miles—40,000 miles in economy each way.

ANA Mileage Club

Using a Japanese airline to book your flights to Scotland may seem counterintuitive, but All Nippon Airways (ANA) Mileage Club offers some of the best rates on Star Alliance award flights to Europe.

ANA allows you to book round-trip award fares only, but it can be totally worth doing to benefit from its low award rates. The Mileage Club program charges the following round-trip award rates for partner-operated flights from the U.S. to Europe:

• 55,000 miles in economy
• 100,000 miles in business
• 165,000 miles in first

For example, you could fly with Lufthansa and United in economy from New York to Edinburgh with a connection in Frankfurt for 55,000 miles round trip.

Likewise, you could fly from Los Angeles to Edinburgh with Lufthansa with a connection in Frankfurt for 55,000 miles round trip.

Given that ANA partner-operated business award fares cost 100,000 miles round trip, you wouldn’t be able to book them using the Amex Business Gold Card’s welcome offer alone. You’d need to put some additional spend on the card to make up the points deficit of 10,000 to 30,000 points, depending on when you earned the welcome offer.

And while you could then book business-class fares with Lufthansa, the carrier-imposed surcharges run high. For instance, flying business class with Lufthansa to Edinburgh from New York would cost you 100,000 miles plus $1,558.91 in taxes and fees round trip.

Given that most award availability for U.S.-Scotland routes through ANA is with Lufthansa, you’re better off sticking to economy fares. Likewise, although United offers lower taxes and fees and is theoretically bookable through ANA, it’s hard to find United-only award fares from the U.S. to Scotland through ANA’s search engine.

Where to Stay in Scotland

Once you have your flights sorted, it’s time to decide where to stay.

While you’ll be flying into Edinburgh, Scotland has an extensive rail network that enables you to explore the country further into the northern Highlands while enjoying the scenic views on the way there.

Hilton has a range of properties scattered across Scotland, concentrated mainly in the Glasgow, Edinburgh and Dundee areas.

With 130,000 Hilton points—or 260,000 points in two-player mode—in your possession, let’s see where you could spend your time in Scotland. And remember that you can transfer any of your unused Amex points at 1:2 ratio to your Hilton Honors account, enabling you to score a few extra nights on top of the Hilton Amex Business Card’s welcome offer.

DoubleTree by Hilton Glasgow Strathclyde

The DoubleTree by Hilton Glasgow Strathclyde is a comfortable hotel located in the heart of Scotland’s central belt, offering a convenient base for exploring Scotland’s historic cities. Situated off the M8 motorway, it’s close to major cities like Glasgow, Edinburgh and Stirling. And from these cities, you can easily hop aboard a train to explore the rest of the Scottish Highlands.

The hotel features a variety of accommodations, including modern rooms equipped with amenities like free Wi-Fi, flat-screen TVs and air conditioning. The rooms have comfortable workstations and easy access to power outlets and are designed for both relaxation and productivity.

There are also family-friendly options available, making it a suitable choice for guests traveling with children. For those seeking extra comfort, suites are available with additional space and upgraded amenities.

For dining, the hotel offers a range of options. The Space restaurant serves a variety of dishes with a focus on fresh, local ingredients. For a more casual experience, guests can visit the on-site bar, which offers drinks and light snacks. The hotel also provides 24-hour room service for those who prefer to dine in private.

The hotel features a well-equipped fitness center as well as an indoor pool, full-service spa and sauna for those looking to relax after a long day.

Award rates start at 21,000 Hilton Honors points per night, making it easy to book up to 12 nights here in two-player mode or six nights otherwise.

Greywalls Hotel and Chez Roux, an SLH Hotel

Greywalls Hotel and Chez Roux, an SLH (Small Luxury Hotels of the World) property, offers a sophisticated and comfortable experience along the eastern coastline of Scotland. Located just outside Edinburgh, the hotel is set in a charming Edwardian house surrounded by picturesque gardens. It’s an ideal destination if you’re seeking a retreat that combines modern amenities with classic elegance.

The hotel features 23 individually styled rooms, each designed with attention to detail and comfort, making for an intimate stay. Guests can expect modern conveniences, such as free Wi-Fi, flat-screen TVs and luxurious bedding. Many of the rooms offer views of the hotel’s meticulously maintained gardens or the nearby Muirfield Golf Course, which is famous for hosting the British Open. For those seeking more space, there are suites available with extra amenities like separate living areas.

Greywalls is also known for its acclaimed restaurant, Chez Roux, led by renowned Michelin-star chef Albert Roux. The dining experience focuses on high-quality, locally sourced ingredients, offering a menu that combines traditional French cuisine with Scottish influences, making it an excellent choice if you’re looking to enjoy a fine dining experience during your stay.

If you’re looking to unwind, Greywalls Hotel also offers a range of leisure facilities. The hotel’s gardens are perfect for a peaceful stroll, while the lounge area provides a comfortable space to enjoy a drink or read a book. The hotel’s proximity to the Muirfield Golf Course also makes it an attractive option for golf enthusiasts. Additionally, the property’s location offers easy access to a number of outdoor activities, including hiking and coastal walks.

Likewise, if you’re hoping to explore more of Scotland, it’s easy to commute to Edinburgh, Dundee, St. Andrews and beyond using the extensive train network.

Award nights at the Greywalls Hotels start at 57,000 Hilton Honors points per night, making it a premium property with luxurious amenities to match. You could stay here for four nights in two-player mode or two nights if you’re working with just one Hilton Honors Business credit card welcome offer.

The Roseate Edinburgh, an SLH Hotel

The Roseate Edinburgh, an SLH property, offers a stylish and comfortable stay in the heart of Scotland’s capital. Located just a short walk from the famous Princes Street and Edinburgh Castle, the hotel provides you with easy access to the city’s major attractions while offering a tranquil retreat from the bustle of the city center.

This boutique hotel features 35 rooms, each designed with an elegant modern aesthetic. The rooms are spacious and well equipped, offering amenities such as free Wi-Fi, flat-screen TVs and Nespresso coffee machines. Many rooms offer stunning views of the city’s historic architecture or the nearby Edinburgh skyline. You can choose from various room types, including superior rooms, suites and family-friendly options.

The Roseate Edinburgh is also home to the popular “Restaurant at The Roseate,” where you can enjoy a menu focused on locally sourced, fresh ingredients. The restaurant offers a range of contemporary Scottish and British dishes, catering to different tastes. The hotel also features a cozy bar where you can relax with a drink in a sophisticated setting.

For those looking to unwind after a day of sightseeing, the hotel offers a comfortable lounge area and a range of additional services, including concierge and room service. The property’s intimate size ensures a personalized experience, ideal for making a memorable trip.

If you’re seeking to explore more of what Edinburgh has on offer, The Roseate Edinburgh is conveniently located near many of the city’s famous attractions, including the Royal Mile, the Scottish National Gallery and the Edinburgh Playhouse. The hotel also offers easy access to public transportation, making it simple to get around and explore further afield.

Award nights start at 32,000 Hilton Honors points per night, making this an affordable and convenient property to explore Scotland from. You could stay here for eight nights in two-player mode or four nights if you’re redeeming one Hilton Honors Business Card welcome offer.

The Caledonian Edinburgh, Curio Collection by Hilton

The Caledonian Edinburgh, Curio Collection by Hilton, is a luxurious hotel conveniently situated in the Scottish capital. Housed in a grand Victorian building, it offers historic charm combined with modern amenities. It’s located at the west end of Princes Street, providing easy access to Edinburgh’s major attractions, including Edinburgh Castle, the Royal Mile and the historic Old Town. Likewise, you’re only one train journey away from the rest of Scotland’s hotspots.

The hotel offers 241 guest rooms, including a variety of standard rooms, suites and accessible options. Rooms come equipped with modern amenities such as complimentary Wi-Fi, flat-screen TVs, mini-fridges and comfortable workspaces. Many rooms provide stunning views of Edinburgh Castle or the surrounding city.

Dining at The Caledonian Edinburgh includes the stylish Dean Banks at The Pompadour, a fine-dining restaurant run by Masterchef-finalist Dean Banks. Alternatively, you can enjoy Scottish-inspired dishes as well as afternoon tea at The Court, while listening to live jazz performances. The hotel also has a cozy yet sophisticated whiskey and cocktail bar, The Caley Bar, perfect for enjoying a drink in the evening after a busy day of sightseeing.

The hotel’s amenities also include a fully equipped fitness center and an on-site spa, providing respite from a day’s worth of sightseeing.

Award rates start at 44,000 Hilton Honors points per night here, making it possible to enjoy a few days worth of luxury and fine dining.

Final Thoughts

Scotland might be overshadowed by London and the rest of Europe when it comes to planning vacations, yet it offers a charming getaway with majestic landscapes, rugged coastlines, endless opportunities for hiking, white-sand beaches and great city nightlife. All that, with very few crowds. So the next time you’re stuck for travel ideas, give Scotland a shot.

And if you leverage your everyday business expenditure to earn the welcome offers on two travel rewards credit cards, you’ll be able to enjoy Scotland on the cheap.