"I saved money on my long flight, because I used airline miles" is essentially saying "I already had cash in my purse, so I didn't have to hit an ATM".

This is related to the articles about living a week with a $0 food budget, by just eating foods that are already in the pantry. How did this drivel make it to HN front page?

No, it cost well over $2000 just they offset this with their usual spending and Airbnb-ing their room in Sydney.

Plus "booking flights with miles". Here's my amazing secret for "getting paid to drink beer!" - I take back a case of empty beer bottles and with the deposit money I can buy two new bottles and have 14 cents left over as "pay".

Clickbait title. The actual cost was $2,529. Nothing frugal about it, so don't waste your time.

her*, or better yet "them"