In October, Brad Barrett flew to Greece to gather with fellow enthusiasts of a lifestyle often known by the acronym FIRE, which stands for “financial independence, retire early.” As highlighted in a New York Times article, Barrett co-hosts one of the movement’s most popular podcasts, ChooseFI, where he frequently discusses strategies to maximize travel rewards. Travel is a significant component of the early-retirement conversation. On Instagram, FIRE followers share images of roaming through Thailand on a Tuesday or sailing the Caribbean. Many of these individuals, whose lifestyle combines living on less, earning more, and saving as much as they need to retire as soon as possible, are driven by a desire to see the world. The community is a treasure trove of information on how to do just that, even if you still have a day job.

What is FIRE?

FIRE, or Financial Independence, Retire Early, is a movement that has gained significant traction in recent years, particularly among millennials. The concept revolves around achieving financial independence by living frugally, saving and investing a large portion of income, and retiring much earlier than the traditional retirement age. The goal is to accumulate enough wealth to cover living expenses for the rest of one’s life without needing to work a traditional job.

A study by the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis delves into the psychology and economics behind the FIRE movement. It notes that FIRE adherents often save between 50% and 70% of their income, far higher than the average savings rate. The movement appeals particularly to those disillusioned by the traditional 9-to-5 work culture and who prioritize experiences, like travel, over material possessions.

Another study conducted by TD Ameritrade revealed that nearly a third of millennials aspire to achieve financial independence by their early 50s, with many aiming to retire even sooner. The study also found that the appeal of FIRE lies in the freedom it offers—both in terms of time and choice—allowing individuals to pursue passions, hobbies, or travel without the constraints of a full-time job.

Build Rewards for Free Flights

What Mr. Barrett, 39, calls maximizing points, others call travel hacking. Either way, it’s about making the most of reward points offered by credit cards and other loyalty programs to book free or deeply discounted travel. Mr. Barrett covers this topic extensively on his sites, Travel Miles 101 and Richmond Savers, which even helps people use points to get to Disney World.

When he knew he wanted to go to Greece, he first priced flights on traditional travel sites to get a sense of how much it would cost to pay cash, which might sometimes be a better deal than paying with points.

“Being FIRE doesn’t mean I have to do anything,” he said. “It doesn’t mean paying cash is a bad decision. It means I want to maximize value. I think that’s what permeates my life: How do I maximize value?”

He compared the costs of flights in dollars and points. If he found, for example, a flight for $600 or 60,000 points, cash would be the better option. He divides the cost in dollars by the cost in points, and if the result is less than 2 cents per point, he’s unlikely to go for the deal. He uses a spreadsheet to organize his accounts and all the necessary information and takes advantage of the site AwardWallet, which alerts him to expiring points.

However, he cautions, this approach isn’t for everyone. “Clearly, anyone who has issues paying their credit cards on time or in full every single month should steer as far from this as they possibly can.”

Save Here, Splurge There

Sylvia Hall says she hasn’t paid for a hotel room in five years. The 38-year-old Seattle resident, who could afford to retire today if she wanted to, is working a few more years just in case. She uses strategies to stay for free, as she did for a week in the Dominican Republic.

“Hotels are different from flights because there are different systems you can work to get deals on hotels,” Ms. Hall said. “The three strategies are points, free nights, or cash back.”

First, she often redeems points from the 11 credit cards she has open. As with flights, you can redeem points for hotels, but some companies have direct partnerships allowing you to transfer points to hotels for better deals. For example, some of Capital One’s cards offer 10 times the points if you book at their partner site on hotels.com.

Ms. Hall, who is happy to fly coach and stay free in modest hotels, said she looked for the best deal. “The workhorses on free stays are my Chase cards, IHG cards, and my hotel-branded cards,” she said. “I’m sort of brand agnostic. I just go where I can go for free.”

Part of what made her Dominican Republic trip free was paying quarterly estimated taxes from her work as a self-employed lawyer by using a credit card through the site Plastiq, which allows users to pay any bill that accepts a check or bank transfer with a credit card. It does so for a fee of 2.5 percent, so you have to ensure paying that fee is worth it. For Ms. Hall, it was, because she got enough cash back to cover her full stay at the resort, including the $60 daily food and drink fee. As someone pursuing FIRE, she usually feeds herself on about $65 a month.

“I was like, wow, every day is like my monthly budget,” she said. “You just have to know that part of why you save money for one thing is so you can spend it on something else. It helps to get a good deal on your flight and your room so that you know when a mango is five bucks, you can roll with it.”

Flexible Times and Places

Tanja Hester, 39, the author of the Our Next Life blog and the book Work Optional, and her husband, Mark Bunge, 42, became travel experts during their working years in political and social cause consulting before surprising everyone by retiring in December 2017.

After flying more than a million miles, she said, “The stuff that I really have down is about being opportunistic and thinking about timing.”

To travel this winter, she and her husband looked at Google Flights for opportunities from their home airport in Reno, Nev., to almost anywhere in the world, and found a flight to France for about $700 per person. Their rental car for 15 days of the 22-day trip cost $300, “which is kind of unheard of,” Ms. Hester said. “You can’t get that deal in peak season. It’d be like four times that.”

Overall, she said, if you can find a time to go when most people can’t and be open to visiting places you hadn’t thought of, you can save 30 percent to 50 percent on your trip. Ms. Hester and her husband visited Taipei, Taiwan, in January and Tokyo in February last year.

Take Action: Start Your Journey Today

If you’re inspired to retire sooner and travel more for less, start by exploring the travel rewards programs mentioned above. Sign up for credit cards that offer substantial points, such as Chase Sapphire Preferred or Capital One Venture, and utilize websites like AwardWallet and Google Flights to maximize your rewards.

Here’s a question for you: How do you plan to maximize your travel rewards to see the world? Share your strategies and experiences in our Age Brilliantly Forum and join the conversation with others who are on the path to financial independence and travel freedom.