trip-calculator

npx skills add borski/travel-hacking-toolkit --skill trip-calculator --agent claude-code

Same command for any agent — swap --agent for codex, cursor, copilot.

# Trip Cost Calculator "Should I pay cash or use points?" answered with math. Compares the true cost of booking with cash versus each available points currency, accounting for transfer ratios, taxes/fees, and the opportunity cost of burning your points. **No API key needed.** Uses local JSON data files plus flight/hotel search results. ## Data Files | File | Purpose | |------|---------| | `data/points-valuations.json` | CPP valuations per program (floor/ceiling) | | `data/transfer-partners.json` | Credit card → loyalty program transfer ratios | ## When to Use - User has both cash prices (from Duffel/Ignav/Google Flights) and award prices (from seats.aero) - User asks "should I pay cash or use points?" - User wants to know the CPP of a specific redemption - User is deciding between multiple booking strategies for a trip ## Core Concepts ### Cents Per Point (CPP) The value you're getting per point when redeeming: ``` cpp = (cash_price - taxes_on_award) / points_needed × 100 ``` A CPP **above** the floor valuation from `points-valuations.json` means you're getting above-average value. Below floor = poor redemption. ### Opportunity Cost Points have value even when unspent. Burning 100K

jq -r '.credit_card_points.chase_ultimate_rewards | "Chase UR: floor \(.floor)cpp, ceiling \(.ceiling)cpp"' data/points-valuations.json
jq -r '.credit_card_points.chase_ultimate_rewards.floor' data/points-valuations.json
echo "$POINTS points × $FLOOR cpp = \$$(echo "$POINTS * $FLOOR / 100" | bc) opportunity cost"
echo "Cash: \$$CASH"
echo "Award: $TOTAL_MILES miles + \$$TOTAL_TAXES taxes"
echo "CPP: $(echo "scale=2; ($CASH - $TOTAL_TAXES) / $TOTAL_MILES * 100" | bc)"
Opportunity cost at floor valuation
echo "Opportunity cost: \$$(echo "scale=0; $TOTAL_MILES * $FLOOR / 100" | bc)"