Are you tired of paying thousands of dollars on travel? Then, there’s a good news! Travel hacking could be the solution to all your travel woes. It’s an exciting way to convert credit card welcome bonuses and other incentives into miles that can then be used to obtain discounted or complimentary flights for your ideal destinations. With a little bit of creativity and some insider know-how, you’ll fly for no cost in no time.
The Basics of Travel Hacking
Travel hacking is about swapping credit card sign-up bonus and incentives for airline miles. These miles can then be used to buy cheap or free flight tickets. Certain credit cards allow you to redeem miles to pay for hotel stays or rental car offers.
How Does it Work?
The secret to success in hacking your travel plans is to take advantage of the sign-up bonuses for credit cards and to establish frequent flyer miles on a select group of airlines. When you are ready to book a flight, evaluate the cost. If the flight is less than $300, it’s generally better to pay in cash and use your miles to pay to book a higher-priced flight. If the prices start to rise higher than $500, it’s best to review the frequent flyer account and find out which airline will give you the most value. It all boils down to the amount of points or miles in your travel bank for each airline.
Get Started with Travel Hacking
Are you ready to discover the secrets of travel hacking? First step opening an account with a sign-up offer. There are a lot of fantastic credit cards with a variety of benefits and features. It depends on the type of airline, your spending habits, and the features that are most important to you.
Top Credit Card Picks
Here are some credit cards that are excellent to hack travel
- Chase Sapphire Reserve
- Chase United Explorer
- JetBlue Mastercard
- Capital One Venture X
After you’ve been accepted for a credit or debit card, you’ll have to meet the limit of spending minimum in order to receive the bonus. Each card has its own rules, so make sure to look up the details. Then, it’s all about racking up miles, and using them to book your dream trip!
Are you ready to set sail with your goals?
After you’ve accrued your points balance, it’s time to redeem them for some delicious getaway! Different credit card companies will have different methods of redeeming your points, but here are a few examples from some of the ones I’ve worked with:
Escape through Chase Ultimate Reward
If you own an Chase card, you can use your points to redeem them through the Ultimate Rewards portal. Within this portal you’ll get access to almost every airline, and you can make use of a combination of the points as well as cash in order to pay for your next trip. You can even book entirely on points if you have the balance for it! Sometimes, even if you don’t have enough points to cover the total cost, you still can book flights using the Chase Ultimate Rewards portal and pay the balance cash using every credit card.
United
Are you tired of paying full price for flights? Did you not know that when you book directly through United You have the option to pay with either points or dollars? Be careful, if you do not have enough points you aren’t able to combine points and dollars for the same flight. No worries though, if you’re a few points away, United gives you the option of buying additional miles.
JetBlue
Looking for a domestic flight? Look no further than JetBlue! JetBlue provides an enjoyable and comfortable travel experience that includes extra legroom as well as free snacks. In addition, their booking procedure is similar to that of United Airlines, allowing passengers to book flights using JetBlue points or dollars, but not both. But, JetBlue is unique in that they offer a feature that lets you join your points with your relatives to earn points twice as fast. Make sure to verify that you are a family member before trying to hack into the system.
Hit that Minimum Spend
If you’re anything like me and my travel buddy Becca, you’re probably pretty economical and it’s daunting to try to spend thousands of dollars in order to meet the minimum spend for the credit card bonus. However, don’t be worried as we’ve done it and we’re here to share our tricks and tips.
Pay your rent (if you can)
This is a big one! If you’re able to pay for your rent using a credit card, do it! Just be prepared to pay a fee, usually at least 3 percent. It may be worth it over the long term if the bonus is high enough.
Pay for a medical bill
Another excellent way to meet the minimum spend is to cover a medical bill. If you do not have any medical expenses due then ask your family members to pay their medical bills and they’ll repay you.
Make a payment to pay off the loan
If you have any loans take into consideration paying them off with an credit card. Be sure to pay off the balance on your credit card completely so that you don’t end up with additional debt.
Ask family members for assistance
Discuss your family with them and determine if they’ve got any big expenses coming up that you can help pay for. Make sure that you are able to are able to trust the person and that they know why you’re taking the initiative.
Purchase presents
If you’re celebrating the holidays, consider buying all of your gifts with cards from your credit account. So you’ll be able to meet the minimum spending limit and also be ready for gift giving. Make sure that you’re not paying more than you already planning to.
There are a lot of ways to make the most from the travel credit card and accumulate miles or points that you can use towards the cost of flights or other expenses related to travel. Here are a few additional ways to maximize the rewards you earn:
Pay for travel expenses using your credit card
Whenever you’re planning a trip, make use of the travel credit card to pay for your flight, hotel or rental car, as well as any other travel-related expenses. In addition, you’ll achieve the minimum spend to qualify for a credit card bonus and earn points, however, you’ll also earn points or miles for these expenditures.
Make use of your credit card to pay to pay for your everyday expenses
Another way to meet the minimum spending requirement in order to accumulate points making use of your credit card to pay for daily costs. This could include things like gas, groceries or even your phone bill. Just make sure to pay off the balance each month in full so you don’t accrue interest charges.
Make the most of bonus categories
A lot of travel credit cards provide miles or bonus points for specific types of purchases, including eating out or travelling. Check out the rewards program of your credit card and avail the bonus categories that are in line with your spending habits.
Consider a balance transfer
If you are currently in debt on a high-interest credit card, consider transferring that balance to an account with a travel credit card that has an introductory rate of 0% for balance transfers. This will allow you to pay off your debts without accruing interest and simultaneously aid in achieving the minimum spend for the credit card’s bonus.
Make use of your miles or points wisely
If you’ve amassed a large amount of miles or points Make sure to utilize them in a responsible manner. Examine the rewards program of your credit card and then compare the benefits of different redemption options. For example using your points to purchase a flight directly with the airline might offer better return than using them for the purchase of a gift card.
Another tip is to use an rewards card that permits you to transfer points to other loyalty programs. This will let you enjoy a greater variety of choices and more flexibility when redeeming your rewards. For instance, you might be capable of transferring your rewards to frequent flyer programs of airlines or Hotel rewards programme. This gives you access to a larger range of flights, hotels, and other travel perks that may not be available through the rewards program on your credit card.
In addition, you should find out the card’s benefits. certain benefits that will save you money on travel-related expenses. A lot of credit cards provide travel insurance, rental car insurance, baggage protection, and other benefits that can be invaluable when you travel.
If you’re traveling with a friend and both of you earn rewards with your own credit card. Make sure you don’t split the cost on the same card. Also, make sure to keep track of your rewards separately.
In the end, the most important thing to do to maximizing your travel rewards is to understand the rewards program of your credit card and make sure you’re using your credit card in the most effective way possible. Through an array of strategies I’ve outlined in this article, you’ll be able earn rewards quickly, redeem rewards for valuable travel experiences and benefit from a wide variety of travel benefits.