Are you tired of spending a fortune on airfare? Well, good news! Travel hacking can be the solution to your travel-related problems. It’s an exciting method to convert bonus and sign-up incentives into airline miles that can then be used to obtain discounted or complimentary flights for your ideal destinations. With a little bit of imagination and some knowledge, you can travel for free within a matter of minutes.
The Basics of Travel Hacking
Travel hacking is all about exchanging credit card sign-up bonuses and rewards for airline miles. These miles can later be used to buy discount or no-cost flights. Some credit cards also permit you to use miles for hotel stays and car rental offers.
How Does it Work?
The secret to success in hacking travel is taking advantage of credit card sign-up bonuses and building out frequent flyer miles for a specific group of airlines. When you are ready to book a flight take a look at the price. If the flight is less than $300, it’s best to pay in cash and use your miles to pay to book a higher-priced flight. If your flights begin to climb higher than $500, it’s best to check your frequent flyer accounts to find out which airline will give you the best price. It all boils down to the amount of miles or points you have in your travel savings account for every airline.
Begin by Getting Started with Travel Hacking
Are you interested in learning the secrets to hacking travel? The first step is opening the credit card that comes that comes with a welcome bonus. There are a lot of fantastic credit cards that provide 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 perfect to use for hacking travel:
- Chase Sapphire Reserve
- Chase United Explorer
- JetBlue Mastercard
- Capital One Venture X
Once you’ve been approved for a credit card, you’ll need to reach the limit of spending minimum in order to get the bonus. Each card has its own rules, so be sure to check for the details. From there you can begin to rack miles and using them to book your dream vacation!
Are you ready to set sail with your goals?
Now that you’ve built up the points balance, it’s time to use them towards sweet getaway! Different credit card providers will have different methods of redeeming your points. Here are some examples from some of the providers I’ve had experience with:
Take a trip with Chase Ultimate Rewards
If you own a Chase credit card, then you are able to redeem your points via the Ultimate Rewards portal. In the portal, you’ll have access to nearly every airline and you can combine points and cash to book your trip. You can even book entirely using points if you’ve got enough balance! Sometimes even if you don’t possess enough points for the entire cost, you still can buy flights with Chase Ultimate Rewards portal and pay the balance in cash using any credit card.
United
Are you fed up of paying the full cost for your flights? Did you know that when you book directly through United, you have the option of paying using either points or dollars? Butbe aware that if you don’t have enough points, you aren’t able to combine points and dollars for flights. Don’t worry, though, if you’re a few points short, United gives you the option of buying additional miles.
JetBlue
Are you looking for a domestic flight? You should look no further than JetBlue! JetBlue provides an enjoyable and comfortable flight experience with extra legroom and free snacks. Plus, their booking process is similar to United’s, allowing customers to book using either JetBlue dollar or points but not both. But, JetBlue offers a distinct feature that lets you pool your points together with family members to accrue points twice as quickly. Just make sure you can prove you’re really family before trying to hack into the system.
Make sure you spend that minimum amount
If you’re like me and my travel companion Becca You’re probably quite frugal and it can be daunting to try to spend thousands of dollars to reach the minimum amount required to earn 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 an important one! If you’re able to pay for your rent with credit card, go for it! Make sure you pay a cost, which is usually at least 3%. It might be worth it over the long term if the bonus is high enough.
Pay a medical bill
Another way to reach the minimum spend is to cover a medical bill. If you don’t have any medical bills in the near future, ask your family members to pay their medical bills and they’ll repay you.
Make a payment to pay off the loan
If you’re a borrower you owe, think about making payments on them with your credit card. Be sure to pay the credit card balance in full , so that you don’t accumulate more debt.
Ask family members for assistance
Ask your family members to determine if they’ve got any big expenses coming up that you can contribute for. Make sure that you are able to are able to trust the person and that they know why you’re doing it.
Give gifts
If it’s the holiday season you should consider purchasing all of your gifts with cards from your credit account. In this way, you’ll meet the minimum spending limit and also be prepared for gift giving. Make sure that you’re not spending more than you thinking of.
There are a lot of methods to get the most of using your credit or debit card for travel. You can accrue points or miles to be used towards airfares or other travel-related costs. Here are some additional ideas for maximizing your rewards:
Book travel expenses with your credit card
If you’re planning a vacation, make use of your travel credit card for booking your flight, hotel, rental car, and other travel costs. In addition, you’ll achieve the minimum spend to qualify for a credit card bonus as well, however, you’ll also earn points or miles for those costs.
Utilize your credit card to pay for everyday expenses
Another way to meet the minimum spend in order to accumulate points making use of your credit card to pay every day expenses. This could include things like food, gas or even your phone bill. Make sure you pay off the balance each month in full so you don’t accrue interest charges.
Make the most of bonus categories
Some travel credit cards will offer miles or bonus points for specific types of purchases, like eating out or traveling. Check out your credit card’s rewards program and avail any bonus categories that align with your spending habits.
Consider the possibility of transferring your balance
If you are currently in debt on a high-interest credit card, you might want to transfer that balance onto the travel credit card which has the introductory APR of 0% for balance transfer. This will enable you to pay off the debt without accruing interest and simultaneously assist you in reaching the minimum amount required to earn the credit card bonus.
Use your points or miles wisely
Once you’ve accumulated a substantial amount of points or miles Make sure to utilize the points or miles wisely. Examine the rewards program of your credit card and compare the value of different redemption options. For example using points to purchase a flight directly through the airline may provide you with a greater return than using them for the purchase of a gift card.
Another tip is to use rewards cards that allow you to transfer reward points into other loyalty programmes. This will let you have a wider range of choices and more flexibility when redeeming your rewards. For example, you may be able to transfer your rewards to an airline’s frequent flyer program or a Hotel rewards programme. This can give you access to a greater range of flights, hotels, and other travel perks which are not offered through the rewards program of your credit card.
Additionally, try to find out whether your credit card has certain benefits that will save you money on travel-related costs. Many cards offer travel insurance, rental car insurance, baggage protection and other benefits that are very beneficial when traveling.
When you travel with a companion each of you will be able to earn rewards with your credit card. Just remember that you can’t share the costs on the same card and make sure to track the rewards you earn separately.
The key to reaping the maximum benefits from your rewards for travel is to be aware of the rewards program of your credit card and ensure that you’re making use of this program in the most efficient method possible. By using an array of methods I’ve described that you can get rewards in a short time, use them for valuable travel experiences and benefit from a wide assortment of travel-related perks.