Are you fed up of spending an enormous amount on flights? Good news! Travel hacking is the answer to all your travel problems. It’s a fun way to convert sign-up bonuses and incentives into airline miles that can then be used to get discounted or even cheap flights from your desired destinations. With a little bit of imagination and some knowledge, you can fly for no cost in no time.
The Basics of Travel Hacking
Travel hacking is the art of trading credit card sign-up bonuses as well as incentives to earn airline miles. The miles can be used to buy discount or no-cost flights. Certain credit cards will also let you redeem miles to pay for hotel stays or rental car deals.
How Does it Work?
The key to success in travel hacking is to take advantage of the sign-up bonuses for credit cards and building out frequent flyer miles with a limited number of airlines. When it comes time to make a booking, evaluate the cost. If the price is less than $300, it’s usually better to pay in cash and save your miles to book a higher-priced flight. If the prices start to rise above $500, you’ll want to review the frequent flyer account and see which airline can give you the most value. It all boils down to the amount of miles or points in your travel account for every airline.
Start with Travel Hacking
Are you ready to discover the secrets of travel hacking? Your first task is opening a credit card with a sign-up offer. There are a lot of fantastic credit cards with a variety of features and benefits. It all depends on your preferred airline, your spending habits, and what features are important to you.
Top Credit Card Picks
Here are a few credit cards excellent to hack 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 qualify for the bonus. Each card has its own guidelines, so make certain to verify the details. From there, it’s all about racking up miles and then using them to book your dream vacation!
Are you ready to go on a jet-setting with your goals?
Now that you’ve built up the points balance, you’re ready to cash them in for some nice travel! Different credit card companies have different methods for redeeming your rewards, here are some examples from some of the ones I’ve had experience with:
Escape through Chase Ultimate Reward
If you’re a holder of a Chase card, you can redeem your points via the Ultimate Rewards portal. Within it, you’ll get access to virtually every airline. You can use a combination of points and cash to pay for your travel. You can even book completely with points if you’ve the funds to pay for it! Sometimes even if you don’t be able to accumulate enough points in order to pay for entire cost, you are able to buy flights with Chase Ultimate Rewards portal and pay the balance in cash using any credit card.
United
Are you tired of paying the full cost for your flight tickets? Did you know that when you book directly through United You have the option of paying with dollars or points? Be careful that if you do not have enough points you can’t combine points and dollars for the same flight. No worries though, if you’re only a couple of points away, United gives you the option of buying additional miles.
JetBlue
Looking for a domestic flight? Look no further than JetBlue! JetBlue provides passengers a relaxing and pleasant travel experience that includes extra space and complimentary snacks. Plus, their booking process is like United’s that allows passengers to book flights using JetBlue dollar or points, but not both. However, JetBlue is unique in that they offer a feature that allows you to join your points with family members to accrue points twice as fast. Be sure to verify that you are a family member before trying to hack the system.
Make sure you spend that minimum amount
If you’re like me or my travel buddy Becca You’re probably quite thrifty and it’s challenging to attempt to spend thousands of dollars in order to meet the minimum amount required to earn credit card bonuses. But don’t fret as we’ve done it and are 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! Just be prepared to pay a cost, which is usually at least 3 percent. It might be worth it in the long run when the bonus is large enough.
Pay a medical bill
Another excellent way to meet the required spending is to pay for an medical bill. If you don’t have any medical bills due, ask your relatives if you could pay their medical bills and they’ll repay you.
Repay a loan
If you have any loans, consider repaying them using an credit card. Be sure to pay the credit card balance completely so that you don’t end up with more debt.
Ask family members for assistance
Ask your family members to see if they have any big expenses coming up that you can contribute for. Just make sure you are able to trust the person and that they are aware of the reason for taking the initiative.
Purchase gifts
If you’re celebrating the holidays take into consideration buying all your gifts with cards from your credit account. In this way, you’ll reach the minimum spending requirement and be ready for gift giving. Make sure that you’re not paying more than you contemplating to.
There are plenty of ways to make the most of the travel credit card. earn miles or points to spend on flights or other travel-related expenses. Here are a few additional ideas for maximizing your rewards
Book travel expenses with your credit card
When you’re planning your next vacation, make use of your travel credit card to pay for your hotel, flight, rental car, and any other travel-related expenses. In addition, you’ll be able to meet the minimum spend to qualify for a credit card bonus as well, but you’ll also be earning points or miles on the expenditures.
Utilize your credit card to pay for all your daily expenses
Another way to meet the minimum amount of spending in order to accumulate points utilising your credit cards to pay daily costs. This could be items like groceries, gas and even your telephone bill. Just make sure to pay off the balance in full each month so you don’t pay interest.
Benefit from bonus categories
Some travel credit cards will offer bonus points or miles for certain types of purchases, like dining or travel. Make sure you review the rewards program of your credit card and take advantage of any bonus categories that match with your spending habits.
Think about a balance transfer
If you have existing debt on a credit card, consider transferring the balance to an account with a travel credit card that has an introductory rate of 0% for balance transfers. This will enable you to pay off the debt without accruing interest. It will also assist you in reaching the minimum amount required to earn the credit card bonus.
Utilize your miles and points prudently
If you’ve amassed a large amount of points or miles Make sure to utilize them in a responsible manner. Examine the rewards program of your credit card and then compare the value of different redemption options. For example using points to purchase a flight directly with the airline might offer better value than using them to purchase the purchase of a gift card.
Another tip is to use rewards cards that allow you to transfer your reward points into other loyalty programmes. This allows you to enjoy a greater variety of choices and more freedom when it comes to making use of your rewards. For example, you may be able to transfer your rewards to frequent flyer programs of airlines or hotel rewards program. This will give you access to a greater selection of hotels, flights and other travel benefits that may not be accessible through the rewards program of your credit card.
Additionally, try to find out the card’s benefits. some perks that could save you money on travel-related costs. Some cards offer travel insurance and rental car insurance, baggage protection and other benefits that could be invaluable when you travel.
When you travel with someone else each of you will be able to get rewards on your own credit card. Be aware that you cannot split the cost on the same card and make sure to track the rewards you earn separately.
Overall, the key to reaping the maximum benefits from your travel rewards is to know the rewards program on your credit card and make sure you’re using it in the most effective way possible. By using an array of methods I’ve described, you’ll be able to get rewards in a short time, use them for travel experiences that are worth it, and enjoy a wide assortment of travel-related perks.