Are you fed up of spending an enormous amount on flights? Then, there’s a good news! Travel hacking can be the solution to all your travel woes. It’s a fun way to turn credit card bonus and sign-up incentives into airline miles, which you can use to obtain discounted or complimentary flights for your ideal destinations. With a little imagination and some information, you’ll travel for free within a matter of minutes.
The Basics of Travel Hacking
Travel hacking is about trading credit card sign-up bonuses as well as incentives to earn airline miles. The miles can be used to buy discounted or even free flights. Certain credit cards will also let you redeem miles towards hotel stays or rental car deals.
How Does it Work?
The secret to successful hacking your travel plans is to take advantage of credit card sign-up bonuses and establishing frequent flyer miles with a limited number of airlines. When it comes time to book a flight, evaluate the cost. If the price is less than $300, it’s generally better to pay cash and save your miles to take a more costly flight. When the flights start getting above $500, you’ll want to look into your frequent flyer accounts and see which airline can give you the best deal. It all boils down to the amount of points or miles you have in your travel bank for each airline.
Start with Travel Hacking
Are you interested in learning the secrets to hacking travel? Your first task is opening a credit card with a sign-up offer. There are many great credit cards that provide many advantages and features. It is all dependent on the airline, your spending habits, and the features that are most essential to you.
Top Credit Card Picks
Here are a few credit card options that can be 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 or debit card, you’ll need to reach the minimum spend limit in order to get the bonus. Every card has different guidelines, so make sure to look up the details. Then it’s all about building miles and using them to plan your dream trip!
Are you ready to set sail with your goals?
Once you’ve accumulated the points balance, you’re ready to redeem them for some sweet vacation! Different credit card providers will offer different ways to redeem your points, but here are some examples from a few of the providers I’ve worked with:
Take a trip by using Chase Ultimate Rewards
If you have a Chase cards, you are able to redeem your points through the Ultimate Rewards portal. Within the portal, you’ll have access to almost every airline, and you can make use of a combination of the points as well as cash in order to book your trip. You can even book completely using points if you’ve got the funds to pay for it! Sometimes even if you do not have enough points to cover the entire cost, you are able to purchase flights through the Chase Ultimate Rewards portal and pay the balance in cash with any credit card.
United
Are you fed up of paying full price for your flights? Did you realize that when booking directly through United you can choose the option of paying with dollars or points? Butbe aware in case you do not have enough points you can’t combine points and dollars on one flight. If you’re only a couple of point short United also offers the possibility of purchasing additional miles.
JetBlue
Are you looking for a domestic flight? Take a look at JetBlue! JetBlue provides passengers a relaxing and pleasant travel experience that includes extra legroom as well as free snacks. Plus, their booking process is like United’s, allowing passengers to book flights using JetBlue either dollars or points however, not both. The difference is that JetBlue has a unique feature that allows you to pool your points together with your family members and earn points twice as fast. Be sure to verify that you are a family member before trying to hack into the system.
Reach that Minimum Spend
If you’re like me and my travel buddy Becca You’re probably quite economical and it’s difficult to think of spending thousands of dollars in order to meet the required amount to qualify for the credit card bonus. However, don’t be worried because we’ve been there and are here to share some of our tricks and tips.
Pay your rent (if you can)
This is a big one! If you’re able to pay your rent with credit card, go for it! Be prepared to be charged a fee, typically at least 3 percent. It could be worthwhile in the end if the bonus is high enough.
Pay 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 in the near future then ask your family members to pay for theirs and they’ll repay you.
Make a payment to pay off the loan
If you’re a borrower, consider repaying them using your credit card. Just make sure you pay the credit card balance in full , so that you don’t accrue more debt.
Ask family members for assistance
Talk to your family and determine if they’ve got any big expenses coming up that you can help pay for. Just make sure you have confidence in the person you are talking to and they know why you’re doing it.
Purchase gifts
If you’re celebrating the holidays you should consider purchasing all your gifts with your credit card. So you’ll be able to hit that minimum spend and also be prepared for giving gifts. Just make sure you’re not spending more than you were contemplating to.
There are many ways to make the most of the travel credit card. accrue points or miles to spend on airfares or other travel-related costs. Here are a few additional suggestions for maximising your rewards
Book travel expenses with your credit card
Whenever you’re planning a trip, make use of you travel credit card to book your hotel, flight or rental car, as well as other travel costs. In addition, you’ll be able to meet the minimum spend to earn your credit card as well, however, you’ll also earn points or miles on those costs.
Make use of your credit card to pay to pay for your everyday expenses
Another way to meet the minimum spend in order to accumulate points making use of your credit card to pay every day expenditures. This could include things like food, gas and even your telephone bill. Just make sure to pay off the balance each month in full so you don’t pay interest.
Take advantage of bonus categories
Many travel credit cards offer bonus points or miles on certain kinds of purchases, like eating out or travelling. Be sure to review your rewards program on your credit card and take advantage of any bonus categories that align with your spending routines.
Consider a balance transfer
If you’re in the middle of a outstanding debt due to a high-interest credit card, consider transferring that balance to a travel credit card with an introductory rate of 0% for balance transfers. This will allow you to pay off your debt without accruing interest and simultaneously help you hit the minimum spending requirement for the credit card bonus.
Use your points or miles carefully
Once you’ve accumulated a substantial amount of miles or points make sure you use the points or miles wisely. Examine the rewards program of your credit card and compare the worth of various redemption options. For instance you can use points to book a ticket directly with the airline could provide you with a greater return than using them for an gift card.
Another option is to get an rewards card that permits you to transfer your reward points into other loyalty programmes. This will let you get a wider selection of options and greater freedom when it comes to redeeming your rewards. For example, you may be capable of transferring your rewards to an airline’s frequent flyer program or hotel rewards program. This can give the benefit of a wider range of flights, hotels as well as other travel perks which are not offered through the rewards program on your credit card.
In addition, you should discover the card’s benefits. certain benefits that will help you save money on travel expenses. Some cards offer travel insurance as well as rental car insurance baggage protection and other benefits that can be extremely valuable when you’re traveling.
When you travel with a companion each of you will be able to get rewards on your credit card. Just remember that you can’t divide the cost with the same card, and be sure to track your rewards in a separate manner.
In the end, the most important thing to do to reaping the maximum benefits from your travel rewards is to understand your credit card’s rewards program and ensure that you’re making use of it in the most efficient method. Through an array of strategies I’ve outlined in this article, you’ll be able get rewards in a short time, use them for travel experiences that are worth it and benefit from a wide assortment of travel-related perks.