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 convert credit card bonus and sign-up incentives into airline miles, which can be used to score discounted or cheap flights from your desired destinations. With a bit of imagination and a little bit of insider knowledge, you can travel for free within a matter of minutes.
The Basics of Travel Hacking
Travel hacking is the art of exchanging credit card sign-up bonuses and incentives for airline miles. These miles can later be used to buy discount or no-cost flights. Some credit cards also let you redeem miles to pay for hotel stays or car rental offers.
How Does it Work?
The secret to success in travel hacking 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 consider the cost. If the price is under $300, it’s usually better to pay in cash and save your miles to take a more costly flight. If the prices start to rise above $500, you’ll want to check the frequent flyer account and determine which airline offers you the best price. It all boils down to the number of points or miles you have in your travel account for every airline.
Get Started with Travel Hacking
Are you ready to discover the secrets to travel hacking? First step to open an account that comes with a welcome bonus. There are many great credit cards that offer various features and benefits. It depends on the type of airline, your spending habits, and what features are crucial to you.
Top Credit Card Picks
Here are a few credit card options that can be great 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 hit the minimum spend limit in order to get the bonus. Every card has different rules, so make certain to verify this information. From there, it’s all about racking miles and then using them to book your dream trip!
Ready to jet-set with your points?
Once you’ve accumulated your points amount, it’s time to redeem them for some nice travel! Different credit card companies will have different methods of redeeming your points. Here are a few examples from some of the providers I have experience with:
Take a trip with Chase Ultimate Rewards
If you’re a holder of a Chase cards, you can redeem your points via the Ultimate Rewards portal. Through the portal, you’ll have access to nearly every airline and you can combine the points as well as cash in order to book your next 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 full cost, you are able to purchase flights through the Chase Ultimate Rewards portal and pay the balance cash using any credit card.
United
Are you tired 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? Be careful, if you do not have enough points you aren’t able to combine dollars and points for flights. If you’re only a couple of points away, United also offers the possibility of purchasing additional miles.
JetBlue
Looking for a domestic flight? Take a look at JetBlue! JetBlue offers a comfortable and enjoyable travel experience that includes extra space and complimentary snacks. In addition, their booking procedure is like United’s that allows you to book with either JetBlue dollar or points, however, not both. However, JetBlue offers a distinct feature that allows you to combine your points with family members to accrue points twice as fast. Make sure to establish that you’re a real family member prior to trying to hack into the system.
Reach that Minimum Spend
If you’re like me or my travel companion Becca I’m sure you’re pretty thrifty and it’s challenging to attempt to spend thousands of dollars to hit the required amount to qualify for a credit card bonus. But don’t fret as we’ve done it and we’re here to share some of our tips and tricks.
Pay your rent (if you can)
This is a huge one! If you’re able pay your rent using credit card, go for it! Make sure you be charged a fee, typically about 3%. It could be worthwhile in the long run in the event that the bonus is substantial enough.
Make a payment on a medical expense
Another way to reach the required spending is to pay for a medical bill. If you do not have any medical expenses due then ask your family members if you can pay them for theirs, and they’ll pay you back.
Pay off the loan
If you’re in the middle of a loan you owe, think about making payments on them with the credit card you have. Make sure to pay off the balance on your credit card in full so you don’t end up with additional debt.
Ask family for help
Talk to your family and look into any big expenses coming up that you can help pay for. Be sure to be sure that you’re able to are able to trust the person and that they understand why you’re taking the initiative.
Purchase gifts
If it’s the holiday season you should consider purchasing all your gifts using cards from your credit account. In this way, you’ll meet the minimum spending limit and also be ready for giving gifts. Make sure that you’re not spending more than you were already planning to.
There are a lot of ways to make the most of your travel credit card. earn miles or points to be used towards flights or other travel-related expenses. Here are a few more suggestions for maximising your rewards
Book travel expenses with your credit card
When you’re planning your next trip, use you travel credit card to book your flight, hotel or rental car, as well as other travel costs. In addition, you’ll be able to hit the minimum amount of spending required for your credit card reward, but you’ll also be earning points or miles on these expenditures.
Utilize your credit card to pay for everyday expenditures
Another method to reach the minimum spending requirement to earn rewards is by making use of your credit card to pay everyday expenses. This can include items like groceries, gas and even your telephone bill. Make sure you pay off the balance each month in full so you don’t accrue interest charges.
Take advantage of bonus categories
Some travel credit cards will offer miles or points in exchange on certain kinds of purchases, such as eating out or traveling. Be sure to review your rewards program on your credit card and avail any bonus categories that match with your spending routines.
Take into consideration the possibility of transferring your balance
If you’re in the middle of a debt on a high-interest credit card, think about transferring the balance to the travel credit card which has an introductory rate of 0% for balance transfers. This will let you pay off your debt without accruing interest. It will also aid in achieving the minimum amount required to earn the credit card bonus.
Use your points or miles carefully
Once you’ve accumulated a substantial amount of miles or points Make sure to utilize them wisely. Review the rewards program for your credit card, and evaluate the worth of various redemption options. For example you can use points to purchase a flight directly through the airline may give you a better value than using them to purchase the purchase of a gift card.
Another option is to get an rewards card that permits you to transfer points to other loyalty programs. This allows you to have a wider range of choices and more flexibility when redeeming your rewards. For instance, you might be eligible to transfer your rewards to the frequent flyer program of an airline or Hotel rewards programme. This can give you access to a wider variety of hotels, flights as well as other travel perks that may not be available through your credit card’s rewards program.
Also, discover the card’s benefits. any perks that can help you save money on travel expenses. A lot of credit cards provide travel insurance and rental car insurance, baggage protection, and other benefits that could be extremely valuable when you’re traveling.
If you’re traveling with a companion, both of you can earn rewards with your credit card. Be aware that you cannot divide the cost with the same card and make sure to keep track of your rewards in a separate manner.
The key to making the most of your rewards for travel is to be aware of your credit card’s rewards program and ensure that you’re using it in the most efficient method. Through a combination of the strategies I’ve outlined, you’ll be able to earn rewards quickly, redeem them for travel experiences that are worth it and benefit from a wide variety of travel benefits.