Are you tired of spending an enormous amount on flights? Then, there’s a good news! Travel hacking can be the solution to your travel-related problems. It’s an exciting way to turn credit card bonus and sign-up incentives into airline miles that can then be used to get discounted or even free flights to your dream 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 swapping credit card sign-up bonus and rewards for airline miles. These miles can then be used to buy discounted or even free flights. Certain credit cards permit you to use miles to pay for hotel stays or car rental discounts.
How Does it Work?
The secret to success in travel hacking is to take advantage of the sign-up bonuses for credit cards and building out frequent flyer miles for a specific group of airlines. When it comes time to book a flight consider the cost. If the cost is under $300, it’s best to pay cash and use your miles to pay to take a more costly flight. When the flights start getting above $500, you’ll want to look into the frequent flyer account to determine which airline offers you the best price. It all comes down to the number of points or miles you have in your travel bank for each airline.
Get Started with Travel Hacking
Are you interested in learning the secrets to travel hacking? Your first task is opening the credit card that comes that comes with a welcome bonus. There are many great credit cards with various advantages and features. It depends on the type of airline, spending habits and the features that are most crucial to you.
Top Credit Card Picks
Here are some credit card options that can be perfect to use for hacking travel:
- Chase Sapphire Reserve
- Chase United Explorer
- JetBlue Mastercard
- Capital One Venture X
If you’ve been approved for a credit card, you’ll have to meet the spending limit for minimum expenditure in order to get the bonus. Each card has its own rules, so be sure to check for this information. Then you can begin to rack up miles and using them to book your dream trip!
Ready to jet-set with your ideas?
Once you’ve accumulated your points balance, it’s time to redeem them for some sweet getaway! Different credit card companies will offer different ways to redeem your rewards, here are a few examples from some of the companies I’ve worked with:
Getaway by using Chase Ultimate Rewards
If you own a Chase credit card, then you can redeem your points through the Ultimate Rewards portal. Within it, you’ll get access to almost every airline, and you can combine money and points to pay for your next trip. You can book your flight entirely using points if you’ve got enough balance! Sometimes even if you don’t be able to accumulate enough points in order to pay for full cost, you still can purchase flights through the Chase Ultimate Rewards portal and pay the balance cash using every 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 can choose the option of paying with either points or dollars? Butbe aware in case you don’t have enough points you aren’t able to combine points and dollars on the same flight. If you’re only a couple of points away, United provides the possibility of purchasing additional miles.
JetBlue
Looking for a flight within the United States? You should look no further than JetBlue! JetBlue provides a comfortable and enjoyable flight experience , with more legroom as well as free snacks. Plus, their booking process is like United’s, allowing passengers to book flights using JetBlue points or dollars but not both. But, JetBlue has a unique feature where you can combine your points with family members to accrue points twice as fast. Be sure to prove you’re really family before trying to hack into the system.
Make sure you spend that minimum amount
If you’re like me or my travel buddy Becca I’m sure you’re pretty frugal and it can be daunting to try to spend thousands of dollars in order to meet the minimum spend for credit card bonuses. Don’t worry 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 for your rent using credit card, then do it! Make sure you be charged a fee, typically around 3 percent. It may be worth it in the long run in the event that the bonus is substantial enough.
Make a payment on a medical expense
Another great way to hit the required spending is to cover a medical bill. If you do not have any medical expenses in the near future Ask your family members if you can pay their medical bills and they’ll pay you back.
Make a payment to pay off a loan
If you’re a borrower you owe, think about repaying them using an credit card. Make sure to pay the credit card balance completely so that you don’t accrue additional debt.
Ask your family members for help
Discuss your family with them and see if they have any large expenses coming up that you can help pay for. Just make sure you trust the person and they understand why you’re taking the initiative.
Give gifts
If it’s the holiday season take into consideration buying all your gifts using the credit card you have. This way you can hit that minimum spend and also be ready for gift giving. Just make sure you’re not spending more than you planning to.
There are many ways to make the most of using your credit or debit card for travel. You can earn miles or points to use towards flights or other travel-related expenses. Here are some additional suggestions for maximising your rewards
Make travel reservations using your credit card
When you’re planning your next trip, make use of your travel credit card for booking your flight, hotel, rental car, and any other travel expenses. In addition, you’ll achieve the required amount to earn your credit card reward and earn points, but you’ll also be earning points or miles for these expenditures.
Utilize your credit card to pay for everyday costs
Another way to meet the minimum spend and earn points is making use of your credit card to pay for every day expenses. This could be items like groceries, gas, and even your phone bill. Be sure to pay off the balance in full every month to ensure you don’t accumulate interest.
Make the most of bonus categories
Some travel credit cards will offer bonus points or miles for specific types of purchases, like eating out or travelling. Be sure to review your rewards program on your credit card and avail any bonus categories that match with your spending habits.
Think about a balance transfer
If you are currently in debt on a credit card, think about transferring the balance to a travel credit card with the introductory APR of 0% for balance transfers. This will enable you to pay off the debt without accruing interest, and also aid in achieving the minimum amount required to earn the credit card bonus.
Use your points or miles carefully
When you’ve earned a significant amount of points or miles make sure you use them wisely. Check out the rewards program on your credit card and compare the value of different redemption options. For example, using points to book a flight directly through the airline may offer better return than using them for a gift card.
Another tip is to use rewards cards that allow you to transfer reward points into other loyalty programmes. This will allow you to get a wider selection of choices and more flexibility in making use of your rewards. For example, you may be capable of transferring your rewards to an airline’s frequent flyer program or a Hotel rewards programme. This gives an access larger selection of hotels, flights and other travel benefits that may not be available through the rewards program on your credit card.
In addition, you should find out if your credit card offers 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 could be extremely valuable when you’re traveling.
Finally, when you’re traveling with someone else and both of you get rewards on your own credit card. Just remember that you can’t divide the cost with the same card, and be sure to keep track of your rewards separately.
In the end, the most important thing to do to maximizing your travel rewards is to know the rewards program of your credit card and make sure you’re using your credit card in the most effective method. By using an array of methods I’ve described, you’ll be able to earn rewards fast, exchange rewards for valuable travel experiences, and enjoy a wide variety of travel benefits.