Are you fed up of spending thousands of dollars on travel? Good news! Travel hacking is the answer to all your travel woes. It’s an exciting method to convert credit card welcome bonuses and other incentives into airline miles, which can be used to obtain discounted or free flights to your desired destinations. With a little imagination and some information, you’ll fly for no cost within a matter of minutes.
The Basics of Travel Hacking
Travel hacking is all about swapping credit card sign-up bonus as well as incentives to earn airline miles. These miles can then be used to buy cheap or free flight tickets. Certain credit cards will also permit you to use miles for hotel stays and rental car discounts.
How Does it Work?
The secret to successful travel hacking is to take advantage of credit card sign-up bonuses and to establish frequent flyer miles on a select group of airlines. When it comes time to book a flight take a look at the price. If the flight is under $300, it’s generally better to pay cash and save your miles to book a higher-priced flight. When the flights start getting higher than $500, it’s best to look into your frequent flyer accounts to see which airline can give you the most value. 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 ready to discover the secrets to hacking travel? Your first task is to open an account with a sign-up bonus. There are plenty of great credit cards that offer a variety of features and benefits. It is all dependent on the 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 have to meet the spending limit for minimum expenditure in order to receive the bonus. Every credit card has its own set of rules, so make sure to look up the details. From there, it’s all about racking up miles and using them to plan your dream trip!
Are you ready to go on a jet-setting with your points?
Now that you’ve built up your points balance, you’re ready to use them towards delicious vacation! Different credit card companies have different methods of redeeming your points. Here are some examples from some of the companies I have experience with:
Getaway by using Chase Ultimate Rewards
If you’re a holder of an Chase credit card, then you can use your points to redeem them through the Ultimate Rewards portal. Through it, you’ll have access to virtually every airline and you can use a combination of points and cash to pay for your next trip. You can even book entirely on points if you have the balance for it! 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 cash using the credit card of your choice.
United
Are you tired of paying the full cost for your flights? Did you know that when you book directly through United You have the option to pay with either points or dollars? Butbe aware that if you don’t have enough points, you can’t combine dollars and points on one flight. No worries though, if you’re only a couple of points short, United provides the option of buying additional miles.
JetBlue
Are you looking for a domestic flight? You should look no further than JetBlue! JetBlue provides passengers a relaxing and pleasant flight experience , with more legroom as well as free snacks. Additionally, their booking process is similar to that of United Airlines, allowing passengers to book flights using JetBlue either dollars or points, however, not both. But, JetBlue is unique in that they offer a feature that allows you to pool your points together 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 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. Don’t worry, we’ve been through it and we’re here to share our tricks and tips.
Pay your rent (if you can)
This is a big one! If you’re able to pay your rent using credit card, go for it! Make sure you be charged a fee, typically about 3 percent. It might be worth it in the long run when the bonus is large enough.
Pay for a medical bill
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 relatives if you could pay their medical bills and they will reimburse you.
Pay off a loan
If you have any loans, consider repaying them using an credit card. Make sure to pay the credit card balance completely so that you don’t accrue more debt.
Ask family for help
Talk to your family and see if they have any large expenses coming up that you can help pay for. Just make sure you are able to trust the person and that they are aware of the reason for taking the initiative.
Purchase presents
If you’re in the middle of the holiday season take into consideration buying all your gifts with cards from your credit account. This way you can meet the minimum spending limit and also be prepared to give gifts. Make sure that you’re not paying more than you already planning to.
There are plenty of methods to get the most of using your credit or debit card for travel. accumulate miles or points that you can use towards flights or other travel-related expenses. Here are some additional suggestions for maximising the rewards you earn:
Pay for travel expenses using your credit card
Whenever you’re planning a vacation, make use of the travel credit card to pay for your flight, hotel, rental car, and other travel costs. In addition, you’ll be able to hit the minimum amount of spending required to earn your credit card reward and earn points, however, you’ll also earn points or miles for those expenses.
Use your credit card for all your daily expenditures
Another way to meet the minimum spending requirement to earn rewards is by utilising your credit cards for daily expenditures. This could include items like groceries, gas and even your telephone bill. Make sure you pay the balance off in full each month so you don’t accumulate interest.
Benefit from bonus categories
Some travel credit cards will offer miles or bonus points for certain types of purchases, like eating out or traveling. Make sure you review your credit card’s rewards program and avail the bonus categories that are in line with your spending routines.
Consider a balance transfer
If you have existing debt on a credit card, you might want to transfer the balance to a travel credit card with the introductory APR of 0% for balance transfer. This will let you pay off your debts without accruing interest and simultaneously assist you in reaching the minimum spend for the credit card’s bonus.
Utilize your miles and points carefully
If you’ve amassed a large amount of points or miles Make sure to utilize them wisely. Review the rewards program for your credit card and compare the worth of various redemption options. For instance using your points to book a flight directly through the airline may offer better value than using them for a gift card.
Another option is to get an rewards card that permits you to transfer reward points into other loyalty programmes. This allows you to get a wider selection of choices and more freedom when it comes to making use of your rewards. For instance, you might be eligible to transfer your reward to an airline’s frequent flyer program or reward program for hotels. This gives the benefit of a wider variety of hotels, flights as well as other travel perks that may not be available through the rewards program on your credit card.
Also, find out the card’s benefits. any perks that can reduce your travel costs. A lot of credit cards provide travel insurance and rental car insurance, baggage protection, and other benefits that are invaluable when you travel.
Finally, when you’re traveling with a friend, both of you can earn rewards with your own credit card. Just remember that you can’t share the costs on the same card, and be sure you keep track of your rewards in a separate manner.
Overall, the key to reaping the maximum benefits from your travel rewards is to know the rewards program on your credit card and ensure that you’re using it in the most efficient method. By using a combination of the strategies I’ve listed in this article, you’ll be able get rewards in a short time, use them for valuable travel experiences, and enjoy a wide variety of travel benefits.