Are you tired of spending thousands of dollars on travel? Good news! Travel hacking can be the solution to your travel-related problems. It’s a fun way to turn credit card welcome bonuses and other incentives into airline miles which you can use to get discounted or even cheap flights from your dream destinations. With a little imagination and a little bit of insider know-how, you’ll fly for no cost in no time.
The Basics of Travel Hacking
Travel hacking is about trading credit card sign-up bonuses and incentives for airline miles. These miles can then be used to pay for cheap or free flight tickets. Some credit cards also allow you to redeem miles towards hotel stays or rental car offers.
How Does it Work?
The most effective method for successful hacking travel is taking advantage of the credit card sign-up bonus and to establish a frequent flyer mile program for a specific group of airlines. When it’s time to book a flight consider the cost. If the flight is under $300, it’s best to pay in cash and save your miles to book a higher-priced flight. If your flights begin to climb above $500, you’ll want to look into those frequent flyer accounts and determine which airline offers you the most value. It all comes down to the number of points or miles 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 to open an account that comes with a welcome bonus. There are many great credit cards that offer many benefits and features. It all depends on your preferred airline, your habits with spending and the features that are most essential to you.
Top Credit Card Picks
Here are some credit cards that are excellent to use for hacking travel:
- Chase Sapphire Reserve
- Chase United Explorer
- JetBlue Mastercard
- Capital One Venture X
After you’ve been accepted for a credit card you’ll have to meet the spending limit for minimum expenditure in order to receive the bonus. Each card has its own rules, so be sure to look up the details. From there, it’s all about racking up miles, and then using them to book your dream trip!
Are you ready to go on a jet-setting with your ideas?
After you’ve accrued the points balance, you’re ready to redeem them for some sweet travel! Different credit card providers will have different methods for redeeming your points, but here are some examples from some of the ones I’ve worked with:
Take a trip through Chase Ultimate Reward
If you’re a holder of a Chase cards, you can redeem your points through the Ultimate Rewards portal. In it, you’ll get access to nearly every airline, and you can use a combination of points and cash to book your trip. You can even book entirely with points if you’ve the balance for it! Sometimes even if you don’t be able to accumulate enough points in order to pay for full cost, you are able to buy flights with Chase Ultimate Rewards portal and pay the balance in cash with the credit card of your choice.
United
Are you tired of paying full price for flights? Did you know that when you book directly through United, you have the option of paying using dollars or points? But, be careful in case you don’t have enough points you aren’t able to combine dollars and points for one flight. No worries though, if you’re a few points away, United provides the option of buying additional miles.
JetBlue
Looking for a domestic flight? Look no further than JetBlue! JetBlue provides a comfortable and enjoyable flight experience with extra legroom and free snacks. Plus, their booking process is like United’s, allowing passengers to book flights using JetBlue points or dollars, but not both. The difference is that JetBlue has a unique feature where you can combine your points with your family members and earn points twice as fast. Make sure to verify that you are a family member before trying to hack into the system.
Make sure you spend that minimum amount
If you’re like me and my travel companion Becca You’re probably quite thrifty and it’s difficult to think of spending thousands of dollars to reach the minimum amount required to earn a credit card bonus. However, don’t be worried, we’ve been through it and we’re here to share some of our tips and tricks.
Pay your rent (if you can)
This is an important one! If you’re able pay your rent with a credit card, do it! Just be prepared to pay a fee, usually around 3%. It may be worth it in the end if the bonus is high enough.
Pay for a medical bill
Another way to reach the required spending is to cover an medical bill. If you don’t have any medical bills due Ask your family members to pay them for theirs, and they’ll reimburse you.
Repay the loan
If you’re a borrower take into consideration repaying them using an credit card. Make sure to pay off the balance on your credit card in full , so that you don’t accrue more debt.
Ask your family members for help
Ask your family members to see if they have any big expenses coming up that you can contribute for. Make sure that you are able to are able to trust the person and that they understand why you’re taking the initiative.
Give presents
If you’re in the middle of the holiday season take into consideration buying all your gifts with your credit card. In this way, you’ll meet the minimum spending limit and also be prepared for gift giving. Just make sure you’re not spending more than you already contemplating 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 be used towards airfares or other travel-related costs. Here are a few more ways to maximize your rewards
Make travel reservations using your credit card
Whenever you’re planning a trip, make use of you travel credit card for booking your hotel, flight, rental car, and any other travel expenses. Not only will you be able to meet the minimum spend to qualify for a credit card reward, but you’ll also be earning points or miles for these expenditures.
Use your credit card for everyday expenses
Another method to reach the minimum spending requirement in order to accumulate points making use of your credit card to pay everyday expenditures. This can include things like food, gas, and even your phone bill. Be sure to pay off the balance in full each month so you don’t accrue interest charges.
Take advantage of bonus categories
A lot of travel credit cards provide miles or points in exchange for specific types of purchases, like eating out or traveling. Be sure to review the rewards program of your credit card and take advantage of any bonus categories that match with your spending routines.
Take into consideration a balance transfer
If you’re in the middle of a debt on a credit card, think about transferring that balance onto a travel credit card with the introductory APR of 0% for balance transfers. This will allow you to pay off your debt without accruing interest. It will also assist you in reaching the minimum spending requirement for the credit card bonus.
Make use of your miles or points carefully
If you’ve amassed a large amount of points or miles, be sure to use the points or miles wisely. Check out the rewards program on your credit card and then compare the worth of various redemption options. For example you can use points to book a ticket directly through the airline may offer better value than using them to purchase the purchase of a gift card.
Another option is to get a rewards card that allows you to transfer your points to other loyalty programs. This allows you to get a wider selection of options and greater flexibility in you want to redeem your rewards. For instance, you might be eligible to transfer your reward to frequent flyer programs of airlines or hotel rewards program. This gives an access larger selection of hotels, flights as well as other travel perks which are not offered through your credit card’s rewards program.
In addition, you should discover whether your credit card has some perks that could save you money on travel-related costs. Many cards offer travel insurance and rental car insurance, baggage protection and other benefits that are very beneficial when traveling.
Finally, when you’re traveling with a companion and both of you get rewards on your own credit card. Be aware that you cannot split the cost on the same card. Also, make sure to keep track of the rewards you earn separately.
Overall, the key to maximizing your travel rewards is to understand the rewards program on your credit card and make sure you’re using this program in the most effective way possible. By using an array of strategies I’ve listed that you can get rewards in a short time, use rewards for valuable travel experiences, and enjoy a wide variety of travel benefits.