Are you tired of spending an enormous amount on flights? Well, good news! Travel hacking can be the solution to your travel-related problems. It’s an exciting way to turn credit card welcome bonuses and other incentives into airline miles which you can use to obtain discounted or complimentary flights for your dream destinations. With a little imagination and some knowledge, you can fly for no cost within a matter of minutes.
The Basics of Travel Hacking
Travel hacking is about exchanging credit card sign-up bonuses and rewards for airline miles. The miles can be used to purchase cheap or free flight tickets. Certain credit cards will also permit you to use miles to pay for hotel stays or rental car offers.
How Does it Work?
The secret to successful travel hacking is to take advantage of the sign-up bonuses for credit cards and building out a frequent flyer mile program for a specific group of airlines. When it comes time to make a booking consider the cost. If the price is under $300, it’s usually better to pay in cash and save your miles for a more expensive flight. If your flights begin to climb higher than $500, it’s best to look into your frequent flyer accounts and determine which airline offers you the best deal. It all comes down to the amount of points or miles in your travel account for each airline.
Get Started with Travel Hacking
Are you interested in learning the secrets of travel hacking? The first step is opening an account with a sign-up bonus. There are a lot of fantastic credit cards that provide a variety of advantages and features. It is all dependent on the airline, your habits with spending and the features that are most important to you.
Top Credit Card Picks
Here are some credit cards that are perfect to hack travel
- Chase Sapphire Reserve
- Chase United Explorer
- JetBlue Mastercard
- Capital One Venture X
If you’ve been approved for a credit card, you’ll need to reach the spending limit for minimum expenditure in order to receive the bonus. Each card has its own rules, so be certain to verify this information. From there you can begin to rack up miles and using them to book your dream vacation!
Ready to jet-set with your goals?
Once you’ve accumulated the points balance, you’re ready to use them towards sweet getaway! Different credit card companies have different methods of redeeming your points, but here are some examples from a few of the companies I’ve worked with:
Escape with Chase Ultimate Rewards
If you’re a holder of a Chase card, you can use your points to redeem them through the Ultimate Rewards portal. Within the portal, you’ll get access to nearly every airline, and you can combine points and cash to pay for your next trip. You can even book completely 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 in cash using 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? Be careful, if you do not have enough points you aren’t able to combine dollars and points on the same flight. If you’re a few point short United provides the option to purchase additional miles.
JetBlue
Looking for a flight within the United States? Take a look at JetBlue! JetBlue provides passengers a relaxing and pleasant travel experience that includes extra legroom and free snacks. Additionally, their booking process is similar to that of United Airlines that allows passengers to book flights using JetBlue points or dollars, however, not both. The difference is that JetBlue has a unique feature that lets you join your points with family members to accrue points twice as quickly. Be sure to prove you’re really family before trying to hack the system.
Make sure you spend that minimum amount
If you’re anything like me and my travel companion Becca, you’re probably pretty economical and it’s daunting to try to spend thousands of dollars to reach 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 our tricks and tips.
Pay your rent (if you can)
This is a big one! If you’re able to pay for your rent with credit card, then do it! Make sure you pay a cost, which is usually about 3%. It may be worth it in the end in the event that the bonus is substantial enough.
Pay a medical bill
Another way to reach the required spending is to cover the medical bills. If you don’t have any medical bills coming up Ask your family members to pay their medical bills and they will pay you back.
Repay the loan
If you’re a borrower take into consideration paying them off with your credit card. Make sure to pay off the credit card balance completely so that you don’t accrue more debt.
Ask family members for assistance
Talk to your family and see if they have any major expenses in the near future that you can help pay for. Just make sure you trust the person and they understand why you’re doing it.
Purchase gifts
If you’re in the middle of the holiday season take into consideration buying all of your gifts with the credit card you have. In this way, you’ll reach the minimum spending requirement and also be prepared to give gifts. Be sure to avoid spending more than you planning to.
There are a lot of methods to get the most from the travel credit card. earn miles or points to spend on the cost of flights or other expenses related to travel. Here are some additional suggestions for maximising your rewards
Pay for travel expenses using your credit card
If you’re planning a trip, use your travel credit card to pay for your flight, hotel or rental car, as well as other travel costs. In addition, you’ll achieve the minimum spend to earn your credit card bonus, but you’ll also earn points or miles to cover the expenditures.
Utilize your credit card to pay for all your daily costs
Another way to hit the minimum spend to earn rewards is by utilising your credit cards for daily expenditures. This can include things like food, gas and even your telephone bill. Be sure to pay off the balance in full every month to ensure you don’t accrue interest charges.
Make the most of bonus categories
Some travel credit cards will offer miles or points in exchange for certain types of purchases, including dining or travel. Check out the rewards program of your credit card and avail any bonus categories that match with your spending routines.
Consider a balance transfer
If you’re in the middle of a debt on a credit card, you might want to transfer that balance to a travel credit card with a 0% introductory APR for balance transfer. This will allow you to pay off your debts without accruing interest. It will also help you hit the minimum spend for the credit card’s bonus.
Make use of your miles or points prudently
When you’ve earned a significant amount of miles or points, be sure to use the points or miles wisely. Review the rewards program for your credit card and compare the worth of various redemption options. For instance using points to book a flight directly with the airline could offer better value than using them to purchase the purchase of a gift card.
Another tip is to use a rewards card that allows you to transfer rewards to different loyalty program. This will let you enjoy a greater variety of choices and more flexibility in you want to redeem your rewards. For instance, you might be capable of transferring your reward to an airline’s frequent flyer program or reward program for hotels. This gives the benefit of a wider selection of hotels, flights as well as other travel perks which are not accessible through your credit card’s rewards program.
Additionally, try to discover whether your credit card has some perks that could save you money on travel-related costs. Some cards offer travel insurance and rental car insurance, baggage protection, and other benefits that can be very beneficial when traveling.
If you’re traveling with a friend each of you will be able to get rewards on your own credit card. Just remember that you can’t split the cost on the same card, and be sure to track your rewards in a separate manner.
The key to maximizing your travel rewards is to understand the rewards program on your credit card and ensure that you’re using your credit card in the most efficient method possible. Utilizing an array of strategies I’ve listed in this article, you’ll be able earn rewards quickly, redeem rewards for valuable travel experiences and benefit from a wide assortment of travel-related perks.