Are you tired of paying thousands of dollars on travel? Then, there’s a good news! Travel hacking is the answer to all your travel woes. It’s a fun way to convert sign-up bonuses and incentives into miles that can then be used to score discounted or cheap flights from your dream destinations. With a little creativity and some insider knowledge, you can be jet-setting for free within a matter of minutes.
The Basics of Travel Hacking
Travel hacking is all about swapping credit card sign-up bonus and rewards for airline miles. These miles can then be used to purchase cheap or free flight tickets. Certain credit cards permit you to use miles for hotel stays and car rental discounts.
How Does it Work?
The key to success in hacking travel is taking advantage of the credit card sign-up bonus and establishing a frequent flyer mile program for a specific group of airlines. When it’s time to make a booking take a look at the price. If the cost is less than $300, it’s generally better to pay cash and use your miles to pay to book a higher-priced flight. When the flights start getting higher than $500, it’s best to check those frequent flyer accounts 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 savings account for every airline.
Get Started with Travel Hacking
Are you ready to discover the secrets to hacking travel? First step opening the credit card that comes with a sign-up bonus. There are many great credit cards that provide many features and benefits. It all depends on your preferred airline, your spending habits, and the features that are most crucial to you.
Top Credit Card Picks
Here are some 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 or debit card, you’ll have to meet the spending limit for minimum expenditure in order to get the bonus. Every card has different guidelines, so make certain to verify this information. From there, it’s all about racking miles and using them to book your dream trip!
Are you ready to go on a jet-setting with your goals?
After you’ve accrued your points amount, it’s time to use them towards nice vacation! Different credit card companies will offer different ways to redeem your points, but here are some examples from some of the companies I have experience with:
Getaway through Chase Ultimate Reward
If you have an Chase credit card, then you are able to redeem your points via the Ultimate Rewards portal. Through the portal, you’ll have access to virtually every airline, and you can make use of a combination of the points as well as cash in order to pay for your 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 total cost, you are able to book flights using the Chase Ultimate Rewards portal and pay the balance in cash using every credit card.
United
Are you fed up of paying full price for your flights? Did you not know that when you book directly through United You have the option to pay with either points or dollars? Butbe aware in case you don’t have enough points you can’t combine dollars and points on one flight. If you’re just a few points away, United provides the option of buying additional miles.
JetBlue
Looking for a domestic flight? Look no further than JetBlue! JetBlue offers an enjoyable and comfortable flight experience , with more legroom and free snacks. In addition, their booking procedure is like United’s which allows customers to book using either JetBlue either dollars or points however, not both. But, JetBlue offers a distinct feature that lets you 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 into the system.
Make sure you spend that minimum amount
If you’re anything like me and my travel buddy Becca, you’re probably pretty thrifty and it’s daunting to try to spend thousands of dollars to hit the minimum spend 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 huge one! If you’re able pay your rent using credit card, go for it! Just be prepared to pay a cost, which is usually around 3%. It could be worthwhile in the end if the bonus is high enough.
Make a payment on a medical expense
Another excellent way to meet the minimum spend is to cover a medical bill. If you don’t have any medical bills due Ask your family members if you can pay them for theirs, and they can pay you back.
Pay off the loan
If you’re in the middle of a loan take into consideration making payments on them with an credit card. Just make sure you pay off the credit card balance in full so you don’t accumulate additional debt.
Ask your family members for help
Ask your family members to determine if they’ve got any big expenses coming up that you can help pay for. Make sure that you are able to trust the person and they understand why you’re doing it.
Purchase presents
If you’re in the middle of the holiday season, consider buying all of your gifts with the credit card you have. In this way, you’ll meet the minimum spending limit and also be ready for giving gifts. Just make sure you’re not spending more than you already thinking of.
There are many ways to make the most from using your credit or debit card for travel and accrue points or miles to use towards airfares or other travel-related costs. Here are a few more ways to maximize your rewards:
Make travel reservations using your credit card
If you’re planning a trip, use you travel credit card to pay for your hotel, flight or rental car, as well as other travel costs. Not only will you be able to meet the required amount to qualify for a credit card and earn points, but you’ll also be earning points or miles for the expenditures.
Use your credit card to pay for your everyday expenditures
Another way to hit the minimum spending requirement and earn points is by utilising your credit cards for daily expenses. This could be things like gas, groceries or even your phone bill. Just make sure to pay off the balance each month in full so you don’t accumulate interest.
Benefit from bonus categories
Some travel credit cards will offer bonus points or miles on certain kinds of purchases, like eating out or travelling. Make sure you review the rewards program of your credit card and make use of any bonus categories that match with your spending habits.
Take into consideration the possibility of transferring your balance
If you have existing debt on a high-interest credit card, consider transferring that balance onto an account with a travel credit card that has an introductory rate of 0% for balance transfer. This will allow you to pay off your debt without accruing interest and simultaneously help you hit the minimum amount required to earn the credit card bonus.
Utilize your miles and points wisely
Once you’ve accumulated a substantial amount of points or miles Make sure to utilize the points or miles wisely. Examine the rewards program of your credit card and compare the benefits of different redemption options. For example, using your points to book a flight directly with the airline could provide you with a greater return than using them for a gift card.
Another option is to get a rewards card that allows you to transfer your rewards to different loyalty program. This will let you get a wider selection of choices and more freedom when it comes to making use of your rewards. For example, you may be able to transfer your reward to the frequent flyer program of an airline or a hotel rewards program. This can give you access to a wider variety of hotels, flights and other travel benefits which are not accessible through your credit card’s rewards program.
In addition, you should determine if your credit card offers some perks that could reduce your travel costs. Many cards offer travel insurance and rental car insurance, baggage protection, and other benefits that could be invaluable when you travel.
When you travel with a companion each of you will be able to earn rewards with your credit card. Just remember that you can’t share the costs on the same card. Also, make sure to keep track of your rewards in a separate manner.
Overall, the key to reaping the maximum benefits from your travel rewards is to understand your credit card’s rewards program and ensure that you’re using your credit card in the most efficient method possible. Through a combination of the methods I’ve described in this article, you’ll be able earn rewards quickly, redeem them for travel experiences that are worth it, and enjoy a wide assortment of travel-related perks.