Are you tired of spending a fortune on airfare? Then, there’s a good news! Travel hacking can be the solution to all your travel problems. It’s an exciting way to convert bonus and sign-up incentives into miles that can then be used to get discounted or even complimentary flights for your dream destinations. With a bit of imagination and some information, you’ll be jet-setting for free in no time.
The Basics of Travel Hacking
Travel hacking is about exchanging credit card sign-up bonuses as well as incentives to earn airline miles. These miles can then be used to pay for discount or no-cost flights. Certain credit cards let you redeem miles towards hotel stays or car rental deals.
How Does it Work?
The secret to successful hacking travel is taking advantage of credit card sign-up bonuses and to establish frequent flyer miles on a select group of airlines. When it’s time to make a booking, evaluate the cost. If the cost is less than $300, it’s usually better to pay in cash and use your miles to pay to book a higher-priced flight. If the prices start to rise higher than $500, it’s best to check those frequent flyer accounts to determine which airline offers you the best price. It all comes down to the amount of miles or points in your travel account for every airline.
Start with Travel Hacking
Are you ready to discover the secrets to hacking travel? The first step is to open the credit card that comes that comes with a welcome bonus. There are many great credit cards that offer a variety of features and benefits. It all depends on your preferred airline, 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
If you’ve been approved for a credit or debit card, you’ll need to hit the spending limit for minimum expenditure in order to qualify for the bonus. Every card has different rules, so make certain to verify the details. From there, it’s all about racking up miles, and using them to plan your dream vacation!
Are you ready to set sail with your points?
Once you’ve accumulated the points balance, it’s time to redeem them for some nice vacation! Different credit card companies have different methods for redeeming your points, but here are some examples from some of the companies I’ve had experience with:
Escape by using Chase Ultimate Rewards
If you’re a holder of an Chase card, you are able to redeem your points via the Ultimate Rewards portal. Through this portal you’ll get access to nearly every airline, and you can make use of a combination of money and points to book your travel. You can book your flight entirely on points if you have the funds to pay for it! Sometimes even if you don’t be able to accumulate enough points in order to pay for full cost, you still can buy flights with Chase Ultimate Rewards portal and pay the balance cash using any credit card.
United
Are you fed up of paying full price for your flight tickets? Did you not know that when you book directly through United, you have the option of paying using either points or dollars? Be careful, if you don’t have enough points, you cannot combine points and dollars for one flight. If you’re just a few points short, United provides the option to purchase additional miles.
JetBlue
Looking for a flight within the United States? Look no further than JetBlue! JetBlue offers passengers a relaxing and pleasant travel experience that includes extra legroom as well as free snacks. Additionally, their booking process is like United’s that allows customers to book using either JetBlue either dollars or points however, not both. However, JetBlue offers a distinct feature where you can pool your points together with your relatives to earn points twice as fast. Make sure to prove you’re really family before trying to hack into the system.
Reach that Minimum Spend
If you’re like me and my travel companion Becca, you’re probably pretty frugal and it can be difficult to think of spending thousands of dollars to hit the minimum amount required to earn credit card bonuses. However, don’t be worried as we’ve done it and are here to share some of our tips and tricks.
Pay your rent (if you can)
This is a huge one! If you’re able to pay for your rent with credit card, then do it! Be prepared to be charged a fee, typically at least 3%. It might be worth it over the long term in the event that the bonus is substantial enough.
Pay for a medical bill
Another excellent way to meet the spending limit is to cover a medical bill. If you don’t have any medical bills in the near future, ask your relatives if you could pay their medical bills and they will repay you.
Make a payment to pay off a loan
If you’re in the middle of a loan take into consideration repaying them using the credit card you have. Be sure to pay off the credit card balance in full , so that you don’t accumulate additional debt.
Ask your family members for help
Talk to your family and see if they have any large 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 doing this.
Buy gifts
If it’s the holiday season take into consideration buying all your gifts using your credit card. So you’ll be able to hit that minimum spend and be ready for giving gifts. Be sure to avoid spending more than you were planning to.
There are plenty of methods to get the most out of the travel credit card. earn miles or points to spend on flights or other travel-related expenses. Here are some additional ideas for maximizing 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 hotel, flight or rental car, as well as any other travel expenses. You’ll not only achieve the required amount to qualify for a credit card reward, but you’ll also earn points or miles on the expenditures.
Utilize your credit card to pay for all your daily expenses
Another way to meet the minimum spend and earn points is by using your credit card for daily expenditures. This could be items like groceries, gas and even your telephone bill. Be sure to pay the balance off in full each month so you don’t accumulate interest.
Make the most of bonus categories
Some travel credit cards will offer miles or bonus points on certain kinds of purchases, including dining or travel. Be sure to review your rewards program on your credit card and make use of any bonus categories that match with your spending habits.
Consider the possibility of transferring your balance
If you have existing debt on a high-interest credit card, consider transferring that balance onto the travel credit card which has the introductory APR of 0% for balance transfers. This will allow you to pay off your debt without accruing interest, and also assist you in reaching the minimum amount required to earn the credit card’s bonus.
Use your points or miles carefully
When you’ve earned a significant amount of miles or points, be sure to use them wisely. Check out the rewards program on your credit card and compare the worth of various redemption options. For example you can use your points to book a ticket directly with the airline might give you a better value than using them for an gift card.
Another option is to get a rewards card that allows you to transfer points to other loyalty programs. This will allow you to have a wider range of options and greater flexibility in redeeming your rewards. For instance, you might be able to transfer your reward to an airline’s frequent flyer program or hotel rewards program. This can give an access wider range of flights, hotels as well as other travel perks that may not be offered through the rewards program of your credit card.
In addition, you should determine the card’s benefits. any perks that can reduce your travel expenses. A lot of credit cards provide travel insurance as well as rental car insurance baggage protection, and other benefits that could be invaluable when you travel.
Finally, when you’re traveling with a companion each of you will be able to earn rewards with your own credit card. Make sure you don’t divide the cost with the same card and make sure to track the rewards you earn separately.
Overall, the key to maximizing your rewards for travel is to be aware of your credit card’s rewards program and ensure that you’re making use of your credit card in the most effective method possible. Utilizing an array of methods I’ve described in this article, you’ll be able earn rewards fast, exchange them for travel experiences that are worth it and benefit from a wide variety of travel benefits.