Are you fed up of spending a fortune on airfare? Well, good news! Travel hacking can be the solution to all your travel woes. It’s a fun way to turn credit card sign-up bonuses and incentives into airline miles which you can use to score discounted or free flights to your desired destinations. With a bit of imagination and some knowledge, you can travel for free in no time.
The Basics of Travel Hacking
Travel hacking is the art of trading credit card sign-up bonuses and incentives for airline miles. The miles can be used to buy cheap or free flight tickets. Some credit cards also permit you to use miles towards hotel stays or rental car deals.
How Does it Work?
The most effective method for success in hacking your travel plans is to take advantage of the credit card sign-up bonus and establishing frequent flyer miles for a specific group of airlines. When you are ready to book a flight consider the cost. If the price is under $300, it’s best to pay in cash and use your miles to pay to book a higher-priced flight. If the prices start to rise over $500, you’ll need to check your frequent flyer accounts and see which airline can give you the best price. It all comes down to the amount of miles or points in your travel bank for each airline.
Start with Travel Hacking
Are you ready to discover the secrets to travel hacking? The first step is to open a credit card with a sign-up bonus. There are plenty of great credit cards that offer many benefits and features. It depends on the type of airline, your spending habits, and the features that are most crucial to you.
Top Credit Card Picks
Here are a few credit cards that are excellent to use for hacking 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 minimum spend limit in order to get the bonus. Every credit card has its own set of guidelines, so make certain to verify the details. From there it’s all about building up miles, and using them to plan your dream vacation!
Are you ready to set sail with your points?
Once you’ve accumulated your points amount, it’s time to use them towards nice travel! Different credit card providers will offer different ways to redeem your points, but here are some examples from some of the ones I’ve worked with:
Take a trip by using Chase Ultimate Rewards
If you’re a holder of a Chase card, you are able to redeem your points through the Ultimate Rewards portal. In this portal you’ll have access to virtually every airline. You can make use of a combination of points and cash to pay for your travel. You can even book entirely with points if you’ve enough balance! Sometimes, even if you don’t possess enough points for the total cost, you still can buy flights with Chase Ultimate Rewards portal and pay the balance cash using any credit card.
United
Are you tired of paying full price for flights? Did you not know that when you book directly through United You have the option of paying with either points or dollars? But, be careful that if you don’t have enough points you cannot combine dollars and points for the same flight. If you’re just a few points away, United also offers the option to purchase additional miles.
JetBlue
Are you looking for a domestic flight? Take a look at JetBlue! JetBlue offers passengers a relaxing and pleasant travel experience that includes extra space and complimentary snacks. In addition, their booking procedure is like United’s which allows passengers to book flights using JetBlue either dollars or points, but not both. The difference is that JetBlue is unique in that they offer a feature that lets you pool your points together with your family members and earn points twice as quickly. Just make sure you can 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 companion Becca You’re probably quite thrifty and it’s daunting to try to spend thousands of dollars to reach the minimum amount required to earn a credit card bonus. Don’t worry, we’ve been through it and are here to share some of our tips and tricks.
Pay your rent (if you can)
This is a big one! If you’re able to pay for your rent with credit card, go for it! Make sure you be charged a fee, typically at least 3%. It might be worth it over the long term if the bonus is high enough.
Pay a medical bill
Another excellent way to meet the required spending is to cover an medical bill. If you don’t have any medical bills due then ask your family members to pay for theirs and they can pay you back.
Pay off a loan
If you have any loans take into consideration repaying them using the credit card you have. Just make sure you pay off the credit card balance completely so that you don’t end up with 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 contribute for. Be sure to be sure that you’re able to are able to trust the person and that they know why you’re doing this.
Give gifts
If you’re in the middle of the holiday season you should consider purchasing all your gifts with the credit card you have. This way you can hit that minimum spend and also be ready for giving gifts. Just make sure you’re not spending more than you were already contemplating to.
There are many methods to get the most from your travel credit card. You can earn miles or points to spend on flights or other travel-related expenses. Here are a few additional ways to maximize your rewards:
Pay for travel expenses using your credit card
Whenever you’re planning a vacation, make use of your travel credit card to pay for your flight, hotel or rental car, as well as any other travel-related expenses. You’ll not only be able to hit the minimum amount of spending required to qualify for a credit card, but you’ll also be earning points or miles on those expenditures.
Use your credit card to pay for your everyday expenditures
Another way to hit the minimum spending requirement to earn rewards is by utilising your credit cards for everyday expenditures. This could include items like groceries, gas or even your phone bill. Just make sure to pay the balance off in full each month so you don’t accrue interest charges.
Make the most of bonus categories
Many travel credit cards offer miles or points in exchange for specific types of purchases, such as dining or travel. Be sure to review your rewards program on your credit card and make use of the bonus categories that are in line with your spending routines.
Take into consideration the possibility of transferring your balance
If you have existing outstanding debt due to a high-interest credit card, you might want to transfer the balance to the travel credit card which has an introductory rate of 0% for balance transfers. This will enable you to pay off the debt without accruing interest and simultaneously assist you in reaching the minimum amount required to earn the credit card’s bonus.
Use your points or miles carefully
Once you’ve accumulated a substantial 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 value of different redemption options. For instance, using points to book a ticket directly with the airline could provide you with a greater return than using them for an gift card.
Another tip is to use an rewards card that permits you to transfer rewards to different loyalty program. This will let you get a wider selection of options and greater flexibility in you want to redeem your rewards. For example, you may be eligible to transfer your rewards to an airline’s frequent flyer program or a hotel rewards program. This gives an access greater range of flights, hotels, and other travel perks that may not be accessible through the rewards program of your credit card.
In addition, you should discover the card’s benefits. some perks that could help you save money on travel costs. A lot of credit cards provide travel insurance as well as rental car insurance baggage protection and other benefits that could be extremely valuable when you’re traveling.
If you’re traveling with a companion, both of you can earn rewards using your credit card. Just remember that you can’t share the costs on the same card and make sure you keep track of the rewards you earn separately.
The key to making the most of your travel rewards is to know your credit card’s rewards program and to ensure you’re using your credit card in the most efficient method. By using all of the strategies I’ve outlined in this article, you’ll be able earn rewards quickly, redeem them for valuable travel experiences, and enjoy a wide variety of travel benefits.