Are you tired of spending thousands of dollars on travel? Well, good news! Travel hacking could be the solution to all your travel problems. It’s an exciting way to turn credit card sign-up bonuses and incentives into miles which can be used to get discounted or even complimentary flights for your ideal destinations. With a little imagination and a little bit of insider information, you’ll be jet-setting for free in no time.
The Basics of Travel Hacking
Travel hacking is about trading credit card sign-up bonuses and rewards for airline miles. The miles can be used to pay for cheap or free flight tickets. Certain credit cards permit you to use miles to pay for hotel stays or car rental deals.
How Does it Work?
The secret to success in hacking travel is taking advantage of the sign-up bonuses for credit cards and establishing frequent flyer miles on a select group of airlines. When it’s time to make a booking consider the cost. If the flight is under $300, it’s best to pay cash and save your miles for a more expensive flight. If the prices start to rise over $500, you’ll need to review your frequent flyer accounts to see which airline can give you the best deal. It all boils down to the number of points or miles you have in your travel account for every airline.
Start with Travel Hacking
Ready to learn the secrets to hacking travel? First step to open a credit card 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, spending habits and the features that are most crucial 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. Every card has different rules, so make certain to verify the details. Then you can begin to rack up miles and then using them to book your dream trip!
Are you ready to set sail with your points?
After you’ve accrued your points balance, you’re ready to use them towards nice getaway! Different credit card companies offer different ways to redeem your rewards, here are some examples from a few of the companies I’ve worked with:
Take a trip by using Chase Ultimate Rewards
If you own an Chase credit card, then you are able to use your points to redeem them through the Ultimate Rewards portal. Through this portal you’ll have access to virtually every airline. You can use a combination of points and cash to pay for your trip. You can even book completely using points if you’ve got the balance for it! Sometimes, even if you don’t have enough points to cover the entire cost, you still can purchase flights through the Chase Ultimate Rewards portal and pay the balance cash using every credit card.
United
Are you tired of paying the full cost for your flight tickets? Did you realize that when booking directly through United You have the option to pay with dollars or points? But, be careful, if you don’t have enough points, you can’t combine dollars and points for one flight. Don’t worry, though, if you’re only a couple of point short United also offers the option to purchase additional miles.
JetBlue
Looking for a domestic flight? Take a look at JetBlue! JetBlue offers a comfortable and enjoyable travel experience that includes extra legroom and free snacks. Plus, their booking process is like United’s that allows customers to book using either JetBlue either dollars or points, but not both. The difference is that JetBlue offers a distinct feature that allows you to combine your points with your relatives to earn points twice as fast. Be 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 buddy Becca I’m sure you’re pretty economical and it’s daunting to try to spend thousands of dollars to hit the minimum spend for a credit card bonus. However, don’t be worried, we’ve been through it and we’re here to share our tips and tricks.
Pay your rent (if you can)
This is a huge one! If you’re able to pay for your rent using credit card, then do it! Just be prepared to pay a cost, which is usually around 3%. It could be worthwhile in the long run if the bonus is high enough.
Pay a medical bill
Another way to reach the required spending is to pay for an medical bill. If you do not have any medical expenses due Ask your relatives if you could pay for theirs and they’ll reimburse you.
Make a payment to pay off the loan
If you’re a borrower you owe, think about making payments on them with the credit card you have. Make sure to pay off the balance on your credit card in full so you don’t accrue more debt.
Ask your family members for help
Talk to your family and look into any major expenses in the near future that you can contribute for. Make sure that you are able to have confidence in the person you are talking to and they know why you’re taking the initiative.
Buy gifts
If it’s the holiday season take into consideration buying all your gifts with the credit card you have. So you’ll be able to reach the minimum spending requirement and be ready for giving gifts. Just make sure you’re not spending more than you planning to.
There are plenty of methods to get the most from your travel credit card. earn miles or points to use towards airfares or other travel-related costs. Here are a few additional ideas for maximizing the rewards you earn:
Pay for travel expenses using your credit card
When you’re planning your next trip, make use of the travel credit card to book your flight, hotel, rental car, and any other travel expenses. In addition, you’ll achieve the minimum amount of spending required to earn your credit card bonus and earn points, however, you’ll also earn points or miles to cover those costs.
Use your credit card for all your daily expenses
Another method to reach the minimum amount of spending in order to accumulate points by utilising your credit cards to pay for daily expenditures. This can include items like groceries, gas and even your telephone bill. Make sure you pay the balance off in full each month so you don’t pay interest.
Benefit from bonus categories
A lot of travel credit cards provide bonus points or miles for specific types of purchases, such as eating out or travelling. Be sure to review the rewards program of your credit card and take advantage of the bonus categories that are in line with your spending habits.
Take into consideration a balance transfer
If you have existing debt on a credit card, you might want to transfer that balance to the travel credit card which has an introductory rate of 0% for balance transfer. This will allow you to pay off your debt without accruing interest, and also help you hit the minimum amount required to earn the credit card’s bonus.
Make use of your miles or points carefully
When you’ve earned a significant amount of points or miles Make sure to utilize 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, using points to purchase a flight directly with the airline could offer better return than using them for the purchase of a gift card.
Another suggestion is to use an rewards card that permits you to transfer your points to other loyalty programs. This will allow you to get a wider selection of options and greater flexibility when making use of your rewards. For instance, you might be capable of transferring your reward to the frequent flyer program of an airline or a Hotel rewards programme. This can give you access to a larger selection of hotels, flights, and other travel perks which are not available through the rewards program of your credit card.
In addition, you should determine if your credit card offers certain benefits that will reduce your travel costs. Many cards offer travel insurance and rental car insurance, baggage protection, and other benefits that are very beneficial when traveling.
When you travel with someone else, both of you can earn rewards with your own credit card. Make sure you don’t divide the cost with the same card and 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 of your credit card and make sure you’re using this program in the most efficient method. By using all of the strategies I’ve listed in this article, you’ll be able earn rewards fast, exchange them for valuable travel experiences and take advantage of a broad variety of travel benefits.