Are you tired of spending an enormous amount on flights? Good news! Travel hacking can be the solution to your travel-related problems. It’s an exciting way to convert welcome bonuses and other incentives into airline miles which you can use to obtain discounted or free flights to your dream destinations. With a little imagination and a little bit of insider knowledge, you can travel for free within a matter of minutes.
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 later be used to buy discounted or even free flights. Some credit cards also allow you to redeem miles towards hotel stays or car rental deals.
How Does it Work?
The secret to successful hacking travel is taking advantage of the sign-up bonuses for credit cards and establishing a frequent flyer mile program with a limited number of airlines. When it comes time to book a flight consider the cost. If the price is less than $300, it’s generally better to pay in cash and use your miles to pay to book a higher-priced flight. If your flights begin to climb higher than $500, it’s best to check your frequent flyer accounts to find out which airline will give you the most value. It all comes down to the amount of points or miles in your travel bank for each airline.
Begin by Getting Started with Travel Hacking
Ready to learn the secrets to hacking travel? Your first task is opening the credit card that comes with a sign-up bonus. There are plenty of great credit cards that provide many advantages and features. It is all dependent on the airline, your spending habits, and the features that are most essential to you.
Top Credit Card Picks
Here are a few credit cards great 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 have to meet the minimum spend limit in order to get the bonus. Every card has different rules, so make certain to verify this information. From there, it’s all about racking up miles, and using them to plan your dream trip!
Are you ready to go on a jet-setting with your ideas?
Once you’ve accumulated your points amount, it’s time to use them towards sweet travel! Different credit card companies offer different ways to redeem your points. Here are a few examples from some of the providers I’ve had experience with:
Getaway by using Chase Ultimate Rewards
If you have a Chase credit card, then you are able to redeem your points through the Ultimate Rewards portal. Through the portal, you’ll get access to virtually every airline and you can use a combination of money and points to pay for your next trip. You can book your flight entirely using points if you’ve got enough balance! Sometimes, even if you don’t have enough points to cover the total price, you can buy flights with Chase Ultimate Rewards portal and pay the balance in cash with every 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 dollars or points? Be careful that if you do not have enough points you aren’t able to combine points and dollars for one flight. If you’re only a couple of points short, United provides the option to purchase additional miles.
JetBlue
Looking for a flight within the United States? You should look no further than JetBlue! JetBlue provides a comfortable and enjoyable travel experience that includes extra legroom as well as free snacks. In addition, their booking procedure is like United’s that allows passengers to book flights using JetBlue dollar or points, however, not both. But, JetBlue offers a distinct feature that allows you to combine your points with family members to accrue points twice as fast. Be sure to verify that you are a family member before trying to hack the system.
Hit that Minimum Spend
If you’re anything like me and my travel companion Becca I’m sure you’re pretty frugal and it can be daunting to try to spend thousands of dollars to reach the minimum amount required to earn the credit card bonus. However, don’t be worried as we’ve done it and are here to share our tricks and tips.
Pay your rent (if you can)
This is an important one! If you’re able to pay your rent with credit card, then do it! Be prepared to pay a fee, usually at least 3 percent. It could be worthwhile in the long run if the bonus is high enough.
Make a payment on a medical expense
Another way to reach the spending limit is to pay for a medical bill. If you don’t have any medical bills in the near future then ask your relatives if you could pay them for theirs, and they’ll repay you.
Make a payment to pay off the loan
If you’re in the middle of a loan you owe, think about paying them off with the credit card you have. Just make sure you pay off the credit card balance in full , so that you don’t accumulate additional debt.
Ask family members for assistance
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 are able to trust the person and that they are aware of the reason for doing it.
Buy presents
If it’s the holiday season, consider buying all your gifts with cards from your credit account. So you’ll be able to reach the minimum spending requirement and also be ready for giving gifts. Just make sure you’re not spending more than you already contemplating to.
There are plenty of methods to get the most of the travel credit card. You can accumulate miles or points that you can use towards flights or other travel-related expenses. Here are a few additional ways to maximize your rewards:
Make travel reservations using your credit card
When you’re planning your next trip, make use of the travel credit card to book your hotel, flight or rental car, as well as any other travel expenses. In addition, you’ll achieve the minimum amount of spending required for your credit card bonus, but you’ll also be earning points or miles to cover those expenditures.
Use your credit card for all your daily expenditures
Another method to reach the minimum spending requirement to earn rewards is making use of your credit card to pay for daily costs. This can include things like gas, groceries, and even your phone bill. Just make sure to pay off the balance 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 certain types of purchases, like eating out or travelling. Make sure you review the rewards program of your credit card and take advantage of the bonus categories that are in line with your spending routines.
Take into consideration a balance transfer
If you are currently in debt on a high-interest credit card, think about transferring that balance onto the travel credit card which has a 0% introductory APR for balance transfers. This will enable you to pay off your debts without accruing interest and simultaneously help you hit the minimum spending requirement for the credit card bonus.
Utilize your miles and points wisely
When you’ve earned a significant amount of miles or points Make sure to utilize them wisely. Examine the rewards program of your credit card and then compare the value of different redemption options. For instance, using points to book a flight directly with the airline might offer better value than using them to purchase the purchase of a gift card.
Another option is to get an rewards card that permits you to transfer reward points into other loyalty programmes. This will let you have a wider range of choices and more flexibility when making use of your rewards. For instance, you might be able to transfer your rewards to an airline’s frequent flyer program or a reward program for hotels. This will give the benefit of a larger range of flights, hotels, and other travel perks that aren’t accessible through the rewards program on your credit card.
In addition, you should find out whether your credit card has certain benefits that will save you money on travel-related costs. Some cards offer travel insurance, rental car insurance, baggage protection and other benefits that are extremely valuable when you’re traveling.
If you’re traveling with a companion and both of you earn rewards with your credit card. Be aware that you cannot share the costs on the same card, and be sure to keep track of your rewards in a separate manner.
The key to maximizing your rewards for travel is to be aware of the rewards program of your credit card and ensure that you’re making use of this program in the most efficient method. Utilizing an array of methods I’ve described, you’ll be able to earn rewards fast, exchange them for travel experiences that are worth it and benefit from a wide variety of travel benefits.