Are you tired of paying a fortune on airfare? Good news! Travel hacking is the answer to all your travel problems. It’s a fun way to turn credit card bonus and sign-up incentives into miles that can then be used to score discounted or complimentary flights for your desired destinations. With a little imagination and a little bit of insider information, you’ll travel for free within a matter of minutes.
The Basics of Travel Hacking
Travel hacking is the art of swapping credit card sign-up bonus as well as incentives to earn airline miles. These miles can then be used to pay for discounted or even free flights. Certain credit cards let you redeem miles towards hotel stays or car rental deals.
How Does it Work?
The key to successful hacking your travel plans is to take advantage of the sign-up bonuses for credit cards and establishing a frequent flyer mile program for a specific group of airlines. When you are ready to make a booking consider the cost. If the price is under $300, it’s usually better to pay in cash and save your miles to book a higher-priced flight. If your flights begin to climb over $500, you’ll need to look into the frequent flyer account and determine which airline offers you the best deal. It all boils down to the number of miles or points you have in your travel savings account for every airline.
Begin by Getting Started with Travel Hacking
Are you interested in learning the secrets of travel hacking? The first step is opening a credit card with a sign-up bonus. There are many great credit cards with various advantages and features. It is all dependent on the airline, your spending habits, and the features that are most important to you.
Top Credit Card Picks
Here are a few credit cards perfect to hack travel
- Chase Sapphire Reserve
- Chase United Explorer
- JetBlue Mastercard
- Capital One Venture X
Once you’ve been approved for a credit card you’ll need to reach the minimum spend limit in order to qualify for the bonus. Each card has its own rules, so make sure to check for this information. From there it’s all about building miles and using them to plan your dream vacation!
Ready to jet-set with your points?
Once you’ve accumulated the points amount, it’s time to cash them in for some nice travel! 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:
Take a trip through Chase Ultimate Reward
If you’re a holder of a Chase cards, you can redeem your points through the Ultimate Rewards portal. Through it, you’ll have access to virtually every airline, and you can combine the points as well as cash in order to pay for your trip. You can book your flight entirely with points if you’ve enough balance! Sometimes even if you do not 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 with the credit card of your choice.
United
Are you fed up of paying full price for flights? Did you realize that when booking directly through United, you have the option to pay with either points or dollars? Butbe aware, if you do not have enough points you can’t combine points and dollars for flights. If you’re a few point short United gives you the possibility of purchasing additional miles.
JetBlue
Are you looking for a domestic flight? Look no further than JetBlue! JetBlue offers an enjoyable and comfortable flight experience with extra legroom as well as free snacks. Plus, their booking process is like United’s which allows you to book with either JetBlue points or dollars, but not both. However, JetBlue offers a distinct feature that allows you to join your points with family members to accrue points twice as quickly. Make 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 like me and my travel companion Becca You’re probably quite economical and it’s difficult to think of spending thousands of dollars in order to meet the minimum spend for the credit card bonus. But don’t fret, we’ve been through it and are here to share some of our tricks and tips.
Pay your rent (if you can)
This is an important one! If you’re able to pay for your rent using a credit card, do it! Just be prepared to be charged a fee, typically about 3 percent. It could be worthwhile in the end when the bonus is large enough.
Make a payment on a medical expense
Another great way to hit the required spending is to cover a medical bill. If you don’t have any medical bills due then ask your family members if you can pay them for theirs, and they will pay you back.
Make a payment to pay off the loan
If you have any loans you owe, think about repaying them using the credit card you have. Make sure to pay off the balance on your credit card in full so you don’t accumulate more debt.
Ask your family members for help
Discuss your family with them and determine if they’ve got any major expenses in the near future which you could help pay 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.
Give presents
If it’s the holiday season you should consider purchasing all your gifts with your credit card. So you’ll be able to meet the minimum spending limit and also be prepared for giving gifts. Be sure to avoid paying more than you already planning to.
There are plenty of ways to get the most of using your credit or debit card for travel and accumulate miles or points that you can spend on airfares or other travel-related costs. Here are a few additional suggestions for maximising your rewards
Book travel expenses with your credit card
Whenever you’re planning a trip, use your travel credit card to book your flight, hotel, rental car, and other travel costs. Not only will you be able to hit the minimum spend for your credit card reward and earn points, but you’ll also earn points or miles for the costs.
Utilize your credit card to pay for everyday expenses
Another way to meet the minimum spend in order to accumulate points utilising your credit cards to pay everyday expenses. This could include things like gas, groceries and even your telephone bill. Just make sure to pay off the balance in full each month so you don’t accrue interest charges.
Benefit from bonus categories
Many travel credit cards offer bonus points or miles for certain types of purchases, including dining or travel. Make sure you review your credit card’s rewards program and avail any bonus categories that align with your spending habits.
Take into consideration the possibility of transferring your balance
If you’re in the middle of a debt on a credit card, think about transferring that balance onto the travel credit card which has a 0% introductory APR for balance transfer. This will let you pay off the debt without accruing interest. It will also help you hit the minimum amount required to earn the credit card’s bonus.
Utilize your miles and points wisely
If you’ve amassed a large 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 value of different redemption options. For example using points to book a ticket directly with the airline could provide you with a greater value than using them to purchase the purchase of a gift card.
Another option is to get rewards cards that allow you to transfer your points to other loyalty programs. This will allow you to enjoy a greater variety of choices and more flexibility when making use of your rewards. For example, you may be capable of transferring your reward to frequent flyer programs of airlines or a reward program for hotels. This gives the benefit of a wider variety of hotels, flights, and other travel perks which are not available through your credit card’s rewards program.
Also, find out if your credit card offers any perks that can help you save money on travel expenses. A lot of credit cards provide travel insurance as well as rental car insurance baggage protection, and other benefits that can be invaluable when you travel.
Finally, when you’re traveling with someone else and both of you get rewards on your credit card. Be aware that you cannot share the costs on the same card, and be sure to track your rewards in a separate manner.
Overall, the key to maximizing your travel rewards is to understand your credit card’s rewards program and ensure that you’re using this program in the most efficient method possible. Utilizing an array of methods I’ve described, you’ll be able to earn rewards fast, exchange them for valuable travel experiences and benefit from a wide variety of travel benefits.