Are you fed up of spending an enormous amount on flights? Well, good news! Travel hacking can be the solution to all your travel problems. It’s a fun way to convert credit card welcome bonuses and other incentives into airline miles, which can be used to get discounted or even complimentary flights for your desired destinations. With a bit of imagination and a little bit of insider information, you’ll travel for free in no time.
The Basics of Travel Hacking
Travel hacking is all about exchanging credit card sign-up bonuses and rewards for airline miles. These miles can later be used to purchase discounted or even free flights. Some credit cards also permit you to use miles towards hotel stays or car rental offers.
How Does it Work?
The most effective method for successful hacking your travel plans is to take advantage of credit card sign-up bonuses and building out frequent flyer miles for a specific group of airlines. When it comes time to book a flight take a look at the price. If the flight is under $300, it’s best to pay cash and save your miles to book a higher-priced flight. When the flights start getting higher than $500, it’s best to check those frequent flyer accounts to find out which airline will give you the best price. All it boils down to is the number of points or miles you have in your travel bank for every airline.
Begin by Getting Started with Travel Hacking
Are you interested in learning the secrets of travel hacking? First step to open a credit card that comes with a welcome bonus. There are many great credit cards that provide many advantages and features. It all depends on your preferred airline, spending habits and what features are crucial to you.
Top Credit Card Picks
Here are a few credit cards great for travel hacking:
- Chase Sapphire Reserve
- Chase United Explorer
- JetBlue Mastercard
- Capital One Venture X
Once you’ve been approved for a credit card, you’ll have to meet the minimum spend limit in order to qualify for the bonus. Every card has different rules, so be sure to look up the details. From there you can begin to rack up miles and using them to book your dream vacation!
Ready to jet-set with your points?
Once you’ve accumulated your points balance, you’re ready to cash them in for some delicious vacation! Different credit card providers will have different methods of redeeming your rewards, here are a few examples from some of the companies I’ve had experience with:
Getaway with Chase Ultimate Rewards
If you’re a holder of an Chase card, you can redeem your points through the Ultimate Rewards portal. Within this portal you’ll get access to almost every airline, and you can make use of a combination of money and points to pay for your next trip. You can even book entirely with points if you’ve the funds to pay for it! Sometimes even if you don’t have enough points to cover the full cost, you still can purchase flights through the Chase Ultimate Rewards portal and pay the balance in cash using every credit card.
United
Are you tired of paying the full cost for your flights? Did you know that when you book directly through United, you have the option of paying with dollars or points? Butbe aware that if you don’t have enough points you cannot combine points and dollars for one flight. No worries though, if you’re only a couple of point short United gives you the option to purchase additional miles.
JetBlue
Looking for a domestic flight? Take a look at JetBlue! JetBlue provides passengers a relaxing and pleasant flight experience with extra space and complimentary snacks. Plus, their booking process is similar to United’s, allowing you to book with either JetBlue dollar or points but not both. But, JetBlue is unique in that they offer a feature that allows you to join your points with your family members and earn points twice as fast. Just make sure you can establish that you’re a real family member prior to trying to hack into the system.
Hit that Minimum Spend
If you’re like me and my travel buddy Becca I’m sure you’re pretty frugal and it can be difficult to think of spending thousands of dollars to reach the required amount to qualify for a credit card bonus. However, don’t be worried, we’ve been through it and are here to share our tips and tricks.
Pay your rent (if you can)
This is an important one! If you’re able to pay your rent with a credit card, do it! Make sure you pay a cost, which is usually around 3 percent. It might be worth it in the long run in the event that the bonus is substantial enough.
Pay a medical bill
Another way to reach the minimum spend is to cover a medical bill. If you don’t have any medical bills coming up, ask your family members if you can pay for theirs and they will repay you.
Repay a loan
If you’re in the middle of a loan take into consideration paying them off with an credit card. Just make sure you pay the credit card balance completely so that you don’t accumulate more debt.
Ask family members for assistance
Ask your family members to determine if they’ve got any major expenses in the near future that you can contribute for. Just make sure you trust the person and they understand why you’re doing it.
Buy gifts
If it’s the holiday season take into consideration buying all of your gifts with your credit card. This way you can 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 many ways to get the most out of your travel credit card and accumulate miles or points that you can be used towards flights or other travel-related expenses. Here are a few more ways to maximize your rewards
Pay for travel expenses using your credit card
When you’re planning your next trip, make use of you travel credit card for booking your flight, hotel or rental car, as well as any other travel expenses. Not only will you achieve the minimum spend for your credit card, but you’ll also earn points or miles to cover the expenditures.
Make use of your credit card to pay for everyday expenses
Another way to hit the minimum amount of spending and earn points is by utilising your credit cards to pay daily expenditures. This can include things like food, gas or even your phone bill. Be sure to pay the balance off in full each month so you don’t accumulate interest.
Make the most of bonus categories
A lot of travel credit cards provide miles or points in exchange for certain types of purchases, including eating out or travelling. Make sure you review the rewards program of your credit card and avail any bonus categories that align with your spending habits.
Take into consideration a balance transfer
If you have existing debt on a credit card, think about transferring 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 help you hit the minimum amount required to earn the credit card’s bonus.
Use your points or miles wisely
Once you’ve accumulated a substantial amount of points or miles Make sure to utilize them in a responsible manner. Examine the rewards program of your credit card, and evaluate the value of different redemption options. For example, using your points to book a ticket directly with the airline might provide you with a greater value than using them to purchase a gift card.
Another tip is to use an rewards card that permits you to transfer your points to other loyalty programs. This will allow you to have a wider range of options and greater flexibility in making use of your rewards. For example, you may be capable of transferring your reward to an airline’s frequent flyer program or a Hotel rewards programme. This gives an access wider selection of hotels, flights as well as other travel perks that may not be accessible through your credit card’s rewards program.
In addition, you should discover whether your credit card has certain benefits that will save you money on travel-related expenses. Many cards offer travel insurance, rental car insurance, baggage protection and other benefits that are very beneficial when traveling.
When you travel with a friend, both of you can get rewards on your credit card. Just remember that you can’t split the cost on the same card and make sure you keep track of your rewards separately.
In the end, the most important thing to do to reaping the maximum benefits from your rewards for travel is to be aware of the rewards program of your credit card and make sure you’re using it in the most efficient way possible. Through a combination of the methods I’ve described that you can earn rewards fast, exchange them for valuable travel experiences and take advantage of a broad variety of travel benefits.