Are you fed up of spending an enormous amount on flights? Good news! Travel hacking can be the solution to all your travel problems. It’s an exciting way to turn credit card welcome bonuses and other incentives into airline miles which you can use to score discounted or cheap flights from your ideal destinations. With a bit of imagination and some 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 and rewards for airline miles. The miles can be used to pay for discount or no-cost flights. Some credit cards also allow you to redeem miles to pay for hotel stays or car rental deals.
How Does it Work?
The key to success in travel hacking is to take advantage of the credit card sign-up bonus and establishing a frequent flyer mile program for a specific group of airlines. When it comes time to book a flight, evaluate the cost. If the flight 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 the prices start to rise over $500, you’ll need to look into the frequent flyer account to see which airline can give you the best deal. It all boils down to the number of points or miles you have you have in your travel savings account for every airline.
Start with Travel Hacking
Ready to learn the secrets to hacking travel? Your first task is to open the credit card that comes that comes with a welcome bonus. There are plenty of great credit cards that offer a variety of benefits and features. It is all dependent on the airline, your habits with spending and the features that are most essential to you.
Top Credit Card Picks
Here are a few credit cards great 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 or debit card, you’ll have to meet the limit of spending minimum in order to receive the bonus. Each card has its own guidelines, so make sure to check for this information. Then it’s all about building up miles, and then using them to book your dream vacation!
Are you ready to set sail with your goals?
Now that you’ve built up your points amount, it’s time to cash them in for some sweet getaway! Different credit card companies offer different ways to redeem your points. Here are some examples from some of the ones I’ve had experience with:
Take a trip through Chase Ultimate Reward
If you’re a holder of a Chase card, you are able to redeem your points via the Ultimate Rewards portal. Through the portal, you’ll get access to almost every airline, and you can use a combination of points and cash to book your next trip. You can book your flight entirely on points if you have the funds to pay for it! Sometimes even if you don’t have enough points to cover the total price, you 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 full price for flights? Did you know that when you book directly through United you can choose the option of paying using either points or dollars? Butbe aware that if you don’t have enough points, you cannot combine dollars and points for the same flight. No worries though, if you’re a few points short, United also offers the option of buying additional miles.
JetBlue
Looking for a domestic flight? Look no further than JetBlue! JetBlue provides passengers a relaxing and pleasant travel experience that includes extra legroom as well as free snacks. Additionally, their booking process is similar to that of United Airlines, allowing you to book with either JetBlue dollar or points, but not both. But, JetBlue offers a distinct feature where you can join your points with your family members and earn points twice as quickly. Make sure to prove you’re really family before trying to hack the system.
Make sure you spend that minimum amount
If you’re anything like me and my travel companion Becca You’re probably quite thrifty and it’s challenging to attempt to spend thousands of dollars to hit the required amount to qualify for credit card bonuses. However, don’t be worried because we’ve been there and we’re here to share some of our tips and tricks.
Pay your rent (if you can)
This is an important one! If you’re able pay your rent using credit card, then do it! Just be prepared to pay a fee, usually at least 3 percent. It could be worthwhile in the end when the bonus is large enough.
Pay for a medical bill
Another excellent way to meet the minimum spend is to cover the medical bills. If you do not have any medical expenses coming up then ask your family members to pay their medical bills and they will reimburse you.
Make a payment to pay off a loan
If you have any loans you owe, think about repaying them using your credit card. Make sure to pay off the credit card balance completely so that you don’t end up with more debt.
Ask your family members for help
Talk to your family and look into any big expenses coming up that you can help pay for. Be sure to be sure that you’re able to are able to trust the person and that they understand why you’re taking the initiative.
Purchase presents
If you’re in the middle of the holiday season take into consideration buying all your gifts using the credit card you have. In this way, you’ll meet the minimum spending limit and be ready to give gifts. Be sure to avoid spending more than you were contemplating to.
There are a lot of ways to get the most from using your credit or debit card for travel and accrue points or miles to use towards the cost of flights or other expenses related to travel. Here are a few additional ideas for maximizing the rewards you earn:
Pay for travel expenses using your credit card
If you’re planning a trip, make use of you travel credit card to pay for your flight, hotel, rental car, and any other travel-related expenses. You’ll not only be able to hit the minimum spend to earn your credit card and earn points, however, you’ll also earn points or miles on those expenditures.
Use your credit card for all your daily expenditures
Another way to meet the minimum amount of spending in order to accumulate points by using your credit card to pay daily costs. This can include things like gas, groceries and even your telephone bill. Just make sure to pay the balance off in full every month to ensure you don’t pay interest.
Take advantage of bonus categories
A lot of travel credit cards provide miles or points in exchange on certain kinds of purchases, such as eating out or travelling. Be sure to review your credit card’s rewards program and take advantage of any bonus categories that align with your spending routines.
Take into consideration a balance transfer
If you are currently in debt on a credit card, think about transferring that balance onto a travel credit card with an introductory rate of 0% for balance transfer. This will enable you to pay off your debts without accruing interest and simultaneously aid in achieving the minimum amount required to earn the credit card’s bonus.
Make use of your miles or points carefully
If you’ve amassed a large amount of points or miles, be sure to use them in a responsible manner. Check out the rewards program on your credit card and compare the benefits of different redemption options. For instance using your points to book a ticket directly with the airline could offer better return than using them for an gift card.
Another option is to get a rewards card that allows you to transfer reward points into other loyalty programmes. This will allow you to get a wider selection of choices and more flexibility when redeeming your rewards. For instance, you might be able to transfer your reward to an airline’s frequent flyer program or a reward program for hotels. This gives an access larger range of flights, hotels as well as other travel perks that may not be accessible through the rewards program of your credit card.
Also, discover whether your credit card has some perks that could save you money on travel-related expenses. Many cards offer travel insurance, rental car insurance, baggage protection and other benefits that could be very beneficial when traveling.
If you’re traveling with a companion each of you will be able to get rewards on your own credit card. Make sure you don’t share the costs on the same card, and be sure to track the rewards you earn separately.
The key to maximizing your travel rewards is to know your credit card’s rewards program and to ensure you’re making use of it in the most effective method. Through an array of methods I’ve described that you can get rewards in a short time, use rewards for valuable travel experiences and take advantage of a broad range of travel perks.