Are you fed up of spending thousands of dollars on travel? Well, good news! Travel hacking can be the solution to all your travel woes. It’s a fun way to convert credit card bonus and sign-up incentives into airline miles which can be used to get discounted or even complimentary flights for your ideal destinations. With a bit of imagination and a little bit of insider know-how, you’ll fly for no cost in no time.
The Basics of Travel Hacking
Travel hacking is about swapping credit card sign-up bonus as well as incentives to earn airline miles. The miles can be used to pay for cheap or free flight tickets. Certain credit cards permit you to use miles for hotel stays and car rental deals.
How Does it Work?
The most effective method for successful travel hacking is to take advantage of the credit card sign-up bonus and establishing frequent flyer miles with a limited number of airlines. When it’s time to book a flight consider the cost. If the price is less than $300, it’s best to pay cash and save your miles to take a more costly flight. If your flights begin to climb higher than $500, it’s best to check your frequent flyer accounts and determine which airline offers you the best price. It all boils down to the number of points or miles you have in your travel bank for every airline.
Begin by Getting Started with Travel Hacking
Are you ready to discover the secrets to travel hacking? The first step is to open the credit card that comes that comes with a welcome bonus. There are plenty of great credit cards with a variety of benefits 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 great to hack travel
- Chase Sapphire Reserve
- Chase United Explorer
- JetBlue Mastercard
- Capital One Venture X
If you’ve been approved for a credit card you’ll have to meet the spending limit for minimum expenditure in order to qualify for the bonus. Every card has different rules, so make certain to verify the details. From there you can begin to rack up miles, and then using them to book your dream trip!
Ready to jet-set with your goals?
Once you’ve accumulated your points amount, it’s time to redeem them for some sweet travel! Different credit card providers will have different methods of redeeming your points, but here are a few examples from some of the ones I’ve worked with:
Take a trip with Chase Ultimate Rewards
If you own an Chase card, you can use your points to redeem them through the Ultimate Rewards portal. Through the portal, you’ll have access to almost every airline and you can combine the points as well as cash in order to book your trip. You can book your flight entirely with points if you’ve enough balance! Sometimes, even if you don’t be able to accumulate enough points in order to pay for entire price, you can book flights using the Chase Ultimate Rewards portal and pay the balance in cash with every credit card.
United
Are you fed up of paying full price for your flight tickets? Did you not know that when you book directly through United, you have the option of paying using dollars or points? Be careful, if you don’t have enough points, you cannot combine dollars and points for flights. Don’t worry, though, if you’re only a couple of points away, United also offers the option to purchase additional miles.
JetBlue
Are you looking for a domestic flight? Look no further than JetBlue! JetBlue provides a comfortable and enjoyable flight experience , with more legroom as well as free snacks. In addition, their booking procedure is similar to United’s, allowing customers to book using either JetBlue dollar or points, but not both. But, JetBlue has a unique feature that allows you to join your points with family members to accrue points twice as fast. Make sure to prove you’re really family before trying to hack the system.
Make sure you spend that minimum amount
If you’re like me or my travel buddy Becca, you’re probably pretty thrifty and it’s daunting to try to spend thousands of dollars to hit the minimum spend for the credit card bonus. But don’t fret because we’ve been there 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! Make sure you be charged a fee, typically about 3%. It may be worth it in the long run if the bonus is high enough.
Pay for a medical bill
Another excellent way to meet the spending limit is to pay for an medical bill. If you do not have any medical expenses due, ask your relatives if you could pay them for theirs, and they’ll pay you back.
Repay the loan
If you have any loans you owe, think about repaying them using the credit card you have. Just make sure you pay off the balance on your credit card in full , so that you don’t accrue more debt.
Ask your family members for help
Ask your family members to determine if they’ve got any large expenses coming up that you can help pay for. Be sure to be sure that you’re able to trust the person and they know why you’re doing it.
Buy presents
If you’re in the middle of the holiday season, consider buying all of your gifts with your credit card. This way you can meet the minimum spending limit and also be prepared to give gifts. Just make sure you’re not spending more than you were already contemplating to.
There are a lot of ways to make the most out of using your credit or debit card for travel. You can accumulate miles or points that you can use towards airfares or other travel-related costs. Here are a few more ideas for maximizing your rewards
Make travel reservations using your credit card
When you’re planning your next trip, make use of you travel credit card for booking your flight, hotel, rental car, and other travel costs. You’ll not only achieve the required amount to qualify for a credit card bonus, but you’ll also be earning points or miles to cover those costs.
Use your credit card to pay for your everyday costs
Another method to reach the minimum spending requirement to earn rewards is by utilising your credit cards for daily costs. This could include things like food, gas or even your phone bill. Be sure to pay off the balance in full each month so you don’t accumulate interest.
Make the most of bonus categories
Many travel credit cards offer miles or points in exchange for specific types of purchases, such as dining or travel. Check out your rewards program on your credit card and take advantage of any bonus categories that match with your spending habits.
Think about a balance transfer
If you have existing debt on a high-interest credit card, you might want to transfer the balance to the travel credit card which has an introductory rate of 0% for balance transfers. This will let you pay off your debt without accruing interest. It will also help you hit the minimum spend for the credit card bonus.
Utilize your miles and points prudently
Once you’ve accumulated a substantial amount of points or miles, be sure to use them in a responsible manner. Examine the rewards program of your credit card, and evaluate the value of different redemption options. For instance you can use points to book a flight directly with the airline might give you a better value than using them to purchase a gift card.
Another option is to get an rewards card that permits you to transfer your reward points into other loyalty programmes. This will let you enjoy a greater variety of options and greater freedom when it comes to you want to redeem your rewards. For example, you may be capable of transferring your reward to an airline’s frequent flyer program or a reward program for hotels. This will give the benefit of a greater selection of hotels, flights and other travel benefits which are not available through the rewards program on your credit card.
Additionally, try to discover the card’s benefits. some perks that could help you save money on travel costs. Many cards offer travel insurance as well as rental car insurance baggage protection and other benefits that can be extremely valuable when you’re traveling.
If you’re traveling with a companion, both of you can earn rewards with your credit card. Just remember that you can’t share the costs on the same card, and be sure to keep track of the rewards you earn separately.
The key to making the most of your travel rewards is to know the rewards program of your credit card and make sure you’re using this program in the most effective way possible. By using an array of strategies I’ve outlined, you’ll be able to earn rewards quickly, redeem rewards for valuable travel experiences and take advantage of a broad assortment of travel-related perks.