Are you tired of paying an enormous amount on flights? Then, there’s a good news! Travel hacking can be the solution to all your travel problems. It’s an exciting way to convert bonus and sign-up incentives into airline miles, which you can use to score discounted or free flights to your dream destinations. With a little creativity and some insider information, you’ll travel for free in no time.
The Basics of Travel Hacking
Travel hacking is all about swapping credit card sign-up bonus and incentives for airline miles. These miles can later be used to pay for discounted or even free flights. Some credit cards also let you redeem miles for hotel stays and car rental discounts.
How Does it Work?
The secret to successful hacking travel is taking advantage of the credit card sign-up bonus and to establish frequent flyer miles for a specific group of airlines. When it’s time to make a booking take a look at the price. If the price is under $300, it’s generally better to pay in cash and save your miles for a more expensive flight. If the prices start to rise over $500, you’ll need to look into your frequent flyer accounts to find out which airline will give you the best price. It all boils down to the number of points or miles in your travel account for every airline.
Start with Travel Hacking
Are you ready to discover the secrets to hacking travel? First step opening the credit card that comes 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, your habits with spending and what features are crucial to you.
Top Credit Card Picks
Here are some credit cards that are great 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 hit the spending limit for minimum expenditure in order to get the bonus. Each card has its own guidelines, so make sure to look up this information. Then, it’s all about racking miles and using them to plan your dream vacation!
Are you ready to set sail with your ideas?
Now that you’ve built up the points amount, it’s time to redeem them for some nice getaway! Different credit card companies have different methods for redeeming your points, but here are a few examples from some of the providers I have experience with:
Getaway by using Chase Ultimate Rewards
If you’re a holder of an Chase card, you can redeem your points via the Ultimate Rewards portal. In this portal you’ll have access to almost every airline. You can combine points and cash to book your travel. You can book your flight entirely with points if you’ve enough balance! Sometimes even if you don’t possess enough points for the total cost, you still can book flights using the Chase Ultimate Rewards portal and pay the balance in cash with the credit card of your choice.
United
Are you tired of paying full price for your flights? Did you know that when you book directly through United, you have the option of paying using dollars or points? But, be careful that if you don’t have enough points, you aren’t able to combine dollars and points on one flight. No worries though, if you’re a few point short United provides the option of buying additional miles.
JetBlue
Looking for a flight within the United States? Take a look at JetBlue! JetBlue provides a comfortable and enjoyable travel experience that includes extra legroom as well as free snacks. Additionally, their booking process is similar to that of United Airlines, allowing passengers to book flights using JetBlue dollar or points, however, not both. However, JetBlue is unique in that they offer a feature that allows you to pool your points together with your family members and earn points twice as quickly. Make sure to establish that you’re a real family member prior to trying to hack into the system.
Hit that Minimum Spend
If you’re anything like me and my travel buddy Becca You’re probably quite frugal and it can be challenging to attempt to spend thousands of dollars in order to meet the minimum spend for the credit card bonus. Don’t worry because we’ve been there and we’re here to share our tricks and tips.
Pay your rent (if you can)
This is an important one! If you’re able to pay for your rent with credit card, go for it! Be prepared to pay a fee, usually about 3 percent. It might be worth it over the long term if the bonus is high enough.
Make a payment on a medical expense
Another great way to hit the spending limit is to pay for the medical bills. If you don’t have any medical bills in the near future Ask your family members if you can pay them for theirs, and they will pay you back.
Repay a loan
If you’re a borrower take into consideration repaying them using the credit card you have. Make sure to pay the credit card balance in full , so that you don’t end up with more debt.
Ask family for help
Talk to your family and determine if they’ve got any major expenses in the near future that you can contribute for. Make sure that you are able to have confidence in the person you are talking to and they know why you’re doing it.
Purchase gifts
If it’s the holiday season take into consideration buying all your gifts with your credit card. In this way, you’ll reach the minimum spending requirement and also be prepared for gift giving. Make sure that you’re not spending more than you thinking of.
There are many methods to get the most from using your credit or debit card for travel. earn miles or points to use towards airfares or other travel-related costs. Here are some additional suggestions for maximising your rewards:
Book travel expenses with your credit card
Whenever you’re planning a trip, make use of your travel credit card for booking your flight, hotel or rental car, as well as other travel costs. Not only will you be able to hit the minimum spend to earn your credit card reward and earn points, however, you’ll also earn points or miles for those expenses.
Utilize your credit card to pay for everyday expenses
Another way to meet the minimum amount of spending and earn points is by utilising your credit cards to pay everyday expenses. This could be things like gas, groceries, and even your phone bill. Make sure you pay off the balance in full every month to ensure you don’t accumulate interest.
Make the most of bonus categories
Some travel credit cards will offer bonus points or miles for certain types of purchases, such as eating out or traveling. Make sure you review your rewards program on your credit card and make use of the bonus categories that are in line with your spending habits.
Think about the possibility of transferring your balance
If you are currently in debt on a credit card, think about transferring the balance to an account with a travel credit card that has the introductory APR of 0% for balance transfers. This will let you pay off your debt without accruing interest and simultaneously aid in achieving the minimum amount required to earn the credit card’s bonus.
Utilize your miles and points wisely
Once you’ve accumulated a substantial amount of points or miles make sure you use them wisely. Review the rewards program for your credit card and then compare the value of different redemption options. For instance using points to purchase a flight directly through the airline may provide you with a greater value than using them to purchase an gift card.
Another option is to get an rewards card that permits you to transfer your rewards to different loyalty program. This allows you to have a wider range of choices and more flexibility in redeeming your rewards. For instance, you might be capable of transferring your reward to an airline’s frequent flyer program or hotel rewards program. This gives the benefit of a larger variety of hotels, flights as well as other travel perks that may not be available through the rewards program on your credit card.
Also, find out whether your credit card has some perks that could reduce your travel expenses. 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.
When you travel with a companion each of you will be able to earn rewards with your credit card. Be aware that you cannot divide the cost with the same card. Also, make sure to track your rewards in a separate manner.
The key to reaping the maximum benefits from your travel rewards is to know the rewards program of your credit card and ensure that you’re using your credit card in the most efficient way possible. Utilizing all of the strategies I’ve listed in this article, you’ll be able earn rewards quickly, redeem rewards for valuable travel experiences and take advantage of a broad assortment of travel-related perks.