One of our readers asked for an article on the merits of collecting hotel program points or airline frequent flier miles. Which should you focus on? The answer of course is complex, and begins with it depends!
I like to look at the desired end result travel and web sites before selecting how to focus my loyalty and my campaigns of earning points / miles. The end result for me, normally is staying in a gorgeous hotel for nada OR easing into that free elite class seat strapped to a mega ton airliner about to be launched across the planet in style and comfort.
This game takes patience and sometimes a well planned attack to get the end result, occasionally years out. A few years back, my company was flying me a lot of Delta so I looked at where I could redeem on Delta or their partners, and discovered a great redemption possibility on Singapore Airlines so I went for it by getting two Delta credit cards, earning Delta points from their dining program, and even *shock horror* buying miles when on sale! The payoff was two round-trip First Class tickets on arguably the best airline from Los Angeles to Singapore (15 hours) at the time I wanted to go ($23,000 value) and a good return on my investment.
Nowadays Singapore Air is only under the umbrella of Star Alliance, and if you have those aspirations United Mileage Plus miles can be used for such a trip. Beware of poor availability in Business and First however! Some of the best airline travel and web sites credit cards are the AAdvantage Citi and United MileagePlus Explorer for bonuses of 50,000 and up to 60,000 respectively.
The moral is long haul elite class direct flights on reputable airlines can be outrageously expensive to purchase, and if this is your goal to gain for free, then fully focusing on miles instead of points would be a good idea. Be prepared to earn hundreds of thousands for multiple seats on such routes though. Keep in mind, that some cards (such as the SPG Amex ) allows you to transfer points into miles so while you d be earning SPG points, you can transfer them to American Airlines. Transfer 20k points, get 25k miles too.
Even if your traveling pattern is domestic only, but you fly trans-continental regularly from coast to coast for example, for this travel profile focusing on miles could also be a winner to gain free upgrades for such long flights or full elite class redemption s if the coach fare is high.
If your traveling needs are mainly domestic, and you fly from or through major hubs where competition keeps fares low, it MAY make sense to go for hotel points especially travel and web sites if you desire travel and web sites to stay in high-end pricey hotels in wonderful locations. Perhaps the W South Beach, Miami where rooms rarely dip below $500 plus tax and rates can be seen in the thousands during peak season. Or perhaps if a redemption at any of the numerous Manhattan hotels over New Year s eve are on your radar, then a hotel campaign could be your next project.
So how do we run such a campaign? Well the Hilton Amex for a 50,000 point bonus is a good start, especially if your aspirations include for example a Waldorf Astoria hotel or the Grand Wailea in Maui. You ll also get a bump in elite status too.
The old faithful SPG Amex is still a great option, travel and web sites with a current promo of 25,000 SPG points and one of the best feature being the flexibility of SPG points. You can mix and match miles and points, as they can be transferred to a number travel and web sites of airlines at 1:1 and a 25% bonus if transferred in blocks of 20,000.
If you are a frequent guest and have a choice of where to stay, it makes sense to pick a hotel chain and try and stick with them. For my company, Marriott is often the chain of choice for their international exposure. I use the Marriott Visa for an extra 5 Marriott reward points travel and web sites per dollar spent. Another useful travel and web sites tip is sign up for a Platinum challenge with Marriott (a free instant fast track to elite status and will be maintained after 18 nights instead of 75) even if you will not or may not make the minimum within the 3 months. This is because you will get extra points immediately from night number travel and web sites 1. This is a one-time challenge however so use it when most useful.
For both airline and hotel programs, there are shopping and dining portals with almost every one. Examples include AAdvantage dining and Hilton travel and web sites shopping . These are ways of topping up programs on a continuing basis especially if you are big on eating out or a big spender on items such as electronics, household goods, travel and web sites etc I always check on Amazon and similar sites before committing to purchases on these sites to ensure the best price and divert to the cheapest if necessary despite losing out on points.
Personally for my plan of attack is to focus on airline miles. travel and web sites I still have a stash of Marriott and Hilton largely from credit card spending. However I have a lot more airline miles because it makes more sense for me (with my wife and child). I want to fly first class or at least business, and I want to fly far. Cathay Pacific and other prestigious airlines don t like to discount their premium products. $20,000 of my cash for seats up the front to the Far East and beyond is too rich for my blood and always will be so that s where my campaign mainly lies.
Related Posts THE CONTINENTAL LOW FARE GUARANTEEE Routehappy: A new air travel review site Deal Of The Day – AutoSlash May 9, 2012 Deal of the Day Restaurant.com 80% Off Coupon travel and web sites and New Southwest Rapid Rewards Dining Restaurant.com Comes Through in a Big Way Olive Tree Inn Lindsay, California and St Thomas October Deal Choice Hotels Rules Don t Seem to Matter and Credit Scores travel and web sites are Rising Chase Cards and the US Mint EBATES for TRAVEL CASH, FRONTIER FILES CHAPTER 11, SPIRIT S SALE and CONTINENTAL SHAREBUILDER
Start by dropping by the Rookie Tips and Frequently Asked Questions page and following the suggestions listed. Then drop me a note at: rick@frugaltravelguy.com Free Trials for Credit Scores CreditSesame.com
AnnualCreditReport.com Credit Card Disclaimer Your Credit is Your Most Important Asset Some of the techniques mentioned on this blog involve applying for credit. The reader is soley responsible for the decisions he/she makes regarding their own credit. AwardWallet.com is the best website to keep track of your reward points and expirations. Use the coupon code FrugalTravelGuy to get a free 6 month upgrade for new users.
Rick Ingersoll is the world's expert on frugal travel travel and web sites and flying free and the author of The Frugal Travel travel and web sites Guy Handbook. A retired mortgage banker, he splits his time between Traverse City, Michigan, and Hilton Head Island, South Carolina. To enjoy his retirement, he and his wife Katy travel the globe, rarely paying full price – if anything at all -- for their travel and lodging expenses. Rick has become the expert in rooting out deals others miss or simply don't know about, and in accumulating airline frequent flier miles and hotel points. Twitter
Disclaimer: This content is not provided or commissioned by American Express. travel and web sites Opinions expressed here are author's alone, not those of American Express, and have not been reviewed, approved travel and web sites or otherwise endorsed by American travel and web sites Express. This site may be compensated through American Express Affiliate Program. Frugal travel and web sites Travel Guy has financial relationships with some of the cards mentioned here, and Frugal Travel Guy may be compensated if consumers choose to apply for these links in the content, and ultimately sign up for them.
This site is for entertainment purpose only. The owner of this site, Frugal Travel Guy LLC, is neither an investment advisor travel and web sites nor a financial planner and doesn't not work in the financial travel and web sites industry. The opinions expressed in this site, unless the sources are otherwise explicitly given, are the author's own, and under no circumstance should be considered as suggestions or advices to anybody. If you decide to follow what have been discussed on this site, you are solely responsible for the consequences of your own action. In accordance with the latest FTC guidelines, I am required to disclose any relationship I have with a product manufacturer or service provider when I write about the product or service on this site.
In general, I have a financial relationship with most, if not all, companies mentioned on this site. I am benefiting financially from most of the things you click on, read, or look at while you are on this site. Specifically, this site operates under these guidelines:
I don't pay for the products or services I write about, except those I purchased for my personal use. In almost all cases, travel and web sites the manufacturer or service provider approaches me first and provides a product or an access to the service for free. I don't speak or act on behave of a product manufacturer or service provider. Instead, I always give my honest options about a product or service in posts where such a product or service is mentioned If I create a link to a product or service in a post, that link may be an affiliate link. If you decide to purchase the product or service through an affiliate travel and web sites link, I will get paid a commission. Any rate information or third party offers listed on this site could change without advanced notice and may be out of date. For the latest rate or offer information, please consult with the concerned travel and web sites party. travel and web sites I strive to keep all information on this site up to date, however that's not always possible given how quickly those information could change.
No comments:
Post a Comment