Official Contest Post: A trip to Gold Coast of Australia

Tiffany said,

Plan in advance to maximize award redemptions. For example, even though AA essentially eliminated stopovers, they still allow stopovers in North American gateway cities for international departures. So, although my base airport is a gateway city, I’ve tacked on what is essentially a one-way from another trip as the “stopover.”

David said,

Don’t be scared off by credit card annual fees. Look at the bonuses and the possible accrual, and most of them may be worth the potential earn.

Emily J said,

Churn credit cards

AirShadow said,

Life is short, use those miles!

sdm1130 said,

Earn the miles/points in the cheapest possible ways and then burn them for the most luxurious travel!

Yi said,

MR for the cheapest fare, accumulate into the most valuable FFP and burn them in the most efficient route and cabin!

Guggu said,

When redeeming your miles it is always better to avoid school holidays and to travel off season to get the best value for your miles with airlines and hotels.

David said,

Always be polite when making a reward reservation. The kinder you are, the more willing the agent may be to help you out.

Ellen said,

Make American Express your first choice when using a credit card!

Iceman said,

To use your loyalty points when you want to use them, plan ahead. Way ahead.

Carmen said,

Stick with one airline alliance.

Ben said,

Starwood Amex indeed on every single purchase you do. Not only can you use those miles on hotel stays but you can also use them for flying to your dream destination!

Jonathan said,

It never hurts to ask… just for asking I’ve recieved status matches, waived CC fees, gotten agents to round up total miles to book a flight or hotel when I was short. If you have a bad trip/stay be vocal, write a letter and an email, I’ve been well rewarded for my valued consumer feedback.

Isaac said,

Set clear award goals to help prioritize earning and redemption programs.

Patrick said,

Focus on one or two programs to maximize your benefits, then be flexible and plan ahead to get the most use out of the miles/points you’ve accumulated.

Steve said,

Two tips for the price of one entry! I know this doesn’t increase chances of winning, but I surely hope it doesn’t break the rules

1. If you think you might lose elite status the following year due to changes in travel patterns, focus more on paid (point/mile-earning) flights and stays while you still have status. Two reasons this helps: (A) you take advantage of the elite benefit of bonus earning (10%, 25%, 50%, 100%, etc) that should more than compensation for the risk of devaluation in the coming year, and (B) you will continue to take advantage of upgrades associated with your status in the paid flights/stays. This means avoiding redemption of miles, points, and “free” vouchers (e.g. VDB) that do not earn miles — use these for your family and friends instead, or maybe offer a tit-for-tat exchange (you’ll pay for someone else’s trip using points, and they’ll pay for your similar or less expensive trip using money).

2. Don’t overestimate the value of your miles/points or be overzealous of spending money just to collect rewards, since this is counterproductive to your more important personal finance goals (that will fund more travel!). For example, if you would never pay $20,000 for an international first class flight, don’t benchmark your miles based on that cost! If you do the math, you might find that cashback cards will be more beneficial to your pocketbook than mile or point-earning cards. For example, the Schwab InvestFirst Visa gives 2% cash back on all purchases; would you rather have 2 cents in your pocket for every $1 you spend, or one mile/point? If you always redeem for domestic flights for 25k miles, are those limited-availability flights worth $500 to you?

imm2b said,

Use your BA miles to Buenos Aires with a stopover on Easter Island for 80K BA miles in Business or 40K in Economy on LAN. Best use of BA miles IMHO.

Matt said,

Be consistent. Why spread your points around and never have enough to do anything with? Find what works for you and stick with it. We recently found a nightly price on a hotel room that we felt we couldn’t pass up, but we really should have gone to the adjacent Intercontintental Hotel in order to get some Priority Club points while we were at it.

Peter said,

Know where you are going, research the award chart, get enough miles (a much easier job with Amex MR), finally be flexible and secure the award seat EARLY!

Ed said,

the other name for the Internet is “information overload.” The web is a goldmine, but you’ve got to keep those little bits of gold. I’ve usually got several big trips in mind for the next few years. For each destination, I create a new folder on my computer and start saving any useful little tidbits that I come across related to this destination. It’s amazing how much information you come across – without a good filing system there’s just no way to retain all those little pearls.

Dave said,

Concentrate your efforts on one or two programs. Use the Boarding Area blogs and FlyerTalk to find great deals and tips on making the best use of your miles/points.v

connor said,

My top tip for earning and using rewards points: focus, focus, focus! There’s no sense in spreading out 60,000 points to different airlines, credit cards, and hotels plans. Focus on the plan that makes the most sense for you, and work it. Check the plan’s site frequently for bonus opportunities, credit card signup bonuses, and other earning opportunities, and — if they make sense — take advantage. Secondary tip: don’t become so enamored with points that you spend uneccesarily just to earn points

Henry said,

In the beginning, stick with one airline and one alliance so one can achieve status faster and have less orphan miles.

Kevin said,

Using an airline specific miles credit card for all purchases and monthly revolving bills allows building of miles without flying and then booking flights with that card often provides double (or higher) miles.

Erik said,

Track your points and miles with AwardWallet! Save lots of time and avoid frustration of expiring miles!

Jason said,

Chose one airline programs and get their credit card which will earn miles. Charge everything you can to the card and pay off at the end of the month. My favorite is AA.

adastra said,

Watch travel-related blogs and forums to keep up with the latest promotions and deals. You never know when there will be a great chance for a mileage run… a double mileage promo… a 2-for-1 deal…

Chris said,

Think about which account to use when flying partner airlines.

Jonathan said,

Hire Gary to book your award ticket!

Brian Futterman said,

If you fly with several airlines, maintain loyalty with only one carrier per alliance. Consolidate those miles so awards come faster and easier.

YD said,

When booking award travel, be flexible and be EARLY!

The magic number is 330. Most airlines load new inventory into their reservations system 330 days prior to the flight date. If there are any award seats on the flight you want, they will be available right after that flight is loaded into the system.

Of course, popular travel days (i.e. holidays, spring break, etc.) and popular travel routes/destinations may cause these seats to disappear nearly immediately after release, but be patient, plan well in advance, and mark (and double-check) your calendar for the correct day to start your search.

Happy travels!

Kevin said,

Focus on a single airline alliance and hotel chain as much as possible, having 50,000 miles in one program is infinitely better than having 10,000 in 5 different programs. It sounds basic (they’re loyalty programs after all) but the first decision as to which program to focus on is the most important.

Go ahead and collect the scrap miles/points for the others too, but donate them to charity or order magazines or other cheap redemptions.

Also – burn those points as soon as they reach a significant value you can use! Saving money today is better than maybe saving slightly more in six months.

Russ said,

Join Flyertalk.com

gba said,

Know all of your partner options, and especially the entire list of cities they serve in North America. When redeeming for an international award, getting to a gateway can be more difficult than getting across the pond so if you know all of your gateway options, you’ll improve your odds of finding the award you want.

Chris said,

Top Tip – Read the blogs on Boardingarea.com. The bloggers on the website do a fantastic job gathering and synthesizing all of the information out there in order to keep you up to date on ways to maximize earning rewards. On the “using” side of the equation, they stay abreast of all of the best deals to use points, and also provide detailed advice and comparisons on using your rewards.

Victor said,

Always keep your eye out for free mile reward credit cards. It is one of the best deals anywhere, since it’s a free domestic flight usually.

Practice using the reward booking engine, so you have an idea of what kind of flights you can get both within a few weeks and a few months out. This helps when you are discussing possible vacations times with others!

bunsai said,

Use miles for redeeming premium class air ticket. Economy is just a waste of miles.

Allen said,

Don’t use your miles for domestic trips, save up for a big international trip in First or Business class and your miles will be worth much more.

thinthin said,

Basically wherever you go, doing some preparation is a must when using the points.

Websites such as flytalk.com and this blog are very good.
Just search some information of other’s travel experience and know how to maximize it.

George Pap. said,

My tip is to avoid Delta Skymiles since it is impossible to use those miles for awards at the lowest tier level!

James Bernie said,

If you can swing it, use your own credit card that gives you the miles for the purchase which gets reimbursed by your employer, then get miles from the flight.

Also, make sure the FF program you sign up for is actually useful in your region so you can actually use the points from your location.

George Holub said,

Fly within one global airline alliance and credit all of your miles to one FF account. That way, your miles aren’t spread around to different accounts, making it hard to ever accumulate enough to redeem them for anything!

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MT said,

Pick your primary plans carefully and don’t forget the expiration policies.

DavidWesley said,

I can only speak for Air loyalty programs, but my best advice is to pick one carrier and aim for Elite status. Once you travel as a top tier elite, you will never want to go back.

If you are elite in multiple airlines, make sure they are in seperate alliances so that all of your bases are covered for trips that your one carrier may not fly to. Eg… Oneworld and Skyteam.

Martin said,

Break up a hotel stay into separate one-day stays to maximize points/status.

Megan said,

use a mile-earning credit card for everything you buy!

Calvin said,

same them up and use for business first.

Rob said,

Don’t let points or miles expire unused! You can easily credit a car rental that you’re already going to make to extend the life of miles in most programs, or use many programs’ online shopping malls to buy a giftcard or something as small as a single iTunes song.

Hayley said,

Stick to your favorite companies (airline, car rental, hotel) to really rack up the miles! Sometimes they will offer their most loyal customers really great bonus mile options.

snoozzzzz said,

My tip is to have the credit card with the program you are in. This will be most efficient in earning points per spending. For instance, if you are platinum, Marriott credit card allows you to earn 20 points / $1 spent at Marriott (10 base pts + 5 Plat pts + 5 credit card pts); Amex Starwood allows you to earn 5 points / $1 spent (2 base pts + 1 Plat pts + 2 credit card pts), etc…

My tip on spending is to be flexible and make use of the benefits offer by each program, such as staying 4 nights and get 1 night free, pointsaver stay. Plan and make reservation early since more options are available and the reservation can be cancelled should your plan changes.

Bianca B said,

Stay organized and document every promotion you enter/sign-up for.

Jim H said,

My tip. If the offer seems too good to be true, consider the source. If you trust it , act fast. It may not last.

elizabeth said,

Concentrate your miles and flights on one Alliance and exploit it for all its worth: car rental, dining, flying, purchasing toilet paper from drugstore.com… Be sure you also sign up for all the bonus mileage offers that your airline of choice offers, even if you aren’t planning to fly the route immediately. You never know where IRROPS will take you. Subscribe to ExpertFlyer. Check Flyertalk obsessively.

Samir said,

Be loyal to one of the global airline teams (which has the many flights from your point of origin) and try to have all of your miles credit to one Frequent Flyer account. Also, try finding different credit cards/ programs that give you non-flying miles/points bonuses on that account This will ensure that your miles are always dumped to one account, making it easy to accumulate enough miles/points to redeem anytime and anywhere.

Diane said,

Use your points-accumulating credit card(s) for every possible purchase including household bills and the entire meal bill with friends (hopefully they’ll pay you back in cash or by check!).

Tanya Craig said,

SPG…The best points program ever! Earn points through American Express and then use them for a lot of different programs. I use mine to get discounted hotel rooms, for example, I’m staying using a few points and only $60 bucks to stay a night in Hawaii! And they convert to a lot of airlines miles programs. I gave 20K SPG points to Hawaiian Air and got 25K miles!

Kitty said,

1)Make sure your miles program matches your award goals.
2)If you have a mileage credit card make sure it allows you to redeem awards with numerous carriers.
3)Start looking for your award seats 6 months in advance of your trip.
4)Don’t forget to check code-share partners for award seats.
5)Look for award seats on midweek days.
6)Since carriers change their award inventory on Friday & Saturday nights at midnight, check then for award seats.
7)Try BookYourAward.com. Worth the price to get the seat you want.(According to Wendy Perrin at Conde Nast Traveler.)

Xyzzy said,

If at the end of a year you’re close to making an elite tier in a mileage program, consider taking a trip that will earn enough miles to qualify.

Rick said,

Take advantage of credit card sign-up bonuses for new card applications.

tivoboy said,

Set a goal and work towards it. This year, my goals was free travel in F to Africa. Best way for that, is BA mileage card from CHASE and spend my 30K a year on that card. Badabing, we (yes, two is better than one) will have two F tickets to SA.

Jeff said,

I use Yodlee MoneyCenter to keep track of my miles. It’s free.

Summer Cook said,

Use Southwest Airlines and Hilton HHonors. You can double dip with Hilton (earning hotel and flight credits) and earn quick tickets on Southwest through partners and flying. Then, vacation virtually for free!

Nathan said,

Make sure to provide your frequent flier numbers when you go to a hotel, especially when you stay in hotels often. The points add up FAST!

Sapan said,

Focus. Do you research and figure out which cities you visit often and what airlines you tend to take the most. Then try to rack up as many miles as you can with those airlines by flying and through their credit cards. Don’t spread yourself too thin by having couple thousand points in different accounts, but not enough to get a trip or qualify for a status. Limiting yourselves to two or thre alliances will do you a lot of good.

Zora said,

Get a credit card to go with the program–even if only for the signup bonus. It gives you a big head start on miles, and makes the whole game seem a lot more worthwhile.

Nelly said,

Consolidate your miles

Jason Demby said,

Don’t use your points on low cost/distance trips! Save them for the expensive ones!

Carol said,

Pay Attention! Watch your statements to catch any errors or missing trips, keep an eye out for promotions to increase your miles/points or standing, read the blogs and message boards, don’t forget to check for cross-promotions with credit cards and other companies…

Jonathan Heckman said,

Pick a milage program and stick with it. The milage program you chose depends on the type of traveler you are – what kind of hotels do you like? Rental cars? etc. If you ever have questions about milage programs, checkout flyertalk.com.

Jonathan

Ann said,

Read flyertalk and blogs like this one! Don’t redeem miles for flights (except BF upgrades, natch) until you’ve reached your desired elite status for the year.

Peter said,

One useful trick is to register for very promotion you come across on these blogs. Even if you think it cannot possibly apply to you (it may in the future), or if it’s just 50 miles (wouldn’t it suck to be 50 miles short for an award?), or for a program you don’t participate in (there are ways to transfer miles)… one never knows.

Jim said,

Pick a program that you like and stick to it, even if it ends up costing a little more. They’re not called loyalty rewards for nothing.

bmvaughn said,

It may take a long time to save the miles for two international premium class awards, so if you’re just a casual flier don’t worry about spending the miles on a domestic coach ticket – just make sure you’re getting a good value for the miles, such as using them for a late booking or a holiday period!

beltway said,

Use car rentals (which often earn pitifully small miles bonuses) to reset the clock on expiration of miles accounts in which you lack activity. This works not only mile accounts in your name, but for family members too: the rental companies report only the FF account number you give them, and not the renter’s name. I’ve used this many times without a hitch.

chris said,

Churn credit cards and bank sign up bonuses

Richard B said,

(1) Never miss an opportunity to earn points, no matter how small; (2) Earn and burn — miles and points are only going to lose value with time.

Andrew said,

Read FT and these blogs for good tips, like 10k for car rentals and 20k for free hair appointments. Will definitely keep you updated as to the latest opportunities.

Julie Vessigault said,

Network with frequent fliers.

Jean Wilson said,

Get a Hilton Surpass Amex and use it for everything, so you’ll score 6:1 for groceries and 9:1 for stay at Hilton properties. Put $20,000 on it in a year and score Gold VIP status with Hilton. Then, when you have 225,000 points, redeem them using one of Amex’ VIP Hilton special booking codes, GLONP, which will get you six free nights at a top of the line hotel in London – where the exchange rate isn’t favorable to U.S. travelers. You’ll wind up scoring a stay worth something like $3600, and it’ll only cost you about $8500 in spend if you stay at Hiltons a lot and earn the 9:1 rate. Enjoy!

Ruilin said,

Get a mile-earning credit card and use it for everything

Dieter said,

My tips are simple: First, make sure you are earning miles/points on the major airline serving your home airport. Secondly, do the research on the best credit card for earning miles/points for the way you travel. There are many websites that will help you compare the various credit cards programs

Larry said,

Keep track of your credit score and if it can stand the small hit, apply over time, for a steady stream of credit cards that give you a sign-up bonus. Those bonuses are the foundation for building miles in many programs. You can easily earn 150,000 miles a year doing this, with no appreciable affect on your credit score. And you can do this for several years before exhausting all of the card possibilities.

ofer said,

My top tip is to try and accumulate miles in Membership Rewards by American Express since it allows you maximum flexibility to redeem the points and you can earn points for purchases, up to 10X points in the membershiprewards.com earn section and earn 3X points when you shop through the Bonus Points Mall® website.

Gale said,

Go with friends! It’s amazing how far you can get if you pool group resources — one person’s hotel upgrade with another’s free car rental etc. Works on three levels (1) You can often score a “stay with your friends” freebie (i.e., two of you have access to the first class lounge, the third can usually come along) (2) Friends who don’t have miles are often happy to pay any cash portion of a status change etc. as their contribution (3) Travelling companions!

Bikeguy said,

Come to the Ann Arbor Art Fair DO this July 24 and 25th. You’ll get great tips, including how to book elusive award tickets. Past speakers include Viajero Joven, gleff, Ingy, Lucky9876Coins and wanaflyforless. Details in CommunityBuzz forum on flyertalk.com.

monkey3367 said,

Don’t overreach. If your travel is moderate, stick with one program and milk it all you can.

Ron said,

Pay for all of your purchases, no matter how small, with a mileage earning credit card.

chitownflyer said,

Concentrate your loyalty to one hotel or airline program and try to earn the highest status level as possible in that program.

nun said,

If the flight you want isn’t available, before paying double miles to get what you want, check business and first class, even for short domestic flights. Sometimes there’s unexpected availability for no extra miles.

Mbelle said,

concentrate your earnings to maximize the return…and learn the rules of your program, so you get to earn, keep and redeem the miles/points.

Sharon La said,

Do a bit of research and decide which alliance network is best for your travel style. Join and work to put all your flights through that alliance. This way all your points are put into one source. Additionally, finding a credit card with the main airline of this alliance increases your base of points and sometimes your status. When you purchase tickets make sure that the tickets count towards your miles.

Alexander said,

stick to one airline and aim for elite status!

Tim said,

Collect miles and points only for airlines and hotels that you really like and that are readily available for use.

Scott M said,

Focus on one hotel program to concentrate your loyalty point earning. Oftentimes, once you reach top tier status, other hotel loyalty programs will match status with a minimal night/stay requirement. Some hotels say they will only match status once, but in the past few years, status matching has been easier than ever…follow-up and don’t take no for an answer.

Jeff said,

Check your account regularly to make sure all miles get posted. Keep your boarding passes to retroactively get any miles to post that slip through the cracks.

Chris Metzgar said,

I’d suggest reading up on all programs offered by those you most frequently use, and spend points smart…get the most out of it, but also be aware of all the rules involved with spending the points.

mechteach said,

Top tip: Flexibility. Be willing to be a little bit flexible when it comes both to dates and destinations. Also, be flexible about using the points at all – keep an eye on the costs of booking the hotel or flights that you have chosen, and be willing to cancel if the economics are reasonable.

Craig said,

Set up your bills to be paid automatically using your American Express Card.

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scott said,

My tip is to plan early and be persistent. In order to maximize your points, you have to be patient and organized.

ElinP said,

Earning miles quickly is much easier than you think! Every time you have to pay for something, think of gaining mileage points. Get a credit card (like AmEx) that gives the most mileage points for your favorite airline every time you use the card; I use that one card for just about everything. Then, check out what companies your airline partners with and shop through them (for i.e. hotel stays, car rentals, and even for significant things like home loans, larger purchases, loans, insurance and even home purchases). Many airlines have “dining for miles” programs (linked up to your credit card). You can also shop at your regular stores online but go through mall sites (like Delta’s SkyMall) where you get points for money spent (that’s in addition to the miles your credit card will give). You can also rack up the points by completing online surveys for companies linked up to your airline (like erewards.com for Delta miles). Also, check your airline’s frequent flier webpage every now and then for specials offering points. It all adds up quickly!

Once you have enough miles on an airline, plan to use them, but do your planning well in advance, like making reservations 2 months early, to ensure availability of your preferred travel dates. Remember: once made, the reservations cannot be changed. Lastly, make your hard-earned $$ work for you and enjoy your free reward trip to the max!

Grativis.com said,

[Full Disclaimer: I am one of the founders of the site, so consider this a shameless self-promotion!]

My hint is to use Grativis.com to manage all your frequent flyer program information – it’s like Mint.com for points.

It will pull in all of your points (flights, hotels, car, and others) and show it to you in a 1-page dashboard, while also showing the detailed information just 1 click away. What makes it different (and better) than other point management sites is that, in addition to showing your points, it will show what you can buy (eg “how many round trip coach tickets to Europe can I buy?”) with your points!

It’s in private beta right now, but I’ve set up 100 invites for BoardingArea.com users so that they can test it out themselves and see how it makes managing points easier than anything else out there.

To Sign Up:
https://www.grativis.com/index.php?step=newuser
Referral Code: BOARDINGAREA-FRIENDS

Thanks for a great site!
Michael Komarnitsky
Grativis.com

Gloria Lin said,

My top tip for using airline points is to be ready to plan several months in advance, be flexible and pick a few dates and surrounding airports to chose to fly into, and if you’re unable to find a flight by yourself online, try calling a points representative. You may have to pay a small fee but often they are able to search with partner airlines and get you where you want to go! You may want to check back a few times if you aren’t able to get it on the first try, as sometimes ther is an extra special agent that will go out of their way to help you a litte more. Be nice!

Andy said,

If you are just starting, focus on one or 2 programs to learn the tips and tricks as well as building up points or miles.

Jon said,

Be very flexible. Be willing to travel to another airport on your own dime to get an international flight to your desired destination.

shoegarqueen said,

Try to consolidate travel and therefore mileage earning into one airline program and make sure that the airline is convenient to your home location. That way elite status is more within reach.

K Brown said,

Details, details, check the details!

K20 said,

Read all the blogs for great tips and follow their advise!

Ryan said,

Always be sure to keep up to date with promotions and special offers of your favorite loyalty programs. These promotions allow you to earn points, miles, and rewards at greatly accelerated rates. Read the T&C’s carefully and be sure to follow up with Customer Service if any bonuses do not post.

Richard said,

Pay attention to all promotion (best way is to add all boarding area blogs to your RSS reader). Elite status is very important so start with a single program. Get to learn the game from experts. FLyertalk.com is a good place to visit daily!

Lina said,

Jumpstart your miles by getting status on one airline. AA offers a Platinum challenge that can help you get status very quickly. Once you have status with AA, many other airlines are willing to match it. When you fly with status, you get more miles. Now you just have to earn it the hard way next year.

Loran said,

When trying to redeem miles for an award ticket plan on doing all the leg work yourself – most airline phone agents will search the simplest routings, find no availability, and stop. Know all your airline’s partners (both in and outside the alliance) and all hub and gateway cities, and tell the agent exactly what you want.

For example, Delta had no availability for a West Coast to Israel award. But the agent only checked Delta flights. By knowing ahead of time that Air France serves Seattle, SFO, and LAX, and that Alaska serves my city and the AF gateways, I got the outbound on the exact dates I wanted.

Similarly, secure the international flight first. There is only one SEA-CDG flight a day. Find availability for that, then work on getting to SEA – there’s likely many more options for the domestic flight. Many agents will not even search the international flight on a particular day if your first domestic segment doesn’t appear to be available.

paul said,

delta’s skymiles program is a great way to save up. also if you book packages through certain travel companies, they sometimes offer discounts if you frequently use them!

Dallasanne said,

Since I retired, I don’t rack up the business travel miles the way I once did. So now I do four things to get points in bulk.

1. I look for things I can buy and turn into cash. For instance, you can order mint proofs of U.S. coins in bulk ($10,000 at a time), get them shipped for free, earn points from the mint for buying them — plus earn points from your credit card company for buying them — then turn around and cash in the coins at the bank, and you wind up with points, but zero out-of-pocket cash. I love antique auctions, so I look for “box lots” of items that contain one or two things I want — and other stuff I can resell. Using a mileage generating credit or debit card for the purchase, then reselling the unwanted stuff at a profit, gets me the stuff I want for free — and earns points, too.

2. My husband and I each have an Amex card that we use to pay bills and make large purchases. The Amex flexible points program is great, because we can apply the points to any airline, or any program. Both the cards dump points into a single FF account — doesn’t matter whose name is on the award certificate (not to me it doesn’t) if we’re both sitting in first class when we fly.

3. We fund debit and credit cards for three grandchildren and a foster child who are still in high school or college, and THEIR debit and credit cards also dump into a single FF account. The understand this is part of the price they pay for having us pay their bills — they can keep their mileage points when they are paying their own bills.

4. We keep track of bonus offers on things we would buy anyway. Sometimes these are small — like buying birthday flowers for a daughter-in-law through FTD to get bonus points. Other times, small changes can earn big points. My son was working on Mallorca earlier this year. We’ve been there before, and always had flown through Barcelona — by switching to Madrid for our most recent flight, we earned double miles + a 5,000 mile bonus for each ticket because United was running a special. Didn’t change the cost or the arrival time, just the airport where we laid over for an hour.

Bob said,

If you aren’t a business traveler who flies a lot, I tell my friends in the US to gravitate towards Continental’s Onepass program. It’s the only program where miles never expire, so you can slowly but surely build towards a reward over however many years you need. Nothing is more discouraging for an aspiring frequent flyer than to have their miles erased for no good reason.

Shaun said,

Use the credit card partner for your airline of choice and any related utility offers. Miles collect extremely quickly this way.

Cecilia Rose said,

Just calling in to a live person always works best for me. Unfortunately, the websites never seem to show the same availability that you can get dialing in directly. It is a hassle, but worth it when you need to get complex trips for multiple people

Brenda said,

When booking a hotel in a busy city location or at a busy time of year, hotels are less likely to let you use points for free nights or upgrades. Many programs,like SPG (Starwood) allow you to pay cash + points. I’ve found this a great way to book a nice room ( usually the free rooms are by an elevator, ice machine, lower floor etc). But by using the points and cash option, the rooms are usually upgrades. You still earn points on the portion of the room paid in cash so it’s a win/win.

Kathryn said,

Sign up for the promotions that link two travel partners together when taking a trip, like get bonus Delta miles for staying at Marriott or get bonus Hertz points for staying at Hilton. That way you get extra points from the promotion with one company and regular with the other. It’s a win win for sure!

Janna Steele said,

SPG points to LAN kilometers is the best credit card deal out there per dollar spent, especially for short, expensive flights on OneWorld partners.

Henry said,

My top tip for travelers who want to earn and use their loyalty points is to do their research and utilize as many resources as possible. For example, utilize partnered dining websites and shopping websites. If you are going to buy something you might as well get points for it. Additionally, always ask if a loyalty program is doing a promotion for bonus points (there is always one going on). For those looking to use their points my best advice is to research forums and ask questions of experienced travellers. We are a community we are always there to help! Also, see if there are combined packages that are available. It may cost less points to transfer your airline miles to hotel points and take advantage of a combined vacation package. In summation, ask questions! The worst answer you could get is no, and usually you will get tips and advice on how to maximize your points.

scott finkeldei said,

Use RSS feeds and SMS alerts on your phone from favorite travel and deal websites to ensure you see the best points deals and promotions that you can take advantage of while you are traveling.

Jonathan Khoo said,

look into alliance partners and non-flight earning opportunities, such as miles for shopping online.

Laura said,

Be flexible with travel dates–experience new places when the price is right and earn miles along the way

Use farecompare.com searcher to get best deals regarding cost per mile and to find those new places to see. http://www.farecompare.com/search/flyertalk.html

Stay loyal to one airline to get even more miles with elite bonus miles!

Take advantage of promos & join flyertalk.com community to keep up with the latest.

Always look for the new route bonuses!

Get a AMEX credit card that gives you airline miles (for me Delta Plat) per $ spend and charge everything paying balance off at end of the month. Track what you spend and when you hit the annual spending that gives you the bonus miles–switch to a 2nd AMEX point card (for me SPG Amex).

If looking for award tickets to Europe, always call the agents and be patient and very kind to them–they will work it for you and search all of the partner sites too. It has taken me some time on the phone but they have always been able to find me a low mileage award ticket even on short notice for Europe in the summer If by chance they can’t find anything then at least you were nice to them anyway as I am sure that is always welcome.

Don’t overlook discount European airlines if you can not get into your desired European destination–fly into where the award is low if you can coordinate a cheap flight to your desired destination.

And most importantly—Enjoy life & the adventures!

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Alissa said,

Don’t let your miles expire due to inactivity! To keep them active, either buy some token miles or redeem a small amount for a magazine subscription. Or better yet book a flight!!

NW said,

When booking an award ticket with miles, use allowed free stopovers to get the most value out of your miles and see new places that you may not otherwise have seen.

Zabes said,

Make sure every fare/hotel you stay at “actually” earns points, I don’t know how many times people book something and they end up not earning points on it. Look for promotions and BE FLEXIBLE when it comes to redeeming. The farther out you can book the better off you are!

Steve said,

Have flexibility with your dates, think outside of the box on routings, and be nice to the people helping you on the reservation!

Karol said,

Nothing beats the Starwood Amex card. Easiest way we’ve found to earn and use points. Starwood also has the excellent cash+points option which I haven’t seen from other loyalty programs.

Paula said,

Use your point earning credit card for EVERYTHING Yes, I mean EVERYTHING (but pay it off at the end of the month of course). I even use it in the soda machine at work. And be sure to sign up for all of the extras such as ‘dining for miles’, special airline promotions, and miles earning surveys. Fun to watch the miles add up.

John MacDonald said,

Mileage cards are often the best bang for the credit card buck, and Amex often does have the better mileage offers than many other cards. I personally prefer to get cash back on my cards, though, and spend it as I choose. (Up to 4%).

Can’t really come up with anything better for building miles than have already reported on. Choosing an alliance that services your local airport(s) to destinations that you tend to fly to, sticking with that alliance when possible, and picking the longer route if available that’ll still get you there on time.

karenkay said,

don’t ignore status in hotels. when i started, i collected united miles but still stayed at priceline hotels. after learning a bit more, i started spending a bit more money but also collecting starwood points. now, i might pay a bit more for my hotel stays overall, but instead of the room with the view of the parking lot i’m in a suite with free internet…and for vacations, my room is free! you don’t get that with priceline.

Christian said,

Select one mileage program per alliance based on your expected earning and redemption patterns, then maximize earning by participating in all promotions, partner/credit card offers, etc. – the boarding area blogs and flyertalk are the perfect places to stay up to date.

Matt O'Hara said,

Pay for all purchases with a mileage earning credit card.

FT:pshuang said,

At the same time that you want to focus your earning on specific programs, remember — you didn’t get married to your primary frequent flier program. Sometimes you will be better off just buying the best available value even if that won’t earn points in your primary program.

Helen said,

If your airline miles or hotel points are expiring, you can order something from a partner vendor to keep your account active (and earn points at the same time).

chontz said,

I go through my “travel checklist” before every trip that includes bringing a printout of all my FF and FH account numbers. Just in case I have to switch flights or hotels.

Jason R. said,

Use a credit card that awards points for money spent on it. It is an easy way to collect points each month without flying.

Michael K said,

Find several (in our family, three) credit cards that are free or very low cost, and that have good points programs with elite (silver, platinum, etc) bonuses. Then split up your charges (for us, reaching $20K per year on each card does the trick to get elite status.

Connie said,

When dining out with a group of friends and the bill comes on one ticket they always choose to pay cash. I take all their cash and then pay the entire bill – along with my portion of course – on my credit card simply to get the miles.

I’m disciplined enough to put the cash in my banking account and make a payment towards the credit card right away.

Kelly said,

Save. Go in style. If you have “world points” or any sort of airline reward points, use those for big trips. Use smaller trips you can pay for “out of pocket” on your credit card towards more reward points.

Frederic Sautet said,

You don’t need to be a customer of an airline to take advantage of their loyalty programme – think alliances. For example, I am one of BMI’s best customers despite having never flown on one of their flights. The same has been true of Air Canada in the past.

Pei said,

Use your miles to travel to exotic places, such as Norway, where the tickets are extremely expensive. Sometimes, you don’t even have to plan way ahead, because not many people redeem miles for those places

Then, make the trip a open-jaw or a stop-over to get even better value of your miles!

Joaquim67 said,

Get yourself a mileage earning credit card!

If you are going to spend money, then why not spend it and earn something back at the same time?

Leon said,

Redeem your miles for premium class tickets to overseas, or Hawaii, and Alaska. These are among the best value of your miles. Always plan ahead, usually you can book your award travels 330 days in advance. Keep that information in mind whenever you are thinking a nice trip. Good luck to us all!

Johnny said,

There’s nothing wrong with a year-end mattress run or mileage run! Do what you need to do to keep your status – especially if you’re at the highest tier. Otherwise, you’ll regret it the next year…

Diane said,

I use my hotel credit card to pay my elderly mother’s
pharmacy bill each month then have her pay me back.
I tell her it’s just easier for me to pay with the credit card than getting a check from her to pay the bill and I rack up a lot of points each year this way .

Marco said,

1 Consider using your airline rewards for upgrades to first class or business class.
2 Read flyertalk and the blogs like this
3 Plan ahead for better availability
4 some good luck

laurie said,

Try to use some of the new one way awards, often these have more availability than the regular standard (25K) awards. I have found them to be available when I cannot a round trip.

Sean said,

Keep a positive attitude and the longview about reaching your destination. Actual airtime goes quickly when you are calm and content.

David said,

Attend the 6th Annual Ann Arbor Art Fair DO. This year is devoted to discussing the ins and outs of award ticket booking. It is the perfect opportunity to network with fellow points and miles fiends. Details available at Flyertalk.com

Oliver said,

Follow blogs with an RSS reader to efficiently keep up with promos and deals.

RONG said,

read troy’s blog and visit http://www.mitbbs.com/club_bbsdoc/FLY.html

Matthew said,

Try out B&Bs instead of major western hotel chains. I’ve always enjoyed them more in retrospect.

Lilia Lewis said,

Do your homework! Know EVERYTHING about the loyalty rewards program you chose: one-time promotions, how to get bonus points, who are the partners, etc.
Every time you make a reservation/pay for something (store, hotel, restaurant, purchase on-line, concert, trip to a museum, etc) remember to check if you can use your loyalty card. EVERY LITTLE BIT ADDS UP!!!

Ryan K said,

Keep an eye on the information available here at BoardingArea.com, it’s a lot less cluttered and clear that what you have to wade through on Flyertalk!

Bill said,

Keep it simple! Choose one loyalty program that best suits your personal needs. They sometimes change so get updates, because what you don’t know about your loyalty program can hurt you.

Erik E said,

My advice would be to “get loyal” with a favorite hotel chain/ airline/ rental car company – higher level loyal members, Starwood Platinums, Hyatt Diamonds, United 1ks, for example not only earn base points but bonus points for these member classifications, as well as other perks and upgrades (free) that rewards the loyal frequent traveler.

Also, using a branded credit card to pay for these hotel rooms and plane tickets (United’s Visa, Starwood’s Amex, for example) have a way of being a point multiplier for increased earnings ad well.

Marisa said,

Do the math. Even if a domestic ticket seems expensive, it’s almost never worth it to burn miles. Save them for your international trips.

taylor said,

If you get a rep that says it cant be done, hang up and call again until you get a rep that will work with you and is knowledgeable. Try try try again.

Shedbasher said,

Points are in the details, understand where the bonuses are and how to get them as cheaply as possible. Don’t spread yourself to thin between too many programs

Then to spend them, plan as early as possible and do the research on miles required, could find a steal where you least expect it. (e.g. when nwa.com was still up during transition)

IndyDavid said,

As I’ve gotten older, my time has become more valuable and I’ve had more disposable income. Therefore, I recommend being a little more willing to spend money instead of sacrifice time to build mileage balances.

On Continental, I have the Presidental Plus credit card, which gives a 25% redeemable miles bonus. I pay in advance for the Extra Mile bonus, which is another 50%. I have Platinum status, offering a 100% bonus. And I frequently purchase B fares, which are upgradeable at booking and earn 150% EQM, good for keeping status.

Lisa said,

follow travel sites on Twitter for special offers and be sure to know loyalty programs partners

Sara said,

Use a European airline program for your car rental miles – they normally give 1000 miles per booking, as opposed to 50 a day for US airlines.

Mbelle said,

concentrate on one or two programs and learn the rules in order to maximize earnings and redemptions

MS said,

Earn/consolidate to one frequent flyer program of an alliance. Always check the ‘Fare basis code’. Starwood Preferred Guest card is best credit card for earning miles, gives 5k bonus for redeeming 20k miles to 30 different FFP program.

Zheng said,

Air miles and some hotel points expire. When you sign up to earn these miles, ask the related parties how long you have to accrue the points, how long they are valid and if there are policies on extending earned miles or awards. Be careful!

Susan said,

To maximize use of your miles, travel on airlines that have shared mileage agreements. When you need to use miles that require more than you have in one account, transfer the partner miles to the chosen account and you’re off to your chosen destination.

carole1 said,

dont save your points forever, us them. so much to see in the world and so little time to see them.

Istvan said,

If you only travel a moderate amount, make every hotel stay one night and then switch hotels for the next night. This is the quickest way to elite levels at the hotel chains. The hotels always require less stays than nights to reach elite levels, so by switching hotels nightly, you can earn elite status with just 2-3 stays per month. Once you have status, you’ll start earning additional bonus points and upgrades.

Buddy said,

The best advice I ever received is to pick one carrier/alliance and one hotel chain and stick with it. It’s much better to be the top of one program than the middle of many. You want all of the points you achieve to get you the most you possibly can, not spread out across different alliances or chains.

Andrew said,

Stick with one alliance to maximize your mileage earning abilities; make sure you check mileage earning on partners (you never know which airlines/rental car companies/hotels/credit cards/etc. partner with one another!). Save those miles for your dream first-class trip anywhere! Luxurious air travel is the best way to get the most out of your miles.

Thanks!

Marcia MacDonald said,

Pick an alliance, use it. Pay for everything with your miles card. Use any opportunity for double and triple miles offers. Use up the miles before the airline goes out of business.

Nancy said,

Earn every chance you can and credit to as few programs as possible (consolidate). For example, credit flights to one airline program per alliance and when staying at a hotel outside your “preferred” hotel program(s), try to credit to an airline rather than holding just a couple of points in every program.

boxo said,

Read Boarding Area blogs – they boil down the fluff into the nitty gritty. Join Flyertalk and forge invaluable friendships with people who can help cover all the bases. They got my back!

Wayne said,

Study flyertalk.com and sign up for every program. I sharply regret the stays and flights I made before enrolling thinking a one night stay here and there it was not worth it.

Halothane said,

Use the miles. Don’t hang onto them!

Anne said,

Don’t let your accumulated miles take on too much OR too little importance; use them as a tool that fits your personal circumstances. If you don’t often travel internationally, resist the urge to hoard miles for international vacations. If you need a quick, last-minute flight to visit an ailing relative or get to a job interview, use your miles! Put your miles to work for the things that matter to you.

Kim said,

Don’t ignore the hotel side of award trips. A one-week vacation will set you back just as much in hotels as airfare, so maximize your hotel stays. I like the Starwood American Express card because of the flexibility of the points, good award availability and options (eg. cash+points, redeem 4 nights and get 1 free), and the nice properties. And you can transfer the points to airlines if you want.

Kim

Jonell said,

Leave good instructions for your heirs on how to access your miles in all your accounts. You don’t want them to go to waste– rather, you want your kids to be able to use them should you die unexpectedly. Once the airline knows you’re gone, they will probably lock your miles.

YJ said,

Stay tuned for boardingarea blogs