RewardExpert.com is an independent website that is supported by advertising. RewardExpert.com may be compensated by credit card issuers whose offers appear on the site. Because we are paid by our advertising partners it may impact placement of products on the site, including the order in which they appear. Not all available credit card issuers or card offers are included on the site.

How to Get In The Free Travel Game

icon-comments 0 Comments
free ticket

What if you could travel for free whenever you want to get away? It seems far-fetched, but some people do it and it may not be as difficult as you think.

Free travel, sometimes called travel hacking or travel rewards, is all about collecting points or miles and redeeming them for free airline tickets, hotel rooms, gift cards or cash.

The truth is, card issuers and loyalty programs love to entice you with points and miles but offer almost no help in making the process easy to navigate. And you have to be careful. Banks are good at what they do. They know that most people will spend more and pay more interest than what they earn in rewards so unless you’re financially disciplined, be very careful.

Airline Travel Is Best

The top prize is almost always an airline ticket. Redeeming points or miles for free lodging, gift cards or cash should usually be a last resort when points are about to expire and/or you don’t have time to travel.

While airline travel is the best way to use miles and points, it is also the most complicated. Sites like RewardExpert can untangle the complex web of rules and regulations and help you plan for the least expensive flight with the lowest fees – and do it all in the shortest time frame.

Have A Travel Goal

Where do you want to go? Having some idea of where you would like to travel will provide incentive to stay organized and stick to the strategy. Your travel goal can be as simple as “Go to Hawaii,” or “Visit Alaska.” Pick something and write it down.

travel goal
You could be on your dream vacation this time next year if you plan it right

You should start this process long before you actually want to go – a year in advance is not too extreme. The goal also gives you incentive to save money and work the free travel game system.

Sign Up For Programs

Sign up for frequent flyer and loyalty programs for airlines and hotels. (Don’t worry. Signup is free.) When just starting out most experts suggest signing up for only a few programs – based on airlines you would fly anyway or hotel chains you prefer.

Credit Card Travel Rewards

Some people go no further than signing up for frequent flyer club memberships and loyalty programs. They collect points and miles when they travel and eventually accumulate enough for a free trip or night in a hotel.

If you want to supercharge your efforts, consider getting a travel rewards credit card. If you have a credit score of 700 or higher, you will likely have access to some very good to excellent travel reward credit card deals.

If your credit score is below 700 or you have a significant amount of credit card debt, it might be best to get rid of the debt and raise your credit score before going this route. (There are cards available for those with less than excellent credit ratings but caution is advised.)

travel card
Travel credit cards offer great benefits

Finding The Best Travel Rewards Credit Cards

Start by checking any credit cards you already have and use to see what rewards they offer. Chances are you’ll have to apply for a new credit card to get the best rewards.

Fortunately, that’s easy to do and also makes you eligible for any available sign-up bonus that could have you flying (almost) free in no time at all.

One way to find the best travel rewards credit card is to search for it online. Such a search on Google will bring up many “best travel card” lists.

RewardExpert guides you to specific programs and credit cards to reach your travel goal.

Sign-Up Bonuses, Minimum Spends And Annual Fees

The 3 most important factors when choosing a card are sign-up bonus, minimum spend and annual fee.

The sign-up bonus consists of free points or miles added to your card when you sign up and the minimum spend is the amount you must put on the card within a specific time frame (typically 3 months) in order to get the bonus.

The best cards offer a bonus of 40,000 to 50,000 points or miles. The minimum spend varies but often ranges from a low of about $1,000 to a high of $5,000 or more.

According to one study, the average annual credit card fee in 2015 was $58. Many cards waive the fee the first year but you can often negotiate the fee away or just get rid of the card after the first year.

Credit Card Cautions

Getting travel rewards from a credit card, including canceling an old card and getting a new one to take advantage of the sign-up bonus, is a great way to up your game, but does require hardcore discipline.

First, you absolutely cannot hold a balance month-to-month. No exceptions. Maintaining a balance means you will pay interest – often higher with travel rewards credit cards. Interest will wipe out your rewards before you can say “free travel.”

In addition, you have to meet the minimum spend requirements for your new card. Using the card to pay bills or make a large purchase are only a couple of effective topics. Search online for ways to meet minimum spend requirements for more information.

Register Everything

An important part of free travel strategy is organization and the best way to organize your various frequent flyer, loyalty programs and credit cards is to register them. RewardExpert has an online wallet you can use to register your programs and cards.

register your program
Register your cards and programs at RewardExpert to find the best travel strategy

Be Loyal

The whole point of loyalty programs is to “be loyal.” In other words, keep staying at your favorite hotel chain and keep flying your favorite airline (or one that is affiliated and lets you transfer miles and points to your primary program).

Airlines and hotel chains do have affiliates or belong to affiliate organizations that give you more flexibility in your travel choices than you might think.

Keep Learning

Information provided here is just to get you started. Taking advantage of the free travel game is a fun hobby and an excellent way to save money while seeing the world, but it involves continuing education.

Check out RewardExpert to help you navigate the free travel game. Our site takes you all the way from picking a travel destination to redeeming your points or miles for that all-important airline ticket.

Editorial Disclosure: Opinions expressed here are author's alone, not those of any bank, credit card issuer, hotel, airline, or other entity. This content has not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of the entities included within the post.

UGC Disclosure: The responses below are not provided or commissioned by the bank advertiser. Responses have not been reviewed, approved, or otherwise endorsed by the bank advertiser. It is not the bank advertiser's responsibility to ensure all posts and/or questions are answered.

The Best Apps for Tracking Miles and Points

0 Comments
The Best Apps for Tracking Miles and Points

One of the first things you need to do when you start collecting points and miles is get the right app to keep track of your accounts. You’ll never have to worry about points expiring, forgetting passwords or losing account numbers again, and you’ll always know how many points and miles you have. And while some apps are dedicated to tracking, you might be better off with an all-around good travel app like Tripit, which offers miles tracking in its pro version.

We’ve put together a list of mobile apps for tracking your miles. Some of them do a whole lot more than just organize your accounts like rewardexpert.com, though there is not an app version yet. The service helps you set a travel goal and earn miles towards it. Some of these other apps have options for organizing itineraries, tracking flights, making reservations and more.

Tripit

The basic Tripit service can’t be beat for organizing an itinerary, including flight information, restaurant reservations, special events, meetings and even driving directions to your hotel. You can either link your email account to the service so it automatically creates an itinerary for you based on reservation confirmations or you can forward the emails.

You won’t have to search through printouts or emails for car rental information or hotel reservations again. Plus, you can share your itinerary, which means family, friends and colleagues will always know where you are.

tripit-has-great-app-available-for-all-devices
Tripit Pro, the upgraded version of the app, has the added benefit of allowing you to track points and miles. While the service costs $49 a year, it’s also the most feature-packed app on our list.

You’ll get real-time flight tracking, including alerts for delays, cancellations and gate changes. It can even help you get home if you’re stuck at the airport by finding you an alternative flight.

Tripit Pro’s seat tracker notifies you when the seat you want becomes available, keeping you out of the dreaded middle seat. It will also tell you if a cheaper seat becomes available on your flight and if you’re eligible for a refund.

The team over at Tripit is adding more features all the time, too. In addition to regularly updating the interface to make it more user friendly, they’ve recently added support for Android Wear, partnered with Rome2Rio to include airport ground transportation options and even embraced the Pokemon GO craze, allowing users to add Pokestops to their itineraries.

If you’re a frequent traveler, you need to check out Tripit Pro. You can try it out for free for 30 days.

AwardWallet

This is the original and most popular option for tracking your points and miles . Started in 2004, AwardWallet has the most comprehensive list of supported rewards programs. While other services track around 150 programs, AwardWallet supports more than 600.

award-wallet-can-track-many-rewards-programs
The free version of this app allows you to track your balances, as well as usernames, passwords and account numbers for an unlimited number of programs. You can include family and friends in your account if you’re helping others keep track of their miles, and you’ll receive notifications when your points are about to expire.

You can donate an amount of your choice to upgrade to AwardWallet Plus, which includes a history of your balances and the ability to export information to a spreadsheet. This is a fairly basic program, but it’s good at what it does. With over 400,000 active users, you know you’re getting a solid product.

Loyalty Wallet

In addition to providing the backend technology for a lot of rewards programs, Points.com offers Loyalty Wallet to individuals and businesses. This is another free option for keeping track of your balances.

loyalty-wallet-gives-an-opportunity-to-transfer-points
Though it doesn’t support a lot of rewards programs compared to AwardWallet, Loyalty Wallet does offer one very unique feature: you can transfer points between programs. The drawback is that you’ll typically get a poor exchange rate. In general it isn’t worth it, but it might be if you have points you’ll never use languishing in a forgotten account.

Other Sites You Should Know About

These websites and apps don’t keep track your rewards programs, but they do offer valuable services you should know about:

  • ExpertFlyer: This useful tool helps you search for award seats and upgrades for $4.99 a month. The $9.99-a-month subscription will alert you when new award seats become available on specific flights. The free version lets you set up seat alerts to help you snag a window or aisle.
  • FlightAware: A free flight tracker with the most up-to-date information since it gathers data directly from air traffic control systems around the world.
  • LoungeBuddy: Find the closest lounge to your gate, what amenities are available, how much it will cost and how other users rate it. It also tracks which lounges are free if you have elite status or access with a credit card or other rewards programs.

  • SeatGuru: Get accurate seat layouts and other information for your next flight before selecting a seat. Don’t get stuck in a narrow seat that doesn’t recline.
  • Award Mapper: A simple website with a map-based interface that tells you which hotels belong to various rewards programs.

The sheer number of travel websites and mobile apps can be overwhelming, but it’s worth investigating what’s available. Whether you’re on a dream vacation or a business trip, they can make your travels go more smoothly. And if you’re saving up points and miles for free flights, staying organized with the right app is indispensable.

Show Full Article
0