How much will you spend on holiday shopping this year? According to PricewaterhouseCoopers the average shopper will spend about $1,100 although many will spend more.

When you add to that the amount spent on food, entertainment and other holiday expenses, this time of year represents a tremendous rewards opportunity for savvy travel hackers. It’s just a matter of knowing how to buy travel hacker style.

There are two traits needed  if you want to excel at booking free airline award tickets and hotel rooms on points. The first is the knack for planning in advance sometimes up to an entire year. The second trait is the opposite: the flexibility to take advantage of spur-of-the-moment opportunities like booking a trip at the last minute within weeks or even days of departure.