Many have probably dismissed the notion of this travel methodology based on the fact 270,000 points were required for my flights. If you don’t travel regularly (I don’t either, by the way), the shear amount of points needed can revert you back to spending thousands of dollars on a ticket unnecessarily. It is very possible, however, for an infrequent flier to accumulate 270,000 points very easily.
The bulk of the points I earn aren’t accumulated through an alliance to any particular airline. To start, I suggest having a destination in mind. Once you’ve jumped that hurdle, determine what carriers service the spot. My destination is Hong Kong, which I selected because I knew Cathay Pacific serviced the area. I assume many reading this post have never heard of Cathay Pacific Airlines. But, have you heard of the Oneworld Alliance? The Oneworld Alliance is a band of numerous airlines allowing points earned in one frequent flier program to be bookable on flights of other alliance member’s carriers. My points were acquired through the American Airlines Advantage Program and, lucky for me, Cathay Pacific and American Airlines part of Oneworld. (It should be noted that I have not flown on American Airlines since I was a teenager and, as a teenager, I did not accrue frequent flyer miles. All the miles were acquired through means other than frequent travel.)
My initial plan was to use my points to purchase four roundtrip tickets to Hawaii. When the trip never materialized I was forced to consider the impending expiration date attached to my American Advantage points. American Advantage utilizes a simple use-it-or-lose-it deadline system. New points-travelers beware- points can devalue at any given time so it is not advisable to stockpile them with no intended purpose. With a destination in mind all the unknowns can be worked out. The next step is to join the frequent flier programs of airlines you use to reach your destination (enrollment is free).
Prior to my trip to Italy in the Fall of 2011, I stumbled across an article about how I could use my good credit to travel free. At the time, Citi was offering several American Airlines co-branded credit cards with bonuses totaling 75,000 American Advantage points per card if you were approved and spent $2500 in three months. They offered Visa and American Express products both subject to the bonus. I applied for both cards at the same time using the two browser trick detailed here and was approved. All I had to do was spend $5,000 in three months. With an upcoming trip to Italy and a child going to college for the first time the spending was not an issue for me. Before I knew it, I had 150,000 points, enough for any number of trip combinations. As a newbie to the points traveling hobby, I thought that I could get the sign-on bonus and use it for my airfare to Italy. Things didn’t quite turn out that way. It happens that Italy is a very popular Fall destination and, as such, award availability was scarce by the time I had enough points for the flight. I elected to purchase a paid fare and bank the accumulated miles. As I mentioned earlier, American Airlines Advantage miles have a term for use . With my deadline approaching, I decided those points would fund my trip to Asia.
Let’s backtrack a bit and briefly visit the spending $5,000 in 3 months. Who does that?! Believe me when I say that it can easily be done without compromising your budget, even without extraordinary expenses like college (I’ll detail how in a later post). I must caution that if you are not disciplined with credit cards or carry a balance this hobby is not for you. I do not spend any more than normal, I do not have debt other than my mortgage, I do not carry a balance, and my credit score has not suffered. In reference to credit scores, if you are planning on a refinance or are in need of a loan of any significant amount, I strongly advise that you refrain from applying for credit cards for some time. My credit score has not been impacted other than, perhaps, a 15-point fluctuation shortly after I complete my credit card churns. I get this a lot to absorb but stick with me and I promise, it will all start to make sense.
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