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With a bit of effort, it's possible to fly anywhere in the world for a pretty reasonable price. The best way to do this is with airline reward points.
Airline reward points, also called frequent flyer miles, are given by airlines to encourage and reward brand loyalty among passengers. Typically one reward mile or point is given per mile flown on that airline (or a partner airline). Collect enough points in a year and you receive perks such as 'Elite Status,' complimentary upgrades to First/Business Class seats, and access to airport lounges (with free food, drinks, wifi, comfortable seating, etc).
But the real bonus is cashing in points for travel.
Pro tip: you can also cash in your frequent flyer points for merchandise and gift cards. I'm not one for telling people what to do, but DON'T EVER DO THIS!!! Using your miles could get you from Boston to the Yucatan. Or it could get you a $100 gift card to Old Navy.
The concept of 'free travel' is dead and gone, but this is the closest you can get to it: for a certain number of points plus the ever-present taxes & fees, you can go places. Lots of places, both near and far.
Here's what you need to know:
Each major airline has a loyalty program. They also partner with other airlines that will complement their routes, e.g. Delta, Air France and AeroMexico will allow you to earn and redeem points in Alaska Airlines' Mileage Plan Program. Here in Canada, I can earn and redeem miles in Air Canada's Aeroplan on United Airlines. And so on.
Partner airlines are grouped into networks, of which there are three major networks:
- Star Alliance: 28 member airlines, including United, Air Canada, Lufthansa and Air New Zealand.
- SkyTeam: 17 member airlines, including Delta, AeroMexico, Air France and KLM.
- OneWorld: 12 member airlines, including British Airways, American Airlines and Cathay Pacific.
However, it makes little sense to have two or more memberships within the same network; it's not possible to combine the points for a reward ticket. For example, I cannot take 18000 United frequent flyer miles and 37000 Aeroplan miles to get a 55000 first-class ticket to Europe. So pick one loyalty program per network from a carrier you will likely use and bank the miles from flying on their partner airlines to that membership account.
The two reward programs I frequently use are Air Canada's Aeroplan in the Star Alliance network, and Alaska Airlines' Mileage Plan, which crosses over to partner airlines in SkyTeam and OneWorld networks. These allow me to fly just about anywhere in the world using their mileage plans. I do have memberships to British Airways and American Airlines but have yet to use them.
Truly the fastest way to accumulate reward points, short of taking back to back round-the-world trips, is through a credit card sign-up bonus. Most airline credit cards give an initial bonus large enough for a short-haul flight (which you, as you'll read below, might not use for a short-haul flight once I'm done with you).
Signing up for credit cards might not be for everyone, for whatever reason. And carrying a balance for any length of time will quickly negate any savings you will receive from cashing in points for travel. But if you can pay off your balance every month, signing up for credit card bonuses and using it for your day-to-day spending is a great way to accumulate reward miles for travel.
I have a CIBC Aeroplan Visa and and American Express Aeroplan card, both of which gave an initial bonus of 15,000 Aeroplan miles. That's 30,000 miles without stepping foot into an airport. Combine that with miles accrued through travel that year (~48,000) and I have over 78,000 Aeroplan miles, without charging a cent to the cards.
Select retailers may partner up with airlines to offer additional chances to accumulate points. For example: Esso offers 1 Aeroplan mile for every $3 spent on gasoline. If it takes $75 to fill your tank, you would receive 25 Aeroplan miles. But using an Aeroplan-branded credit card gets 1 mile per dollar charged, so your $75 gasoline fill-up nets you 100 Aeroplan miles. Filling up every two weeks can mean 2600 Aeroplan miles over the course of a year. It's not much, but if you're filling up every two weeks anyway, wouldn't it be nice to get a little something in return?
Pro tip: Regarding those short-haul flights I eluded to above: it's isn't always worth it to cash in points for them. Sure you might save yourself $150-$400 by using 15,000 - 25,000 points. But when you consider how much flying (or spending) you have to do to accumulate those points, it might be best to hold off using those points and save them for a longer (& more expensive) flight. If you purchase the ticket with an airline credit card, collecting miles, and also gain miles for flying, you might find yourself better off for it. This is up to you and your circumstances. Take some time to work out a little cost-benefit analysis to see what will work best for you (sorry, I took a lot of economics courses back in uni).
There are loads of resources on the web on getting the most out of frequent flyer programs. It even has a name: Travel Hacking. Google it.
Two of my favourite people writing about travel hacking are:
- Chris Guillebeau - Chris writes at the Art of Nonconformity and has published a couple books. You can read his Beginner's Guide to Travel Hacking, or visit his Travel Hacking Cartel (subscription service).
- Tyler Tervooren - Tyler writes at Advanced Riskology. He occasionally writes about travel hacking, and has published a handy PDF guide on planning budget adventures.
Check out what Chris & Tyler have to say about points plans. It seems to work for them.
It also works for me. My return ticket from Fredericton to Belize City for my upcoming trip cost me $60 out of pocket. Bam.
Happy trails.
Happy trails.
As always, any comments, questions or additional tips are welcomed in the comments section.
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