Flying for Free:
Air Miles Add Up
by Kevin Revolinski
How Can I Fly for Free?
Become a flight attendant. For those of you elsewise employed, however, the answer is air miles. Here’s the thing about air miles: many of the people who earn enough of them to travel, don’t have the time or desire to use them. Most of the people who want them, don’t feel they can get them. They don’t travel enough to accumulate a significant amount.
But there are a variety of ways you can get the miles you want.
Got miles?
Those of you with the surplus have a couple options for that over-eager odometer. The first is look into what else you can get besides airline tickets. Look for alternative rewards from flowers for your honey to TVs and electronics; many of the companies that have special relationships with your air miles program will issue gift certificates. Some programs provide ways you can donate to a favorite charity. And if all else fails, hey, be a buddy and redeem a reward for that special friend or relative who doesn’t get around enough.
Got nothin’?
Despite often earning a boatload of miles (I am a travel writer after all) I can use them up rather quickly. So what can you do to get that free ticket faster?
Sometimes the obvious is overlooked. Sign up! That’s right, I’ve bumped into many travelers who find themselves on an airline they usually don’t travel. You must register for air miles before the journey. Air miles programs are free, so get on top of that. If you are already a miles club member you can usually claim those miles after the fact if you forgot to give them your account number before the flight. But this can also be a headache when the qualifying miles are on an affiliated airline rather than the prime carrier of your program. (And that’s another point. Some airlines miles can be credited to other airlines. You can earn American Airline miles on a NWA flight and vice versa.)
What’s in your wallet (or purse, money belt or the secret pocket sewn in your underwear, oh Clever One)? You’ve seen the credit card commercials, but there’s not just one card out there giving rewards. Some are wedded to a particular airline which may seem a little restrictive, but there still may be some flexibility there, particularly if the airline has an agreement with other airlines.
Make sure you know how easy or hard it is to get your rewards. My cards are directly affiliated and the miles go into my account every month. Any hassles would be directly with the airline. However, Capital One claims to make it easy. Orbitz also offers their own card.
Some cards come with annual companion tickets, another bonus to figure into the equation. Sign up bonuses and spending rewards add up faster for me than even my round-the-world trips. I took a credit card with a sign-up bonus of 20,000 miles. That’s very close to a round-trip ticket in the US. Put all your bills on one card and take advantage of periodic double miles offers and the miles just start piling up.
Read your fine print. Some have annual fees and if you are “taking advantage” of their whopping interest rates at times, probably you should just cut the cards and pay cash for the tickets—you’re not gaining anything here. For cards that waive the first year’s fee, call them up to cancel at 11.5 months and you may be surprised how quickly they can find you a fee-free alternative.
Got an American Airlines account but you’re flying NWA? Or you’ve got a United account and want a ticket on Thai Airways? Find out the airline’s alliance. The miles may be transferable to the partner airline.
One World Alliance Members http://www.oneworld.com/ow/member-airlines
Star Alliance Members http://www.staralliance.com/en/meta/airlines/index.html
SkyTeam Members http://www.skyteam.com/EN/aboutSkyteam/aboutSkyTeam.jsp
Check out emiles.com and their minutes for miles operation. You provide marketing info, and earn 5-200 miles in a few seconds just looking at an ad and clicking your opinion or taking a cheap subscription to the New York Times. Shoppers will find some nice offers here; I’m just there for the mileage though.