Frequent Flyer Miles
What are Frequent Flyer Miles?
What is the best airline?
How does it work?
What about shorter trips?
I have heard about getting miles from hotel stays and rental cars.
What about
credit cards that give frequent flyer miles?
How can I calculate the
benefits?
How do I redeem my miles?
Do I get "second-class" treatment by the airline when I fly?
Can I sell my
frequent flyer miles to someone else?
What are Frequent Flyer Miles?
Knowing how to get the best of the airline frequent flyer mile promotions is
key to cheap travel. After all, no price is better than "free" for traveling.
Airline reward their best customers with free air travel.You, too, can fly
for free by accumulating frequent flyer miles and redeeming them for air travel.
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What is the best airline?
The best airline to pick for your frequent flyer program is one that flies
where you want to fly. Do you or your family members live near a smaller airport
that has only a few carriers? You are better off picking one of those airlines
and concentrating your travel with them. If you live in a larger city where
there are many airlines from which to choose, then look carefully at their
different frequent flyer programs and choose accordingly.
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How does it work?
Many people are under the false impression that the miles flown = free miles
later. This is not true. Most frequent flyer mile programs award you the actual
miles flown, but require 20,000 to 25,000 miles at redemption time to get one
domestic round-trip ticket.
For example, a trip from New York to Los Angeles is approximately 3,000
miles. You would have to make more than eight of these trips (8 x 3,000 = 24,000
miles, or four round trips) to be able to redeem one domestic round trip ticket.
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What about shorter trips?
Usually the airlines guarantee a certain minimum miles, like 500 miles, even
for short flights. For example, from Dallas to Wichita is 345 miles,
but you will get 500 frequent flyer miles.
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I
have heard about getting miles from hotel stays and rental cars.
Yes, you can get frequent flyer miles from other travel-related activities
like staying in a hotel or renting a car. Once you sign up for a frequent-flyer
mile program you will receive ads telling you about their various partners and
how to earn miles. The wise traveler uses these partners only if their prices
are in line with what they would have paid otherwise. In other words, don't pay
a high price for a hotel just to get frequent flyer miles if a lower-priced
hotel would suit your needs.
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What
about credit cards that give frequent flyer miles?
Signing up for a credit card affiiated with a frequent flyer mile program is
a great way to accumulate miles for your everyday purchases. However, credit
card finance charges and other fees can quickly wipe out any benefit from
frequent flyer miles. If you want to maximize your frequent flyer miles
benefits, you must not ever carry a balance on the credit card. Can you honestly
say to yourself:
- I will use this credit card only for purchases that I could afford without
the card.
- I will pay the credit card balance in full every month on time.
This is good advice for any credit card, not just frequent flyer mile cards.
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How can I calculate the
benefits?
A single frequent flyer mile is worth about 2 cents in air travel. Let's say
you belong to a program that will redeem a domestic round trip ticket for 20,000
miles. That is about $400 worth of travel, at 2 cents/mile. Using your 20,000
miles for a trip that costs less than $400 is not making good use of your miles.
If you have to fly from Los Angeles to San Francisco and can make advance
reservations, for example, don't use frequent flyer miles. But, if you have to
fly from Los Angeles to New York for a last minute family emergency, then using
your frequent flyer miles makes much more sense, as a last-minute full fare
ticket could cost around $1000.
If you have an affinity credit card where you get frequent flyer miles, then
you usually get one mile for every dollar spent on the credit card. This means
you are getting approximately a 2% rebate on your credit card purchases. If the
credit card costs $50/year, then you have to get at least $50 back in frequent
flyer miles before you gain anything. In other words, you would have to charge
$2,500 on your credit card before coming out ahead. If you do not think that you
will charge at least that much on the credit card in the course of a year, then
you are best without it.
There are different types of affinity credit cards. The first type gives you
miles on one particular airline. The second gives you miles for a variety of
airlines. At first glance the second affinity credit card sounds like a better
deal, that is until you read the fine print. In order to redeem the frequent
flyer miles, you have to go through their agency, and you are limited to advance
purchase, restricted tickets. These frequent flyer miles are useless if you
need them for a last minute, emergency trip.
Usually miles collected in an airline frequent flyer mile program can be
redeemed for even last minute, emergency travel. Think about your situation,
where you live and who you might want to visit in an emergency. Where do your
family members live? If family members live near cities serviced by one
particular airline, then concentrate your frequent flyer miles on that airline,
and, therefore, you will be prepared for last-minute travel. If, on the other
hand, you find yourself flying to destinations served by several different
airlines, if you want to fly to popular destinations where the airline
seat-restricted FFM is routinely sold out and if you tend to make advance reservations, then the multi-airline
affinity card might be best for you. Regardless, ask questions in advance to
avoid accumlating miles that you will never be able to use.
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How do I redeem my miles?
Once you have enough miles for a trip, then you phone the airline's frequent
flyer mile desk and make your reservations. Just call their main number, punch
the numbers for reservations, then tell the reservation clerk that you are
redeeming frequent flyer miles. That clerk may take your reservation, or pass
you to a specialist.
Be aware that many flights have limited numbers of seats that are available
for frequent flyer miles tickets. Even though the flight has many open seats,
the frequent flyer mile allottment may have been filled. This is especially true
for popular routes like trips to Hawaii or the Caribbean. You must be flexible
on dates, route and time of travel, and you are well advised to get your
reservations in early. If you know you will fly to these popular destinations,
then the multi-airline affinity card might be best for you.
Important: Tell them you are redeeming frequent flyer miles BEFORE
making your reservations.
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Do I get "second-class" treatment by the airline when I fly?
Not at all. You will be treated as any other passenger flying in your part of
the plane (coach, business or first class). The flight attendants will pay no
attention to the fact that you are flying for free. In fact, you might have
better seats due to the fact that you made your reservations early and had a
wide choice of seats.
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Can I sell
my frequent flyer miles to someone else?
No. In general, most airlines prohibit sale, barter or exchange of frequent
flyer miles. You can, however, use your miles for a ticket for someone else, but
the airlines have rules about who must receive the ticket. The relationship
between the frequent flyer ticket holder and the passenger is usually queried.
If the ticket is for someone who does not share your address, or does not share
your last name, then be prepared for questions. Please check with your airline's
frequent flyer department for exact rules on how you can give miles or
certificates to someone else.
If you are taking someone with you on a trip, say one of your children, you
are best off to use the frequent flyer miles for the child's ticket and pay for
your own ticket. That way you collect miles for the trip and your child flies
for free. Otherwise, your child's frequent flyer account would collect miles.
Be aware that the airlines are required to inspect photo ID for all
passengers over the age or 18, even on domestic flights. You cannot get a frequent flyer mile
ticket in your own name and sell it to someone else, nor should you purchase
such a ticket with someone else's name.
Finally, frequent flyer miles can be transferred from one account to another
on the death of the account holder. If someone in your family dies with frequent
flyer miles in their account, call the airline frequent flyer program desk for
information on how to transfer the miles. Be prepared for requests for
documentation, such as a copy of the death certificate, or a copy of the will
listing you as a beneficiary.
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Updated
08/09/03
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