Travel Hacking 101
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Transcript of Travel Hacking 101
Tip: The DoT stipulates that all plane tickets sold in the U.S.
must be refundable for 24 hours
t1 Travel for Cheap: Flights
You can add stopovers to many international flights for free /
reasonable fee in the connecting city
t1 Travel for Cheap: Flights
When should you book to get a good deal?
t1 Travel for Cheap: Flights
• Holidays - book ASAP • Domestic prices increases travel 4-5 weeks in
advance, but before then are fairly stable • The best deals come out 2-3 months in advance
t1 Travel for Cheap: Hotels
Where to Find?
Price Comparisons: Kayak, Trivago, Hipmunk
Reviews: TripAdvisor
t1 Travel for Cheap: Hotels
Where to book?
OTAs (Orbitz, Expedia, hotels.com, etc.)
Direct with Hotel
Earning: (Generally) 1 mile/mile flown
Some programs x miles/$ (United, Delta, Southwest, Virgin)
Redeeming: 25k RT within the US
50-80k RT to Asia 50-60k RT to Europe
t2 Travel for Free: Loyalty programs
How many miles am I earning?
t2 Travel for Free: Loyalty programs
http://www.wheretocredit.com/
Where should I credit my flights?
t2 Travel for Free: Loyalty programs
• Last minute award availability • Good for certain airlines • Gives you flexibility, saves you money
• You can add stopovers to many award flights for free / reasonable fee
• Cancellation and change fees are usually less than paid tickets
Benefits of award flights
t2 Travel for Free: Loyalty programs
• 20,000 Singapore miles + $5.60, one way United BusinessFirst from San Francisco to New York
• 62,500 Aeroplan miles + $455 one way Lufthansa First Class San Francisco to Frankfurt
Tip: If you don’t collect miles but want to fly a premium cabin, you can buy miles from the
airlines and redeem for an award at ~10-20% of the normal ticket cost
t2 Travel for Free: Loyalty programs
t2 Travel for Free: Loyalty programs
Hotel points
• Generally tied to a fixed number of points/$ spent
• Hotels in chains have different categories, which influences how much a free room costs/night
• Nicer rooms in hotels costs more points • Point cost doesn’t change, just availability
t2 Travel for Free: Loyalty programs
Hotel points
Club Carlson 0.4 cents/point Hilton HHonors 0.4 cents/point Hyatt Gold Passport 1.4 cents/point IHG Rewards 0.5 cents/point Marriott Rewards 0.8 cent/point Starwood Preferred Guest 2.2 cents/point
t3 Travel for Free: Credit Cards
Transferrable Bank Points: Transfer 1:1 to an airline program
Fixed Bank Points: Usually 1 cent/point
Airline Points: 1 mile in their program
t3 Travel for Free: Credit Cards
What about my credit score?
Inquiries Utilization
AAoA/Payment History
t4 Status, Perks, and Tips
Common Perks: • Free upgrades • Earn extra miles • Priority security lines / service • Waived fees
Bonus Perks: • Companion Pass
• Southwest (unlimited, free) • Alaska (single-use, taxes)
t4 Status, Perks, and Tips
How do you get status?
Fly? Maybe a little… but smart flying, status matching and status challenges are easier
t4 Status, Perks, and Tips
Hotel status?
Many hotel credit cards will offer mid-lower tier status Free upgrades, early check-in, late check-out, free amenities, breakfast, etc.
t5 Next steps
• Million Mile Secrets • ThePointsGuy • Milenomics (for a different take)
Read up on the basics