Travel Tips: Rewards Programs

Travel is something that has always been a huge interest of mine, but as we all know it is not always the cheapest thing to do. A lot of folks realize this and just throw their hands up in the air and say “oh well, I can’t”. This is not something I personally was ever willing to do and exactly why I learned how to earn free money for travel my usual spending gain me funds to get out of dodge. Below are my top 4 methods of doing this, be sure to share your thoughts or additional tips in the comment section below!

1. Orbitz Rewards

I love Orbitz. let me repeat…I LOVE ORBITZ!!

This site has become my go to for flight searches and hotel hunts. Not only to I typically find the lowest or equal rates as other top sites (I usually check a few before booking), they also have a free rewards program that gives you “Orbucks” for each hotel and airline booking made through their site.

1 Orbuck is valued as $1 when redeeming towards a hotel booking and you can use them as they accrue, no need to wait for them to hit a certain dollar amount.

In the off-chance you find a lower rate for the same flight or hotel within 24hrs of booking, Orbitz will refund you the difference. If you are an Orbitz Rewards member you will also receive a $50 Orbucks credit on top of their price guarantee.

Orbitz also makes it very easy to stack your point earning potential across other programs. You are able to save your frequent flyer and other memberships information in your Orbitz profile, which makes it super easy to make sure you get credit towards rewards programs with top airlines or hotels when checking out. Team this up with paying for your purchase with a credit card that is part of a travel rewards program and you are raking in the free money on your trip!

2. Airline Rewards Programs

Most airlines provide a free travel rewards program. I highly recommend signing up for these, even if you do not fly the same airline all the time (I personally do not). Over time there is a good chance you will eventually rack up enough points for free flights. I just recently had my flight from Seattle to NYC covered by the American Airlines AAdvantage program. As mentioned before I am able to save the membership info in my Orbitz account. This means when it’s time to check out all I have to do is select from a drop down for the proper rewards program and Orbitz insures that I gain credit for my flight or hotel booking.

A few top airlines who provide these programs can be found here:

• DeltaSky Miles– Free to join, points never expire

• American AAdvantage– Free to join, points good 18 months out from most recent activity.

• Jet Blue’s TrueBlue– Free to join, points never expire, family pooling available

• Southwest RapidRewards– Free to join, points good 24 months out from last activity.

• United MilagePlus – Free to join, good 18 months out from most recent activity.

Several of these programs will also let you gain credit for flights within 1 year  prior to you joining their program, so be sure to check your records to see if you have any flights that may apply.

3. Dining Rewards Programs

So all of those airline rewards programs we just went through…they all have dining rewards programs as well. Basically you sign up for their dinning rewards programs, link your credit card and frequent flier number to the membership. Ba-da-bing ba-da-boom, you earn miles anytime you dine at a restaurant that is affiliated with their program and pay with your registered card. This is one that’s success really leans on where you live or where you visit. They all seem to run on the same platform and list the same restaurants. It’s not high on my list of things to consider when dining out but I figure if I happen to eat somewhere on their list, a few extra miles per dollar sure doesn’t hurt.

• Delta SkyMiles Dining

• American Airline Dining

• Jetblue TrueBlue Dining

• Southwest Rapid Rewards Dining

• United Mileage Plus Dining

4.Travel Credit Card Rewards Programs:

*First and foremost, if you are unable to pay off your credit cards each month please skip this and review the list above. In order for this to work to your benefit you need to ensure that you are not accruing interest. Credit cards can quickly and easily bring more harm than good if they are not used responsibly* 

These have been HUGE for me over the years. I have literally earned thousands of dollars to put towards travel simply by using credit cards for purchases and payments that I would have had to make anyway. We’re talking things like gas, groceries, phone bills and literally everything I can pay for with a card.

I personally have never used cards that are associated with specific airlines or hotel chains because I like having the flexibility to use my points on whoever is in my price rage at the time I’m booking my trip.

At the moment I am using the cards below.

Chase Sapphire Reserve

Sign up through this link and you will receive 50,000 bonus points after spending $4,000 in the first 3 months of holding the account.

Benefits:

• 3x points on Travel and Dining Purchases

• 1x points on all other purchases

• $300 Annual Travel Statement Credit

• 50% more value on points when redeemed through Chase Ultimate Rewards

• No Foreign Transaction Fees

• Travel and Purchase Coverage

• Membership to Priority Pass Select Airport Lounges

• Global Entry or TSA PreCheck Fee Credit

Fee: $450 (don’t let this deter you keep reading)

Why it’s worth it:

While the fee on this card is hefty, each year $300 is knocked off for purchases made on travel. This can include the usual suspects of airline tickets and hotels but for me also went towards Uber rides and my local train system. Once you spend $4,000 in your first 3 months of holding the account you also receive 50,000 bonus points which pending on how you redeem them is worth a minimum of $500.

If the $450 fee is too much they have another option that you can read about here that I almost went with instead due to $0 fee for the first year.

If you’re wondering why I selected the more expensive card, it made sense for me this year because I knew I would be traveling a lot and would more than pay for itself.

Barclay Arrival Card

This is one that I have had for several years and has treated me very well, though I must be honest in saying that there may be similar options out there with a higher sign-on bonus at the moment. Since I still use it I have chosen to include it in the post.

Benefits:

• 2x points on ALL purchases

• 5% of miles redeemed are returned to your balance for future travel

• 40,000 point sign on bonus ( equal to $400)

• No Foreign Transaction Fees

• Miles never expire on active accounts in good standing

• Chip and pin technology

• The best customer service I have ever dealt with in my entire life

Fee: $0 for the first year and $89 for each year following

Before signing up for any credit cards be sure to do your research and find the one that best suits your situation.

Hopefully this information will help get you closer to your travel goals! Be sure to subscribe for future tips, tricks and inspiration.

If you have additional tips on how to earn extra money for travel be sure to share them in the comment section below!

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*Disclaimer: One or more of these links are affiliate links, which means (at no cost to you!) I may get a small percentage of purchase or credit for your participation. Thank you for choosing to support my blog. As always ALL opinions are my own and unbiased.