It may sound a bit strange but it is possible to travel for free to any part of the world, you will wonder why people do not do it, well, it requires a little effort and patience, I mean to take advantage of loyalty flyer programs. airlines and more specifically to the credit cards allied to these airlines. You can think that they are not for you because you do not travel much so you can not accumulate your points, because this is where the credit cards benefit, you can accumulate frequent traveler points for any purchase, even paying your public services you can accumulate in these programs.
How does it work?
Every purchase you make for any amount with these credit cards is translated into points and then you can redeem them in tickets to any destination the airline has.
How do I start?
You must carry out an investigation in your country of which cards are in the market, investigate the conditions of each program and choose the one that best suits your needs, for example in Colombia there are 2 alternatives, on the one hand we find Lifemiles (the program of frequent traveler of the Avianca airline) and on the other hand Latam Pass (program of the Latam airline). each one has alliances with different banks and each bank can facilitate greater or lesser extent the obtaining of their products depending on your credit score and if you have had products with the bank, If you have a low score or experience with the banking sector, I recommend you apply for the card at the bank with the most experience you have had, so they can offer you a card with greater benefits and no management fee, I say that within each program there are several categories for the same airline, the higher the category, the greater the number of points they will give you for each purchase. if instead you have a good score you can choose the one that gives you the most points from all the banks. You should also review the policy on expiration of these points as some expire in a short time, in others each accumulation extends the validity, You need a program that does not expire quickly because to accumulate for an international trip you may need up to a year in case your monthly expenses are not many.
Calculate your best option
On the other hand you should check how many points are required in each program for the destination you want, this is because each airline has different prices and therefore you will need more or fewer points. If you already have an old card, consider canceling it and requesting a new one from the same bank, so you will receive the welcome miles bonus, which according to the category can be very good.
Each credit card has a loyalty program and you can redeem your points for trips or convert your points to frequent flyer points (miles, kilometers etc.) However, if the card does not have a direct alliance with the airline, many more points will be needed and these expire more quickly, so it is recommended that if you currently have a card of any franchise (visa, mastercard, diners, american express, etc) ask your bank for the change
Change the mindset
After you have the card you must change the way you normally buy, it is usually thought that the cards are to be used as a means of financing big purchases, now you are going to convert it into your main means of payment regardless of the amount of the purchase, you must take into account always make daily purchases in 1 installment, in this way do not pay high interest for use of credit card, all banks offer the benefit that purchases to a single installment do not generate interest, so you can use it to buy from a sandwish to pay for a public service. You must identify all the expenses that you have monthly, which can be paid by credit card, you will be amazed to see that the vast majority can be done. the objective is to try to reduce the use of cash to the maximum, the most basic traveler cards will give you one point for each dollar of purchase, with this little by little you will be getting closer to your goal.
As you manage the credit card responsibly the bank will improve the category and with this you will receive more points for each dollar. You can also accumulate additional points for promotions or contests that frequently launch, there are commercial allies in which if you make a purchase you double the number of points of that purchase. Do not be afraid to pay the weekly or monthly market with credit card, food is a large percentage of our expenses and if you receive points to buy it much better.
Earn even more.
If you go out with your family or friends to eat, it is normal to divide the account, because here is another opportunity to earn points, pay all the bill with your card and ask them to give you the cash, you will add points as if you had paid the entire purchase but really only spent your part; If a family member or friend needs to make a payment for a course, buy a product, or buy a vacation package, offer to make the purchase with cc and that they pay you in cash, in this way you can earn many points, just think of how many relatives or close friends you have.
Additionally you can program public and private services (water, electricity, internet, gas, cell phone etc) for automatic payment charged to your credit card, ask at your bank for this service many have the option. thus you add points with expenses that you make monthly but that when paying them in cash you do not receive any benefit in exchange. If you pay with your card you will receive some points and little by little you will accumulate.
It is important that you concentrate all your purchases on a single card, banks usually offer you 2 and even more credit cards from different franchises, but you should focus on making only purchases with the frequent traveler card. Also, do not register in two frequent flyer programs. This will divide your points among the options and it will take you longer to reach the goal. You can ask instead to give you a single card of better category, you will receive more benefits, not only in points also in international assistance.
With these tips in less time than you think you’ll have accumulated enough points for the trip you’ve dreamed.