One of the first thing frequent flyers, or would-be frequent flyers, should do is make sure they are enrolled in a loyalty or mileage scheme.
And it’s important that you understand the scheme so you can make the most of it.
I tend to join every scheme I can, but I focus on the one that I can make the most of. At the moment, that’s the Etihad Guest program, largely because I live in Abu Dhabi and Etihad is my “home” airline — the one I am most likely to fly with.
But I also have an active Qantas Frequent Flyer account, and not-so-active accounts with a few other airlines.
If you look at the terms and conditions of most schemes, it would seem impossible to get any substantial rewards unless you flew on a very regular basis — as a few business people do.
However, there are simple ways to increase your points total on the ground, too.
They include:
+ Linking your airline loyalty scheme to your credit card. My bank gave me 25,000 Etihad Guest Miles and instant Silver class membership for taking out an Etihad-branded Visa card. Another bank in my region later offered up to 100,000 points for the same thing. People who “play” the points system regularly change their cards to take advantage of such offers. Other have cards that enable them to transfer points to different airlines as it suits, making it easy to top-up a frequent flyer account to achieve a particular reward. Make sure you read the terms and conditions, because the fees or interest rates might cancel-out the benefits of the points.
+ Using your credit card. Every dollar you spend can be converted to mileage, so a small change in your spending habits — using the card when you might otherwise use cash — can make a big difference. (Caution: don’t buy things just to get points; that’s a false economy.)
+ Linking your hotel loyalty card to your airline loyalty card. I convert SPG points, accrued by staying at Starwood group hotels (such as Sheraton, Westin and St Regis), into Etihad miles. Sometimes it’s worth seeking out the right hotel when you travel to maximise your points (and remember to pay with your linked credit card!)
+ Being alert to offers. Occasionally airlines or their partners will announce special ways to either accrue or spend air miles. Keep an eye out for these.
+ Being prepared to change your card, even your bank, to get a better deal.
+ Joining web forums and follow blogs that specialise in how to trick the system. These come and go, so it’s best to Google them. Bear in mind that the advice may be tainted — i.e. it may favour a particular bank or airline, or may simply be mischevious — or may be specific to a certain market (usually the US).
That’s it for now; I’ll revisit this subject in future posts.
