Loyalty programs are not my forte, however, traveling with Doug (and listening to him ramble about the program guidelines) has educated me a bit more on all of their benefits. I have asked him to write an introduction to this “world” in what I hope will be one of many guest spots.
Loyalty is based on Points and Status
Whether you are a casual or heavy traveler, it is quite beneficial to join loyalty programs with airline, hotel and car rental companies. The benefits are well worth it as you navigate through the system of gaining the most points, getting those upgrades, free trips, etc.
You need to do your research – don’t just pick a brand out of the air. Go onto the websites and research how you earn points, how to redeem and most importantly, what it takes to earn status. It is the status that leads to the bigger benefits: upgrades, lounge access, late check out, extra points and did I mention, upgrades.
Don’t spread yourself thin. The big mistake I made the first 5 or so years from my traveling was to use multiple airlines – I thought it was great to have 20K miles with 3 different airlines – how little did I know. You need to choose one airline and stick with it – make sure that the alliance they are in gives you the best options for your trips, destinations – look forward to places you may want to go and if that alliance will take you there. Read up on all the different loyalty levels benefits and if an infrequent traveler, you will want to focus on the minimal amount of miles needed to get a free ticket.
It is also a good suggestion for those just starting out to test out a couple of airlines. See how you like the booking process, how comfortable are the seats, what the schedules look like, etc. Once you have done this, then pick which airline will be your main one and stay with it.
Play the system. Once you have chosen an airline, sign up for their branded credit card – this is the easiest way to earn points (and remember, if you use their branded card to book a flight, you usually get more points), all on top of the miles you get when flying with them. It will add up fairly quickly.
Stay to play. Hotels are very important as well when it comes to your loyalty program. Most hotel groups have many brands that will fit whatever your leisure budget is. I am a Hilton guy and quite enjoy the selection of hotels they have globally. You will always have a stay or two where you might have expected more out of the hotel but that happens….it is not a major reason to leave the chain. As with airlines, you may want to test out which of the hotels works best for you and the family.
Points at hotels can add up very quickly as they usually run programs where you can get double the points, etc. Like airlines, they also have branded credit cards that earn more points when you use it at the hotel (BIG NOTE – usually as an introduction for signing up, you can earn 50,000 or so bonus points for making say $1000 worth of purchases in the first three months).
Drive to those points. Now I don’t rent cars for my travels but there are benefits especially when you see those long lines during Spring Break, Thanksgiving, etc. As with the airlines and hotels, the more you use them they will get you free rentals and upgrades.
Points programs to use somewhere else. Most of the loyalty programs have their own “shopping hub”. You can utilize the points to buy electronics, home goods, and towards other travel related services. For example both Hilton and Delta allow you to use their points to get a rental car. On our vacations, I don’t pay for a car rental as I utilize the points towards this.
Third Party Savings are not good for your status. BIG WARNING – if you use expedia or something similar please note your hotel stay will not generate you any qualifying points (and in most cases, no points at all). Hotels don’t reward you for utilizing these services. The savings you may have in booking the room could cost you the points for status level as well as generating overall points that you could use towards free rooms down the line.
For airlines, you need to compare what an expedia.com states to that on the airline website – class of booking is the essential item to look at (there is a letter code). If you book in say basic economy this is the lowest level of priority on a flight (i.e. you don’t choose a seat, have to pay for bags, limited miles, and makes you more likely to get bumped on an oversold flight).
Status does matter. As I alluded to already, whichever program you opt for it is very important that you read all the info on earning points and status. After a couple of bookings you will know this by heart – earning that next level status is extremely important. For instance, with Delta Skymiles when you get Diamond you get three offers such as lounge access, extra miles, gifting Gold level to someone, regional or international upgrades.
A Great example. We took a family vacation to Clearwater a few years ago – two adults, two early teens and one youth. 2 hotel rooms paid with points. 2 tickets paid with miles. A large SUV paid with points. Knowing that the only expense you will have is for food, shopping and excursions goes a long way in you budgeting your vacation.
It doesn’t matter how often you travel – the points can add up very quickly over the year. Or you can preplan the big trip for a couple of years down the road and stockpile those points/miles. If you can save on the airfare or the hotel stay, your vacation budget will go a lot farther.
Start earning!!!!!
