Americans din’t fly much during the pandemic, but as coronavirus restrictions loosen up, interest in travel has skyrocketed. The time is now to think about booking your next trip. And if you’ve got airline miles to burn, or want to continue racking them up, here are five tips to get the most out of your miles:
Redeem miles before they expire
It’s imperative to keep track of the expiration dates on your mileage accounts. Delta, JetBlue, Southwest and United miles never expire. However, American Airlines and Hawaiian Airlines miles disappear after 18 months without qualifying activity. Alaska Airlines miles vanish after 24 months of non-activity.
But there’s no need to panic-buy a flight just yet. There are a number of ways to keep your miles going for when you’re ready to redeem them. Making a purchase with an associated airline credit card, shopping on an airlines’ website, or just transferring a few miles to another member’s account can all be used to reset the “non-activity” window.
Book early
Airline awards can be tricky to nail down. “Once you’ve found award space, I don’t recommend waiting too long to book,” Spencer Howard, founder of the travel website Straight to the Points, told Travel + Leisure. “I’ve had too many clients and readers wait a few days only to find the award seats were gone.” Howard advises that if you find a ticket that meets your requirements, you should book it.
Be flexible on times and dates
Airlines can restrict award space on flights where they believe they will be able to find more paying passengers — flights on weekends, peak travel dates and school holidays, for example. If you want to get the most out of your miles, be open to traveling on alternative dates as much as possible. “Flexibility is key. Being open to different travel dates can make all the difference,” Howard said to the travel magazine.
Use the right card at the right time
Many credit cards have airline reward programs that allow you to transfer points to partner airline programs. But before you transfer over points, make sure you aren’t too early or too late. Once they are transferred, there’s no going back.
“Additionally, remember that not all transfers process instantly,” Howard warns. “That can be an important consideration, since the award space you found could disappear if your points transfer takes several days to go through.”
Use points wisely
Keep in mind the kinds of travel experiences you want to use your miles for. If you want a first-class flight, go for it. If you want to utilize your points strategically to afford more trips, book economy flights.
Above all, Howard says, “Redeeming miles and points is a choose-your-own-adventure game, and you get to decide what you prioritize.”
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