If you get more Star Alliance miles, you could look for an award on Brussels Airlines. West Coast anywhere. Recommendations on hubs? Chris, how do you plan a stopover in a country for a decent amount of time to do a bit of sightseeing before you have to catch your connecting flight?
I know finding 3 award seats on the same flight will be challenging — we can split up if necessary, but would like to avoid that if possible…any tips on the best time of the year to find award seat availability?
Also, how far ahead should I start looking? Indeed, that will be a challenge. Next, work on adding another seat for the second adult later, even if in Economy and hope the Business cabin opens up a seat at some point, in which you can pay to change. In addition to the difficulty of finding three seats in a premium cabin, NZ is also difficult in general.
So in your case, you want to go back to Africa. Where in Africa? How will you get there? Which programs offer the best opportunities for mileage redemption?
Those are the questions to think about next. Often, the online system only allows short connections. Every airline has different rules about this, so the best bet is to phone. Just yesterday, as my husband and I stood in line to get on a plane, I declared how ridiculous I thought frequent flyer programs were. Their promise always felt hollow and unusable when it came right down to it.
Thanks for the reminders that you have to use them correctly. Great post. Thanks for all the great info. Have you ever used points. Is this the real deal or is their a catch. Have you ever used it? Thanks for the heads up re. Air Canada, Continental and the points necessary to fly to Costa Rica. Hey Chris, thanks for all your tips! I just recently purchased a round-trip ticket from jfk to heathrow on virgin Atlantic through travelocity.
Is it possible to redeem miles for 2 economy tickets with disparate locations: i. We plan on traveling between the two countries in the interim. Yes, most airlines allow you to obtain retroactive credit some for the past month, some for the past six months by mailing in your boarding pass.
In that case you book the Continental flight with U. It sounds confusing, but just remember you always book with the airline whose miles you have.
You can then use flights on any carrier within the alliance, subject to availability. Have about , AA miles and wanting to go to Mr. Elbrus in southern Russia. May not be able to go this year as the area is closed because of terrorism concerns. But for future planning, any thoughts on getting to the nearby airport at Mineralnye Vody, Russia?
Is there a general rule about how far in advance to book a flight with miles? Hope not to have that happen again. Thanks very much! Chris, thanks for this info! Would like to connect through Boston and stay over a few days. Is this sort of thing easy to do?
If so, any suggestion on how to go about it. Thank you, in advance! Thanks for the tips. Getting close to the point that I can actually do something with my frequent flyer miles but always have felt like the airlines try to make it difficult to redeem them.
Now I know how to find out the info I need. You should generally book as far in advance as possible, or as close to the date of departure as possible. The times in the middle are the hardest. Sometimes obscure destinations are the best ones to use miles for. In a situation like that, I look at the Wikipedia page for the airport in question yours is here. Then I figure out which airlines fly there, or at least which destinations are available from the airport.
Then I work backwards to figure out how to get there. In this case, it looks like you may need to get to another airport in Russia easily available with AA miles and then get a separate ticket to nowhere-land. Turns out I can fly to the next Province, or go down to Vegas, from Vancouver. What a letdown. Any workarounds to those? Chris, any tips on consolidating miles from different carriers? AwardWallet has been a huge help in tracking all of the miles for me and my wife though, thanks for pointing me to them!
I love living in different places for a year or at least a few months at a time. My first comment sounded ridiculous on a partly travel blog! Hubby coming too not sure how I can best get his miles added to mine. Pray help. Must book flight pronto. But if you have that many k total , you should certainly be able to get numerous good uses from them. The issue there is BA-specific. You can use the same miles to book flights to Europe on AA or Iberia, avoiding the expensive fuel surcharges.
Mention this preference when you call BA to book. I am trying to use US Airways miles for an interisland flight in Hawaii. The US Airways chart shows Hawaiian Airlines as a partner and miles can be used for interisland flights. What do you know? Yes, Hawaiian is not part of Star Alliance but is indeed a limited U. Airways partner. As you mention, you should be able to redeem miles for interisland flights not island-mainland flights. Call back and talk to someone else. Do you recommend signing up for cards that charge an annual fee i.
Was curious what your thoughts are on for-fee credit cards that give you more benefits. We may receive compensation when you click on links to those products. Terms apply to the offers listed on this page. For an explanation of our Advertising Policy, visit this page.
When Capital One introduced airline transfer partners , it was a game-changer for Capital One miles collectors. It provided an opportunity for bargain hunters to squeeze even more value from the rewards earned on cards like the Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card. There are now 14 frequent-flyer programs to which you can transfer your miles, most at a ratio. However, with no U.
For more TPG news delivered each morning to your inbox, sign up for our daily newsletter. Related: 3 ways to spend a million Capital One miles traveling the world. So, which programs are the best options for domestic flights?
In no particular order:. Specifically, Zone 1 flights in the U. Additionally, you can book economy flights to Hawaii from several West Coast cities less than 3, miles for only 13, miles each way. Related: How to book award flights using British Airways Avios. Another excellent option for domestic flights is Etihad Guest , which allows you to book American Airlines award flights for 12, miles each way in economy and 25, miles each way in first class.
Related: Etihad Guest miles continue to fly under the radar. It charges a flat 7, miles each way in economy or 12, miles each way in business class for any domestic route. This includes flights to Hawaii, premium transcontinental routes and flights to Puerto Rico and the U. Virgin Islands. These rates are a fraction of what United would typically charge for these flights. Related: How to fly to Hawaii for just 15, miles round-trip.
Singapore KrisFlyer can be a great option for booking Alaska Airlines flights. Coach flights start at just 7, miles each way and top out at 12, miles, including Hawaii and Alaska. You will have to call to book, though. Screenshot courtesy of singaporeair. Related: Maximizing Singapore Airlines partner awards. So, under certain circumstances, it could make sense to use these options:.
The LifeMiles award chart divides the continental U. In most cases, these will be short-haul United flights , but there are some geographic sweet spots. Here are some examples of flights that require 7, miles each way:. Even better? Despite what the award chart says, Avianca prices some award flights at just 6, miles each way.
This is a good option for members with small numbers of miles that are about to expire. Another option for expiring miles is the The Miles of Hope program. This US Airways program allows Dividend Miles members to donate their miles to select charitable organizations. One-way, one-class upgrades cost as follows. Dividend Miles expire after 18 months of account inactivity.
These miles can be renewed, however, for a fee based on the number of miles, up to 36 months after they expire. Kurt Schrader has been writing professionally since He has also worked in the hospitality and travel industries for more than 10 years. Schrader holds a bachelor's degree in management, a master's degree in information studies and a Juris Doctor from Florida State University.
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