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Article Series: Airline Travel
Airlines, Planes & Airport Security
Frequent
Flyer Miles vs Paying Airfare
There is some disagreement among travelers
as to whether or not frequent flyer miles can save a person
money. It depends on the situation.
One source could be interpreted as saying that if you are
a frequent traveler and you earn travel miles as a result,
they could be useful. In this case a person is not really
trying to get the miles. They just come as a result of traveling,
instead of being the actual reason why one would travel.
On the other hand, there are programs which some experts
strongly discourage people to be a part of. These include
such cards in which you are required to pay a considerably
high fee ($250.00 or more in some cases) in order to use
the card to get miles. This is not a deal that is worth it
for most people, especially if those people are ones who
only travel one or two times a year.
Another aspect of frequent flying to be aware of is that
there are restrictions regarding when and where you can travel
if you are using these miles. For example, there are certain
dates called blackout dates during which you cannot travel
(i.e. weekends, holidays), as well as restrictions as to
where you will be able to sit on a plane. Furthermore, you
may not end up being able to fly at a destination as close
by to the attractions that you would like to visit, as you
would like.
For the flexible traveler, however, frequent flyer miles
can be a blessing. This is true for both business and recreational
travelers. Therefore, there are some tips to help these travelers
make the most of their frequent flyer trips.
One of the keys to taking advantage of your frequent flyer
miles is flexibility. This means that you need to be open
to traveling to more than one location in the event that
your first location is not an option. Also, you may want
to consider flying from and back to some of the lesser-known
airports, where you will still receive the same great service.
Furthermore, you may want to consider less popular travel
destinations.
Another part of being flexible with your travel besides
being flexible with the dates of travel would be to consider
keeping the dates of travel tentative. For instance this
could mean that you will need to extend the time during which
you would travel to make it possible for you to use your
miles. Furthermore, if you have more than one set of dates
open, you will be provided with more options than you would
ordinarily.
Another way to take advantage of your frequent flyer miles
is to check with a particular airline’s policy on advanced
or last-minute travel booking. Some airports allow bookings
as far in advance as 320 days out, and in some cases bookings
are allowed with frequent miles for trips scheduled at the
very last minute.
You can find alternative ways to use your flyer miles as
well. For instance, some airlines will allow you to use your
ticket towards an upgraded class (i.e. first class) airline
ticket. Furthermore, many airlines partner with one another,
so if your airline has no seats available you can possibly
get a flyer-mile seat through another airline.
You also may need to understand the rules of each individual
airline-and perhaps even each airport pertaining to travel
miles. For instance, some airlines allow a travel to pay
double the amount of flyer miles for more reward seat options.
Furthermore, you need to know how far in advance you are
allowed to book frequent flyer mile trips (as mentioned earlier).
Additional tips regarding making use of flyer miles can
be found by reading other articles such as this one. You
can also find other information pertaining to other aspects
of travel as well.
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: 2008
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