What Is Travel Hacking And How Do I Start? Bankrate Caret RightMain Menu Mortgage Mortgages Financing a home purchase Refinancing your existing loan Finding the right lender Additional Resources Elevate your Bankrate experience Get insider access to our best financial tools and content Caret RightMain Menu Bank Banking Compare Accounts Use calculators Get advice Bank reviews Elevate your Bankrate experience Get insider access to our best financial tools and content Caret RightMain Menu Credit Card Credit cards Compare by category Compare by credit needed Compare by issuer Get advice Looking for the perfect credit card? Narrow your search with CardMatch Caret RightMain Menu Loan Loans Personal Loans Student Loans Auto Loans Loan calculators Elevate your Bankrate experience Get insider access to our best financial tools and content Caret RightMain Menu Invest Investing Best of Brokerages and robo-advisors Learn the basics Additional resources Elevate your Bankrate experience Get insider access to our best financial tools and content Caret RightMain Menu Home Equity Home equity Get the best rates Lender reviews Use calculators Knowledge base Elevate your Bankrate experience Get insider access to our best financial tools and content Caret RightMain Menu Loan Home Improvement Real estate Selling a home Buying a home Finding the right agent Additional resources Elevate your Bankrate experience Get insider access to our best financial tools and content Caret RightMain Menu Insurance Insurance Car insurance Homeowners insurance Other insurance Company reviews Elevate your Bankrate experience Get insider access to our best financial tools and content Caret RightMain Menu Retirement Retirement Retirement plans & accounts Learn the basics Retirement calculators Additional resources Elevate your Bankrate experience Get insider access to our best financial tools and content Travel Hacking with a Credit Card Advertiser Disclosure
Advertiser Disclosure
We are an independent, advertising-supported comparison service. Our goal is to help you make smarter financial decisions by providing you with interactive tools and financial calculators, publishing original and objective content, by enabling you to conduct research and compare information for free - so that you can make financial decisions with confidence.
Bankrate has partnerships with issuers including, but not limited to, American Express, Bank of America, Capital One, Chase, Citi and Discover. SHARE: Thomas Barwick/Getty Images March 23, 2022 Checkmark Bankrate logo How is this page expert verified? At Bankrate, we take the accuracy of our content seriously. "Expert verified" means that our Financial Review Board thoroughly evaluated the article for accuracy and clarity. The Review Board comprises a panel of financial experts whose objective is to ensure that our content is always objective and balanced. Their reviews hold us accountable for publishing high-quality and trustworthy content. Ariana Arghandewal is a personal finance expert specializing in credit cards and travel rewards. She is passionate about helping people leverage credit card rewards to realize their travel goals. Cathleen's stories on design, travel and business have appeared in dozens of publications including the Washington Post, Town & Country, Wall Street Journal, Marie Claire, Fodor’s Travel, Departures and The Writer. Bankrate logo The Bankrate promise
At Bankrate we strive to help you make smarter financial decisions. While we adhere to strict editorial integrity, this post may contain references to products from our partners. Here's an explanation for how we make money. The content on this page is accurate as of the posting date; however, some of the offers mentioned may have expired. Terms apply to the offers listed on this page. Any opinions, analyses, reviews or recommendations expressed in this article are those of the author’s alone, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any card issuer. Bankrate logo The Bankrate promise
At Bankrate, we have a mission to demystify the credit cards industry — regardless or where you are in your journey — and make it one you can navigate with confidence. Our team is full of a diverse range of experts from credit card pros to data analysts and, most importantly, people who shop for credit cards just like you. With this combination of expertise and perspectives, we keep close tabs on the credit card industry year-round to: Meet you wherever you are in your credit card journey to guide your information search and help you understand your options. Consistently provide up-to-date, reliable market information so you're well-equipped to make confident decisions. Reduce industry jargon so you get the clearest form of information possible, so you can make the right decision for you. At Bankrate, we focus on the points consumers care about most: rewards, welcome offers and bonuses, APR, and overall customer experience. Any issuers discussed on our site are vetted based on the value they provide to consumers at each of these levels. At each step of the way, we fact-check ourselves to prioritize accuracy so we can continue to be here for your every next. Bankrate logo Editorial integrity
Bankrate follows a strict , so you can trust that we’re putting your interests first. Our award-winning editors and reporters create honest and accurate content to help you make the right financial decisions. Key Principles
We value your trust. Our mission is to provide readers with accurate and unbiased information, and we have editorial standards in place to ensure that happens. Our editors and reporters thoroughly fact-check editorial content to ensure the information you’re reading is accurate. We maintain a firewall between our advertisers and our editorial team. Our editorial team does not receive direct compensation from our advertisers. Editorial Independence
Bankrate’s editorial team writes on behalf of YOU – the reader. Our goal is to give you the best advice to help you make smart personal finance decisions. We follow strict guidelines to ensure that our editorial content is not influenced by advertisers. Our editorial team receives no direct compensation from advertisers, and our content is thoroughly fact-checked to ensure accuracy. So, whether you’re reading an article or a review, you can trust that you’re getting credible and dependable information. Bankrate logo How we make money
You have money questions. Bankrate has answers. Our experts have been helping you master your money for over four decades. We continually strive to provide consumers with the expert advice and tools needed to succeed throughout life’s financial journey. Bankrate follows a strict , so you can trust that our content is honest and accurate. Our award-winning editors and reporters create honest and accurate content to help you make the right financial decisions. The content created by our editorial staff is objective, factual, and not influenced by our advertisers. We’re transparent about how we are able to bring quality content, competitive rates, and useful tools to you by explaining how we make money. Bankrate.com is an independent, advertising-supported publisher and comparison service. We are compensated in exchange for placement of sponsored products and, services, or by you clicking on certain links posted on our site. Therefore, this compensation may impact how, where and in what order products appear within listing categories. Other factors, such as our own proprietary website rules and whether a product is offered in your area or at your self-selected credit score range can also impact how and where products appear on this site. While we strive to provide a wide range offers, Bankrate does not include information about every financial or credit product or service. Over the last decade, travel hacking has become a mainstream phenomenon, largely thanks to social media. Influencers show off exotic destinations on Instagram, reached by clever use of rewards. And the appeal is widespread. Families can significantly bring down the cost of a , while the aspirational crowd can book for pennies on the dollar. As someone who has been travel hacking for over a decade, I’ve seen and done it all. It’s a rewarding hobby that can open up a world of travel opportunities. What is travel hacking, exactly? It’s a series of methods used to earn points (often without flying or staying at hotels) and redeem them for travel. By hacking flights and hotels, you can save substantially on these expenses. How to start travel hacking
If all of that sounds exciting and you’re eager to get going, here is the quickest path to get started with travel hacking: Set a goal
The first step in your travel hacking journey is to set a . Earning points without knowing what you’re using them for can be an exercise in futility. When I started back in 2011, I made the mistake of mainly accruing and for a trip to Europe. I learned pretty late that American Airlines had a weak route network to Europe and that would have been a much better option back then. Think about where you want to go (well before you start earning points) and research the best rewards programs to get you there. Get a good rewards credit card
The easiest way to boost your points balance is with a . You can typically earn 50,000 or more points after completing a spending requirement over three or more months. While welcome bonuses are a significant draw, you can also take advantage of and to maximize everyday spending. Most people will benefit from credit cards that earn transferable rewards like these: These currencies offer the most flexibility because you can transfer them to several airlines or hotel programs at a 1:1 ratio. If one transfer airline doesn’t have award space on your desired travel dates, then you can transfer them to one that does. It gives you options and protects you against possible . Once you have a general sense of which credit cards to apply for, make sure you’re ready to score them by: Having good credit. As you might expect, the require . To incorporate credit cards into your travel hacking strategy, you’ll need a score of at least 700. Hopefully, you’re already there or . Knowing the application rules. Every bank has its own rules pertaining to credit card approvals. Chase has the infamous that restricts welcome bonuses if you’ve applied for five or more credit cards in the last 24 months. Amex’s means if you’ve earned a welcome bonus for one card, you likely won’t be approved for another. There are many more to be aware of. Knowing them before you hit “apply” improves your chances of being approved for a travel rewards credit card. Paying your balance off every month. If you struggle with paying your credit cards off every month, travel hacking with credit cards is probably not for you. That’s because the on these credit cards are high and will negate any rewards you earn. If you’re not confident you can pay off your balances, you’re better off skipping the credit cards and using alternate methods to . Use shopping portals
Shopping portals are the way to go if you want to add another tool to your travel hacking repertoire. Nearly every major loyalty program has a shopping portal you can earn rewards with. You’ll earn at least one extra point per dollar spent, plus the points from your credit card. The easiest way to ensure you’re earning the most points possible is to use a shopping portal aggregator like . Type the name of an online merchant and you’ll get a list of shopping portals alongside their earn rates. Many shopping portals also offer spend-based bonuses around the holidays and right before the school year starts. These can be pretty lucrative, helping you reach your travel goals faster. Sign up for dining rewards
Dining reward programs are similar to shopping portals in that they require minimal effort to earn extra points. You can join one of seven airline and three hotel-affiliated dining programs to earn up to 8 additional points per dollar spent. These programs even offer first-dine bonuses and extra points when you write reviews or meet certain spending thresholds every year. They provide elite status for frequent diners, with elevated earning rates. You can join all of these programs, but since they’re all part of the same network, you can’t register the same credit card with more than one program at a time. That shouldn’t be too challenging, even if you only have one credit card. Simply register your card with the program of your choice, earn the first-dine bonus and repeat with the other nine programs until you’ve earned them all. Don’t forget to use a to maximize your earnings. Get creative with earning miles
Once you’ve gotten into the habit of maximizing your everyday purchases, it’s time to get creative. What else can you charge to your credit card? I once convinced my boss to let me pay a $35,000 supplier invoice with my credit card. I’ve and through . I’ve used retail arbitrage to flip dresses worn by Kate Middleton and earn spending requirements. Think outside the box and you could be well on your way to discovering new ways to hack travel. Learn the rules
Familiarizing yourself with award program rules is paramount to beeing a successful travel hacker. Knowing whether a program allows stopovers, one-way awards and other intricacies can help you piece an award ticket together when traditional methods fail. What are the best travel hacks
There are countless travel hacks out there and the best ones are top-secret (for good reason). But if you’re just getting started and want to keep things simple, here are the most valuable hacks to be aware of: Card sign-up bonuses
Credit card sign-up bonuses are by far the best travel hack. You can piece together a luxury vacation by . It that can help you achieve your travel hacking goals faster. Double and triple dipping
Double- or triple-dipping is one of the best travel hacks out there. Stacking travel hacking methods can help you earn significantly more miles. For example, let’s say you’re in the middle of a —you’ve got expenses and they’re big. If you can do some shopping online, you can double-dip by earning rewards on your credit card and an online shopping portal. If you happen to have an , you could triple dip by taking advantage of . I’ve managed to do this for large expenses like travel bookings and furniture purchases. Think about all the possible ways to earn points and find opportunities to combine them. Mistake fares
There’s more to travel hacking than just earning and redeeming points. One of my favorite ways to hack travel is through . Sometimes airlines mess up and publish fares well below market value. I’m talking about a $450 round-trip business class ticket to Shanghai or a $120 economy class ticket to Abu Dhabi. Over the years, there have been dozens of great mistake fares that travel hackers have taken advantage of. In most cases, airlines have honored these mistake fares, which has been great for savvy travel hackers who managed to book them. A great way to stay on top of mistake fares is to sign up for alerts with and . These sites sparse the web for amazing deals and share them on social media and their websites when they come around. Maximizing award redemptions
When you’re ready to book that dream vacation you’ve been saving for, there are three types of awards you should look into: , off-peak award charts and award sales. Sweet spots, in particular, can help you save significantly on award flights. Many airlines and hotel chains offer peak and off-peak award pricing. By being flexible with your travel dates, you can stretch your hard-earned points further. How can I travel for free
Despite what travel influencers like to put into their photo captains, there’s no such thing as free travel. You will almost always pay a fee to earn or redeem points. Whether it’s your , award flight taxes or , there will always be costs. But by leveraging credit cards, points and loyalty programs, you can book incredible travel experiences at a fraction of the cost. SHARE: Ariana Arghandewal is a personal finance expert specializing in credit cards and travel rewards. She is passionate about helping people leverage credit card rewards to realize their travel goals. Cathleen's stories on design, travel and business have appeared in dozens of publications including the Washington Post, Town & Country, Wall Street Journal, Marie Claire, Fodor’s Travel, Departures and The Writer.