This is the season… For the flying price soaring!
As a budget-conscious traveler, it’s hard to book a considerable cash or points and miles fare. However, finding a lot during the holidays seems almost impossible.
However, a simple trick helped me grab three one-way flights for about $500 during the peak vacation season. Keep reading to see how I saved nearly $1,000 from my pocket with this point and Mile Hacker.
Travel Hacker: Purchasing points or miles can save you a lot of money
As most airlines operate with dynamic pricing, fares are constantly changing. However, rates tend to be high-end during holidays, and airlines cash in on what is usually the busiest travel dates: Sundays after Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year’s craze.
Therefore, it is not uncommon to find that flight prices have risen and rewards for limited companies and partners are almost nonexistent.
So when trying to book three uninterrupted flights from Palm Beach International Airport (PBI) to Philadelphia International Airport (PHL) on Sunday, November 30, I can say with certainty that I was shocked by the price of $447 per person.
However, before I bought tickets to these American airlines, I considered my own choice.
Related: 11 strategies to find cheap air tickets
Why buying points and mileage can sometimes be beneficial to you
Just because you don’t have points or miles for a specific airline or hotel loyalty program, you shouldn’t write it out automatically. Although the purchase reward is not always To a large extent, when a plan is promoting at the purchase point, you may snap up low reward tickets and save hundreds of dollars.
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Although there is no American Airlines AADVantage Miles in my account to book these flights, I still want to understand the reward costs. For this particular flight, Americans are charging 8,500 Aadvantage Miles, plus $5.60 in taxes and per person.
I decided to check the cost of purchasing US mileage. The airline is currently conducting promotions to save up to 40% on purchase miles (note that the discount depends on how many miles you purchased). Calculate the fees on the US website and I found that I could buy 26,000 miles for $831.52 (and then give me a 15% discount).
Buying US miles to buy a reward flight for November would save me about $500; however, I still want to look at other alternatives in hopes of finding a better deal.
Related: 50% off at Rio Hotels: How to buy Hilton points to save me $600 during Carnival
View Partner Rewards Flights
Did you know that you can book a reward flight in the United States on a partner airline? American is part of the OneWorld alliance, which means partner airlines such as Alaska Airlines and British Airways sometimes offer customers the opportunity to book reward flights through their loyalty programs.
In this case, I checked if this American flight can be booked through the British Airways Club. Since I have both the ultimate reward points for chasing and the fast American member reward points, I can transfer my points directly to the British Airways Club at a 1:1 ratio.
Unfortunately, this time the US flight was unavailable, probably due to the holidays. As I mentioned, during peak travel times, the rewards from partner airlines are limited. (Note: I also checked other OneWorld affiliate programs for availability of American Airlines Awards.)
Fortunately, Alaska Airlines’ Atmos Rewards offers Nov. 30 American flights, available at 7,500 points and $18.10 per person. At the time, I had 2,500 Atmos bonus points in my account, so I checked the cost of buying 20,000 points.
Atmos Rewards offers up to 90% of points bonuses (depending on the number of points you purchase).
By purchasing 12,000 points for $451.50, I will get an additional 9,600 points (80% bonus), bringing my total to 21,600 Atmos bonus points. When I add 2,500 points to my account, I get a total of 24,100 points.
Decomposition of mathematics:
- $451.50 (cost of Atmos Reward Points for Purchase Promotion Bonus) + $54.30 (total tax and fee charges for three U.S. reward flights) = $505.80 (or $168.60 per person)
| Booking method (three AA flights) | Total out-of-pocket cost (three AA flights) | Out-of-pocket funds savings (three AA flights) |
|---|---|---|
| Book cash fares directly with US Airlines | $1,341 | – – |
| Buy US miles to book reward fares | $848.32 (including taxes and fees for reward flights) | $492.68 |
| Buy Atmos Rewards Points to book a reward fare | $505.80 (including taxes and fees for reward flights) | $835.20 |
Even if I don’t have 2,500 Atmos bonus points in my account, I can buy 23,400 points for $489.13 – which is still the best.
So, by simply buying Atmos bonus points, I saved nearly $1,000 on my flight.
Things to remember
Purchase points or mileage is not always good for you: Just because you can buy points or miles does not mean you should. Always compare numbers to cash fares with reward flights, and the fees you can purchase the points or miles you need to book this flight from an early age. For example, when loyalty programs don’t perform great promotions, buying rewards are often more expensive than paying cash fares.
Check partner procedures: The airline alliance can be the best friend of the Miles enthusiast. If you are using a credit card to receive transferable rewards, check out the transfer partners that can be booked with this loyalty program and the flights that can be booked. For example, I can book flights through the British Airways Club to choose American Airlines. Even if you don’t earn transferable points or miles, it’s still worth checking out the Partner Program, as you never know which loyalty program might be promoted at the purchase point.
Related: When does buying points and mileage make sense?
Bottom line
Whether it’s a holiday trip or your next spring break holiday, buying points and miles can save you a lot of money – in my specific case, nearly $1,000.
Be sure to frequently compare the numbers, compare fares and check the availability of partner awards and airline promotions. You never know when the airline stars will stay consistent – otherwise the loyalty program promotion will be conducted at the right time – amazing flight deals will be just a few clicks.
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