Frequent flyer credit
Want to fly Alright. Want to fly for free Why not What would have seemed fantasy a few years ago, has now become reality, with almost every airline dotting the skies doling out attractive offers to their clients to gather free miles every time a client flies a particular airline . Crediting the customer with free miles is a sound strategy by airline companies to retain clientele, and what better chance for the client to be rewarded with a free trip (or say trips) than paying up to fly . Simply fly and gather miles for free trips . Or, own a credit card and fly many more times for free !
For airline companies and fliers alike, the latest nomenclature in the offing is the Frequent Flier Credit . Traditionally, every time a customer flies a particular carrier, he/she is entitled to extra miles or extra points which may be accumulated to get free trips . The concept has evolved to help customers earn extra miles now by using credit cards as well. Known as frequent flier credit cards, the customer could well use the card for purposes that may or may not be related to flying or travel, but could well help a shopper gain miles for a free trip faster . And concepts such as these have actually revolutionized the way people fly .
Now there seems to be an established association between certain well known international airlines and a good number of frequent flier credit cards. Examples are plenty -- Aer Lingus, Aerolineas Argentinas, Aeromexico, Air Canada, Air France, Air New Zealand, Air Tran Airways, Alaska Airlines, Alitalia, All Nippon Airways, Aloha Airlines, American Airlines, America West Airlines, Asiana Airlines, ATA, Austrian Airlines, British Airways, British Midland, Cathay Pacific, Continental Airlines, Delta Airlines, El Al, Eva Airways, Finnair, Frontier Airlines, Hawaiian Airlines, Iberia Airlines, Independence Air, JAL, JetBlue, KLM, Korean Airlines, LAN, LOT Polish Airlines, Lufthansa, Mexicana, Malaysia Airlines, Midwest Airlines, Northwest Airlines, Olympic Airlines, Philippine Airlines, Qantas, Scandinavian Airlines, Singapore Airlines, Southwest Airlines, Swiss, TAP Portugal, Thai Airways, United Airlines, US Airways, Varig, and Virgin Atlantic, and so on .
There are several types of frequent flier credit cards and there are even different categories among them . Some of them offer benefits other than free flying options, such as free car rentals, hotel accommodation and more . Good example of frequent flier credit cards that allows the card holder to earn miles in America are Citi Banks AAdvantage World Master Card and American Express Gold Delta Skymiles . The cards allow the card holder to gather miles through American Airlines . There are other frequent flier credit cards which offer the user to earn miles for free trips from several carriers. This is a certain advantage to the flier as he gets to choose any airline to fly at any given time and earn extra miles .
To begin with, what would attract a flier to frequent flier credit cards are the attractive introductory offers . So making the first purchase with the frequent flier credit card usually seems lucrative ; many offer at least half (if not more) the total number of miles required to avail a free trip . For many airlines plying in the United States and Canada, the number of miles required by the flier to earn a free trip is about 25,000 miles . Across the Europe, that number is about 60,000 miles and to the Caribbean, the number is 35,000 miles .
Then it may be necessary to find out what the frequent flier cards APR and its expiry period. A smart flier would shop with a card that would help him earn miles for every purchase he makes, be it big or small . A typical reward offered by Frequent Flier credit cards are one mile for every dollar . So, by using the card for any kind of purchase frequently, the idea is to avail the benefit of the freebie as early as possible, lest, the standard three-year validity of the frequent flier card might expire without that being put to any good use.
Those who managed to use their frequent flying cards for free trips say that card users must be able to make intelligent purchases that would speed up their extra mile score . Using the card at gas stations, pharmacies, eateries, supermarkets, purchasing new wireless phones and so on are a definite sources to earn miles faster, they say . An organized method of going about earning miles faster is to check out regular deals and promotions of airline with wireless companies like AT&T and MCI. It seems frequent fliers never miss to check out airline partner promotion sections on the websites of wireless companies.
In fact, if you have chosen the right Frequent Flier credit card, then there is never a thing to lose. That is, with the right card, if you have earned sufficient miles for a free trip but do not want to accept the offer, you have the option of recovering cash instead of miles .
With so many cards and so many mile earning options, it is not difficult to be win free trips from airline companies . Whether you are a business traveler or someone who travels just a couple of times in a year, the rule of the game is all the same.
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