I don’t mean for carrying a balance, but for using in lieu of the debit card just to get miles points. I would probably be interested in Delta. I read the points do not expire.

We do not travel often, but this seems like a decent way to save on one ticket a year.

Anyone get much benefit from these, particularly infrequent travelers?

quote:

Originally posted by Oz_Shadow:
I don’t mean for carrying a balance, but for using in lieu of the debit card just to get miles points. I would probably be interested in Delta. I read the points do not expire.

We do not travel often, but this seems like a decent way to save on one ticket a year.

Anyone get much benefit from these, particularly infrequent travelers?

If you don't travel much don't get a airline miles card. There are better earning cards out there that can earn you more than an airline card when you're not flying much as that is where airline cards earn the most points.

I use a card from Navy Federal Credit Union (Flagship Rewards) which earns 2 points for every dollar spent. I also use some other cards for groceries and gas with higher earning rates.

quote:

Originally posted by Oz_Shadow:
I don’t mean for carrying a balance, but for using in lieu of the debit card just to get miles points. I would probably be interested in Delta. I read the points do not expire.

We do not travel often, but this seems like a decent way to save on one ticket a year.

Anyone get much benefit from these, particularly infrequent travelers?

for me no. I have a Capital One card that gives points for air fair, hotels etc or can be redeemed for cash. I haven't put my butt on an airline seat in quite awhile so I'd rather just have the cash back and I'll buy a ticket if I do need one. I've been using my Apple card for most every thing and get 2% back on most purchases. I'm sure some others will come forward with other cards that give as much or more back. I put virtually everything on that card and just pay it off at the end of the month. I see no advantage to bank debit cards, or checks.

I have gotten multiple free flights from my Southwest card points. Typically, at least one per year. Not “miles” per say, but similar.

They weren’t worth it even before Covid made air travel unbearable.

The two things I learned is that the points you earn are subject to being “devalued” by the airlines in a couple of different ways. (They don’t call Delta’s mileage points “sky pesos” for nothing!)

For example, the ratio of dollars spent for miles earned can be adjusted to require more spending to get the same amount of miles. Or, the number of miles needed for a flight gets increased.

I also quickly learned that the more desirable flights are either blacked out entirely or require an additional mileage “premium”. The flights available for regular mileage award travel tended to be red eyes or required mid-week travel.

I dumped the card and went to a straight cash back card.

I've had a Chase United card for years.
Just recently started using it more. Side benefit, is free checked bag for each traveler on tickets bought with the card.

IIRC it's 1 mile per $
2 miles per $ on United ticket purchases

I haven’t paid for a hotel room or airline ticket in years. I willfully whore my credit score for sign up bonuses and travel a few times a year. Check out doctor of credit. I’ll put out the caveat, that when there isn’t a Marriott… I have paid for an Airbnb. But in general, if you play the game it can be lucrative. Check what airline frequents yo7r locale, and start with chase cards. Again, that website is a wealth of info. Good luck.

We use Costco Visa card. We seem to do okay with it.

I don’t have a miles card, but I have a points one. I have the Chase Sapphire Preferred. There is a yearly fee ($95ish). I received bonus points supposedly equivalent to $750 for signing up and meeting their spending quota within a few months.

I was able to use some of the points by transferring them to United Airlines. My dad and I were able to get round trip tickets to Vancouver, BC for the points and maybe an extra $500. We’re flying later this month for an Alaskan cruise. We’ll be flying premium economy there and first class back.

This was my first attempt at using my points. I’m sure if you had a bit of flexibility with your travel dates, you could score a pretty awesome deal.

My brother has made this a science. He hasn't paid for a flight in years and travels a fair amount. It's doable, but most won't put in the time and be willing or able to do odd connections at odd hours to use the least points to get from one place to another

This message has been edited. Last edited by: Blackmore,

I don't have a credit card that gives Airline Miles, but I do have a Hawaiian Airlines account where I get miles for flying with them.

Every couple of years I get a free round trip from Kona to Honolulu, which is useful since I like to go to the USS Arizona Memorial every year and pay my respects to the men who were there.

I used to have a Delta Skymiles card through SunTrust. I paid an annual fee of $75. Then I calculated that if I just saved the $75 per year, I could just pay for my airline tickets.

I use a Costco Visa now and get back over $1,000 per year in cash. For me, the airline card was not worth it once the annual fee was added in.

Someone who flew for their entire career… I use one to keep my account/balance “alive”.

I've gotten several hundred dollars in cash back from my credit card.

I have a cabela's card. 5% points at the store and 1% everywhere else. Use it for daily stuff and bills and it adds up fast. Cabela's has a friendly policy in points. No real restrictions that I have seen, you get points on sale items and can spend points on sale items. I usually use it to buy a new toy or reloading supplies with their occasional 10% off days.



Edited for spelling

I rotate through a few different ones. I haven't paid for a flight in years.

Even if you don't travel a lot, it's worth it for the introductory bonuses. It's usually enough for a couple round trip tickets.

I have a Chase Sapphire Preferred I use. It gets point and you can transfer them for many things, but I use it for airline tickets. You can use the points with a bunch of different airlines. That way you're not limited to one.

If you're near a hub and fly a certain airline alot having their card can help. I also have a United card because it gets me a few perks including one free bag. So I can usually cover the cost of the card with savings on the baggage fees. I also get two free lounge passes which is nice if you have a long layover.

There are perks for card but you need to look at your situation and see if they balance out.

I used to have the Delta/AmEx card. When I first got it is 2005, it was great. But when the airlines started messing with rewards, it quickly became a joke. Oh, I have a billion miles on my program? I should be able to get a flight from DC to DFW, right? Nope. I need to buy miles, and the price of the miles was about the same as a ticket. Add in the games with checked luggage and such, I dropped the card before my 10 year anniversary with AmEx.

My company has been flying me to cities next to Naval Bases where I fly OCONUS. I reactivated my American Airlines miles club and we'll see if that is worth it.

Axos has/had a 1% cash back debit card. I have one.

One gold offers some kind of way to get a percent back, in bullion, I think.

We let our points build up for 15 years or so; this was with Amex which we have since cancelled. We were able to fly my family of 5 to Disney and also paid for the stay. It was not enough to also pay for the park passes, so it was around $1300 out of pocket for the trip.

We have been using the Citi Costco card but my wife just got all of us the Chase Freedom card which she said will get us more money back.