If you have an air miles points card, you have likely gone to great lengths to score points. You may have shifted your purchasing habits to ensure that big dollar items make it onto your card. You might find yourself shopping at different grocery stores and gas stations to get maximum point benefits. And at some point, you may have found yourself looking at a large point balance that was on the verge of expiring. This was especially true in the last few years, as travel restrictions made it hard if not impossible to turn points into travel at times.
As the travel industry finds its footing again, now is a great time to strategize how to get more air miles points, and how to hold onto them until you’re ready to jet set. Let’s look at 10 mistakes to avoid when redeeming air miles points.
Only Relying on Airline Websites
Tickets for your desired travel day may appear sold out when you check an airline’s website. What you don’t know is that these sites don’t always include information about available seats on partner airlines.
There are three major global airline alliances: Star Alliance, SkyTeam, and Oneworld. Many major airlines have joined one of these global alliances or formed their own partnerships in order to offer more routes and flights, all while increasing the value of their individual advantage programs. For example, JetBlue and American Airlines have partnered, allowing TrueBlue members to earn miles by flying on American flights as well as JetBlue flights and to soon allow JetBlue miles to be redeemed on American flights.
So, investigate whether your reward points can be used towards booking a flight on a partner airline. Also, make sure you’re using travel sites that include information on airline alliance partners.