Happy New Year! Even though the year has just begun, I’m sure it is going to go by as quickly as 2023 – especially if you have booked some trips around our incredible world. As the new year is now official, there are several action items that need to be taken care of if you are involved in the miles & points world. Not all of these have to be completed quickly, but you definitely want to check-off as many as you can so you’re all set for the new year.
Plan & Book Travel/Elite Status Qualification
Many of us took the few days between Christmas and New Years a few days ago to plan out our 2024 travels – however, if you haven’t, no worries because there is still plenty of time. Consider:
- what airlines will you fly this year to qualify or renew your elite status?
- what hotels will you stay at this year and how will that affect your hotel elite status?
- where do you want to travel to this year?
- keeping in mind your past travels, are you able to reach your desired tier levels this year?
- do you want to try out some new airlines or hotels and possibly switch loyalty elsewhere?
There are more questions you could ask yourself, but the main one is how do you plan on qualifying and renewing your desired elite status levels and will you be able to do that organically without any mileage runs? This is why planning travel ahead for the year can help – you do not have to book yet, but have a rough idea of where you want to go each month.
Review Certificates, Vouchers, Awards, Coupons, etc. Expiring This Year
The more we fly and stay, the more certificates, vouchers, awards, etc. we end up with in our airline and hotel accounts – most of them have expiration dates that cannot be extended. Be sure to carefully review all of these instruments that you have in your accounts and make concrete plans when you are going to use the ones that expire this year. The worst thing you can do is let miles/points or awards expire.
If you have any miles or points with expiration dates this year, be sure to check if those dates can be extended and if not, plan and book using them as soon as possible.
Start Using Annual Travel Credits
Premium travel credit cards come with annual travel credits every year – like airline, hotel, transportation, etc. credits. Most of these reset back to zero on 01 January and therefore it is time to use those up. Have a look at what you used your credits on last year and decide if you will use them in the same way again this year and if not, make a plan to use them.
Some of these credits are easier to use than others, so be sure to make solid plans to use the “harder to use” credits so they don’t expire. If you need inspiration, simply search on Google.
Have a Look at the Newest Miles & Points Credit Card Offers
As the new year rolls in, many banks will launch special offers on credit cards – it may not happen right away, but it will happen at some point. If you are considering applying for a credit card this year, narrow down the card you would like and keep an eye on the sign-up bonus and when it changes to a higher-than-usual bonus, you may want to apply.
It is also great to do a little bit of housekeeping and consider which cards you want to keep and cancel as you open more cards. If you do open a new card, carefully track your sign-up bonus.
Select Hotel Milestone Benefits from Past Year
If you qualified for mid-to-top tier elite status with a hotel chain, chances are you have earned some milestone benefits for passing a certain number of nights. These will usually be upgrade certificates, free night awards, etc. – be sure to look over your hotel accounts and make sure you have selected all of your milestone benefits and that they have been properly credited to your account.
Most of these benefits have to be selected by a certain date or you might get the default option credited to your account, depending on the hotel chain.
Check out Miles & Points Credit Card Transfer Bonuses
You should always be collecting flexible and transferable points in a bank program that you can transfer to airlines or hotels when the time is right. Many banks offer transfer bonuses from time to time to select partners – this means you can get more miles or points than you transfer. Most of these bonuses last for only a month, so be sure to regularly check every month if your bank points program is offering any transfer bonuses.
Check out Buy Miles & Points Promotions
Many airline frequent flyer programs and hotel frequent guest programs offer buy miles and points promotions from time to time – usually these are not that amazing, but there is an occasional offer where the promotion allows you to buy points at a great discount or with a good bonus. Have a look at your accounts and see if any of them are eligible for a promotion and remember that some of these could be targeted so different accounts could have different offers.
Add Credit Card Spending Offers to Your Cards
Select credit card issuers have monthly offers that you can add to your credit card and then use up as you make purchases. For example, I’m seeing a 20% cash back offer if I spend $100 or more on Expedia on one of my cards, so I’ve added this offer to my credit card. If you have a credit card that has monthly purchase offers, be sure to review them on a regular basis and add them to your account and make plans to use the best offers so you can maximize the value you receive from your card.