It’s costly to travel, and even when you travel domestically, you’re dropping a massive wad of cash on flights, hotels, and rental cars. That doesn’t include that every meal you eat will come from a restaurant, and anything you need while you’re there will cost a pretty penny, too. So why not take advantage of all those points and rewards programs – or those good travel perks? Here’s how:
Take a Look At Your Credit Cards
Call your credit card companies or visit their websites to find out what kind of travel perks and rewards they offer. You’ll be amazed at how many things you can get for free or at a discount and how you can have service upgraded on a whim with various venues and companies.
Mastercard offers excellent deals on flights, and specialized cards will give you complimentary upgrades to better hotel rooms, line-cutting privileges for rooms, and priority check-in. American Express has cards granting you access to sky lounges at airports, free flights for your +1, and exclusive first-class seating on flights you could never take advantage of through other rewards programs for Visa; you can enjoy premium exchange rates on currency when you travel, better rates on rent-a-cars, and automatic hotel reservations. These cards also offer discounted or complimentary travel insurance, so you can have fun doing things like scuba diving or hiking, and a snapped ankle won’t put you into the poor house. -and let’s remember cashback.
Rewards From Cards, Clubs, and Points
We’ve all heard of Air Miles and Aeroplan Miles, which are helpful when saving money on flights. You can still get points while staying at hotels and buying groceries, so you’re constantly racking up more rewards. Suppose you always remain in the same hotels wherever you go. In that case, you can join a club for that in addition to a frequent fliers type program you can get for using the same airline all the time. Aeroplan (separate from your credit cards) is a good program that allows users to upgrade their seats on certain flights, pay for their rental car with points, and book hotel rooms at world-class hotels. You can even use the points to purchase concert tickets. Suppose you’re planning on a furnished apartment with Corporate Stays. In that case, we offer many exclusive offer, extensions, and merchandise after their first stay.
Coupons and Promo Codes
It may sound a little pathetic to suggest clipping coupons and paying attention to promo codes. Still, the local papers, couponing sites, and even airline website promo codes can help you save a lot, get a better vehicle from your rental company, or bump into a better hotel room. Coupons are free money, and you would be foolish to turn down free money, right? Even if they don’t automatically give you perks outright, the money you save using them can be used to get into first-class seats or luxury sedans. Try out sites like HotelCoupons.com and watch Expedia or Travelocity for promo codes and more travel perks.
You can also look through those neat coupon books – EntertainmentBooks has tons. We mean TONS of coupons and promo codes in them, and $40 a year for a book and hundreds of dollars in savings later; you’ll be glad to have purchased one because of the great deals for different cities. The front of the book always has rent-a-car deals and hotel discounts. They even allow you to get a special discount card that gives you even more sales, which is convenient when you’re out of town and don’t want to carry a million coupons in your tote.