WSJ video on airline loyalty programs. In some cases, airlines make more money from loyalty programs than they do from operating airplanes. But competition and changing consumer preferences make it difficult to manage the programs.
On the consumer side, if you have loyalty points or miles, go ahead and use them. They don’t pay interest and are likely to be devalued, so spend 'em if you got 'em.
I’m a big user (but not a power user) of credit card points and miles. I’ve gotten an enormous amount of travel for very low cost. It does require a bit of planning and organization, but the upside is worth many thousands of dollars.
I used credit card frequent flyer miles quite a bit up until the Covid pandemic. Commercial airline travel has degraded so much since, I wouldn’t get on a flight even if the ticket was completely free.
I’d rather have cash and we route everytning through cash-back cards. Airline points you can only use for travel, and they can be devalued at any time on the company’s whim. Cash, on the other hand, can only be devalued when the government spends too much and, OK, wait a minute.
Totally agree about the cash. But the secret sauce to points and miles is the signup bonus. Quick example. The Alaska Airlines Visa currently has a 60,000 mile signup bonus with a $95 annual fee. That will easily get you roundtrip from Seattle to Hawaii, (maybe twice if you include miles from the spend). Which normally costs about $900. So about $800 worth of free travel. It includes a companion fare, so if you go one more time with a companion, you get $1800 of travel (value of two round trips) for about $1000.
Yes. If you have a need to fly, the airline miles are worth more than the cash back. Otherwise I’d just use whichever credit card gives me the most cash back on the transaction (usually 2% to 5%)
I booked an Amtrak ride last month when I needed to travel to Seattle to pick up my used Tesla. About 75% of the trips are now done by buses. Amtrak hasn’t bought new rolling stock in years for the Cascades route and most of the train sets are in the shop.
We have played that game a LOT…BofA, Chase, Amex, FNBO, Citi…for Delta, Alaska and American Air, and IHG (Holiday), Marriott, Best Western, and Hilton. I think they got mad at us.
