It's embarrassing to admit that I didn't take the time to learn how to manipulate the flyer miles system years ago when I was a full-time traveler. As a twenty-something shoestring budget backpacker, my decisions on which airline to fly weren't about brand loyalty or desired services but rather price and itinerary convenience. I accrued flyer miles from various airlines that still sit untouched. My husband on the other hand is the king of the deal. If there's a way to win against the House while still playing within the rules they set forth, he'll find it. While I've gotten better at manipulating the system, all the credit for our epic booking goes to him and I'll share it with you here in the hopes you can benefit as well.
Let me start by explaining that you don't have to fly with an airline to earn flyer miles. Everyday purchases can earn you miles, whether you use a credit card designated to earn airline miles or an online shopping portal such as United Milage Plus to access websites and make purchases (that you'd make anyway) earning you 1X to sometimes 5X's flyer miles for each dollar spent, While it may take practice to get into the habit of logging into an aux app or portal to access a site you might otherwise use an app or direct site for, it's worth it to see those miles add up, and depending how often you shop, they can add up quickly! There are tons of options out there for you to start earning, you just have to find what makes sense for you.
As I've mentioned, we had to pivot from our original travel plans, which was a pivot from the ones before the pandemic. Quick recap, in 2019, I purchased tickets to Japan as a gift to my husband for a trip in March 2020. The pandemic shut our shit down hard and even as many countries were reopening their borders for tourism, Japan held off for almost another two years. After rebooking and having to cancel two more times, in 2022, we decided to pull the trigger on a flash sale to China and Thailand for 2024, which has also been canceled, within 30 days of departure [insert angry emoji face here]. To say we've had a challenging time getting to East Asia is an understatement. I'll also admit, that because we booked a cheap tour, inclusive of transportation and lodging, to countries where we knew our currency would hold more value, we didn't save a ton of extra cash or have a travel backup plan, beyond a true emergency. So when the trip was confirmed canceled, all of a sudden, we were facing an expensive change of plans.
While it would have been easier to change our entire mindset, traveling to South or Central America or even Europe, we have been trying to travel to East Asia for five years, each time with open hearts, empty stomachs, and tickets in hand. We've salivated over the ramen, the sushi, the Tteokbokki, the beef noodle soup, the Soju, and the Sake on food and travel shows, knowing what we enjoy in our hometown is delicious but isn't paired with the sounds, smells, sights, and sensory overload of being there. We had to find a way to go, in the window of allotted time we already had approved, without putting us in a financial pinch.
Based on multiple rebookings over the years and depending on where you're flying from, a RT flight to Tokyo for around $1,100 isn't bad. Being that I live on the East Coast of the United States, it's rare, though not impossible, to find it much cheaper. Of course, if you're on the West Coast or Australia, then that might not sound like a reasonable price. Now as good a deal as that was for a flight leaving in less than a month at the beginning of Cherry Blossom Season, it was only for one country and with taxes and fees was going to set us back about $3,000 for flights, never mind everything else. As I mentioned, my husband is the king of the deal and was sitting on a ton of United miles. While I have about 40K, he had a little more than 200K (accrued over time). If ever there was a time to burn some, now was it.
So how did we score a normally $6,500 RT flight package to Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan for 111, 300K miles and $94.10 out of pocket each? First, let's go over some basics.
How much are miles worth?
Roughly speaking: 1K miles = $10 | 10K miles = $100 | 100K miles = $1,000
Are there transfer fees?
Yes! If you are sitting on a lot of miles and want to use them for flights with you and a friend or family member, it's best if you book all the flights from your available miles and not transfer them for your partner to book separately. On average, it will cost around $7.50 for every 500 miles you want to transfer. Let's say you wanted to transfer 15K miles to your partner so they have enough miles to book the same flights as you, it would cost $225 in transfer fees for mileage that's only valued at $150. That's not including the $30 processing fee in addition. The math simply doesn't add up. You'll also want to read the fee fine print if you plan to transfer points or miles from another airline or credit card account. As I've already mentioned, I'm not an expert, so if you want to dive deeper, check out The Points Guy.
Hidden Hacks!
This one kind of blew my mind and afforded us to add Taiwan to our itinerary. Assuming you have a decent amount of miles (let's say 60K+), a bit of flexibility or time budgeted into your trip, and you're planning to travel to at least two countries then you can't miss out on this travel hack! Using United as our example since this is who we booked with, from the homepage, use the search feature and type in "Excursionist Perk." This will outline how you can secure a free one-way award flight within select multi-city itineraries. While this could be used for an award flight within the same country, where it really pays off is when you score an award flight to another country. In the search feature, type in Regions List to see if this perk is applicable with your preferred airline. With United, this list breaks down every country and categorized region that is eligible for MileagePlus travel and upgrade awards. Meaning, if you book with miles to fly into one country, for example, South Korea, you can book a connecting flight to Taiwan for free! Next time you're planning a trip and want to book with miles, look to see if your preferred airline offers this option. It might just yield a bonus stop in another country!
You can play around with this on your own and see for yourself. United will allow you to map out a sample multi-city itinerary with miles but will indicate if you don't have enough miles to apply. You can't pay the difference in dollars. Again, you can accept transferred miles from someone else to make up the difference but it will come at a steep cost.
Sample Itinerary
Let's say you wanted to book a trip next month and spend two weeks traveling South Korea and Taiwan. flying in and out of Los Angeles using reward miles. At the time of this writing, it might cost 101,400K miles + $80.70 out of pocket, however, the flight from Seoul to Taiwan was zero miles because it's in the same region! Milage pricing is impacted by more favorable flight options including the number of layovers (if any) and times of day. Again if money is tight but points are plentiful, it might be worth exploring.
At the end of the day, by applying just a little more intention in how you make everyday purchases, be that the credit card you use or the affiliated portal you shop from, you'll quickly see the miles add up which can pay off in a big way when it comes to booking travel and saving money!
Leave a comment if you have any other helpful travel tips when it comes to accruing or booking with miles or points! I'd love to hear if you found any of these tips new or useful.
Happy Travels!
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