Frequent Flyer Programs – Can They Benefit the Casual Traveler?

No doubt you have heard of frequent flyer programs that are offered by almost all of the major airlines. Promises of free tickets and upgraded service are the main drawing points these programs use to get you to sign up in hopes that you will use their airline exclusively for all your travel needs. What they fail to tell you though is that unless you travel on a monthly basis on long journeys the free tickets and upgrades will be only a pipe dream. So the question becomes can programs such as this benefit the casual traveler?

Surprisingly the answer as it turns out is yes. In the competitive airline industry the major carriers are looking for ways to retain and reward loyalty and they do that primarily on the basis of your frequent flyer number. And it isn’t just flying that can earn you the points and status on these programs, nowadays everything from renting a car, staying in a certain brand of hotel or even using a credit card can rack up the points for you to use.

One of the benefits the frequent flyer program has for even the most infrequent of traveler is the priority that is given should your flight be overbooked. On a majority of the airlines one of the criteria that are used to decide who goes to the front of the standby list is enrollment in the frequent flyer program. Although it may only be a small bump, every little bit can help when your flight is overbooked and you want to get on that plane!

The same applies to service class upgrades. Airlines will bump passengers who are members of the frequent flyer program up to business or first class when economy class is overbooked based on frequent flyer status. After all, they want to reward those who have flown with them before to entice them to fly on that airline again versus a passenger who may constantly be searching around for the cheapest flights.

Even if you take just one trip a year the airline may reward you in some small form. Realizing that most passengers are not fooled by the promise of free tickets anymore, especially for casual travelers, they have started to offer a number of ways you can cash in those miles for smaller rewards. One of the favorites being used by airlines is on magazine subscriptions. A recent flight I took from St. Louis to Chicago (a relatively short flight) earned me enough miles to get a one year subscription to Time. It may only be a small token, but something is better than nothing when it comes to being frugal!

If you do have dreams of that free ticket to Hawaii for a vacation that you always wanted, don’t despair. You don’t have to fly nowadays to rack up the points! Many airlines offer branded credit cards that offer you points for every dollar you spend. At the end of the year you are rewarded with your miles which you can use any which way you choose. In fact, I know several people who have earned several free tickets just by using co-branded credit cards. Remember though, don’t get so caught up in earning those miles that you end up with a balance you can’t pay off every month – paying interest on a credit card balance could very well pay for your ticket in the first place!

All the frequent flyer programs are free to sign up for and can be done online. So take a few minutes before you fly next time to get yourself enrolled. While you may never see the elite status of some, you can earn small tokens of appreciation from the airlines – and after all, considering it is next to impossible to get a package of peanuts from the airlines nowadays anything is better than nothing!