Unlock cheap flights: buying hotel points to fill miles gaps
Ever found the perfect airline redemption, only to fall short on those elusive points and miles? I certainly did, recently battling Emirates Skywards, but I uncovered a surprisingly effective workaround.
Turning hotel points into flight tickets
Instead of giving up, I opted to purchase hotel points – a strategy that ultimately cost less than buying airline miles directly and secured me the exact flights I needed at a fraction of the cash price. It’s a tactic worth considering when your mileage balance is stubbornly short.
Initially, I transferred my entire Citi ThankYou Rewards balance to Emirates Skywards, hoping for a 5:1 transfer rate. While acceptable, I still needed an additional 6,000 miles. Chase Ultimate Rewards, a former transfer partner, proved frustratingly unavailable.
The brilliant bonvoy boost
That’s when I noticed a Marriott Bonvoy promotion offering a 40% bonus when purchasing points. I snagged 13,000 points for just $162.50, boosting my total to 18,200. This jump, coupled with a 3:1 transfer rate to Emirates Skywards, translated to precisely 6,000 miles – enough to complete my booking. The instant transfer was a crucial detail, locking in my travel plans with certainty.
While this purchase was only $17.50 cheaper than buying the required Skywards miles directly from Emirates, the potential savings were too significant to ignore. Remember, this strategy works for flights operated by Emirates' partners, extending to airlines like TAP Air Portugal, Gol Airlines, Korean Air and Copa Airlines. It’s a ripple effect of savings, benefiting travelers across a broader network.
Don’t let mileage shortfalls derail your trip
The bottom line? Don’t despair when your mileage balance falls short. Buying points and miles directly from the program you need to redeem through can be a surprisingly cost-effective solution. Keep an eye out for bonus offers – like the Bonvoy-to-Emirates promotion I found – to minimize your out-of-pocket expenses and ensure you reach your destination for less. It’s a simple, yet powerful, tactic for savvy travelers.