Match the Best Mileage-transfer Booking Strategies to the Best Credit Card, for Your Situation
We have all heard the saying associated with credit cards: “What’s in your wallet?” In this article, I’m going to take that idea one step further by asking, “Does your wallet reward you well enough?”
There are scads of travel-reward credit cards out there, so the first thing to do is simplify the field. In fact, they fall into three primary categories:
- Single-airline mileage-program cards (SAC)
- Multi-airline mileage-program cards (MAC)
- Bank-managed program cards (BMC)
Then you just have to do the following:
- Match your travel profile with the credit card that best fits it
- Know how to take advantage of credit-card opportunities for redeeming air-travel rewards
- Know how to handle mileage-transfer and booking awards, which will poise you to score the best you can
Step One: Understand the three types of air-travel-reward credit cards
- Single-airline mileage-program cards (SACs) These cards are used primarily to earn miles on a single carrier. But they can also include other perks, such as free companion ticket offers, a faster-track to elite status, and airport lounge access. (Examples are Citibank AAdvantage and United’s Mileage Plus Visa.)
The Upside: Good for the person who flies one carrier that doesn’t participate in any other air-travel-reward credit card.
The Downside: Limited award space. That’s because you’re limited to the inventory of one airline’s award space and to its partners.
- Multi-airline cards (MACs) These are the type of credit cards—specifically, American Express Membership Rewards (16 airline partner options) and Starwood (29 airline options)—that FCF has been recommending for transferring points to miles for over 15 years.
The Upside: These cards do not tie you to one mileage-redemption program. Both of the cards above give you the option to transfer points to numerous partner airlines.
The Downside : The time it takes to transfer points to miles—as short as a few hours or as long as six weeks, depending on the card and the carrier. Also, not all merchants take American Express.
- Bank-managed program cards (BMCs) These are cards issued by a bank, for example Capital One’s Venture Visa Signature card, which also sets the terms and manages the mileage-redemption program. It sounds perfectly straight-forward, but getting this type of card is one of the biggest mistakes the premium traveler can make, especially for First Class travel.
The Upside: The lack of blackout dates and the mileage-redemption possibilities on multiple carriers, which are loudly trumpeted in ads.
The Downside: Miles are often not valid for First Class, or the miles needed for an award is set by the bank, which often uses the cost of the ticket to determine the redemption rate. The cost is particularly onerous for First Class.
Step Two: Know thyself. What type of traveler are you?
This doesn’t require hours of introspection, for most of us fall into one of three behavior groups when it comes to credit-card rewards. That said, it might be time to make a change.
- The single-airline loyalty traveler
You put miles and credit card points in one basket and you fly one airline or the carrier’s alliance unless forced to do otherwise. The reasons are diverse, from living in a city served by only one carrier or the investment in elite status you’ve built up in one carrier’s program. You probably have a SAC card.
[aside headline="Pay $180 More and Get an International Upgrade to Business Class" alignment="alignright" width="half" headline_size="default"]Most co-branded airline credit cards (SACs) make you earn 50,000 (American) to 60,000 (Continental, Delta, United, and US Airways) miles to fly free in economy to Europe. But rack up 60,000 points through the Amex Starwood card and it will net you 75,000 Cathay Pacific Asia Miles with the transfer bonus. Then buy another 6,000 miles directly from Asia Miles for $180 (2,000 miles for $60 a block; and you have the 80,000 Asia Miles required for a Business Class ticket on Cathay’s partner, British Airways, from its U.S. gateways to London. (Except San Francisco, Los Angeles, and Phoenix.)[/aside]
- The multi-airline traveler
You have miles and points in various accounts (you’re a MAC) to increase access to award-seat inventory, higher-quality airlines, better seats, and routing possibilities. You’re probably up on card benefits, such as the 25% transfer bonus offered by the Starwood Preferred Guest Card, and membership transfer bonuses offered from time to time from AmEx, which have been as high as 50% on British Airways, Delta, and Virgin Atlantic.
- The traveler who plays both sides of the fence
You’re like me. You like to single out one airline to build and maintain elite status. But you also want the benefits of the multi-carrier access that MACs offer. You play the three alliances and always have some miles stashed away in a number of programs.
[aside headline="Chase Sapphire Preferred: The Good BMA" alignment="alignright" width="half" headline_size="default"]We’re singling it out because it offers mileage transfer to Con-tinental, which gives you access to Star Alliance airlines, and British Airways, which gives you access to oneworld airlines. The transfer time usually takes five to seven business days. The card is currently offering 50,000 bonus points if you spend $3,000 in the first three months after enrolling. Link[/aside]
The key to win with credit card points, is to get one (or more) that earns points in numerous airline programs, a multi-airline credit card, including that of your preferred carrier if possible.
Step Three: Getting the best of all loyalty-program worlds with MAC
This is where it gets really interesting—putting it all together, considering “credit-card-point-transfer time” and “airline-reservation-hold time”—so hang with me as I comb through some issues and fine print. It will be worth it, I promise.
Issue #1: Point Transfer Time
The Problem: Many airline loyalty programs will not let you “hold” award space until you have the miles required for that particular award in your account. So, while the miles are being transferred, the seat availability could disappear!
The Solution: American Express Membership Rewards, because it transfers points much faster than Starwood—24 to 48 hours versus two to six weeks, on average. I have transferred many points from AmEx Membership Rewards to different airlines and saw them post the same day.
Issue #2: Airline Reservation “Hold Time”
The Problem: Knowing which airlines will hold award space long enough for points to transfer.
The Solution: Knowing which airlines have a “generous award space hold time” without having sufficient miles in your account for the award booking (yet). Let’s take two SkyTeam airlines for example: Delta’s SkyMiles, which holds award space for up to 48 hours, pending mileage transfer. But don’t assume that Delta’s partners have the same policy. Air France’s Flying Blue program won’t hold an award unless the miles needed are in the account. (See list of best airlines on page 4.)
Issue #3: Knowing Which MAC to Use and When
Best for Quick Confirmation: AmEx Membership Rewards
Team up the short transfer time with an airline that has a generous hold policy for award space and you can confirm an award itinerary quickly. Here’s a list of airlines that hold award space while Membership Reward points transfer—and the steps required to see it all through.
All Nippon: Requires a few steps because it only holds award space if the member has “some miles” in the account. Step one: Prepare in advance, by transferring 1,000 miles (the minimum required) to All Nippon. Step two: Check for award seats when you are ready to book. Step three: If All Nippon (800-235-9262) has the space, then transfer points needed for the award seat and get the confirmation number. Step four: Call All Nippon’s mileage desk back and give them the AmEx Membership Rewards confirmation number of the pending transfer and it will book and hold your seats until the transfer takes place.
Continental: Holds seats up to 72 hours on Continental flights via “Fare Lock” for free (charges $19 or more for a seven-day hold) while points transfer. In fact, on the same web page as the fare lock option is a link to AmEx Membership Rewards to start the process. The hold is also valid for partner airlines, among them, Lufthansa and United (maximum 72 hours). I booked a non-stop Lufthansa flight from Chicago to Frankfurt and was given a 24-hour hold, time enough to transfer points for travel in First Class. Too bad Continental is leaving AmEx Membership Rewards on
Sept. 30.
Delta: Holds seats up to 48 hours on Delta flights and 24 hours on partners, among them, Air France (which does not hold space unless you have all miles required in your Flying Blue mileage account). The website also mentions transferring points to miles in step 3, “You don’t have enough miles for this Award Ticket. But we can hold it for you until (two days from whatever date you are booking). That way, you can convert AmEx Membership Rewards points to miles before then (the date given above), and you can come back to redeem your held itinerary.”
Singapore: Holding award reservations is only offered on Singapore flights and can only be done by calling the Singapore Airlines mileage desk (213-404-0301), and is good for a few days. The drawback is that you don’t get the 15% online booking discount, but is still a fine opportunity.
Virgin Atlantic: With an award-reservation hold time of 24 to 72 hours, it can only be done by calling the mileage desk (800-365-9500), and is only available on Virgin Atlantic flights, but depends on award space availability and route.
Best Airlines for “Holding Award Space”
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Best for Planning Ahead:
Starwood Preferred Guest Card
Planning ahead obviates the downside of this card—the fact that the point-transfer time takes two to four weeks for U.S. carriers and four to six weeks for foreign ones (this information comes directly from Starwood’s website). My last transfer to Delta took four days, which is pretty good, but too long to hold space. What you get is access to 29 airlines, and even via partners, the most offered by any card, and a standard 25% bonus when transferring to a partner airline.
I keep 100,000+ miles in a fist full of frequently used mileage programs, topping them up via point transfers from Starwood, so I have miles there when I want to book. That allows me to jump at deals such as “Air France’s 50%” off on Business Class when they come up.
[aside headline="Buy Miles Fast" alignment="alignright" width="half" headline_size="default"]An outstanding benefit of the AmEx Membership Rewards Program is the sky-high purchase permitted: 500,000 miles an-nually, at 2.5¢ each (plus taxes and fees). Which gets you in the game without even getting off the ground.[/aside]
Best of All Worlds
Carry the American Express Membership Rewards and the Starwood Preferred Guest card, along with your favorite carrier’s co-branded MasterCard or Visa as backup at stores that don’t accept American Express.