How many times have you thought about a last-minute getaway? Leaving on a whim and saving pocketfuls of money on your transportation and lodging. Almost sounds too good to be true, but that’s probably because it is. Where have all the deals gone? In order to book last minute travel nowadays, you have to go on airlines website and see where they’re willing to fly you. Sometimes the destinations are appealing. Other times, you wonder why the heck you would even bother going there!

The reasons for such as erratic travel, make as much sense as most last-minute airfare ticket prices. After all, the value of an empty seat upon take-off is zero. For an industry that is notoriously woeful when it comes to profitability, why let a seat go unsold? Why charge premium prices for a last-minute trip? In my non-professional opinion: Take what you can! You (the airline) are better off and so is the passenger. Where did it all go wrong?

Taking a look at the matter from an efficiency standpoint, it’s not. For example, it’s cheaper for me to fly to Kona, HI and then to Eugene, OR, than it is for me to fly San Jose to Eugene direct. That’s 5,333 miles of flying versus 472 miles… one-way! Good thing I have plans in Kona.

Of course, each airline has their routes and they charge according to competition, demand, and inventory, which usually makes for messy, overly-complicated, variable ticket prices. Add in the internet travel sites and their algorithms, and it gets really fun. Whatever happened to the KISS acronym? Keep It Simple Stupid.

Is last-minute travel dead? Not exactly, but it seems to be fleeting. There’s always the option of going directly to the airport and seeing where you can get a flight, but that might be equally, if not more frustrating than searching through all the websites. So, that begs the questions: how does one travel last-minute, while keeping the wallet in check? I’m not exactly sure, but look into multi-city flights and the dollar values, against all odds, start to make a little more sense. In my situation, I’m piling on an additional 5,000+ medallion qualification miles. Hello, upgrades!

Shopping online is fun to begin with but when you add in the incentive of airline miles, which could cover the flight for your next vacation, things get even better. The three major US carriers all have programs that act as an affiliate site to the merchants you buy from everyday. By accessing the merchant site through airline’s page, you earn a certain amount of miles per dollar spent. Need another reason to shop online? Let’s get started:

-Depending on your preferred airline, visit American’s AAdvantage eShopping Program, Delta’s SkyMiles Shopping, or United’s Mileage Plus Mall.

-If this is your first time using one of these shopping sites, you will need to register first. Be sure you have your frequent flyer number for the airline handy as this is a critical part of the registration process.

-Start shopping!! Just be sure you are logged in before you click on the merchant’s link to ensure you will receive the mileage credit. Typically, miles are posted to your account within a few weeks of the purchase.

-There are often promotions for higher accrual rates, especially around major holidays. Another reason to avoid the mall!

Now you can earn miles without ever leaving your house! Stay tuned for more mileage accrual tips from Kristina. If you have any questions, please email Kristina@diwyy.com or post a comment here.

It all started on March 29, 1997. I was on the 8^th grade trip to Washington D.C. and had become intrigued when the flight attendants discussed their frequent flyer program.

Being the precocious 13 year old I was, I quickly hopped on that white courtesy telephone to enroll myself during our layover. No one questioned my age and I began accruing miles for flights. And that’s how the madness began!!!

Now, to put it mildly, frequent flyer miles run my life. I have learned now that a little loyalty with one airline or alliance can make all the difference. I used to have to board last, pay for my extra luggage, and would look at the first class cabin with envy. Now I am boarding first, checking three bags for free, and actually sitting in the first class cabin. How did this happen? I started flying one airline alliance and was able to reap the rewards of the elusive Elite Status.

Getting started, let’s give you a general overview. The three major U.S. carriers, American, Delta, and United all belong to a different alliance (a partnership of airlines worldwide). Respectfully, they are oneworld, SkyTeam, and Star Alliance. When you fly a partner airline within your alliance, you can earn miles on the same carrier (example: you can earn Delta SkyMiles while flying Delta, Air France, or KLM, among others). By keeping your loyalty in one place, you can begin to earn some clout with the airlines which is when free upgrades and other perks come into play.

Every time you fly, you earn miles based on the fare you purchased. Typically, for a normal economy ticket, it will be 1 frequent flyer mile per mile flown. If you purchase first or business class, the rate typically goes up. These miles are golden because they accumulate towards your elite status. Each airline has different rules so, instead of getting into too much detail, here are the links to their programs, what you need to get to qualify, and what the perks are at each level: American’s AAdvantage program, Delta’s SkyMiles program, and United’s Mileage Plus program.

Additionally, you can also earn miles by never leaving the ground. While these typically do not count towards your elite status mileage bank, they do count towards the miles you can leverage for free flights, upgrades, and other incentives. Everything from using the airline-affiliated credit card to hotel stays to online purchases can count towards miles. For info on these programs, please visit the airline’s website and search for the page that highlights how you can earn miles.

When choosing an airline to align with, consider the availability of flights from the airport closest to your home, where the “hub” cities are located since you’ll be making connections at these airports, and where they fly to. Also, consider how much you’ll be flying internationally. These long-haul flights are a gold mine for miles! Combining one big trip with lots of shorter, domestic trips can help get you to elite status faster. This is when signing up for a larger, international carrier like American, Delta, or United will prevail over domestic-only airlines like Southwest.

In future posts, I will be highlight specific earning opportunities as well as airline-specific programs in an effort to educate you on the earning potential. If you have specific questions, please post them here or email kristina@diwyy.com.