Saving money on plane flights is essential for frequent travelers, but anyone flying can benefit from these tips. In addition to saving money, you can earn hundreds of dollars for free by using these popular methods. Today, we will dive into three easy ways to save and earn cash when traveling.

Chase Sapphire Preferred

The Chase Sapphire Preferred is a fantastic card with tons of benefits. Let's dig into the tasty details down below.

Earn a Free $750

Yep, $750 for free is no joke! Well, the card does have a $95 annual fee, so it is not entirely free, but That return on value is just wild. There is one requirement to satisfy before getting your hands on the bonus; You'll have to spend $4000 within the first three months of your sign-on date.

Rack up Those Points

After getting the 60,000 bonus points as a sign-on bonus as described above, you can turn your attention to the generous point multipliers:

5x on travel purchased through Chase Ultimate Rewards
5x on Lyft rides
3x dining at restaurants, delivery services, take out, select streaming services, online grocery purchases
2x on all other travel purchases like airfare, hotels, taxis, and trains
1x for each dollar spent on other purchases

Benefits Benefits Benefits

In addition to the point multipliers, there are many benefits to using the Sapphire Preferred card:

$50 annual Rewards for hotel stays purchased through Chase Ultimate Rewards
$10 monthly credit for Gopuff purchases
Complimentary access to DashPass includes zero delivery fees and lower service fees for DoorDash and Caviar.
10% anniversary points for purchases of the previous year.
25% more value on travel through Chase Ultimate Rewards.
No foreign transaction fees
1 to 1 point transfer for airline and hotel loyalty programs.
My Chase Plan: Eligible members can pay monthly payments for purchases of $100 or more
24/7 customer service
Travel and purchase protection benefits like trip cancellation

Loyalty Programs

Loyalty programs like the AAdvantage program are great ways to earn free rewards by buying flights. Make sure you sign up for the program on the airline website and sign in whenever you are flying to build up miles and loyalty points. These programs are usually free to join, so there is no paywall to start reaping the benefits.

They come with many perks:

Flights to almost any destination around the world
Upgrades
Vacations, car rentals, hotels

Point Stacking

Ok, now we know two different methods for earning points on flights. You are probably wondering if you can stack them. Can you buy a ticket with your reward credit card and sign in to a loyalty program to get more free miles? The answer is an astounding yes!

Membership Levels

It is good to note that the membership programs usually have different membership status levels depending on how many points you earn. For AAdvantage, the requirements are as follows:

AAdvantage Gold oneworld Ruby: 30,000 points
AAdvantage Platinum oneworld Sapphire: 75,000 points
AAdvantage Platinum Pro oneworld Emerald: 125,000
AAdvantage Executive Platinum oneworld Emerald: 200,000

Some rewards for achieving a higher membership level include increased mileage points for purchases, upgrades, and even companion upgrades for friends and family. Different airline programs will vary, so you can investigate and see what perks work best for you.

Avoid Luggage Fees

Luggage is not always needed, in fact, I believe most trips are short enough to deem it not necessary.

Luggage Can be a Pain

A terrible way to lose unnecessary cash is to pay for luggage fees when you don't have to. You can avoid extra fees if you purchase a quality carry-on bag capable of carrying more belongings.

Airlines are also capable of making terrible mistakes with luggage. I've been a victim of airline negligence and know plenty of people who have had their bags misplaced or lost.

When I traveled to Bogota, Colombia, The airline forgot to place my checked bag on the plane and told me I could not leave the country without my bag. The employees forced me to miss my flight.

You can imagine my shock and discomfort at that moment. I had to stay the night in the airport while they rebooked my flight, which was not fun!

Get a Travel Backpack

I purchased the Travel Backpack 45L to help me avoid luggage fees while traveling in comfort. The 45Ls give you plenty of space to pack everything you need, from oversized jackets to camera equipment.

The Peak Design bag is also quite comfortable. The stowable hip belt and sternum strap go a long way to make your treks more enjoyable. The backpack also collapses to a 35L day bag when you want to travel light.

If you are traveling with vulnerable items like cameras, clothing, and laptops, you know how important it is to have a weather-resistant bag to store your belongings. I can't tell you how often this travel backpack has saved my belongings from being soaked. The bag will encase your items in a Weatherproof nylon canvas shell that will protect anything inside, so you don’t have to worry.

I hope these tips help you save some money on your next flight. You might even save enough to book a second vacation. Who knows what could happen? Today we learned about saving money by getting a rewards travel card, using airline loyalty programs, and avoiding luggage fees by purchasing a travel backpack. If you are not using these methods to save money on flights, the best time to start is today!

How to Save Money on Flights