[Which] Frequent Flyer Programs[?]

[Daniela D]

Hi

I'm looking to sign up to a/multiple Frequent Flyer programs, however know nothing! Having never been apart of a program previously I dont know what to look for. Does anyone have any recommendations/advice they can give me? Anything would be helpful. Thanks!

 

[ozmille]

Welcome to AFF Daniela!

You can joing the QF scheme through Woolworths and thus bypassing the joining fee. The other local option is DJ. But everything depends on where and how often you will be flying... You can also link CC's to either program to boost your points earning.

A lot of knowledge on here on all of the above!

 

[Daniela D]

Thank you.

I have just come back from living abroad in the UK so most of my trips would be around Europe I imagine, but if there is anything locally that can help me with overseas trips that would be great! Can you expand on DJ please? Sorry I have no idea!

 

[notzac]

Welcome to AFF Daniela D -- probably the best questions to get started are:

• What do you want to use the points for .. upgrades? award flights? domestic or international?
• Do you fly often at the moment, or are you going to? What are the main destinations you fly to?
• Do you (or does your work, if you fly for work) have an airline preference?
• Do you (or do you plan to) use credit cards with a rewards program linked to an airline?

The last point works best if you pay your balance in full each month - CC's with rewards programs linked to airlines tend to have very high interest rates, so any benefit earned from the points would be quickly overtaken by the additional cost in interest charges.

 

[ozmille]

The most complete thread on DJ (Virgin Australia) information can be found here

 

[harvyk]

Who do you fly with now?
I always go with the loyalty program should fit in with you, not the other way around... Otherwise you may find that you don't really get any advantage...

I suggest only signing up with one and get status on that one before considering signing up to additional ones.

 

[Daniela D]

Thank you all for your feedback!

In answer to your questions I would want to accumulate enough points to be able to get flights for either domestic or internationally.
I would be flying to the UK and various travel around europe (a friend said that from one flight across the the Uk i could pretty much get a free flight within Australia?)
Work would not be in the equation.
I probably would not plan to use credit cards etc as I currently have a very low rate interest so would rather not change - I have also been told they dont help you to accumulate that many points. I do however have a fly buys card.

I was thinking of perhaps joining the Emirates and/or Etihad FF programs as they would more than likely be the carrier I would travel with looking at prices now for next year. However I am wondering if any travel I do within Australia would help me to accumulate FF miles for these flights. I know that some carriers are affiliated with others to help you earn points etc but once i start reading into each one, i get a little overwhelmed with the information. Do you know if there is an easy to read comparison site for dummies like me?

 

[JetLagged]

I probably would not plan to use credit cards etc as I currently have a very low rate interest so would rather not change - I have also been told they dont help you to accumulate that many points. I do however have a fly buys card.

To answer just this section of your questions: I believe you have been given some bad advice here. Most CC will give you a 1:1 rate - every dollar spent gets 1 frequent flyer point. There are other cards that give you even more. You have to work out whether the annual fees paid + interest (if you don't pay the cards amount each month or whatever the interest-free period is) makes this worthwhile.

Using a suitable CC for such things as you weekly petrol, groceries, bills etc (and paying them in time) would mean you gain a lot of points, especially if you can double dip (i.e. points for using the CC, then points for buying items from a partner of the airline program etc). I use Amex card for which I get 1.25 points for each $ spent - then when fly with Qantas get points for flying that trip as well (plus when stay at hotels, east at restaurants etc).

Really, what you need to do is a lot of homework on the computer over a couple of nights: look at what is on offer and make up your own ming given your income, average monthly spend, other demands on your money etc.

 

[harvyk]

(a friend said that from one flight across the the Uk i could pretty much get a free flight within Australia?)

I'm assuming your talking UK - AU return, if so yes, you'd can earn enough points for a reward flight although that does depend on carrier, status and class of travel, and the point requirements for your chosen AU dom flight.
I personally retain points for international flights and \ or upgrades as flying here is usually pretty cheap especially if your flying only the golden triangle.

IMHO points earned with credit cards require a decent credit card spend. Considering that I can usually find a CBR-MEL vv flight which costs say $200 and net me 2000 points, well to earn that many points off a credit card you'd need to spend $2000 unless you can double dip (ie earn points from the retailer as well) or can find a card that gives a $1 = 3 points ratio. Of course you then need to offset that against the fact that a point earning credit card oftan have fees attached and some even have a points earning limit.

I believe the people here who are the best CC point earners I think pay tax bills and run company expense accounts on credit cards, so it's well above an average consumer spend level.

But as I said before, work out what you're already doing and find the programs which fit in with that.

 

[dajop]

I personally retain points for international flights and \ or upgrades as flying here is usually pretty cheap especially if your flying only the golden triangle.

An important point to remember as well is that these many programs charge a hefty "fuel surcharge" for international flights which can be up to 50% of the fare. At the moment to/from Europe that is around $800 if using Qantas or Singapore Airlines, but varies depending on the airline. So awards flights are hardly free any more, and that's why some use them for upgrades, although getting upgrades can be difficult if you don't fly frequently enough to achieve status.

If you do not wish to use a points earning credit card, and only fly infrequently in Australia (<6 round trips per year) the wisest advice maybe to focus on getting the best fare you can, rather than earning points in one particular program. The dollar savings may well outweigh the value of any points you earn (although I would still join both Virgin and Qantas programs for flights, as there is no cost to accruing them if they happen to offer the best fare of the day).

Having said that:
1) If you do travel overseas frequently Emirates may be an option, although it will take some time to build a balance - as they have low fares and low taxes on redemptions.
2) If you are interested in an Australian based program/credit cards, my advice would be to look seriously at Virgin. You can get a credit card that allows transfers to a range of FF programs (as well as various vouchers), including Virgin. If you go with Qantas, unless you are a high spender you are pretty much locked into Qantas points only with credit card spend - and really at the whim of what they may do in the future. Also at the moment you can get an award booking using Virgin points (on Etihad) to Europe only having to pay $200 in taxes, whereas Qantas charge $800- and both around the same number of points.