How to Use Air Miles
- 1). Go to the website of the airline from which you have earned miles. Check if you are eligible to redeem your miles. Some programs may only let you redeem miles when you have reached a certain amount. Airlines have dedicated Web pages for their frequent flier customers, to make it easy for them to learn more about their programs and provide them a list of items for which they can exchange their miles. These websites require the mileage holder to log on to access the inventory of items available.
- 2). Check how many miles you've accumulated. You can do this by logging on to your profile. You may also look at the previous statements you've gotten from the airline to check your miles. Your statements are also a valuable resource since they itemize the trips you've taken and the miles you've accumulated on those trips. Be sure to note that you have all the miles you've earned posted on your account. If not, fill out a form on the airline's website to request your miles to be posted.
- 3). Look through the items for which you can exchange your miles. You may use your air miles to book a trip. This is called reward travel, and airlines usually require 12,000 to 15,000 miles for a domestic one-way ticket and 30,000 miles for a round-trip flight. International destinations require a higher amount of miles. You may also reimburse your miles for other items, such as magazine subscriptions and gift packages, depending on your frequent flier level.
- 4). Check out the item and pay any additional fees, such as taxes, for which you still will be charged. If you don't have enough miles for a certain item, you may use your miles and pay the difference. Make sure that you are aware of the charges before going ahead with the redemption.
- 5). Check with the airline(s) if it has other offers not listed on the website. You may learn of deals such as upgrade eligibility and other redemption opportunities. One of the most popular promotions that frequent flier programs have is dining rewards, wherein they give you bonus miles for reaching a certain amount on your dinner bill. Representatives may also introduce frequent flier cards that will allow you to accumulate miles for certain purchases and earn miles more quickly.
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