Some hotel groups provide free WiFi for loyalty club members, and charge nothing to join. Even if it is your only stay with that brand, you benefit in exchange for them getting your email address on file.
I have flown tens of thousands of miles in free seats on airlines (I tend to use airline miles for long flights - I often find the best bang for the mile on international flights.) At least once a year we get a free or deeply discounted hotel stay - and yes if I have a choice of hotels the one that I am accumulating points with is more likely to get my business.
Some programs have expiration dates on benefits. Sometimes I am able to use the points before they expire. Once in a while the points expire, but I didn't pay anything extra for them. I have called a couple of times when points were about to expire, and gotten an extension or a traded them in for some kind of award. (A food processor from one of the airline programs, on an airline I seldom used.)
We've received free WiFi more than once by joining a loyalty club. Our hotel room in Toronto was upgraded, though I would hated to stay in anything less. We've had a few benefits but we never travelled enough accumulate any credits, aside from once with free flights to Sydney but it was on an international flight so we had to go through immigration and customs, and we still had pay about three different taxes. It just wasn't worth it.
ReplyDeleteSome brands are better at upgrades, IHG upgraded me to suites a couple of times in Europe (Germany and Austria.) The taxes and fees are a pain, we changed planes at Heathrow on Wednesday, the landing fees are about 100 GBP per person, plus some other taxes, the "free seats" cost me about $450 USD. But would have been about $2,000 without the airline points.
DeletePerhaps it is my mindset but I just cannot be bothered with loyalty cards. It's the same with supermarkets. I am happy to be loyal to my family, friends and football team but I cannot stoop so low as to be loyal to a ruddy supermarket that uses the concept of loyalty to nail shoppers to their flag.
ReplyDeleteWith airlines on concentrate my business with two that have a lot of flights from my local airport, with hotels - I take whatever they offer for free, with retailers - I am not loyal, I just take the card to get the discount. I have used the cards once and tossed them - but I still had the discount.
DeleteAlways a deal to be had!
ReplyDeleteOften just for asking.
DeleteI do the same. I used points to fly to London last October however, I did pay a bit extra to get a seat with supposedly more leg room. I collected points from the hotel I stayed at. I need to use those next time it's convenient.
ReplyDeleteAmerican Airlines points work on British Airways.
DeleteI hadn't heard this advice before; it makes sense now that you point it out.
ReplyDelete