Folks who say they get free flight tickets from credit cards, how do you do it?
Always wondered how it happens Have been using credit cards for some time, never found as much in rewards. What can a novice change in his cards?
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There are certain cards which help you get free tickets(not entirely free though)
Most famous ones are Vistara cobranded cards. Eg Sbi Vistara Prime Card
You get the card at annual fees of Rs3500 With this you get 1 Vistara Premium Economy Ticket which would easily cost 8-10K INR if you were to book by paying
Additionally you get more Premium Economy tickets each time you hit a spend milestone.
1.5lakh spends in a year - 1 more ticket 3lakh - another ticket 4.5 Lakh- another ticket 8 Lakh - another ticket
In addition you get 1 upgrade voucher using which you can upgrade your ticket from category X to category Y. This is via the Vistara Silver Tier Membership which is complimentary with the card. It also gives 5kg addition baggage allowance
There are more such cards in market like idfc vistara, axis vistara (business class variant as well)
Plus you get 4 cv points per 200rs spend which again can be used for booking. A del to blr flight costs 7500 cv points
Then there are other category of cards where you earn reward points and you can convert those points to the loyalty points of certain airlines which can again be used to book tickets with that airline.
Thanks @Headhunter
Really appreciate you taking out the time
Will check this out!
There are no free lunches in this world. Change your mindset. Don't change your cards.
Axis Vistara might possibly be one of the entry level variants that offer easy to understand process for ticket redemption.
Once you’re done with that, start exploring AmEx for one of the best in class offerings against points.
@salt , can you explain the amex part? I don't see them having good redemption for flights. Best ratio I have seen is Marriott Bonvoy.
@Legend_WaitFrIt_Dary You might be correct.
So personally, I prefer to own fewer credit cards. As a result, AmEx typically yields me better reward points across various use cases.
However, travel specific cards are obviously better. But if I keep on getting credit cards for each use case then it is a hassle to manage them all.
Maybe, someone can launch an app for this. CRED? 🙌🏻😂
Writing this while waiting for my free (not really) flight back from a domestic vacation, haha.
One of the answers mentioned Vistara Co-Branded cards in detail, so not writing about it again - but yeah this has made it possible. I have been using Axis Vistara Signature (aka Premium Economy in Vistara tickets) card for availing these tickets.
Why (not really) free?
- you need to have that kind of spending to avail the benefits.
- Taxes are applicable on ticket (however they are minor)
- AVAILABILITY of seats might be a problem: It is not guaranteed that you be able to redeem these "voucher tickets" whenever you want. You would have to plan in advance, as there are limited seats for "voucher tickets".
- Similar for CV (Club Vistara) points, like they too vary a lot on the season of travel, like all the CV points required to get tickets during Diwali season have now doubled (as the fares too have 📈). So it wouldn't be a good decision to use those points then.
Other cards usually convert to Air Miles and use it for buying tickets - haven't done this so can't comment.
I used DCB for free air tickets, the same card use to offer 33% points (selected vendors including amazon) in lieu of your monthly spends. 1 point is equivalent to 1 rs when redeemed for air tickets. My monthly spends were ~ 50k on that card, you can do the calculations now.
Last 3 Goa flights sponsored by DCB in 2 years 😎
You mean 3.33%, not 33%
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Amex Trifecta, Axis Vistara, Axis Atlas are some of the best cards for free flight tickets
Amex trifecta free flight tickets how? Amex has quite poor redemption ratio when redeemed for tickets, right?
I use the Axis Vistara Infinite.
Short answer: Worth it only if you travel frequently , and are comfortable sticking to a single carrier. If not, get a LTF diners black if possible.
Long answer: 10k annual fee 1 free business class domestic flight, 2 upgrade vouchers, club vistara Gold(Great perk) 10k points in first year(8k points for long sectors like delhi to blr)
I travel once a month, so vistara points accumulate. Also rewarded flights are good for emergency or flights during festivals when surge is higher. Got a business class flight day before Diwali when minimum cost was 12k
First year ROI is there, currently flights cost 5k min, so for 10k I get 2 good flights, 1 of which is business class so no pressure to spend. Every 2.5L spends you get another business class ticket
Can anyone refer me HDFC Infinia card please? Got a good credit score and highest limit is 3.5L
Infinia is extremely hard to get. 8L minimum credit limit is needed to upgrade but that's just a basic eligibility criteria. No guarantee that you will get it with that limit.
Start with trying to get a card like Diners black. It is pretty close to infinia in terms of rewards.
Not only is the floor limit 2x your highest limit, it also requires a spend of atleast 7.5L in the apst year