Earning More SkyMiles

Quick update:

I just returned from a business trip, and earned another 6,180 Delta SkyMiles. I now have 57,135 Delta SkyMiles.

6,216 Delta SkyMiles

I just returned from another business trip and earned 6,216 Delta SkyMiles. This brings me to a total of 49,939 SkyMiles. I also used my rewards credit card for all business expenses during the trip, earning us a $25 cash back reward.

I leave town again in a 1-1/2 weeks and may reach Gold Medallion status, resulting in double the SkyMiles every time I fly for the next 12 months.

Ways To Get More Frequent Flyer Miles

I went on another business trip at the end of last month and racked up a few more Delta SkyMiles. I'm now at 42,790 SkyMiles total.

In addition to my Silver Medallion status with Delta that earns me a 25% mileage bonus every trip, I found a couple of new ways to earn extra SkyMiles while traveling. I earned 300 SkyMiles for renting a car from Dollar Rent-A-Car. I almost always rent car while on business trips, but I never knew I could earn frequent flyer miles doing it. I also received ~100 SkyMiles per night staying at Howard Johnson hotels. I used to go to Holiday Inns and get points for free stays, but with the economic conditions what they are, my company has asked up to save money where we can (like cheaper hotels). I'd rather get frequent flyer miles than points towards a free night stay at Howard Johnson.

The SkyMiles really add up quick. My wife and I are flying to Hawaii next month for free using my SkyMiles (52,000 SkyMiles each ticket). I'm also close to getting Gold Medallion status which earns a 100% mileage bonus every trip.

Traveling Perks

I just returned from a business trip and am happy to be home. Each trip, I try to earn as many “kickbacks” as possible.

Delta SkyMiles

Before my trip, I started with 29,233 SkyMiles (after using over 100,000 miles to get two free tickets to Hawaii in September. I now have 32,928 SkyMiles, but need them to still give me credit for part of my trip. My total should increase 1,500-2,000 SkyMiles once that is done. Since I am Silver Medaliion status, I was also upgraded to first class during one leg, each way.

Holiday Inn Priority Club Reward

I stayed at Holiday Inn’s each night which increased my points from 15,737 to 21,592. I now have enough for one free night. A couple of the Holiday Inn’s that I stayed at will be emailing me surveys to fill out that will give me an extra 1,000 points.

HSBC Credit Card Cash Back Rewards

I spent enough money on business expenses to earn a $25 HSBC Credit Card Cash Back Reward. My company reimburses me all of my expenses, so this is totally free money.

I will be traveling again next month and look forward to racking up the perks.

Miles and Miles

I just returned from a business trip to the East Coast and earned another 9,944 Delta SkyMiles. My Gold Medallion status provides me doubles the miles for each trip, so they add up quickly. I now have a whopping total of 127,083 SkyMiles. My wife and I plan to use the frequent flyer miles for a trip to Hawaii, but my wife needs to get settled into her new job first (see starts on Monday).

Over 100,000 Frequent Flyer Miles

I just returned from a business trip to Europe. Professionally and personally, the trip was amazing and such a blessing. I met a number of new European contacts and it appears that there may be a great deal of opportunity in countries where our products currently have little or no exposure. In my free time, I visited the Van Gogh Museum (my 2nd time) and Anne Frank House. These are must sees when in The Netherlands.

I'm also excited about the 25,168 frequent flyer miles I earned during the trip. If my wife and I are both able to keep our jobs through this rough economy, we plan to go to Hawaii for vacation in 2009. After my trip to Europe, we now have a total of 117,139 frequent flyer miles, enough for 2 free round trip tickets to Hawaii.

Frequent Flyer Miles From My Trip To Europe

I just returned from my business trip overseas. It was a good trip, but, as always, it's nice to be home. One nice thing about traveling is the frequent flyer miles that I earn. This trip, I earned 15,692 and now have 60,276 Delta SkyMiles saved up.

However, I learned that I was not automatically updated to Gold Medallion status when I hit the 50,000 mile mark. The update usually takes place the following Saturday. So, I only received a 25% bonus for my miles on this trip (Silver Medallion), not a 100% bonus (Gold Medallion). One bit of good news that I learned though is that my Medallion status will be good until December 30, 2008 - a year longer than I thought.

Headed To Europe

I am going to Europe for a 5 day business trip tomorrow. I will pass Delta's 50,000 mile mark (for the year) on my flight over to Europe. This will move me from the Silver Medallion level to the Gold Medallion level. At the Gold level, I'm entitled to a 100% mile bonus for every mile I fly with Delta the rest of the year. This means double the frequent flyer miles on my return flight from Europe!

Back Home. . . For a Week

I just returned from a business trip to the East Coast, adding another 6,212 miles to my Delta SkyMiles. This has been a good year for my frequent fly miles. I'm now at 37,580 miles on Delta and qualify for Silver Medallion benefits. I didn't realize this until I was automatically upgraded to 1st class and also did not have to pay the $50 charge for an overweight bag.

I fly back to the East Coast in a week for an 8 day trip, adding another 6K miles to my Delta SkyMiles (and hopefully another complimentary upgrade to 1st class). Two weeks after that, I fly to Europe on Delta for another large chunk of frequent flyer miles.

I'm working towards a couple of free (frequent flyer miles) tickets to Hawaii for my wife and I.

Considering Adding Another Dog To The Family

I just returned from my business trip and am happy to be back home. Our neighbor's dog is over our house and our dog and him are having a lot of fun playing. My wife and I have been discussing getting another dog so that our dog has a playmate and to help with home security while I am away on business.

My wife's old job allowed her much more time at home to entertain our dog. We're blessed that her new job will as well, but not for another 1+ years. The new job is going to keep her in the office 10+ hours a day for the next 7 months. Once she's back out in the field, it is likely that she will have to spend considerable time away from home initially to set up accounts.

We've always wanted to get another dog, especially one that would be suitable for home security. Our little dog (13lbs) is very protective of the home, but the most he can do is sound the alarm, he doesn't have much to back up the bark with.

We plan to spend a couple of hours online tonight researching breeds and discussing the pros and cons. A new dog will cost us a considerable amount of time and money to purchase, train, and care for. Our condo is pretty small, so we're debating whether or not to wait until we have a house.

Busy Week Next Week

I will be out of town from next week for a business trip. It will be nice to get out of the office for a few days, same some money on food and gas, get some cash back rewards for charging business expenses to our rewards card, and rack up a few more frequent flyer miles.

My wife starts training at her new job next week, while finishing up the first of her last two weeks with her current employer. They are going to be long, but exciting days for her.

Gotta Love Easy Money

I just received confirmation from HBSC that our $25 cash back redemption request has been received, and our check will arrive within 15 business days. Not a big sum of money, but the only thing I had to do to earn it was charge my business trip expenses to my HBSC rewards Mastercard (which my company immediately reimburses me for).

My wife and I also have a Citi Dividend Platinum Select MasterCard that we use for most of our household expenses. The card is paid off monthly and earns us up to 5% cash back. In fact, we should be able to request a $50 reward from the Citi MasterCard next month. Easy money.

Frequent Flyer Miles

I have been traveling for business for 6 years. It took me 5 years to finally bother to sign up for frequent fly miles, even though I have had plenty of co-workers and friends recommend it. I felt like I didn’t want to have to arrange my schedule to fly with a certain airline. That was very, very dumb.

In the last 12 months, I have accumulated 31,368 miles on Delta SkyMiles and 11,316 on American Airlines Aadvantage. .. . for doing nothing more than enrolling and entering my account number when purchasing tickets. That is enough points for a free flight in the continental U.S., Alaska, Canada, Caribbean, and Mexico on Delta (see chart) and a free upgrade (see chart) on American Airlines. Best of all, since I signed up with Delta and American Airlines, I have not had to bend my schedule to fly on these airlines.

I’m kicking myself for all of those years that I flew and did not accumulate frequent flyer miles.

Business Travel

I am currently on a business trip and have been thinking about the money I save when I travel.

I travel 6-7 times per year, usually for 1-3 weeks per trip. While it's hard work being on the road, there are perks. My company reimburses me for my travel costs (i.e. hotel, rental car, meals, etc.). I also use a 1-2% cash back credit card for all trip costs that helps put a few extra dollars directly into my pocket. In addition, my American Airlines Aadvantage and Delta SkyMiles frequent flyer accounts earn me free trips or upgrades.

When I first began traveling for work, I did a poor job of keeping receipts (for reimbursement), didn't use cash back credit cards, and didn't have frequent flyer accounts. I often spent more personal money while traveling trying to entertain myself. Now, I make sure my hotel is near nice restaurants and has high speed internet.

While on my business trips, I save money on food, gas, and entertainment. It's also nice getting away from the office for a few days.