DW and I use the Capital One No Hassle Rewards Card. Basically we run all the bills we can through that card: mostly utility bills, insurance payments (as long as they don't add an extra fee for that), gasoline charges. The key is that we pay the balance off each month. That way we don't pay any interest. If there's something we would normally pay cash or write a check for, we put it on the card, and pay it off. We earn one point for every dollar spent. So the points pile up for doing the things and paying the bills we would pay anyway.
The advantages of this over using an Airline Frequent flyer card are several: first, you can use your accumulated points on any airline. Second, the number of points you use is dependent on the price of the ticket, and it is redeemed at 80 points on the dollar -- instead of 100 points to the dollar as in most rewards programs. Third, you can use the points to pay for a ticket already purchased as long as you do that within 90 days from date of purchase. This allows you to get the best price, and the rewards you use is tied to that, rather than to a fixed amount. It also avoids blackout dates. You buy the best-priced ticket you can for the dates you want, and get reimbursed after the fact.
Let me explain that last part more fully. As an example, to fly round trip using United Mileage Plus frequent flyer miles takes 25,000 miles. Period. If the trip you are using those miles on would otherwise cost you $100 or $1000, you still use 25,000 miles. And you can only book with miles when United tells you there are award seats available. With the Capital One Rewards card, you use reward points based on how much your ticket cost. So the $100 ticket will cost you 8,000 points, and the $1000 ticket will cost you 80,000 points - it's up to you to decide, not the airline. You get the best price you can, and Capital One will reimburse you.
Say you buy a ticket for $300, using your No Hassle Card. As soon as the purchase posts to your credit card account, and providing you have enough points to use, you go to the Rewards redemption site, tell them you want to pay for this ticket using your points. They will deduct 24,000 points from your reward account, and give you a $300 credit on your credit card account. And the best thing is, if you DO happen to have a frequent flyer program on the airline you bought the ticket for, you get mileage credit when you fly. If you had used frequent flyer miles for that ticket, you wouldn't get credit for those miles when you actually fly.
I hope this all makes sense, but it has worked well for DW and I over the past several years. We make usually two longer trips to WDW each year, as well as a couple of shorter ones. Last year we also had a trip to London. In 2005 we cashed in miles for tickets to Paris. Currently we're saving miles to take the whole family to Tokyo in a couple of years. This involves ten people. We probably won't be able to buy all of the tickets this way, but at least six of the ten we will. And the other four are DS and his wife, and she works for an airline, so we feel we're covered.
Are we nuts?
Absolutely! And lovin' it!
And, no, I don't work for Capital One.
We go for 2 nights every month at least, sometimes more, yet it still isnt enough.....
