And you know how no one ever takes it?
Well, it probably won’t surprise you, but I always do!
Why?
Because the in-flight offers on cards are often better than the offers online.
A few years ago it was about time to for me to get the Southwest personal card to renew my Companion Pass. I believe the bonus at that time online was 40,000 points.
I happened to be on a Southwest flight during that time & they offered an additional 10,000 points if you applied in-flight. 10,000 Southwest points is a free one-way ticket almost anywhere in the country from a major metro, so that’s a good extra bonus. Those extra 10,000 points also helped me cross the minimum points I needed to earn the Companion Pass as well.
I applied in-flight, got approved, met the minimum spend, and received 50,000 Southwest miles rather than the typical 40,000.
Recently I was on an American flight & they offered a sweet deal on the Barclay AA card. I’d been wanting to earn more AA points for an upcoming trip so I took the brochure.
As an in-flight bonus, they waived the first year’s annual fee (saving $95) and also added an extra 500 points to the online bonus. Nice!
Oh, and the minimum spend on the card to hit the 50,500 points was ONE purchase, regardless of the cost. Pretty rare!
I think I was the only one that took the brochure on the plane & that card is going to help our family go skiing for nearly free again this Christmas.
So, my travel hacking tip is: Take the brochure! Even if you’re the only one - LOL!
