First, welcome to FT!
Originally Posted by
cserrah
In the future I will probably be travelling to africa a lot, and within africa.
In the next couple of months I'm going to be traveling more in the US, so I'm trying to capitalize on earning miles that I can redeem with partners like South African airways.
Tell us your home base/airport so folks can give you better advice on which airlines/alliance to fly.
Before you do, read the following recent newbie thread that has covered most of the basics:
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/miles...yone-help.html
If you plan to use miles on South Africa Airlines (SAA), it seems logical to built your miles with
Star Alliance partners. Just credit all your activities to a single one FFP so your miles won't be scattered and useless.
When redeeming miles for a flight, can you buy a flight for another person but using your miles?
You are talking about redeeming your miles in someone else's name. It's perfectly OK to gift award tickets to others.
Also, If I purchase a roundtrip ticket that is say 6 months apart from departing and returning, do I only earn miles after the whole flight is over?
I believe mostly airlines credit miles to your frequent flyer account once the segments are flown.
Originally Posted by
cserrah
With credit card programs, it looks like most are specific to the airline (I applied for a Virgin card but was declined).
Some credit cards run referral bonuses (could be ongoing or special promo). You may check out our
SPAM Forum and post there to ask for referrals. However, if you are having difficulty getting new credit card, this may not be the best route for you.
ETA:
Here's one thread you can start for cc discussion:
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/miles...edit-card.html
With zero mile in your FFPs, you are basically starting from scratch. Read the stickies on top of each forum. There are quite a few must-knows for newbies.