One can always arrange to give / gift a trip or lodging with one's miles or points;
I have never had a problem doing this and it's generally pretty easy. And if one should happen to receive something back, well, that could be OK as well, but beware of the various programs' statements about specifically disallowing sale, purchase or barter.
For example,
American Airlines AAdvantage clearly states, in part:
At no time may AAdvantage mileage credit or award tickets be purchased, sold or bartered (including but not limited to transferring, gifting, or promising mileage credit or award tickets in exchange for support of a certain business, product, or charity and/or participation in an auction, sweepstakes, raffle, or contest). Any such mileage or tickets are void if transferred for cash or other consideration. Violators (including any passenger who uses a purchased or bartered award ticket) may be liable for damages and litigation costs, including American Airlines attorneys fees incurred in enforcing this rule.
Use of award tickets that have been acquired by purchase or for any other consideration may result in the tickets being confiscated or the passenger being denied boarding. If a trip has been started, any continued travel will be at the passenger's expense on a full-fare basis. The passenger and member may also be liable to American Airlines for the cost of a full fare ticket for any segments flown on a sold or bartered ticket.
That having been said, and I am not personally advocating this but rather providing FT resource information as a moderator, FT has The Coupon Connection, which exists for members with a minimum of 180 days and 180 posts. (Those with less than the minimum will not see The Coupon Connection as an available Forum from the Forums menu; those who pad posts or abuse the privilege will be barred from the Forum. Founder Randy Petersen established The Coupon Connection, and it has its own TOS, including:
Coupon Connection is a place to exchange and offer as gifts travel-related items which you may not be able to use. It is not a marketplace – buying and selling of any item is not allowed. This includes any transactions that attempt to circumvent the no-cash provision. Think of it more like a water cooler environment – a group of like-minded travel junkies who may not need that extra drink coupon but might want a discount on their next duty-free purchase onboard. Randy Petersen, the founder of FlyerTalk, indicated that the Coupon Connection was intended as a place for those who are active participants and contributors to the airline/hotel/miles/points boards -- thus access to the Coupon Connection is not automatic with membership in FlyerTalk. And this may be the most important thing to keep in mind in that regard: Access to the Coupon Connection forum is a privilege, not a right, and is granted only for personal use. Large numbers of transactions may be considered sufficient evidence to suggest that a member is not using Coupon Connection strictly for their personal travel, and may result in loss of access privileges to the forum. In addition, failure to participate and post outside Coupon Connection is also not in the best interest of the Community. The Coupon Connection moderators have wide latitude and discretion in determining what is in the best interests of the Community.
N.B. No further
discussion of The Coupon Connection is appropriated in this thread (or in this Forum); further information may be read in that Forum, or if about access issues, in the Technical Issues Forum.
JDiver, Senior Moderator