Strategy advice
 

Hi all,

I’ve spent quite a long time now reading posts on this forum, and I certainly think that I’m a much more savvy traveller than I was a few years ago, however I’d really appreciate a few thoughts on my ‘strategy’ in terms of collecting miles, and where I focus my efforts.

So, first things first, I am originally from the UK but currently live and work in the Middle East. I moved out there in June 2010 and as of October this year will be filing my tax return as a UK Non Resident (although I do still own a house in the UK that I rent out). I generally fly to / from the UK around 3 times a year, plus to take a couple of flights to places like Thailand, India, etc, and a couple of ‘local’ flights to Dubai.

When I fly, I usually book the cheapest flights that earn 30 TP each way from UK – KWI. I *could* stretch to Premium Economy if it’s a good deal, although I would only really consider doing this is I thought I could hit Silver status with BA. I never travel business – always on my own account. I don’t tend to stay in hotels when I am in the UK, and do not have a preference where I stay for vacations – in fact it tends to be more independent hotels with a bit of ‘local charm’ rather than a large chain (for example I wouldn’t really consider staying in a Hilton in Rome)

I currently try and pool all my miles into the following accounts, either by flying with them directly, or by using a OneWorld or Star Alliance partner. Current Mileage:

BA (primary) – Blue status, 100k miles
BMI (secondary) – Blue status, 36k miles

In order to supplement my mileage earned from flying I have the following active credit cards (only ever held one other previously, Sainsbury’s Mastercard):

BA Premium Plus Card
American Express Platinum Card
BMI Mastercard

I tend to use the BA card as my main credit card, the BMI card for any non AMEX / BMI spend, and the AMEX platinum card I plan on dumping next year (I have the MR points bonus now), unless I am 100% clear whether I am eligible for all the insurance benefits, and I utilise the PP a lot. I realise that I pay a premium for charges overseas on AMEX cards, however as I don’t see notice the charges I would rather do this and claim the miles (rightly or wrongly, as I would never use the money I could save to purchase a CW flight, for example).

So, a few questions:

1.Does anyone see any problems with my ‘non resident’ status in terms of BAEC/BMI accounts? All post is still send to the house I own and forwarded to my parents house.

2.Does anyone see a way I could get up to silver BA membership without having to splurge on CW seats? Is it worth it? Would anyone suggest ‘mileage runs’?

3.Is it a good strategy to only concentrate on 2 airlines? Are there any other FF programs I should consider that fall outside of these?

4.What are the best credit cards available to UK guys for collecting miles? Ones I would consider in the future would be the AMEX Gold, BMI AMEX and SPG AMEX, although I would probably do this just for the miles. Is using BA PP a good idea?

5.Are any of the credit cards I have churnable for miles? If not, are there any UK cards that this can be done with?

Thanks a lot in advance for any responses,
Andrew

Andrew,

Good set of questions. I'm going to move this over to Milesbuzz! for consideration by the experts over there.

Jenbel
Co-moderator, Communitybuzz!

British Airways is OneWorld, whereas BMI is StarAlliance. If I were, if possible, I would determine which one serves your destinations better, and focus all the flights possible on that alliance (and preferrable the same carrier).

I don't know about Dubai, etc. but I know that for example Beruit is only served by Royal Jordanian as far as OneWorld partners goes, whereas both BMI and Lufthansa both fly there on *Alliance.

I would make this my primary concern when choosing loyalties, as having an alliance which serves your desinations better/more frequently is the biggest thing in my opinion.

Actually, there are 4 other *A members that fly to Beirut, Turkish, LOT, EgyptAir and Swiss.

Thanks,

All the airlines you mention do fly to the middle east, but I'd be suprised if they all fly from Kuwait direct to other ME countries - if I'm popping across to Dubai I want a quick direct flight.

Aside from that, all good advice - I do try and maximise this where practical.

Any guidance on the other issues?

Thanks
Andrew

Yes you're right. I was going by memory instead of checking like I should have...

I would personally try and focus on just one airline/alliance as much as you can so you can attain status (if you fly enough to). Along those lines, focus your spending on a credit card for that same airline/alliance.

As far as residency status goes, if you use a UK address for everything, I don't see why they would even know (not that i think it matters too much). Personally, I think *Alliance serves the Middle East better, but again that may vary based on your particular desinations.