I want to join a frequent flyer program. Can anyone tell me the best airline to join and how to maximize bonus miles for originating membership?

Thanks, Red Baron

This is like asking "I want to buy a car. Can anyone tell me the best car to buy?"

The best airline program to join depends on where you live, where you fly to, how often you fly, what types of fare you usually pay, what kinds of awards you hope to earn and a few other things.

How to maximize bonus miles varies from one program to another.

I'd suggest you come up with a short list of candidates based on your home city and travel patterns. Then, go to the forums of those airlines, read what they say, and perhaps post a more specific question along the lines of "I'm trying to choose among [name of airline the forum is about] and [names of a very small number of other airlines]. My travel patterns are [be as specific as possible.] What do you folks recommend?"

I'm not trying to avoid answering your question, but it's too broad to answer in its present form, and this Forum isn't the best place for it anyhow.

gruezi Red Baron and welcome to FlyerTalk.

Please tell us a little bit about yourself first (travel related: where from, business, intentions, dreams, etc) and you might be surprised about the postiv and helpful tips you might get here on 'our' board.