plead of help from a novice
 

Hello i have just found this site and hoping someone can help me. i have no idea about this whole frequent flyer/air miles story and know i am missing out .. in 2006 i embarked on a year of two of carefree travelling the globe and have to date not claimed anything as i am not a member of any programme.

every time i begin to search for information i just become so overwhelmed with all the info avialable and dont know which one to join etc..

does anyone have a few spare moment adn the energy to offer some suggestions and reccommenations to a major novice .. many thanks nayana

If you're starting from the beginning, you might want to pick up and read a copy of Randy Peterson's (he's the sponsor of this site) Mileage Pro book, it will give you a good solid understanding of frequent flyer programs and will give you solid tips on how to maximize your mileage collection process. Here's a link: http://www.mileageprobook.com/

For help here, it's a good idea to give us a better understanding of your flying habits. What's your home airport? Where do you fly to and how often? What kind of tickets do you buy? Is price the most important factor when you fly? Do you always want to take the most direct route? What kind of credit cards do you have, and are you willing to switch to one or more that allow you to earn miles?

Welcome to FT! You've taken the first important step by joining us.

Actually, there's no dificulty in joining FF programs because they're free - so you can join them all.

Realistically though, if you want to maximize the benefits you need to find one and stick with it. Most people choose 1 (maybe 2) based on where they live and where they want to go. For example, I live in the DC area which is a UA hub, so I do most of my travel on UA. If you give us some info I'm sure suggestions will be offered.

After picking a carrier start with the FAQs on the appropriate FT page and study up. You'll find FTers very helpful. There are 2 things to avoid though:
1. Don't cross post (post the same question in 2 different threads).
2. Do your homework, i.e., search for the info you're after in previous posts before starting a new thread.

Again, welcome!

If you are looking to get credit for flights taken in 2006, you should get on this asap. Many programs don't allow retroactive credit if you sign up for an account after your flights. Other programs allow credit, but only for a limited time period, e.g. 30 - 90 days from the date of travel.

If you had a lot of travel in the end of 2006, this may be another consideration (in addition to all the considerations posted by the previous posters) in selecting which mileage program is best for you.

Welcome to FT!

You may want to check out the three major alliance

www.staralliance.com
www.oneworld.com
www.skyteam.com

and choose the one which you may be able to use the most.
Pick one airline which you think you'll fly the most as your
primary FF program. Try to stick to an
alliance to get maximum benefits.

If you need to use more than one alliance, pick a second airline
program from another alliance.

Hi,

I'd start by checking the various programs for the amount of travel you have to do to start getting meaningful benefits. You mention travelling the globe but that means different things to different people. Most programs won't start giving you free flights till you have 25,000 miles (or 50,000 miles if you want to book the reward travel more easily), and won't give you free upgrades till 25,000 miles either... more like 50,000 miles if you want to get upgraded regularly. The upgrade mileage is compounded annually, so unless you're flying 25,000 miles and up each year, most programs won't give much of a benefit in this department. If you're not acumulating a lot of miles, frequent flyer programs might not offer you much benefit; you may want to continue picking flights based on price, which keeps money in your pockets.

Credit card miles rarely if ever count towards elite status (which is what you need to earn to get free upgrades) so read the fine print before opening a credit card account.


Good luck and enjoy the site--- there is a ton of great information here!

welcome to FT!

My advice?

GET OUT NOW while you are still sane! :D

OR

read this thread too and the links herein:

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=647324

good luck and enjoy it!

;)MM

The first step of a 12-step process...

We all started at the beginning and then built on what we learn.

One of the most important lessons that you have already learned is that flights without points are a waste.

Like schmare said, quickly join the programs you need to claim miles for the trips you have already taken, but don't let them dictate which program will become you primary program. That needs to be determined by your home city and your most frequent destinations. If you feel comfortable posting your home city and your most frequent destinations, I am sure that lots of folks will be able to offer advice.

Good luck and don't worry too much about becoming an FT junkie. It doesn't really matter that your friends, family and co-workers will all think that you are crazy. You will get lots of support and encouragment on FT. There are lots of seriously addicted travelers here. ;)

Well said Punki, and that was a very encouraging and compassionate post for a new person to enjoy! It is also refreshing to NOT see any blasters, as this forum has one or two of them floating out there somewhere with nothing better to do ;)

Anyway, your first line intrigues me some... "One of the most important lessons that you have already learned is that flights without points are a waste." Yup, I agree (except, in my case, when flying Olympic or Iceland Airways, where I knew I'd only be on the plane like once in 3 years) but I often wonder to what lengths many of us will go to GET miles? I mean I have posted so many schemes and ideas in here some say I waste MY time, and if time is money then I am losing out! Others have done things to get miles that could end up costing them more in the end, but they need to WIN. I guess the key factor here is ADDICTION. :D

To all the newbies now embarking onto the wonder that is FT, I hope you are ready for the new ADDICTION!

So it has begun. ;)MM

Welcome to flyertalk, nayana.

I think a useful place to start would be be reading the How to Begin page of my website below. And I repeat the caution: This stuff gets very addictive.

FYI: pgary's website: http://www.freefrequentflyermiles.com/index.htm

Before you sign up with any FFP, be sure to take advantage of their referral sign up bonuses (if available), which will benefit both parties but you need an existing member to refer or invite you.

For instance, the current UA refer-a-friend will give new member 3K bonus miles upon enrollment. Depending on your home base airport, if flying UA is an good option for you, I will be more than happy to refer you. Just send me a PM and I will be more than happy to provide you the info. :D

OT: pgary, in case you haven't noticed yet. I think you probably have to fix your FTer signature or something. Becasue whenever you refer to "read my website below", it never shows the link nor the web address. That does confuse people, especially newbies, you know.;)

That's weird. Free Frequent Flyer Miles
shows up in my signature as a link whenever I see anything I have posted. If anyone reading this cannot see this signature, please PM me, especially if you have any idea why this is happening. Thanks.

It's possible lin821 has turned off the ability to view signatures.

It's on by default. Some people found them distracting and shut them off.

BTW - I can see you signature

Thanks for pointing out this "Show Signature" feature, Mary2e. I didn't know the problem with from my end. :o

I don't think it was on by default though. I don't recall turning it off at all since I enjoy reading fellow FTers' signatures. After reading your post, I looked into the my profile options. The "Show Signature" option was unchecked. :confused: No wonder I haven't been seen anyone's sig for quite a while. Now I can see the signature again!

My apology to pgary. There's nothing wrong with your signature. Hope my innocent confusion would help others that happen to be on the same boat like I did.