You might be a "travel hacker" if...
Oct 29, 2016, 10:58 am
#1
Original Poster
Join Date: Nov 2010
Programs: Enough
Posts: 961
You might be a "travel hacker" if...
The airplane or lounge is your travel destination.
You manage your entire family’s credit cards.
You spell in fare buckets not the alphabet.
Y class… Y would you take it? [...]
You manage your entire family’s credit cards.
You spell in fare buckets not the alphabet.
Y class… Y would you take it? [...]
Source: Boomer Traveller
Anything you'd add the to the list?
Oct 30, 2016, 3:54 pm
#4
Used to be 'Travelergcp'
Join Date: Jul 2003
Location: New Orleans
Programs: AA Plat, Marriott Gold, Hyatt Globalist
Posts: 2,826
You have keyboard shortcuts on your phone/iPad to translate airline speak into English. Like you type 'WN' or 'B6' and it outputs Southwest or JetBlue.
Oct 30, 2016, 4:00 pm
#5
Join Date: Sep 2015
Programs: LH SEN; BA Gold
Posts: 8,405
Oct 30, 2016, 4:16 pm
#7
Join Date: May 2014
Location: CMH, HNL
Programs: UA, HA
Posts: 583
?? I must be using it incorrectly. I would've thought it was anyone who peeled back the simple everyman user interface on travel and took advantage of complex loopholes to improve their experience.
Oct 30, 2016, 5:31 pm
#8
Join Date: Sep 2007
Location: Central Mass
Programs: Independent
Posts: 4,829
For a lot of people, hacker means someone who creatively reuse other items or tools or code to achieve a different result. We tend to get a little miffed when it is used to cannot breaking in or misusing things, especially in this day and age of so much internet/computer misuse.
Oct 30, 2016, 6:04 pm
#9
Original Poster
Join Date: Nov 2010
Programs: Enough
Posts: 961
While I'm not a fan of the term "travel hacker" (note the quotation marks), I'm hard-pressed to find a better title for our hobby that would be generally understood by non "travel hackers" 
Saying "frequent flyer" wouldn't be right, because there are lots of people who fly a lot who aren't part of this community.
Saying "frequent flyer" wouldn't be right, because there are lots of people who fly a lot who aren't part of this community.
Oct 30, 2016, 6:25 pm
#11
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Nov 2006
Location: Bangkok or San Francisco
Programs: United 1k, Marriott Lifetime PE, Former DL Gold, Former SQ Solitaire, HH Gold
Posts: 11,886
Oct 30, 2016, 6:26 pm
#12
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Nov 2006
Location: Bangkok or San Francisco
Programs: United 1k, Marriott Lifetime PE, Former DL Gold, Former SQ Solitaire, HH Gold
Posts: 11,886
For a lot of people, hacker means someone who creatively reuse other items or tools or code to achieve a different result. We tend to get a little miffed when it is used to cannot breaking in or misusing things, especially in this day and age of so much internet/computer misuse.
Oct 30, 2016, 8:20 pm
#13
Join Date: Oct 2003
Location: Traveling the World
Posts: 6,072
You may be a Travel Hacker if
#1. You can find the best deals and then push others to book it cause the deal is too good to pass up.
#2 You can navigate the TSA line even if you don't have Pre Check and still have time for a coffee or breakfast post security.
#3 You use Social Engineerring to get more freebies.
#4. You can always get the best room in the hotel for less money.
#5 You know the FlyerTalk website at the back of your hand and use it as a resource to book a last minute vacation or business trip.
#6 You can maximize your miles to have more than one stop over and know which routes to book where your likely to be bumped and compensated.
#7. You never get jetlag as you know how to "reset" your bodyclock the same day.
#8. You will walk up and down the car rental counters to see if a car rental agency will beat the rate you were quoted by their competitor and you call and cancel the other car telling the agent on the phone about the long line at the counter.
#9 You use Flight Aware to track the inbound flight so you know if your delayed and then you recite the Waypoints to the pilot and you know that its an ETOPS flight.
#10 You leave your passengers off at Arrivals during the crazy busy period at Departures and reverse this at other times.
#11 You have been to three airline lounges in one day using Social Engineering.
#12 You never pay for Tea just ask for Hot Water from Starbucks and use the hotel tea packages they give you in the room for your travel stash.
#13 At Chipotle you order a Burrito Bowl and ask for half and half meats, beans skip the rice, add Fajita Vegetables, Corn Salsa, Guacamole and Cheese for $11 and ask for two tortillas and have them wrap it up and you got more for less.
#14 Bringing your Travel Mug and asking for a refill whether at the airport or other coffee shop and only pay the refill price than the more expensive price. Its Starbucks or Peets right?
#15 You always take the farthest left security line or customs lane to avoid the passengers who will mostly take the first line they see.
#16 You make your own Buy On Board Snacks and purchase the items at Target.
#17 You know the best restaurants are by a Church in Europe on a small square where the menu is only in the local language and you see locals eating there.
#18 At restaurants with a Soda Machine you ask for a cup and fill it with Soda Water or regular water and add the Chrystal Light Packets.
#19 You take the freeway in the opposite direction and then let Waze help you get to your ultimate destination using other routes back in the direction your going during commute hours to avoid the traffic jams or during a major event.
#20 You have Groupon and TravelZoo as your most frequently visited pages and use them for vacations to dining and you plan your trip around the Groupon or Travelzoo Deal.
#1. You can find the best deals and then push others to book it cause the deal is too good to pass up.
#2 You can navigate the TSA line even if you don't have Pre Check and still have time for a coffee or breakfast post security.
#3 You use Social Engineerring to get more freebies.
#4. You can always get the best room in the hotel for less money.
#5 You know the FlyerTalk website at the back of your hand and use it as a resource to book a last minute vacation or business trip.
#6 You can maximize your miles to have more than one stop over and know which routes to book where your likely to be bumped and compensated.
#7. You never get jetlag as you know how to "reset" your bodyclock the same day.
#8. You will walk up and down the car rental counters to see if a car rental agency will beat the rate you were quoted by their competitor and you call and cancel the other car telling the agent on the phone about the long line at the counter.
#9 You use Flight Aware to track the inbound flight so you know if your delayed and then you recite the Waypoints to the pilot and you know that its an ETOPS flight.
#10 You leave your passengers off at Arrivals during the crazy busy period at Departures and reverse this at other times.
#11 You have been to three airline lounges in one day using Social Engineering.
#12 You never pay for Tea just ask for Hot Water from Starbucks and use the hotel tea packages they give you in the room for your travel stash.
#13 At Chipotle you order a Burrito Bowl and ask for half and half meats, beans skip the rice, add Fajita Vegetables, Corn Salsa, Guacamole and Cheese for $11 and ask for two tortillas and have them wrap it up and you got more for less.
#14 Bringing your Travel Mug and asking for a refill whether at the airport or other coffee shop and only pay the refill price than the more expensive price. Its Starbucks or Peets right?
#15 You always take the farthest left security line or customs lane to avoid the passengers who will mostly take the first line they see.
#16 You make your own Buy On Board Snacks and purchase the items at Target.
#17 You know the best restaurants are by a Church in Europe on a small square where the menu is only in the local language and you see locals eating there.
#18 At restaurants with a Soda Machine you ask for a cup and fill it with Soda Water or regular water and add the Chrystal Light Packets.
#19 You take the freeway in the opposite direction and then let Waze help you get to your ultimate destination using other routes back in the direction your going during commute hours to avoid the traffic jams or during a major event.
#20 You have Groupon and TravelZoo as your most frequently visited pages and use them for vacations to dining and you plan your trip around the Groupon or Travelzoo Deal.
Oct 31, 2016, 12:46 am
#14
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: May 2012
Location: Sydney Australia
Programs: No programs & No Points!!!
Posts: 14,222
