Booking your first flight using points can seem overwhelming, but it becomes much easier when you know the basics. Below is a straightforward guide to help you plan and complete an award flight redemption.

1. Decide If Using Points Makes Sense

Before searching for flights, consider whether redeeming points is worth it. Sometimes cash fares (even using a travel portal/cash-back option) offer better value than using points, especially for cheaper domestic flights. For premium international travel, transferring points to airline partners often yields the most value.

2. Be Flexible With Your Plans

Award travel works best when you’re open to flexibility in:

• Travel dates
• Departure/arrival airports
• Number of stops

Greater flexibility increases your chances of finding good award availability. If you live near a smaller city, you may need to reposition yourself at a larger hub first to access more award flights.

3. Identify Airlines That Serve Your Destination

Start by finding which carriers fly to where you want to go. Tools like Google Flights or airport Wikipedia pages help identify flight options. Once you know the airlines serving your route, you can figure out which loyalty programs and points you can use to book those flights.

Example: To book United flights, you will want to use Air Canada or Avianca to search for flights with better award redemptions. More on this on another guide coming soon. (Join our WhatsApp group to access this for free and be notified once it drops.)

4. Figure Out Which Points You Can Use

Not all points are equally useful. Determine which points or miles can be redeemed on the airlines that fly your route. Flexible, transferable points (like those from Chase, Amex, Citi, or Capital One) often give more options because you can move them into multiple airline programs.

Example: Capital One transfers to American Airlines which other credit cards do not. Chase is the only one that transfer to Hyatt, which Hyatt has extremely good value for points. More on this on another guide coming soon. (Join our WhatsApp group to access this for free and be notified once it drops.)

5. Search for Award Availability

Visit airline websites to check for award flights, these are seats airlines release specifically for points redemptions. Note that:

• Award availability is different from cash ticket availability, just because you see a ticket available in cash, it doesn't mean is available to use on points redemption.
• Some seats are limited and disappear quickly
• Third-party tools can help find availability across programs

Third party tools like seats.aero help minimize the workload when searching for award flights.

6. Choose the Best Redemption

When you find multiple award flights, compare them based on:

• Points required
• Cash taxes/fees
• Flight times and connections
• Your own travel priorities

Sometimes it’s worth paying slightly more points to save time or avoid long layovers.

To check and see if a flight redemption is valuable, do the following calculation:

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if the result is above $.03 cents per points, then its a decent deal, anything higher is a great redemption.

7. Book the Flight

Once you’ve found a good option:

1. Transfer your points to the airline loyalty program you’ll use (Call airline first to check there is availability and it isn't a phantom reward)
2. Complete the booking on that airline’s website

Always pay any taxes/fees with a card that offers travel protections.

8. Book Your Return Separately (Optional)

Booking one-way award flights can give you more flexibility, especially if return availability is limited. You can repeat the same search and booking steps for your return trip.

Key Tips

• Always confirm award availability before transferring points, transfers are usually final.
• Use award search tools and calendar views to compare options.
• Remember that taxes and fees vary by airline and route
• Remember than to search for flights for an alliance, usually book award in one airline