Accumulating Frequent Flier Points

[shakespear]

There's a lot of people who are young and get how to travel and to be mobile in todays world. Big companies hand out these miles and points like candy, if you're plugged in you can visit any spot in the world for cheap and with ease. 

I agree but being young has nothing to do with it. 

I accumulate enough frequent flyer miles each year to fly Business Class to Moscow each year.  My cash outlay is less that $125 for taxes and fees for a ticket worth betwen $3500-$4500.

Tips for accumulating frequent flyer miles would be an interesting new thread don't 'cha think admin & mods?   

[Admin]

I agree but being young has nothing to do with it. 

I accumulate enough frequent flyer miles each year to fly Business Class to Moscow each year.  My cash outlay is less that $125 for taxes and fees for a ticket worth betwen $3500-$4500.

Tips for accumulating frequent flyer miles would be an interesting new thread don't 'cha think admin & mods? 

>>Tips for accumulating frequent flyer miles would be an interesting new thread don't 'cha think admin & mods?<<

By all means, feel free to start a topic along those lines.

- Dan

PS - in fact, this CNN article fits right in -- http://www.cnn.com/2009/TRAVEL/11/20/mileage.millionaires/index.html

[shakespear]

>>Tips for accumulating frequent flyer miles would be an interesting new thread don't 'cha think admin & mods?<<

By all means, feel free to start a topic along those lines.

- Dan

PS - in fact, this CNN article fits right in -- http://www.cnn.com/2009/TRAVEL/11/20/mileage.millionaires/index.html

I'm not sure where to put it.  There is no "Travel" folder.  Go ahead and move my post and your reply into a new thread wherever you think it best fits in and I'll start contributing.   

[shakespear]

By all means, feel free to start a topic along those lines.

I am a "million-mile earner" with both Delta and American.  Only 15%-20% of these miles have come from flight credits.  It's really not that hard to do if you just a diligent with your planning.

First, "double dip" with every activity.  This means get a credit card that pays miles for every $1 transaction.  Delta has a good card with American Express and American has a relationship with MasterCard and Citibank.  Use the mileage credit card to pay for the transaction. 

For example, using SkyMiles Dining, I get 5 Delta SkyMiles for every $1 spent in certain restaurants.  I pay for it with the American Mastercard.  If the dinner bill was $70, I get 350 Delta miles and 70 American miles in the same transaction.

Second, pay attention to mileage specials and use them whenever possible.  Airlines offer mileage specials on virtually every product you would normally buy.  For example flowers for Women's Day.  There is almost always an internet florist offering 50 bonus miles per $1 spent for flower arrangements ordered on the internet.  Pay for it with your credit card and double-dip the miles. 

Rental cars, dining out, hotel rooms, brokerage accounts, home mortgages, cruises, and a plethora of other things are available to purchase with frequent flyer mileage specials attached.  Just do a little research before you buy.

Third, buying miles on special offers can often be a good value, depending on what you are going to use them for.  For example, both American and Delta were offering 50% bonus miles with every mileage purchase up to 50,000 miles per year.  The cost is about $0.028 per mile purchased.

Let's do the math.  A Business Class ticket to Russia costs 100,000 miles or $3800 cash.  You have 40,000 miles in your account and elect to buy 40,000 miles for $1120.  You receive your bonus of 20,000 miles and get your Business Class ticket.  You've spent $1120 to receive $3800 in cash value. 

Or, assume a Coach Class ticket to Russia costs 50,000 miles or $1000 cash.  You have 40,000 miles in your account and elect to buy 7,000 miles for $196.  You receive your bonus of 3500 miles get your coach class ticket.  You've spent $196 to receive $1000 in cash value.

More later.  Comments welcome.           

[GlobalEuphoria]

I am a "million-mile earner" with both Delta and American.  Only 15%-20% of these miles have come from flight credits.  It's really not that hard to do if you just a diligent with your planning.

First, "double dip" with every activity.  This means get a credit card that pays miles for every $1 transaction.  Delta has a good card with American Express and American has a relationship with MasterCard and Citibank.  Use the mileage credit card to pay for the transaction. 

For example, using SkyMiles Dining, I get 5 Delta SkyMiles for every $1 spent in certain restaurants.  I pay for it with the American Mastercard.  If the dinner bill was $70, I get 350 Delta miles and 70 American miles in the same transaction.

Second, pay attention to mileage specials and use them whenever possible.  Airlines offer mileage specials on virtually every product you would normally buy.  For example flowers for Women's Day.  There is almost always an internet florist offering 50 bonus miles per $1 spent for flower arrangements ordered on the internet.  Pay for it with your credit card and double-dip the miles. 

Rental cars, dining out, hotel rooms, brokerage accounts, home mortgages, cruises, and a plethora of other things are available to purchase with frequent flyer mileage specials attached.  Just do a little research before you buy.

Third, buying miles on special offers can often be a good value, depending on what you are going to use them for.  For example, both American and Delta were offering 50% bonus miles with every mileage purchase up to 50,000 miles per year.  The cost is about $0.028 per mile purchased.

Let's do the math.  A Business Class ticket to Russia costs 100,000 miles or $3800 cash.  You have 40,000 miles in your account and elect to buy 40,000 miles for $1120.  You receive your bonus of 20,000 miles and get your Business Class ticket.  You've spent $1120 to receive $3800 in cash value. 

Or, assume a Coach Class ticket to Russia costs 50,000 miles or $1000 cash.  You have 40,000 miles in your account and elect to buy 7,000 miles for $196.  You receive your bonus of 3500 miles get your coach class ticket.  You've spent $196 to receive $1000 in cash value.

More later.  Comments welcome.           

  The Airline credit cards serve purpose for those looking to stock up on FF miles but I'd seriously suggest staying away from the actual credit cards.... high APR's, high cxl charges, yearly maint. fee's... not worth it when considering the other options.

  Four of the major carriers based in the US offer a better solution then the credit card... "bank cards." Most will kick off with 20k to 30k miles right off the bat and then give the additional 1FFM per $1 spent... CXL fee's aren't applied so one can close out when needed without penalties and there's little in the form of add on charges. The basic requirement is simply opening an account with bank "X" and making sure a minimum amount of $ is deposited electronically (direct deposit) into the account each month, usually between $200-300 per month. Aside from CitiBank, all of the FFM bank cards enable you to wire money from a paypal account so you don't even have to bother with setting up direct deposit with your employer.

  Grabbing even more points aside from the above mentioned CC's is seriously easy through numerous methods such as shopping through your carriers portal. Month to month and at times weekly, each carrier will offer up different pt totals for the consumer to take advantage of..... buy a pair of sunglasses through sunglasses hut and get 5x bonus pts per $1 spent, etc...

  If you travel up the street, across the state or across a border, you can take advantage of that as well. Hotels offer you the chance to grab their own pts and parlay them (best option) into FF pts or you can set up your hotel account to automatically apply their pts into your desired carrier FF program (usually not worth it). The same process applies to rental cars and most companies, especially Avis & National offer some serious perks for just renting a car for the day.... I often grab a car on a day off to cruise around in and earn some FF pts. National for example gives me a free rental on every third one I make, yet I'm still able to claim FFM's for the free rental.

  You have other programs who work FFM programs such a survey groups which have you filling out a 10 min survey and flipping you anywhere from 250-1,000 FFM for just giving your opinion on a random topic. Even something as simple as searching the internet can reward you with FFM's such as Bing.

  Keep in mind before diving in for FFM's, you need to select the carrier that best suits your travel needs. Thankfully this process is rather simple with the newly shifted Airline Alliances... One Star just shifted around to include Continental and United. That made my year as I'm a Continental guy myself and hated having to fly Delta to aquire FFM's when Continental wasn't coming up with what I wanted.... Delta and Continental were apart of the SkyTeam.

   As with most things.... do your homework on this topic and you'll be getting FFM's for everything... There's not much that I pay for now a days that doesn't come with attached FFM's.  From buying groceries to paying the rent & utilites. Toss in a mileage run now and again and you'll be sitting on plane for free before you know it.

[GlobalEuphoria]

A little more info for FF Pts and the travels that lie within.....

The following post(s) will contain information pertaining to travel from the United States to Europe & FSU.  Also included will be discount airfare from within Europe to the FSU. I'll try to update this thread frequently.

Also keep in mind, most flights to the FSU are usually not direct flights... (your city to the FSU with no stops). Keeping that mind, usually your best bet, especially outside of summer time, is to grab a cheap flight into a major European hub and then grab a discounted direct flight into the FSU. The miles you aquire for that last leg are normally not worth it as you can grab some miles with a discount airline, save a few dollars and probably save yourself a little jet lag.

The following will help you to grab a cheap flight, save some time and money and best of all grab maximum FF Miles to get you back to the FSU on a free flight thanks to your newly acquired FF Miles.


*This is a work in progress so bare with me.


First off, before you get started looking into specific deals, keep in mind that you can grab a good amount of points by doing some of your normal daily purchases via your airlines shopping portal (link). I won't list the ongoing deals with each respective airlines shopping portals as the deals are always changing but it's almost a must to keep your eye on these deals.... check once a week. Take myself for example... I go to Continental's online shopping mall to make many purchases via their link to WalMart. Currently it's 3pts per $1 spent on all items outside of food, so instead of walking in and just grabbing and paying I now get it online, get points and more often then not the items are waiting for me to pick up at the courtesy desk. If you make purchases for business or just spend a few $$ shopping on the regular, go this route before even step foot inside a store.... remember the name of the FF mile game is to get maximum points and with options like this, grabbing points has never been easier.


Open Deals/Getting yourself Started (no Airline specific deals) :



First off, get some miles easily and efficently via E-Miles ............

If your loyal to one of the major carriers in America or Europe, check out E-Miles, a web based survey sight that sends you online survey's which earn you points. The survery's aren't sent out a lot but yet come frequently enough that your able to earn miles at nice pace without having your email account flooded by spam and the like. Most carriers will enable you to earn up to 5k miles.
E-Miles -- http://www.e-miles.com/home.do


Grab FF Miles for simply playing games, searching the web, etc... Club Bing (MSN) offers you the chance to rack up frequent flyer miles for doing simple tasks that we all find ourselves doing while on the net..... basically, skip Google and use Bing as your search engine.  FF Miles do take a bit to hit your respective account but it's still a great way to earn miles on a consistant basis.
(Learn more & sign up) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Club_Bing


Head on over to Swag Bucks (totally free service) via the link below to get yourself set up for free FF Miles on your carrier. Swag Bucks will email you special offers on random items for sale on the internet. Your email doesn't get bombarded with numerous emails and the offers are pretty good and are random enough to keep you interested in what offer just might be coming your way next. Please sign up via the link listed as I will get a few bouns miles and you will too.
http://www.swagbucks.com/?cmd=sb-register&rb=1034452


Live in the Seattle/ NW area ? Go grab a car wash (Elephant Car Wash) and gain some miles for simply keeping your car clean... gotta have a nice clean ride to impress your future FSU wife. 
http://www.moderncarcare.com/hotnews/elephant-car-wash-offers-frequent-flyer-miles.html



FOR UK BASED TRAVELERS :

Check out Eurmiles and grab yourself some free FF Miles. This site is for UK residents only ! This site is similar in nature the ones listed above. You'll get random deals sent to you for internet purchases on items from various sites. Points are racked up through clicking on the deals or performing searches through their site. Most FF Mile points seem to hit your account a little late with points being credited to your account 4-6 weeks from the time you grab each point total.
http://www.eurmiles.com/

Airline Alliances :

If you're not familiar with the three major alliances... Sky Team, Star Alliance & One World... these three groups represent the largest air carriers from around the globe working together to offer you the consumer more flight options while still being able to claim FF Miles even when travelling on two different carriers.

In order to qualify for maximum FF miles, you need to make sure that if you're flying within the same Air Alliance when using different airlines. Another great reason to be aware of who is what alliance is the ability to use other alliance members Presidental Lounges. Even though Continental has flown you into Paris and they don't have a Presidental Lounge in the airport... their partner Air France does which entitles you to enter their lounge... that is if you have a Presidental Lounge membership with your respective airline.

Below are the three major alliances... click on the links to find out who flys with who. Don't forget to also scroll down below to the European Hub section to see which discount air carrier fly's out of which hub's and also which hub's offer Presidental Lounges for you to take advantage of.

Sky Team
www.SkyTeam.com

One World
www.OneWorld.com

Star Alliance
www.StarAlliance.com


AIRLINE SPECIFIC DEALS (FF Miles, Promo's, Cheap Tix, etc...- Continental, Delta, etc...)


CONTINENTAL AIRLINES (CO) ----


News Alerts :

Remember CO is changing from the Sky Team to the Star Alliance in November.
who's in the Star Alliance ? --  http://www.staralliance.com/en/

Current Promotional Offers :

** Double Frequent Flyer Miles awarded for all flights on CO untill 12/31/09


21,000 FF Miles for opening a Chase checking account
http://www.chase.com/ccp/index.jsp?pg_name=ccpmapp/shared/marketing/page/continental_21000_bonus&ID=0000009015


Earn Miles for food shopping at Shop Rite & Randall's :
http://www.continental.com/CMS/en-US/marketing/custcomm/promotions/Pages/GroceryPartners.aspx


CT,TX & NY residents can earn miles for simply paying your energy bill :
http://www.continental.com/CMS/en-US/Marketing/CustComm/Promotions/Pages/OtherPartners.aspx


Don't forget that simple internet purchases can earning you miles as well, always check the link below on a frequent basis as FF miles are upgraded and downgraded frequently along with associated companies being added or dropped.
http://www.continental.com/CMS/en-US/marketing/custcomm/promotions/Pages/onlineretailpartners.aspx


Grab some free miles 100-500 for simply reading about a few CO travel programs (quick & easy process) :
http://www.continental.com/web/en-US/content/products/cards/default.aspx?camp=ADHC&campyear=2009&sender=EMAIL_


Get emails for CO about current deals and earn yourself 100 points ( I usually get one email per week so no big deal with spamming or flooding) Promo Code -- 57064
http://www.continental.com/web/en-US/apps/onepass/promotions/register.aspx



Current CO Deals from the US to Europe :

http://www.continental.com/web/en-US/apps/booking/specials/default.aspx


CO First Class & Business Class Deals :

Click on the link below for updated deals on upgraded tickets, prices vary and shift often for First & Business Class...great deals are always available during fall and winter.http://www.continental.com/web/en-US/content/deals/offers/businessfirst.aspx




DELTA (DEL) :


NEWS ALERTS :

Don't have a Delta Frequent Flyer account.... go ahead and click on the link below, not only will you get yourself a number but Delta will kick in 1,000 miles just to get you started (totally free) :
http://www.delta-offers.com/offers/go/skymilesbonus

Grab 15k miles with Delta by opening an account with Suntrust and get an additional 1mile per dollar spent when using your check card. http://www.suntrust.com/portal/server.pt/community/chk_suntrust_skymiles_check_card/1905

Have bad eye sight ? Even if you don't, you can schedule a simple eye exam for Lasik surgery and grab 5k for the appointment. Get the proceedure done and that's an extra 20k FF miles (free flight).http://www.lasikplus.com/lasik-plus-landing/deltapromo.asp


Get 500 FF miles just for taking a quick personality test.
http://www.delta.com/marketing/personality/

Delta deals to Europe & beyond :
http://www.delta.com/planning_reservations/deals_offers/index.jsp



American Airlines :


3k in miles for opening an account with Guaranty Bank :
http://www.guarantybank.com/AA3Kemail/


Free FF miles through Bose entertainment systems, click on the link and go grab some points :http://www.aa4miles.com/miles4bose/index.jsp

30k in FF Miles if you open an account with Chase/Visa... this is for a credit card where as the other deals for other airlines are for check cards and opening up a bank account.
http://creditcards.citicards.com/usc/Travel/AA/Multi/Sept09/Double/30000/fly9/default.htm?sc=6VV3AB89&BTData=C02127C746C61755D534A4AB7A2A0ACAC9C9D9281FBF6F8F3F4CA0FA59B9&BT_TRF=122501&ProspectID=E9A31E77563B439AA6F82DC2BF8CBE3F

Current American Airline Deals :
http://www.aa.com/netsaaver/viewNetSAAverHome.do?anchorLocation=Shopping+Links+%2FHome+page&url=%2Fnetsaaver%2FviewNetSAAverHome.do&_locale=en_US&reportedTitle=Deal

NorthWest Airlines :

NWA and KLM work hand in hand are apart of the SkyTeam... NWA/KLM is something a FSU traveler should keep an eye on. Go ahead and fly another carrier but always keep your eyes open for special deals like the one below to gain some miles and an eventual free trip.

Earn 10,000 miles with NWA buy making a few simple purchases through their Skymall affiliates. The deal for this offer is make one purchase and get 1,000 miles... you can make up to 10 purchases - 10,000 miles. Trick is to find something for a dollar or two and repeat that or purchase another low cost item. This is a great bargain.
http://www.nwa.com/features/mdg09/?omni=em.solo.20090424.v2.momsdadsgrads.WPMallSolo.CTA

United Airlines :

Ongoing deals for FF Miles through United :
http://www.united.com/page/article/1,,52102,00.html?navSource=Dropdown07&linkTitle=earnmiles

Current Deals :
http://www.united.com/page/article/0,6867,50066,00.html?jumpLink=%2Fbonusbar_specialdeals




Air Canada :


Some FF miles through Tropicana, use the following code to get your points, KF4ATN3H
http://www.choosemore.ca/login.aspx


Get TRIPLE FF miles for flying Air Canada's Rapid Air department. (Toronto-Montreal-Ottawa)
http://www.aircanada.com/en/offers/aeroplan/rapidair/rapidair.html

Great gift option when heading over to the FSU or other International destinations. Get 2 FF miles for every dollar spent when purchasing items online from the Duty Free section of Air Canada... grab that special gift before you leave and get some miles. I wish Continental did this deal.http://www.aircanada.com/en/travelinfo/onboard/dutyfree/index.html

Ongoing deals on flights :
http://www.aircanada.com/en/offers/air/index.html?src=leftboxoffers



British Airways :

Always tried to fly BA when possible but when it comes to the FF Mile game, they are one of the worst at offering deals. Don't expect this section to fill up anytime soon. More often then not you'll see deals to buy items through their shopping affiliates such as the perks listed below.

BA fly's within the One World Alliance so go after the affiliated points and then transfer them over. This is the best way to aquire FF miles with BA considering they are so infrequent with their own FF mile deals.

Spend 200 pounds at Selfridges and get a 40 pound voucher to use on a BA flight or BA related internet purchase. No link for this one, must apply at a kiosk at any Self's store.

100 FF Miles for signing up with BA :
http://www.baaworldpoints.com/



Virgin Airways :

This will be for the UK based Virgin, Virgin America doesn't offer much as of yet.


Sweet deal for anyone looking to book a trip by mid November. Book a full fare roud trip flight and get a $300 prepaid Amex Card.http://www.virgin-atlantic.com/corporate/micropage.view.do?id=16948


Get 500 bonus miles for staying with a Marriott based in the UK or Eire. Expires at the end of this month,Oct.
http://www.marriott.com/rewards/mesOffer.mi?marrOfferId=446329&displayLink=true


Ukraine International Airways :

UIA rarely offers FF Mile deals but they do offer a program called the Panorama Club :
http://www.flyuia.com/eng/club/panorama-club/welcome.html

While UIA themselves offer little to no FF Mile promo's, their partners do. Click on the link below to see who works hand in hand with UIA :
http://www.flyuia.com/eng/club/panorama-club/partners.html

Current airfare sales & deals can be found here :
http://www.flyuia.com/eng/lowest-fares/UIA-lowest-fares.html


Aerosvit :

Similar to UIA in that little to no FF Mile promo's are offered directly via the airline themselves. Aerosvit does release numerous discounted fares throughout the year, especially in the fall and winter from NYC to Moscow or Kiev.

Aerosvit's FF program, Meridian, does offer more advantages then Ukraine Int Airlines and is well worth joining (free).
http://www.aerosvit.ca/e_us/meridian.html


Current deals and promotional offers on Aerosvit :
http://www.airfarewatchdog.com/NEWSADVICE/AirfareWatchBlog/tabid/54/articleType/ArticleView/articleId/1527/AeroSvit-Spring-Sale-to-Ukraine-Elsewhere.aspx



European Hubs & Discount Carriers :


European Hubs to fly into. This is best used if you are NOT an European resident.

The following Hubs are the best Hubs to use when you're looking to grab a cheap ticket from a non European based country into Europe with the FSU being your final destination. Most discount carriers have their own version of FF miles with some giving miles and other's just offering something simple like rewarding your frequent trips with perks of some nature.

I'm a big fan of using both sets of airlines with or against each other. More often then not you're going to find a cheaper deal and easier overall itinerary when going with a major carrier into European City X and then jumping on a discount carrier into the FSU. This aspect does require a little patience with looking over so many discount airfare options but the end result will usually have you smiling. Again, the following HUBS & Carriers are deemed to be as your best options...if you have another method or carrier you like to use... go for it ! While the Hubs listed below do have many other discount carriers, I tried to list only the ones who fly into the FSU...also keep your eyes open to some flights as some carriers only fly into select FSU based cities outside of winter.

Lastly, in regards to the following Hubs.... most of them offer a few different Presidental Lounges for North American based airlines and their affiliates... so now you're able to kick back a little... grab a drink or two and even a meal and shower. I can't stress this one enough... you should always plan a few good solid hours inbetween for your connecting flights. Not only are you going to experience delays because of weather or mechnical issues but a few hours inbetween is going to let you recharge and energize yourself at a Presidental Lounge before jumping on your final flight and into the FSU. There's no need to drop a full day off your schedule because jet lag or other issues... grab a few quick hours at a lounge to regroup, relax and recharge... trust me you'll thank me later.

Airport Lounge info :
If you're new to whole lounge experience, click on the link below to learn more about the whole scene. From free drinks,food and showers... it could be your new best friend and home away from home.
http://wapedia.mobi/en/Airport_lounge



Cities/Hubs :

Amsterdam Schiphol (AMS)  Easyjet, Sterling, transavia, SkyEurope, Blue1 

Brussels (BRU) : Brussels Airlines, Sterling, Blue1, Condor, Jetairfly, Thomas Cook, SkyEurope 

Cologne/Bonn (CGN)  Easyjet, Germanwings, Air Berlin, tuiFly, Wizz Air 

Hamburg (HAM) : airbaltic, Air Berlin, Blue Wings, Brussels Airlines, FlyBE, Germanwings, Hamburg International, Intersky, norwegian.no, TUIfly

Munich (MUC)  Easyjet, Brussels Airlines, Air Berlin, tuiFly, HapagLloydExpress, German Wings, Blue1 

* If you're flying in from Aussie or Kiwi Land then try and get yourself into Budapest and then onto one of the follwing. Coming in from North America to Budapest is too far and too pricey.

Budapest (BUD)  Wizz Air, SkyEurope, EasyJet, Ryanair, Sterling, Jet2.com, AerLingus, Germanwings, Air Berlin, Norwegian Air 

*If you can stretch an extra day into your trip and you're coming in from North America, I'd suggest looking into grabbing a cheap hotel room in the area of Stansted Airport(Cambridge/London). Stansted isn't close enough to Heathrow or Gatwick to properly do a change over in one day and with paying the travel fee's of going between both airports, you'd be better off just grabbing that ticket you thought was just a touch too high as you'll be spending that amount and then some in trying to do fit both into your plans. However, Stanstead is the mother of all discount carrier airports in the UK and if you're flexible with your plans, then check out one of the following :

London Stansted (STN) : Easyjet, Ryanair, Air Berlin, Kibris Turkish Airlines, FlyGlobespan, Norwegian.No, SkyEurope, Germanwings, Atlantic Airways, Blue1, AtlasJet, Transavia, Fly Niki 

[Gylden]

Well I am not sure about FFM but I allways take Iceland Air from USA to Oslo and then into Ukraine on Wizz Air or Norwegian into Russia. In Oct. it cost me just over 100 USD round trip to Kiev from Oslo for two. The nice bonus with taking Iceland Air is that they stop in Iceland (short flight from the east coast) usually let you stay over if you wish in Iceland for up to 7 days and relax in the "Blue Lagoon" (nice way to break up the jet lag and refresh yourself!

[boaterguy]

I have never been a fan of FF miles. After looking at the above examples it seems the only benefit over a good cashback card is if you want to fly 1st class. I say this from my experience's from trying to use United's FF miles. I have yet to find a ticket to Russia for 50,000 miles. My guess is you have to nail that seat probably a year in advance. Of the several times I tried to book they always said it was a premium time??? and the coach ticket would be 80,000 miles! I ended up using all my miles to get a TV because they were going to expire!

I am an avid fan of American Express Bluecash. After the 1st $6500 charged the cashback jumps to 1.25% for anything and 5% for gas,groceries,and convenience stores. As far as the bonus miles you can get from special purchases,etc. I have always found a savy shopper can always do much better price vs. FF miles value. Hotels are a prime example! Being a frequent traveler in the US I have learned their ins and outs of getting the best rates for hotels in the many cities I stay. Priceline anyone? They are great once you learn the system. I think one of my classic stays with priceline was at a Renaissance. We were sitting in the hottub talking with a couple. IIR we were paying $61 per night. The couple was paying $400 per night! Don't forget I am getting cashback for the stay as well!

[shakespear]

The Airline credit cards serve purpose for those looking to stock up on FF miles but I'd seriously suggest staying away from the actual credit cards.... high APR's, high cxl charges, yearly maint. fee's... not worth it when considering the other options. 

Any suggestion about using credit cards carries the implicit understanding that you are able to pay off your balance in full each month.  If you are unable to do this, you should NOT use credit cards to accumulate frequent flier miles because the accompanying interest charges make it a rather expensive process.   

[shakespear]

One of the easiest and most painless ways to accumulate extra frequent flier miles is by using the Dining Programs offered by several airlines.  

Here is the link for Delta:
http://skymiles.rewardsnetwork.com

Here is the link for American:
http://www.aa.com/i18n/AAdvantage/partners/dining/aadvantageDining.jsp

To join you simply sign up for the program. At sign up, provide the number for at least one of your credit cards. Then use that card to pay for your dining experience at one of their member restaurants. The bill, tip and tax are automatically eligible for between 3-10 frequent flier miles for each $1 spent. You don't have to notify the restaurant in advance that you are participating in the program - the credit happens automatically and appears on your mileage statement within 7-10 days after your dining experience.  

You can only sign one card up at one program (you can't get Delta AND American miles for the same dining experience). The website of each program provides lists of participating restaurants in your home city.

Pay for the meal with an airline credit card and you will be "double-dipping" your dollars spent.    

Pay attention to special dining offers that these programs will offer periodically. Currently at Delta, until 12-31-2009, you get an additional 500 miles for every $50 spent at participating restaurants in addition to the regular points earned for the dining experience. The max allowed on this bonus is an extra 5000 miles.  

THE REALLY GOOD PART about this program is that by using it, you extend the expiration date of your existing frequent flier miles. Each transaction refreshes the expiration date on your entire mileage balance so that by dining out once every month at a participating restaurant, your accumulated miles should NEVER expire.  

I accumulate betwen 10,000 - 20,000 miles per year using this program alone.