Stick with one Brand "Flight" and Hotel for rewards?

[Rene Desmarais]

I'm very late in the game for rewards.  I'm 53yr olds

Since I'm Canadian, RC credit Card is no go.  I've been told there's better cards out there and been looking into a Credit Card (for the best travel rewards).

Also Is it best to stick with one Hotel and Flight brand for rewards? or stick with the cheapest Hotel and flight?

Need seasoned Travel Vets' input..  lol

[Zacharius]

I guess it depends on how much you plan to travel. I practically live out of a suitcase, and loyalty is very rewarding to me (airlines, hotels, and car rentals). But even if you travel just a few times a year, you're unlikely to reach a level of meaningful loyalty unless you're spending a lot of money. 

[cmich068]

If you travel enough to get a higher loyalty status, then sticking to one brand can be smart. 

If you don't, then price is king. 

[Lovetocruise2002]

We are also Canadian as many here already know. However, because we live in Southern Ontario, and we are really close to the border, we almost always fly out of Detroit. Because DTW is a hub for Delta, we mainly fly Delta. Delta also has the most non-stop options for us for Florida and we hate to make connections so that is another reason why we stick to that airline. Do we fly enough to rack up a ton of Skymiles? No way. But that airline makes sense for us because of where we are. 

Hotels are a bit trickier to build up loyalty. There are certain hotels that I gravitate to in each of the places we visit, but they are not necessarily the same line. I collect loyalty points wherever I can for hotels. After a few years, I finally have enough IHG points for 2 free nights

As for credit cards, we love our RBC Signature Visa Black. It is a US visa. It bills in US dollars and we pay in US dollars. We use this card for all travel in the US. Because all hotels, air, cruise fares go on this card, we rack up quite a few points. This card has cash back. Every 10,000 points is $100 cash back. You can also redeem points for merchandise if you want. But we always use it for credit back to the card. 

[Sweety]

We fly Southwest because we live in Chicago. On October Southwest flight schedule increase to August 2024. I will be booking three flights that morning. One to Fort Lauderdale and two to Orlando.

[WAAAYTOOO]

@Zacharius and @cmich068 have it right.  It’s about volume/frequency and $$.  Back when I traveled a lot for work, it made sense and cents to stick with particular brands and the rewards were great.  Now that I have retired and my statuses have all lapsed, I have no incentive to stick with anyone in particular.  Now it’s all about price and convenience.  Whatever works.

I guess the one piece of advice I will offer is do NOT chase loyalty points for the sake of discounts/perks.  Unless you plan on traveling a lot, the frequency programs are probably not going to help you that much.  

[tjcruisers]

Airlines I go with whatever is convenient at the time (even when I travelled for work could never really accumulate enough point for anything worthwhile). Hotels they all seems to be owned by one of three companies and we usually stick to one company, also as an added bonus I can book personal travel through my companies travel tool and get the corporate rate (usually a discounted rate and perks)

[tjcruisers]

42 minutes ago, Lovetocruise2002 said:

We are also Canadian as many here already know. However, because we live in Southern Ontario, and we are really close to the border, we almost always fly out of Detroit. Because DTW is a hub for Delta, we mainly fly Delta. Delta also has the most non-stop options for us for Florida and we hate to make connections so that is another reason why we stick to that airline. Do we fly enough to rack up a ton of Skymiles? No way. But that airline makes sense for us because of where we are. 

Hotels are a bit trickier to build up loyalty. There are certain hotels that I gravitate to in each of the places we visit, but they are not necessarily the same line. I collect loyalty points wherever I can for hotels. After a few years, I finally have enough IHG points for 2 free nights

As for credit cards, we love our RBC Signature Visa Black. It is a US visa. It bills in US dollars and we pay in US dollars. We use this card for all travel in the US. Because all hotels, air, cruise fares go on this card, we rack up quite a few points. This card has cash back. Every 10,000 points is $100 cash back. You can also redeem points for merchandise if you want. But we always use it for credit back to the card. 

Out of curiosity how is flying out of Detroit? I'm midpoint between Toronto and Buffalo, but have thought about going out of DTW. We tend to go out of Buffalo, but they're all connecting flights. Don't want to go out of Toronto as it's a nightmare (have to drive by it to get to my office and travelled business out of it)

[Lovetocruise2002]

18 minutes ago, tjcruisers said:

Out of curiosity how is flying out of Detroit? I'm midpoint between Toronto and Buffalo, but have thought about going out of DTW. We tend to go out of Buffalo, but they're all connecting flights. Don't want to go out of Toronto as it's a nightmare (have to drive by it to get to my office and travelled business out of it)

We love flying out of Detroit. Most times it is very smooth. It is a very easy airport to navigate. Any delays or hiccups we have had are not usually due to the airport. It’s the airline. Traffic going in/out of the airport is always smooth. There are quite a few airport hotels at DTW that shuttle you straight to the terminal. The Westin is located right inside McNamara terminal (that is Delta’s terminal at DTW). We’ve been flying out of Detroit for years, decades even lol. I avoid Pearson like the plague. But sadly I might have to fly out of there next summer to Europe

If driving to DTW is not much trouble for you, I would suggest to price it out. Not sure where you are exactly but we know cruisers from around London, ON who sometimes cross at the Ambassador Bridge or Sarnia when they fly out of DTW. 

[smokeybandit]

We just use an Amazon Chase card. All that money rolls right back into Amazon rewards (which can be used to book travel if you book through the Chase travel center).

 

[Cactus527]

The credit cards I have are for Southwest Airlines and through our bank. The bank one I really like because I can use those points anywhere that they have a partnership, which helps with hotel especially when traveling. I just booked all of our summer vacation hotel reservations with points on the card, and I think we ended up paying somewhere around $200 for 10 nights of hotel stay. Those points are worth it! The Southwest credit card is really nice since we are near an airport that has many Southwest flights, and if I use it for purchasing things through the airline, I get multiple times the points that I spend (e.g. $300 in airfare translates to 900 points). The best thing is that I can also transfer my bank points to Southwest Airlines!

[tjcruisers]

18 hours ago, Lovetocruise2002 said:

We love flying out of Detroit. Most times it is very smooth. It is a very easy airport to navigate. Any delays or hiccups we have had are not usually due to the airport. It’s the airline. Traffic going in/out of the airport is always smooth. There are quite a few airport hotels at DTW that shuttle you straight to the terminal. The Westin is located right inside McNamara terminal (that is Delta’s terminal at DTW). We’ve been flying out of Detroit for years, decades even lol. I avoid Pearson like the plague. But sadly I might have to fly out of there next summer to Europe

If driving to DTW is not much trouble for you, I would suggest to price it out. Not sure where you are exactly but we know cruisers from around London, ON who sometimes cross at the Ambassador Bridge or Sarnia when they fly out of DTW. 

Will definitely give it a look. I'm in the Hamilton area, about a 3 hr drive to DTW. With Pearson one problem around here is traffic is bad from 6am to 8pm, especially the 401. One accident and it might take me 3+ hrs just to get to Pearson. That's one of the reasons we tend to go out of Buffalo, other is it's usually around $500 a person cheaper.  Also like having to go through customs in the comfort of my car rather than standing in line for an hour. We want to do some west coast cruises, but the connecting flights out of Buffalo tend not to go through Chicago or Detroit, most seem to be through Boston or NY.

[Lovetocruise2002]

6 minutes ago, tjcruisers said:

Also like having to go through customs in the comfort of my car rather than standing in line for an hour.

I totally agree with this point! And when flying out Buffalo or Detroit, it makes it a domestic flight which usually ends up cheaper. For us, DTW is a no brainer. It's 4 hours to Pearson, 45 minutes to DTW. And if we have a flight prior to 10am, we just stay one night at one of the airport hotels and make use of their park and fly packages.

[Obdave]

Grab a card with transferable points. Chase, citi or Amex.  Check each one to make sure they have transfer partners (airlines and hotels,) that are useful to you. 
I do carry both an Amex delta platinum and an Alaska card for the free checked bags and companion tickets they provide. Those benefits easily cover the cost of the cards annually ($250 and $99 respectively.). 

[TimeRacer]

Everyone above has excellent advice. Frequency is key. I have Southwest rewards because I fly with them most often. My city isn't a hub, but they offer the most direct flights to the places I frequent. Hotels, I have multiple loyalty accounts since I tend to go with whatever chain is where I wanna be. I have been favoring Hilton brands more, because they do sales for rewards members. It may only save me $15/night, but hey, that's a good sandwich from a local joint once I'm where I need to go.

[cruisefam86]

If you travel a lot sticking with one brand helps. But by a lot I mean at least 2x a month! In 2 years my husband earned enough Hilton points for 10 nights in Hawaii and 4 nights In other hotels. The airline points don’t add up as well bc he has trouble staying completely loyal. He tried but then realized if he can get a direct or better flight with another airline it’s not worth the points. So he will finish the year a couple thousand miles and few hundred dollars shy of platinum….about 1 flight

[TessFromFlorida]

Chase Ultimate Rewards and Delta Sky Miles cards have saved me the most and both had generous sign on bonuses. I also had excellent sign on bonuses for the AmEx Hilton and Chase and AmEx Bonvoy cards. Check TPG for current offers. The Royal card isn't a very good one, you are better off with 10% off AARP gift certificates (you can join at any age) and MyVegas Slots 10% wild card discounts, IMHO. As some say here, once you blow through sign on bonuses, stick with 2 cards. Some have 2x, 3x points for groceries and gas, others for travel purchases. I have stickers on my cards to remind me which to use  

 

* ask your friends and family if they have any of the cards you end up deciding to sign up for. They may get a bonus on top of your sign on bonus just for sending you a link. 

[steverk]

I usually stay at Comfort Inn. Their loyalty program is generous enough to get free rooms pretty regularly, but not much more.

As far as airlines are concerned, there's a recurring theme in this thread. If you live near a major hub for an airline, then that's the airline you'll usually fly. It makes sense.  The flights will simply be better on that line.

If you don't live near a hub, then you're probably better off chasing the lowest price. 

I live in Houston,  so it's Southwest or United all the way for me.

[Andy & Sheryl Unwin]

On 10/20/2023 at 4:31 PM, WAAAYTOOO said:

@Zacharius and @cmich068 have it right.  It’s about volume/frequency and $$.  Back when I traveled a lot for work, it made sense and cents to stick with particular brands and the rewards were great.  Now that I have retired and my statuses have all lapsed, I have no incentive to stick with anyone in particular.  Now it’s all about price and convenience.  Whatever works.

I guess the one piece of advice I will offer is do NOT chase loyalty points for the sake of discounts/perks.  Unless you plan on traveling a lot, the frequency programs are probably not going to help you that much.  

Totally agreed. Pre-Covid I was on the road something like 40 weeks a year. I had status with American, Delta and Southwest, all of which are now long gone. There is no chance of them returning now.

I also lost status with both Hilton and Hyatt brands. However, I was fortunate enough to gain "Lifetime Titanium" status with Marriott. So that in itself ensures benefits if I stay at a Marriott brand hotel.

[Riley]

One note for the SW Ontario folks headed to DTW - check into crossing at Sarnia. The Bluewater is often less-congested than the Ambassador Bridge and - though it seems further - might be a smoother crossing, especially as it's faster from London to go straight across.

We live in Chicago and so try to stick with United for everything plus I have a United Visa that accumulates miles. I use them to upgrade flights when we are flying to Europe or Asia, as I'm not a big fan of 10+ hour flights in Economy any more.

 

[Mturk]

Prior to 2020, we would always look for the best airline and hotel deals but that changed when at the end of 2019 my wife attained Super Elite status with Air Canada. That changed the dynamic for how we travel as her benefits makes it unattractive to fly with another airline, even if cheaper to do so. She travels for work, she's in China right now, and also has loyalty benefits with Bonvoy. Add to that credit cards with Air Canada and Bonvoy rewards and we're kind of hooked. Once travel resumed after the pandemic, we were able to use a lot of the accumulated points we earned and now we're back to accumulating again.