Many people in the United Arab Emirates prefer to travel in business class nowadays, and others often wonder how they can afford to do so.
The reality is that the great majority of those who fly business class are probably not actually paying to do so and are able to fly in business and sometimes first class with the help of Air Miles.
Air Miles are points that can be collected when credit cards that include such a rewards scheme are used to pay for particular services or goods.
These points are then able to be redeemed in the form of air travel discounts.
Anyone who is a frequent flier who would like to be able to travel business class should ensure that their credit card has reward points that include Air Miles.
There are also a number of tips that can be followed in order to make certain that the maximum amount of Air Miles possible is earned.
Air Miles debit cards have low annual fees but also come with very low rewards.
Using an Air Miles credit card is the best way to increase Air Miles earning power, which can help cardholders to earn more than 1.25 miles per every AED4 that is spent, as well as a further discount of 25%.
Benefits tend to vary depending on the nature of the specific credit card being used.
There are a number of credit cards offered by banks in the UAE that provide excellent Air Miles reward points.
These cards include the Emirates Islamic Skywards Gold Card, NBAD Etihad Guest Platinum Card, Emirates-Citibank Ultimate Card and American Express Gold Card, though there are others.
One good tip to help users make as many Air Miles as possible is to focus on flying with the same airline every time.
Using the same two or three airlines every time you fly makes it more likely that you will be able to earn a much more effective rate of Air Miles.
Having 10,000 points with the same airline is always going to be more effective than having 1,000 points spread out across 10 different airlines, and it makes no sense to scatter points in such a way even when taking expiry dates into consideration.
It is also a good idea to consider making use of partner airlines.
Most airlines belong to either domestic or foreign carrier networks, which means that signing up with these organisations as a member of the frequent flyer programme of that airline provides extra advantages to earning, combining and redeeming airline points.
This will result in an increase of earned Air Miles points, and given that there is no charge to join most frequent flyer programmes, there is no reason not to sign up to multiple programmes.
Although more expensive air tickets result in more Air Miles being earned, paying more than is necessary just to get more points is inadvisable and counterproductive.
The best option is to compare different rewards and fares from different airlines and choose that which offers the best balance between cost and rewards.
